Room and board

My Dearest Scooter Baby, 

As noted in many other posts, your mother and I have been diligently working to prepare your room for your arrival (sometimes, when we're feeling fancy, we call it the "nursery"). I give nearly all of the credit for design of your room to your beautiful mother; I take up the role of an unkempt day laborer who moves the furniture around and puts up framed art. It's a match made in heaven. 

Plenty of room to add more books to your collection provided you don't collect as many as me and certainly not as many as Papa

 Your room is not large but we think it will suit you from now until whenever you get sick of us and move out (note: this process can begin at anytime but cannot take place in earnest until you are of legal age). There is plenty of room in the house and outside the house for you to play and store what I'm sure will be an abundant amount of play things. Your room currently consists of a lovely crib, an elegant dresser, a dapper, little bookshelf, a few sporty light fixtures and some fun wall hangings. Soon a chair, a rug and some more wall hangings will be added and the final product will be a cozy, warm space that your mother, you and I will fill to the brim with love. We also expect you to regularly fill it with screams of hunger, wetness or tiredness. But mostly love. 

The spotlight will be on your dirty diapers

 Per the class that taught us about newborn safety, we've removed the collection of antique swords and battle axes previously adorning the walls and rerouted the open trough of raw sewage that previously ran through your room. Your mom's "50 Shades of Grey" interpretative art exhibit collection has been put in boxes in the attic and the abandoned wolverine we've been raising in your room will now sleep in the basement. All in all, we hope you find your space comfortable. We really cannot wait for you to take your first nap at home, have your first diaper changed at home, pee on your mom while she's changing you for the first time at home or spit up on the carpet for the first time. In short, we can't wait for you to make it yours!

Have no fear: this alligator has been de-toothed and can be quite friendly

 Mom and I feel we are reasonable landlords and will expect little in your first months at home. However, we expect you to take the trash out once you have learned to crawl and mow the lawn when you have learned to walk. We hope you find these terms agreeable. But, in seriousness, we can't wait to lift you from your crib on a lazy Sunday morning, change you and then snuggle you in our bed for awhile before we all get up for breakfast. We can't wait to play with you on the rug in your room. And we can't wait to rock you to sleep in the corner while reading you our favorite stories. We can't wait, we can't wait, we can't wait!

Love always,

Your male roommate

The Blizzard of Twenty Thirteen

Dear Scooter Storm, 

On Friday, February the 8th, 2013, a storm hit New England and caused a panic across the general populace, the local and state governments and the media. The likes of the storm had never been seen before...except for the numerous times in the past in which the likes of this storm had been seen before. Be that as it may, it was all anyone could talk about in the days before, during and since the storm and it did make quite a mark on New England. Between Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, Jefferson received around 28 inches of snow.

This picture is black & white to imply a historical event of life shattering importance. In reality, it is a snow bank and a shed.

This storm was the third largest snowstorm on record for our area and was noteworthy because it dumped so much snow in so little time. It also included thunder, lightning and hurricane force winds at times. Our little house held up admirably and your mother and I were prepared. We had plenty of food and water on hand, flashlights and extra batteries, and even a bed setup in the basement near the propane stove in the event that we lost power. Your mother and I being such hearty New Englanders were up for the challenges of the storm. The only thing that was missing was a little Scooter Baby to snuggle!
 

Contrary to the claims of Fox News, the sun did come up the day after the storm

 Your wonderful mother took the trouble to find a local snow plow service so that we wouldn't have to spend our life savings on a replacement back for me after what would have been seven plus hours of shoveling. As it was, I still needed to do almost two hours of shoveling but it was playing in the snow compared to what it could have been. In a few years we won't need my back or the plow as you will be trained to be an expert snow shovelsman. You will be payed in candy.
 

Clearing this section of the driveway is worth three Snickers and two Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Also payable as two Cadbury Creme Eggs when in season.

