People of the Book

I am so thrilled when a book comes along that captivates me from start to finish. People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks is one of those books. Combining historical fiction with a touch of intellectual thriller, this proved to be the best book of 2008 thus far for me. The characters were beautifully created, their stories were personal, and it was easy to identify with so many things directly and indirectly when it comes to the love and emotions exhibited by these people. To follow The Sarajevo Haggadah both chronologically and reverse historically was, well, stimulating. If you haven't seen or heard of this gem, I'd suggest you seek it out and be captivated cover to cover as I was. This is one that will always be on my book shelf, to be read again and again.

Contemplative

Today I have a contemplative mind.

I've just gotten around to putting some thought into the spiritual impact of the events of last year, and what a tremendous effect those events have had on my view of the future. I'm not sure if it's a blessing or a curse that we are unable to see things as they are happening, that we can only look back to observe and understand the lessons. If I were more dedicated to writing in my journal, I could look back and see how things progressed; however, it wouldn't be the same as it is now with a somewhat distant observation.

Several months with Tony out of work held such uncertainty. As he struggled to find what he needed professionally, I struggled to find the best way to support him emotionally. Our relationship grew stronger as a result of finding balance together through a challenging situation.

Having Veronica leave for college in San Franciso made the house finally feel a bit empty. As we redesigned the girls' room to mark the change, we still wanted to give them a warm and loving place called home. Seeing them hanging out in their new room over winter break, both on the computer, listening to music, texting their friends, and laughing about days gone by, that warmth of having the house full was present once again. I may not have that on a regular basis anymore, but when I do, I cherish every moment.

Watching Daddy fight cancer from afar is tough. He's on my mind and in my heart every day, as is Mama. I admire both of them, and I feel the warmth of the love they share when I'm with them. I just wish that was a little more often. I see in them where I got so many of the traits that make me who I am. I know with certainty that I was blessed with the most amazing parents. I hope that as I age, people tell me I'm just like them - that would be a beautiful compliment, and one that could not have been realized when I saw the world with 20-year-old eyes.

My friendships for which I'm so grateful continued to evolve this year. There were moments of joy, fear and uncertainty. One friend gave birth to a lovely little girl, one changed career paths, one continues to focus on making a succesful business, another battled and still fights cancer, and another provided constant sisterly support to the one battling cancer. These women are strong in ways that are written in the most acclaimed novels. I am honored to know them, and say thanks daily that they are in my life.

I sometimes wish I were more like one of those people that seemingly has the answers, understands the lessons and knows precisely what's next. But I know I'll never be one of them. I have to think about things for a while, and today I thought a lot. And I realized more fully that part of the joy in life is in the discovery of the lessons and in the distant observations.

I wanted to sit down and write some amazing entry that would give my visitors something to truly ponder. Then I figured, why not just tell what's on my mind?

We all face exciting and difficult challenges and, in spite of them all, it's the support and love of the people we care for that makes each and every new day a blessing to behold. Now, go hug somebody you love.

Rachel Turns 20

Our girlie turned 20 on Friday. I could say time passes quickly, and it seems like yesterday that her entire little body would fit compactly into my lap to hide in a coozie, giggling the entire time. But that's too obvious. If you aren't familiar with a coozie, perhaps someday Rachel (or Veronica) will share. What I will say is that she is a beautiful, smart and funny young lady. She has classic taste in fashion, with just the right bit of trend thrown in for fun; she is discerning with art, whether it be music, books, movies, or other; and she is a romantic at heart, just like her dad. And she is a talented and amazing writer. I observe her with great pride in my heart, and the happy tears fall quietly knowing that our teaching, discipline and love will now be things she passes along.


Here's a pic of us last night at Buca di Beppo, where we celebrated with Lynn, Janna, Grandma Connie and Vince (Rachel's friend. Since I don't know how they refer to each other, I'm sticking with friend for now. She can correct me with her comments).

But now you're wondering what Vince looks like, right? Here he is with Rachel, hamming it up a bit for the camera.

Thanks for checking in with my blog today. Until next time...

