STILL HERE AND LOOKING BACK

My mom in 1940ish

I was recently gifted the most beautiful pix of my dear mother.

There was no date,

 but I'm guessing she was probably in her late 20's or early 30's here. 

Perhaps around the time she met my father??

Lovely.

Wish I would have been able to post it closer to mother's day.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM

My mother ,

Rose Patricia,

Patti,

 would have been 106 today.

If Alzheimer's hadn't taken it's nasty hold on her,

I think she would still be here.

She was such a strong woman!

The pix of us I took today is a bit worn on her gravestone marker,

but it's one of my favorites of us together.

She is 85ish here which means I was 45.

People always say that the both of us never looked our age.

I've always been so very proud to have inherited that from her side of the family.

But I live in fear of also inheriting her Dementia,

also on her side of the family.

I lost my sweet mommy at 92 years of age in 2008.

I was her only child after several miscarriages, 

and we were so very close and connected.

There is not a day that goes by that I don't think of her,

especially when I work in the garden.

I inherited her love of all plants and animals too.

Some local flowers I picked for her grave.

And this is her view today of the Saddleback Mountain Range

 from the spot I picked for us to be together forever.

This is what our sky looks like in wintertime right after a night of rain 

with more rain coming in the forecast.

Spectacular!!

The high was 61 and it's going down to 49 tonite.

Woo Hoo!

Perfect.

Hoping and wishing for a drought free summer this year.

A TREE FOR MY MOTHER

When my mother,

 Rose Patricia, 

passed 13 years ago at the age of 92 after a 10 year battle with Alzheimer's,

I gathered her favorite Xmas ornaments that she treasured and several she had made, 

and started the tradition of decorating a separate tree for her at my husbands home

(I also decorate a larger tree at my home/studio with all my children's ornaments).

When I married Jimmy,

 he had a smallish, very lovely cashmere tree that he gave me for my mom.

But I've got to be honest here,

many of my mother's decorations that she loved or made were pink,

and as a child and teen growing up I hated those and that color!

And she always said to me.

"Debra Ann, 

when you grow up and have your own home,

 you can decorate your tree however you want,

and you'll be able to tell your kids too bad if they don't like it."

Well, 

fortunately,

 my kids never complained as they were growing up 

and loved helping me put up the tree and ornaments.  

Maybe because the tree was mostly all about them,

Ha ha!

Below is a picture of one of my mother's trees when I was growing up,

YUCK!

This one is from 1968 with myself and first pup Petite

(of course my mother would dye her "pink" at Easter time,

but that's a whole other story).

Let's see,

 I would have been 13 here I wearing one of my Square Dance dresses

 because it was the only red garment I had for Xmas.

Yes, we square danced in the 1960 and early 70's,

with my moms Square Dance Club.

I came to love it eventually.

 

But what is so funny is that as I've aged into my golden years,

yes,

I'm 64,

although until a few days ago I thought I was still 63.

😠😠

I find I'm very drawn to antique pinkish ornaments

 that I buy and add to my mother's tree in her memory.

These are the two I found and purchased for her this year.

She would have gotten a big kick out of my change of heart.

Funny how things come around. 

This sweet little cupcake is less then an 1" by an 1".

The acorn is from a friends private collection and was gifted to me this year.

Very old he told me and I love the decorative cap that it hangs from.

You don't see that anymore.

It's about an 1" by 2" long.

This next one I found last year in an antique store up by our cabin and it's one of my favorites.

Anything to do with home and hearth resonates with me.

Very tiny too,

about an 1 1/4" by 1 1/2".

Another favorite from several years back is this slow stitched piece made by Deliana Park,

ex-English teacher and dear friend at Whitney High.

During her free conference period she attended my Beginning 3-D course and learned to embroider.

I adore this tree design she came up with.

Another year she also took my Beginning 2-D class and learned to draw.

I always loved having the teachers at Whitney take my classes with the kids. 

And the students loved it too.

They got to know their teachers on an entirely different more personal and fun level.

And this little beauty is a new purchase this year from one of my favorite art galleries in Tustin.

It's a hand blown Rutabaga,

again pink just seems to be calling me.

My mother must be pushing me into this "pinkish" zone.

I love that she's still with me and guiding me.

I especially miss her during the holidays.

Xmas is not the same without her handmade Italian cannoli's.

Only one relative has finally mastered her recipe.

Several have tried so I give a shout out to my cousin Linda Ann.

 

Merry Christmas to all of you and have a Wonderful New Year!

REMEMBERING MOM ON THIS MOTHER'S DAY

My beautiful mother,

Rose Patricia,

who cooked for her family every nite except on Sundays

(broasted chicken nite while watching 60 minutes and The Wonderful World of Disney).

This year I'm kicking myself in the butt for not learning her crazy wonderful 

Italian recipes that her mother passed down to her.

I remember her asking "Debra Ann, do you want to watch me make raviolis?"

"Nope" was always my answer.

Always!

As I look back today I'm sure I was a bit of a disappointment to her for many reasons.

We were so very different in so many ways.

The list is pretty long,

I'll save that for a therapist one day.

HA!

But it really helps me with my own daughter as she is so very different than myself

which can sometimes be frustrating.  

