Welcome Baby Anthony

Congratulations to David and Shannon for their new bundle of joy, Anthony David!! He was born yesterday at 11:37am, he is 6 lbs, 13oz, 19 inches and has a full head of black hair.

Thank goodness for technology!! I am a few states away but felt like I was there with all the text messages of updates and the picture I received 30 minutes after he was born via the cell phone. He is absolutely adorable and I can't wait to meet him in January. The coolest thing about the hospital Shannon is in, I can log onto a website and watch her and the baby anytime she wants me to. We can instant message each other while I am watching or talk on the phone so I can see her and Anthony. I would be in the dark with out technology.


So Congratulations again to the new Mommy and Daddy!! Love you all!!


PS... Happy Belated 29th Birthday to Carrie, too bad he wasn't born the week before :)

Happy Belated Birthdays!!

I feel bad that I have missed some birthday wishes to my friends and family so this are my belated b-day wishes.

MaKenna

Happy 8th birthday to my youngest niece MaKenna. She turned 8 in October and is really just adorable. She loves being the center of attention!! She is a cheerleader just like her big sister and loves the things most 8 year old love, Hanna Montana, High School Musical and clothes. She has already circled all the clothes she wants from the Limited Too catalog for Christmas. She is so tall already at 8 that I can only guess she will take after her mom in the height department. Watch out when she gets to be a teenager :)

Mary as Elvis

Happy Birthday Mary!! Mary's birthday was on Halloween. She dressed up as Elvis for work and won a few prizes for the outfit. I did remember to send her flowers which she ended up with two bouquets because the first one she got was not the one I ordered for her. I can remember the first day i met Mary, it was my first day one the job and she was super friendly when we were introduced. I didn't talk much at first because I am super shy when I meet new people but after her and I started talking, we never stopped. She is hilarious and a great listener. I love hearing the stories she tells me about her son, he is a character. Thanks Mary for always listening :)

M, Marissa and Me

Happy Birthday Marissa!! Marissa's birthday was earlier this month and I have been so busy that I haven't even gotten a chance to celebrate with her or give her presents. I met Marissa at work and is one of the few woman I met that was actually nice outside of work. She is a great friend, and is always a lot of fun to be around. She has a 2 year old that is just absolutely adorable. I just adore her, she has quite a personality and she is smart. She mimics anything Marissa does or says which is always entertaining. Marissa is lucky to have such a great child but really she deserves all the credit for the way her daughter is. I am lucky to know Marissa and her family. Sorry the birthday wish is late girl!!

My cousins and My gram

Happy 84th birthday to my Grandmother. Minus some joint problems, my gram is in good shape for her age. My grandfather passed away last year which has taken a little toll on her but she has coped better than any of us expected. My cousins on the picture go over to her house once a week to watch movies with her and she loves it. They mostly watch modern movies like Elf with Will Farrell or her favorite Blood Diamond. My grandmother used to be a social butterfly but now that her knees are not keeping up, she looks forward to us visiting with her or take her shopping. I used to live in a house behind her and I would love the summer and spring evenings when we would sit on her porch and talk. She loves to gossip about the latest news of the family or about the next door neighbors or even what is going on in her favorite soap opera. I loved listening to stories about how her and my grandpa met or what he was like before he lost his hearing etc. She has her moments were she drives me crazy but overall I adore her. In a time where most woman stayed home to take care of the family, my grandmother insisted that she work. My grandfather only agreed to it when the youngest child went to school and only at night. So she worked over night at a hospital as a nurse (LPN) and was really good at what she did. I can tell she loved doing just by the way she tells the stories. She is 84 years young and I hope she sticks around for awhile.

I think I am all caught up now. :)

I almost forgot.... Happy Birthday to Hailey and Crystal!! They are J's nieces and I just met them last January. They are great kids and a lot of fun to be around. I am looking forward to seeing them for Thanksgiving.

OK I think I got everyone now :)

Happy Birthdays All Around!!

November is a very busy month my family for birthdays!! My brother, my oldest sister Sherri, my niece Kayla, my grandma, three of my cousins and two of my friends.

Kayla

Happy 18th birthday to my niece Kayla!! I can't believe she is already 18 and ready to head off to college next fall. I remember when she was born, she was the cutest little girl I had ever seen, she stole my heart the moment I held her. I haven't always been there to see her grow up since she is a military brat but she has turned into a remarkable young lady and I am lucky to be apart of her life now. I am excited to see her go off to college and start the best time of her life. I have to admit that I am a little jealous, I would give anything to start that part of my life again. I keep telling her to enjoy the next 4-5 years because there will not be another time like it again. Its so exciting and nerve racking leaving high school and the friends you have had for years but its worth the experience!! I am taking her to the Spa on Sunday for a girls day of pampering for her birthday. She had never been and wanted to go so that's were I come in and make it happen.

