Hello, there! Here I am again on a sunny, crisp Sunday afternoon - the first Sunday in Lent as a matter of face - writing another entry. I guess I am on a roll!
After a week of nothing but bad news, I just received some really good news but I am not free to share it with you as I have been told in no uncertain terms that I managed to ruin every surprise by spilling the beans so I am working really hard to improve my character. When you have the kind of heart that is thrilled by good things that happen to people and you spontaneously spread that joyous news, it is very painful to be told that you have ruined so many happy things for people. So, I'm working on being still.
Karen took Agnes Rose to have some photographs taken at Sears. They came out great and I think it is so cool that they give you a CD so you can put it in your computer and chose the options you want. Needless to say, it must have been very hard to choose among so many great shots. Agnes Rose is used to the camera as Joe takes great photos and videos. If you get a chance, go to their blog at the right "Notes from a Long Island" and click on Kinder Videos (I think, it is Kinder something) and you'll see what I mean.
Crones McMahon and Brady joined me for coffee this week at Starbucks. We sat at a window table and watched the world go by. It was very relaxing - great fun to be with gal pals. Crone McMahon is not in this area for too long as she travels constantly between Maryland, Saratoga and Boston as well as here. We like to catch her when we can! I really enjoyed yoga again this week and look forward to my next session. I actually showed Jack a few "wall" moves and he looked shocked that I could do them....mind you, he never saw them done correctly so the fact that I was able to raise my leg three inches off the floor behind my other leg was a big deal! Little does he know the instructor raises her leg behind her parallel to the floor!
Please keep a few of my pals in your prayers as they are going through some really rough patches. Keep me in your prayers, too, as tomorrow I have my CAT scan with results next week. I feel great so I don't expect to report any other kind of news. As a matter of fact, I may actually go to a St. Paddy's Day Dance at the Hibernians in a few weeks! I love to listen to the music and watch those that can dance the Irish dances dance. Nothing like some good Irish whiskey, soda bread and good dancers to watch!....except maybe to croon a few Irish songs after your throat is relaxed!
Believe!
As always, love from me to you!
February 21, 2010
February 19, 2010
Thoughtless
Guess I haven't had many thoughts to share since I haven't written to you in almost a month. I don't know where the time goes - sitting around watching to snow pile up is about it! We've been enjoying Agnes Rose and Bernadette - especially Agnes Rose and her antics in the snow. Joe is so good about doing the video bit.
There is so much going on outside of my own family that I can hardly keep up. I ask your prayers for a number of friends and a special girl who are all facing some major health crisis....and don't forget to pray for me as well.
I am feeling really good - especially on the days I go to yoga. Think there might be a connection between exercise and feeling good? Mmmm, perhaps I should give that some deeper thought!
I hear footsteps coming in the door which means that my dinner guests have arrived - Agnes Rose, Bernadette and their entourage!
Thinking of you always.
Believe!
As always, love from me to you!
There is so much going on outside of my own family that I can hardly keep up. I ask your prayers for a number of friends and a special girl who are all facing some major health crisis....and don't forget to pray for me as well.
I am feeling really good - especially on the days I go to yoga. Think there might be a connection between exercise and feeling good? Mmmm, perhaps I should give that some deeper thought!
I hear footsteps coming in the door which means that my dinner guests have arrived - Agnes Rose, Bernadette and their entourage!
Thinking of you always.
Believe!
As always, love from me to you!
January 23, 2010
Let Me Call You Sweetheart!
Mom will be 99 next Friday. It is hard to imagine and I wonder how she would view this if she understood what was happening? Ted and I were talking on the phone last night about how much his mom and dad and my mother would love our grandchildren. They were so crazy about little children. Aunt Lou was always a second grandma to my girls and that's why Karen gave Bernadette the middle name of Lucille to honor my aunt's memory. I think that was a very touching thing to do. Aunt Lou is very pleased, I am sure.
Today I started to teach Agnes Rose "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" so she would have a song ready for her Papa on Valentine's Day. She picks up tunes and words pretty swiftly for a two-year old. We'll be working on it. Truthfully, she does a great job of "Deck the Halls" but the season has gone - and I don't want to deck any more halls with anything for at least another 12 months!