For me though, 

she is no disappointment.  

We live in a different time,

and I'm incredibly proud of her. 

I admire and respect her strength of character, 

her strong work ethic,

 her passion to go after what she wants. 

 She has a fiery spirit 

and is so very smart and savvy. 

She is only 24 years old and already owns her own home!

My mother said I was stubborn,

I say my daughter is strong willed.

Same thing I believe.

LOL

Rose Patricia "Patti" in 1968

at her oldest sister's home making ravioli for Easter Sunday

But as much as I annoyed my mother

(and I know I did),

and as much as my daughter won't listen to my reasoning,

my mother was always there for me,

supporting me, loving me,

giving of herself no matter how mad I made her.

She taught me so much about love and giving.

And now I do the same for both of my adult children,

my son who has always been the easy one,

and my daughter who has always been my biggest challenge.

I was my mother's biggest challenge too.

Mom and Myself  1980,

the year I began teaching at Whitney High School

Patti never looked her age.  

She was 64 years old here.

A year older than I am now.

She would have been 103 today.

We were 40 years apart.

She tried for 8 years to get pregnant with me and had 2 miscarriages in the process.

I was her only child,

and I miss her dearly.

We talked everyday on the phone until she developed Alzheimer's at age 82.

She passed away 10 years later in a coma.

Not only had she forgotten us five years earlier,

but she had forgotten how to eat, swallow and finally breathe.

My daughter and I were with her the last night of her life playing her favorite music,

singing and dancing around her to her favorite songs 

by Tony Bennett,

Dean Martin, Andy Williams and Frank Sinatra.

We witnessed her last smile as she listened to her music.

I hope to one day be surrounded by my two babies and my grandchildren 

when I take my last breathe as well.

I'm hoping they will play for me all my favorites and sing and dance too.

Neil Young, Linda Ronstadt, The Eagles, Willie Nelson, Elton John, Joni Mitchell, Rod Stewart,

 Al Greene, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Marvin Gaye,

and most importantly

 Tony Bennett, Dean Martin, Andy Williams, Frank Sinatra,

and of course The Rockits,

my sweet husband's band.

I guess we were similar in our taste in music after all.

I love you Mommy.

Happy Mother's Day!

GIVING THANKS

Fall 1994

This Thanksgiving Season I have much to be thankful for,

and I'm so very grateful for all the blessings in my life.

But the thing I am the most grateful and thankful for are my two healthy babies,

Zach and Danielle.

Halloween 2017

The two of them bring so much love & laughter into my life.

They are fearless, smart, funny and best friends.

They don't always see eye to eye,

but they love each other fiercely.

The most beautiful bond that can never be broken.

And they love to play!

Best Friend's Live Action Role Playing Birthday 2016

 before he donated his hair to Locks of Love

And I can't finish this post without giving thanks to the two women who raised me, 

and were responsible for my children's daycare while my husband and I taught school,

my dear mother Rose Patricia and my vivacious, strong willed Aunt Elena

(my father died when I was a baby, so my Aunt stepped in and helped raise me).

They were my rock,

and my children's rock. 

This is one of the last pictures of my mother before she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's,

and Aunt Elena was diagnosed with Dementia.

They both lived for 10 more years after this picture was taken.

They passed away side by side in the same bedroom within 3 months of each other,

without realizing they were sisters.

But I'm so very grateful that we had them as long as we did.

My mother was 92 when she left and Aunt Elena was 88.

My son especially has so many strong & wonderful memories of the both of them.

They instilled in him his love of all things in nature as both of them were avid gardeners.

Therefore his degree in Plant Science.

My mother & Aunt also instilled in the both of them their tender hearts,

their sense of right and wrong & their curious minds.

And Aunt Elena gave Dani her fiestyness and stubbornness  ha ha

Mother's Day 2017

Long Beach Marina

I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and Holiday Season.

Let's all hold hands around the Thanksgiving table and pray for our families and friends 

as well as peace in our country 

and around the world.

MOTHER'S DAY BLISS...

brunching with my children down in the Long Beach Marina,

then walking it off 

watching the boats sail thru the bay to Catalina and the ocean beyond.

On another Mother's Day note,

I planted this lavender rose up at the cabin last Mother's Day in honor of my own mother,

Rose Patricia.

It survived the winter's snow and rains,

and has been blooming since one week before Mother's Day and is still going strong.

My mother's favorite color in her later years,

lavender.  

When my mother turned 60,

 I was 20 years old working at Ann's Flowers in Buena Park, Ca.

For her birthday present,

 the owner of Ann's helped me find 60 lavender roses to give her.

I will never forget her delight and surprise.

I miss you every day mom,

and talk about your goodness and understanding to your grandbabies as well as my students.

Right Eunice? 

:)

Your grandson Zach has found his mate for life,

and you would have loved her.

She reminds me of you.

Gentle with an inner strength, astute, nurturing, understanding, a lover of nature and the ocean,

a gardener, a thoughtful listener, thankful & giving, a hard worker,

a lovely, good person.

And most importantly,

she loves your boy with all her heart.

They are so good together,

and I cannot wait to meet the babies they will make.

I only hope I will be able to be as wonderful a grandmother as you were to my babies. 

Happy Mother's Day