Sherri, V,R,dad and me

Happy 45th birthday to my sister Sherri!! Oh man .... you are so close to 50 :) Just kidding. My sister was 15 when I was born and had the great duty of babysitting me. I was cute but not always the best behaved little one. I would throw myself on the floor screaming for no reason. I am sure it was to get attention but my family says when the fits happened they were out of the blue. My poor sisters!! They tell me that I was like a little doll to them and they loved to dress me up but I am aware I was a brat. Not much has changed :) Sherri was always my big sister, I was in her weddings, I worked for her at her bridal shop, I went to her when I needed decorating or fashion tips. When I was only 5 she became a mom, to my nephew and what a great mom she is. As most moms she wanted the best for Matt and she did just that. He is very successful in the Air Force, working his way up the ranks while starting a family of his own. I know he will be a great father and husband because she set the right examples for him. She provided him with strong family morals and showed him how to be caring and understanding. I give my sister a lot of flack about the things she is into or for the way she is but it is out of love. I really admire the mountains she had overcome in her life and I am proud she is my sister. Key Key loves you :)

I hope both of you have wonderful days!!

HAPPY BITHDAY DJ

It is a day late but Happy 27th Birthday to my little brother DJ. Well that isn't the name he was given at birth but that is the name he has been called since day one.

Me, my gram and DJ Christmas 2006

On November 7th, 1980 Harold Douglas Jr was born and according to my mom, its the day I became a mini mom. My sisters are much older than my brother and I and when they found out he was named after our father, they decided he would be called DJ. Even when he went to grade school, the teacher would call his name "Harold" for roll call and he wouldn't say a thing. Finally my mom had to tell them that he only answers to DJ. Than he got to high school and most of the teacher he had, knew him as "Kristy's little brother." I know he would have preferred Harold over that label any day. Not only did the teachers call him that but everyone older than him in that school referred to him as that. He actually asked me one day to tell my friends that his name is DJ not "Kristy's little brother."

When most babies are learning how to talk, my brother was humming and I was translating for the family what he needed. As my sisters and parents recall, I was the only one that knew what each hum was for and there were many different sounding hums that he made. Finally one day, he was humming for a glass of water and my mom told him he couldn't have it unless he said water. Not long after that, he was talking but not too much because I never stopped talking. My mom likes to tease me and says "you haven't stop talking since the day your were born." I can't help it, I don't like silence of any kind, it makes me nervous. I am pretty sure I inherited that trait from my dad which is funny because growing up, my brother and I would hate it when he talked to random people at the local corner store or anywhere in public. I do not do that, I just talk non-stop to my friends and family... you lucky people :) As J has said in the past "You always have something to say" I don't take that as a bad thing and he didn't mean it as a bad things its just true.

My brother and I have had some great times and some bad times but overall I am lucky to have him as my sibling. Now that we are older and no longer live with each other, we are great friends. I am happy that we got to celebrate his birthday yesterday with our parents and close friends. It was a great dinner and running down memory lane is always a good time.

So Happy Birthday little brother, hope you had a fantastic day!

Halloween

Halloween, a day for anyone to dress up and pretend to be a character of some sort. Younger kids love the holiday because they get candy or the whole day at school is a party of some sort. Adults get dressed up for the holiday to encourage the kids to participate or just to feel young again. Whatever the reason, people seem to love to celebrate Halloween.

Personally, I have not liked this day since about 4th grade. I remember being uncomfortable getting in a costume for the day. There was so much pressure to have a great costume and I didn't have a mom or grandma who made my outfits. I usually went to the local retail shop and picked an costume from there but it either never fit correctly or after I got to school, I realized my outfit was ridiculous. Even though the days leading up to this holiday were stressful for me, I conformed and dressed up each year to get a sack full of candy. Which, as it happened, I never really ate all of it. Needless to say, I was very happy the year I was "too old" to go trick or treating.


Than I started working in my career and to my surprise everyone dressed up for Halloween at the company I worked for (Co X). Not only did everyone dress up but they had contest and a parade, just like grade school. All the anxiety I felt when I was younger instantly came back when the topic came up. The accounting dept I worked for had won 1st place the previous 2 years and they were determined to do it again. I didn't want to dress up at all but I also didn't want to be included in the group activity, especially because I was new. To my relief, the department decided to be a 70's basketball team. We went to a sport store on lunch one day and got shiney basket ball shorts, t-shirts, tall white socks and hand bands. Than we all went and bought Afro wigs which made the costumes. We did a skit along with the outfits and came in 1st place that year again. For the next 4 years that I worked at Co X, I participated and dressed up for the holiday.