Bernadette is smiling now and is adorable. She really gets a big smile when she sees her Mama. She appears to have darker hair than Agnes Rose - I think her coloring will be more like Karen's. We'll see, they change so much this first year.
Hope all is well with you. Keep the prayers and good karma coming this way.
Believe!
As always, love from me to you!
January 22, 2010
Hello Again!
Here I am again! Kate shamed me into writing to you since it has been such a long time - well, almost a month anyway. It has been a busy time in this household with the holidays, getting back to yoga (and yesterday I actually made it down to the mat and was able to get up again!)
John and Gladys DeMerit were visiting Port Washington 11050 so we got to spend a bit of time with them. We always have a grand time when we get together. I had not realized the last time they were at this house was for the wedding and here we are two babies later! When Agnes Rose was born, they stayed in stayed in Brooklyn as Joe and Karen were living there at the time. We are all hoping they will be back in the spring for Bernadette's baptism.
Kate and Ben were down for the long weekend. Kate sent me the photo above. I wish I could figure out how to put the photo where I want it instead of having them always lead the entry.
My health has been, thank God, holding its own. I am feeling pretty good and I'm sure the yoga and the joy gathered from Agnes Rose and Bernadette is giving me lots of positive energy.
I will try to keep up my entries but Facebook has caught my attention. I'm not too crazy for it as there is too much information to process. Right now it is interesting as the gals from high school have been getting in touch as our 45th anniversary is coming up.....talk about time passing quickly.
Believe.
As always, love from me to you!
December 29, 2009
Our Blessings Are Many! Happy New Year!
Here are two good reasons why I haven't done any blog entries for the past few weeks. Agnes Rose and her sister, Bernadette Lucille born on December 11. The holidays were extra special this year as we got to see them fresh and new, sparkling from the eyes of a child again.
As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.
Happy New Year! May we all be blessed with health, happiness and the ability to embrace the joy of each day.
As always, love from me to you!
December 15, 2009
New Angel Arrives in Port 11050
Christmas was heralded by an early angel this year, Bernadette Lucille DeMerit - was born on December 11, 2009 weighing in at 6.9 and 19.5". She is a beautiful child just like her big sister Agnes Rose. We are all thrilled at this new miracle and are so thankful she is a member of the Sweeney DeMerit clan.
Isn't it amazing how we love so strongly and think we could not possibly love any harder and suddenly a new life enters that sphere and the love expands and is even greater and deeper. We grow in love. I was thinking that this miracle of life and our ever expanding capacity to love is what is meant by being made in God's likeness.
Bernadette came home on Sunday and was greeted by much love and affection from her big sister. Sheer joy - brought a tear to more than one eye. I tried to video it with my digital camera but messed up as usual.
Crone McMahon reminded me that Christmas is a week from Friday. I thought it was weeks away which shows you where my mind has been! I did all of my shopping on the internet the last few weeks. It certainly gets easier as the "kids" get older and are very specific (some even send links which make it even better.) Now that Agnes Rose and Bernadette are on the scene, Christmas takes on that special lustre again and we can revisit the wonder of seeing it all for the first time. Agnes Rose keeps telling me that Santa Claus is coming to her house. This cracks me up as she only started putting sentences together in the last month or so. While Karen was in the hospital, I stayed with Agnes and this was truly special time for me. She and I would sit at the kitchen table with the sunlight pouring in and have little conversations about the birds, the wind in the branches, Santa Claus - somehow we always came back to that. I am sure it is not the thought of finding gifts under the tree - it is just she likes this man in a the red suit because he looks interesting.
The house has a very beautiful front window which is large enough to give you a full view of both streets as it is a corner house. During the day, Agnes Rose and I watched the gentleman across the street put up his Christmas decorations and when it got dark, we watched the lights as they went on. It was beautiful in more ways than one!
I wish you hope, I wish you peace, I wish you love.
Believe!
As always, love from me to you!
Isn't it amazing how we love so strongly and think we could not possibly love any harder and suddenly a new life enters that sphere and the love expands and is even greater and deeper. We grow in love. I was thinking that this miracle of life and our ever expanding capacity to love is what is meant by being made in God's likeness.
Bernadette came home on Sunday and was greeted by much love and affection from her big sister. Sheer joy - brought a tear to more than one eye. I tried to video it with my digital camera but messed up as usual.
