Upstate New York

A Day of Surprises

One of favorite things to do is surprise people. When my mom texted our immediate family and her family from Upstate New York saying that she wanted to plan a surprise 50th birthday for my aunt, I was all in.

The original plan was to have my family surprise her at breakfast and then take her out to dinner that night and all of her friends and family would be there to wish her happy birthday. I started scheming and decided we needed to surprise my aunt all. day. long.

Here’s what went down:

  • My family drove to NY on Friday after work and checked into a local hotel.
  • My aunt went to out breakfast with her cousin on Saturday morning, and there sitting in the restaurant was my dad, mom, brother, and sister-in-law.
  • Then, the gang went to TJ Maxx to go shopping… and Hannah, Josh, and my aunt’s daughter were hanging out in the decor section.
  • For round three, the girls told my aunt they made a nail appointment for her. She walked in the nail salon and Jimmy, me, and two of my cousins were there!
  • The guys and a few of the girls went ice fishing on the Sacandaga Lake while the rest of the girls had their nails done and then went to my cousin’s house to play with her daughter.
  • For dinner, my aunt’s friend had told her she was taking her to a local restaurant for a girls’ night about a week before, but instead she was greeted by 25 friends and family, balloons, and cake. It was the best!

My aunt was so surprised all day, and it was such a joy to see her reaction. She’s been through a lot in the past year, including the death of her husband. She definitely deserved some cheering up, and we were all more than happy to be there to celebrate with her.

How about some pictures?

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It was a whirlwind weekend with 14 hours of driving, but so worth it. I wish we could have stayed longer, but we’ll see our NY family in April for Hannah’s bridal shower!

Surprises are the best 🙂

Thought-Provoking Questions

I know I’ve mentioned this before, but I love asking questions. Recently, after listening to me to talk to someone, a friend at church asked me if I took a class in college on asking questions. I told her that a lot of my journalism classes taught me about who-what-when-where-why-how questions, but I’m mostly just curious. I feel the insatiable need to learn about everything all. the. time. This character trait is exhausting and exhilarating. It’s also a great asset when playing trivia games like Taboo.

When I hear or read a thought-provoking question somewhere, I usually try to jot it down to think about and discuss here on the blog. I want to share some questions (and my answers) that have made me think recently, and I really want to hear your answers! I have a running list, but I’m just going to share three questions today.

1. What are things you vividly remember doing with your parents as a child?
Flying kites with my dad, baking banana bread and peanut butter cookies with my mom, having my mom help me put on tights before church on Sundays, sled riding, visiting the Outer Banks, camping, visiting my dad’s parents, and having movie nights with my whole family by the fireplace.

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An old family picture!

2. What is one of your saddest memories?
The first thing that comes to my mind is the last time I saw my great grandpa who lived in Upstate New York. He was sitting in his favorite chair on his enclosed front porch. He was just looking outside, and it seemed like he was pondering something really deep. He had lung cancer and was pretty sick at this time. My family visited New York about twice a year, and I remember looking at my great grandpa and thinking this will probably be the last time I ever see him. It was just so overwhelmingly sad. He meant the world to me, and many of my happiest childhood memories involved spending time with my grandpa Ivan. He was very special, and taught me a lot about life without me realizing it until I was older. I’m thankful that I knew my great grandpa long enough to have so many vivid memories of him.

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My great grandpa Ivan, proudly showing off his garden.

3. What was the best dream and the worst nightmare you’ve had?
My worst nightmare is tough to pinpoint. I have bad dreams constantly, but one that comes to mind quickly is when I was home alone in my dream and a man was trying to get into my house to attack and kill me. I tried to scream but I couldn’t. That was awful, though in the end of the dream I think my neighbor saved me!

As for the best dream, recently, I dreampt that it was my birthday and Jimmy gave me a Bernese Mountain Dog and a Siberian Husky as my birthday gifts. Yes, I dream about dogs on the regular (when I’m not having nightmares) and it is always awesome when I do!

Your turn! Answer some or all of the above questions!