While We Were Away

While we were away eating delicious French food,

Delicious buttery flaky pastry!

 drinking French wine,

 and walking many beautiful miles in Paris,

my favorite bridge in Paris, Pont Alexandre III....

 there was a bit of funny business going on in our neighborhood with the mail delivery.  Apparently our substitute mail person went "postal"! I arrived home to about 15 emails from our neighborhood representative, aka mail fraud private eye, about the missing mail.  After many inquiries to the post office it was discovered that our mail person would just quit delivering the mail when it got dark and "hide" it back at the post office.  Like not one would notice getting no mail for days around Christmas time! No kidding! Guess our carrier just didn't buy into the Postal Service motto,  "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds".  The mail delivery has been corrected and all is right with the world and the 5 a day emails from our neighborhood rep. have ceased!

Another thing on my mind while I was away

walking through Tuileries garden

enjoying the view from the top of the Ferris wheel

admiring one of my favorite buildings, the Petite Palais

and taking in the sunset from the bar at the top of Tour Montparnasse

 was whether I should put up a tree and decorate our house this year.  (First world problems here people!) We are going to Nova Scotia for Christmas, so why bother here?  My inner Scrooge lost out to my inner sentimental self and I have a mini Christmas tree and about 25% of my decorations around the house. I still have to laugh every time I pass our mini tree in the foyer...sorry mini tree.  We even put up some of our outside lights....I just could not let down the neighborhood and all those people driving around looking at lights.  People still do that don't they?  We do....but we are nerds who love Christmas lights.  

As far as Christmas cards go this year, they will be New Year's cards.  I am going to wait until we have the entire family together at the farmhouse to take "the" picture for the cards....and I'm going to wait until I get home to mail them, even though with the way the mail goes around here that might not be the best idea!  I'm also hoping the creative powers that be invade my consciousness so I can whip out that letter!

One thing I did not think about while I was away was the chance of running into someone I knew while I was away.  Thanks to Facebook and my need to let everyone know what I am doing and where I am going, one of my Boston cousins noticed I was going to Paris and let me know that her daughter was going to be there at the same time!  All this happened during my layover in the Newark airport.  Probably one of the few good things that have ever happened to me in that airport!  

Bonjour, Boston cousin and friends on the Champs Elysees at Christmas!

There is just no telling what will happen when you go away!  Stay tuned....for the great northern adventure in a week.  Yes, it will be an adventure!

Just January

January in Toronto

What does January mean for you?  I decided January was the northern August when we lived in Toronto...  a long month with crappy weather!  Now that we are in Houston it is just January.  For most people January is the month of resolutions, paying Christmas bills, and the inevitable post Christmas let-down.  January is the month we moved one of our three times to Houston and the month we moved to Toronto.  So I sometimes associate the month with transitions, lonliness, unpacking and trying to get into the swing of things.  Even though we did not move this year the month still has a few transitions and I am trying to get into the swing of things.  I'll fill you in on the swing of things next week!

Have you noticed all the people at the gym lately?  What?  You haven't been to the gym? TJ says there are lots of new people (aka resolutionists) going to the 6a.m. spin class he attends. ( that is not him on the left in the picture)  My only response to that is....WHY??  There are so many things wrong with that, beginning with 6 a.m.!  I like to excercise as much or more than anyone, but as you may have guessed....I am not a morning person!  Apparently there are many people out there who think torturing yourself by waking up at some ridiculous hour in the morning and riding a stationary bike and sweating up a storm is the way to a healthier new year.  For me it would be the way to a grouchier sleep deprived new year. Each to his own.  I'll find a different way to lose those Christmas cookie rolls around my waist.

The post Christmas let-down happens to me just about every year.  Something about a new year and having a clean slate and a year full of hope and possibilities cries out, "do something!".  The holidays are over, the decorations are all put away, except for that bin at the bottom of the stairs that has not managed to sprout legs and take itself to the attic yet.  The kids are back to their own homes and living their lives while we are in the once again quiet house, adjusting to the silence.  The good news about this January is that we prolonged the holiday season at least a week, maybe two, with our trip to New Orleans and then Kelly's late return to school.  The off season did not start until this week!  Yeah!  Only 2 weeks of January left. 



