Kaufman Family

On your marks, get set, GO!!!!!!

2011-12-13T16:47:00.003-05:00

The video speaks for itself.

2011-12-10T11:19:00.002-05:00

I'm WAY behind in posting, and this little addition does not help bring us all up to speed. I have to post about Halloween, Thanksgiving, the newest Kaufman, and other Kaufman accomplishments, but honestly I'm learning that there are not enough hours in the day, or should that be, hours in nap time, to play with photos and the blog. So in the mean time I hope that this snippet of a video might tide us all over. Enjoy.

Giggle-fest!

2011-11-11T19:20:00.003-05:00

Apparently Grace thinks its hilarious when I juggle her toys in front of her. Case-in-point, see the video...

The Polar Bear Swim Club

2011-11-07T21:30:00.001-05:00

I forgot to add this AMAZING footage that I scored when Gracie and I were at the San Diego Zoo. This is what you call, being at the right place at the right time.

Hippos, Pandas, and Gorillas, OH MY!

2011-11-07T17:43:00.006-05:00

A few weeks back, Gracie, Christian, and myself flew across the country to San Diego for a weekend trip. For Christian it was all business, but for Gracie and I it was fun in the San Diego sun when we spent the day at the world famous San Diego Zoo. Please enjoy just a snippet from the 100 acre zoo, and check out some of the extremely amazing and rare animals Gracie got to see.Monkeys galore!!!Meerkats are so stinkin' cute!!A handful of the super cool zoo animals.My Dad's favorite, a River Otter.As of 2000 there are only six countries that are home to the endangered Black Panda. There are 150 captive Black Pandas in the entire world! The San Diego Zoo is home to three of them, and Gracie got to see one! (The other two were sleeping)I don't think she understood just how special it was to see the Panda. Then Gracie got to see a giant and powerful Silverback Gorilla!! How massively impressive is he???Even more zoo creatures!Finally, one of the sweetest things Gracie and I got to see was this Momma hippo taking a snooze with her "little" baby hippo. The San Diego Zoo was such an amusing experience for both Gracie and me. It would have been even more perfect if Christian could have joined us. But nevertheless, it was a fun day for little Miss Gracie, and she got to see first hand what it truly means to be, "Happy like the Hippo."

Tis the Season...

2011-10-10T15:55:00.005-04:00

For apple and pumpkin picking!!! For as long as I've known Christian we've gone apple and pumpkin picking for my birthday. This year's birthday tradition was enriched two fold. Not only were we blessed by taking Gracie with us, but we had so much fun that we went twice.

Gracie is totally amazing, and absolutely fearless! The first farm we went to, Alstede Farm, not only had oodles of things to pick, but they had several animals on the farm. We had carrots to feed the horses and Grace LOVED giving them a tasty treat.Let the picking frenzy begin.Grace was the apple supervising manager and made sure all the apples were taken care of.I had to snap a photo of this charming scene that I discovered while peering under some branches to find some delicious apples. What a perfectly romantic home for some sweet little birds.Gracie loves her carrier. She's super chill in it.Gracie was also the quality control center to insure that all our apples were at the peak of ripeness. Apple and Pumpkin picking, round two! For our second trip out west we went to Riamede Farm.Gracie catching a power nap on the way to the farm. She learned from the first picking extravaganza that visiting farms takes a lot of energy.Oh my goodness! How cute is she?!? Christian has become a professional at apple picking. Check out the double hand picking! Nice technique.And now some pumpkins! We picked out three really classic pumpkins this year. Check this bad boy out!Turns out that Grace is a super pumpkin picker. Christian picks out one pumpkin (above), and WHAM! Gracie picks out almost a dozen pumpkins without breaking a sweat! That power nap really gave her a boost of energy! Whew! *wink*So if you need a wonderful apple picking supervisor, apple quality control officer, and a spectacular pumpkin picker, might I suggest bringing along your seven and a half month old baby. And if you don't happen to have a seven and half month old baby, I think I know one that's truly remarkable who might be willing to lend a helping hand... with mommy's and daddy's permission of course. Happy Fall everyone!

Gracie and Mommy

2011-10-09T21:27:00.002-04:00

Can you tell that Gracie is my daughter or what? On the left is me at nine months, and on the right is Grace at seven and a half months. I think its safe to say there is a tad bit of a resemblance. Don't you think?

The New Kitchen, Part One

2011-10-03T15:00:00.001-04:00

We did it! After dreaming, planning, and preparing, we are actually underway with the construction of our new and improved kitchen. So much has been going on in our lives that I haven't kept everyone up to date in the past few weeks, and perhaps after viewing this entry you'll understand why our little piece of the world has been temporarily turned upside down.

In the collage below you'll see the very first day of construction. Such an exciting day! I honestly have never been so thrilled to see large machinery ripping up the lawn in my back yard, not that I have much experience with things like this.
All the activity turned into this.Which the following day turned into another large piece equipment, a cement truck this time, showing up to give us our footings for the foundation to what will be a new kitchen.The footings then turned into the foundation walls.Which were covered, smoothed, and prepared to have frame work.Our old kitchen was gutted.And when the floor boards came up we ran into a stumbling block. What we thought was a slab foundation for the old kitchen, turned out to be nothing more than boulders and dirt. LOTS of boulders!So we had a small set back, and had to dig where we didn't think we were going to need to. It pushed us back about a week, but the guys knew what to do and went right to work digging a foundation ditch, by hand, to support the kitchen.

No, the circus did not pop up it's big-top tent in my back yard. Isn't that the largest tarp you've ever seen? And after talking with our general contractor, I've been informed that this is not the biggest one. It's still crazy big!!The giant tarp hid what was going on underneath it. So you're getting a sneak peak at what our very curious neighbors never got to see in these next few photos. The contractor took the walls and roof down, finished digging the foundation ditch, lifted all the boulders out and poured concrete for the new foundation, all by hand. A one foot space is all that is left of the original kitchen.The next day the framers showed up, and like a pop-up book, by the end of the day we had the bones of our new kitchen.Here is a photo of just a few of the boulders the workers had to dig out.... need I say it again? BY HAND! (My foot is a reference to show size.)They covered up the frame work and this is where we stand today. I love knowing that Gracie will grow up in this kitchen. Her meals will be prepared here, homework will be done here, and family dinners will be enjoyed here. Not to mention sneaking down stairs for late night snacks. Pretty nice space, don't you think so? This week we get shingles on the roof, plumbing, electric, and once those pass inspection, insulation, then dry wall! It's all coming together. I can't wait till I can post "the new kitchen, part two!" Coming soon to a blog near you!

Our First Family Vacation

2011-09-24T22:52:00.010-04:00

The first week in September, Christian, Grace, and I went on our very first vacation as a family. The plan was to take a cruise to Bermuda that embarked and disembarked out of New York City. An important lesson was learned. That lesson was simply, do not travel the Atlantic Ocean on a cruise ship during the peak months of hurricane season. Due to Hurricane/Tropical Storm Katia our trip was re-routed from Bermuda to the Bahamas. (We learned of our new itinerary from a lovely elderly couple that was having lunch at the table next to us on the ship as we were leaving port.) Regardless of the shift in plans we still enjoyed our vacation together as a family. Here is Grace in the car on the way to NYC on day one of her first big trip. A BIG thank you to my father-in-law John, who drove us to the port, and knew all the city streets like the back of his hand to avoid over an hour delay in highway traffic. As the ship left port, Grace LOVED the party that was going on poolside. Everywhere we went Grace drew a crowd. By the end of the week at sea more than half the crew members on the boat knew Grace and welcomed her by name. She loved her new found celebrity status.

The first stop the boat made was in Florida, however it was a rainy day, and we felt that Grace was too young to appreciate Disney, Epcot, Sea World, or the Kennedy Space Center. (Not to mention what the cost was to spend what would be only half a day there! Sheesh!) So we hung out on the boat and just relaxed for the day.

Our next stop was in the Bahamas on a private island owned by the cruise line. The ship dropped anchor while still out at sea, and we climbed aboard a little tender boat that was lowered down and took us right to the island for a fun day of swimming, snorkeling, and napping on the beach.Here's our little set up on the beach. We brought our own little pop-up beach-tent for Grace. Below is the video of Gracie's very first time in ocean.

Christian rented snorkeling gear for the day so he swam out towards the coral reef and saw all kinds of brightly colored tropical fish and sting rays. He said it was amazing.My Dad gave Grace the Tinkerbell beach towel. Super cute.It was extremely humid, not to mention unbearably hot! Gracie did very well considering the temperatures, but we couldn't resist snapping a photo of our sleeping beauty with her cute button nose all covered in beads of sweat.Here we are back on the ship just lounging in the shade. (I was one proud Momma to have Grace fully enjoy her first day at the beach, and return without an ounce of sunburn. I'll pat myself on the back for that one.)

Oh no! The ship was taken over by pirates! Actually this was in Nassau, Bahama at a T-shirt shop. I just thought it would be cute to put these guys in the blog, seeing as how we were at sea.
Speaking of the sea....
And SEE our adorable Gracie. Gotta love those crystal clear sea-blue eyes!
Hanging out on the streets of Nassau.
The pool deck of the ship.
Christian snapped this photo. I thought it was very sweet.
There we are!
Christian was at the spa and I couldn't find a pen to leave him a note as to where Grace and I went, so the "MacGyver" in me went into my toiletry bag to leave him a message in our room so that he might be able to find us. I thought it was pretty clever. (The lunch cafe was on the 12th floor)
This photo was taken from the back of the ship where one could see our wake.
The name of our ship and where we went.
Gracie the super cutie!
Back at the NYC port. A little sun-kissed, and oodles of family love.
We're already in talks for our next family vacation. I wonder where we'll go??? Hmmmm, we'll all just have to wait and see... or is that sea?

Grace's first solids

2011-09-13T16:17:00.003-04:00

Christian and I have put off starting solids with Grace because we knew we would be taking our family vacation the first week of Sept. (Still working on the photos from that, the family vacation blog should be posted fairly soon.) and we didn't want to break the newly established pattern of eating. Plus, my goal is to make all of Grace's food at home, using organic fruits and veggies whenever possible.

I'll admit that being a first time Mommy, I was nervous about changing the feeding routine. I've read articles, and books, and listened to mothers who have gone through this momentous step with their little ones all in an effort to empower myself and feel more ready to begin feeding foods other than breastmilk to my daughter. I have to laugh at myself because Grace soared through this milestone, as she has with each and every milestone to date, with flying colors.

Please enjoy the video of Grace eating her first solid, butternut squash. (It's a longer video, over 6 minutes, so please don't feel a need to watch the whole thing, and I apologize in advance for the atrocious sound when I blow my nose. I'm a little under the weather.)

What's been going on?

2011-08-23T17:45:00.008-04:00

Alright, I'll admit it, I've become a total slacker when it comes to keeping this blog up to date. I'd like to say that from here on out I'll do my very best to set aside time each week so that all who view this page will be abreast on what the Kaufman family is up to. I know however, that there really isn't much conviction in me keeping that promise. So for now, I hope everyone out there won't mind my mass-blogging posts spanning the length of weeks, and showing up only when I have a few spare moments that I can stitch together in my aspiration of creating a cohesive entry.
Our little Gracie is figuring out the finer points of getting from point A to point B. That's right folks, she's almost crawling! I like to call her my little yoga baby because she will straighten her legs while on all fours and it looks like she's in the downward dog pose. Both Christian and I can not believe how fast the past 6 months have flown by. Everyone constantly reminds us to soak in every moment because it goes by so quickly, and believe me when I tell you, we are trying our hardest to bask in every little second that flies by. Each Friday afternoon Grace and I walk down the street to a farmer's market that the town hosts. I have to share my find because I never even knew that this existed. I purchased a watermelon from a vendor, and when Christian cut it open that night for dessert I heard him say, "Taryn, what kind of watermelon did you get?" To which I replied, "Seedless, why?" Turns out that there are crazy, "alien" yellow watermelon out there! Who knew? I of course did what any normal person would do, I googled yellow watermelons, you know, just to make sure it was safe to eat. Google told me it was safe, and my taste buds told me it was oddly good. The yellow watermelon is sweeter than the typical red watermelon, and I've learned it is rare to find. So I like to think that I won the watermelon lottery.Christian made me laugh the other day. He brought Grace is to show me what I'm sure if the first of many borrowed things. He had Grace completely wrapped up in a scarf of mine. She looked like a swanky Upper Eastside Manhattan baby. What can I say, the girl has good taste in scarves.The video is self explanatory. Enjoy.

