Thank you, Lord, for Patriots Day! April 22, 2008

The good people of New England have been kind enough to make up a whole holiday…one that means a day off from work for most Bostonians…one that just so happens to coincide with the Boston Marathon…and that holiday is called Pariots Day!  All I know for sure is that this blessed holiday meant that my Mom and my Aunt Cindy could come visit for a long weekend and this was SOOO sweet and precious and full and fun!!

On Friday I met Mom and Cindy at the airport and we, of course, had to begin photo-documenting straight away.

 

On Friday, we went to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, a popular spot in Boston’s Fenway area.  Then we did the all important work of gathering provisions for the weekend (translation: grocery store and liquor store!).  For Friday evening, we went to my and Eric’s favorite neighborhood Irish pub, O’Leary’s.  Eric, Harish and Dasha eventually joined us.  However, by that point, the “old bags” (their words, not mine!) were more than ready for bed.  And we had a VERY exciting Day Two planned…

 

 

 

 

Day Two (Saturday) was WHALE WATCHING!!!  This was really fun!  We arrived at Boston’s Long Wharf area, got on the boat and set out 21 miles from shore!  We saw lots of whales, mostly humpbacks.  Of couse, we captured few (if any) truly representative photos.  And we had even given up trying when three whales came really close to our boat!!  (Isn’t that always how it happens?!)  I thank the Lord for Patriots Day AND for Dramemine!  Apparently, there were a LOT of people getting sick on this boat.  But not us!  We may have been medicated, but we were freely enjoying the majesty before us! 

Then we had lunch at Ned Devine’s (more Irish pub lovin’) and walked through Boston’s historic Quincy Market/Fenuil Hall area.  Then we seriously needed a nap!  Well…actually, Eric and I seriously needed a nap.  So much for Mom and Cindy being old bags!  They were running laps around us!!  Later that night, we enjoyed a trip to a nearby dessert restaurant called Athan’s and shared four AMAZING desserts between the four of us.  Then we went home and watched Juno and ate popcorn and just chilled.  It was grand!  (And Juno is still one of the best movies I’ve ever seen!!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

There’s a white boat top left, but if you look closely in the middle, you can see a black stripe and some mist.  That’s a whale.  I promise.

 

I realize it looks like I’m competing for Loch Ness Moster photos, but that really is the fin of a hump back whale!

 

You can TOTALLY tell that’s a fin!  RIGHT?! 

 

 

This was Cindy’s first time to Boston and first time ever on a Subway, which was fun for everyone!  Also, it was on Cindy’s “bucket list” to go whale watching, so check that one off!!

 

 

 

Sunday started with church at Mosaic Boston.  Mom and Cindy got to meet the wonderful women in my Small Group – Heather, Megan and Cindy – as well as our fabulous pastor and lots of other friends.  (On a random side note, it was my mom who decided our Small Group was really a Tiny Group.  We group members thought that was so cute and funny, we proudly call ourselves that!)

Our Mosaic community always extends the worship beyond the “service” with a group lunch so we gladly partook.  We went on to visit the Charles River and Beacon Hill area.  Then we all walked around the Public Gardens (all good pictures were taken on Mom and Cindy’s cameras, so I got nothin’ for ya there other than some slightly questionable pictures with the sculpture inspired by the children’s book, Make Way for Duckling…) and THEN we went back to the apartment to get ready for our fun Sunday night surprise…

Mom, Cindy, Eric and I all went to The Beehive, this fabulous restaurant/club where we at great food and listened to live music.  It was so fun!!

 

(Yes, those are fold-out lunch tables that the YMCA where we hold services so graciously let us borrow.  ‘Cause that’s how we roll.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our final day together was a very exciting one!!  Nothing could have prepared us (or, me at least!) for the BUZZ and EXCITEMENT of the Boston Marathon!  Of course, it helps that my apartment is ON the route!!!  And it’s fairly close to the end – between miles 24 and 25 of the 26.2 mile race.  It was very cool and inspiring to see the wheelchair racers first, then the elite women, then men…then tens of thousands (literally) of people running by while we clapped and cheered.  It was SO FUN!!  Definitely something you can’t get anywhere else (there are other marathons but I’m told there’s truly only one like the Boston Marathon!) 