On the whole, the storm was beautiful to watch as we never lost power or heat and, with the storm being over the weekend, your mother and I just enjoyed ourselves in the house for two days. We cleaned, we cooked, watched a terrible James Bond movie and then we put up pictures in your bedroom and prepared it for your arrival. We kept ourselves busy and warm. A thought constantly on our minds was that if we get another storm like this next year then our little boy will be able to play outside in the snow! We can't wait (for the little boy playing, not the snow).

Love, 

Dad (and his back)

A letter from Nana and Papa!

Dear Wonderful Scooter Baby!

Your Dad has let us grandparents get into the act and so I would love to tell you about your Dad as a little boy.  If you can believe it, he was a serious little guy and studiously watched everything around him with incredible intent and REMEMBERED EVERYTHING.  He has a photographic memory which is incredibly and annoyingly dependable.  He was a peach of a baby, who became a very determined and planful child.  Unfortunately, flexible was not his middle name.  I used to call him, "Hope springs eternal" as in, "Is today the day I get to do whatever I want when I want??" Mostly the answer was no, so life was a little disappointing for him.  I think it had something to do with the fact he was very sure at a young age, that he was smarter than his parents.  This may well have been true, but we did teach him to laugh and have a good time and to forgive us for not allowing him to watch tv all the time, stay up late or eat whatever he wanted.  I must say, he turned out to be the most wonderful man and we are so lucky to have him in our lives.  (Note to parents-to-be:  Consistency, although tiring, pays off in the end!)
 

Pictured: a very determined, planful and SUPER child 

In like fashion, he found the most perfect woman to love and marry and we feel incredibly blessed. Your mom comes with an awesome family whom we love and count as incredible blessings in our lives.

The Dempsey-Sherry family, then and now

Your extended family on your Nana's side is…… well, extensive.  I have 2 brothers and 3 sisters.  My two brothers are MUCH older than your Nana and so we are not as close as The Sisters.   The sisters were named by your Dad, "The Crazy Aunts" and they are the most fun people you will meet.  Each of them will sign cards and letters with “YFA” indicating “Your Favorite Aunt”.  As you can see, my side of the family, although there were a lot of us, all felt we were raised as only children.  We all think we are the favorites. So play this information as you see it….Already they love you and can't wait to meet you!  Your Papa has 3 sisters who are also psyched to meet you and your Dad’s cousin has a beautiful little girl 3 years older than you are, Alanna.  We hope you will be good buds, as her Mom and your Dad were growing up.

The Crazy Aunts

You can probably tell that all of your relatives love you and you aren’t even here yet!  What a lucky kid you are, and how lucky we feel to have you “moving into” our lives.  It makes us all smile to think of you, and I know this will hold true for the rest of your life and ours!

At Disney World, apparently pretending we are from Chicago

Much love and many hugs to come,
Nana and Papa

These are a few of our favorite things...

Hi buddy boy,

Today I thought it would be fun to give you a glimpse into your mother's and my favorite things at this very moment as well as those favorite things of ours when we were younger and much younger. This should serve to explain why it may appear from time to time that your mother and I are forcing you to like strange things. You will inevitably compile countless such lists over the course of your life (even if only in your mind) and one of life's simple joys is seeing the ways in which your likes and dislikes have changed.


Mom

Favorite food as a child: Roberto’s Pizza

Favorite drink as a child: Sprite
Favorite book as a child: The Story of  Poppyseed by Barbi Sargent or Get Well, Clown- arounds! by Joanna Cole
Favorite TV show as a child: TGIF, specifically Full House 
<Editor Dad's note: TGIF means "Thank goodness it's Friday" and was two hours of family sitcoms on ABC when Mom and I were growing up>
Favorite movie as a child: Adventures in Babysitting

Favorite song as a child: "I Wanna Dance with Somebody" by Whitney Houston
<Editor Mom's note: I used to dance so hard to this that my Fisher-Price record player would skip>

