Post-Thanksgiving, Nearly Christmas

Here we are past the Thanksgiving holiday.  Grandma's friend Charlie came up to visit over the holiday and I made the traditional food we are all used to.  Sweet Potatoes topped with marshmallows, Green Beans topped with fried onions, baked beans, sherbert jello salad with mandarin oranges, cranberry chutney, biscuits and a big fat turkey!!  The table was complaining there was too much food on it, but that meant there were leftovers to send home with Charlie, and plenty for me the next week to have for dinner in the evening.

New York city is all dressed up for Christmas.  The Macy's and Lord & Taylor windows are open to see and are quite wonderful.  I went on Sunday to see them with my friend and his daughter's family.  The little girl is about Emmerson's age and there is a baby just over a year old.  It was nice to see the windows and ride the carousel in Bryant park looking through their eyes.  I did the same with you, Taylor, when you were small.  Everything was so much more special seeing the way you saw it.

I put some lights up outside the house, and may dress up the staircase - but no place for a tree anymore.  People live in the space where we used to put it and they don't celebrate Christmas, but they do like the lights so I do those.

I am flying to New Orleans this weekend just to eat!  We already have several restaurant reservations made at special places where we can get all dressed up.  I'm also hoping to get to see The Nutcracker here in New York before it goes away - it makes a special Christmas. 

It has been nice to enjoy so much of what New York has to offer the last year or so.  Everything from Carnegie Hall to the Metropolitan Opera.  And, of course, lots of restaurants, movies, comedy clubs and plays.  There is nothing like this city.

I hope you are enjoying your new school.  I haven't read anything about how you and Emmerson are doing so i don't know what language you are learning in.  I worry that you will lose your English and never really learn how to speak, write, and understand the language really well.  If you don't learn it when you are young, it will always be more difficult.  At least you will be able to speak other languages fluently which is an advantage if you are not living in the United States.

I love you Taylor and Emmerson.  I miss you very much, but I just know I will see you again before I die because someday, somehow, you will find me.  Just do an internet search for my name and you will find my address, email and phone.  Call me when you are old enough to do it on your own.  I will always be waiting for you.

Love,
Grandma

School Days

Hello my darlings!

Well, here it is September and time for school.  You both looked so adorable for your first day in the new Monaco school.  I hope everything is going well and you will make a lot of new friends.  Emmerson managed quite a lot better than her first day in Nice, didn't she?  Lots of smiles instead of tears.  You have gotten so much braver!!

My little man accepted the change with his usual energetic happy self as I would expect.  You are always Grandma's happy little boy.

Grandma's arm is getting better - I am able to use it a lot more.  Not everything of course - still needs to get lots and lots of muscles back which all went away while it was healing.  But time will make things better.  I still haven't gotten the car our of the driveway - the poor thing has been sitting there since May.  Do you suppose cars can get lonely?  Perhaps I should go sit in it from time to time and talk just to keep it company.

The cruise from New York to Bermuda was just wonderful.  Seven whole days of living on a boat and eating wonderful food and three days of walking around the islands with all the colors of the rainbow in the houses.  On one of the nights back the moon was completely full and because there were no city lights around it was huge and gleaming - reflecting into the sea.  I couldn't get a good photo, but I will always remember how wonderful it looked.

I miss you both and hope the move has not been too awful.  Changing houses all the time is always an adventure and you must look at it as just that - an adventure.  Think of all the tales you will tell YOUR grandchildren because you will be able to.  Don't ever do to your children what has been done to me.  You must always be close to your family and love them with all your heart.

I adore you both, and miss you very much.  Someday you will come back to the US to visit and you will find me.  I love you.

Grandma Nici

Learning to be Right Handed Again

It HAS been a while.  Lots has happened.  The fixator appliance that was attached to my arm to make sure the bones all healed right was removed - ANOTHER surgery - the end of July, so now it's just work, work, work to make sure my arm, wrist and fingers learn how to work again.  Taylor, do you remember when Emmerson was a tiny tiny baby?  How her fingers didn't work very well and she had to learn how to hold things, and open things?  My hand is like that.  It has almost no strength, so I have to use my left hand to open doors, and turn keys, and button my buttons, and use a fork, or brush my teeth.  It's very interesting to see how much my left hand can do when my right hand was used to doing it.  I even learned to use my mouse with my left hand!!

Now the fun news.  Grandma is going to take a cruise on a really big boat to a tropical island for a whole week.  The main thing is to avoid the two hurricanes that are trying to get in my way.  But it should be fun when the ship starts rocking from side to side.  I wonder if all the water in the swimming pool will slosh over the sides and into the ocean?  Wouldn't that be funny to watch?

