Category: Lifestyle

What the Exit Interview with our Son and Daughter Revealed

So, how did we do? Why not conduct an exit interview when your adult offspring move out of the house. The intention is not for us to do a better job with our future children , but to get a fair assessment (can this really be fair and honest?) of how we did as parents.

Camper Envy Continued: The Answer to That Burning Camping Question

I am from Long Island, and camping was never in my vernacular. If there was ONE big reason why I didn’t want to join my husband Mitch on this retirement odyssey, it was the lack of facilities

What My Mother Knew That Took Me 20 Years to Find Out

My Mom was a big fan of my writing and said, “you should write a book. But I was too busy to write a book. I had a full-time job, three kids, and three dogs at home. Jessica, as documented in many blogs, needed help with every daily life skill.

Should We Do It? 6 Reasons to Try a Camper

6 Reasons to buy a camper! Mitch and I unknowingly were trendsetters before COVID-19. We bought a pop-up camper back in January prior to the Pandameic. POST-COVID- or MID- COVID, I am more than looking forward and prefer to use the camper and avoid hotels.

3 Greatest Moments of Day 160: Jess Chimes in with her Scales

It has been 160 days since normalcy. We worry if Jess is losing skills while she is distancing at home. Still, we experienced 3 Great Moments.

Brady’s Extraordinary Birth Story, as Told by Nana

Our youngest daughter Carly has a blood clotting disorder called von Willebrand Disease (vW). Giving birth can be extremely dangerous if not monitored correctly. This is the courageous story of Carly giving birth to her first child.

BYE BYE BIRDIES

We have a family of dysfunctional birds by our front door. Our home has a 20-25-foot covered entry, which includes a window over the front door. One day I looked up and noticed a sophisticated nest attached to the wall. I say “sophisticated” because it is not on a ledge, not on a limb, not […]

No Longer 50 Shades of Grey

One of my first blogs “A Bad Hair Day has a New Definition” was about NOT coloring my hair during the Pandemic. Now that three months have passed, I thought I would give an update. I cried “Uncle”! I gave up! Vanity overcame Virus! I went to the salon.

Why Mitch’s New Hearing Aids Cured My Mumbling!

I am not sure why Mitch resisted hearing aids.  Those closest to him have  encouraged Mitch to consider purchasing this much needed support. A typical conversation between Mitch and me would go something like this:  “Mitch, did you hear what is going on in Erie County today?”  Followed by, “Mitch, did you hear me?”  Mitch’s […]

Finally Seeing Our Daughter Jessica After 54 Days Apart

We have all lost a lot of control of our day-to-day “normal” lives during the Pandemic. Slowly we are trying to regain our footing and although things may be different that does not mean we will be worse off. I hope the lessons learned from this scary and unprecedented experience will lead us to a better tomorrow. I look forward to holding Jessica’s hands, receiving huge hugs and I will even tolerate Jess playfully pulling my messy, out of control hair!

My First Mother’s Day Without a Mom

My Mom passed away on February 6, 2020 before we “knew” about the impending Pandemic. We were able to say Good-bye to Mom in a traditional way, surrounded by friends and family in comparison to how people are mourning during social distancing. This is my first Mother’s Day without a Mom.

I ‘m Not Really a Control Freak BUT Can I Show You How to Do That My Way?

As the meme says, as long as everyone does it my way, I’m totally flexible… Mitch brought in a sub the other day  and I said, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT SUB? YOU ARE HOLDING IT NEXT TO YOUR PHONE WHICH IS GOING NEXT TO YOUR FACE AND NOW YOU JUST PUT THE DIRTY […]

Connecting with Others: Our Daughter Jessica Started My Path to Writing and Receiving

Our eldest daughter, Jessica, has a rare chromosome abnormality, uses a wheelchair, and needs total assistance with all daily life skills. Jess was born in 1982 and within the year we knew that there were many developmental issues. Jess just turned 38 years old and is a joy to all who know her and love […]

Have you Looked at Your Hands Recently?

Back in 70’s when Mitch and I started dating, he drew a picture of me.  His photo was pretty good, I was impressed. The details were there, hair and face looked familiar and perspective was good.  BUT, then I looked down at the hands and he drew reptiles!  Yes, I still married him four years […]

Men Vs Machines: My Dad and His 90+ Year Old Friends Learning Virtual Bridge in the Age of Social Distancing

My father  is 89 and has played bridge for many years. He has a  group of four men and  he is the youngster in the group. The senior member is 97. Bridge and social distancing are problematic because you must sit relatively close to each other, touch each other’s cards and breathe the same air. […]

“Hello, My Name is Vickie and I Just Bought a Pulse-Ox Finger Thingy”

  I used to be embarrassed about my purse buying.  Kind of like going to a support group and saying “Hi, my name is Vickie…and I just bought another designer purse.” Recently, my passion for shopping has taken a new direction. My husband Mitch and I have been isolating in a rural county of New […]

What’s So Funny? Laugh Meter

In 2005 my husband, Mitch, created a Laugh Meter to determine humor reactions; it’s based on a scale of 0.5-10. .” It took Mitch over 2 years of observation to finalize the rankings. When mitch doesn’t get my jokes I typically say, “you have no sense of humor.” He’s just not “laugh out loud” funny. […]

A Bad Hair Day has a New Definition

Victoria is 62 years old. She exercises regularly, tries to eat well and enjoys a glass or two (or three) of wine on occasion. She goes to the salon to get her hair colored every three weeks, she needed it every two weeks because once the grey root line started and spread it was visible but […]