Crone McMahon reminded me that Christmas is a week from Friday. I thought it was weeks away which shows you where my mind has been! I did all of my shopping on the internet the last few weeks. It certainly gets easier as the "kids" get older and are very specific (some even send links which make it even better.) Now that Agnes Rose and Bernadette are on the scene, Christmas takes on that special lustre again and we can revisit the wonder of seeing it all for the first time. Agnes Rose keeps telling me that Santa Claus is coming to her house. This cracks me up as she only started putting sentences together in the last month or so. While Karen was in the hospital, I stayed with Agnes and this was truly special time for me. She and I would sit at the kitchen table with the sunlight pouring in and have little conversations about the birds, the wind in the branches, Santa Claus - somehow we always came back to that. I am sure it is not the thought of finding gifts under the tree - it is just she likes this man in a the red suit because he looks interesting.
The house has a very beautiful front window which is large enough to give you a full view of both streets as it is a corner house. During the day, Agnes Rose and I watched the gentleman across the street put up his Christmas decorations and when it got dark, we watched the lights as they went on. It was beautiful in more ways than one!
I wish you hope, I wish you peace, I wish you love.
Believe!
As always, love from me to you!
December 08, 2009
Still Believing!
Make yourself comfortable - maybe get a cup of coffee, tea or something stronger as this may be a very long letter! A lot has happened in the past few weeks - I did not realize I hadn't written to you for so long. What do they say that the intention is strong but flesh is weak? Well, I guess that about sums it up.
We are all anxiously awaiting the arrival of the newest DeMerit baby. Karen isn't due until December 15 but who's counting ... the hours...the minutes...the seconds...until we can joyfully welcome a healthy, please God, new life into our family - the Sweeney DeMerit clan. We are a fortunate group as we have - the DeMerits and the Sweeneys - really did merge into one big family at the time of Karen and Joe's nuptials. I think we are so lucky to be a united family who have a great deal of fun together. It is too bad we live so far apart but our reunions are top shelf!
Thanksgiving was a lovely day in spite of me. I did not think it was going to be such a jolly day as I was not up to preparing and entertaining. However, in swooped my family - Joe and Karen did most of the cooking; Kate straightened up and got the table ready; Joan and Bill made incredible macaroni; Jennifer and Anthony made pumpkin squares that were not only delicious but beautiful; I did manage to make the turkey and stuffing - and decorate the bird as befitting the guest of honor; Jack did a lot of straightening up around the house inside and out. It was great fun and I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed the Jacques Torres chocolates that Anthony's parents sent me - and I hid so I would not have to share. I confess, it was selfish but thoroughly enjoyable. I think either Kate or Joe took a photo of the decorated turkey so if they send me a copy I will post it in a future entry to this blog. All the gals straightened up the dining room and the kitchen, doing all the dishes and putting away the leftovers. I am eternally grateful to Joan, Jennifer, Kate, and Karen for all this hard work.
You may wonder why I make such an issue of the turkey's presentation and I will tell you that when I was growing up, I never saw the entire bird presented a la Norman Rockwell. It was always stripped of its skin and cut in the kitchen and then put on the table. When I took over cooking Thanksgiving 40 years ago, I made up my mind that the turkey would always be "dressed up" and shown off before it was served. I've been lucky so far as each bird has come out the right color and if parts of it fell off (like the wings) I just stuck them back on and held them in place with a piece of fruit. One tradition I keep is that this is all done on my great grandmother's plate which is chipped and bruised but too full of memories to me to cast aside. It might be even older than great grandmother or from a flea market but I always remember it on the table of my childhood.
Many thanks to those of you who kept in touch in spite of my absence from writing. As you know I was in the hospital for a week and then it took some time to gather my strength and wits back! AND, it had nothing to do with the cancer which is still being kept in check by the Miracle Pills and prayer.
My good and dear friend, Dan Redmond, left this earth on December 1. God was merciful to take Dan quickly although it left so many hearts broken here. Dan was ready to go and anxious to see his beloved wife, Mary, who has been gone too long. His funeral was, as funerals should be, a fine farewell gathering - a celebration of his life. Dan was one of the most extraordinary people I ever met. I apply the word "good" to Dan - and good in the purest sense of the word. Dan was simply good - there was goodness in his every act. He loved and he laughed and he wept and he forgave and he loved some more. One would normally say "May his soul rest in peace" but I think in Dan's case, he'd much rather his soul continue the Great Party with some very Illustrious Guests. I will miss my friend but know he is but a thought away.
