Nine years ago I became a Mrs. My Mister has made me the happiest lady in the world. I can't imagine my life without him. He has provided me with so much love and friendship, always staying my side, and the fact that he is so darn good looking helps too ;)
When Wyatt turned 1 and I stopped nursing him, I asked Anthony to take me on a weekend getaway. I wanted a full nights sleep and a couple of days of just the two of us. 4 1/2 years later we finally took that trip!!! It was our first romantic getaway, one of many more to come. It took me finally booking a room and planning it out myself but that's ok.
As we approached the windmills I started getting really excited. It brought back many wonderful memories of driving through the desert to get to Lake Havasu, my happy place.
I brought my own handsome bellhop. (Just so you know, my bag is the small one)
View from our Villa
View from the camera lens
A little night swimming to cool off from the 110* heat.
Whoa, I even drank when we were there. Bar tender was overly kind and kept giving me refills.
The weekend was wonderful!! The heat, not so much. Turns out when the doctor told me I had heat intolerance, it meant that my body can't tolerate the heat. I didn't believe him because I spent so much of my life enjoying extreme heat and not having a problem. Oh well, things change, you move on. I spent a total of 2 hours the entire weekend outside and once the chest pain started and I couldn't see straight, we retreated back to our room.
Happy Anniversary Babe! Looking forward to many many more years together with you by my side. I love you more each day!!
Nancy Giannuzzi, a beautiful Italian women who had an incredible adventure with 91 years worth of stories to tell.
My mother-in-law, Madalyn wrote this eulogy:
What a Life!
What a Character!
The quintessential Italian momma.
Nancy, Momma Mia, Mom, Sis, Giannutz, Grandma and Gigi.
She answered to all of these titles and had a personality to fill her assorted roles.
Her most recent nickname, Gigi, came about as a result of becoming a great-grandma – the G.G. stood for Grandma Giannuzzi as well. It just seemed to fit her 4'6” frame.
Think of how the world has changed in 91 years.
Gigi spent her childhood living near her grandparents farm on the island of Ischia. It was a happy time.
She spoke of the vineyards, the chickens and rabbits as fond memories.
She recalled her grandmother baking bread every morning and preparing the noon meal for her husband and their workers. They even had a horse drawn cart.
Happy times for Gigi but not so for her father, Ernesto. Work was scarce and he knew that the dictators Mussolini and Hitler were power hungry. He looked to America as a brighter future for his family. It took him eight years to get everything in order to bring his family along. In those years, the family only saw him occasionally.
Gigi never received a formal education. She went to school in Italy, but, the focus was placed on domestic duties. As a result, she became a fine seamstress and cook.
In 1936, Gigi, who was seventeen at the time, her mother Angelina and two younger brothers Ernie and Frank came to New York.
They didn't enter through Ellis Island, since they already had their paperwork in order. They were docked nearby. Gigi recalls seeing the throngs of people entering Ellis Island. A younger brother, Anthony, was born in America, in 1939. My uncle Frank is now the only one remaining and he resides in Florida with his wife, Emily.
Ernesto attained the American Dream. He ran a little candy store in New York and the family lived above it.
One day some men paid him a visit and commented on his large picture window – they told him that he needed to buy insurance just in case the window was ever broken. He sent them on their way and, a few days later, his window was shattered. The men returned and said he needed them to insure that his window would not be broken again.
This extortion continued until Ernesto just couldn't take it anymore and he eventually moved the family to Connecticut.
My grandfather had an expression:
He would shrug his shoulders and say, “What are you going to do?”
Gigi was married and divorced twice. So, as a single mom she raised, Rudy, myself and Angie with the help of her mother, Angelina. She worked assorted jobs as the years progressed.
In the spring of 1956, the family moved to California and settled in Torrance where the three of us kids grew up.
We eventually met the Scotto family. Tom & Nancy used to raise rabbits in their backyard and my mom and grandma became regular customers of theirs. Some of my earliest memories are of us running down the aisles of rabbits in their pens.
Gigi and Nancy Scotto became fast friends – and they , also, got into the best shouting matches. One of them would say to the other, “Oh, shut up.” – the other would respond with, “No, you shut up.” And back and forth they would go!
It was always on the tip of my tongue to say, “Maybe you should both shut up.” But, I was just a kid at the time and after all – as pop would say, “What was I going to do?”
When Gigi was 51, she met and married Bill Giannuzzi – her knight in shining armor. They lived happily for 16 years until he passed, in 1986. We all loved him and miss him dearly.
You, all, honor us with your presence today. Many of you have traveled hundreds of miles and I can't tell you how appreciative we are of your efforts. Your sentiments have really bolstered us.
Our friend, Anna made arrangements to have a candle lit at an Italian church near Tuscany, Italy. Mom would have loved that!