Mom's caption for this photo: "I don't like this photo. I look poverty stricken"

Favorite food as an adolescent: Meatloaf
Favorite drink as an adolescent: Coca-Cola
Favorite book as an adolescent: Don’t Die, My Love by Lurlene McDaniel
Favorite TV show an adolescent: 90210
Favorite movie an adolescent: Grease or Dirty Dancing  

<Editor Mom's note: I was allowed to watch Dirty Dancing far too young!>
Favorite song an adolescent: "Under the Bridge" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers 

<Editor Mom's note: Not sure about favorite, but it was the first cassingle (also known as a cassette single) I got and it was from Uncle PJ> 

Uncle PJ and Mom

Favorite food right this minute: Texas Toast

Favorite drink right this minute: Ginger Ale
Favorite book right this minute: A Song of Ice and Fire series or the Hunger Games series
Favorite TV show right this minute: Walking Dead or Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, New York and New Jersey
Favorite movie right this minute: Harry Potter anthology

Favorite song right this minute: "Paper Bag" by Fiona Apple

Dad
Favorite food as a child: Sherry-Dempsey shepherd's pie
<Editor Dad's note: browned hamburger, mushroom soup and mashed potatoes. Delish!>
Favorite drink as a child: Lemonade from concentrate
Favorite book as a child: Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
Favorite TV show as a child: 3-2-1 Contact
Favorite movie as a child: Disney's Robin Hood
Favorite song as a child: "Bye lo baby" sung by Nana

The author, strangling his newborn brother

Favorite food as an adolescent: Pepperoni pizza
Favorite drink as an adolescent: Mountain Dew
Favorite book as an adolescent: Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Favorite TV show an adolescent: The Simpsons
Favorite movie an adolescent: The original Star Wars trilogy
Favorite song an adolescent: "A Sort of Homecoming" by U2
<Editor Dad's note: This song was from U2's The Unforgettable Fire album which was the first album I ever owned. Still one of my favorites>

The author with Winston Churchill (aka Uncle Pat)

Favorite food right this minute: Cheese tortellini and chicken from O'Connor's Restaurant and Bar
Favorite drink right this minute: Coke Zero
Favorite book right this minute: A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
Favorite TV show right this minute: Dual Survival
Favorite movie right this minute: The Dark Knight Rises
Favorite song right this minute: "Everything in its right place" by Radiohead


We hope this gives you some insight into who your parents are and who we were but, of course, our favorite thing in this world will always be you.

Love now and then,
Mom and Dad  

Just visiting

Hey Beach Boy, 

As alluded to in the post where you were introduced to your grandparents, there are two vacation getaway spots in our family: Vinalhaven, Maine and Brewster, Massachusetts on Cape Cod. You are a lucky boy! Nana and Papa have the Summer Shack (or Cracker Box Palace depending on which sources you use) in Vinalhaven while Grandma and Grandpa have had their house on Rosemary Lane in Brewster for a number of years and will soon be retiring to live there full time. Both are wonderful places that your mother and I have filled with many memories over the years and we can't wait for you to add memories of your own. 

Vinalhaven is an island that rests in the Penobscot Bay off the coast of Rockland in Maine. It is about a four hour drive up through New Hampshire and along Maine's coast to get to Rockland from our house and then a one hour ferry boat ride across the bay to Vinalhaven. It is not a journey to be taken lightly! Your Nana has been making this journey since she was a little girl and Papa has been going since he met Nana. Uncle Pat and I have been vacationing on the island since we were born and so will you. Mom, of course, has made the trip a number of times and Grandma and Grandpa have visited as well.  

