Monday, December 29, 2014

This Holiday Season






The Christmas/holiday season is here.

Though Christmas Day has come and gone, we are in the middle of a two week holiday break and I am embracing it so much that I don't want to let it go.

In fact, I am wishing that I could add an additional week since I know this second week will just zoom by.

I love breaks.

Now this could mean that I am lazy at heart and love lounging around and not dealing with my worldly responsibilities (i.e. bills, kid activities, appointments, etc.) and not going really anywhere...

Or it could mean that I love the balance that a break brings to my life when put up against the everyday busyness that can be my life.

I like to think that the latter is true.

It has been a good holiday season so far.  We had family in town - still have one: my mother, - and it was good to have a holiday with them and the kids.  In fact, the four year-old bawled when his aunt left on Saturday.

My three boys are social beings and they love their family.

Even though they ignored the adults for about 70% of that time, they relished in their presence.  It was comforting to them and so were the little mini routines that started with the family being here: the meal times together - we actually sat around the table every day of the week that the family was here, - the hugs to each one before they went to bed.

The photo above of the boys (taken a few weeks earlier) says it all, expressing the happiness of the holiday season for me so well.

It was a good time that came to an end pretty quickly.

Like this next week will, I'm sure.

But kudos to this holiday season that is bringing us joy and a balance.

I'm so not ready for it to end yet.  Can I have another week, please?

Please?



So was your holiday a break for you? Or not?

Feel free to share because this Bronx girl would love to hear your thoughts. 


Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Wordless Wednesday: Their World


I have three sons. 

The soccer ball and the airplane above

are supreme symbols in each of their lives. 

Play soccer almost every day. 

Love transportation: planes, trains, light rails. 

This is their world now. 

Pure and simple. 

And I'm soaking it all in...

Thursday, August 28, 2014

Yes...Yes, We Live in Boulder...





So begins a series of posts about life for this Bronx girl in Boulder.  It’s been 7 years of Boulder living and fairly interesting.


“You’re not in Boulder!” someone told me (still a Boulder newbie) with passion and gusto when we first moved to our neighborhood,  which is northeast from the central part of town. 

Our house sits in a cul de sac in a neighborhood that is surrounded on three sides by open space (aka fields, pastures, lots of grass and few trees).   A creek runs along side the neighborhood.

“Yes, we are,” I would say. 

“But where you are is not Boulder!  That’s Longmont!”

I shake my head.  “Not according to my address,” is always my light-hearted answer.  Both address and zip code are in Boulder.  We are in a neighborhood next to a section of town known as Gunbarrel.  At times, people put us in Gunbarrel, which is fine, though officially we aren’t in that section.  Sometimes it’s just easier and quicker to say “Gunbarrel”. 

Gunbarrel is a section of town that is a combination of two cities/counties:  Boulder and Longmont.  South of the main dividing road in Gunbarrel contains Boulder, north of that same main road is considered Niwot/Longmont. 

In moments I give this explanation to those “in-town” Boulderites and out-of-town Coloradans who question the validity of my living address.  In other moments, I just nod and smile.  Sometimes it’s not worth the energy to go into details such as these.

 “You’re in Boulder County!” another person exclaims to me in one huge epiphany as she tries to rationalize how I could be in Boulder but don’t live directly in town.  “That’s it!”

“Yes, yes, I am.”

“So this is not Boulder but Boulder county!

Um…actually it is both.   The Boulder rural property taxes that we pay tell me so.  And because thankfully to a real estate friend of ours, we discovered Boulder is divided into three sections on most real estate maps: Boulder West (next to the mountains, in the hills), Boulder (in town) and Boulder Prairie (us).

“It’s all Boulder,”  he concludes.  

It’s what happens when people move out from the town and set up roots in the rural area surrounding Boulder because of the desire for more living space, which happened in the late sixties and seventies.  Hence an extension of the existing Boulder community was born amongst vast fields and open space.

 Oh, and let’s not forget, the address is a big indicator, too.  I am sure if we lived in Longmont, my address would actually say that.