Here's to 2008

New Year's Eve was a much anticipated day for me. As most of you know by now, I've been letting my natural hair color grow out since July. And the reveal day finally arrived. After 20 years, I am now all natural. It's been interesting these past few months - most men have thought the idea cool, most women have expressed that they think I'm crazy. Why is that? Is this further proof that women actually are dressing (and coloring) for other women? If men like us natural, are we just fooling ourselves? It takes confidence for a woman under the age of 80 to sport her real hair in todays environment. And I believe we're going to see more of this trend.

I feel fantastic! Kwanna gave me a great haircut- who else would I trust to this? Granted, it was necessary to cut my hair quite short but, girls, it only takes me 5 minutes to do complete hair and makeup. I'm making a list of all the things I can now do for myself with the extra time. I'm guessing you're wondering, "what does she look like?" Well...

Tony and I had a lovely dinner last night at Tracht's in downtown Long Beach to ring out the old, ring in the new. He was THE most dashing man in the entire place. He really knows how to put together a great look. And I finally got to wear the fantastic scarf he bought me in Barcelona. Here we are in all our party glory - aren't we fabulous!?



And to top off the holiday season just right, this morning we spent time in the hottub with a cup of coffee. This is just one of the reasons California livin' is so great.



Wishing all of you the most wonderful blessings for 2008!

Christmas Blessings

Christmas was wonderful. Having Rachel and Veronica both home at the same time was the best part of the season for me. I'm sure Tony would agree. Parties and lunches with friends were, as always, fun and festive. It's truly all about spending time with the people you love. For those of you we didn't get to see this month, here's a picture of our girls on Christmas Eve - at Claim Jumper by the fireplace, as you'll always find us for dinner on Christmas Eve.

I Can't Not Look

I am SO in the mood for Christmas this year. The fake tree is working out beautifully - with all the lights and ornaments, you can't really tell the difference. Rachel walked in last Sunday and said, "Hey you got the tree - did you go to Redondo Street?" Redondo Street is where the tree lot is located that we've been buying from for years. Since you can't have the real tree smell with a fake one, I bought really nice, scented candles. And Tony bought some mulling spices - they make the house smell fabulous!

As it's Saturday afternoon and he played golf this morning, Tony is napping. Afterward we are going for a nice, long walk. It's in the mid-60's here today and very sunny. Fred and Laura came over after golf with Tony and we celebrated Christmas together with a nice lunch.

So, you're asking yourself about this photo, right? Well, when I was visiting Mama and Daddy last month, Mama was showing me some of her pictures, and this one was quite fascinating. The story is that she went outside to take some pictures of flowers. (She makes her own greeting cards, and she likes to use pictures of flowers that she's grown - they really do make the cards pretty.) When she was taking the pictures, she noticed these butterflies. Yes, THESE. If you look closely, you will see that there are two, and they are mating. Have you ever seen anything like that, this close? For those of you that are thinking "why is Hope showing mating butterflies on her blog?", all I can say is - can YOU take your eyes off them? I thought not. And know this - you will think of them again.

Southernly,
Hope

A San Francisco Treat

Last weekend, Tony and I took a little trip up to San Francisco. We got to have dinner with Veronica and her friend, Annie, at Cafe de la Presse (one of our favorites in San Fran with nice French food). We also enjoyed a fun evening at Gary and Pam Elgaaen's house watching The Big Game. For those of you that don't know - The Big Game is Cal vs. Stanford. Obviously, we were cheering for the Bears, but we didn't get the result we wanted. The final score was Stanford 20, Cal 13. There's always next year.

This will be the first year that Tony's not been able to get the Christmas tree with the girls, which makes him a bit sad. As a result, we decided to go a different route, and we're getting a fake tree. It seems an economically sound thing to do, and fake trees look pretty cool now.

And I have to say that he's THE most romantic husband ever. He sent me beautiful flowers at work this week - red and green and white. Why, you may ask? Just because he's "my biggest fan." It's the most amazing feeling to wake up every day and have somebody like that who loves you. And it's reciprocated, as you might expect. Can I just say right here, right now - my husband is amazing and I love him dearly!

Until next time...