May 3, 2012

May 3rd was a busy day. I had work and Gracie's open house at her school (West Creek Hills Elemenary) and it was also the 2nd anniversary since my mom's passing.  I decided last year that I wanted to set balloons out along the Susquehanna River every year on the anniverary of her passing.  So right after work I headed to the store, bought my balloons, wrote my special message on the balloons and drove over to the Harvey Taylor Bridge to say my little prayer and to set them free.  I miss her...I wish she was here so I could tell her just how much I love her!  Ah the things I should of...could have...and would have done if only she was still here.  After my moment honoring my mother I headed home to pick up princess for the open house at her school.  Above and below are some pictures I took of some of the work she displayed and some pictures of her and a few of her classmates.

Georgie Turning 20

Hard to believe my baby boy will be 20 years old this month. Guess he's not such a baby anymore, huh? He's a handsome young man and has his dad's smile! I am a very proud mom!

Grace - 2nd Grade - 7 Years Old

Jacob - 5th Grade - 10 Years Old

NY Rangers Hockey

Well the tied series between the Rangers and Senators came to an end last night with the Rangers winning the game 2-1 and moving on to the next round to face the Washington Capitals. Keeping fingers crossed. I want the Rangers to take the Cup this year for one reason and one reason only....for a dear friend from back in the day "Tammie" - I know she watching from above...I just know she is.

My Dad...

Below is a picture of my dad (middle) with two of his friends from back in the day. It had to have been taken sometime during the 70s.

Pat McGee ~ Bob Chaimowitz ~ Gary McGee

Tap & Jazz Costumes

 Tap Costume

Tap Costume

 Jazz Costume

Jazz Costume

Gracie and her dance class will be performing three different routines during this year's recital (ballet, tap and jazz).  This weekend Gracie had her dance portraits taken at The Studio - I cannot wait to see them.  In the meantime, I managed to get a few pictures of my own.  I took some pictures of Gracie in her tap and jazz costumes but I didn't get a picture of the ballet costume.  The ballet and jazz costumes are too big and we had to reorder them in a smaller size so I will take some more pictures once the costumes come in. 

Gracie's 1st Holy Communion

Family & Friends

GRACIE’S FIRST HOLY COMMUNION

SATURDAY, MAY 5, 2012 ~ 10:00 A.M.

OUR LADY OF LOURDES, ENOLA, PA

LUNCH AT OUR HOME AFTER CEREMONY

PLEASE RSVP BY APRIL 23RD

717-440-6143 or dclapper@eckertseamans.com

Easter Pics

Easter 2012

In Christianity, the Easter celebration is held to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus, which Christians believe happened three days after he was buried, having been crucified by Roman authorities just outside of Jerusalem. Easter takes place at the same time as Jewish Passover and, as such, is not a fixed date on the calendar but instead moves around.

Finally...St. Patrick's Day Falls on a Saturday!

I am elated that St. Patrick's Day falls on a Saturday this year. You would think the Harrisburg annual St. Patty's Day parade would be on the 17th, right? NOPE! The parade is going to be on the 24th..what the??

St. Patrick's Day is celebrated on March 17, the saint's religious feast day and the anniversary of his death in the fifth century. The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for over 1,000 years. On St. Patrick's Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against the consumption of meat were waived and people would dance, drink and feast--on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.

Gertrude Hawk Chocolate Fundraiser - Online Orders through March 30th

Hi Family and Friends:
We’ve (The Studio) kicked off our fundraiser through Gertrude Hawk Chocolates and we are offering a variety of delicious chocolates and gifts!

A website has been setup specifically for The Studio fundraising campaign. All purchases made on that site will be credited toward me and all proceeds will be awarded to our great cause.

To connect to this site, please click here

or copy & paste the following URL into your browser:

http://www.gertrudehawkchocolates.com/index.cfm?act=fundraising&cmp_id=7745&mem_id=42754

You may also go to http://www.gertrudehawkchocolates.com/index.cfm?act=programs
and enter the Participant No. 720157-007 to access our group’s site.

Thank you for your support,

Grace Clapper

Tammie....