After that we had to do the VERY sad task of taking Mom and Cindy to the airport.  Oh, it was so good and sweet and wonderful to feel the loving embrace of my Mommy!  And so hard to feel it for the last time for a while.  (I don’t have my next trip planned but I’m hoping to travel to Kansas the week that July 4 falls within.)  So as with any time spent with family and friends, the parting full of sorrow…and there isn’t much sweet about THAT!  However, Eric and I both are SO grateful for all Mom and Cindy did for us (who was hosting whom here?!) and SO grateful for the great conversations, experiences and laughs we all shared.  THANK YOU, MOM AND CINDY!!!  WE LOVE YOU AND MISS YOU ALREADY!!!

 

This one is from my apartment a while before the marathon got into full swing.

 

And this is looking in about the same direction at the height of the marathon.  That sea of people you see heading off into the distance is hundreds of runners and thousands of fans.

 

 

 

 

PS: Yes, I shamelessly asked my family to wear Horizons for Homeless Children t-shirts, supporting our Boston Marathon Run for Homeless Children team.  No one complained: They matched our sunburns from whale watching perfectly!

 

PPS: And yes, I am trying to break the record – not for running – but for longest blog post EVER…  Did I win?…

Happy holidays!!! January 2, 2008

It was tough to back to work today in Boston after a fabulous and much-needed break in Kansas.  Once again, I was a complete failure as a photographer in that I forgot repeatedly to actually take pictures of all the great time I enjoyed with friends and family.  For example, Eric and I joined my dad, step mom and sister for a road trip to Waverly, Kansas, where my brother is the Chief Butthead – er, Police Chief – and my sister in law is beautiful and pregnant AND my neices were able to make it…yeah…I forgot to snap a single picture.  And friends from all over came to visit me and Eric at The Anchor in Wichita Thursday night.  It was so, so good to see everyone!  Too bad you can’t see everyone.  ‘Cause I forgot to take pictures!! 

Next time I’ll have my mommy pin a note to my shirt…upside down…

My first stop was the Newton Szambecki house for Xmas Eve and Morning with Dad, Martha and Katie.  Santa was very generous to Katie – she got a second American Girl doll (Julie now joins Emily, for you AG connoisseurs) and we had lots of fun playing with those and our other new toys.

On Christmas night, Eric and Anna came over to my mom and step dad’s for dinner, joined by my Aunt Cindy and Uncle Mike.  Again, I suck at capturing actual evidence of this fact, but I did get a good picture of the special gift Eric bought for Izzy for Xmas.  The goose you see below was a big hit…it also made a noise like a dying goat so Grandma and Grandpa had to put it up at night, lest they choke Izzy and Rowdy with it….

I filled up the days following with lots of visits and meals with lots of good friends and family.  I managed ONE picture!  (For the record, I maintain that I failed as a documentarian because I was so focused on and present to those friends and family!!)

This is my very good friend, Frances.  And she’s not just a good friend because she was the person who helped me get my Il Vicino fix!

I got to spend lots of times with the Eden’s throughout the week.  Amanda brought to girls to my mom’s for a little Xmas cheer.  We all had a great time.  And even though she didn’t even open any gifts, the whole thing obviously wore Izzy out…

Cute shot of the dogs…  (Because I can remember to get my camera then apparently!…)

Here is me with my mommy and Richard the night before I left to go back to Boston.  Thanks for taking such good care of me, you two!!

And the most fabulous family picture taken (thanks to my mom) of the Newton/Boston Szambecki’s…

Eric and I were on different flights back to Boston, so we didn’t get to see much of each other until New Year’s Eve, when we had a low-key dinner with some new friends, Fred and Stephanie.  Steph works at Arnold with Eric and Fred is a very popular radio dj.  They both had lots of good stories to tell!  We had a great time with them and were grateful that they’d invite us to join their New Year’s dinner reservation!!

I start my new job on Monday and will try to take lots of good pictures (without looking like too much of a dweeb on my first day) for posting. 

May your first days of the 2008 be filled with the knowledge that God alone can make all things new!

