Shayla's First Birthday!

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

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!

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

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!

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

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!

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.