A picture can say a million words

My dad recently sent me a ton of old photographs and it has literally taken me days to look through them all. So I decided to share the ones that stood out to me. The ones I went back to so I could look at them again.

This is my paternal great grandfather with his father in the early 1900's.

A picture of my paternal grandma's mother along with her sisters and brothers. My great grandma is the one in the middle in front.

This is of my Papap when he was in the military. He is the handsome man standing on the left. I love this because you can tell these boys got into trouble.

This is my Grandma when I think she was dating my Papap. The thing I love the most is on the back of the picture they wrote the name Vee, her name is Virginia and she is very proper so I love seeing her being a little silly...

This is my paternal Grandma and my Papap on their wedding day. Along with my great grandparents.

This is my father on his 8th birthday. Something about his smile made me fall in love with this picture.

I have always thought of my dad as a very handsome man and this picture just proves it.

My mom and dad used to sell plates and I ate off the salad plate that belonged to this collection when I was growing up, never knowing it's history. Just seems funny to me.

I still remember the day my dad taught me how to dive. And I love how I have a picture of it.

I love this picture because you know exactly what I just did and how my dad felt about it.

Me and my dad and sister. Not sure but something about this picture speaks to me.

Finally me at my senior prom. I still remember how much I loved that dress.

Hope you enjoyed this pictures I have posted. I can't explain how happy they have made me and there are so many I wish I could share.

Second Spring

Mason and I are now enjoying our second spring in CT. Even though, technically we have been here for three. We first moved here right at the start of spring but I don't count it because, at the time, I had not yet experienced a cold winter. Spring did not mean as much those first few months here as it does now. It means I get to pack up our thick winter jackets. It means more time out of doors. And who could overlook the flowers. Nothing can express the happiness I feel when I first see a daffodil bloom.

The above is a picture taken during our very "first" spring. I can still remember the excitement I felt knowing we had survived our first winter in the North East. I think it is because I feel the same way today. Knowing that the weather will finally be getting warmer and that I have again survived the winter. And this winter was much more difficult then last year.

So this is us today. In the same spot next to our house. Enjoying the sunny weather and looking forward to a another great summer.

PS. When I first saw the above picture I thought it was my hand on my face, and briefly wondered why I posed like that. But then quickly realized that those are Mason's fingers. I guess there is really no doubt on who's hands he inherited.

The Move

It's hard to believe that is has been two years ago today that I took a deep breath and started the 3000 mile journey from Southern California to Connecticut.

I still remember the moment I realized that moving out here was what I needed to do. I was sitting at work, sorting iron on soccer numbers, and I was in so much pain and sadness. In a moment of pure surrender I asked my higher power for a sign if I should pack up everything and move to Connecticut. Not even two seconds later this song came on the radio. I had to stop what I was doing and just cried as I listened to the words. Afterwords I went straight to my computer to look up the song, just to see if I had heard it correctly. Well I got my sign and that day I decided to move.

So I wanted to share it, in case anyone else has ever had this type of revelation.

We Don't Have to Look Back Now by Puddle of Mudd

I'm so much like you
Restless and wreckless
I need a clue
So show me a sign
I feel like making a move
Real geographic, a change in mood
We'll let go of everything we know

[Chorus]
You and I will ride tonight
'Till the past is out of sight
We don't have to look back now
From the dark into the light
We can leave it all behind
We can stand together, we don't have to look back now

I'm so much like you
Caught in a moment, coming unglued
In a world so big, it's not easy to choose
Which path to take, which pawn to move
So we'll let go of everything we've ever known

[Chorus]
You and I will ride tonight
'Till the past is out of sight
We don't have to look back now
From the dark into the light
We can leave it all behind
We can stand together, we don't have to look back now

[Bridge]
No one can stop us now
The world is rushing by
The wind is at our back
Everything's new tonight, we're going our own way
No matter what they say
The bridge is on fire, we're flying higher now

[Chorus]
You and I will ride tonight
'Till the past is out of sight
We don't have to look back now
We are knocking down the wall, all for one and one for all
We can stand together
Never gonna look back now

Oh no, Oh no
We don't have to look back now
(Oh no, Oh no)
We don't have to look back now

I felt like it was my higher power talking right to me and telling me what I needed to do. Today I am so grateful that I listened. Even though I hurt people close to me, and walked through a lot of fear about what the future would hold, I truly feel that I am right where I need to be. And more importantly my son is right where he needs to be.

So I end this post with a saying I saw on a billboard outside a church last week:

Where God guides, God provides.

A day in the Life

Today was a great day. I had such a fun time with my son. It started with a little play time, when it was time to go out, Mason decided to style his own hair.

Then it was off to the park where Mason ran into some school friends. They ended up romping through the trees looking for bears and giant spiders.

After all the bear hunting we decided to stop for lunch at the Sugar Bowl in Darian, when the waitress fell in love with Mason. I think he won her over when he asked her over to the table and told her that she made the best ravioli.

From there we made a quick trip to Trader Joe's and back home, but oh no, it doesn't stop there. After Mason helped me put all the groceries away, we then left for Michael's and a quick stop at Party City for a little fun with costumes.


Finally we finished off the day with a trip to another park close by. And thus ended our day. I was a little sad to see it go. It was one of those perfect days where I just got to enjoy being with my son.

Mason at Lunch

This is just me playing with a website my sister told me about. Picnik.com. It's a supper cute site where you can edit your pictures. Love it! Thanks Jen.

Andrea, In Passing

Last couple of weeks I have really been thinking about this song that I thought would have been perfect for the movie Twilight. I have never made a fan favorite movie before but I thought I might as well give it a try. So I looked online and found some free movie making software that Windows offers and I made this video.

I know that teenage girls are the one who usually make video's like these, especially to the movie Twilight, which is fine. But the part I like best about this whole process and the time spent working on this was the fact that it got me editing again. It's what I went to college for and I forgotten how much I missed it.



So now that I am more comfortable working with the movie maker program I want to make more. I think I want to try and do a compilation movie of all the home videos I have of my son. I'm not sure yet, but one thing I do know is that I can't wait to get started.

Thanks for watching the video and I hope you like it.

5 Years

In five years so much can change in a person's life. I don't know if I would even recognize the person I was before I got pregnant. And at the time I would have never imagined myself were I am today. My son is the one that changed all that. He has become the light in my heart that has made me want to become a better person. A person that wants to make a future for herself.

I had some professional pictures done recently and I just got them back today. One of those pictures is a picture of my son with a beloved monkey named ChaCha. That monkey was also in my son's birth announcement just over 5 years ago. I love them both and I have to share how much my son has grown in the past 5 years.

He has gotten so big, so independent and so remarkable.