A Wise Man Once Said....

Some call him Dennis; others call him Denny, but I just call him Dad. My father is one of the greatest men I know. What makes a man great? Well there are many different reasons a man could be considered great. My Dad has always been a hard-working man. For all of my childhood and adult life (until recent years) my Dad has worked as a Police Officer. He would work 4 days on and 2 days off. Most of his career he worked the midnight shift. I would see him come home early in the morning in his uniform and always felt a little sense of pride that he was "my Dad" My Dad is funny or should I say "witty" He has a very quick and sometimes dry sense of humor. He is a fantastic story-teller and can often capture a small audience when we say "Dad tell the story about such and such" My Dad is honest in everything he says and does. My Dad is kind to others and generous; and when he gives he does so quietly so as not to boast. My Dad is humble, there are alot of things he could brag about, but he just doesn't. He is very smart and very wise. I remember one time a debate was going on about politics and the future of our country. The debate was getting a little heated; and my wise father simply said "The History of the world is written; we can only move towards it in hope" My Dad is a true Christian and lives what he believes to the best of his ability. I am grateful for the teacher and example my father has been to me through out my life. His values have become my values. A child truly learns by watching and I had and still have a great man to watch and learn from. One more thing, my Dad has always had a sense of adventure. He likes fast cars, and in recent years fast motorcycles. These days he can be seen riding around on his Suzuki GSXR 1000 sport bike. Not only is he a great Dad; he's pretty cool too! Happy Father's Day to one of the greats - I love you Dad.

This Boy of Mine

" A boy is trust with dirt on it's face, beauty with a cut on it's finger, wisdom with bubble gum in it's hair, and the hope of the future with a frog in it's pocket. Wonder. Dream. Play. Explore. Find. Discover. " -Author Unknown-

Zachary Daniel Giossi, born May 27th, 1999. Little did I know 12 years ago when I held this child for the first time, that he would take me on the ride of my life. If raising my daughter was "Easy Like Sunday Morning", then raising this boy has been "Wild Like Friday Night" There is a reason the Lord sends the "easy child" first. He has a way of humbling a woman. I often thought I could be worthy of "The Mother of The Year Award" for the first 8 years of motherhood. I could never understand why some moms looked so completely frustraded, wild, and frazzled. Surely I could give them some tips on mothering. Well like I said the Lord has his way - So how did this mom go from deserving (so I thought) the Mother of the Year Award to sometimes being one step away from being arrested???? In the first 3 years of Zachary's life I literally "lost" him twice! And when I say lost, I mean all out search party. To this day we still have the remnants of chain locks as high up on the doors as possible. Why? Well let's just say it has to do with the search parties that involved looking for a 3 year old. Who's frustrated, wild, and frazzled now? If there is a tree to be conquered he climbs it, if there is a ramp to be jumped, he jumps it if there is a machine with 2 wheels or 4, he rides it. I don't want to speak for all boys, but this boy thinks there is nothing he can't do, often throwing all caution to the wind. He keeps me on my toes, to put it mildly. Zachary is clever, articulate, musical, athletic, and can be very endearing. He has a certain charm about him that is sometimes irresistable. He has a tender heart and a fondness for the elderly. I remember one Chirstmas he was around 8 years old and I took him to a nursing home where he went to each residents room and played a medley of songs for them on his harmonica. I kid you not we were there for 3 hours. These days Zachary can be found playing linebacker on a football field, rockin' out on his drumset, making & selling wallets out of duct tape and creating beautiful origami. He can also be seen with a variety of cuts and bruises on his legs and covered with dirt and/or poison ivy from head to toe! This past school year he was awarded with 2 citizenship awards for displaying random acts of kindness to others. How does one child manage all this - He is a boy I tell you and he's mine.

