Us

Started out backwards,commited sight unseen,
who would have thought it would have ever lost it's sheen.
The glasses we wore were the color of rose,
Until resentment set in,when it was I just don't know.
Our love was forever I never thought it would end,
Now I'm left sitting alone.........barely friends.

Eulogy for my grandfather, Joseph John mazzarino .july 26 1914- January 20, 2011

From a very little girl I remember my grandfather being my best friend. I would sit for endless hours listening to his stories while he rubbed my back, his words like a lullaby,soothing,comforting, I couldn't remember a better feeling.
I remember Sunday mornings,going to visit after church.he would have bagels and donuts and I was allowed to have a little coffee with milk, I felt so grown up! I would eat a bagel and cream cheese and Joseph a bagel with butter, and we would fight over which mug we would get.
Joseph and I would be so excited when our parents went away because we knew Grammy and grampy would babysit,and that meant trips to the candy store, trips to the toy store, lots of junk food and of course chocolate pudding pie! How lucky my brother and I were to have the "best of grampy".
Last night I was thinking that not only was he mine and joseph's first best friend,but tj's as well. He insisted on driving me to all of his doctors appointments,buying all of his shoes and taking us out for burgers,(hence the name poppa burger). He was allies' first best friend playing with her for hours,worrying because she didn't speak for the first year and a half,( now she doesn't shut up,little did we know!). Followed by trey's first best friend playing ball in the alley and taking him to the corner for candy, and segi's first best friend even in his 90's!
A greater gift we couldn't ask for. He brought out the best in everyone he came across and made everyone feel special. He gave love away freely and love always found it's way back to him. We thought he was invincible, he would live forever! Allie told me that she thought he would be here for her children,it never crossed her mind that he wouldn't be. But Joe Joe would not have wanted to live if his quality of life was compromised. He knew when the show was over and left this world quickly and quietly with dignity. He leaves behind a family that has learned so much from him. He was so proud of each and every one of us and he will live on in our hearts forever. He believed in humanity and found the good in everyone. I realize he has helped me be the woman that I am today and I know he would be so thrilled to see all the love in this church and over the past few days. We celebrate a life lived to the fullest. He was a humble man who was so rich with love and was so thankful for each day he had on this earth.
It was mother Teresa who said, "we can do no great things,only small things with great love", my grandpa lived it....sleep well dear grampy, Joe Joe,poppa burger, we love you!

resolutions....

happy new year to all my friends in blog land.....if you knew me in real life you would know that i don't typically make new years resolutions, i don't even enjoy ringing in the new year...i hate change!... since i was a little girl, i just can't get with the whol new year idea. i was content and happy with the old one, why change it?.....all in all i would rather pretend that it's not even happening, ( i am a cancer after all, and we hate change and we are homebodies), so if i had my druthers, i would be at home, not celebrating a new year!, but i digress.....in my effort to be more organized i started to make lists this week...and i  made a list of new years resolutions, mostly because i enjoy checking things off my list as i do them, i get a great sense of accomplishment and satisfaction, i highly recommend it!....here is my new years resolutions....ready?
1.let the little things go...i good example of this would be my son leaving his socks all over the place and never with the dirty laundry, it drives me crazy but i vow to let it go.....awww, see, its working out great so far!
2. i invested in a pedomiter over the summer and walk a minimum of 10,000 steps a day, which i vow to keep doing everyday in 2011...dr.oz suggests we all walk 10,000 steps a day to stay healthy, i believe he is correct!
3.i will sit at my art table every day and do something creative,even if its making a tag,or doodling. (of course teaching preschool i have to be creative everyday, but i mean on a personal level).
4. psalm 46:10 "be still and know i am God"
5. i will greet the day with thankfullness and enthusiasm...(see #1)
6. tolerence towards others who don't have the same ideas as me....i tend to think my ideas are the best,(i know i know, bitchy!) and not give my opinion unless it is needed.
7. do a minimum of one kind thing each and every day for a stranger, co worker etc....
8. get organized....i am a bit of a scatter brain, and although i hate clutter and mess i am unorganized, or as i like to refer to it as closet caos....(as long as its out of sight i am ok with it).
so in closing i would like to encourage everyone to make a resolution list, it was good to write down my goals and it gives me a challenge for the new year, perhaps this year i will be ok with ringing in the new and saying goodbye to the old!.....

