Update

It has been forever since I last updated this and almost had forgotten about it all together until a friend of mine asked why I hadn't updated. Well, we have had an enourmous amounts of changes to our lives. First, we lost our beloved cafe and were sad to see it go. We also had to move due to financial issues but it was a good move. We are delighted with our new house and our new neighborhood. Jeorge got a new job at Sweet Lorraine's and is back to a familar place. He still has a lot of friends there and is working a lot less hours. It is nice to have him around more and he is really happy being able to spend all this quality time with the boys. I have settled into my new routine of taking on the job of a stay at home mom. It is really rewarding and I feel blessed to have this time with my boys. I will eventually get back to work, but for the time being will cherish this time. I am on the mend with my anxiety issues. I am currently reading a book that a friend of mine lended to me called natural relief for anxiety. I went thru a rough patch after my dad passed away and was having weekly panic attacks. I was to the point where I couldn't even walk to the back of a store because of the fear of being trapped. Anxiety is a very hard thing to deal with, people that don't have it can't understand the magnitude of your emotions and why you can't do certain things. I am to the point where I am active again and getting out and doing all my normal activites. I still have issues from time to time but am feeling more myself again. I also had a health scare a few months ago with a nodule I had on my thyroid. It was biopsied and was told it was benign. I have to get it rechecked with an ultrasound soon to make sure it hasn't grown. The kids are doing great! Jack has almost earned his green belt in Karate and has been enjoying playing outdoors and studying geography. James is our fearless child. He is already riding his dirt bike and climbing everything he can possibly climb.

tributes

It has been forever since I have posted. We have had a lot of things happen. Sadly, my wonderful father passed away unexpectedly on Oct 27th in his sleep. He was the most sincere, loving, and remarkable father and I am so blessed I had him in my life for as long as I did. He was an amazing grandfather too, and my son Jack misses him dearly.He made sure Jack was able to see the ocean and took us on trips to fla. He loved collecting shells with Jack and they spent hours and hours together walking on the beach and I know Jack will always remember. It is nice sharing memories of time spent with him. Our family is healing but will always feel the magnitude of our loss.

Also, my friend Bea passed away from leukemia on jan 6th. She was 34 yrs old and lived her life to the fullest.She was a witty, smart, beautiful and her smile lit up any room she walked in. She is definitely always going to be in the hearts of all who loved her and we were lucky enough to have had her in our lives.

Yesterday, my mother in law lost her battle with cancer. She was an amazing woman. She always was able to comfort me whenever anything went wrong in my life.She loved with every ounce she had. She was entertaining and I loved to call her on the phone to chat about anything under the sun. She was an extraordinary grandmother and always made time to spend with her grandchildren.When she was ill, she still had a weekly lunch date to see my children and give them all the love they needed. She will be missed very much but will always be in our hearts.I was extremely blessed having a mother in law that I loved so much!

recent pics of the boys

Kindergarten

So much has been going on lately and I have not been able to update our blog. Jack started kindergarten a few weeks ago and things are going great. He had no fears on his first day and actually told me to stop taking his picture inside the classroom. His teacher is great and has made a great schedule for the kids. I was worried about him in an all day setting, but he has enjoyed every minute and has been behaving perfectly. I went to Tim Hortons one day around noon and decided to swing by his school to see if it was lunch time recess. I am embarassed to say that they were outside and I watched Jack interact with his peers. I was laughing because he was playing rough with the boys and then a group of girls swept him away. I am glad he is a social butterfly, I wonder where he gets it from? LOL!!!

James 1st Bday

It is so hard to belive that my baby boy is one already!! We had a perfect day with the family, playing and spending time together. We had my inlaws over for cake and James opened a few gifts with the help of his favorite older brother Jack. My favorite part was watching James jam his face into his ice cream cake and destroying it!! I added some pics from parts of our day.

Mark Spitz

I can barely contain my enthusiasm. I can't believe I saw Mark Spitz, one of my swimming idols, in the flesh at my little cafe. Jeorge called me yesterday to tell me a famous swimmer was in the restaurant but had not found out who it was. A few minutes later he called and said "Mark Spitz in eating at table 8!" I freaked and immediately began to doubt him and kept asking over and over if it was really him. He said he was sure of it because he was getting mobbed by all of our guests asking for autographs and pictures. As soon as I heard that, I jumped in the car and drove to the Maple Leaf. As soon as I arrived, I went to the front and caught a glimpse of him. I was so excited I began to shake and did not have the nerve to walk over to him. One of our employees got his autograph for me and I was thrilled!! I went outside with james b/c I was still shaking and could not believe my eyes. He came out with his wife and started walking towards us. I could not even mutter hello, I had instantly become shy. A group of people passed by and I heard one of the gentleman say "Oh my god thats Mark F'in Spitz"!!

I went to the Maple Leaf with the kids today for breakfast and found out he had been there an hour prior to us eating breakfast. I was so sad I was not there to see him. One of the waitresses said he is going to New York today so he can appear on one of the early shows. He is going to come back to Michigan for a few more days because his son is competing in the maccabiah Games. I hope I can see him again, and I hope I will be able to mutter a few words to him.

Summer

Its hard to believe it is the middle of august!! James is going to be one which boggles my mind. I feel like he is aging too quickly. He is a mover and a shaker lately. He is almost walking and I feel like it could be any day!! He is definitely curious and somehow squeezes thru every blockade I have set up around the house. He is beginning to talk more and his vocab consists of baby ( his favorite word) , dada, papa, and the occaisional mama. He has attempted to say Jack ( JAJA) too. He definitely resembles his daddy and has a reddish hue to his hair.

Jack has had a productive summer too. He has been working on his biking skills. We got him a new bike earlier in the summer. At first he was all over the bike 24/7, but after falling a few times he developed a major fear. We worked on it for weeks and finally got him back to his bike. He is doing very well and loves to go out for rides. Jack also has been quite busy in the swimming dept. He has been to Forest Hills this summer with my parents. He is in the big pool now which was a huge relief to my dad. I think he was tiring of hanging with jack in the baby pool. I think his lessons all summer at Goldfish have truly paid off. He is gaining sao much confidence in himself and has been interested in Phelps at the Olympics. He says he wants to continue swimming in the winter and he also wants to do indoor soccer again. Kindergarten is right around the corner and Jack cant wait to start!!

As for me, I am disappointed in myself. I had wanted to start swimming and train for an open water race. I am sad to say I only went a few times and then slacked. I am writing this to motivate myself to start and stick with the program. I am done making excuses for myself and need to get going. I am down because I need to lose weight. I am lacking so much energy and know if I got the lbs off I would have more. I know for sure that I would have my esteem and confidence back.

Thats it for now. Love