Work- 70's Basketball team

Along with dressing up for work, came dressing up to go out the Saturday before Halloween to the local events or clubs. I wasn't very excited about this either but I figured I wouldn't be the only one in a costume so why not. Also I still didn't want to be the "wet blanket" of the group either. Yes, peer pressure has a huge effect on me when it comes to group activities. Last year was the first year I really put a lot of thought into a costume. The Variety Club of WNY, throws a Halloween Bash at the Central Terminal. It is a great venue for this type of gathering. All the monies raised goes to the Variety Club which is a great organization. Last year, it was freezing, the terminal did not have heat and the bathrooms were outside (Johnny on the Spots). I was a punk school girl and J was a punk Rocker.

Me, M and J-2006

The bash this year was much better than last year. They had heat, the Johnny on the spots were inside and the set up made the flow of traffic easier to manage. Knowing what to expect this year also let me have a little more fun with my costume. We ordered it online and I got a wig, false eyelashes etc to make the costume complete. I did have to go buy a back up outfit though because the costume didn't come in until last Friday, 24 hrs before the party. I was a little nervous when I put on the costume and realized how short and low-cut the dress was. I am a conservative dresser so this was out of my comfort zone. But once I put on the wig, the eyelashes and makeup, I took on the persona of the costume and surprisingly I loved it. I loved knowing that if someone I worked with saw me, they would not know its me. It was fun being Veronica (yeah we named her) for a few hours.

Halloween 2007

We went to the party with our friends, M and E, J and T. M was a playboy, french maid, E was Hugh Hefner. J and T were pirates. The costumes were great and we had a blast. Here is a link to some other photos taken by people at the bash #1 Halloween Bash Pictures.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DIANE!!

Since I won't be around today to celebrate your birthday, here is a little song for you,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DIANE
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!

Flowers for your B-day :)

I hope you have a wonderful day!!


On another b-day note, my Great Nephew( yes my nephew, who turned 25 yesterday, has a son) Robert (little Bobby) is turning 1 tomorrow. Matt, my nephew, is stationed in Japan so I haven't met the little guy yet but he is adorable. Tomorrow also marks the 1 year anniversary of getting my nose pierced. I had always talked about it but I finally had it done on the day I officially became a Great Aunt. At the time I was already having trouble seeing 30 coming around the corner and than you add that title to it all, I had to do something so the piercing of my nose it was. I love that I have it!! Now that turning 30 is only a couple months away, I welcome it. I have come to the conclusion that age is just a number, its the way you feel that matters :)

My New Car

It has been a long time since my last post but I have been so busy with work, the new living arrangements and all the other things life has to throw at you. As busy as I have been, I finally found time to go car shopping.


In the past on a couple of occasions, I have bought a car without any real research or thought process. My previous car, a 1998 Saturn SL1, was bought just because it was affordable and available the day I went to test drive it. The car before that, had just been totaled by a deer on the thruway and I needed a replacement and so for the last 7 years, I have driven my Saturn without any major complaints. Now don't get me wrong the car is 9 yrs old, over 120K miles so it has it's quirks but really no major catastrophes. It was very good to me and to be honest, I would have kept it until it stopped running but a few minor problems (the sunroof leaks when it rains etc..) added to up to be expensive repairs so off car shopping I went.

I am a very independent person but when it comes to car shopping, I always need someone there for a second opinion or just as a sounding board so I enlisted J to come along. Before we even went into a dealership, we decided to pick the top 3 or 4 cars I was interested in and they would be the first ones I test drove. Immediately, I new my top two, the VW Jetta and the Dodge Charger, the third choice came about by a comerical I saw on TV, the Ford Edge. All 3 cars completely different but before I went test driving, I wasn't sure what I really wanted. Luckily for us, the Dodge, Ford and VW dealerships are close by so we just went down the street and hit the places as we came upon them.

The first stop, the Dodge place. The Dodge Charger is such a manly, American car and I was excited to drive it myself. Last year we went to TX to visit J's brother, who owns a Charger so I have ridden in one but never got behind the wheel of one. The first thing I notice when I got into the car was the room it had. The get and go the car had was awesome and the sound of the car was great!! I love when cars sound like they have balls ( the only way I can think it put it). Actually one day, I eventually want to restore an old muscle car but for now I will enjoy the attempt at the new muscle car. :) The sales woman was very nice and to my surprise not pushy at all. She let us test drive it by ourselves and when we came back I she was on the phone so I handed her the keys and said I would let her know. She smiled and thanked us and off we went down the road to the Ford place.