A friend from back on Long Island passed away February 29th. It broke my heart when I first heard the news. I never thought in a million years I would be going home to Long Island for one of my friend's funerals! I was unsure if I was going to make the road trip but after thinking about it overnight I knew I had to go home. Tammie was a part of my life back in the days when I was living in Rocky Point. Me and Tam were diehard NY Ranger fans and we were always sporting our NY Ranger jerseys/jackets/t-shirts etc...You rarely, if ever, saw a girl walking the halls of Rocky Point Junior Senior High School wearing NY Ranger attire, but me and Tam were different...and made sure everyone knew we were die-hard NY Ranger fanatics.  Oh man...the bus rides to and from school BSing about the game the night before....gosh...I could go on and on about all my memories....but the most special memory I have always cherished was the train ride to Madison Square Garden.  My dad took me and Tammie to our very first NY Ranger game.  I can't say enough kind words about Tam but when I think of her and picture her face I see her smiling and that's what I will always remember....that beautiful smile.  If you think about it, Tammie isn't gone...because we can still see her.....we can see her through the eyes of her children...she's there.

Tammie (Lodico) Smith - June 23, 1969 - February 29, 2012

Gertrude Hawk Chocolate Fundraiser

Gracie's dance studio (The Studio) is having a Gertrude Hawk Chocolates fundraiser. If you would like to purchase some goodies click on the attached link. If the link does not open you can always copy and paste it to your brower.
 

http://www.gertrudehawkchocolates.com/fund-raising/participants?act=fundraising&cmp_id=7745&mem_id=42754

Ash Wednesday

In the Roman Catholic Church, Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent, the season of preparation for the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter Sunday.

Flowers From My Son for Valentine's Day

Father/Daughter Sweetheart Dance

Saturday, February 11th was the father/daugher sweetheart dance (event coordinated through Girl Scouts). It was from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. so you can imagine how LONG the day was for Gracie - she was counting down the minutes and was very antsy most of the day. I bought her a new dress, we curled her hair, painted her nails etc...and daddy even presented her a corsage for the special event. It's moments like this I treasure.

These are just a few pics. There will be a few more that I will post once I upload them to the PC.

Happy Valentine's Day

Saint Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day,[1][2][3] is an annual commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine, and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496 AD. It was deleted from the General Roman Calendar of saints in 1969 by Pope Paul VI. It is traditionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionery, and sending greeting cards (known as "valentines"). The day first became associated with romantic love in the circle of Geoffrey Chaucer in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.

Did U Know?
•Worldwide, more than 50 million roses are given on this one day alone.

•Some people used to believe that if a woman saw a robin flying overhead on Valentine's Day, it meant she would marry a sailor. If she saw a sparrow, she would marry a poor man and be very happy. If she saw a goldfinch, she would marry a millionaire.

•In the Middle Ages, young men and women drew names from a bowl to see who their valentine would be. They would wear these names on their sleeves for one week. To "wear your heart on your sleeve" now means that it's easy for other people to know how you're feeling.

Whitney Houston 1963-2011

Whitney Houston...what can I say? Her music brings back fond memories of my teenage years in New York and my Navy days down in Charleston, South Carolina. I was a big fan of Whitney's remake of Dolly Parton's "I will Always Love You". I was a big fan of the Dolly Parton version, but Whitney blew it out of the park just like she did with the National Anthem at the superbowl back in 1991. "Greatest Love of All was my senior class song (1986). Rest in peace pretty lady!

Punxsutawney Phil

At 7:25 a.m. this morning, amidst mostly cloudy skies, and temperatures in the low 30s, Groundhog Phil saw his shadow in the little town of Punxsutawney, Pa. According to folklore, Phil’s sighting of his own shadow means there will be 6 more weeks of winter. Had Phil not seen his shadow, it would have meant there will be an early spring.

Georgie Pics (Part 3)

Georgie Pics (Part 2)

Georgie Pics (Part 1)

I never got Lil' George's senior pictures professionally done like I wanted and considering he's well into his 2nd year of college I thought it was about time to get some portraits of him by himself. He brought a few different shirts to switch things up a bit and the pictures really all did come out great.

My Babies - 2012