"Strong"

I really haven't written for so long, I guess I get all my opinions, funny remarks and sharing in all the other social media that's out there. I still can't handle twitter. I don't get when people are sharing what someone else wrote, or they are sending to a specific person. It's very confusing to this old bag. So I will stick to FB and Instagram....more this grandma's speed.
Already this summer is filling up with lots of activities and fun things to do. Yay! It is June. So I would like to focus on  my daughter, Brianne. Brianne Mary Mullally to be totally accurate. I love that name. To be honest, I didn't choose it. I felt it would be too complicated for teachers and people to pronounce. It wasnt really a common name back in 1979. Now I have met several young ladies Brianne's age or younger, with the same name , yet spelled differently. Which is cool. I like that now.
I like that people have their own spellings for their own names. Anything goes.
 Rob chose the name. It was from a contestant on the Match game. I know, random, but I love the story now. As Brianne grew up all the mispronunciations got corrected by "Just call me Bri."  That works too. Even the priest had a hard time at the baptism. He had never heard that name before. I just said its after St. Brian. So he really baptised her Brian, but then said "If there is no Saint for your baby's name, these babies are all saints today." which happens to be very progressive in the Catholic church. My mother had gotten slack for naming me Jill from a nun or two. Knowing Mac, she was gonna name me whatever she wanted. That's just how she was.

Brianne was our first and only girl. We made mistakes, we learned, we love our little girl. Its been such an honor to be part of her life,from the little energetic gymnast to the wonderful young mother she is today. Brianne means "strong woman". That has been a constant theme sung  throughout her life. Happy Birthday! You bring me joy every day.

BTW, I think there is no coincidence that both my children's names are characters in Game of Thrones.....enough said.

HAPPY NEW YEAR !

Ok I just have to say that 2014 has been very challenging, personally and in the world as we all know it. It scares me to think what kind of world my grandchildren will have to deal with in the future. In my personal life, having my sisters,my daughter and now, daughter-in-law, and my  girlfriends has gotten me through.

 Thanks ladies

Grandma and Grandpa Allen

Grandma and Grandpa Allen in Ravenna, Ohio. This is a cool picture.
 I am amazed Griff still has a tie on. Come on, what little kid actually keeps a tie on the whole grandparents visit. MAYBE the first fifteen minutes. Even worse than Griffo is Judy. She couldn't keep her blouse tucked in for 5 minutes. So this must have been as soon as we walked in the front door of Grandma's house. I can't tell if Jeanie and Jerry had wet diapers, cause they were soaked all the time. There were no pampers back then, cloth with rubber pants to keep wetness in. And look... they were so close in age, who could keep up with these babies? I was five, John I think three, Jeanie one and a half, Jerry, 9mos. Yikes! I almost forgot, Jeanie had braceson her shoes.You can see her shoes have some kind of steel on them. Those things were killers.You'd pick her up and she'd slam your shins with this big steel bar. We all had bruises.
You can tell Grandma is in her glory, she had more energy than any adult I can remember. She always made big spreads of food. She had old timey toys that were in a treasure chest. Toys that we would never care about, but at Grandma's house they were fun. The older kids have lots more memories of these times than I do. And there were lots of cousins.
The second half of the family that I refer to myself, John, Jean and Jerry, had a very different experience with Grandparents and cousins. That's fine, I enjoy listening to their stories and they remember more about Aunts and Uncles and family history.



We Have A New Member!

     I would like to take this blog to announce that we have a new member added to our little family of Mullally's. Sweet Karli is now a Mullally. This is so great in so many ways. Mostly its great for our son, because he found the perfect match for him. She's just right. She "gets" him and that makes me happy.
      For those of you that don't have children or your children are not old enough to be married yet I am telling you as a parent this is ginormous! Because the main thing you want for your child in a marriage is that your children find someone that loves your child as much as you do. Now that is a big request.
      Parents love their children unconditionally. This means to me , I know my kids have faults,unlike the typical Irish Mother, aka Mac Allen, I know my kids aren't perfect. They sometimes do stuff I don't like or I really don't agree with, they can screw up once and awhile, but no matter what, we, as parents still love them.That's a big order for a spouse. That doesn't mean I expect them not to fight. I think a good fight clears the air every so often. Do I think that there will never be hard times? Heck no. Those are the times that bring a couple closer as a family. Will I try to push my nose where I shouldn't? I hope not, but  probably, hope they know to just tell me to back off. We will do anything we can to help them  out, but it's their  life and their decisions with each other that count.
    Welcome to our crazy family, and we love you unconditionally too Karli. Even though your last name has changed to Mullally I respect so much the beautiful family of Shondells that you grew up with, and that is a big part of who you are and who you always will be. And that's a big reason why my son and all of us love you so much.


 

Hey! It's St. Paddy's Day Weekend!

Just a little St. Patrick's Day cheer for this weekend. I think everyone I know could use some good luck this year. Here's to a great 2014 and this little Irish girl wishes everyone a Happy St. Paddy's Day!

Grandfriends Day

It was a special day at Abe's and Sam school for "Grand friends", which is pretty cool. So sort of an open house for us oldies but goodies to see where our little ones are being educated. Abe and Sam were so excited to show us around.
There was a little performance from each grade and some readings done by some students. The response for the readings were held up by students for us to respond. The lettering was not big enough for this old bag to read from where I was sitting. Also the microphones not quite loud enough for these hard of hearing ears. Little notes for the organizers, know your audience. We're old ..... work with us here.


It was so fun to see the kids excited about their classrooms and their teachers. Its wonderful to see that they are in a good school with a great atmosphere. The boys are thriving there. Good job Bri for the research and planning on finding the best place for your sons. Loved spending the day there. Grandfriends Day Rocks!
 

Party Piece 2013 OBX

We have many traditions at the OBX. Hitting the waves before we get the key to the house. Going to the Brew Thru. Shopping for groceries at Food Lion at odd hours to bypass crazy crowds. Renting royal blue umbrellas, some with bright yellow stripes.Teaching youngsters how to use surf boards. Grilling hamburgers, hot dogs and fresh fish. Playing guitar and singing. Playing games at sundown.Not wearing enough sun sceen.
 It seems there are new traditions born every year. We've always played Bocce but  corn hole wasn't introduced till later years. There was a surprise for us all.

Karli and Mackenzie both learned the "cup song", unbeknownst to one another. It was a giant hit. Hence a party piece extraordinaire. It was one of our vacation miracles that occurred. Karli and Mackenzie have really stepped up the pressure for originality.....even better, as a duet!