Welcome to the country. Some look at as “suburbs.”

I cringe, no offense to anyone who lives in them.  They’re awesome but rural Boulder is not the suburbs. 

It is open space and farmland.  Where the prairie dogs live and where in moments, coyotes roam, with your occasional mountain lion. Not to mention field mice, foxes raccoons, skunks, and bunnies.  In moments, it really does feel like the prairie.

It is countryside and for this city girl, it was a faraway land like several of my in-town Boulderite friends viewed it.  A no man’s land and so far (like in 15 minutes from downtown Pearl street far). 

Sooo far.

But now living in this no-man’s land for six years, I get that it’s an amazingly special place.      

We get to pass by cows, horses, sheep and alpacas on our way into town everyday and have the quiet of the country right on our doorstep.  You can literally hear the engine of a pickup truck as it goes by four streets away.

There is the community of our wonderful neighborhood of 1,000 families.  Because we’re surrounded by open space we’re all we’ve got…until you drive out of it and go across the street to the Twin Lakes neighborhood (actually in Gunbarrel).  We’re a naturally gated (via open space) community of friendly people of all types.

After a time of listening to the naysayers, I started to doubt myself.  Whenever we drove back into town along Highway 36 (Boulder-Denver turnpike)  I’d find myself looking at the gorgeous view up ahead of Boulder, trying to spot my neighborhood in the distance and wondering out loud, where is the dividing line?  Do we really live in Boulder?

My husband, driving, next to me would just shake his head and smile. 

Duh?  His facial expression would read with a ton of endearment following it because he was confident enough and right enough to know (before the explanation of our real estate friend) that the answer is a resounding “Yes!”.

Yes…yes, where we live is Boulder, too.  No need for an identity crisis, sweetie.  It’s all good.


Months later, at school, a fellow Mom exclaimed to me, “Oh, you guys moved!”

Flustered I said “What?  What do you mean?” 

“Well, I was looking at the school directory and noticed you have a Boulder address.  Weren’t you guys in Gunbarrel?”

Out pops my characteristic smile.  “Oh, we still are,” I answer.

Her forehead crinkles. “But you have a Boulder address.”

I inwardly sigh and launch into the explanation, “It’s Boulder. The southern part of Gunbarrel is Boulder…”

And it goes on... :-)

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Here's The Truth...




Here’s the truth.

I am not ready to be back in the frenzy that is the new school year.

I am not ready for laid-back summer to be over, where we are not on a schedule or pressured to be anywhere early.

For other parents, this is the most wonderful time of the year.  The kids are back in school and they get a little more freedom and a break.

I still want to wake up and wander around the house with the kids, pull them close to me and hold them on a weekday morning, while we’re hanging out in bed, with no where pressing to go or be.

This is not to say that I am not excited for their new school year – and all the new things that they will learn and do.  I am ecstatic and can’t wait.  

And I am very happy to reconnect with the Moms and Dads who are part of the school community.  It’s good to see everyone again. 


However, at times with the school year comes complexity and stress and worries and pressures: is the oldest having good experiences today?  Are the kids being nice to him or is he again being ignored, rejected, and teased by some?  Is he maintaining self-control with his body and his emotions or is he having another meltdown? 

Multiply the above frets by two as it applies to his two younger brothers as well.


With summer – for us at least – we could just be.  A freedom to just spend time with each other and be ourselves.  Not have to face weekly injustices or attitudes from others. 

The school year. 

It's a part of life, I know.   

An important part of life for the growth of my children and myself even as a person.

I just can't help but love my season of summer and all that it brings.  

And with all the busyness and sometimes complexity our lives become during this school time, summer is always a welcome friend.  

Pouring my heart out today with Shell
 at Things I Can't Say



Friday, August 22, 2014

First Day of School (aka "Summer Break is Over!")


Yesterday, the new 4th grader (on your left) and 2nd grader (on your right)
had their first day of school.  
(Goodness grief, they are growing up so fast!)

I still can't get used to August school starts having grown up starting school in September. 

The first day of school ends our  wonderful summer break. 