So Much to be Thankful For November 29, 2007

A running theme throughout this blog has been how the Lord has been showing me that my true Home is in Him, not a house on Belmont Street in Wichita nor a brownstone on Beacon Street in Boston.  I’m often uncomfortable, homesick, anxious and out of sorts here in this brand new place.  But I’ve also felt so good and right about making this move and the reasons for making it.  This Thanksgiving holiday weekend – or more specifically, the journey home (back to Boston, that is) – affirmed this in a profound way.

It was gut-wrenching to leave my friends and family (again), and agonizing to leave my dog (again), and just plain sad to leave beautiful Kansas, with its relatively long days and exceptionally breath-taking sunsets (again!)  However, I went from airport to plane to airport to plane to airport on Sunday evening with a great sense of peace, and joy in thinking about the man I was holding hands with through all those airports and on all those planes.  Eric and I were both content to look forward together to getting back into the groove of our lives in the place where we live now…our earhtly homes…together. 

Now.  If you’ve finished wiping up the mess from throwing up, here are some pictures from the trip.  I will say that it’s a reflection of how busy I was (in a good way) that I completely forgot to take pictures of almost everything.  Thanks to my Mom, Richard, the whole Unruh/Voth Family, Jeremiah (Chief Szambecki for those who read the comments), Amanda Szambecki, Tessa & Reed (the best nieces EVER), Aunt Cindy, Uncle Mike, Grandma B., Sally Harris, Valarie Florio, The Family Eden, my Dad, Martha, Katie, Pastor Eric Massanari, Pat & Kent Schwieger and everyone at Shalom Mennonite Church for your time, warm hugs and ALL THAT LOVE for me and Eric.  I felt truly truly blessed and surrounded in love I doubt I deserve.

Okay, for reals, the pictures.

I always loved Kansas, but as I said again and again while in Wichita, now I truly APPRECIATE it!  Here’s the beautiful patchwork of colors and fields from the airplane and a picture that doesn’t do its sunset justice:

It was SO good to hold Izzy again… even if she couldn’t breath…

This one’s a little blurry but you get the idea…

I got lots of good times with Amanda and her family.  She once again proves to be the hottest pregnant chic ever!

Here’s the obligatory “aren’t we friggin’ cute?” picture of me and Katie:

Saturday was a big family meal at my Aunt’s with my mom’s side and Eric’s parents.  The tall beautiful young woman is my niece, Tessa…the short adorable one is Reed (we also celebrated Reed’s 6th b-day at the meal).

My Aunt is going to kill me for this one but it’s SO CUTE!!!!!!!!!  And my Uncle will get a kick out of it, which is an added bonus.  (Plus, what is Thanksgiving about if not FOOD?!) 

Thank you to the Schwieger’s for making our Thankgiving even betteer!

Cheesing it up with Richard…

Richard, are you petting that frog?….  Comforting it?….  Burping it???….

And in SECOND place as my favorite picture for the trip….

And the winner is…

As you can see, a beautiful snow surprised us when we woke up Saturday morning.  What a great blessing!  This picture – by my very creative boyfriend – is an ode to a famous east coast picture (famous to us anyway) reprinted below.

And there you have it.  Thanks has indeed been given!

Ready for Wichita, and Boston is empty November 21, 2007

It’s Wednesday night and my neighborhood in Boston, normally brimming with college students and young professionals, is eerily quiet.  It’s even foggy and misty, bordering on creepy!  Everyone who booked earlier than I did – and therefore didn’t have to travel ON Thanksgiving like me and Eric – is gone.  And I’m okay with that!    They’re stuck somewhere thanks to snow storms in Chicago and I’ll have an on time flight with lovely weather everywhere I’m going (Boston to Chicago to Wichita, arriving at 1:30 p.m.)!

And, holy freakin’ holy am I looking forward to going to Wichita!  I keep getting choked up just thinking about hugging my dog’s fat neck, giving Katie eskimo kisses, getting BII-I-I-IG HUGS from Maria and Lucia Eden, and going to church at Shalom Mennonite for the first time in four months…and much much more!  I have a lot to pack in 48 waking hours, but I’ve been pleasently surprised by how gracious and appreciative everyone’s been about this whirlwind trip, instead of demanding and pouty.  Of course, the holiday weekend isn’t over yet.

