Nadia's Visit

 My Sicilian friend (She also lived in Charleston when we did and now she lives in Japan so our friendship has spanned 3 different continents!) is visiting Guam this week (Hooray for our first house guest!) to take the test to become a U.S. Citizen despite my constant questioning, "Even with the 2016 shit show of an election, are you absolutely sure you want to become an American?"  

Cheryleeski's Visit 2014

My cousin Cheryl came for a weekend visit.  From the airport we went straight to the Catch the Leprechaun 5K race.    

The next morning while the kids were in school we pampered ourselves with a facial at Shealy Skin Spa.  

And then we continued the pampering when the kids got home from school by getting pedicures.  

On her final day we went to our mutual friend Sara's house for a reptile party where Cheryl coined the phase "reptile dysfunction".  Always a wacky time when Cheryl's around.

Gwynny—Only I’m Allowed to Call Her That!

One of my closest friends from Sicily came for a weekend visit.  Gwyn and I worked together at the travel agency on Sigonella Naval Station.  We hit it off immediately with our love of dogs, crafts and sarcasm.  Gwyn threw me a baby shower when I was pregnant and she was also there at the hospital the day Currier was born.  She was family. 

 

It was so great to see her and reminisce about our time in Sicily.  It was also great to meet her adorable son, Preston.  With a day at the pool and another day spent at the aquarium, the weekend went by way too fast but I'm grateful that she took the time to come see us and make me laugh. 

ChErYlEeSki's Irish Visit

My cousin Cheryl came down from Massachusetts for a weekend visit to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  The first evening she was here we ran the Catch the Leprechaun 5K Race with another Newburyporter in the area, Sara Backland.  Together we helped drain the kegs at an alarming pace. 

On St. Patrick's Day we loaded up the new mini van with the kids (along with some "roadies") and headed to Dunleavy's Pub on Sullivan's Island.  In hindsight this wasn't my greatest motherhood decision.      

It was a block party and by the time we got there it was too rowdy for kids (fights breaking out, chics crying and a guy passed out on the sidewalk) so we only stayed long enough to chug a few beers and witness some shenanigans that although funny to us was frightening to my children. 

It wouldn't be a proper visit without introducing Cheryl to an underground Filipino Karaoke party where we battled with the best.  It was a quick and fun little visit that left me thirsty to visit Cheryl in August for more silliness.  Fire up that Fry Daddy cuz I'm coming home!  

Aunt Carrie

Aunt Carrie came for a weekend visit so she and I could go through some photographs and brainstorm for Mimi and Papi's upcoming 50th wedding anniversary in January.  As always the kids adored having her here. 

Sarah & Sherri

My cousin Sherri and her friend Sarah came for a week visit.

 

We celebrated the 4th of July at our annual cul-de-sac party with sack races, egg tossing and good old fashioned fun.

 

Sherri and Sarah graciously watched the kids one evening so Trent and I could have a much needed date night downtown.

The kids fell in love with their cousin Sherri! 

 

We ended their visit with a bang at Splash Island. We're already begging them to come back again soon!  

Papa & PJ

My dad and brother came to visit for a week.  We made several trips for ice cream. 

We spent a day at the Isle of Palms swimming in the warm sea and getting too much sun. 

We treated ourselves to a little pampering at Shealy Skin Spa! 

We went on a Charleston Harbor Cruise and sweat our balls off. 

 

And Uncle PJ kindly painted Rya's room purple for her.  It was a good week!

Help Has Arrived

Carrie, Heather and Max came down from Tennessee for the weekend to help clean up after the major shitstorm that has swept through our lives.  First it was Paolo’s injury and then we lost both of our cars within two weeks of each other.  Carrie and Heather came down to lend a much needed hand.   They generously helped out around the house (picking up dog shit) and with the kids (allowing Trent and I to sleep in and take naps!) and with the dogs (walking Paolo on his sling & taking Bruco to the vet for an ear infection).  Also Carrie, being the saint that she is, left us her car to borrow until we get back on our feet.  We’re so thankful to have family to lean on during times like these.  Thank you Carrie and Heather!

Summer Vacation

The kids spent a week in Florida visiting with their Mimi and Papi and all their aunts, uncles and cousins.  While they were away one would imagine Trent and I living it up but honestly we just reveled in the peace and quiet and caught up on some sleeping and TV watching.    

Aunt Carrie and Aunt Beth drove the kids back up to South Carolina with a car load of cousins.  Clayton, Nyah and Kellie came and spent a weekend with us and Currier and Rya loved every second of it!

Fun with Aunt Carrie

Aunt Carrie came for a quick 2 night visit on her way down to Florida.  We squeezed in as much fun as possible including but not limited to mini golf and go-cart rides at Blackbeard's Cove.  Good times as always with Aunt Carrie. 

Thanksgiving 2010

We actaully celebrated Thanksgiving the evening before Thanksgiving this year.  This way I wouldn't have to worry about cooking after running the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning and also so that my dad could enjoy leftovers for a day before flying out the morning after Thanksgiving.  We had a quiet, simple dinner.  I have so much to be thankful for but this year I was especially thankful to have my father here with us.  