I want to thank my family for their unwavering support.
I also want to thank Rod and Teme Christiansen who have been Gigi's caregivers for the past 15 months.
Because of their efforts, she was able to attend Michelle & James's wedding.
She couldn't get up and dance on her feet anymore, so, she danced with her hands.
At Anthony & Karen's wedding she attempted to catch the bouquet.
And, at Dominic & Julie's wedding she danced as much as possible.
Last year was a particularly rough one for Gigi. In March, she fell and broke her left hip and arm and then in November she fell and broke her right hip.
The skilled nursing facility had a name for patients like Gigi.
They called them Falling Stars.
So, as the song suggests, I will catch her falling star and put it in my pocket and never let it fade away!
Aunt Angie got up and spoke and emphasized the love G.G had for everyone and the warm greeting she always gave. She mentioned they were not rich monetarily but they were certainly rich in love.
I didn't take any pictures inside the mortuary but I snapped a few at the mauzeoleum where she was laid to rest.
Dominic(Anthony's twin), Kevin(cousin) and Anthony were pallbearers.
After 2 days of stormy, cloudy weather, we were greated with a beautiful sunset as the family all gathered together at an Italian restaurant for dinner after the funeral.
Here is the video slideshow I put together for the memorial service.
"Afterglow"
I'd like the memory of me
to be a happy one,
I'd like to leave an afterglow
of smiles when life is done.
I'd like ot leave an echo
whispering softly down the way,
Of happy times and laughing
times and bright and sunny days.
I'd like the tears of those who grieve, to dry before the sun,
I went out to get the mail and became so excited when I saw a package with my name. I opened the box and there was a gift inside. It had this lucky horseshoe charm attached to the outer box and when I opened the box I found the most beautiful pony made out of stone.
This is 'Flame' (Red Jasper)
A fiery symbol of health, hope, and resilience.
I was immediately brought to tears. Not a huge surprise to most. :) I was overwhelmed with gratitude that this person thought of me when they saw this. I can't even tell you how much I love it!
Inside with the pony was a card that read:
"There's A Pony In There Somewhere!"
Once there were five-year old twin boys, one a pessimist and the other an optimist. Wondering how two boys who seemed so alike could be so different, their parents took them to a psychiatrist.
The psychiatrist took the pessimist to a room piled high with new toys, expecting the boy to be thrilled. But instead he burst into tears. Puzzled, the psychiatrist asked, "don't you want to play with these toys?" "Yes," the little boy bawled, "but if I did I'd only break them."
Next the psychiatrist took the optimist to a room piled high with horse manure. The boy yelped with delight, clambered to the top of the pile, and joyfully dug out scoop after scoop, tossing the manure into the air with glee. "What on earth are you doing?" the psychiatrist asked. "Well," said the boy, beaming "There's got to be a pony in here somewhere!"
author unknown
Another card explained about the pony:
The pony has been our family's talisman of hope and healing (with a dash of humor) for generations. We hope this pony will do the same for you. Hold it. Embrace it. Tuck it in your pocket or purse. Enjoy it. Never forget that pony's in there somewhere, no matter how deep the pile!
"Always remember, no matter how much horse manure life throws your way, there's gotta be a pony in there somewhere!"
This gift couldn't have come at a more perfect time and from such a beautiful person. I love what it stands for, and I love his name. It has so much meaning to me. I will keep it close and cherish it forever with the prayer of health, hope and resilience!
Alexis and Anthony both love sushi. Wyatt and I... not so much. Alexis and Anthony love their lunch dates, uninterrupted by the little brother and mom. They took off to a local sushi joint, sat at the bar and had star treatment. It is so special for the two of them to have this time together and I hope they continue these dates forever.
While they were on their date, Wyatt and I kept it classy and headed to Taco Bell. Bean and cheese burrito, no sauce, no onion please. Same order, every time. I hope he'll continue to go on dates with me... even when he's a teenager and being seen in public with mom is embarrassing.
I hope everyone enjoys celebrating Independence Day today!!! BBQ's, sunshine and fireworks... my kind of day!!
My brother, sister and I were laying on the carpet hands holding our chins up as we were watching Different Strokes. We were just about to find out what Willis was talkin' about when my dad said to turn the t.v off, we were going out to dinner. All three of us simultaneously whined and said no. NOT something you should ever say to a parent. Our t.v privileges were taken away. I don't even know for how long but this happened close to 30 years ago and I still remember it very clearly. At that time, I vowed to never, I repeat, never take the t.v away from my children. 7 1/2 years after having my first child, the remote is hidden and they can't watch t.v anymore. I totally went back on my word and became my parents. The kids were glued to the t.v and when a commercial came on they would whine about how bored they were. I listened to them for the 3 minutes of commercials when they would run back to their worn out spot on the couch to watch the rest of the episode. I was not met with the same resistance that I gave my parents but they were not exactly happy to be told no more t.v. Their behavior changed immediately for the better. No more crappy kids shows teaching them it's ok to sneak out of the house or talk back to their parents. I am now making a new vow to myself to monitor what is on and for how long. I am not taking it away permanently but I get a say as to what they watch. The only downside to taking away the t.v is the mess from all the toys but that's ok. I would much rather their minds have the ability to create on their own than be brain washed into watching 4 hours of a Spongebob marathon.
