I'm BACK!!!

Finally home from my travels - for now. December started off great.

Eva and I went to the tree lighting ceremony here in Delray Beach. We have a 100 ft. tree that is just beautiful. You can walk inside and view cute little window scenes of the holiday. They town had school children singing and dancing on stage and of course, Santa was there - arriving on a fire engine! After the tree lighting we went to dinner across the street at Taverna Eros and enjoyed several "small plates" and a salad. We completed the evening by walking down the Avenue, which was closed to traffic, went in and out of the stores/boutiques, listened to the bands that were here and there and even got to do some dancing with friends that Eva knew.




Last Friday I went to see Billy Crystal in 700 Sundays, along with Mom, her friend Evette and my friend Lois. What a GREAT SHOW!!!
This Friday night was the Disco Studio 54 Theme party at the studio. I bought a cute 1970's disco dress complete with hat and belt, accessorized a bit and was ready to go. Eric was the consummate disco guy - Afro, big gold chain, disco shirt. Nataliya was a sparkly go-go dance,Tiffany had her disco top and bell bottoms...we did the hustle and other disco dances, with a few ballroom numbers thrown in.

Coming and Going!

November was SOOOO busy. I mean, I love being busy but this was nuts!
The first weekend I flew to Atlanta for Avi's 3rd birthday (and it was Phil's birthday too, though he was a little more than 3 years old). When I walked in on Thursday night, Talia and Avi were in the tub taking a bath. Avi looked up, big smile and said, "Hi, Grandma!" Talia looked up and...."WAAAAAA" cried hysterically till Alison picked her up. It took Talia a little while to get comfy with me. On Friday I went to Avi's school and spent the morning sitting in on two classes like his (3 - 6 year olds). It was interesting to see how the children worked on their own, with minimal intervention by the teachers. The room was orderly, there was no arguing among the students, everyone knew what to do and how to go about it. SIGH!!! Wish my students had the opportunity to learn in an environment like this. We are so innundated with "programs" and time constraints that it is not what kindergarten should be like. It's not as calm, the students don't have a chance to master what they are learning....yada, yada, yada. Get me off this soapbox already! On Saturday I got to go with Avi, Alison and Talia to Lowe's where Avi goes every two weeks to make a project, supplied by the store. This week he made a fire engine. They even had a fire engine on hand for the kids to sit in and meet the fire fighters, although Avi did not want to go into the truck (he is an observer).

We went to PF Changs for lunch and got to see Becca there.
The birthday party was at Lifetime Fitness, the gym that my kids belong to and where Phil and Alison work (he full-time, she one day a week). Phil ran the party. It was a hoot. They had a bounce house, he played games with the kids, and then it was time for pizza, apples and a BIG birthday cookie (instead of a cake). The kids were all so good and had a great time...I did, too! The best part, though, was getting to spend a lot of time with Avi and Talia.



The next weekend Mom and I were supposed to go to NY for a wedding. Unfortunately it was cancelled....the groom skipped out a few weeks before the date. Not only did he disappear, but it turned out that he was a USER!!! He took back the ring (which may or may not have been real), took the bride's father's credit card and charged some things on it, never paid the deposit to the DJ and catering restaurant and more...good riddance to him. We decided to keep our tickets and go to NY anyway, as we were staying with my brother in CT. On Saturday we went into Manhattan and met my friend Aileen for lunch. I had seen her for the first time in 41 years this past summer and never met her partner. He owns a butcher shop in the city - what a nice guy. Then we had lunch and good company, in spite of the rainy weather. After lunch Mom, Jon and I went to Hopewell Junction to have dinner with my best friend Rosemarie and her husband Al. Mom and I spent the night and they took us to the airport the next day.



The NEXT weekend I went with my boss/friend and several other teachers to Mt. Dora, which is north of Orlando. They go every year and this is the first time I was able to join them. We spent all of Saturday at Renningers Antique Show. It was GREAT (but oh, so hot out). I saw so many things that I remember from my childhood...old (but in great condition) appliances, dishes, lunch boxes, furniture, and books...DICK AND JANE!!! UNCLE WIGGLY (two of which I have in storage). I did get the find of the day...a beautiful gown, just my size, for a sinful price, that I will wear at the studio's Holiday Extravaganza when I do a showcase dance in December. On Sunday we went to the town of Mt.Dora to go in and out of shops and have lunch. Another fun weekend!
The following week was Thanksgiving. Mom and I flew to Atlanta to spend the holiday with the kids. Thursday morning my girls and their husbands ran the Atlanta 1/2 marathon while Mom and I watched Avi and Talia AND put the turkey in to cook. Alison had bought a fresh turkey and marinated it overnight in brine. It was the best tasting turkey I have ever had. Everything else was delicious...Becca made green bean casserole and fried broccoli, Alison made the rest and baked, I made cranberry-orange relish. On Saturday it was "Game Day!." Michael put out the Albert Gator flag (the root for U of Florida) and we had a "tailgate party" in front of the garage. They grill hot dogs and beans and we pretend we are in the parking lot of the stadium. Alison was busy earlier reconstructing a jacket to make a pouch on the back that Talis could fit into (it's open on the inside and Talia is in a carrier on Alison's back, inside the pouch...Talia LOVED it! It was another fun, fun weekend with the kids.

