Friday fun slid into Saturday afternoon party mode! Family and friends gathered and enjoyed the lovely weather, delish food, great company, and many laughs! Party on Mom!
Speaking of food...here's Jack spearing the lamb...
Every good Greek gathering should have a few nice hunks of lamb roasting on the spit....basted with lemon, butter, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper...and the main ingredient??? Beer! I don't drink it, but I'll be glad to baste with it!
Two of my favorite men, Jack and my brother Phil. ( I have 3 other brothers who are also in my "fav men" club!)... When I was young he always told me he was going inspect my boyfriends and if they weren't up to par he was going to kick their butt.....Unfortunately for him he had to go to war in the 60's...fortunately for me he really didn't inspect my dates....hey, I'm no bone head, I had good examples of what I should look for in a man and I found that in Jack....and he and Phil get along wonderful. It helps that Jack can also work on Phil's aches and pains and make him all better!
The party Princess receiving some awesome gifts...No matter the age, gifts are fun!
This is Fr. Damien...he and Mom have been friends for many years. He's been there for our family in good times and bad and we have come to love him. He's promised to come and visit one day soon. He wants to see and visit the Amish..that should be interesting! Now I'm going to just show some pics of the characters of this special day. I sat and watched my nieces and nephews with their children and found it hard to believe how time has passed. My siblings and I used to be the kiddos running crazy...we used to be the Moms and Dads chasing our own kids. The torch has been passed and we are so blessed with good health, happiness, and close knit relatives that love to celebrate life:
Amy and Parker...(the newest kiddo on the block at 3mos old)
Her Daughter Ella..almost 2!
My Nephew's little girl Alexa...she's 1-1/2 and all cuteness with her curly locks!
Amy is a nurse and my brother Jim burned his hand doing a repair on his car on his drive up from Georgia....she took matters into her hands and fixed him up! It was pretty bad and swelling..she did good! And she did it all with a cigar in her mouth! (Not hers....my brother's!) There were many more faces I could have shown here, but time and space make it impossible...but the final shots are of the lady of the hour. My Mom...(her name is Mary)
Working side by side with her as we made some Greek food.
I'm going to close with a picture of her hands. I always thought she had the most capable hands in the world. I remember going to the hospital where she worked (and where I later worked as an adult). Mom was the switchboard supervisor and I would sit at the switchboard with her and marvel as she plugged and unplugged those phone lines...that's how it was done in those days....I will always remember her working in the kitchen and teaching me how to cook....her hands trying to teach me to sew...not my talent at all, my Sister was the seamstress! Her hands grabbing a tissue..adding a little spit and cleaning out ears in the car on the way to church! Her hands guiding me in life....holding my hand...letting it go when I married. Holding my kiddos...clapping at our successes...holding tissues when the tears needed wiped....waving goodbye as we leave after each visit. I get to help hold her hand every now and then....yes, the torch has been handed to us too.....So we will continue to celebrate each birthday, holiday and any time we can gather as a family in the way we were taught...with those capable, loving hands. Happy Birthday Mom!
16 comments:
I love all of your posts about family gatherings. It is so wonderful that you get together often to have fun and enjoy each other. Your mom is awesome! Very hard to believe that she is 87.
This is a wonderful follow-up post, dear YaYa! I still think your mother, Mary, looks very young for her age. I appreciated your picture of her hands and your paragraph explaining all they have come to symbolize. The adoration you have for your mother is apparent in these two posts. I made a mental image of Eddy running off with that lamb roast! (LOL) As you might know the city of Tarpon Springs, located not far from where I live, has the highest percentage of Greek Americans of any city in the country. I have visited several times and enjoyed Greek cuisine that's out of this world. Thank you very much, dear friend YaYa, for allowing us to join your mother's birthday celebration along with other members of your delightful family!
Happy Birthday to your mom!
So sweet what you said about your brother.
And your mom has beautiful hands. :) I will look at mine differently from now on.
Such a lovely post and a great post on your mother's hands.
Happy birthday to Mary.
you certainly have good genes.
Cathy
Happy birthday to your sweet mom! And she looks every inch the birthday princess surrounded by her loyal subjects. How wonderful to have had the opportunity to learn to make Greek food from her!
What a leg of lamb! I thought for sure your brother had been burned on it, but nope. A car :). You've learned a lot from the hands of your mother. Including how to party, I assume :)?
Family Gatherings are always a good thing. Happy Birthday to your Mom. God Bless her. I told my husband about the Butterfly, it reminded him so much about his brother.
That last shot of her hands gave me goosebumps after your call tonight! Like the butterfly and white feathers, you Greeks are clairvoyant or more.
Happy Birthday to your sweet mother and speedy recovery!!!!
Looks like a beautiful weekend in Chicago.
Such a warm and lovely post today. Your mom looks very special. I love how you all make time for family celebrations. Beutiful family.
Hugs,
JB
Family get togethers and Mom's. So wonderful. I am now in your mother's position. The eldest person in my family. Hard to believe. Little girls are fantastic little things. It looks like you have a perfectly wonderful day..as did we. :)
YA Ya so nice to have wonderful close knit loving family ties ... thanks so much or sharing them.
Reading this just made me feel sad about your mom's wrists all over again. Especially the picture of her dear hands.
Hope she mends quickly! And I'm glad she had a happy day.
Oh your beautiful family.. from your mother down to those darling wee ones. What a fine celebration. I'm SO sorry to read that your mother has since broken her wrists. How very painful that must be for her. I will keep her in my best thoughts and hope she has a speedy recovery. Hugs to you.
87!! That is amazing. Your mom looks beautiful as do all the other ladies in your family. Those little ones are precious. What a great celebration and a lovely tribute to your Mom. I hope she is doing better and better each day.
What great pictures and stories!!!!
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