brown paper packages, tied up with string......

these are a few of my favorite things...... i want to wish all my friends in blog land a very joyous christmas filled with blessings of family and good memories.....i always wax sentimental this time of the year,and think back on the past christmas's and all the people who are no longer with us....i think especially about my grandmother who died on her birthday 8 yrs ago in december.....i still miss her everyday, but christmas especially. i used to do alot of cooking with her, and as we bread the vegetables for the frito misto we would listened to christmas music on her little kitchen radio and shake the veggies in brown paper bags of flour, i somehow realized that this joy, this memory was special and may not always be here....and i was right, but as i think of her and all the past memories, i look ahead to to this christmas and all the memories we will create this christmas eve, i see the promise of the future in my childrens eyes, and one day when i am a grandmother i will flour vegetables in a brown paper bag filled with flour with my grandchildren and still remember my own with such love....and time and memories live on.....

    i thought that this year i would wrap up my packages like parcels this year, there is always something so appealing to me to recieve a gift in brown paper tied with string, makes me think of "the gift of the magi "and my beloved "little woman"....a simple message, but even when times are as tough as they are right now, a simple wrapped parcel could be given with such great love....so its in that honor that i wrapped my gifts this year....wrapped with such love!

one of my favorite things.....

this watercolor paper is by far and away the best i have ever used. its called "moulin de larroque"  200 lb. cotton rough surface paper, made in france and it is very hard to find, i am not even sure i know how i stumbled upon it,...you can find it here http://www.moulindelarroque.com/pages_ang/index.php i am asking for more this christmas, it came in a book of 10 sheets, it makes a very amatuer watercolor painter look amazing! the sheets are gorgeous and absorb the color beautifully...i have used many different papers, some very expensive and this paper is just the best. if you love to watercolor do not hesitate to purchase some, i know you won't be disappointed! enjoy and happy shopping!

another day with my lover......

wicked ice cream sandwich

mr. brainwash icons, spray can heart

nine for bloody mary's

growing up in brooklyn was fun and sentimental to me in many ways, it reminds me of family, and good friends,and tradition, i wouldn't trade it for anything in the world........but my one true love is manhattan....anyone who knows me  knows that i visit as often as my busy schedule allows. any excuse for me to drive out of jersey and through the tunnel is a celebration for me!...a few weeks ago robert and i went to see a fantastic exhibit called mr. brainwash icons. check it out here http://www.mrbrainwash.com/...this it was down in the very trendy meat packing district. i haven't been down there in a while and i was quiet impressed with how lovely it is with its upscale stores, fabulous resturaunts,and great bars...we visited chelsea market,which is a treat in itself....while robert ate a sushi feast, i ran from shop to shop and couldn't resist jacques torres chocolate shop and walked out with a sweet treat worth every single calorie...the wicked ice cream sandwich!...which is a ginormous icecream sandwich made on chocolate chip cookies that are laced with chipotle chocolate chunks,and these were no ordinary chunks...they are huge, like the size of quarters er only square!...check it out here...http://www.mrchocolate.com/. (i only ate half)....we visited a beautiful little bar, that called our names with promises of bloody mary's and an old ny feel that did not disappoint. i must say my manhattan never ever lets me down!

chelsea market

chocolate bark.....

i found this recipe in the october issue of bon appetit magazine. it looked too good to pass up, all weekend i baked to send out care packages to my daughter and her friends, and this was on my list.... first i chopped up all different candy bars, i used snickers,twix,kit kats, butterfingers and chocolate covered marshmallows. than i melted bittersweet chocolate, i used giurdelli chocolate morsels, they are delicious( they taste like dove dark chocolate bites!)...i melted mine in a pot on low heat, i poured them out onto tin foil and than topped it with all the chocolate bars and some fall colored M&M's and peanut butter M&M's....let this set for a few hours and than break into pieces.....heavenly!!!