Happy St. Patrick's Day

If it's March, it must be that time of year again when everything green is up for grabs and my family is never embarrassed to wear as much of it as possible.

Happy St. Patrick's Day to all and I'm sure you're planning to do it up proud!

My large and boisterous family gathered yesterday before the snow hit the Washington, DC area to celebrate our Irish ancestry and all the stops were pulled out for a grand time.   

 

So in the tradition of my Celtic tribe, it was an afternoon of irreverent jokes and imitations, lots of food and drink and unspoken but deeply felt connections from heart to heart.

My niece, Kathleen, and her husband, Ryan

 

Clydes' Tower Oaks

 

 

Me and My Dad



The Magic of A Party

The Washington, DC weather on Saturday may have been rainy, foggy and dreary but it had  no affect on the atmosphere inside one cozy house in Northwest DC where it was bright, warm and full of happiness.

 

Was this house in some kind of weather bubble?

 

Yes it was because it was the site of a birthday party that my super duper spectacular friends gave for me and I can say without hesitation that it was the best birthday party ever!!  Talk about healing!  Wow!  I was feeling the love and it was totally through the stratosphere for me in terms of people, food and fun!!!

 

Me and My Fantastic Son!

Truly great friends are a treasure to have and to hold and I keep my friends near and dear to my resilient heart.  These are the incredible people who were here for me after my husband died, these are the people who have helped me keep my heart open to the future and these are the people who came together and let their creativity flow to help me celebrate my magical birthday.

 

My friends are my soul mates and they make most things in life bearable because great friends always find the time to either hold your hand, listen to your story or go out and boogie on the dance floor with you!

 

The theme?  What else?  THE BEACH!!!

 

Mini beach balls, candles, sand, shells and best of all beach food.  As in lobster rolls, spiced shrimp, crab cakes, potato salad and tomatoes and mozzarella and chopped fresh basil.  And if that wasn't enough deliciousness, dessert was a Key Lime pie and a chocolate cake with many, many candles!!!!!!!! Totally yum, yes?

 

Home Made Lobster Rolls





And just when we thought we could not eat one more forkful, it was time to crank up the tunes and dance the night away! Donna Summer you would have been proud of us!!

 

Twerking, congo lines, and a version of something called The Throwdown, were just some of the dance moves proudly performed and thoroughly enjoyed!!

 

After all these years together, we've still got it going on and I thank you my dear friends from the bottom of my heart!! 

 

I am still flying from the emotional high.  And that's the true magic of a party!



Home Made Chocolate Cake

Thoughts on New Year's Eve

Time is one the most precious of commodities we have.

It should never be wasted and always treasured for its possibilities. 

 

On this New Year's Eve of 2013, I hold my fresh new calendar to hung in the kitchen tomorrow and flip through the untouched months and days and wonder what this years holds for me, my family and my friends.

 

Of course I hope for only good and fantastic things to happen to those I care about and that includes you my dear and wonderful readers!  Thank you so much for all of your support!!

As I always say, I hope I help you as much as you help me.

 

Alice G Patterson Photography
Courtesy House of Turquoise

I know some people love to make resolutions at the beginning of a new year, but I prefer to try and focus on each day as it comes to me and work within those twenty four hours on being positive, loving, healthy and helpful to others.  I don't always hit the mark but I try really hard!

 

Let's put those negative events behind us as we start a brand new year and let go of any feelings that may get in our way of doing something we want to passionately pursue.

 

Whether you are cozy at home, playing board games and watching the crowd at Times Square, or getting glammed up right now to go to a rockin' party tonight, I raise my glass to you and wish you a happy and safe New Year's Eve!

Special Birthday Wishes

Twenty three years ago today, my magical son was born!

From the bottom of my heart I couldn't love you more!!  You are a joy and a wonder and watching you grow into a young man is and always will be exciting.

I know this past year has been a challenge for you but you have never been one to run away from difficult situations and I know that this coming year holds some good, solid, life-changing news for you!!  I don't know what the good news will be, but I sense it will be delivered to you this year just as sure as I know that you are a special guy!

I am so proud of you and how far you have traveled on your life's journey.  Continue to be true to yourself and follow your passions and you will never stray from making your heart happy!

 

Happy birthday and best wishes always to you my beloved son for many, many more!!

To close out this loving birthday post, here's a special rockin' greeting to you from The Beatles:

 

Party Girl

OMG my wonderful readers,

I don't know about you but I need a good laugh!

There are too many stressful things happening in my family right now that I can't write about but believe me when I tell you that a good laugh must happen in order for me to feel better about life. 

 

 And when I need a good laugh I know I can always count on NBC's hysterical and infamous Saturday Night Live to make it happen.

Without further adieu, here are the multi-talented comedians, Cecily Strong and Seth Meyers:

I feel A LOT better and I hope you do too!

A Wedding Shower

Two gleaming, freshly polished silver tea sets sit in my house right now in anticipation of my niece's bridal shower this Sunday.  Originally, the sets belonged to my grandmothers and each set is as different as the woman who owned them.  They now belong to my Mom and she generously agreed to let me borrow them for this special family event. 

I loved both of my grandmothers, Nana and Gammy, and it's a tender feeling to see the tea sets resting in their new and temporary locations.  I knew my Mom's mother very well and have lots of wonderful, warm memories of her but I didn't get a chance to know my Dad's mother the same way since she died when I was very young.  I do have some special memories of her and her home but mostly I know her through family stories.  I often think about the way they lead their lives and know that they both were unusual women.

Besides the tea sets, I'm also using a crystal punch bowl that also belonged to my Dad's mother.  My sister brought it to my house and our Dad joked about handling such a treasured family heirloom by saying, "If you break it (the crystal bowl), you're out of the will!"  We both laughed because we knew that would never happen!

I can picture each of my grandmothers using their tea sets and I know they would love that the sets are part of the upcoming bridal shower.  For sure, they will be with us and we'll tell lots of stories about them during the party.  As my niece begins a new chapter in her life, another generation will come to know their family history while also adding to it.

It's been a lot of work but now it's time to have fun and celebrate!!