“Hmmm”… I was thinking this morning while standing in line for a coffee at my local Dunkin’ Donuts. There were lots of people, most standing alone. But right behind me were two women who looked to be in their 30’s. (I will call them “young” women!) One was talking about how [...]

[Read more →]

Jake graduated from pre-K today… and as I watched this little-guy-who-is-now-suddenly-overnight-a-BIG-guy celebrate this wonderful event, I couldn’t help but think of how he has gloriously enriched the lives of his Grandpa and me and our entire family.
This is the story of Jacob Adam Couto.
Jake arrived in this world a bit earlier than expected, while Barry [...]

[Read more →]

This morning, Audrey came to my home bright and early to get lots of work done… like 7:00 am early. Matt was doing breakfast and pre-school transportation for William and Alex, and Benjamin and Henry (still in jammies!) came to Grandma and Pop-up’s with Audrey.
The Audrey/Jane/Sharon to-do list work began in earnest while Benjamin and [...]

[Read more →]

Today, Barry and I had the great pleasure of attending Grandparents’ Day at our granddaughter Taylor’s school. The grandparents were treated to a magnificent concert of violins and singing first, and then we accompanied our granddaughters to their classes, library, computer room, science room, Spanish room, music room, outside reading and reflecting gardens, and [...]

[Read more →]

Barry and I are on our 3rd day of babysitting for Benjamin (2) and Henry (10 1/2 months), with help from Auntie Janie, too!
This morning, Benjamin’s voice woke us up at 5:30. That would be AM. The hushed whisper, “Gramma. Gramma,” alerted me to dawn as Benjamin touched my face.
“Hi, Honey,” I [...]

[Read more →]

While the cats (aka Mommy & Daddy) and brothers are at Disney World with the mice…
Grandma & Pop-up are having our own brand of fun!
Leaving jammies on all day long, and Christmas jammies at that. And rocking Benjamin to sleep outside on a sunny deck.

Letting the baby play with Pop-up’s BlackBerry.

Washing and drying favorite [...]

[Read more →]

I’m not a dirty girl.
Well, I do have a totally dirty mind… but I love CLEAN things.
I love clean cars. Clean counters. Clean bathrooms. And especially while cooking or gardening, I love a clean environment, and I clean as I go.
So yesterday provided a bit of a challenge for me… a Grandma [...]

[Read more →]

There are 2 things that I am really great at: 1) eyebrow tweezing; and, 2) splinters. It’s kind of funny that both of these activities involve tweezers. Perhaps in some former life I was an assistant to a botanist or a surgeon.
“Tweezer.” And there I’d be. (On second thought, maybe [...]

[Read more →]

I was watching all 4 of Audrey’s boys at Audrey’s house this morning when I heard myself say something that I cannot believe I said.
Let me set the scene.
William and Alex were running from room to room in a big circle, chasing each other with light sabers. Living room, hallway, dining room, kitchen. [...]

[Read more →]

This morning, Audrey asked me if I could take William and Alex to pre-school while she took Benjamin to an appointment.
“Of course,” was pretty much my answer.  So off I headed to Audrey’s at around 8:15, knowing that I should leave her home at around 8:45 in order to get them to pre-school for the [...]

[Read more →]