Joanna's Blog
A native of Lockport and a graduate of SUNY Fredonia, I never wandered far from Western New York, and that's fine with me. I love it here. It's my home, and where my husband and I are raising our girls. We wouldn't have it any other way!
There are fathers and their sons, and there are fathers and their daughters. Believe me, nothing is as powerful as the relationship between a father and his daughters. I should know. I come from a family of girls and have my own family of girls. Dads adore and are very protective of their girls.
My daughters have their Dad wrapped around their little finger. They ask, and he melts.
Occasionally in the morning, my 7-year old will wake me to show off the latest trinket her father has bought for her. I always get the same response from him. "She really wanted it." "It wasn't that expensive."
I admit the little one with her huge eyes and long, dark lashes can be pretty convincing when she is determined to get something, especially when those eyes get all wet with tears and her soft cheeks turn red. We do our best to stand our ground, but my husband is more apt to give in.
That's a bit surprising for a man who grew up with very few girls. He has two brothers and lost his mom to cancer at a very young age. I bet he never imagined that he would grow up surrounded by women. There's me, our two daughters, our dog who's female, and even our goldfish is a girl!
I have to admit he's adjusted just fine. I used to wonder if he wished we had a boy to share his love of sports and to take out on the golf course. Then I realized, he does that with his daughters! He just bought the little one her first set of clubs. Pink, of course!
I salute my husband this Father's Day. For making the women in his life feel loved and protected. For showing us what a good father really is. And yes, for spoiling us now and again!
My daughters have their Dad wrapped around their little finger. They ask, and he melts.
Occasionally in the morning, my 7-year old will wake me to show off the latest trinket her father has bought for her. I always get the same response from him. "She really wanted it." "It wasn't that expensive."
I admit the little one with her huge eyes and long, dark lashes can be pretty convincing when she is determined to get something, especially when those eyes get all wet with tears and her soft cheeks turn red. We do our best to stand our ground, but my husband is more apt to give in.
That's a bit surprising for a man who grew up with very few girls. He has two brothers and lost his mom to cancer at a very young age. I bet he never imagined that he would grow up surrounded by women. There's me, our two daughters, our dog who's female, and even our goldfish is a girl!
I have to admit he's adjusted just fine. I used to wonder if he wished we had a boy to share his love of sports and to take out on the golf course. Then I realized, he does that with his daughters! He just bought the little one her first set of clubs. Pink, of course!
I salute my husband this Father's Day. For making the women in his life feel loved and protected. For showing us what a good father really is. And yes, for spoiling us now and again!
Everybody in the pool! Well, everybody who can fit! Yes, our household is on our second Intex blow up pool. I'm sure you've seen them. Those blue round pools that come with their own filter.
I bought one last summer on a whim. Actually, I bought it because it was on sale. $79.99 for a pool 12-feet long and 36 inches deep. Perfect for the six year old in the house. It turned out to be the best investment. Last summer was hot and humid, and she was in it constantly!
In fact, we got so much use out of it, we wore it out! Oh, we tried to revive it this Memorial Day weekend. I thought it would be an even greater deal if I could get two summers out of a $79.99 pool. No such luck.
The filter, that started acting up at the end of last summer, was officially dead. Not even sputtering anymore. And the pool was looking lopsided. The clincher was the round inflatable ring around the pool. It was losing air. Despite plugging holes with our repair kit, they just kept coming. Our first Intex pool was done.
So, last Sunday when I ran out to Target to get a white T-shirt for my daughter's project, I thought I'd just look at the Intex pools for sale. I stumbled on what I thought was the exact pool we had. The price: $79.99. I bought it.
Well, it turned out this year's model was a little different. It is 12-feet wide, but only 30 inches deep. I hadn't noticed that in the store. I should have realized that when the price was the same, and it wasn't marked on sale.
I was afraid my now 7-year old would be disappointed, but she had the typical response for a young child excited to have another pool: she didn't really notice. Lucky me.
Oh, I know I could have sprung for the bigger Intex pools. Some run as high as $500. I just can't justify that kind of cash for a few months of swimming and the chance that the expensive one will spring a leak.
Let's just hope this summer is as warm as the last one, and we can wear this pool out, too! Happy Swimming!!!
I bought one last summer on a whim. Actually, I bought it because it was on sale. $79.99 for a pool 12-feet long and 36 inches deep. Perfect for the six year old in the house. It turned out to be the best investment. Last summer was hot and humid, and she was in it constantly!