Along with everyone else you know, please pray for me and Eric for safe and ON TIME travel (we don’t have a minute to spare!), for relaxing time to love on friends and family, and a grateful heart that remains long after the holiday meant to remind us to give thanks.

GIVE THANKS!

Too much goodness for words! November 6, 2007

This last Friday through Monday, I got to see Amanda for the first time since I moved three months ago, see Jessica for the first time in four months, and FINALLY got to meet the newest member of Jessica and Josh’s family, JADON!!!  It was an unbelievable time of being with these amazing friends and just being able to relax with girls instead of have to try to get to know them (as is always the case here in Boston.)

God gave us a lot of open, beautiful space throughout the weekend to talk (if you ask their husbands, all we do is talk non stop…I’m afraid we proved them right this weekend) and bond and love on Jadon and just relax with each other IN PERSON!  We realize that as we continue to scatter and our families continue to grow and change, we’ll have to make more and more effort to make weekends like this happen.  And we all agree without question that the effort is worth it.

So here’s what you really came for:

Here is our Girls Night (thank you, again, Josh!) painting pottery at a place Jessica likes to go to.  We also went and had shi-shi appetizers and generally enjoyed a little kid-free time for all.  (In case you don’t know, Amanda is pregant in these pictures with her third baby; the other two were home watching scary movies and eating candy with dad Chris all weekend.    Another thing the pictures don’t tell you is that Amanda STILL makes the most gloriously sexy pregnant woman the world’s ever seen.)

More Jadon…

Jadon is a very happy baby and is truly a joy to just hang out with!  Continue to keep up with the Gunkel family through the Guatemalan Gunkel blog on the right.  Everyone in this family is so blessed to have been brought together by – and now truly bonded together – by the Lord. 

So nice to finally meet you, Jadon!

A little Family Reunion action October 15, 2007

This weekend was great for many reasons.  The biggest and best reason was that I got to see my Daddy and Martha and Katie!  It had been about two and a half months, which is about two months longer than I’d ever gone without a hug from my parents or tickling Katie, etc.  It was so…the word “healing” comes to mind…theraputic?…and – as expected – terribly sad to drop them off at the Cleveland airport this morning.

“The Cleveland airport?!” you say?  Yes, the other reasons this weekend was great was that I got to rent a car, drive ten hours from Boston to Cleveland, pick up the Fam at the Cleveland airport, and proceed east to Vermillion, Ohio, to see my cousin, Shea get married.  (Keep in mind, I only have four blood cousins all told, so when one gets married, it’s a pretty big deal!)

Shea Szambecki became Mrs. Dave Loper on Saturday in Vermillion and it was such a blessing to not only be with my immediate family, but my extended Szambecki family as well.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.  When I picked everyone up Friday afternoon is Cleveland, there was much fun to be had as we checked into our hotel, got ready for the rehearsal dinner, etc.

For example, I quietly asked Martha if I could offer Katie some of my lipgloss and we quickly became the Lipgloss Twins:

Then we went to the actual dinner but didn’t stay too long because we’d all been up since about 5 a.m. and had a big day the next day!

On Saturday, Katie FINALLY got to try out the hotel pool (because when you’re seven years old, 12 hours is, like, FOREVER!!!) 

Then we got ready for the wedding.  Shea had asked me to be a Program Passer-Outer, so of course, Katie was my Assistant Program Passer Outer:

The best part of all this was reconnecting with my Uncle Tony (my dad’s only sibling with whom my dad shares a special bond, as do I), my Aunt Diane, my Cousin Lee and his new wife Katie, and Shea and now Dave.   Not to mention many friends of Tony’s and family members of Diane and Katie (Lee’s wife), whom we have all become acquainted with over the years.  Anyway, the point is, it was a blast to have my Dad and Uncle Tony telling dirty and/or Polish jokes once again…

After the wedding there was a long delay until the reception, so we went back to the hotel room, took naps, etc.  There was also a little “surprise” birthday party for me where Dad, Martha and Kate presented me with cards, gifts, a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday to You” and lots of needed love.  I not ashamed to admit that I got quite overwhelmed both with how blessed I felt by their gestures as well as how saddened I was thinking about my first birthday away from Wichita.

