That being said, we are embracing this gorgeous fall weather in Chicago, and enjoying every minute of our visit with Brian and Taryn. No matter how many days or months we've all spent apart, as soon as we hop off the plane, grab a quick hug, jump onto the car, and head off to begin our visit....it always feels like only moments have passed, since we've seen each other last.
These pumpkins were meant to be carved...and the seeds were just waiting to be roasted.
Yummy carmel popcorn in the making...
Yummy Halloween snacks...and I actually helped with the process :)
Happy Halloween from the LaFlamme Family in Chicago
The loving bonds that are created when children come into our world, is something that holds every family unit together...no matter the physical distances that exist in our lives. Roger left home at 18, and struck out on his own as a young adult, to make his way in the world. Two years later, at the age of 18, I followed suit, left home to become his wife.....traveled across an ocean, and soon thereafter, our family began to grow. Stacey also found her young wings at the age of 18, and traveled away from home, to start her secondary education in another state. And lastly, at a young 17 years old, Brian had set himself a goal, to travel a bit further afield, and chose to attend a college in the Midwest.
Father and son...watching football, sharing a beer and a Saturday afternoon nap...it doesn't get much better that that!
Looking back, it seems that all four of us were almost in a rush to begin our adult lives, outside of the comfort zone created by our parents. We each knew that something new and exciting was waiting for us, right around the corner. Over the last 31 years, we have all made conscientious decisions regarding where we want to live, and how it would affect the future dynamics of our family unit. Whether it was to move closer to family members...to settle in another state for the sake of a burgeoning new relationship, or just a change of scenery and a desire to finally locate a place to settle and continue an old relationship...the locations were chosen with a desire to find a place that really "worked" for each one of us.
Before Taryn and Scott became a part of our small family, one of our many group shots of just the four of us.....back in CT for Thanksgiving 2004
Never in a million years, would I have ever imagined Roger and I living in the sunny state of Florida. We chose to raise Stacey and Brian in New England, and always thought that even after they left home, we'd just continue our lives pretty much in the same fashion, without making any changes. They had each gone off to college to start a new adventure, however, it never dawned on us, that it might be the perfect time for us to seek out something, a bit outside our comfort zone.
Soon after we moved to Florida in the summer of 2000...how happy do we look????
Everyone knows that our decision to move, the selling of our condo, and then our subsequent relocation to the south happened in a very short period of time. In a little less than five months, we moved..lock, stock and barrel to West Palm Beach, to begin the second half of our life together, and quickly discovered, the warm sunny skies we've come to love. It only took a brief moment for me to know that here is where my heart would be happy, away from the long grey winter months and freezing cold temperatures of New England. I felt a sense of finally coming "home" unlike anything I had experienced in a very long time. There is something down deep inside of everyone of us....something I have yet been able to put into a cohesive explanation.....but you all know how it is when that something just feels "right."
For whatever reason, at this time in my life....warm is what my body craves and warm is what my body is gonna get. As I've said many times, no situation is ever going to be perfect for all the parties involved...there will always be a tradeoff. I try to never say never, but let's face it, that is "never" very easy. We really don't know what tomorrow will bring, so for now I'm snapping up my flannel lounge shirt, pulling on my socks, wrapping up in a blanket and enjoying our long weekend visit with Brian and Taryn. And when I return to the mild "winter" temps of Florida, I'll soak up some sun to keep me warm, as I prepare for my next visit to an even chillier Massachusetts, in early December. I look forward to my first wet sloppy kiss from my new grand puppy Otis during a quick weekend visit with my recently engaged daughter and future son in law....has anyone seen my gloves?
The Simon-LaFlamme Family in Massachusetts...happy smiles always :)
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