One morning we woke up to a rather sweet sight. Two fawns were relaxing on our front lawn. Super cute, and I know that I say this every time I see deer, but the fact remains the same, it always makes me feel like I'm closer to Oregon when I see deer.
I just had to throw this photo in. She looks so adorable.Earlier today my mother-in-law and father-in-law drove up to spend some time with their granddaughter. We took a stroll to the park, and Grace took her first ride on the swing set with Grandma while Grandpa pushed and cheered them on. It's the little moments like this that bring my heart so much joy.

So that pretty much brings you up to date with Grace and the Kaufman Family. There's so much to do, so many things going on, and I can honestly say that Grace, and her parents, we're all enjoying every single day that life gives us.

Playing catch-up

2011-07-27T18:25:00.008-04:00

My goodness, time flies when you're having fun! So it's been a little while since I've stat down at the old computer to brief everyone on how the Kaufman Family is doing, and I'm happy to report that all is well with us. We've been keeping fairly busy, so I do apologize for delay in posting. Please enjoy this snap-shot update blog to bring you up to date.The Kaufman's on Fourth of July.Naked Gracie! AHHHHH!!! Cover yourself up little chunky-Monkey!Much better! She may be small, but she packs a big punch.Taken on her Five Month Birthday!Something I want to remember.The next few photos are of Gracie, our little farm girl."Daddy, can I barrow the keys to the pickup truck?""Okay, now giddy-up truck."We love our backyard.And we really love our excer-saucer!We spent an afternoon in our new tent in the backyard Grace got all dolled up in a party dress for her cousin Shayla's 2nd birthday. (I forgot the camera at home, sorry no party photos.)If you like Gracie's headband, my friend Summer made it. Check out her blog and her Etsy shop.Finally, Grace took her first dip in the kiddie pool a few days ago. Here she is getting ready to take the plunge with her Gammy.Testing the water with her toes.So refreshing on a hot summer day.Here's a little video of her enjoying the pool, her toys, and well, her toes.

Whew! I think we are caught up now. We're all tuckered out, and I it looks like it's time for a nap with Dolly. Nighty-night.

Flip-a-rooskie

2011-07-10T21:46:00.003-04:00

The video is a little over three minutes long, and it ends rather.... abruptly, (to put it politely) but when you have a spare moment, feel free to check out Gracie's newest trick that she has completely mastered!

Grace's Baptism

2011-06-22T15:45:00.011-04:00

This past Saturday Grace Irene Kaufman was baptized in the same church that Christian and I were married in, by the same Monsieur who married us. The entire Kaufman family was there to witness her baptism, as were extended family and friends. Her Aunt Emily and Uncle Keith stood by her side as her Godparents to support her and express their love, as they will do undoubtedly every day for the rest of her life. She was a perfect angel and truly adorable in her Christening gown, which was made from the fabric of my wedding dress. Family members and friends came from all over the state of New Jersey to be there for her. Christian and I felt truly honored that so many people took time out of their Saturday to spend the afternoon with Grace. Look at that face! How utterly adorable is she?During the ceremony Grace couldn't help it, she nodded off for a quick little nap. But not to worry, she woke up when it was her big moment and in true Grace fashion she didn't say a peep. Grace's Uncle Luke had the perfect view point to capture the actual baptism for us. Here's the video he took using his iPhone. (The baby voice you hear is not Grace. She was honestly a perfect little angel.)

Once all was said and done, she decided to finish up her nap before her party began.
The Kaufman Family, four generations.And now the party with some delicious food! For the favors I made adorable bobby pins with little resin chrysanthemum flowers, and made a cute little bird nest charm using wire and beads. When the guest came in, next to the name cards I made up little tags to be filled out and hung on her blessing tree. (In a small way it brought in my faith, where we have a blessing day.)I also had fun making the center pieces, which were paper flowers and pinwheels nested in flower pots. After a quick wardrobe change, Grace was ready for her family and friends to love on her and shower her with kisses and hugs!Grace's Great Grandma, we call her G.G., made her a Christening blanket, which she used to get super comfy-cozy with and yes......she took another nap. Christian and I have been truly blessed. Our baby Grace has filled our lives with such joy and love. We look forward to watching her talents grow, and follow her through her amazing journey as she follows the path of life. We hope that she achieves her goals, and finds the many blessings that life has in store for her.

First Father's Day for the Hubs

2011-06-19T22:58:00.007-04:00

What a special day today has been. Grace and I have thoroughly enjoyed spoiling Christian on his very first Father's Day. Before I headed to bed last night I set up this adorable banner that I made so that when he came downstairs the first thing he would see would be the words, "Happy Father's Day!" He loved it!Then Grace supervised me in the kitchen while I made breakfast for him. It was a plate over flowing with enough food to feed a small village, but it was full of things Christian enjoys and of course every morsel had a pinch of joy, a dash of adoration, and a cup full of love.Let me walk you through this mondo-big breakfast. A cup of OJ. Toasted English muffin with Strawberry preserves, Maple smoked bacon, fresh orange slices, and a three egg omelet (One full egg, and two egg whites) with sauteed mushroom, peppers, tomato, and salsa and sour cream to garnish. (I didn't have an onion in the house, otherwise that would have gone in too.) The Hubs said it was delish!In the afternoon, Christian's parents stopped by to spend some time with us, eat some yummy grilled burgers, and play some fun outdoorsy games.Okay, so I have never claimed to be the most coordinated person on the planet, and this game proved that even if you can go almost the entire game without scoring a single point, you can still have fun. (Even if that means laughing at how terrible I am at it. Trust me, I'm pretty funny to watch while I'm "attempting" to play.) Grace was our personal cheerleader, that is until she was bit by the sleepy bug. I don't blame her. It was such a beautiful day, and I would have crawled in there with her to catch a few Z's if I could have fit.
This entire day, which was wonderful, was all because of this little munchkin. And I know that she was just as happy with how it turned out as I was.
Happy Father's Day Christian. We love you!

Shrimp on the Barbie

2011-05-19T15:13:00.007-04:00

Last Saturday Christian and I invited all the Kaufman's and the Pereira Family over for the first Bar B.Q. of the summer. We were thrilled that everyone was able to join us. It seem that it's becoming harder and harder to fit everyone's busy schedules so that we can all be at the same place at the same time. It meant a lot to me that everyone chose to spend their Saturday at our house, and I have to admit that I have filed away our first true backyard Bar B.Q. in my memory as the one of the best days in my Kaufman life.

It was so sweet watching Paul play catch with his three year old son Carlos. My Sister-in-law Emily played professional softball right out of college. See how relaxed she is with a mit on he hand? Yeah if that were me, I'd be cowering in the fetal position. hee heeWho is she playing catch with? Why it's Keith!Christian and I totally lucked out because Luke took over the grilling helm, which gave us time to socialize and have fun. Plus everything was delish!I adore this woman! Laura has such a warmth about her, and I'm truly happy to have her as part of my life. She was right by my side as Grace came into the world, and so without a doubt she is family.I couldn't resist taking photos of Grace meeting Carlos for the first time. Carlos was so sweet to her, and he made me smile every time I heard him ask for, "Baby Grace." Look at these two cuties!My Sister-in-law Krysty had such a glow about her. Here she is with her daughter Shayla, and tucked away is my newest niece or nephew... yuppers! Kaufman number 3 will make his/her debut in December! So excited for her! Of course Grace soaked in her Gammy time! She felt so cozy that she fell asleep in Gammy's arms.So we brought out her bouncer and she took a lovely little nap outside while the rest of us chowed down on the yummy bounty.I know, I can't believe I made the blog! I'm always behind the camera so you hardly ever see me. But the Hubs snapped a few good photos, and I thought this was a good one, so ta-da! It's me!Daddy's little girl. It's so wonderful to watch Shayla play with her Dad, John. The two of them have such a connection. So the new thing that's seriously adorable, when Shayla wants her Gampy she'll call out for him. However, instead of saying Gampy, she calls him by name. "Hi John. Come here John." Too adorable!So I know I'm biased but I think Keith and Krissy are a darling couple. Come on, just look at the two of them together. Am I right, or am I right?

Two best friends. Paul and Christian are such remarkable buddies. They went to high school together, college together, and chiropractic school together. They lived under the same roof as roomies for six years! I love seeing the two of them spend time with each other. It warms my heart to see Christian so happy, and I think the world of Paul.... plus he married Laura, so when he comes over, she does too, and then I get to see Laura, so it's a win-win for everyone! hee hee

We had such a wonderful time, and hope to have many more family functions in our future. Especially as the years go by, the family grows and we'll have more and more people to play with. I love being a Kaufman!

She Did It!!!!

2011-05-13T17:46:00.001-04:00

Say Cheese!

2011-05-04T21:55:00.004-04:00

This post is merely to share our adorable Gracie with everyone out there. Please enjoy these snap shots of our truly sweet baby girl.Grace with Gammy.Grace with Gampy.

Grace with Uncle Keith.

Grace with Aunt Emily.

Grace with Uncle Luke.

Grace with Aunt Krysty.

Grace with Uncle John, and cousin Shayla.And now just Grace.

Easter

2011-04-25T17:48:00.002-04:00

We hope everyone out there had a wonderful Easter weekend. Grace loved spending time with her uncles, aunts, cousin, grandparents, and great grandparents. We really lucked out with the warm weather. I was happy that I didn't have bundle little Grace up as she looked absolutely adorable in her Easter dress! (I was so excited to get her all gussied up in such a fancy dress. I seriously could not contain my enthusiasm!) Just look at my baby doll! Such a sweetie pie!

My two favorite people!Daddy's girls.The Kaufman Family.
(I love saying that. It never gets old!)

The Nursery... FINALLY!

2011-04-22T15:13:00.004-04:00

So I've been waiting for what seems like a lifetime for a single bolt. Yes, one tinny-tiny bolt that was missing from my crib set. After numerous emails and phone calls to the company I finally received in the mail my precious 3/4" bolt, and was able to put Grace's crib together and breathe sigh of relief that her nursery was finally done. (I was beginning to think that she would graduate high school before that silly bolt arrived.) So without further delay, please take a peak at her super cute, nature inspired nursery.

This owl is what I truly fell in love with. How cute is he?!?

The deer helped me feel closer to my Aunt Irene who always loved making small talk with the deer that would visit her back yard every night to snack on an apple or two.

Her little chair that some day she'll curl up in with her favorite book... a Dr. Seuss book I'm hoping. "Oh the places you'll go!"

The wonderful wall stickers really helped give the room a whimsical yet polished and finished look. It's like walking into a tiny bit of an enchanted forest where your imagination can take flight.

How many owls do you see? (I REALLY like that owl. hee hee)Thank you to everyone who contributed with every little piece of Grace's nursery. She loves it, as do I. Now she has a place to call her very own.

