Thanks so much Liz, it’s so good to hear from you. I’m excited about your kitchen and renovations. I love all the slots in your new pantry(ies!) for cakes and platters. Can’t wait to see it finished and I know you can’t either. Understatement. It’s tough living in construction. I just went to the library yesterday and picked up “Irena’s Children” by Tilar J. Mazzeo to read on our Cape vacation next week. It’s the story of Irena – the “female Oskar Schindler” who took “staggering risks to save 2500 children from death and deportation in Nazi-occupied Poland during World War II.” BTW, the grants DID come through for Hudson, I’m in process of interviewing/hiring respite care providers now. There is so much paperwork involved for each hire, but I’m making headway. Have a super week! xo

YESSSSSSS!!!!

Hi Kathy – loved hearing from you! I hope you are well, and that your summer is off to a great start so far. I hope you and Evan enjoy “Breathe”. One more movie recommendation — if you haven’t seen it yet, consider “Mr. Church”. And also “Priceless”. Really thought provoking movies. It’s tough to find good movies these days. I cried on that video clip too, that little Bo singing “hap-EEE”. Just adorable. Thanks for sharing our joy, I’m so grateful to have some special things to look forward to – hope is a beautiful thing. xoxo

Susie – super to hear from you. So glad you also liked Mr. Church, and the clip of Lydia singing to her brother. SO precious. I know you and Jac will enjoy Breathe. We had nearly 100 degree heat and high humidity today. Eek! Not typical New England summer. It was pretty bad, but then a thunderstorm came through and cooled things down. I’ve been to Ogunquit twice in the last week. I discovered that one of my friend’s sons is working at Barnacle Billy’s this summer. I’m scheming on how I can get connected to whomever makes that blueberry pie at Barnacle Billy’s – because I would PAY to get a lesson on how to make that pie. The crust is so incredibly flaky and light. I WANT TO KNOW THE SECRET!!!! Ha ha ha. And then I will tell you too. 🙂

Hi Nan – thank you so much, so good to hear from you. You were quite an inspiration to me, caring for your mom these many years. I know you miss her. Hope you have great success with the foot peel too, I’m so happy with the results. I’ve been really good about putting cream on my feet every night since I did the peel, trying to take good care so they don’t get so bad again. Hope you have a great summer too!

Thank you so much Barbara!!! I am also happy to hear that things are going well with Katie’s transition too. I know it’s an answer to many prayers. Yes – you need to see Breathe on a big screen. The scenery in Kenya was truly amazing. What a movie. Also if you haven’t seen Mr. Church yet, I highly recommend.

Hi Elle – thanks – hope you enjoy the books. Thanks for your recommendation too – so appreciate it. We head to the Cape on Saturday and I’ll try to get my hands on a copy of that too. So looking forward to a relaxing time, wish I cld bring a respite care giver for a few days on the trip as Hudson is not a fan of the beach, but hopefully he’ll adjust and we can all get in a little relaxation. Thanks for being happy for Hudson, he is really doing better and I’m so thankful. Hope is a beautiful thing. Love ya. xo

Hey Carol – thank you! Loved hearing from you. So much going on there, not to mention still FREEZING at night. What gives? Yes, you must be counting on autumn, since spring has been such a disappointment. Congrats on the bathroom reno!!! So glad you are near the finish line. We have a few things that still need to be finished up with the kitchen…I’m going to have to make sure the last little details get done. When you get out of that renovation mode and move onto other things, it’s easy to leave those last details unfinished. We have a cabinet door that needs to be fixed by the cabinet maker, so I need to make that happen. Hearing about your glue smudge in the shower reminds me I need to get that done. Hopefully your bathroom is now complete! Enjoy your time in Labrador – hope it’s not all work, my friend. xo