Last weekend we had a rainy, dreary Sunday and found ourselves with nothing to do for the first time in about 2 months, so we sat down together with our blank calendars and mapped out the year.  Where are we going and when?  The early bird gets the worm or in this case the low air fares, if there is such a thing anymore, so it is time to start planning.   These "meetings" do not always go smoothly.  TJ is more impulsive and ready to click that "purchase" button quickly and I need to mull it over, weigh my options, research, think about it, do a little more research and think a little more before I can commit.  This can be frustrating for both parties.  We did somehow come to a few agreements and are now busy until after Labor Day, when we will be wishing for a slow day in January again.  All because of one rainy day!

Beautiful Exhaustion

Happy New Year everyone!

If the true judge of whether a holiday was a success is your total lack of energy at the end of the holiday, I can say that the Mahoney Christmas holidays were a huge success.  I think every family member is going to crawl up and collapse tomorrow in a state of beautiful exhaustion!

When I think back a couple of weeks, I realize how much we have done!  No wonder we are tired.  We were doing just fine until Christmas day and then it all went a bit haywire.  Kelly got the stomach flu that hit hard and fast and kept her up all night long.  No one was safe from that moment on, in quick succession the flu hit TJ and me and then sister Katie, only Michael and Jehnna were spared.  Rachel's family had the bug the week before Christmas and we all thought it was dead and gone...no such luck. That flu took the wind out of all of us, we were a crew of hurting cowboys, cowboys who had to saddle up and ride to Baton Rouge to visit all of our family there.  We bring you tidings of comfort and joy....oh and a nasty stomach bug.  Merry Christmas!  Still hoping the beast does not rare it's ugly head to any of our family there, so far so good.

Katie and Kelly, pre-flu happiness

Still feeling good, reading to Christopher and Daniel

Our major source of beauty and exhaustion are sitting in Kelly's lap here.  Daniel and Christopher, our grandsons, are in perpetual motion when they are awake.... and they wake up early!  Is it just me or is 5:30 a little early to start your day?  I guess when you go to bed at 7 or 8 p.m., 5:30 or 6 a.m. isn't an unreasonable time.  I never got to bed before midnight and that meant morning came early, I admit, I was not on the wee hours of the morning shift but I did listen to the chaos outside my room for a while and then roll over for another hour before I entered life for another day.



Daniel at Christmas dinner wearing his crown and playing with his treasures from the popper

Michael and Jehnna enjoying the Christmas dinner festivities



More crowned Christmas dinner guests

Christmas dinner was a lot of fun.  The food was delicious, we had a few Lithuanian traditional dishes compliments of brother-in-law Andrius, popped the fun English poppers and wore our crowns and read our cheesy jokes.   We were all smiling and festive....then it hit.  Man down!  The next two and a half days were spent getting the flu, having the flu, or getting over the flu.  O Tidings of Comfort and Joy! 

These two did not get the flu...they continued to find interesting places to play, like the pantry!  Here Grampy is hearding them to safer grounds.

Christopher on safer grounds!

On Wednesday after Christmas we decided to brave it and continue with our plan to infect, I mean visit, Baton Rouge.  Most of our family there have never met "Christopher of the beautiful blue eyes" so a trip was needed. We loaded up two vehicles with almost everything in our house and eight of us drove five hours in the constant pouring rain to Baton Rouge.  Can I just say one word about the weather?  Ick! The first stop was dinner at Aunt Meg's house where Nan met her great grandsons for the first time!


Nan meeting Christopher for the first time.  I just love Rachel and Dave's expressions in the background, priceless.

The next day, we needed a plan.  How can we entertain the boys while sticking to their eating, sleeping, playing schedule, visit five different families, eat some great Cajun food, include as many people as possible in our plans and be home for dinner at six ....and still be sane?  No problem....


All you need is a Tiger! 



Daniel and I up close and personal with Mike the Tiger at LSU!

At first sight Daniel said, "I want to go in there with him!"



Rachel and Daniel



We managed to see all the sights, visit all the relatives AND get home in time for dinner! There might have been a point during the course of the day that we either cried (Daniel and Christopher) or wanted to cry (Rachel and I, out of sheer exhaustion) but hey, no one is perfect.  It was beautiful exhaustion! 

On Friday the holiday visiting was over and it was time to say goodbye.  Our ten days of family togetherness came to an end.  I venture to say that we all had a great time together and we are all glad to be in our own homes once again. 

A few more pictures, because they are just so darn cute!



Who knew the dog bed would provide such entertainment?!



Toy construction, it takes a village!

Daniel reading The Night Before Christmas to Sadie....too cute!





Being "still" for the camera!



Matt checks out his new book and Sadie's head got very heavy







Hey Mommy, my Happy Meal came with a hat!