Birth Annoucement

2011-04-22T14:48:00.002-04:00

Here is Grace's birth announcement. How adorable is she?!? I just love her to pieces! Enjoy!
(Front of card)

(Back of card)

Moment of Cuteness!

2011-04-03T19:52:00.004-04:00

Just wanted to share a moment of cuteness with everyone. How adorable is that face! Come on!!! Love it!

A Day Out for Little Gracie

2011-03-19T20:52:00.003-04:00

Our little Gracie has been cooped up inside the house for just about every day since she was born. With the exception of the few visits to see her doctor, and two trips to Grandma & Grandpa's house, she's has only seen the walls of our home to create the world she's growing to know. So needless to say, cabin fever was bound to set in as some point.So on the first wonderfully warm day of the year, we broke loose and came up with a wonderful idea. Grace was super happy to hear that we were going to go for our first walk outside together. After all, it would be such a pity to let a 76 degree day wither away without our enjoying it. So we grabbed our gear, diaper bag, with camera of course, for Mommy, and pacifier for Gracie. And we were a-okay for take-off.We walked up the street and to the park which is several blocks away from home. Gracie loved showing off her killer wheels. Mommy laughed at Gracie's "tank" of a stroller.We enjoyed our walk so much, that when Gracie asked to take down the big ol' "protection shield," Mommy was more than happy to allow her little girl to bask in the glorious spring-like day. (Over protective Mom here. Every little bump of the sidewalk I was checking in on her to make sure she was okay. Silly me. As if I were the first person EVER to take a baby for a walk in a stroller. hee hee)We loved our walk outside so much, and can't wait for more beautiful days ahead to spend in the great outdoors. This Oregonian Mommy will surely see to it that her little Gracie finds a love for the nature that surrounds her every day.

Grace is a month old!

2011-03-18T13:15:00.006-04:00

Yesterday, March 17th, St. Patties Day, our little Grace celebrated her one month birthday! I know that everyone says how fast time flies, but until you're actually in the throws of the speeding clock do you truly see just how fast the days zoom by. I'm finding it hard to believe that my little girl has already spent a full month with us. So in a feeble attempt to slow down the hands of time, I've been trying to capturing every little moment that I could on film. And while I know that as a parent it's my right to take a zillion photos and brag about each one, I'll try to restrain myself here, and just share with you the cream of the crop, which believe me was extremely hard for me to edit down. So please enjoy these few photos of little Grace and bask in her cuteness!

Nap time with Daddy.

Grace LOVES bath time!

So cozy in the bassinet.

Check out those baby blues. Stunning!

Pacifier junkie.

Thanks Popoolie (Grandpa Cooley) for the hippie outfit! Psychedelic Man!

I could watch these two all day!

One of my favorite faces she makes.

Thank you everyone for sharing your love with Grace. She has an amazing family, and loves you all so much already!

Hic-ups

2011-03-01T15:35:00.003-05:00

Hic-ups can be pretty funny, at first. The quirky way our body jolts, and the little bubble of air that pops up ever so frequently without warning can be quiet comical. I must admit that from time to time I get a giggle out of the hic-ups. However, I do know that one can reach a point where the hic-ups become tiresome, annoying, and sometime down right fatiguing. I often find myself in this predicament. If I laugh too hard I tend to get the hic-ups, and not just little bubbly hic-ups, I'm talking full blown, shake-you-the-core hic-ups. Now I know that hic-ups are not hereditary, however, it looks like I have passed down my awesome hic-uping diaphragm muscle to my little girl. Before she was even born Grace would get the hic-ups in the womb on a daily basis, multiple times a day, and her hic-uping sessions would last anywhere from twenty to forty minutes. Well, now that she's here, I can watch the cuteness that is my baby girl hic-uping rather than just feel it, and I sympathize with her every time she hic-ups, which yes is almost on a daily basis, but I still can't help myself, watching with delight, to hear the cutest little bubbles of air bouncing out of her. See what I mean....

My Birthing Story

2011-02-25T12:03:00.005-05:00

On Thursday, February 17th at 3:45 in the morning I officially began the exciting process of labor. I knew that I had lots of time, my contractions were about twenty minutes apart, and fairly mild. I let Christian sleep, and allowed myself to really focus on what this day was going to hold for us.

As the morning moved along, my contractions did the same. The distance in time between each one started to diminish and the overwhelming joy that today was going to be the day grew with each minute.

Luckily, I was already scheduled for an baby check-up appointment with my midwife at 2:45. I patiently waited till it was time to go, but I will admit I was extremely curious as to how far along I was dilated. Turns out that I was 4 cm, almost 5, and by this time of day my contractions were averaging 5 minutes apart. I went home, and was met at my house by my in-laws, John and Kathy, and my Doula Laura. We sat in the family room chit-chatting for a few hours, and then at about 5, 5:30 I made the call letting everyone know, "It's time to head to the head to the hospital."

Once we reached the birthing wing at the hospital, we were met by one of my midwives, and she pulled some strings to insure that I was given the corner room with the large jacuzzi tub. At this point I was now 6 cm and having contractions every 4 minutes. The birthing room felt more like a resort room on some tropical island. We were so lucky to get this room. It was great!
I used the birthing ball to help relax and move things along.
When the contractions really started pigging-backing each other, (they call this part of labor transition, and it happens right before the big "pushing" part) I moved into the tub. The warm water really worked wonders at soothing and again relaxing my body in between contractions.
From 6 o'clock to 10 o'clock I dilated a centimeter an hour, and by 10:00 I was ready to have a baby. At exactly 11:30 p.m. Grace Irene was born, and looked absolutely perfect!! She weighed 8 pounds 2 ounces, was 19.5 inches long, and honestly was the most gorgeous baby I've ever seen. (Although I'm sure I'm extremely biased)
Her first hair shampoo. She loves being pampered!

Such a sweet sleepy baby! So cute!
From day one she adored her father! Its unbelievable, but when she gets a little fussy, Christian picks her up and within two seconds she's perfectly content. Daddy's little girl!
Look at the face! She was so excited to head home from the hospital!
Thanks Aunt Emily and Uncle Luke for her going-home outfit. The sweater was perfect as it was extremely cold and kept her nice and toasty warm.
Grandma Kaufman made Grace her baby blanket that she came home from the hospital in. So soft and warm!
We're so thrilled that she's finally here, and every day has become such a joy. She's our little miracle, and I love that we are now a true family!

Birds of a feather

2011-02-16T11:35:00.004-05:00

This winter season we've had several neighborhood visitors that are very large, and a little bit on the creepy side. I'm talking about vultures! They've been hanging around the houses and trees and really seem to enjoy the heat that is piped up through the chimneys as they perch their giant feathered body across the roof tops.While sitting in my family room, I can always tell when a giant vulture is resting on the top of the chimney because well, they're not exactly graceful birds, and I hear them trying to balance themselves on the chimney cap. (Below you can see one vulture sitting next to the cap, and the feathers of another vulture who is actually sitting on the cap to the chimney.)Here's a vulture just hanging out in the back yard. I'm telling you, these birds are impressively big!

Like a scary gang, here are five vultures just hanging out on the ridge pole of the neighbor's house directly across the street. I wouldn't want to mess with this posse.See what I mean. Creepy!

This vulture is sitting on the chimney cap, and warming his feathers. I bet he was nice a toasty up there!Oh no! I've been spotted! (I still think they're creepy!) RUN AWAY!!! AHHHH!

For my Nana

2011-01-03T21:09:00.004-05:00

Moment of Warmth

2010-12-05T17:49:00.001-05:00

This is for all those out there who are burred in snow at the moment, or chilled to the bone from the blustery winter air... Please snuggle up close to our fireplace, which we lit for the first time, and completely enjoyed warming our hands and hearts by.

It also makes wonderful roasted marshmallows. hee hee

Happy winter everyone!

Before & Afters

2010-11-21T15:16:00.006-05:00

It's been forever since I've blogged, and I apologize to those who have been waiting to read the latest posting. To make up for my absence, this will be one doosy of an entry.

Over a year ago I shared the wondrous news that Christian and I closed on our first house together, followed by explaining how much work we had ahead of us to make this house our home. We still have a few projects that we're working on, (mainly the kitchen) but I thought I would show the world how far we've come in such a relatively short period of time. So please enjoy these before, during, and after photos of several rooms in our home.

The foyer & stairway:
The living room:
Although it may not look like we changed much in the living room, we did repaint everything, fix cracked walls, replaced built in doors, and of course sanded and stained the floor.
The dining room:The down stairs bathroom:The soon-to-be nursery:The family room:The guest bedroom:And the biggest mess, the upstairs bathroom:
We discovered an original staircase hidden under the bathtub. It was amazing to look at the the steps, feel the warn-out-curve in the wood, and just imagine the Canfield family (Matthias Canfield built the house in 1825) walking up and down those steps.

I refrained from posting photos of the "library", as it still has many empty shelves and looks rather awkward, as well as my craft room isn't really much to look at, plus I'm working on something for the holiday season for my family here in Jersey, so I didn't want to give it away, oh and our master bedroom is lovely, but I've posted photos of it many times before. The only difference is we have our bedroom furniture in it now, which makes me feel all grown up.

I'm very proud of how the house has turned out. There are still things left to do, and I'm sure there will always be things left to do, but like I said, it now feels like our home.

Baby Kaufman update!

2010-10-04T15:57:00.003-04:00

One week ago Christian and I had our 20 week check up and we were able to insure that our growing little jelly bean is healthy as can be. The baby measured in around 10 inches, about the length of a banana, and was around 12 oz. I'm so excited that I can now start talking about our baby in pounds. Our baby weighs a pound!! Look how cute LG (Short for Logan/Grace) is. LG's arms were above his/her head. You can see the hands by the forehead. And isn't that the most adorable nose you've ever seen?!? I can't wait to see it in person and give it an Eskimo kiss... well, I can wait till Feb. hee hee. Also, is it me, or does it look like LG is smiling for the photo-op? Everything is exactly where it's suppose to be, ten fingers and ten toes. (Cooley toes for certain. I was really pulling for Kaufman toes. Those Kaufman boys could model their feet.) A beautiful healthy heart, and a gorgeous brain, which I can already tell will rival Einstein's. hee hee As for the many out there who are requesting us to tell them whether it's a boy or girl, sorry to disappoint, but Christian and I made it very clear that we did not wish to know the sex, and therefore we still have a guessing game going on. I think it's more fun this way, we get to discuss two possible futures, rather than just one.

LG is very active, I feel movement all the time, and Christian felt a little nudge earlier in the week. It was LG's way of letting his/her Daddy feel the love that we're already building as a family. Its always a treat to sneak a peak at our child, and catch a glimpse of this beautiful baby. This was our last ultrasound, by choice, for the duration of the pregnancy. So the next photos we see of LG will be in color, and will be of the most exciting day of our life!

Our Alaskan Adventure

2010-09-12T19:24:00.022-04:00

Note: I took over 600 photos, so it's a bit of a long blog entry, and obviously not all photos made the cut. But regardless please enjoy the Alaska Blog!
Our summer vacation to Alaska was honestly one of the most breathtaking, and relaxing vacations we have ever taken. This was our first cruise, and I think it's safe to say that Christian and I are cruise people. It was tons of fun! There was always something to do on the ship, and if we so chose there was always time to mellow out.