In fact, we got so much use out of it, we wore it out! Oh, we tried to revive it this Memorial Day weekend. I thought it would be an even greater deal if I could get two summers out of a $79.99 pool. No such luck.
The filter, that started acting up at the end of last summer, was officially dead. Not even sputtering anymore. And the pool was looking lopsided. The clincher was the round inflatable ring around the pool. It was losing air. Despite plugging holes with our repair kit, they just kept coming. Our first Intex pool was done.
So, last Sunday when I ran out to Target to get a white T-shirt for my daughter's project, I thought I'd just look at the Intex pools for sale. I stumbled on what I thought was the exact pool we had. The price: $79.99. I bought it.
Well, it turned out this year's model was a little different. It is 12-feet wide, but only 30 inches deep. I hadn't noticed that in the store. I should have realized that when the price was the same, and it wasn't marked on sale.
I was afraid my now 7-year old would be disappointed, but she had the typical response for a young child excited to have another pool: she didn't really notice. Lucky me.
Oh, I know I could have sprung for the bigger Intex pools. Some run as high as $500. I just can't justify that kind of cash for a few months of swimming and the chance that the expensive one will spring a leak.
Let's just hope this summer is as warm as the last one, and we can wear this pool out, too! Happy Swimming!!!
I am going back to my high school tomorrow. I have been asked to speak at "Moving Up Day" for students at North Park Middle School who will be attending Lockport High School this fall.
Despite working and living not far from my alma mater, I have only been back there a few times since I graduated in 1983. Boy, does time fly!
Today, I took some time to think about what I might say to these kids. It's been a while since I walked those halls, but I do know that high school was much more fun when I became a more involved student.
My senior year was spent on the yearbook staff and as a writer for the school newspaper. I remember receiving Most Valuable Staffer from both of those activities. I also played in the band and took part in synchronized swimming. I created memories and friendships that still exist today.
Besides encouraging them to join school clubs, I'm also going to tell them to think about their future. I know they are young, but I believe it's never too early to start considering a possible career path. The sooner they are thinking about that, the better chance they'll stay on track with it. And, I want them to know that they have the potential to do anything they wish.
Finally, but most importantly, I'm going to tell them to be good to each other. Bullying has been around for a long time, but I feel there's a new intensity to it these days, especially with the advent of social media. Treating everyone with respect seems like a no-brainer, but since we have so many adults who have never grasped the idea, we can't expect a lot of our kids to get it.
Despite so much uncertainty in our world, I have a lot of hope for this class of 2015. Just like the dozens of graduates who came before these students at LHS, I'm sure there will be many who will make us proud!
Despite working and living not far from my alma mater, I have only been back there a few times since I graduated in 1983. Boy, does time fly!
Today, I took some time to think about what I might say to these kids. It's been a while since I walked those halls, but I do know that high school was much more fun when I became a more involved student.
My senior year was spent on the yearbook staff and as a writer for the school newspaper. I remember receiving Most Valuable Staffer from both of those activities. I also played in the band and took part in synchronized swimming. I created memories and friendships that still exist today.
Besides encouraging them to join school clubs, I'm also going to tell them to think about their future. I know they are young, but I believe it's never too early to start considering a possible career path. The sooner they are thinking about that, the better chance they'll stay on track with it. And, I want them to know that they have the potential to do anything they wish.
Finally, but most importantly, I'm going to tell them to be good to each other. Bullying has been around for a long time, but I feel there's a new intensity to it these days, especially with the advent of social media. Treating everyone with respect seems like a no-brainer, but since we have so many adults who have never grasped the idea, we can't expect a lot of our kids to get it.
Despite so much uncertainty in our world, I have a lot of hope for this class of 2015. Just like the dozens of graduates who came before these students at LHS, I'm sure there will be many who will make us proud!
It's all the buzz. Oprah's final show tomorrow after 25 years on the air, and I can't wait until it's all over.
First, I need to say that when Oprah arrived on the national TV scene in 1986, I loved her. She was so refreshingly different from all the rest.
I never really had the desire to watch Phil Donahue or Sally Jesse Raphael, but when Oprah came on, she immediately drew you into the show. You felt an instant closeness to her. Probably because she was so REAL.
No airs about her at all. She said what all of us really felt. She was just as star-struck as all of us when she met famous people. She had some bad hair and clothes days, like we all experience. And she even struggled with her weight. How more real can you get?
