The Passing Of A Decade

Apparently I am a little slow on the uptake these days. It just dawned on me today that this Friday will mark the end of a decade. A decade! Ten whole years have elapsed! Wow! It seems like just yesterday we were so worried about Y2K, the crashing of all of our computers, the possible end of the world and a myriad of other monumental possibilities that never came to pass. Don't all of those worries seem so silly now?

I remember that New Year's Eve well. We had the annual Sheehan family Christmas party at my mother's house that year on New Year's Eve. My good friend from college, Danielle came as my guest and she drank so much that she threw up over the side of my parent's back porch. It was a mixture of all kinds of alcohol, and it froze along the side of the house and side walk. My mother made her a bed on the floor of the attic (it's furnished) with a bucket by her side. Nice one, Danielle! I bet Danielle remembers that New Year's Eve too! I think she was pretty embarrassed. I'll have to ask her about it the next time I talk to her. That's the thing about college friends. We love to bring up old embarrassing moments! Don't worry, she has plenty of dirt on me too. It's an equal give and take.

On a more serious note, I spent most of today reflecting on the last ten years. In some ways, I can hardly believe how much has changed in what seems like such a short amount of time. This has definitely been the most eventful decade I have lived through yet. I imagine as I grow older, each passing decade will be equally laden with activities, opportunities and milestones, and that this first ten years in my adult life is only an appetizer of what is to come.

Here, in a nutshell, is my ten year timeline. In the last ten years I:

* got married
* witnessed the 9/11 attacks and grieved with the country
* lost a baby
* bought my first new car (I'm still driving it!)
* got pregnant with Jacob
* divorced my first husband
* had Jacob via C Section in Monroeville 6-5-03
* moved home to live with my parents
* went back to school
* met Greg
* participated in my sister's wedding
* welcomed my niece, Ella into the family
* married Greg, the true love of my life
* moved out of my parent's home into our dream home (only a few blocks away from my parents!)
* had Andrew via C Section 4-24-08
* tried to be a stay at home mom, failed, went back to work

Throughout the course of all of that, I:

* had 7 jobs, some of them simultaneously
* traveled to, or through, 18 states, and out of the country once
* went on a family vacation to the Outer Banks 8 times, missing only on the years that my sons were born
* went to Arizona for my sister's college graduation in December of 2004
* went to Vermont for my second honeymoon and went on a glider ride, which was fun, yet terrifying!
* never missed having a Christmas morning with my parents
* watched my grandfather defy death three times

It certainly has been an eventful decade, strewn with significant highs and equally remarkable lows. I have been lucky enough to have family and friends to support me during the hard times and to share the laughter too. Just as it is important to have a shoulder to lean on, the fun times are much better when you have good people beside you as well.

It's bittersweet, this timeline. It's a testament to the amazing amount of growth that I have personally made. This time ten years ago, I was unwed, childless, and laughing while my college friend puked over the side of my parent's porch. I'm far from that person now. I no longer drink at all. Although I smile at those memories, I wouldn't think it was very funny if someone was that drunk at my home. The center of my world is no longer about the party, but about my family. Indeed, the most remarkable two events in the last decade have been the birth and growth of my boys. Watching them grow from faceless, squirming forms within my burgeoning belly to the walking, talking and sometimes running, whipping and wailing miracles that they have become is what life is about - this year, next year, this decade, next decade. It's always about family, and the people we hold dear. Regardless of what the future brings for us; sports or academics, musicals, chess club or volunteer societies, I'm sure that Greg and I will embrace it as much as we can, and try to keep it from slipping through our fingers as time so frequently does.

I'm not big on resolutions, because I don't think they work very often. I think we need to change ourselves slowly, for the better, over time, not just in January, and not just because it's a new year. I do however, think that the turning of the calendar is a time for reflection for many people. For those of us who are not as reflective as others (myself not included), it gives us a reason to look back and take inventory of our lives. If you need to do that, then now is as good a time as ever.