You can’t stay sad with Katie around for long, though, can you? 

The reception was absolutely beautiful and thanks to the fact that there aren’t that many Szambecki’s to go around in the first place, we got to sit at the same table and Tony & Diane and just one table away from the beautiful newly wed couple.  Tony gave a characteristically hilarious, borderline-offensive, absolutely touching toast, and later danced with his stunning daughter…

While we were mising some very-much-missed Szambecki’s (my brother, his wife and their kids), we attempted to get a decent family shot, which we were mostly successful at doing.

From left to right: Me, Tony, Diane, Shea, Dave, Tom, Katie, Martha, Katie2, and Lee. 

I did get to do some fancy dancing at the reception.  You see, Friday night Katie found a friend, six year old Bella.  They were inseperable at the reception and I felt it my duty to show them such important life skills as disco dancing and how to bring their SexyBack.   Here they are before I got a hold of them:

I also got to dance with my Daddy to a Steely Dan’s “Hey Nineteen” (and if you don’t know what I’m talking about, download it because you should!)

The secondary “hard thing” about the weekend was the 21+ hours of driving up and down US Highway I-90.  The absolute primary hardest thing was saying good bye to my family this morning after basically getting to live with them non-stop for about 36 hours.  Memories of dancing with my dad and getting to engage in some great conversations with Martha and snuggling with Katie will just have to sustain me until Thanksgiving!

Take your Mom to Work Day! September 26, 2007

My mommy came to visit me this last weekend!!!  It was SO wonderful and much-needed to have a HUG from my mommy!  We had a lot of fun and I have a lot of pictures…

When she got here on Friday, I took the T to the airport to meet her and she arrived with the next best thing if she couldn’t bring Izzy:

So that was a nice start to the weekend!   We went to my apartment and unloaded all her stuff, then we went immediately to surprise activity #1, which was a “Duck Tour.”  This is where dippy tourists like ourselves get a ground and water tour of Boston in World War II “ducks” with a slapstick comic for a tour guide.  All the following pictures are from our duck:

This is the USS Constitution, which may be exciting for someone (though not really for me):

After the Duck Tour, it was time to eat.  I simply took her to my favorite local spot, Audubon, for dinner and a drink.  We walked around my neighborhood a bit so she could see my grocery store, some other restaurants I frequent and – as a source of much ridicule for the remainder of the trip – my favorite hardware store (Economy Hardware, a True Value store – it’s the best ever!)

On Saturday, we got up and I took my mom on basically a walking tour of my favorite parts of town.  The good thing about the duck tour was it gave a good overview of the city so when we were on foot, she often knew where we were and what we were looking at.  I took her to Coolidge Corner, Back Bay, Newbury Street, Beacon Hill, the Charles River, the Public Gardens and I’m sure some other places I didn’t even mean to walk us around in.  We ate at Legal Seafood (and the suggestion of many a Kansas resident):

And in the Public Gardens we sat and rested while watchin kids play on the bronze statues inspired by the book, Make Way for Duckling:

Then we needed a NAP!!! 

We got up from our nap and got a little cute because we were planning have dinner with Eric at our favorite restaurant, Franklin Cafe, which is in the trendy South End part of town. http://www.franklincafe.com/  After our fabulous dinner we went for a drink at another cool place called The Beehive…I should say “another” drink…it may be a bit obvious but we were having a pretty good time by then…

Amusingly, it was only about 9 p.m. when these pictures were taken.  We’re getting OLD!    Mom and I tried to watch a movie but we were asleep by, like, 10:30.  Such party animals!  Watch out!!

On Sunday I took my mom to Metropolis Cafe (there’s a picture of Eric in front of it several posts below) for an amazing brunch, then boarded the commuter rail and headed to Salem!  I hadn’t been so it was a lot of fun for both of us.  Aside from the way the city [understandably] capatilizes on witch themes, it was a really pretty town with interesting things to see and do.  We weren’t there very long, but we walked around on the harbor beach, took mom’s picture with a giant ship, took a tour of the House of Seven Gables (made popular by the Nathaniel Hawthorne book of the same name) and found out that – thanks to the witches – The Wizard of Oz was also alive and well on Salem retail shelves.  It was like being in Kansas!