The view from the Summer Shack

When Uncle Pat and I were younger, Nana and Papa would rent a house on the island and we would stay there anywhere from one week to one month but many years ago they were able to buy a cozy A-frame on the water with wonderful views. Over the years they have made improvements to make it their own and Papa has filled up the house and property with all the treasures he finds on the beach but mainly those "treasures" he finds at the swap shop at the town landfill. The latter thrills Nana to no end. Trips to Vinalhaven include beautiful nature walks, kayaking, swimming in freshwater quarries, beach combing, a charming main street and LOBSTER! There is no shortage of fun to be had and Nana and Papa can't wait for your first visit

One man's trash is another's...trash. It's still trash

Much closer to us but no less of an adventure is Grandma's and Grandpa's home in Brewster, Massachusetts on Cape Cod. Grandma and Grandpa built the house in a lovely neighborhood (complete with a lake for swimming and fishing) many years ago and plan to live there full time once Grandpa retires and they sell the Holyoke house. The trip to Brewster takes a little over two hours and the ride becomes beautiful once you are across the Sagamore or Bourne bridges and onto Route 6, which runs the length of the Cape. In addition to swimming and fishing right down the street at Seymour Pond, there are any number of freshwater lakes nearby as well as sandy ocean beaches and trips onto Cape Cod Bay on Grandpa's boat. Cape Cod is a big vacation hot spot so there are countless things to entertain a little boy such as yourself. I'm sure we will try them all. 

Grandpa's boat, the Jiminator on Cape Cod Bay

 Grandma will always be ready to take you to the beach and Grandpa will always be ready to take you fishing so you will be spoiled for choice! One of your mother's and my favorite things to do is sample the locale cuisine either getting delicious steamed clams at the "local" Wooden Shoe or other delicious seafood at our favorite restaurant, The Scargo Cafe. You are too young to appreciate such things now but we look forward to taking you to these places when you're older. The Hadley Moynihans frequently join the party down at the Cape so this summer we will possibly have two grandparents, your aunt, your uncle, your three cousins and two dogs in addition to Mom, you and me in Grandma's and Grandpa's house at one time. Ten people, two dogs!
 

Mom loves the Cape....and LOBSTER!

With two vacation spots from which to choose -both imbued with decades of memories from your mother and I- we hope that visits to Nana's and Papa's Summer Shack and Grandma's and Grandpa's Rosemary Lane will be those treasured memories that you keep for the rest of your life. 

Love, 

A dad for all seasons

The Disaster of the Downstairs Deluge at Dempsey Junction

Dear Scooter Baby,

Last Tuesday we discovered the downside of home ownership when our hot water heater burst and soaked the entirety of the basement. My soccer game that evening was cancelled so I came home early to find the carpet in the family room soaking wet and the sound of rushing water coming from the utility room. After stemming the tide of rushing water and beginning to start bailing the water off the floor, I called your mother so that she could buy a wet/dry vacuum on the way home. The wet/dry vac was missing a piece so worked for about twenty minutes before it met its end. I managed to stop the water from spreading while your very pregnant mother hurried our belongings to dryer ground. It was a nightmare! 

"A handy indicator to determine when a new water heater is needed is when the side of the existing water heater explodes." -Manufacturer's instructions

Fortunately your wonderful Grandpa was on the scene in no time to help with the plumbing and to restore heat. Your mom had a disaster restoration service out that night and they sucked up the remaining water. Grandpa put in a temporary water heater and the next day the disaster restoration service tore up all the carpet and molding that had been affected and the insurance adjuster was out the following day to take stock of what damage had been done. Our lovely, finished basement went to unfinished in a matter of moments and will take a long time to get it back to a comfortable setting. 

Like the mountains stand against time and change so too stands the pool table

However, far from doom and gloom, your mom and I have been able to see the positives more often than not. It was a learning experience and we are grateful for so many things that went right when something went wrong:

-Thank goodness your Grandpa is a master plumber

-Thank goodness your Papa, Uncle Pat and I built shelves three days earlier so that there were very few belongings on the floor

-Thank goodness my soccer game got cancelled so your mother didn't have to initially deal with the flood by herself

-Thank goodness your mom stays calm when I'm not and took care of the insurance company and disaster restoration service

-Thank goodness you hadn't arrived yet! 

