Thanksgiving Update

I made it.

The first major holiday without my mom.

*sigh*

I think this was just the warm up for Christmas. lol

So the eight of us went out to eat (see post below) and that was nice. The food was good and the owners were Italian and from, where else? Brooklyn!! I tell ya…we’re taking over Florida!! LOL I meet more New Yorkers here In Florida than when I lived in New York. lol

So after that, we all went back to my house for a friendly (10/20 cents bet) game of poker and more eating while my kids watched one of their favorite movies National Treasure. They’re so psyched for Book Of Secrets to come out next month!

I also want to post some pictures of a couple of projects that Billy & I finally completed using things that belonged to my mother but my daughters and I are on our way to the gym to work off yesterdays meal so I’ll do it later. Have a great day!

Thanksgiving as a Vegetarian

Thanksgiving is my least favorite holiday. Always has been. Party because I don’t care for all the traditional “fall” foods. Seriously, there is nothing appealing to me at a Thanksgiving dinner. Also, as a long time vegetarian, any holiday that centers around killing an animal is not my idea of a celebration.

So on this Thanksgiving, I offer my condolences to all the turkey families out there who lost a loved one and I offer a funny for the day. (hee-hee)

More Funny Pictures at pYzam.com

Holiday Grieving

Grief is such a weird rollercoaster. It brings many unexpected emotions to the surface, and even more unexpected are the ways that we deal with those emotions.

This is my first holiday without my mother here.

I hate it.

After thinking about it for a while, I decided that the only way I would be able to get through the day in one piece, would be to do something that I never did with her. I feel like if I do something that is familiar and has memories attached to her, it will make her missing presence to overwhelming for me to handle.

After thinking about it, I decided to take my family out to eat. It’s something we’ve never done for a holiday. It’ll be me, Billy, Shawna, Jacqueline, Cimion, plus my Aunt Mary (my mom’s older sister) and our cousin Maryann and her son Paulie.

I think getting through this will be a walk in the park compared to Christmas.

*sigh*

I’m finding some comfort in doing symbolic things and finding ways to honor her, since she passed away in July. When we went back home to NYC to have a memorial service for my mother, I wanted to leave some of her ashes at my fathers grave. Billy did the honors but I found it easier to watch through the lens of my camera.

My fathers name was Frank (Francesco) and he died 20 years ago this past June. Although we had a rough relationship during my adult years, I have very good memories of my childhood.

Then we went to the grave of her second husband Tony (Antonio) and also left some of her ashes. Tony was an awesome man and Billy & I loved him very much. He passed away September 26, 2001, on their second wedding anniversary.

Last, we went to visit my grandparents grave (Marco & Maggie) and leave some of her there also. My grandfather died a while ago but my grandmother passed away five years ago at the age of 92. She was a fiesty and spirited woman who left her mark on all of us. My uncles Anthony and Rosario are also buried here.

Even though it was a long day, doing all of this made me feel good.

So…now it’s Thanksgiving. My first without being someone’s daughter. Yes, grief is weird.

Happy Thanksgiving Mommy.

I’m grateful I was able to spend 43 of them with you.

Getting Dressed Up

During our recent trip back home to Brooklyn, we attended a 50th wedding anniversary for my aunt (my mother’s youngest sister) and uncle. It was a fabulous party for two people that are just as much in love now, as they were on their wedding day.

These are some pictures that we took after we got dressed (we’re in the condo that we rented for that week. We sold our house in Brooklyn a couple of years ago). I love that Jacqueline has the heavy metal horns up. LOL

It was a very emotional party for me but I’m glad I went. I know it meant a lot to my aunt to have us there and watching my daughters shine on the dance floor was beautiful.

Someone there asked me about the “s” word (you unschoolers know what I mean). My poor daughters…they just don’t know how to interact with others without the public school system to teach them.

As I said in my post on unschooling and socialization, I laugh on the inside when someone asks me that.

Really…I do.

Rollerblading

Billy and the girls went rollerblading a couple of weeks ago and I snapped a few pictures of them as then left, and then again as they came home. This sure beats gym class in school. LOL

Daddy to the rescue.