Her Mother's Daughter

Victoria Katherine Giossi, born July 1, 1991. That was the day my life was changed forever. She is my first born and only daughter; so that in and of itself makes her pretty special! Victoria is also known as Tori, Daddy's Girl, Nana's Girl, #1 Girl, Sissy, and even GiGi's Girl. Why is she everybody's girl? Because to know her is to love her and yes, we love to claim her as our own. Tori was a precocious little girl to say the least; talking and reading way ahead of schedule. Being the first born child as well as grand-child she became very adept at adult conversation. I remember taking Tori to an Open-House Christmas party one year for work, and the CFO came out of the living room and said "I can't believe I just had an entire conversation with a 3 year old" One time at around the age of 5 her Dad took her into the barracks and she was introduced to one of the Lieutenants; where she quickly noticed he was adorned in gold. She then proceeded to ask the Lieutenant why he had gold all over his uniform and her Daddy only had silver. The Lieutenant explained he had gold because he was of the higher rank of Lieutenant and her Daddy was of the rank of Trooper. She did not like this answer and proceeded to tell the Lieutenant that she thought it unfair and that her Dad should be able to wear gold on his uniform as well. If I could describe what raising Victoria has been like; I would use the phrase "Easy like Sunday Morning" and I mean that for real. It has been a pleasure and an honor. She has made and continues to make good choices. Victoria has many wonderful traits, characteristics, and talents. She is smart and extremely witty. She loves children and THEY love her back. She can make you feel amazing with a simple compliment and when it comes from Tori you know it's sincere. She will do anything to help you and loves to serve others and give of her time and talents. Victoria is always up for something new and exciting, she seeks adventure but is also content with those quiet times. This may seem cliche' but her smile really is pure sunshine. What I am most proud of when it comes to Victoria, is the kindness she extends to others and there are many examples of this that I could write about but let it suffice to say she never ceases to amaze me. I am looking forward to seeing how Tori continues to embrace life and if I know her she'll grab it by the horns and Go For It........after all she is her mother's daughter.

The Mud Turtle and Her Coach

As I mentioned before I am often working towards some sort of goal. Several years ago my Dad was influencial in getting me into cycling. In his very loving, if not blunt manner, he said "Daughter you are not a very good runner, you do more of a up and down motion instead of a forward motion; you should try cycling I think you would enjoy it." Hence I purchased my first "real" bike and found a new love. I thought it would be really cool to participate in a Century ride and even cooler to raise $$$ for the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society while doing so. So I signed up with Team in Training, fund-raised, and had the time of my life completing the "Mad River Century Ride" in beautiful Vermont. Jump ahead to January 2011; I pondered my New Years Resolutions - top of the list was to work towards being fit in Body, Mind, and Spirit. The wheels started spinning and I thought it would be really cool if I could complete a Sprint Triathlon. I love to bike, I would be willing to suffer through a 3 or 4 mile run, but the extent of my swimming was floating around my pool on my inflatable raft, complete with a cupholder sipping on something nice and cold. Lucky me I happen to have an amazing friend -her name is Jen- who just so happened to once be a competitive swimmer as well as a coach for some crazy amount of years. I only needed to ask once and she of course was more than willing to help. Might I add, Jen is also the mom of the most adorable 2 year old twin girls, so she came equipped with a sense of humor and a ton of patience. So began my swim lessons in late January. Let me just say it wasn't pretty. Swimming is far more technical than I ever imagined. I formed a new found respect for swimmers. There is the stroke, there is the breathing, there is the kicking, and there is the putting it all together and when that doesn't happen it's called "sinking" Let's just say the "Pull Bouy" became my friend. There were times when I really thought I would never get it, and had a few fleeting thoughts of giving up; but Jen was having none of that.
It has somehow all come together. Recently I did a practice Sprint Triathlon and when I finished the swim my daughter said "Wow Mom that was pretty fast" That was until she saw me the following week swimming with Jen, she said something like "Mom you're so cute when you swim; but you look like a little Mud Turtle compared to Jen" But it's all good. No, I am not pretty in the water, I am not fast in the water, and so what if I can only breathe out of the right side. I somehow get it done. The best part of our swim work-out is the last 15 or 20 minutes when we kickboard side by side and have the best conversations. Thanks Jen xoxoxo

Any Man of Mine....

Meet Dan, he is one of the many reasons I love living my life. He is also known as hubbie, Dad, Dan the Man, #1 Son-in-law (he does no wrong in my Mama's eyes) Lovie, and a few other names that need not be mentioned. I first met Dan when I was a mere 18 years old. My first thought was simply and honestly "Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm" There are many characteristics I could use to describe this man of mine; to name just a few, they would be strong, smart, kind, honest, loyal, faithful and funny. But if I could use only one characterisitic to describe Dan, it would be "selfless" Throughout our 21 year partnership there has never been a time when he hasn't put me and our children first. He is happy when his family is happy. He is most content when we are content. I know without a doubt there is nothing he would not do to ensure our happiness and security; and if that doesn't make a woman love living life, I don't know what does!

Why am I doing this?

I am not quite sure where to begin......Why am I blogging?? Well it has been a year and a half since I boarded a plane with my first-born and only daughter to take her to college some 2,000 miles away. I cried everyday for the first 6 months...for real. Well you can imagine my delight when she started her own blog. It was like opening a present everytime she posted a new entry. I would soak it up with delight and really felt closer to her. I sometimes even read over her older posts because I enjoy her blog so much. Over the last few months I thought it might be fun to start blogging. I am sure it will not be nearly as witty and interesting as Victoria's (that's my daughters name) I am going to give it a whirl. This is quite an undertaking for someone who is thrilled to have finally figured out how to use her blackberry. Let's just say technology is not my forte'.