Over the years, I watched her fit into her Calvin Klein jeans (I was so proud of her). I enjoyed watching her take on the beef industry in Texas, and open a school for girls in South Africa. But my opinion started to change with the "Everybody Gets A Car Show". It was done on the first day of a television ratings month. I thought... this seems more like a ratings ploy than a generous gesture toward viewers.
That show was followed by more shows that appeared to be more about good PR for Oprah than anything else. Then, she began to pontificate about the public good she was doing and how she is much more than a talk show host. She is, but the lack of humility was starting to bug me.
Oprah, no doubt, is a huge television figure whose impact is unsurpassed. I still subscribe to "O Magazine" because it features inspirational stories from many different sources. I even enjoyed reading Kitty Kelley's unauthorized biography, "Oprah". But I am growing tired of the TV Oprah and say it's time for her to move on.
First, I need to say that when Oprah arrived on the national TV scene in 1986, I loved her. She was so refreshingly different from all the rest.
I never really had the desire to watch Phil Donahue or Sally Jesse Raphael, but when Oprah came on, she immediately drew you into the show. You felt an instant closeness to her. Probably because she was so REAL.
No airs about her at all. She said what all of us really felt. She was just as star-struck as all of us when she met famous people. She had some bad hair and clothes days, like we all experience. And she even struggled with her weight. How more real can you get?
Over the years, I watched her fit into her Calvin Klein jeans (I was so proud of her). I enjoyed watching her take on the beef industry in Texas, and open a school for girls in South Africa. But my opinion started to change with the "Everybody Gets A Car Show". It was done on the first day of a television ratings month. I thought... this seems more like a ratings ploy than a generous gesture toward viewers.
That show was followed by more shows that appeared to be more about good PR for Oprah than anything else. Then, she began to pontificate about the public good she was doing and how she is much more than a talk show host. She is, but the lack of humility was starting to bug me.
Oprah, no doubt, is a huge television figure whose impact is unsurpassed. I still subscribe to "O Magazine" because it features inspirational stories from many different sources. I even enjoyed reading Kitty Kelley's unauthorized biography, "Oprah". But I am growing tired of the TV Oprah and say it's time for her to move on.
I can tell you what she was wearing on the first day of Kindergarten. A green skirt, red sweater and saddle back shoes.
I can remember putting her on the bus and worrying the whole morning until she came home at lunchtime.
When she was in first grade, I felt worse. I worried even more about her eating lunch at school. Would she know what to do without me there?
Fast forward 15 years. She's now graduating college. Can it be? It seems like yesterday she graduated from high school.
Yes, this weekend is a big one. My daughter gets her Bachelor in Music Education.
I know I will cry when I hear Pomp and Circumstance, the graduation song. I always do. Even if I don't know anyone graduating.
There's something about that tune and what it signifies that gets me choked up. I don't know if I am remembering my own graduation or if it's the sense of accomplishment when earning a degree.
Just like every parent, I am so proud of my daughter. She discovered her passion for music in high school. After years of playing the violin, she picked up the trumpet in her junior year and fell in love.
Now she wants to be a band director and especially enjoys teaching music to special needs students. Before she heads out on her job search, she'll be pursuing a Masters degree, possibly in music therapy. Another field that has inspired her.
I don't know what the future brings, but I know her musical talent, sweet disposition and compassion for others will make the world a better place. I can only pray, as someone once told me, that the rain that falls will be gentle.
I can remember putting her on the bus and worrying the whole morning until she came home at lunchtime.
When she was in first grade, I felt worse. I worried even more about her eating lunch at school. Would she know what to do without me there?
Fast forward 15 years. She's now graduating college. Can it be? It seems like yesterday she graduated from high school.
Yes, this weekend is a big one. My daughter gets her Bachelor in Music Education.
I know I will cry when I hear Pomp and Circumstance, the graduation song. I always do. Even if I don't know anyone graduating.
There's something about that tune and what it signifies that gets me choked up. I don't know if I am remembering my own graduation or if it's the sense of accomplishment when earning a degree.
Just like every parent, I am so proud of my daughter. She discovered her passion for music in high school. After years of playing the violin, she picked up the trumpet in her junior year and fell in love.
Now she wants to be a band director and especially enjoys teaching music to special needs students. Before she heads out on her job search, she'll be pursuing a Masters degree, possibly in music therapy. Another field that has inspired her.
I don't know what the future brings, but I know her musical talent, sweet disposition and compassion for others will make the world a better place. I can only pray, as someone once told me, that the rain that falls will be gentle.
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