Talk about the ups and downs, the good with the bad, we had it all in the last week...
This beautiful lady on the right will be going home soon. Last Friday she went into the hospital for some swelling. We decided to bring the kids to the hospital to visit her (in the past, we left the kids home) and the doctor was getting ready to start the discharge process. Anthony was holding onto G.G's hand and she kept calling out in pain and saying "help me." It was so hard to see her so uncomfortable. Soon after we left, she had a heart attack. She was brought into the ICU and put on a ventilator. We went back to the hospital the next day (with out the kids this time) and we said our goodbyes. The doctor was going to be taking her off the ventilator the next day and it was assumed that she would go quickly after. Little did this doctor know who he was dealing with. This was G.G, the feisty little fighter. It has been 1 week since she first went into the hospital and she is now at home on hospice, still alive. She is reaching to towards the sky, eyes gazed upward, already on her way home. She has had a beautiful 91 years here.
Meanwhile, we have found our 10 year old dog to be immortal. She got into snail bait in the neighborhood a week ago and was so incredibly sick throughout the night. I stayed awake with her and when Anthony got home in the morning, he took one look at her and knew this was it. We explained to the kids that it was time to say goodbye to Daisy, she wasn't going to make it much longer. So here we are at home with a dying dog, explaining the process to the kids as they are about to loose their great grandma. Here's the twist. As God always promises to never give us more than we can handle, our dog has fully recovered from eating toxic snail bait that is always fatal!!! She is doing great!!
The next night however, this guy starts his seal barking. Normally he has a cold or virus when he gets his croup but this time there was no warning. He started at 2:44 a.m and I laid next to him listening to him struggle to breathe. I turned the shower on, steamed up his bathroom and carried him in. This aggravated him and his symptoms became worse, much worse. He could not take a breath without that high pitch stridor. He finally has his own machine and after 30 minutes, he started feeling better. Afterwards, he said he thought he was going to die. That must have been so frightening for him to not be able to breathe. He was put on steroids and will be seeing a specialist to figure out why he continues to get such severe croup at his age. Until then, he will be in a bubble. I can't go through another night like that.
We had a trip planned to my grandma's house for quite some time and with all that was going on, we weren't sure we were going to be able to make it. She only lives an hour away so we knew we could get back quickly if need be. Spending time as a family and with my grandma was the best decision we could have made.
The kids did some snorkeling with Anthony
While I did some reading alone... pure bliss!
When on vacation, all rules are broken and this little banana split was consumed in less than 2 minutes.
Today's goal was to speak less and listen more. This included shutting of my mind and not allowing my thoughts to speak over the sounds of nature or the sounds of my children. Today I will hear what they say and not respond with the usual, uh huh, or oh yeah? Really listen and respond accordingly. I want to be focused 100% on the present moment and not 80%. Do one thing at a time pouring my heart into it and only focusing on that moment.
I heard the birds chirping in the tree outside my bedroom window with roosters in the near distance letting me know it is time to wake up.
I heard stories from my children about their wishes, their fears, what makes them happy and what makes them sad.
We played together, laughed so hard our muscles were sore, giggled until we couldn't catch our breath. We walked down Main St. while savoring the flavor of our frozen yogurt and stopping to smell every flower. There was no rushing. We did as we pleased staying grounded and centered. We were aware of our surroundings, appreciating more than we ever have. Being attentive kept us all happy. I wish this would be the constant norm but as a mom, I have other areas that I have to attend to, leaving the children to fend for themselves while the laundry, cooking, cleaning... is all getting done. But stopping my life to pay more attention to theirs and ours together brought a sense of joy to us all that when it's time to get back to my "work" they won't feel that urgency of need. It worked. I had time in the laundry room to smell the fresh clean clothes and feel the soft warm cotton as I folded {who am I kidding, I don't fold the laundry} piled the clothes into the basket. The kids were content. One playing in the dirt and the other reading a book outside.
I noticed the birds song was different as the sun was setting and the crickets began their chirp.
Today was peaceful. It wasn't rushed as we went with the flow. There was no resistance as we walked through the day with the wind at our back instead of our heels digging into the ground. We followed our hearts because my mind was quite and able to listen.
Watching life is beautiful, it is magical, it is serene.