We flew into Seattle, and met up with the boat in the harbor. From the deck we had a clear view of the city center, the public market and fisherman's warf, and of course their two stadiums, home of the Seahawks and Mariners. After spending a day at sea, our first stop was the gateway to Alaska, Ketchikan. Everything was within walking distance from the boat. This town boasts one of the largest collections of totem poles, and believe me they were every where you looked!
Salmon is among one of the wonderful fresh exports of Alaska. Arriving so late in the summer season their urge to spawn had just about warn off, and they're life cycle was almost complete. There were still thousands of salmon pushing their bodies to the limit as they struggled up stream, and I was lucky enough to catch one mid-flight!Christian and I thought it would be fun to catch a lumberjack show while in port. It was really entertaining. Four lumberjacks, one of which was from New Jersey of all places (The big guy in gray) competed against each other in various contests. High energy, loud, and lots of fun.The next port was Alaska's capitol, Juneau. After the boat docked, Christian and I boarded a bus that drove us about twenty minutes away from town to meet up with our activities coordinator for the day. We were going sea kayaking next to the Mendenhall Glacier.
I brought along my tiny point-and-shoot camera for this part just in case we capsized, I didn't want to loose all my photos from the trip, so the quality isn't quite as clear as the other photos. But if you look closely (Click the collage to zoom in) dead center of the trees below is a mature bald eagle watching us from her perch. I think we kayaked at least two miles maybe more and for close to two hours. We saw fish, mature and juvenile bald eagles, and harbor seals, not to mention the glacier. Our host for the afternoon pointed us in the direction of King's Crab Shack for lunch, and were we ever happy that she did! Christian and I feasted on crab bisque, crab cakes, and of course no visit to Alaska would be complete without cracking your way through a giant two foot long King Crab Leg! Soooo yummy!The following day our cruise ship skillfully navigated it's way through the Tracy Arm Fjord. Everyone on the boat woke up especially early to watch enormous mountains cruise by at what seemed to be an unbelievable close distance. Christian and I were on the upper decks by 6:30 in the morning. We both were chilled, but extremely refreshed and awestruck by what we saw.
As the channel seemed to become more and more narrow loose floating "baby" glaciers (About the size of semi-trucks) began to float by us. We sailed past these translucent blue icebergs which were silhouetted against the most dramatic backdrop of waterfall-laced rock walls ascending thousands of feet into the sky. The ship then slowly rounded a corner of mountains and suddenly appearing before us was a glacier which was miles thick. (If you see in the collage below, the boat I took a photo of was actually National Geographic taking their own photos and studying the glacier. Very cool!)
Our last port in Alaska was a tiny town called Skagway. Here's where Christian and I had the most fun. We boarded the White Pass Yukon Railway which took us up the mountainside just to drop us off in an Alaskan rain forest. We met up with our guides, Waldo from Washington and Georgia from Georgia, and went for a five mile hike in the Alaskan wilderness.Here's Waldo. Christian and I thought he was an awesome guide. (Plus he looks like the twin of my best friend's husband... don't you think so Lolo?)There were only seven of us for this excursion, and apparently we were all really good hikers, so Waldo pumped up the pace a bit to insure that we could reach a lookout point a mile further than they normally go. The burning quads were so worth it once we reached the clearing. (Don't forget I was 15 weeks pregnant doing this. I should get a pat on the back, thank you very much. hee hee)After leaving Alaska, the seas were slightly rough. (Honestly, it wasn't that bad. But don't forget this is coming from a woman who just spent four months with morning sickness, so I can handle just about any little motion sickness now. *Wink*) Christian and I enjoyed the soothing sway of the boat as it lulled us to sleep like little babies while we took our naps from the indoor observation deck.
While we didn't see as much wildlife as we had hoped, it was still fun to compare ourselves to the cute, man-made, yet life-size stuffed wildlife statues that were around the towns.
Christian and I did spot a few whales from the cruise ship. Nothing spectacular, like breaching or anything, but we did enjoy a gasp or two as we spotted the spray from the spouts off in the distance. Below is Christian next to an Orca skull.
Yes, you guessed it! That's a whale's vertebra Christian is adjusting. Just imagine how large whales truly are. That's just one bone out a spine that can reach more than 87 feet in length!! Amazing!Our last port was Victoria Island, in Canada. I have actually been here before. My high school band every other year makes a trip up to march in the Victoria Day parade. It was a short stop as we docked just before 7 o'clock in the evening, and left port at midnight, but it was fun to walk around the Canadian streets and listen to all the street performers play and entertain the visiting tourists.
Finally back in Seattle, Christian and I had several hours before we needed to be at the airport for our flight back to the East Coast, so I thought it would be fun to take him to Seattle's public market. I hadn't been there in the years, and there is always something fun to see, smell, and eat.One of the fun features at the public market or the fish mongers. When you order a fish, rather than just walking the fish up to the scale, they throw the fish over the counter to one another and catch it as if it wasn't a cold, slippery fish. That's a talent to put on your resume!And of course, no visit to Seattle would be complete without allowing Christian to try a freshly brewed cup of Joe. He took one sip and instantly said it was one of the best cups of coffee he'd ever had. Me, I thoroughly enjoyed my hot apple cider.A well deserved vacation, that went off without a hitch. One for the record books, and one that I'm sure in the future we will revisit. As for the rest of the population out there that says the every popular line, "I've always wanted to go to Alaska." GO! It's beauty is stunning, the people are friendly, and the food is delish. I give this year's vacation a triple A+!

Alaska Bound

2010-08-25T11:15:00.002-04:00

It's that time of year again that Christian and I look forward to with such delight. That's right, it's VACATION TIME!! In less then 48 hours we will be on our way to picturesque Alaska. In anticipation of our trip, I'll give you a sneak peak at my, "wouldn't it be great to see?" wish list.

(Please note that these are not in any particular order) I'd love to see some of the impressive and extremely humbling glaciers.
The peaceful wilderness and awe-inspiring views.

I would seriously LOVE to catch a glimpse of a grey whale while we're out to sea. We're traveling at their peak migration season, so perhaps this wish could come true.

The Aura Borealis is a phenomenon that I have only witnessed once in my life, and it was so faint that if you didn't know what you were looking at you might not have noticed it all. If we do have a night where the atoms collide you can bet that I'll be on deck with my camera, no matter how cold it may be.

Ah Alaska! We're looking forward to a nature packed vacation, filled with unaltered beauty and mother nature's magnificent homeland.

The biggest-tinniest news ever!

2010-08-10T15:40:00.003-04:00

For the past three months Christian and I have been holding onto a HUGE, yet itty-bitty secret, and now that we've gotten the "A-OKay," we've been leaking the news to those closest to us for the past week, and now that our check list of those who must know first has been fulfilled I get to bask in the glow of telling everyone out there (If you haven't figured it out already) Christian and I are expecting!!! Let's all do some back flips and somersaults. Well, you go ahead and I'll watch. So on to the details. As of today, we are thirteen week into the pregnancy. Our due date is February 13, which I'm tickled pink with as thirteen is a lucky number in my family. At our twelve week check up with our midwife, we got to see our little jelly bean, and were given a clean bill of health. What wonderful news to hear! The last three months have been a somewhat on the tough side, as morning sickness (in the form of evening/night sickness for little Miss Taryn. Ick!) has been difficult to hide from family members. As well as the apparently apparent "glow" that comes along with having a growing baby in one's tummy, which gave away our secret before we did, as many family members totally knew that we were preggers way before we even told them. I hope you all enjoy reading about the many stages of pregnancy that one goes though, because I'm sure for the next six months I'll be posting away. Christian and I are so incredibly happy and feel so blessed to get to experience life's biggest miracle together.

Shayla's First Birthday!

2010-07-27T17:01:00.003-04:00

This past Wednesday my niece Shayla celebrated her first birthday! She is such a doll, and Christian and I can hardly believe that it has already been a whole year since she was born. I found myself reflecting on everything I was thinking, and feeling a year ago when we got the news that she was on her way. I completely relived the feeling of excitement and joy throughout the day, and thought it was so perfect that Krysty (Shayla's Mommy) invited us all over at exactly 7:25 p.m. for cake to be there for the exact moment that Shayla took her first peek at the world around her.

Grandma and the birthday girl sharing hugs. Shayla adores her Grandpa and lights up whenever he's in the room.

The Mommy-made birthday cake that was just for little Shayla. So cute!

Hooray! Happy Birthday Shayla!

"Yummy in my tummy!"

The super proud parents, John and Krysty and the birthday girl!

Uncle Keith sharing a messy kiss with the birthday girl.

Aunt Carol and Uncle Albey getting in their photo opp. with the celebrity for the day.

Shayla loves her cousins Jayson and Trent.

Mee-ma and Pee-pa loving on the birthday girl.

Happy Birthday Shayla! You've come so far, and we can't wait to watch you grow and learn, and witness the transformation of you turning into someone even more wonderful than you already are. We love you!

Pow Wow

2010-07-13T10:48:00.015-04:00

This past weekend Christian and I drove to the western part of New Jersey in Sussex County for a Native American Pow Wow. Growing up I have fond memories of having the local tribes of Southern Oregon, the Modoc, Klamath, and Yahooskin tribes, visiting my school and teaching us about their culture. This event brought back memories of dancing around my elementary school gymnasium in a friendship circle.At this Pow Wow there were tribes from all over. Navajo, Cherokee, Nanticoke, Shawnee, and Powhatan just to name a few. Each tribe has dances that are steeped in tradition , rich and colorful clothing that help tell a story, and strong voices that ring out the songs of their ancestors.

This was truly something to see, hear, and experience. I tried to capture the feeling with my little camera. (The quality of the video is not the greatest, but it gives you an idea) Standing next to the drum circle was truly amazing. You could feel the pounding of the drum in your chest, and the synchronized voices that sung as one was so amazing it made the hair on the back on my arms stand on end.

The honor and pride held by each dancer and drummer could be seen clear as day. I truly admire how various cultures stay strong within their history, holding on to the stories of their ancestors, and then pass that knowledge on to the next generation, to both the youth in their tribe and to us "outsiders" who have a willing to learn, and an open heart.

Christian's new baby!

2010-07-07T21:51:00.002-04:00

No, it's not what you think. Sorry to burst your bubble. (hee hee) Christian does however have a new boy-toy to play with and my goodness does he love it. He recently picked up, it was a phenomenal deal I might add, a 2002 Dodge Ram 1500 SLT pickup truck. I've never fully understood why boys love their trucks so much, but to see the look in Christian's eyes when he's gazing on his new hauling-machine, brings a smile to my face. Just to help prove how much happiness this truck has brought him, the following two pictures he took. Like a proud papa he took a total of 19 photos of his new baby the day after he bought it.
On a fun little side note, this past Monday. Christian and I, with many thanks to one Mr. Alton Brown of the Food Network's "Good Eats," tried out a summer treat and grilled our very first pizza in our backyard. Fresh pizza dough basted with olive oil, cooked for two minutes per side, grilled tomatoes that we marinated in olive oil, salt, pepper, and minced garlic, cut up fresh basil, and wet mozzarella and shredded mozzarella. Voila, one of the tastiest pizzas I've ever tasted. Try it out. Super fun, easy, and did I mention tasty?

The Mama's & the Papa's

2010-06-21T11:25:00.003-04:00

The Kaufman family has grown over the last few years, and even though we're far from done with our growth spurts, I thought it would be fun to look at where we stand now. Because of Mother's Day in May and Father's Day this past weekend, I was able to capture four generations of Kaufmans all under one roof.

Ladies first, here we see Grandma Kaufman, Kathy Kaufman, Krysty Kaufman and Little Shayla Kaufman.
As for the Kaufman Dads we have Grandpa Kaufman, John Kaufman, Bobby Kaufman, and John Kaufman Jr.
I was thrilled to snap the photo below. It's a rare treat to have 99% of all the Kaufman boys together, because Grandpa Kaufman lives down the shore, and Bobby and his son Justin live in Florida. Just look at all those handsome Kaufman faces!