My wishes for all of you as you enter the new year are simple:

May you find the simple blessings in your life. Be genuinely grateful, and express that gratitude.
May you find peace within yourself and spread that peace as goodwill towards others.
May you cherish the simple moments with those you love. Those are the times you will reflect on ten, twenty, thirty years from now.

Happy New Year Everyone! Party responsibly.

Photos From My Family Party 2009

Fire fighter Ella to the rescue!

Why use the door when there's a window?









Ella is a little less than impressed with Mimi's venture into the cabin.

Logan and Jacob repair the roof!









Nick ponders his Tonk strategy while shuffling the deck.








Kyle and Casey look innocent, but they have tricks up their sleeves too!






Ryan and Kevin usually play as a team









Me and Carmen








Erin seems to win every game of Tonk!








The annual Tonk playing crew!

Greg had the kids marching in the basement for a while.








Lane poses with Santa

Jeanne and my grandfather.

Santa, Logan and Jacob

Lindsay, Erin and Matthew

"I'll be taking this gift, thanks."

Santa and Mrs. Claus

"Hey, Matt - what do you think of my new place?"

Videos From My Phone

Pictures don't seem to upload correctly anymore...Let's see how videos do! This is a video I had on my phone of Andrew wearing a pair of Jacob's Halloween gloves, saying "Bye!" Too cute!

Christmas Day Continued

Christmas afternoon is spent at my sister-in-law's in Johnstown. Greg's family exchanges gifts like our family does and there is always tons to eat. Actually, Renee always goes out of her way to cook crazy things. This year she made home made cranberry sherbet! It was delicious!

Christmas Day

Photos from Christmas day - pretty self explanatory. We had a wonderful and blessed morning together with my my parents and my sister, brother-in-law and niece. We are about to head to Johnstown to spend the afternoon and evening with Greg's family. I hope everyone had an enjoyable Christmas and that the season's blessings continue throughout the new year. Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve

Photos from Christmas Eve...


Sprinkling reindeer food....



























































































Andrew had to give his reindeer food a little taste test first...






A family photo. Jake was a little less than cooperative!

12/24/09

The unthankful heart discovers no mercies; but the thankful heart will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings.-- Henry Ward Beecher

Oh Christmas Tree

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words,but to live by them.John Fitzgerald Kennedy


Well, the tree is up and decorated. It is by far the most interesting tree we have ever had in our house! We decided not to put any of the keepsake ornaments on it, to prevent an unfortunate demise of any sort. That decision significantly diminished our ornament supply. As we were decorating, it became apparent that Andrew was not going to allow any ornaments within his reach to remain on the tree, therefore there are no decorations on the bottom two feet of the tree. Andrew also continually pulls the lights off of the bottom of the tree, so the lights are haphazardly strewn about the branches. There is really no point in neatly placing them on, when they are destined to be torn off within a matter of minutes anyway! And, as you can see by the photos, the trunk of the tree is curved, so despite our efforts to straighten it, the tree could be likened to the leaning tower of Pisa! After we finished decorating it last night, which was no small task, with Andrew's "help," we turned off the lights and sat on the couch to look at the tree. Greg and I actually collapsed laughing at the spectacle of the tree. Greg said he would try to straighten it tomorrow. Jacob and Andrew sat on pillows beside it, and Jacob responded by saying, "It's beautiful, Greg. I don't think it needs to be changed. It's perfect exactly how it is." So there you have it, our own slightly different version of the "Charlie Brown Tree," perfect exactly how it is.





Getting a candy cane fix to help him through the decorating process.

"Oh come on, Jacob. It's not that hard!"

"I'll put the ornaments way up here so Andrew can't get them!"

From the front it's not so bad...note the barren bottom...

From the side, it's almost like it's embarrassed for itself!

"Let's see...which ornament am I going for next?"

"All your hard work is easy to undo, you know."