The Pneumonia Twins

It's been quite a while since I have blogged. I figured I'd let you know where I have been over the past few weeks.
As you know, the folks are a big part of my life. They turned 91 years old in August.....and in case you forgot....they share the same birthday....same day....same year.
They are like Mutt and Jeff. (That's a blast from the past, where the heck did I come up with that one????) They are like Ozzie and Harriet....Lucy and Ricky Ricardo.....peanut butter and jelly....cheese and crackers....spaghetti and meatballs....I must be hungry......
Where one begins the other one ends. So, when my mother took a bad fall and got admitted to the hospital with pneumonia two weeks ago, it didn't surprise us at all that the very next day my father was also admitted to the hospital with pneumonia.

Two peas in a pod I tell yah.......Or, two patients....a married couple......who share the same birthday....and share the same diagnosis....in a hospital room together....

Oh they were both so so sick!!!! And my poor mother with her severe arthritis and lack of activity from being in bed after taking a bad fall.....her little legs were in really tough shape. She could not even stand up and take one step. It was scary. Was she ever going to be able to regain her legs? Would they both be able to go back home to their independent apartment, or were we going to have to move them over to the assisted living side???? Lots of uncertainty in their future......

Flash forward to a week and a half later, where they are both still recovering in a rehabilitation facility. Here is my mother walking the hall to get to the dining room at the rehab this afternoon:

That's right!!!! Look at her go!!!!!! I am so proud of her!!!! She has been working her butt off to get her strength back. She amazes me.....and honestly her motivation is purely unselfish. She just wants to get back to where she was so that she can take care of my father.

Sigh.......

These two are the living definition of love. They both amaze me. And they amaze the rehab staff as well!!! 

Here they are at lunch today. Don't they look great????

At this point it looks like they both will be eventually returning back home. Where they belong. 

Together.

Nor'Easter Jan 3, 2014 South Shore

I hope you all are safe and warm after the storm. I persuaded Mr. S to come along for a coastal drive this afternoon. He's a good guy. Think I'll keep him. :-)
As we headed from Hingham into Hull, the road was closed due to flooding. Who was there in his police cruiser blocking the road? Well, that would be our son N! So proud of him. Don't have a picture to post because I don't think he would have appreciated me pulling out my camera at that moment.(You're welcome N)

Nantasket Beach in Hull two hours after high tide.

The Sentinel  along Jerusalem Road in Cohasset:

Beach Road in Cohasset

A pseudo Norman Rockwell image from Cohasset Common

The waves were huge in Scituate! And it was soooo windy all along the coast. The temperature was twelve degrees and the wind chill had to have been at least twenty below, if not lower.

Resting along Scituate Harbor

Today is an example of why I love living in New England!

2013 A Year In Review

Happy New Year! It's hard to believe that another year has gone by. The older I get the quicker the time flies. I hope you had a good 2013 and wish you a very happy and healthy 2014.
2013 was a good year for us....especially with the addition of Ryleigh to our family. We are really looking forward to the next addition to our family....we will be blessed with a Daughter In Law in March, when N marries Melissa. Can't wait! :-)

Ever since the beginning of this blog, I have posted my favorite images I have taken each year. As I looked back into my files from this year, I noticed that I have shot less images this year than I have in the past five years. I'm hoping to turn that around in 2014....and Mother nature is giving a good reason to get out there to shoot with the impending Nor'Easter that is predicted to arrive tomorrow.

So here is the photographic year in review:
January brought me to Cohasset Harbor:

February brought the engagement of N and Melissa:

March brought the swans at Island Grove in Abington as they began building their big nest:

A walk through Ames Nowell State Park in Abington with some camera club friends:

A visit to our friend's Sugarhouse in Barton VT:

And a photo outing with friends from the blinds at the Daniel Webster Wildlife Sanctuary in Marshfield.

April brought a visit to the Bridgewater State College Observatory with my camera club, where I was able to attach my camera to a telescope and photograph the planet Saturn!

Mothers Day in May brought the opportunity to catch my Mom with her newest Great granchild, Sawyer:

The Abington sygnets were born in May:

And some newborn goslings as well:

June brought a camera club trip to Baxter State Park in Maine:

Miss J's baby shower had a surprise visit from Chef Gordon Ramsey:

July brought a visit to the running of the cows at Buttonwood Farms in Griswold CT, again with my camera club friends:

In August, we were waiting the arrival of Miss J and Steve's baby:

And we celebrated the folk's 91st birthday!

September our lives changed in the most incredible and amazing way....more than I could even imagine...with the birth of our grandaughter Ryleigh on Sept 13th.

She was even smiling on the day she was born......

September also brought a Foliage Photography trip to the NEK of VT with camera club. Too many images to share from the wonderful trip so here is one random image:

October brought yet another camera club trip....this time to Stepstone Falls in RI:

November brought Ryleigh's Christening:

And a walk around War Memorial Park in West Bridgewater:

December was a lot of fun photographing Ryleigh:

A trip to Edaville Railroad with camera club:

And the final image I took in 2013 was taken yesterday, on New Years Eve, as Abington welcomed home Sgt. Daniel Vasselian, a hometown hero who was killed while serving in Afghanistan. This image is a symbol of Patriotism, innocence during times of tragedy, and the promise of new beginnings.

May you and your families be blessed this year, and I wish you good luck, good light, and good photo opportunities!!!

With much love,

Carol