Kaufman Chiropractic Patients!

2010-06-10T13:27:00.005-04:00

I recently made up a little slide-show for the office highlighting just a handful of our patients, and of course my wonderful hubby - the Chiropractor!! I posted it on our office facebook page, but for those of you who don't do facebook, and you know you who you are *wink*, I wanted to share the video with everyone, so without further ado, here is the first Kaufman Chiropractic Video!! Enjoy.

You should write a book

2010-05-21T15:54:00.006-04:00

If I had a dollar for every time someone told me, "You should write a book." well, I'd have enough to buy a pizza and maybe even a soda. (Ha ha, I made a funny!) Seriously though, I've heard this statement throughout my life, starting as early as the third grade when my teacher, Mrs. Kranenberg, commented on a short story I wrote about a turtle who was trying to find a new home because he out grew his shell. (Funny to look back on my imagination at the age of 7, because if you think about it, I was picturing a little naked turtle running around town. Such a scandalous mind I had. Look I made another funny!) Anyway, two days ago I was driving home from the office and something just hit home in my heart that I DO have a book inside me that wants to come out. So this is my "official announcement" that I plan on writing a book. I have no idea what it's going to be about, or even who my audience might be, but regardless I have something to say and it's going to come out in book form.... some day. So wish me luck. This is not going to be something that I'll be speaking about too frequently. I have a feeling it will take me several years to finish and possibly several more to get it published, but I'm a patient person and I think it will be a great way to share with the world my quirky nature.

Punta Cana, Round Dos!

2010-05-18T17:32:00.010-04:00

Christian and I took an elongated weekend and flew off to Punta Cana, Dominica Republic for some much needed R&R. Christian had just finished his exam for his Chiropractic pediatric certification which took him 15 months to take all of the courses, and I had just finished yet another semester at school. We went to Punta Cana two years ago for our honeymoon, and really enjoyed our time spent doing absolutely nothing, so we thought what better way to decompress then to spend four days lying on a beach, or pool side, while friendly waiters bring you food and fruity drinks? We tried out a different resort this time round, and although in comparison our honeymoon resort was better, we still found plenty of spots to just relax and enjoy the warm ocean breeze.

Our room.The towel art, which changed daily. Clever maids!The private lounge for "Club Elegance" users only. (About 50% of the guest were in a more "elite" section of the hotel. Yuppers, that would include us.)The private pool for "Club Elegance" members, along with the private cabanas. And of course, the biggest draw, the private beach. Super soft sand, and ocean water that felt more like bath water it was so warm!The night life included jazz musicians in the hotel square, 9 different restaurants to choose from. (We never went hungry!) Dancing, and shows. A little something for everyone.
The hotel lobby. Very beautiful, open, and airy.Every night we took a stroll through the resort and enjoyed the warm tropical air while listening to music that seemed to come floating down from the night sky. (Actually, they had little speakers that looked like rocks along every pathway, so it was if you always had theme song following you where ever you went.)
Just about ever day we ate lunch beach side. Took a nap after we were full, and then headed back to the beach for some late afternoon sun.

Here's the view from our cabana. So peaceful!

Just a touch of the greenery that surrounded us.
The HUGE lantern that greets each guest as they check in at the front desk.
The spa. Very zen.
The games that we played, and surprisingly I won. Very surprisingly!
Finally headed back home. This is inside the airport, at our gate to walk the tarmac to the plane. It was a wonderful trip, albeit a short one, but all in all it served it purpose and we're very happy we went. Maybe next year we'll try a different island. Who knows.

Letting go

2010-05-08T23:02:00.003-04:00

I've always been the kind of person that is rather particular about my belongings. It was a big deal for me as a kid to purchase an item that wasn't a "hand-me-down." So when I made the decision to spend my money on something I had to make sure I really-REALLY liked it. Well, today I'm finally letting go of two of my childhood buys. They seem like nothing really to people who don't understand me, but I've been holding on to, and still utilizing, these two items since I was in high school.

The photo below is of a wallet I bought at Wal-mart when I was a freshman. I really loved it because the cover shifts colors as you tilt it back and forth. It also makes a fun little zip sound when you run your finger over it, kind of like a wash-board. Only once did I have the fear of it being stolen. (The day I met Christian in Las Vegas actually.) It has been my faithful companion all through living in Oregon, living in New York, and living in New Jersey. Well, today my husband bought me a new wallet. A wallet that an adult would be proud to pull out of their pocket book. A wallet made of leather, not plastic like my old one. And a wallet that still has the "Taryn factor," of feel good colors.The second item has literally taken me places. I purchased a pair of sneakers from Payless Shoe Source when I was a sophomore for $12.99. (I remember the price because it was a penny away from my family's lucky number 13. Little did I know just how lucky these shoes would be for me.) I wore these shoes just about every day. I wore them to my audition for school in New York. I wore them all over the streets of Manhattan. And I was wearing them the day I met my husband in Las Vegas. I adore these shoes. But all the wear and tear was really starting to show.
Even the heals were wearing thin from my pounding the pavement.
So I searched high and low for a replacement pair and as luck would have it, my new sneakers were found in my home town in Oregon. The circle of life has been complete. *wink* So to my faithful sneakers and wallet, you have served me well and have gone far above and beyond the call of duty. Thank you for your years and years of service. You will be missed.

Finder's Keepers

2010-05-04T11:31:00.003-04:00

All winter long I searched high and low for my ski gloves, and simply could not find them. I checked every box that I had packed for the big move and even after I scoured over the contents of each box I always came up empty handed. So on our snow days this past winter season I was able to find a pair of woven mittens to wear, but my hands would get cold and wet from playing in the snow, and I truly missed my ski gloves that kept my hands warm and dry. I honestly gave up looking for them after about two months of winter.

The other day Christian needed a copy of my registration from my car, so I went into my glove compartment to get it.... Low and behold what do I find? My Ski Gloves!

Who would have thought that I would actually use the glove compartment to put my gloves in? Just goes to show you that sometimes the most obvious place isn't so obvious.

Progress Report

2010-05-02T10:53:00.001-04:00

I have had several requests recently for photos on our house projects, and I'll be the first to admit that I have been greedy by not sharing the progress with everyone. As I have said in prior posts pertaining to the house, I had a desire to wait until a project was complete before I revealed to the world how beautiful things turned out. This being said, I had no idea just how much time a "completed" project would need. Now, I'm probably one of the most patient people I know, but even I have limits. So I can no longer contain my enthusiasm about how great our house is coming along, and therefore I am about to share just a snippet of what we've been up to in the past week.

Below are photos of our foyer and staircase. Wallpaper galore. During the sanding process for all the bedrooms upstairs a vale of plastic was put up in an attempt to keep dust at bay. (Honestly, I don't think a fifty foot wall would have kept all that dust from getting into other rooms.)

We were thinking we would simply put fresh wallpaper up to avoid the fiasco of pulling down chunks of plaster from the walls, along with the paper. However, we were lucky to discover the plaster wall behind the paper was solid, and able to withstand the pull of the glue.

So once all the wall paper came down, our contractors Konstantine and Andrew, began filling the cracks, and smoothing the wall to prepare it for painting.

Christian and I are giving the paint color choices to our contractors this week, so I apologize if this seems anti-climatic having only a white primed wall to look at. But like I said, completed projects take time. While we wait for the primer to dry, let's take a quick sneak peak into the living room and dining room to see the action there. The living room has stained floors, and a major crack that was in the corner of the room, caused by our shifting the foundation of the house to level it out, has been filled. As of today, two layers of varnish have been applied to the floor, but I have no photos of the room because it is sealed up like Fort Knocks! In fact, every room, with the exception of our bedroom and kitchen, is either sealed up, or completely void of furniture at the moment.

So there you have a small amount of our construction zone. I will post the completed bathrooms soon. Once the plastic wall comes down, I'll be able to snap a few photos of the downstairs bathroom, and I'm still trying to find the right light fixture for the upstairs. Until then, this little update will have to suffice.

Playing catch-up!

2010-04-20T20:57:00.009-04:00

Please forgive me for this mass-blog-update. I'm about to cram four events into one post, so it may be a bumpy ride.

Two weekends ago, Christian and I spent a day at the Delaware Water Gap. This was our second visit, and we thoroughly enjoyed becoming one with nature during our almost 9 mile hike.
Below is the pond that we spent hours walking towards. It's considered one of New Jersey's natural wonders. For some reason this pond is very acidic, and only two species of fish can survive in the water. Acidic water or not, it was still very picturesque.
Since I'm putting so many things into one blog entry please excuse my use of the collage to recap the hike and lack of commentary. (If you'd like to see the photos closer up, just click on the collage.)

On April 13th, our family got a little bigger. Christian's cousin Danielle welcomed to the world her first baby, Joseph. A healthy 8 pounds 8 ounces, and seriously has the cutest face I've ever seen on a baby boy! Way to go Danielle and Mike!!Speaking of babies. A girlfriend of mine, who's husband is good friends with my husband, is expecting her first baby in about five weeks. Her baby shower was this past weekend, and although I couldn't be there for reasons which you will learn shortly, I sent to the shower a name plate for her little man who will be named John. I really liked how this one turned out. The reason I could not attend the baby shower, Christian and I spent the weekend down in Asbury Park, NJ attending a chiropractic seminar. Asbury Park is right on the beach, and our hotel was mere feet from the boardwalk and crashing waves. I forgot to bring my camera, so the few photos I have of the place, I did not take, but if I had my camera I would have loved to attempt to capture what my eyes saw, and it would have looked something like this...Again, sorry for the jammed pack entry. I'll try to be better at posting more frequently. Hugs!

Just 5 minutes later...

2010-04-06T13:25:00.003-04:00

I left the house less than 5 minutes later than I normally do this morning and my goodness, what a difference it made! I take the back roads to get to campus for class, and usually it only takes me about 15 minutes door to door. But this morning, Murphy's law was upon me. I was only four blocks away from my house when I came upon my first road block. A school bus.It made four stops on the way up the hill, so I patiently waited knowing that it would turn down a road in less than a mile. Once it made the left turn, I zoom down the road trying to make up for lost time. (No worries, I never go over the speed limit. It was 40 mph on this road.) At the bottom of the hill, I was stopped by a crossing guard. Once allowed to pass, what should pull out in front of me, but another school bus.So now I'm caravaning with a school bus and at least ten cars behind me, when we all get stopped by a commuter train.
Now I'm starting to get agitated because less than half a mile down the road we get stopped at the second set of rail road tracks as another train passes. So I'm close to school and I'm sure I'm in the clear by now, when I come around a bend and what do I see? A garbage truck taking up the entire lane, with three cars already behind it, as the "waste management engineers" run out grabbing trash cans, flinging them into the back of the truck, and then chucking them on the lawns from whence the came.
I let out a sigh, and just wait the less than 100 feet to the next light because I know they're going to go straight and I'm turning. The light of course is red!
I turn the corner, I can now see the buildings on campus ahead of me, I get nervous because I have to cross over my third and final set of rail road tracks and I just know I'll be stopped with an on coming train. To my surprise, I was able to make it across without a hitch. I turn onto campus, only to be stopped by, not one, but two public transportation buses that are taking up both lanes to allow students off and on. Finally the buses pull forward only to clear my line of sight to the parking deck that I am allowed to use, where I see a line of cars all waiting to pull in. (The photo below really is my parking deck) Luckily both gates were working this morning so the wait wasn't more than a minute or two. I drove up to the fifth floor, and ran across campus to my 8:30 class.

I was only 4 minutes late, but turns out that my professor had as rough a morning as I did because she was 5 minutes late and blamed it on traffic. I totally believing her! Whew!