Thanksgiving morning I ran the Turkey Run 5K downtown Charleston in 80 degree weather with my good friend Ella.  My dad, Trent and the kids greeted me at the finish line and so did a giant beer truck.  Life is so good!   

After the race, we watched the Macy's Parade, ate leftovers, watched football, ate more leftovers, unbuttoned our pants and decorated the house for Christmas.  Bring on the next holiday! 

Highlights from Dad's Visit

My dad is back in Massachusetts resuming chemo treatments after taking two weeks off to be with us.  It was a great visit.  We spent a day at the aquarium seeing the albino alligator and all the other sea creatures we love. 

One evening we went to the James Island County Park Festival of Lights and enjoyed three wondrous miles of sparkly Christmasness!    

  

We did a lot of relaxing, newspaper reading, ice cream eating, tonic drinking, scratch ticket scratching and oldie music listening.  

We also had an Ultimate Scrabble Championship one evening and invited Stacey, another Newburyporter.  There were a lot of laughs, a lot of beer and wine drinking, a lot of wise cracks and of course a few arguments.  My dad enjoyed this competition and thought Stacey was a real "hot shit".  

Balentowski.o

My cousin Cheryl came for a week long visit.  She arrived on my birthday, Saturday evening, and we kicked off her visit with class and rented the horror film The Human Centipede.  The movie was so incredibly disturbing that it took me hours to fall asleep that night.  I highly recommend it! 

Sunday afternoon we drove up to Columbia to check into the Hilton for the night and see our favorite comedian Daniel Tosh Live.  I scored great seats front and center and Tosh was so funny our cheeks and stomachs hurt from laughing!  

After the show, we ran into Daniel Tosh at a club and got our picture taken with him.  He looks completely different in person. 

On Tuesday we took the kids to Kiln Time to do ceramics.  Growing up in Newburyport, my grandmother and Cheryl's great-grandmother, Mimi, owned a ceramic shop so this was one of those sweet nostalgic moments that made us feel special for passing on our family craft as well as our family lunacy. 

  

Wednesday evening we did Bottles and Brushes.  The painting was Sunset Over the Battery.  We wore our Fugu Tour t-shirts to support our cousin Dickie's art tour- "Fugu and Beyond, The World Tour".

After the art class we kept it classy by going to the local biker bar, Richard's, for a few drinks and a few twirls on the dance floor.  We left our mark on the women's bathroom door! 

On Thurday we took the kids to the Scary'um Aquarium and got to pet a baby alligator! 

After our morning at the aquarium, we went to Poogan's Porch for a lovely Southern lunch.  Named after a dog, Poogan's Porch is famous for being one of the most haunted restaurants in America.  We had no run-ins with any ghosts but the Gouda Macaroni and Cheese and the Fried Green Tomatoes more than made up for it! 

For Cheryl's final day, we made Mexican Sugar Skulls in preparation for the upcoming Day of the Dead and we just felt like we needed to keep with our crafty theme of the week. 

We ended her visit with cocktails on the dock, followed by Skittles vodka shots, beer, more beer and then more Skittles vodka shots.  It was a fantastic week fueled by booze and giggles.  I love me some Cheryl.  One day I hope we marry and adopt Chinese and African babies together! 

Surprise Visit

Look who popped by for a quick pit stop on their way to Newburyport from Florida!  My Uncle Ricky and Aunt Joanie surprised us with a quick visit on Saturday afternoon.  It was so impromptu and so nice to see them even if it was just for a few minutes. 

Swindell Stopover

My cousin Michelle and her husband Michael came for a short but sweet visit. They arrived late Friday evening to ice cold beer, snacks, chit chat, laughs and many games of darts.

 

  

Saturday morning Michelle impressed the kids by making "puffs".  Puffs are mini fried dough and a Currier family tradition.  The smell wafting through the house brought us back to Sunday morning family gatherings at Mimi and Papa's... and that triggered an anxiety attack, a craving for Vicodin and a frantic phone call to my therapist, but I digress.  For lunch we took a quick stroll through the open air market downtown Charleston and then to Fleet Landing for lunch where we ate fried green tomatoes, peel and eat shrimp and crab cakes.   After lunch we hung out on the crab dock with all our Masshole buddies where we fished, drank lots of beer, shared a potluck dinner and went boating, swimming and tubing. 

After a Sunday morning coffee run to Dunkin Donuts, they left for their vacation to Myrtle Beach.  It was so good to see them even if it was for such a short visit and we hope they come again and stay a little longer next time! 

Jenny From The Block

Jenny, a fellow Newburyporter and 1991 graduate, is in town for a conference so we hosted a Lowcountry boil at our house last night to kick off her week in Charleston.  Jenny's brother Jonathan and his wife Oanh just moved here to Charleston to open a restaurant (Yup... Massholes are taking over down here!) so we had them, their son Tennyson, their newborn son Julien and Oanh's mom over too.    

We ate, drank, chatted, laughed, and then drank some more!

And then "someone" had the bright idea of going to Richard's to drink more and of course Stacey, another Newburyporter, came along for the ridiculous, silly, hiccupy ride!  Good times!