As soon as Jon the salesman greeted us, I knew I was not going to buy a car from this guy or dealership. We started off being up front and letting him know I was not buying a car that day and I only wanted to test drive the Edge. Jon started to ramble on about the Ford Focus and what a nice car it is blah, blah, blah. I wanted to say "if I was interested in a Focus, I would have mentioned it" but instead we listened to his spiel while he escorted us to his desk. I was a little annoyed that he had us sit down before I even got into a car to drive. After asking us few questions, he finally had us go outside to test drive the Edge. Its a very nice "crossover" car and had a lot of room but after I thought about it, it was too much room for just me right now. After getting out of the Edge, Jon kind of insisted that I drive a Focus so I did. It was a nice car but that all it is a car, nothing fancy, nothing special its a sedan. He was selling it to me like it was best thing since sliced bread. Jon also kept referring to J and asking him what he thought of the cars and what he wanted to buy etc.. J handled him well he said "It doesn't matter if I like the car, she is buying it and driving so I am just here for the ride" and Jon could not remember J's name and referred to him as Justin (after telling him 3 times the correct name). After the Focus Jon wanted to come and sit at his desk and he started to talk numbers. HELLO!! I SAID I WASN'T BUYING A CAR TODAY. But he insisted, we let him talk and than thanked him for his time and out the door we went.

Off to the VW dealership down the street and around the corner (sort of) we went. Let me back up just a little, I have wanted a VW Jetta since I was a Sr in high school so for over 10 years. I can remember the first VW car I ever saw, it was an old VW rabbit and I loved it. As the years went on, the VW Jetta's became more sportier looking, sleek and sophisticated, just making me want one more. To be honest it kind of is my dream car, other than the muscle car I want to rebuild. We arrive at the dealership about an hour before it was going to close and we are greeted by a very tall (st least 6'6"), slender man named Dan. He was very friendly and spoke with an accent not sure how to describe it but he does speak spanish so I am sure it ties in with that. As we did in the previous two places, we stated that I was only going to test drive a car so he said no problem, and brought around a Jetta for me to drive. The 3 of us get into the car and now I am driving a Jetta. I knew than that I wanted one of these. I wasn't sure what I wanted in it but I knew I wanted a Jetta. When we were done, Dan had us sit down at his desk too look over the inventory they had and to ask a few more questions like if I wanted to buy or lease etc.. We thanked him for his time shook his hand and went home.

I really wanted to say right than and there that I wanted the VW but I knew I had to think about it. So the thought process started my choices either the VW or the Dodge Charger, both having excellent selling points. It took me about 5 days and a lot of discussion with J that I decided I wanted to lease a VW. Luckily for me, J had offered to fund a small loan for a down payment with the agreement I would pay him back (of course) so we had some bargaining power when we went back. I was so excited that I didn't even want to talk about in fear that I would jinx me getting a VW.

We went back to the VW place about a week after the test drive, met with Dan to let him know I wanted to lease. He was a very honest salesman, yes that sounds like an oxymoron but he really was. When I told him I was thinking about using my current car as a trade in he said I would get more money if I sold it on my own and actually he is right I would. Than when he was going through his inventory of cars he kept telling me not to pay for things that I will not use. We ended up at two cars, one with cloth interior, 6 CD changer etc... sort of the basic model and the other was more done up. Leather interior, sunroof, seat warmers, 6 CD changers, satellite radio, a place to put my Ipod that plays on the radio, and chrome accent. I asked Dan to run numbers on both cars, knowing that I probably would be getting the cloth seat one, which is what I was looking for. I didn't go into looking for new cars thinking I was going to walk away with the car I did. So the numbers were ran and it turns out there wasn't that much difference in monthly payment so I of course I choose the one with the bells and whistles. I had to wait for a few days to actually pick up the car but it was well worth it.

Here are a few pictures of the car, which was taken out front of the new place. My best friend C asked me if I felt like I was apart of the "in" crowd now driving to work, (she was teasing me), I told her no but I feel grown up now, no longer in college. My Saturn was my college car, which when you are in college, who cars what you drive. I have had a "career" since I got out of college but just now and maybe because I am turning 30 soon, I just feel like I am saying goodbye to the 20's. Whatever it is, I do love my car.



Thanks J for all the help!! Love you honey