Basement Potty Training

2010-03-31T22:05:00.002-04:00

Spring has just begun, and Jersey is already in record rain fall for the season. Christian and I are lucky enough that we haven't had a major issue with flooding (Knock on wood) but yesterday I came home to a quiet house and heard a strange sound coming from the basement. An oddly relaxing and soothing sound of lightly trickling water. This is what I found in the basement. (Press the play button.)

Yes, that is our basement wall "peeing" all over the floor. *sigh* Needless to say we'll be plugging the hole once everything dries up down there. Oh well, one of the many perks of home ownership.

Homeward Bound!

2010-03-27T21:06:00.005-04:00

Last week during my spring break from classes I flew home to Oregon to visit my family. While I was there I was able to cram in several fun events, visits with friends, and lots of beautiful scenic Oregonian views.

My best girlfriend, since the fourth grade, Lauren drove down from Portland for the weekend so we could play catch up. I adore her for making the trip. It's a six hour drive, and the day she drove down chains were required on the mountain passes. She's a brave cookie, always has been, and it was truly wonderful to see her!
Above is Lauren and her youngest brother Michael playing on the trampoline in their back yard. This is a new addition to the Penka house. I can only imagine the trouble, not to mention injuries that would have occurred had this been here while we were kids!

Below is my cousin Ryan, who's really more like a brother to me because we grew up basically in the same house together. In the photo with us are my super cute niece and nephew Chloe and Daniel. It's only been eight months since I last saw them, but my goodness have they become little grown ups already! Slow down!!!
I was lucky enough to be in town for Ryan's birthday. I can't even tell you when the last time I actually got to celebrate his birthday with him. I think we were still in high school to be honest. So it was super great to be there for our traditional Cooley style birthday party topped off with a carrot cake. Our favorite!
Growing up in a small town there really wasn't much in the way of entertainment. You either made your own fun, or on a dud-of-a-day you relied on the local movie theatre to entertain you for a few hours. Lauren and I lived at the theatre, or so it felt on some rainy days, so of course we had to relive our youth and catch a movie together at our old hang out spot.
We saw Alice in Wonderland in 3D. This was Lauren's first time watching a movie in 3D. I'm happy to say that I was there for such a momentous occasion.
Oh yeah, and Dad was there too. *wink*

While in Oregon I was able to sneak in a holiday with the family. St. Patties Day. Nana and I made corned beef, cabbage, carrots, and potatoes. My sister drove down from central Oregon, a three hour drive, and spent the holiday with the family. The bonus with her visit was that the day before was her birthday, so score one more for perfect timing. I spent the entire day with her just hanging out, having sister-sister talk, and enjoying the time together.

Do you think we're proud to be Irish?
Nana, Dad and I drove to a near by town for one reason and one reason alone. Chocolate Malts!!! There is this tiny little shack of a burger joint in a "don't blink or you'll miss it" of a town that ever since I was a really little kid has been the reining champions when it comes to the best milkshakes and malts! It takes about 25 minutes in the car to get there, but once you're there, the drive is sooooo worth it!

Upper Klamath Lake with a view of Mount McLoughlin. Just outside of the city limits on our way to the Valley for the day.
Driving over the mountain pass is always an adventure, and during the middle of winter there are times when it's simply not possible due to the amount of snow. Oregon has special snowplows that not only push the snow in front of the plow but it also cuts into the side of the snow creating a wall of snow. It's the only way to really clear the path from all the snow.

Dad has found a new scenic spot that is his hidden little gem. I had never been there before, so on our way to the Valley we stopped for a beautiful little leg stretch.
Once in the Valley we stopped at a local creamery that makes it's own cheeses. We're talking TONS of cheese! I tried Oregonzola Cheese, Crater Lake Blue Cheese, and a cheese that was flavored with lavender. All yummy in my tummy! We also stopped at grocery store that has an amazing bulk section. I got to see Nana's hot-rod skills with the electric shopping carts. Let me tell you, she's fast on that thing! She drove it all the way to the car in the parking lot, so I got to try my hand at the handle bars as I drove it back into the store to plug it in.
I love my home state of Oregon, and it was so great spending such quality time with Nana, Dad , my sister and my cousin. It's a small family that I have, but we're not small on the love that we share!

February was cold! Brrr!!

2010-03-06T12:10:00.005-05:00

We had several back to back snow storms this past month that really packed a wallop of a punch. Towns shut down for a day or two several weeks in a row, and Christian closed his office more than once, due to the snow. Here is a look at the two bigger snow storms and our first experience being home owners in a blizzard like event.

Christian (In the black jacket) is talking with our neighbor Paul who, although you can't really see it, has a "roof rake" and is pulling the snow off the top of his roof. Because Christian and I still have many things packed away in boxes we couldn't find his snow gloves so Paul let Christian barrow a pair of mittens, and his shovel so we could try and clear our 70 foot long driveway. I may look like I'm working, but honestly, Christian wouldn't let me lift a finger (Even though I love shoveling.) He didn't want me to re-injure my shoulder from my last surgery. Golly I love him!So while Christian was breaking his back shoveling, I was running around the house making snow tracks, pretending to be a cross country skier, and of course no fresh snow fall would be complete without a beautiful snow angel.Here's a photo of our back yard. It looked so pretty with all the fresh snow falling.This is part of our front yard. You can't even see the pathway or the steps up to our house. This was the first real snow fall of the year.About a week later we were hit with an even bigger storm. This one certainly was a doozy! It snowed for two days straight, and unlike the storm we had the week before where the snow was fluffy and soft, this was a very heavy, wet snow. (Perfect snowman snow.) So all our bushes and smaller trees were weighed down by the sheer amount of snow on their branches.Christian was not about to attempt to shovel our driveway by hand for a second time. We were lucky enough that his Dad picked up this snowblower and our contractor brought it up to our house and played with the motor to get it running the day before the big storm. Its not the most glamorous snowblower in the world, but heck, it worked like a charm!
The amount of snow you see is after Christian had already cleared the driveway the night before with the snow blower. So this was just what fell as we slept.By the time all was said and done we had about 18" of snow. It was fun to drink some hot chocolate and stay inside with my best buddy in the whole world, my hubs! But don't get me wrong, I'm very pleased that spring is right around the corner and soon I'll be blogging about all the pretty flowers popping up around my house!

(Press the play button to see my back yard)

The Master-Master Piece

2010-02-25T09:37:00.004-05:00

Construction within the walls of our almost 200 year old home goes on daily, so when a project or room is complete I feel like I should have a ribbon cutting ceremony or grand opening party. Therefore consider this posting my grand opening party to our lovely master bedroom.

I know I haven't posted many photos of the projects as they are in progress but thats because I always had in my head that I would wait patiently for the finish line and then debut the rooms one by one to the eagerly waiting public. (I chuckle because I know many of you are soooo not waiting by your computers day in and day out just to see photos of our house.) So without further ado here is a walk down memory lane with our master bedroom.Here is the room before we began any work on it. You see wall paper, and a pretty beat up sad looking floor. My friend Cindy and I spent an afternoon pealing the wall paper only to find that the plaster walls would crumble with the glue leaving big chunks of the wall missing. So our contractors Konstantine and Andrew replaced the walls with sheet rock. See our spectacular light fixture literally hanging by it's wires from the ceiling. Yeah, I don't think that was up to code, but I won't tell if you won't. (*wink*)
The window to the left was boarded up because of broken glass, and if you look at the window on the right an entire pane of glass is missing and was repaired with taped up plastic. We replaced all the windows in the house with double pane, low-e glass. It made such a difference instantly. The house holds the heat better and is as quiet as can be inside now.
I've already posted about my floors upstairs, but here they are again, as they were being worked on. I think this was the second coat of varnish.
Paint went up on the walls and ceiling. Goodness me, that was an exciting day! Color really makes a room feel like part of your home.

The dangling light fixture was replaced with our nifty ceiling fan that just happens to match the color of the floor. (Do you think someone was planning ahead when she went shopping?!? hee hee)
All the molding pieces were put up, closet doors installed and drum roll please................ the room is complete!

Christian and I are very pleased with how it turned out. Now all we need to do is move our bedroom furniture from the family room downstairs that we've been living in for the past two months, to where it belongs, our beautiful Master Bedroom!

Danielle's Baby Shower

2010-01-31T21:57:00.004-05:00

Christian's cousin Danielle was pleasantly surprised on Saturday afternoon to walk into a room filled with women who love her and all wanted to shower her with baby gifts for the soon to be new Mommy. It was a fun lunch with wonderful women, many of whom are expecting their own little bundles of joy or have recently brought them into the world and had the new Mommy glow.

Danielle's nursery for her baby boy is going to be a jungle theme, so her closest girlfriends brought the jungle to the party and created a really cute baby shower theme.Everyone at the party was truly amazed at the cake that Danielle's friend Vanessa made. Vanessa is a mother of three little boys, and seems to have so many hidden talents. She never ceases to amaze me. Look how adorable this cake is, with the sleeping baby under the leaf on the top. It was so cute!
The Mommy (Carol) and Mommy-to-be. Both looked so beautiful and couldn't stop smiling the entire afternoon. My beautiful family. Mother-in-law and sister-in-law and niece were all smiles, and look stunning with their touch of animal print. (Kathy wore a zebra inspired dress, Shayla stylin' in her animal print faux fur, and although I didn't get any pictures of her shoes, Krysty wore these amazing leopard heels.)
Let the gift opening commence!
Among a few cute baby items that I just couldn't resist, my main gift for Danielle's little one was a personalized name plate. He will share the same name as his grandfather on his Dad's side, Joseph. This was my first boy name plate and I really enjoyed making it. It seems that all the women around me are expecting little boys, so perhaps I'll have a few more chances to create different styles of a name plate for the little guys! So fun!
Danielle is a truly beautiful woman and I know that her little peanut has picked a remarkable family to join, and in April we'll all get to meet him face to face.

Look at my floors!!!!

2010-01-19T21:54:00.002-05:00

Our contractors are not 100% done as of today with our upstairs (We're still working on our bathroom, therefore our hallway has not been stained due to high traffic and bathroom fixtures threatening to damage a polished finished floor), but the four bedrooms now have newly stained floors that look simply stunning. I was going to wait to post these photos till the walls were painted and trim was up so you could see the finished product but I'm too excited and can't wait.

In the collage below, the photos display the transition that our floors have undergone in the last month or so. The first photo I call the "Oopsie color." Unfortunately Christian and I didn't care for this red color, so our contractor spent close to two weeks stripping the wood and then sanding the floor by hand. By the time he was done sanding the floors, which are close to 200 years old, they looked brand new. (Great work Konstantine!!!) The third photo is of our tester color, which we picked out and LOVED so we gave the go ahead and they stained each bedroom, applied three coats of varnish (You see coat one and coat two in the last two photos in the collage.).....

And then... drum roll please..........
Finally our finished floors look like this!!!!! Sooooo beautiful and really breath taking. The floors were something we fell in love with right from the very beginning and we knew we wanted to restore them to their original beauty. Konstantine and his Uncle Andrew did a wonderful job! I can't wait to post more photos of the work they're doing. But for now I love gazing at my gorgeous floors!

How Peculiar!

2010-01-11T12:45:00.004-05:00

I only caught the tale end of this. The birds flew back and forth for a good two or three minutes before it dawned on me to get my camera, and then of course, once I had the camera it was as if the birds knew they were caught in the act, so they all fled. But still, how strange!