I hope your summer is lots of fun and you are getting all ready for school in a few weeks.  It will be nice to make new friends and say hello to old ones.

I love you both and miss you very much.  Be good, both of you, and a big giant kiss from Grandma!

Grandma Nici

Fourth of July and Fireworks

The metal fixator has been on for about six weeks now and it will be a few more weeks before my wrist and arm feels well enough to take it off, then months of exercises until it is strong enough to play.  It is funny to find out all the things you can't do when you only have one hand. Try it!!  Put your right had in your back pocket and do every you usually do.  Brush your teeth, take a bath, get dressed, comb your hair, eat breakfast, write your name, open a bottle, make the bed, tie your shoes.  How did you do?  It is really hard isn't it?  Grandma is learning to type and write with just her left hand!!

The fireworks for America's Birthday on the 4th of July were very exciting this year and I had a great place to watch them on the roof of my friend's house in New York.  I could see everything, even the ones down on the water, but no big noisy booms (thr kind Taylor never did like.)  When you were little, Taylor, Grandma would record all the fireworks on television and we would watch them every night for two weeks.  The music was better than the big booms.  I hope you will get to see some fireworks for Bastille Day next week.

It is almost Taylor's birthday too.  It will be fun to celebrate with new friends. I hope you get lots of prezzies and a big cake to share.

I love you both my dearest sweet children and miss you every day.

Grandma Nici

Summer Begins

Hello my beautiful children.  This post is difficult to write.  I spend a lot of time thinking of you both, and following your life through your mother's blog. It was very hard for a very long time, but now I can smile at your funny pictures.  I always want the best for you as you enjoy the adventures but I still worry because no matter what your father may think, the US is still a better place to grow up.  At least you have time to enjoy the best of everything when you are little and you will be well traveled and have a great knowledge of the world.

Grandma broke her arm and wrist a few weeks ago and had two surgeries in seven days.  I wear a metal Wristjack fixator which is screwed into my hand and arm and there is a plate and screws in the bones.  I even got some skeleton bones to help mine heal better.  Cool, huh!!.  It has been very painful and there are times I feel very alone when I can't do even the simplest task like tying my tennis shoes.  And when the hospital asks who to contact in case of emergency and I have to say "no one".

I know someday you will find me - and I just keep hoping for it.  Meanwhile, I will keep looking at the pictures and say to you again - I did not leave you, you were taken from my arms by force.  I will never, ever stop loving you both.

Grandma Nici

Almost Spring!!

It is very warm on some days, and very cold on others.  I am happy you are where the weather is nice all the time.  The pretty flowers are all blooming and Grandma just put new grass in the back yard.  No more weeds!!  Hurrah!!!

I wish you could play on it with me.  I love you both and miss you.

Grandma Nici

Happy Birthday Emmerson

Happy Third sweet girl.  Grandma will be thinking of you all day today and hoping your special day is especially wonderful.  Blow out your candles with one big blow and make a wish!

Dearest Taylor - are you having fun at school?  You are getting to be such a big boy.  You will like to know that Grandma shared your books with another little boy who turned four on Sunday.  He will enjoy reading them as much as you did.

Have a wonderful time my dear children.  Grandma misses you as always.

Love, Grandma Nici

Visit to New York

Uncle Mike and Julie told me you and mommy were at his house.  I think you flew back from France for a week to renew your Visa.  I know you asked mommy if "Grandma is dead".  And you were told that I am far far away.  In fact, you were just three houses away from me.  If you had been able to walk out the door you would have seen the house where you lived with Grandma, coming up the stairs to watch "Cars" and "The Invincibles" and "Chicken Little" and play with the dump trucks and frontloaders.  Didn't we have such fun using the frontloaders to move the poker chips into the dump trucks, then dump them out again and start over.

No - my sweet children, Grandma is not dead.  She is always very close to you and thinks of you every single day of her life.  Someday you will know that.  And someday she will see you again.  It won't take long until you know how to find me on the computer and we will talk every day until you know me again.  I love you both and miss you so much.

Grandma Nici

Holidays Over - Winter Begins

It looks like you had such a wonderful Christmas.  Stockings, and a big tree, and lots of toys from Santa.  And a nice big dinner with your friends.  I am so glad things are going so well and you are happy.  It's not as warm here in New Jersey!  We had freezing weather for a week, and now today it is 50 again.

Grandma sprained her ankle and has been limping around something awful.  But it is getting better - hurray - and easier to get up and down the stairs at the subway.

I had a nice dinner with friends Christmas Eve and celebrated New Year's Eve watching the ball drop and the fireworks.  Did you have fireworks too?

I love you both very much, and miss you.  I've been putting all my pictures on the computer and see all the ones from when you were both born and growing.  My goodness how you have gotten bigger.

Grandma Nici