We came back home, went to Trader Joe’s for dinner supplies and wine, and (with the help of Eric) made a FABULOUS dinner at home and watched Bowling for Columbine (because Wichita Blockbuster doesn’t carry documentaries and my mom likes them) and just hung out.

Then on Monday I took my mom to my office to meet Hillel and Dasha and to see my office.  We walked the short “commute” I take every day so she could see that I do in fact look both ways when crossing the street now.

Then, sadly, we had to take her back to the airport.   It was so hard to say goodbye and even harder since she’s been gone.  It’s been like having the trauma (though admittedly less intense) of separating from her and everyone all over again. 

But we had SO many great memories and I’m grateful that she met my roommates and my co-workers and saw with her own eyes pretty much every last thing I regularly see and do in my “new life” in Boston.  It was a real gift to have her here.

And I think she would agree that the queen self-inflating air mattress was VERY comfortable and the City of Boston VERY beautiful, so…you know…guests are encouraged any time!

Thank you, momma, for gifting me with your presence here.  I look forward to your next visit!

Make that TWO Szambecki’s in Boston August 18, 2007

I have a very small family of blood relatives.  Until my dad married my step mom, I only had four cousins and they all lived in other time zones.  I was lucky enough growing up to see a fair bit of my Szambecki cousins (my dad’s brother’s kids); we have a lot of great, common memories of our Grandma and Poppy Szambecki, if nothing else. 

Anyway, my cousin, Lee Szambecki, comes to Boston fairly often for work, so we got to hang out this last Thursday.  He and I met downtown on a beautiful Boston evening and went to his favorite pub (Bell & Hand).  Then Eric met us for dinner and I chose Ye Olde Union Oyster House…just because it had “Ye Olde” in the name. The food was average but the company was exceptional.  We had a great time and look forward to more opportunities to paint the town Polish flag red!

Congratulations, Eric!! August 16, 2007

When Eric was hired several months back to work at Arnold on their newly aquired McDonald’s account, he thought he’d be working on inserts for those plastic things on the tables.  And he did that, I think for about 15 minutes.  That was about how long it took the people at Arnold to figure out what an exceptionally creative copywriter they had on their hands.

Since then, Eric (along with Harish) have been getting lots of high-profile work either given to them or have been approved for stuff like Ocean Spray TV, McDonald’s TV, etc.  And even his less known stuff like a Pearl Vision internal training video is getting such great reviews from the client that they’re showing it to the entire Arnold staff at their “town hall meeting.”  A lot of really positive attention is being paid to Eric and Harish, and for me it definitely feels like an “about time” moment. 

Of course, if anything will be showing in your area, I’ll post that information here ASAP.  (He’s got a bunch of bill boards and other media up around here in Boston, which is SO fun for me to see, like a GIANT bill board that faces into Fenway Park that tens of thousands of people see every day!)

Can you tell I’m a little proud???

Girl’s Night August 16, 2007

My roommate Meg and I planned a fun roommate night tonight.  We met downtown and walked to the North End, which is notorious for its Italian food.  Incidentally, one of the things I really wanted to do In Boston was the stupid touristy stuff, such as visit Paul Revere’s House.

And wouldn’t you know it?!  We just ran into it!!  FUN!

Poor girl didn’t know what she was in for.

So then we stopped at the first Italian place with an old Italian guy out front trying to lure us in.  It was very New York…but in Boston.

Then we went to Mike’s Pastries and both got cannoli’s and it was AMAZING!  No pictures.  Sorry.  We were too busy eating.

So then Meg really got a look at what a weirdo I can be when I asked her to pose next to this random statue that was standing in a public square (with cool shops and live music and fun people) on our way back to the T.  I told her she had to stand like the statue was standing, that I thought that was a fun thing to do.  She bought it.

And thus concluded any girl’s night.

Here’s another invitation to suggest any places you’d like to see pictures of, or places you’ve visited that I should try.  This coming weekend is shaping up to be another good opportunity to explore!