The cycle of life goes on.....we turn from our sadness to look forward to the joy we anticipate at the coming birth and the dear family baby, Mason Henry Farmer, who arrived in Las Vegas to Sarah and Terrence Farmer, and he is grandson to Patty Joyce Farmer.
God is great in His blessings to me and my family. Last year this time I was not sure I would see another holiday and now I eagerly look forward to many more....thanks to your prayers, an incredible medical team, the Miracle Pill and the support of so many special friends.
So, my journey continues with a heart full of hope and the courage to believe!
As always, love from me to you!
We are all anxiously awaiting the arrival of the newest DeMerit baby. Karen isn't due until December 15 but who's counting ... the hours...the minutes...the seconds...until we can joyfully welcome a healthy, please God, new life into our family - the Sweeney DeMerit clan. We are a fortunate group as we have - the DeMerits and the Sweeneys - really did merge into one big family at the time of Karen and Joe's nuptials. I think we are so lucky to be a united family who have a great deal of fun together. It is too bad we live so far apart but our reunions are top shelf!
Thanksgiving was a lovely day in spite of me. I did not think it was going to be such a jolly day as I was not up to preparing and entertaining. However, in swooped my family - Joe and Karen did most of the cooking; Kate straightened up and got the table ready; Joan and Bill made incredible macaroni; Jennifer and Anthony made pumpkin squares that were not only delicious but beautiful; I did manage to make the turkey and stuffing - and decorate the bird as befitting the guest of honor; Jack did a lot of straightening up around the house inside and out. It was great fun and I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed the Jacques Torres chocolates that Anthony's parents sent me - and I hid so I would not have to share. I confess, it was selfish but thoroughly enjoyable. I think either Kate or Joe took a photo of the decorated turkey so if they send me a copy I will post it in a future entry to this blog. All the gals straightened up the dining room and the kitchen, doing all the dishes and putting away the leftovers. I am eternally grateful to Joan, Jennifer, Kate, and Karen for all this hard work.
You may wonder why I make such an issue of the turkey's presentation and I will tell you that when I was growing up, I never saw the entire bird presented a la Norman Rockwell. It was always stripped of its skin and cut in the kitchen and then put on the table. When I took over cooking Thanksgiving 40 years ago, I made up my mind that the turkey would always be "dressed up" and shown off before it was served. I've been lucky so far as each bird has come out the right color and if parts of it fell off (like the wings) I just stuck them back on and held them in place with a piece of fruit. One tradition I keep is that this is all done on my great grandmother's plate which is chipped and bruised but too full of memories to me to cast aside. It might be even older than great grandmother or from a flea market but I always remember it on the table of my childhood.
Many thanks to those of you who kept in touch in spite of my absence from writing. As you know I was in the hospital for a week and then it took some time to gather my strength and wits back! AND, it had nothing to do with the cancer which is still being kept in check by the Miracle Pills and prayer.
My good and dear friend, Dan Redmond, left this earth on December 1. God was merciful to take Dan quickly although it left so many hearts broken here. Dan was ready to go and anxious to see his beloved wife, Mary, who has been gone too long. His funeral was, as funerals should be, a fine farewell gathering - a celebration of his life. Dan was one of the most extraordinary people I ever met. I apply the word "good" to Dan - and good in the purest sense of the word. Dan was simply good - there was goodness in his every act. He loved and he laughed and he wept and he forgave and he loved some more. One would normally say "May his soul rest in peace" but I think in Dan's case, he'd much rather his soul continue the Great Party with some very Illustrious Guests. I will miss my friend but know he is but a thought away.
The cycle of life goes on.....we turn from our sadness to look forward to the joy we anticipate at the coming birth and the dear family baby, Mason Henry Farmer, who arrived in Las Vegas to Sarah and Terrence Farmer, and he is grandson to Patty Joyce Farmer.
God is great in His blessings to me and my family. Last year this time I was not sure I would see another holiday and now I eagerly look forward to many more....thanks to your prayers, an incredible medical team, the Miracle Pill and the support of so many special friends.
So, my journey continues with a heart full of hope and the courage to believe!
As always, love from me to you!
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