The Joy of Christmas

2009-12-27T12:04:00.008-05:00

A few days before the 25th the East Coast was hit with it's first real snow storm of the season guaranteeing that we would all have a white Christmas. Christian and his Dad set to work right away shoveling the white stuff along with the rest of the neighborhood.
I'm a strange bird because I love shoveling snow, but sadly I could not participate due to my having surgery just two days before the big storm came. So I swallowed my pride and forced myself to watch from the warmth of the living room and played with this little guy. (Sure was a tough morning for me, let me tell you. *wink*)One of the many things I love about the Christmas season is that people dust off their address books and discover the long lost art of using the postal service. Here is just a handful of the wonderful holiday messages Christian and I received. For the past six months I've been guarding a box because it's contents are more precious to me than any purchased gift could ever be. So as an early Christmas present to myself, even though we haven't begun work on our living room, I opened the box that held the two paintings I picked out that where created by my Aunt and I displayed them on our mantle. Tears were shed as I gazed upon the beautiful work, and I know that my Aunt was standing next to me that morning, happy as a clam, that part of her is now officially in my new house.Christmas day was spent at my in-laws house. Kathy had a slightly smaller group to feed than usual. Luke, who recently got engaged spent the afternoon and evening with his future in-laws in Connecticut. While John and his wife with little Shayla spent their dinner with Krysty's family. This is just part of the wonderful shifting dynamic that is family. We're ever growing and ever changing, but we always feel the love we share no matter the distance.Grandma and Grandpa K came up with Christian's cousin Jessie, whom we were so happy to see because it has been far too long between visits.Melissa and Brianna, along with their parent's Anne and Bruce (Christian's Aunt and Uncle) also joined us for the day. I can not get over how grown up these little ladies are. Melissa will be graduating high school this year, and I remember when Brianna was just a little kid blowing bubbles and running around her yard. Kathy's best friend Helene stopped by, and stayed for a bite to eat. Here she is in her new hat, complements of Kathy. She's such a sweetheart. Look at those baby blues. Like father like son.Dinner was great. Kathy always creates such a wonderful holiday meal. And dessert had quite the spread, cookies, cheese cake, and how cute was this little Frosty ice cream cake?!? At the end of the day, when all out tummies were full, Coby took a lesson from his big brother Keith and headed to a soft spot for a holiday snooze.From the Kaufman family to yours, we hope that your Christmas was truly wonderful, filled with love and laughter. Merry Christmas !

Ding-dong the plate is dead!

2009-12-18T18:17:00.004-05:00

I am happy to report that the great clavicle saga has finally come to it's conclusion, and oh what a happy ending it is! Yesterday's surgery was a fine success, and I left the hospital hardware free! Regardless of any discomfort I was in, the smile on my face never fell. (Honestly, I'm really not in much pain at all. I'm not sure if its just because I've built up my tolerance from the three previous surgeries, or if its because we weren't rebuilding bone this time, but I feel great!) I know that I'm normally a little more long winded with my entries but I'm back to being predominately left handed and typing is a little bit of a challenge, so I shall wrap this up with sending out a thank you once again to all those out there who kept me in their thoughts for the last year and a half. I've felt the love and am utterly grateful! Thank you all so much!

Say Buh-bye to the Clavicle Saga

2009-12-16T15:45:00.002-05:00

Just a super quick FYI, that most of you who are faithful readers are already well aware of.... Tomorrow (Thursday Dec. 17th) is my fourth and FINAL surgery for my great clavicle saga!!!!!! I go in at 8 in the morning, I'm guessing the surgery will be somewhere around 10 or 11, and I should be home by mid afternoon. I'll be staying at my in-laws for a little while. As much as I'd like to stay in my new house, there's just too much dust from all the construction, and frankly I'd be WAY too tempted to try and put things away which is a major No-no! So I appreciate the offering from John and Kathy to take care of me and feed me while I'm recovering. Things will go great, I can feel it! I'm a little nervous as always, but more than anything I'm thrilled that the final chapter is going to be written! So keep your fingers crossed for me tomorrow and send good vibes to my surgeon that every things goes smoothly. I'll let everyone know how it went in the next day or two. Thank you everyone for your thoughts and prayers! Love you guys!!!

Moving Day!

2009-12-12T10:54:00.001-05:00

Well, it's been quite some time since my last post, and I have an extremely good excuse for my lack of attention to the blog. WE'VE MOVED!!! Hooray! Last Saturday after Christian closed the office and I got home from my World Lit. class the Kaufman family came to our rescue and in a big blur all our belongings were packed up in a Penske truck and we headed west.

So now our house has become our home, and as of last night, Christian and I are officially living in our home! How exciting! The upstairs where all the bedrooms are is not finished (We had a little boo-boo with the floor stain. Miscommunication really, and sadly they need to be re-sanded and re-stained once again.) so we are currently living out of the family room, which we have turned into our make-shift bedroom. The living room is holding a few items, not too many, but since we decided we no longer wanted the green monster of a couch, there really isn't much in the way of cozy living in the living room yet. (We'll fix that as we go along, I'm sure.) The dinning room is still being worked on. The sister beams are up, insulation is going in under the floor boards for the second floor, and the second batch of new windows have arrived so they should be going in hopefully next week. We're not going to tackle the kitchen until the spring. So for now it's a perfectly fine kitchen that once we clear away all the sawdust and Spackle dust from our various projects will be great! As a welcome to the neighborhood gift, Mother Nature decided to share a little Christmas cheer and snow on us while we were moving in. It didn't slow us down, but my goodness did it sure make everything pretty to look at. And as icing on the cake, we were greeted by four of my favorite kind of neighbors in our neighbor's backyard.The apartment Christian and I moved out of we had lived in for two years. It was our first place as a married couple, and it treated us well. We're happy that we rented it out to a new couple who are just beginning their life together, and hope that it blesses their relationship with love and harmony just as it did for our newlywed life.One of the things we will miss about the apartment is the stellar view of the Manhattan skyline. We had a perfect view of the Empire State Building and each night we would play a game to see if we could guess the color(s) of the top part of the building. (It changes constantly) Also Christian's brother Luke lives in the city and so every night we would look out our kitchen window and say, "Good night Luke!"We truly wish to thank everyone that came to help, you guys are the best! So let the bells ring and chime, the Kaufman's have finally come home!

Happy Gobble-Gobble Day!

2009-11-26T20:56:00.003-05:00

Thanksgiving was a wonderful success this year held at the Kaufman house. My in-laws, John and Kathy opened their home and hearts to the family and we all had a very enjoyable day spent talking, watching football, and of course chowing down on some super delicious food!This was the second year that my sister-in-law Krysty's family came up from central Jersey to share the day with us. Her parents and one of her two brothers, along with his wife and their two energetic boys helped fill the house with an abundance of laughter and conversation. Also my mother-in-law's best friend ate with us as a pseudo member of the family. (She's known my husband his whole life!) Christian's cousin Alex drove all the way from Virgina to spend the weekend. He is in the Marine Corps, and will be shipped out over seas in about six months, so we were thrilled to have him visit! And lastly, but certainly not least, Christian's Grandmother and Grandfather drove up from the Jersey Shore. That makes a grand total of 20 people, including little Shayla of course! Luke and Emily have discovered a love for wine, and recently have begun a collection of bottles from their travels, or wines that they simply must try. Well, today in honor of having an Oregonian as a member of their family, they enjoyed showing me their selection for the evening, a merlot from the Willamette Valley in Oregon! It was fun to see the bottle and read the label. Although it was wonderful having so many adults around for some philosophical and fun conversations, I would have to say that little Miss Shayla stole the show, and had the attention of everyone around her for the entire day. She's such a cutie-pie in her Thanksgiving outfit.

Shayla with her Me-ma (Krysty's mother)

Shayla with her Great-Grandpa.Shayla with Uncle Keith and Uncle Luke.

Shayla with her second cousin Alex.

Shayla with Aunt Taryn

With so many people to talk with, I sadly didn't take as many photos as I had originally intended to, so I'm sorry, but many people are missing from the blog. But I hope you enjoyed this little nibble of photos to help give just a taste of what the afternoon was like at the Kaufman house.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Engaging Engagement!

2009-11-18T10:43:00.006-05:00

This past Thursday while at the office I received a telephone call from Christian's brother Luke. I could hear in Luke's voice that he was positively beaming. Honestly, I don't think I've ever heard such a lightness and bounce in his voice before, and trust me Luke is always very animated and fun to listen to when he speaks. But on this day he was simply bubbling over with joy, and I could hear it loud and clear. I gave the phone to Christian and he took the call into his office. Behind the closed door I heard Christian give a very excited blurt out, "REALLY?!?" and at that moment I knew that Luke and his wonderful girlfriend Emily were engaged!

Luke and Emily have been dating for a little over two years. They both live and work in New York City. So I find it absolutely appropriate that Luke would choose the backdrop to his engagement to be one of the most beautiful and serene place that could be found in the big city, Central Park.

Emily and Luke have walked through this park more times than they can even count, but this past Thursday's walk will be one they will both remember for the rest of their lives. One of Emily's favorite spots in the park is called, "The Central Park Mall." It's a walkway that when one stands at the very tip of it looking down the row of a perfectly manicured tree lined path it seems to trail off into infinity. This is where Luke on bended knee asked Emily to be by his side for the rest of his life. She accepted his proposal, and after the ring was placed on her finger Luke and Emily continued on their walk, and as Luke shared with Emily the moment he said, "We started down the path as boyfriend and girlfriend, and from this point on we move ahead into the future we share together as husband and wife."
The family is so thrilled at the news, and we're extremely excited for Emily and Luke. Personally, I'm over joyed with the engagement because I adore Emily and I love now having the knowledge and comfort of knowing that she will be my sister-in-law.

Congratulations Luke and Emily! We love you both and are so happy for you!

Happy Birthday Nana!

2009-11-13T09:19:00.004-05:00

Today is my grandmother's 85th birthday! My Nana is truly one of the most amazing people I've ever known. She has always been a pillar of strength for me, and has been by my side as I walked through many of life's tough lessons. I attribute my style of cooking to her, as she was my main influence in the kitchen. (No measuring cups, we just "eye-ball it." And don't worry Nana, your broccoli salad recipe is still safe. I won't share it with a soul!) Nana's sense of humor always cracks me up, and I love to hear her laugh. When I'm homesick I crave her figure of speech, because only Nana can come up with sayings like, "It's colder than a well digger's shovel." I don't know how she does it, but she masters pretty much everything she puts her mind to. She is so creative, and such a hard worker. I remember hearing her get up at 4 a.m every morning, so that she was in the kitchen at work pealing potatoes and cracking eggs by 5 a.m. to make food for all the airmen on the base, or later all the college students she fed at OIT's campus. Nana has had a tough year, but she's pushed through chemo-therapy and radiation treatments, and still I can hear her smile on the other end of the phone when I talk with her. It's that strength with in her that I admire and hope has rubbed off on me. I love my Nana and want to be just like her some day. A truly wonderful grandmother, who baffles her grandchildren with loads energy, hard work day in and day out, an overwhelming wealth of knowledge, and an unending supply of hugs, just like my Nana!

Happy Birthday Nana! I love you!!!!!

Clavicle Saga's days are numbered!

2009-11-10T12:11:00.002-05:00

I just wanted to let all those who have been keeping up with the never ending, plot twisting, nail biting clavicle saga, that there is a light at the end of the tunnel! I very bright light filled with hope and joy! Yes, that's right folks, the fourth and final surgery has been scheduled. All the hardware will be removed, the plate and all six screws, and my beautiful bone will finally have room to breathe.

Today at the orthopedic surgeon's office, the two of us gazed lovingly at the x-ray on the wall. He, I'm sure, was pleased with his work on the second plate, (If you recall with his first surgery on my shoulder, the plate, screws, pins, string, wire, etc... all that junk didn't go so well.) and as for me, the love in my eyes was simply because I was ecstatic to see a beautiful solid white clavicle bone with no gaps, cracks or floating bone fragments.

So what does this mean? It means, stick a fork in me because I'm done! So on December 17th we will remove all hardware, and that's that. I'll have to take the holiday season a little easier than I usually do, but heck, if an uncomfortable Christmas and New Year is the price I have to pay to officially move on with my life, sign me up, I'll take it!

So lets all sing out with jubilant triumph, "The plate is coming out! WAHOO!!!"

Shayla's Christening Day

2009-11-08T20:22:00.018-05:00

This afternoon family and friends gathered together to witness little Shayla's baptism. She was beautiful in her christening gown and looked like such a little grown up. She was such a content babe as the Priest spoke out the prayers and blessing, and when it came time for the baptism by water she barely even cried, showing her more peaceful nature.

We're so happy that Shayla chose this family to become a part of. She has brought to the family a new spark of life that is a treasure to behold. It was wonderful so see such joy and happiness with everyone, and it is because of Shayla that we were all brought together today.

The Kaufman Boys (Minus John, as he was attending to his daughter)

Getting ready for the baptism to begin.Shayla's parents, and her Godmother and Godfather.

The baptism.

Her blessings.Celebrating her baptism into the church.

The happy little family.

Her Godmother Danielle and her Godfather Curt.Shayla showing off her beautiful christening gown.

Four generations of the Kaufman family and three generations of the Perhach family.

The Perhach Family.

The Kaufman Family.

A princess, fairytale theme party to celebrate Shayla's christening.

Her cake. Very impressive!

Luke and his girlfriend Emily.

The family's little princess.

Capt. John Kaufman

2009-11-01T10:41:00.008-05:00

My Father in-law has been a Jersey City Firefighter for 30 years. He's been a Captain for 20 of those years. A few weeks ago Christian and I took a drive into Jersey City and stopped by the firehouse while his Dad was on duty. With camera in tow I snapped photos of John in appreciation for the many years of devoted service as a firefighter. The Kaufman family is proud of the accomplishments John has made over the years, the numerous lives he and his crew have saved, and for being the example of a true hero to his four boys.

Identity Crisis

2009-10-27T18:42:00.006-04:00

While waiting for the clothes in the washing machine to finish up I found myself with 27 minutes to kill. (Yes I'm lame and know the exact time it takes to do one load in the washer.) The dishwasher was already loaded and running, the bathroom was clean, the bed made, I just had a few school papers in the living room that needed to be tidied up a bit and I still had a little time before I needed to leave for class. I was in a silly mood, and so I decided to play with my laptop and do a little character improv on the spot that just kind of came out of no where. Something I haven't done since I left acting school in New York. So take a glimpse at the sillier side of me and what I do when I'm home alone. (Because we all know I would NEVER do this in public.... right?!? hee hee)

Note: For some reason, even though I created a five minute movie with slide transitions from each section helping the transition into the next character, I am unable to upload it. Therefore, please view each separate video below. Enjoy.

Click the play buttons to view each video.

I named this character Gelk-Welkie.

I named this character Little Suzy-Q.

I named this character Jay-Jay. Short of Jacilyn.

I named this character Taheli Tejaswi.

I named this character Raphaella.

I named this character Stuffy Corlis.

I named this character Magnolia Sue Ann.

New Traditions

2009-10-26T18:42:00.005-04:00

Today, October 26th, would have been my Aunt's 63rd birthday. I've been really nervous about today because I honestly didn't know how I was going to get through the day. It's been on my mind all month. Last night, as I stood in my new back yard, I gazed up into the heavens and every star I saw I made a wish. I wished for my family to have a good day on my Aunt's birthday and I wished for my Aunt to hear our thoughts to her so that we may share or love on her special day.I can only speak for myself but I know that today has been emotional for me, however it has been a beautiful day, and my heart is full of love and peace. Today is a momentous day, it's the day that my Aunt was brought into this world. I feel no sadness today. Although it is hard not having her here with me to call and sing "Happy Birthday" to, I know that because she is my family's angel not only can she hear my thoughts, but the thoughts of my grandmother, my Dad, and without a doubt my cousin (her son) have been ringing in her ears all day today. So I've been singing to her all day long. It's been the best!

I also decided to start a tradition. To celebrate her birthday I made sure to have chocolate cake. (Her favorite was black forest cake, but I 'm pretty sure that no one here on the east coast has ever heard of black forest cake, so I had to substitute with a different cake. Next year I'm making black forest cake from scratch just for her!) I sliced up extra pieces and gave them to my in-laws so that they may share in the celebration of my Aunt's birthday. I loved today because I knew that my Aunt was closer than ever! And some day, when we meet again our entire family, generation after generation, will sit down together to celebrate a joyous occasion, such as this, and there will be cake. There will be lots and lots of heavenly cake!

Dog Sitting

2009-10-19T21:41:00.007-04:00

This weekend my in-laws took a mini vacation to Puerto Rico leaving Christian and I to tend for their dog Coby. Christian had a seminar over the weekend, so this meant that Coby and I had plenty of one-on-one time to simply hang out.

We went for walks in the park.

Took a stroll by the river.Coby found a tennis ball to bring home and add to his ever growing collection.

I found a tall skinny side table, that amazingly was being thrown out. (Yes, it was by the curb awaiting for the garbage truck's arrival.)He went digging for buried treasure. (I tucked a treat under the blanket, and he had fun trying to figure out how to get to it.)

He watched the football games with Christian Sunday afternoon.Took a nap, with the king of "Nappersville".

He even found time to help me with my homework.Coby is such a wonderful puppy! He has so much personality and it's just pure fun spending time with him. He's full of energy, and is very curious about the world around him. He's as gentle as a lamb, but he still tries to protect those he cares about. I had fun during my weekend with Coby, and I think he did too!

Home Sweet Home!

2009-10-05T20:08:00.007-04:00

It happened! It actually happened! Many of you out there may be surprised to learn that Christian and I have been trying to purchase a house that we fell head over heals in love with way back in March. That's right, seven months ago on March 10th, we found a lovely house that was over flowing with potential, and we both felt right at home in it. So we placed a bid, and have been fighting an uphill battle to finalize and close on this home ever since. But as of this past Wednesday the papers were signed and we are the official owners of this colonial built in 1825!The history of the home was one of the many features we simply adore. It is one of the oldest homes in the town, and although it is not marked as historic due to the numerous additions built throughout it's life, the house is bursting with character. It was a farm house that was on close to 100 acres of land. As the years went by, the land was divided up and sold, until we were left with our almost half an acre, which by Jersey standards might as well be an entire farm.The living room is so full of light and has a rather relaxing air about it. I'm hoping to create a more formal sitting area, and at some point in my life I will be the proud owner of a piano which will grace the opposite side of this room and fill the house with beautiful music.The stair well has a maple banister with hand-spun wood balusters. The design is very simple, but you can really see the quality and craftsmanship in each spindle.I love standing in the dinning room and imagining the many meals shared within those walls. I can easily picture a family cooking a Sunday dinner in the fire place, with children shucking ears of corn at the table, or kneaded dough for fresh bread.
One of the more recent previous owners raised their family in the home and lived there for over fifty years. The children's growth charts, from the day they were born until their early twenties are still on the bedroom door. (There was a chart on the closet door too, but sadly, someone during the seven months while we were fighting for the house came in and stole the door. Very upsetting to loose a piece of history like that.)The same owners built a family room off to the side of the house. After meeting several of our new neighbors we discovered that our neighbor who lives across the street from us was the contractor that built the addition over twenty years ago. The most recent owners made an attempt to upgrade the house, but unfortunately due to financial issues were unable to finish their projects. They were two chefs, and I'm sure they had an idea to make a grand gourmet kitchen. The existing kitchen is functional, but rather narrow. At some point down the road Christian and I would like to see what we can to bring this kitchen to modern standards while still holding onto the integrity of a house close to 200 years old.One project they were able to complete was giving the master bedroom a truly remarkable cathedral ceiling. They took up more than half the attic space to create such a grandiose statement, but I don't mind the lack of storage in the slightest. (We have a full attic above the two car garage that I'm sure we'll end up filling with Christmas decor and camping equipment at some point.)Christian and I have quite the project on our hands to bring this house back to life. It was a foreclosure and for the past year and half no one was living there, so needless to say there is a substantial amount of work ahead of us. But it will be exciting to have a place that is solely ours, and a place to create a little family in. So in the months ahead I'll try to post a few before and after photos so you may share with us the joy of witnessing such a miraculous house rejuvenated and thriving once again.

Autumn Wreaths

2009-09-23T21:19:00.002-04:00

Although it may feel like summer is still lingering, and there are those who refuse to concede to the change in the air, the fall season is officially upon us. This is one of my favorite times of year, when the trees bursts into flame-like color and the air grows crisp and fragrant. So to embrace this change I decided to make a wreath, and welcome Autumn whole heartedly. (above) My supplies. There was a sale at the craft store, so I stalked up flowers, and the harvest inspired squash and gourds. Also, the grapevine wreaths were only two dollars! So I decided to have twice the fun and make two wreaths.
Tah-dah! Behold my creations. (Aren't I dramatic?!?) I am pleased with how they turned out. I really liked how simple they looked without adding ribbon, so now I have extra ribbon for another project down the line. The flower wreath is now hanging in my husband's office as part of our fall decor, and I figure in November for the "Thanksgiving Month" I'll hang the one which was inspired by food.
I really enjoy crafting for multiple reasons, but recently, and I know I've said this before, but recently, when ever I create something with my hands I can't help but think about my Aunt, and how she inspired me. I feel close to her when I'm surrounded by projects.

Hope

2009-09-17T10:45:00.004-04:00

I use this blog to share with friends and family, both near by and far away, things that have meaning in my life, moments worth remembering, and events worthy of retelling. For the most part this blog is fairly superficial, highlighting the joyous occasions. However, in the past year there have been times when I have used my writings as more of a therapy to release frustrations, or deliver sad news.

I am aware that I have asked for more than my fair share of your attention, goodwill, and prayers, and for all of that I am truly grateful. This year has tested my strengths to the limit, and I attribute part of my resilience because of the help and concerns I've gotten from those who care.

I've said in the past year that I've learned to ask for help. I still struggle with it on a daily basis, but this morning I really felt a need to let you into my world, and share my request. My grandmother, my Nana, has been diagnosised with stage three colon cancer. She will start radiation therapy this Monday. After weeks of this, she will then move to chemotherapy, and if these two methods do not work, they will have to perform surgery. Nana is being as brave as she can be, and I'm truly inspired by her strength.

I have asked for your prayers so many times this year, but I now come to you once again, humbling asking for them to help ease my grandmother's suffering. She lost her daughter only three months ago, and now she dealing with this. The amount of physical pain she is in would make many crumble, and the overwhelming emotional anguish from losing her child is never ending.

The video message below was one that rang in my ears this morning. I share it with you now, and ask that you simply listen to the talk being given. It's not very long, less than three minutes, but the message is powerful. It helped me reaffirm that He does hear us, and He is by our side in times of need. Thank you for all your support once again.

FYI

2009-09-11T12:16:00.002-04:00

Just in case I haven't shared the news, I'm back in school now, after taking year off for my shoulder to heal from three surgeries. (I still have one surgery to go, but I have planned it for my winter break, so it shouldn't interfere with my studies.) I'm a student at Kean University, studying Speech-Language Pathology and Deaf Studies. I've got to dust off those cobwebs in my brain that have formed during my year sabbatical. hee hee

Our journey

2009-09-09T21:03:00.005-04:00

Just a little side note for those who are interested. Here is a map of Ireland, and if you follow the blue line in alphabetical order you can follow our journey through Ireland! Have fun.