A Full October

The month started with a road trip to Tampa with my friend Lois to see the NY Yankees play the Tampa Bay Rays. She and I have never taken a trip together before and we found that we are good travel companions (oh, that makes us sound so old). We drove up on a Friday night, spent Saturday at a big but not so great flea market (although I did buy a pair of pallazzo pants for dance. That evening we had early dinner with friends of Lois's and then headed to the game. It was a good game, except for the Rays fans clanging their COW BELLS in our ears (however, they people there were very nice - it was all in fun). We lost that game but had fun. I used my Garmin GPS for the first time. It got us there with no problem...but...took us home through the middle of nowhere. That was ok though...Lois and I had no trouble filling the time with endless conversation!




In the middle of the month we had the Harvest Moon Dance at Fred Astaire studio. As always, it was so much fun. We danced and laughed and some of us students showcased our dances. I did a Samba that was a big hit!



Robin Williams came to SFLA and did a great concert...and I was there! He was so hysterical my stomach ached from laughing.

Yesterday we had a Halloween party at the studio. I dressed as a "Naughty School Girl" and won first place for the "sexiest" costume...not bad for a chick gal...well...over! I don't think my kids liked my outfit too much, but hey...that's THEIR hang-up!


After the party some of us went to Il Bacio in Delray Beach for dancing. It was a lot of fun, except I don't have dance shoes that I can wear outside. I had stayed in costume ONLY because Eric, my dance instructor/partner, said he was too (as were a few others). Well, Eric didn't but I wasn't the only one in costume. I did have to put on sandals that had a strap, which looked a bit ridiculous with the outfit I had on, but no one seemed to care but me, so I guess it was okay.
Tonight my friend Eva and I dined on the Avenue and then went (again) to Il Bacio where it was packed with people (mostly 20's and 30's) in costume...and I mean...GREAT costumes. There was to be a costume party at midnight. We sat and enjoyed the evening, eventually getting up to dance, but at 12:30 AM with no judging starting, we made our leave. What a fun month it was!

Memories

My dear friend Rosemarie sent me a new toy...a Garmin GPS system. I love it! In the package she included a picture of my kids taken about 25 years ago.

Double the Pleasure

I flew to Atlanta last weekend to visit my family. My son-in-law Phil picked me up at the train (which I take from the airport) and we went to see my daughter Becca at PF Changs where she is manager. After a delicious dinner and short visit Phil brought me to Alison's house where I would stay the weekend. We ended up staying awake until 2 AM watching DVD's that I had made from old family videos. It was fun to see Alison, Becca and Adam when they were little and see how much Avi looked like Alison when she was little, and how identical Talia is to Becca at 2 months old!
The next morning Avi wanted to see Grandma so Alison brought him and Talia in to wake me. Talia took one look at me and....WAAAHHH! At 5 1/2 months old she definitely has stranger anxiety. I have not been in Atlanta for 2 months so of course she didn't know me. As the weekend went on she became more comfortable with me but still had moments where she looked at me as if to say, "You talkin' to ME?" Avi, on the other hand, couldn't get enough Grandma. We have such fun together and he is one smart little guy. At not quite 3 years old he knows his letter sounds and can tell me the beginning sound of words, recites the alphabet in English and Hebrew, counts to 10 in English and Spanish and can point out the continents on the globe.
On Saturday we took the kids to Lowes where Avi made a firetruck as part of their kids project. On Sunday, we went to the mall and he played in the climbing area. Then we went to PF Changs for lunch. Talia was exhausted, having gotten up at 5:30 AM and not napped...until she got onto Aunt Becca. Then she went right out!
Monday Michael and I took Avi to the park where we had a picnic lunch and lots of fun on the slides and other climbing equipment. The weekend went by so quickly but it was wonderful to be with Alison, Michael, see Bex and Phil and of course, be with my darling grandchildren!

Hostess with the Mostess?

Tonight was the monthly Guest Party at the studio (Fred Astaire of Delray Beach). I was asked to be the Student Hostess for the evening. I was so happy that I also had several guests attending...my cousin and her friend, the office manager where I go for physical therapy (for - literally - the pain in my butt! an inflamed piriformis muscle), and a guy who was standing outside looking in a few days before and I told him to go on in and join the fun...so he did! I had a lesson just before the party, then changed into my dress for hostessing. As people entered I greeted them and gave them champagne. Eric and Nataliya (owners/instructors) then walked around and schmoozed a bit. When the general dancing started I went into the back to put on my costume for a demonstration samba.The bummer was that I missed all the general dancing due to waiting in the "wings." When I finally "went on" it was great...not perfect, but so much fun. Afterward I changed back to my dress and joined the others for Eric's demonstration dance steps lesson. And then...we were done!

Works of Art

Last night after dinner at my favorite Mexican restaurant, Casa Maya, my friend Eva and I went to an art gallery in Fort Lauderdale to view a showing called "Portraits in Blue." A friend of Eva's, Robin White, was exhibiting some of her art. It was very nice - there were many people but not overly crowded. We met Robin and saw her painting, which, she said, was of her mother as a young woman. There were all genres of art. We met and spoke to an artist named Lena Luckey (Luckey is her married name but very appropriate, I think). She is from Czechoslovakia, as is Eva. Lena's art is beautiful, very serene, calm - you can feel inner peace in each one. A bit later we met two of Eva's cronies from dancing and spent a few minutes talking to them. It was a really nice evening. Here are some other works that were at the exhibit, though I apologize for not knowing the artists:

The Loves of my Life

I have not seen Avi or Talia in person since mid-July and I am looking forward to going to Atlanta in two weeks, for the weekend. Thank goodness for webcams, where I have seen them once or twice, but it doesn't compare to in person. Here are a few pix of my sweethearts: