So, So, Wrong!

Sometimes when I think I am so right, I am so, so wrong!

In mid-March, on a Sunday, my youngest son Rory and his bride Maureen came over for dinner. We had a delightful time. Nothing special, the usual fun family time we always have.

On Tuesday night that same week I had a dream. I woke up on Wednesday morning and remembered everything, well all but the name. This dream was so real that my senses where ultra heightened. I could actually feel and smell in my sleep.

I dreamt that on Sunday at dinner Maureen was not pregnant but on Tuesday evening she delivered a full term baby girl. It was so real that I could feel my new granddaughter and I could smell her too. You know that new baby girl smell. Sweet and delicious. When I woke up in the morning I was elated for about 10 seconds. When I found out that my granddaughter was not yet born I was so disappointed. I couldn't wait to call my son and daughter in law to tell them about my "most perfect" dream.

As I finished explaining my starry night story there was complete silence. Maureen said, "How real was it?" I said, "So real that I could feel her, I could smell her!" Days went by and I thought nothing more about it.

A week later we here at the Boston Ballet Ball. Maureen was wearing the most gorgeous gown and I commented on how beautiful it was. She mentioned it was a knock off of a famous gown that Jennifer Lopez had worn to the academy awards 2 years prior. I asked, "Oh, when she was pregnant?" Silence from my daughter in law. I looked at her and very slowly whispered, "Are you pregnant?" She nodded, yes.

I was convinced with every bone in my body and every penny in my bank that for sure she was having a girl. I went so far is to buy a little dress for an Easter present for my soon to be girly, girl granddaughter. A token of my confidence. I started making a pink mohair scarf, I planned a pink shower, I bought TONS of pink yarn to make a pink baby blanket with pink cables and a matching pink cable sweater. I even bought my daughter in law a Pandora bracelet with all pink charms on it, one even being a little girl.

I told everyone about my dream. I mean everyone that had an ear. I sent some female family names to my son on Monday of this week because on Tuesday they were hearing from the doctor as to what the sex was. I told my son that if the doctor says it is a boy tell him to look again! No boys names even came to mind.

On Tuesday afternoon my son called me to thank me for the family names I had sent him. He added, "Sorry, mom but they won't work. We are having a boy and the doctor said the little guy isn't being shy about it!" I was speechless. I thought my son was teasing me. He would do that. How could my dream be so real and not be real? I was sure my little granddaughter was coming to introduce herself to me via my deep sleep. Not the case at all.

As days have gone by I have left pink behind me. I am over the moon for blue and I am so excited to welcome our new grandson due to enter our world in November. Congratulations to Rory and Maureen!

Of course, I went straight to Seed Stitch Fine Yarn to buy new yarns for Maureen's baby boy palette.

There are the colors Maureen and Rory chose for baby boy Fitz-Gerald

Chicklette and The "Playhouse"

Here is a picture of my grand daughter, Abbie. I like to call her Chicklette. She is the oldest of the bunch, the smallest and definitely the leader of the gang. She inherited the "Cecilia Fitz-Gerald" gene from her great grandmother. She looks like my mother, Lorraine, but has the personality of her Grandmother Fitz-Gerald. She is bossy and she likes to be in charge. She does have a very kind and compassionate heart. That she got from my mother. She is a real bright light for me. In this picture, Chicklette, is on her way this afternoon to a pool party for her dear friend Eleanor. It is Eleanor's 7th birthday.

Chicklette has a playhouse at Nonna (me) and Poopa's house. By the way she named her grandfather Poopa. It wasn't a baby talk name, it was intentional! The playhouse is really for all of our grandchildren but Chicklette thinks it is just hers. She is also a little territorial. It is not just any playhouse. It is a special one. It is the one that I always wanted when I was a little girl. Then I had 2 boys. No chance there. Along comes Chicklette and 10 months later comes her cousin, Liliana Rose. Don't Abigael Faith and Liliana Rose sound like story book names? They are just the coolest and the cutest and they truly love each other so much. Also they are really into matching. They love to dress like twins. Their so funny and really entertaining when they are together. Stop by Villa bel Mare sometime for a cup of tea at Chicklette's Place! She whips up a really great imaginary breakfast too!

What's Next...

As many of you know I have sold my beloved business, Seed Stitch Fine Yarn. Yes, a lovely couple, Courtney and Robbie Heath, came at just the right time. As of May 1st they became the new owners.