I'm excited for the boys but sad that our break is over.  

I was missing both of them with a fierceness yesterday.  I had grown so used to them being around during the day with their Xbox game playing and their Lego building of towns and stadiums whose names they made up.   

Their presence was comfortable and reassuring 
(even with the moments of shouting, yelling and bickering). 

:-(

However, I still have this little guy below.  The 4 year old. 


He doesn't start preschool until September 2nd 
so I am not completely alone for at least a week and a half. 

"It's Mommy and me time!" he shouts to his brothers yesterday.  

Yes, yes it is. 

He was eager to get home yesterday and today so that we could have our home alone time, just me & him. 

And I am going to soak it up as much as I can
in the midst of my grownup responsibilities. 

September 2nd can just take its time coming around. 



Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Wordless Wednesday: Summer...Is Happening




Summer is happening. 

A sandbox and flowers in the backyard. 

Symbolic of the season and child's play
and all that I love
about my favorite season. 

One downside, though: It is just going by too fast!

4 more weeks before school starts. :-(

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Here's To Summer Break!



At 7 this morning, the 9 year old and the 6 year old, along with the husband (aka "camp counselor") left to go away for four days to a sleep-away camp hosted by our church, which left me thinking:  

Summer break is actually here.  

Hello.  That was fast.  Where did Spring go?  

Okay, I am going to stop myself before making a comment about how quickly time has gone by (as I often do when I blog). 

Summer break has started and it feels good. 

Feels good not to have to wake up at dawn to get the boys to the school bus on time.  Sleeping in is definitely underrated. 



Summer break for me is a chance to reset. 

Begin again.   Start anew. 


It is balance - a chance to relax from the crazy, busy school year. 

It is a chance to step back and refocus on those tasks that have gotten away from me:

Cleaning out the garage
Cleaning/Reorganizing the house
My photography 
My blogging


And give even more focus to those things that I have been doing:

Novel/Screenwriting
Spending quality time with my family


So I say, here's to summer!  

To several fun trips, soccer and baseball and  lacrosse for the boys, softball games for my husband, more photography and blogging and of course writing for me 

And most importantly to a good amount of fun, relaxing days spent together as a family...

Because there are about 80 days of summer vacation (at least here in Boulder) and that will just fly by in what will feel like the blink of an eye...

And I will stop here before I start rambling about how fast time flies. 

Enjoy summer! 





Friday, March 7, 2014

My Sweet Three




3 is the magic number.  Oh, yes it is.  Oh, yes it is.

These boys above are my sweet three. 

Not that they're always sweet.  

In fact, the attitudes can abound.

Along with screams and pouts and hits. 

In moments it can get physical,

Sometimes one after another in triple succession.

However, 

When I look at their faces

Or listen to their chatter

And hear their laughter

It reminds me of how lucky I am. 





However, ...

Saturday, January 4, 2014

Starting at Square One...Again...





I find with life happening, it is tough to blog which is ironic because I started this blog mainly to chronicle this time in my life as a woman, a writer,a wife, a mother, a transplant from New York City living now in Boulder, Colorado.

It seems like life is happening too fast and my fingers are a little too slow when it comes to getting on the laptop.  I'm sure there are those of you out there who can relate.

I'm not giving up though. This blog is still my baby - along with a couple of others I have - and I plan to nurture it in the next coming months.  Really pay attention to it in the midst of the craziness that is life.  Have it available to share with you.   There may even be an updated look/design in the future.

Once again, it feels like I'm starting at square one.   I feel like I've had several of these "starts" in the last year.  I'm brand new again.  Have to figure it all out - again.

This is good, I believe, for me personally.  A little lesson in perseverance.  And faith.

I can wake this sleeping baby and keep her active.   She'll be my vessel for sharing, for leading me places, for reconnecting me back into a wonderful blog community.


It's at times intimidating.  Remember, I have had several of these "starts" before.

I look forward to it, though.

It will be so worth it.





How do you manage to find time to blog while life is in full swing?  How do you plan your schedule to make time for your blog?  This inquiring mind would love to know.