Your play area will be that lovely section of plywood

It will take some doing and some extra money to get the basement back in shape but we're grateful that it wasn't worse and it's easy to look forward and past the basement when we think of the fact that you'll soon be with us! I've never been very good at moving on from things as I have a tendency to dwell on situations I cannot change but I can tell you that it's not a good way to live. It's better to find the positives and let go of what can't be changed. Hopefully you are more like your mother in this regard than I. 

Your mother is never one to hide from adversity or a challenge

One positive that was easy to see at the end of a horrible week was a visit from Nana's sisters (also known as your crazy great aunts). Aunt Christine, Aunt Dree and Aunt Maria stopped by the house to survey the flood damage like so many visiting dignitaries in the news and then we visited a lovely coffee shop in town for some caffeine and conversation. Uncle Pat also came by so, aside from the absence of flu-ridden Papa, it was a perfect visit with the perfect company!  

Mom, Uncle Pat, Aunt Dree, Aunt Maria, Nana, Aunt Christine and me

We don't see your crazy great aunts as often as we'd like so we really enjoyed the afternoon and look forward to seeing them again when they come to meet you.

Love,

Dad

A letter from Grandma and Grandpa!

Hi Sweet Baby,

Where do we begin to tell you how excited we all are about you coming into our lives? Your Mom & Dad told us last summer (2012) that they were having a baby.  Grandpa & I were so excited we started jumping up and down, hugging your Mom  & Dad, and, yes, crying a few “happy” tears. Rosie, our dog who I know you will love and who will love you, was excited too mainly because she loves your Dad and really loves your Mom. Then Uncle PJ & Auntie Steph called and guess what? – they already knew about you coming. It was a happy day!

Rosie (also known as Rosie Girl, Rose, Rose Bud, Rose Petal and occasionally #*%^@$!!! when she runs away)

My name is Winnie and I am your Grandma. Your Grandpa is Jim and we are your Mom’s mother and father. We adopted your beautiful mother in 1983 when she was two weeks old. She came into our family on a beautiful September day, one of the best days of our lives.  Uncle PJ was three years old then.  We had adopted him in 1980 (Someday we will tell you all about adoption). Together we formed the Moynihan Family. Your Mom and Uncle PJ are the best part of our very happy life. And that’s a lot to say about them because of how much we love your Dad, Auntie Steph and your cousins, Alexandria, Aurora, and Amo. 

Grandma and Aurora

Your Mom is a wonderful daughter and Grandpa & I are very proud of her. She is such a hard worker and has lots of friends and loves to have fun. She has kind of a loud laugh that we all have gotten used to, probably even you. Your Mom is not afraid to speak her mind and express her opinion, but she is kind and thoughtful. Mom was a happy, good little girl but sometime she had to go to “time out” (I’ll tell you more about that some day too). 

Mom and Grandpa

Your Dad is a really good guy. We have known him for about nine years and we were all so happy on May 28, 2010 when your Dad and Mom got married. He loves your Mom so much! They have so much fun together and will have so much fun with you, their Scooter Baby.

Grandpa and I have lots of brothers and sisters who are your Great Uncles and Great Aunts. They are all so excited to meet you. They are Uncle Pat & Auntie Sharon, Uncle Fred & Auntie Barb, Uncle John Romas and Auntie Judi, Uncle John Moynihan and Auntie Joanne, Uncle Mickey and Auntie Peggy, Uncle Jay and Auntie Katie, and Uncle Ned. Wow!! Lots of Cousins too. Wow!!

The Moynihan siblings: Uncle Pat, Auntie Judi, Grandpa, Auntie Barb and Uncle John
and
The O'Neill siblings: Uncle Ned, Grandma, Auntie Katie and Auntie Peggy

So our beautiful boy – get ready for a fun-filled, family-filled, much loved life.

Love, 
Grandma & Grandpa