I had come to a decision that I wanted to spend more time in my gardens which I had worked so hard to create the 6 years prior to owning SSFY,

play with my 4 grandchildren, soon to be 5, who are now 6 to 3 years old and I wanted to write a book or two. Well, also knit, spending more time in Florida in the winters and enjoying my husbands company which I really missed.

Here is a picture of the first bouquet of the season from my garden. I am just a sunny day or two away from having a wonderland of roses here at Villa bel Mare. Today, however, I am doing the "rumba rain dance." My flowers are begging for a good shower! And so it is, the rain dance worked. It is showering outside!

And what is this? Well, in preparation for the grandchildren this summer we are having a never before roof put on their jungle gym. I picked this up for a fraction of the new cost from the people that lived across the street from us. They moved out of their house, left it vacant and for a year I would pull into my driveway and thought, " I wonder what they are going to do with that jungle gym?" I finally picked up the phone, before someone else did, and negotiated a great deal for the kiddies. It will be great summer fun at Poopa and Nonna's house.

I am relaxing, enjoying my friends and taking great care of myself.

Inaguration Experience

Tuesday, January 20th, 2009, was unforgettable. There were 7 of us seated 'round the class tables at Seed Stitch Fine Yarn. Suzanne Barnes, our very first customer joined us. We cried, we laughed and we stood at attentain while President Obama, who I like to call Barrack, spoke his commitment to our land, our people and our soul. We all knew something dygnified and truthful was occuring. It had been a long time since I had heard such clarity in the voice of our leader.

I'm not expecting perfection. Just respect. Respect on the part of the person that directs our country and holds the hand that is a full house. That full house influences every single country, good or bad, on this planet. I expect our captian to understand that, to know that, and to respect that.

Inaguration day has been 114 days ago. I am going to use my sister in laws words by saying, "I still love this man, his smile, his family and his new dog!"

The Inaguration...

I will write about my experience. I am just letting it settle in first. It was powerful for me.

Fallen From the Sky....

There is nothing my heart and soul desire more than warmth but there is no denying that this white fluff, that which can only come gliding from the sky when temperatures drop below tolerable for me, is gorgeous. I woke this morning to a wonderland that only this season can gift.

I Can't Beleive It.....

I can't believe it is January. January 17th, no less. Time does fly when you are having fun!

Well, here is my update:

I spent a week in Paris during Thanksgiving with my two sons and my new daughter-in-law. It was wonderful, elegant and artful. We all connected with each other on a new level. My youngest son and his new bride celebrated their 1st wedding anniversary with a toast and a 5 star dinner while enjoying a view of Paris from the Eiffel Tower.

The food was only as the French would do it. Every bite was superb. The artwork rated equally as orgasmic as the cuisine and the architecture, like no other city in the world. The French are back on good terms with us Americans as they chanted "Obama, Obama" when they heard our accent.

On Thanksgiving evening we sailed down the Seine River and while dining we listened to a French orchestra. If heaven is in France, we were there. From our glass vessel we cruised by Notre Dome where we had attended mass earlier in the week. we passed the Eiffel Tower dressed in her Christmas gown of glittery snow flakes that flashed every hour on the hour. There wasn't one moment of that evening that I didn't treasure and I pray that as I grow older I will not forget any part of that wonderous experience. We decided that evening, God willing, we will visit Ireland for our 2010 family vacation. The next afternoon we here headed back to the USA.

I returned to Swampscott and Seed Stitch Fine Yarn in the middle of THE season. Most of the month of December was a blur with the exception of our holiday party on December 20th. My son, Ryan, decorated Villa bel Mare from top to bottom. It was a maize of magic. Merriment arrived with a knock on the door. It was Santa Claus himself! All of the children gathered around him waiting to let the big man in red know exactly what was on their wish list.

On Christmas Eve, always a special evening for our family,we attended an early afternoon mass. There were Shepard's and angels galore and even baby Jesus was there with his parents. The music was holy and spirited, and we left ready to spread joy and generosity. Our evening was rich with love. We ate lobster, exchanged gifts and shared this time of acceptance and adoration.

On the morning of December 25th ,at 8:00 am, we were on a jet plane headed for our beloved Sarasota. For 2 weeks I felt the warmth of 72-80 degrees, sunshine on my shoulders, and a resurgence of life that changed my thinking about how I have been living.