The Things At Which I Used To Be Good

I was watching the Olympics with the little boys and they know that I used to figure skate when I was a kid, so they were asking me if I could still skate...could I skate backwards...could I do any jumps, etc.  It made me realize that they've never been ice-skating with me and we will have to try and fix that this winter.  It also made me sad to think about something that I used to have skill in, hours spent learning a sport or instrument or subject, at which now I would merely stumble around.  So without further ado, here is an incomplete list of THE THINGS AT WHICH I USED TO BE GOOD:

FIGURE SKATING

I took ice skating lessons from ages 6-11 I believe.  We would have a big show once a year and perform in a group number.  I loved ice skating, but what I really loved was skating fast and dangerous.  If there had been a Speed Skater group, I would have joined that instead of figure skating.

VIOLIN

In elementary school, we were able to have string instrument group lessons, so I chose violin.  When I went to a private school, the lessons stopped.  I played for about five years and picked it up easily.  I was a member of the Cape Cod Youth Symphony Orchestra and we would play in the mall at Christmas time and I thought that was a very big deal - ha!

CALCULUS

Guys, I was a math nerd.  When someone would ask me what I wanted to be, I would say "I just want to sit at a desk all day and do math" and voila! accounting! (sort of).  Numbers just make sense to me - black and white - no feelings or thoughts involved.  In high school, I took a summer math class voluntarily so that I could skip ahead and complete two full years of Calculus in high school.  The love I had for math was strong, so it makes me very saddened to realize that I couldn't do more than basic calculus problems right now.  I've still got a strong hold on Algebra though!

FRENCH

I took French as a subject from grades 8-12 and we were only allowed to speak French in the classroom starting in grade 11.  Although I was never able to speak it fluently, I was able to read and write French tres bien.  My name in French class was Annette, nicknamed "Anne" and I miss that jolie petite fille.

SKIING

Because we owned ice cream shops, we couldn't take summer vacations and used to go skiing in the winter instead.  I started skiing at age four and was a speed demon with no patience for going back and forth across a mountain, just straight down.  Now with the price of skiing and the size of our family, I haven't been since college, and I would probably fall and break a hip anyways.

I went looking for photos of me ice skating and playing violin, but came up with these for now.  I'm still searching!

Baby Colleen Margaret

I have 5 siblings, but most of my pictures are with my little sister because we were the last two.

One popsicle, why?

My little sister rode horses, I did it once at a camp and got thrown off.

I think this was in Colonial Williamsburg

How about you?  What old talents of yours do you miss most?

Week in Review: Olympic Excitement, Spectacular Sunsets, Family Togetherness, and Superbowl Sundae

 Happy February Friday!

This week brought the stomach bug to the parents in the Martin house, and while the male species got a mild case, the female didn't know if she was going to make it through the night.  But she did!  With the male's help, whatta guy.  He was also the cause of spread virus but still, it was as romantic as it gets nowadays.

I'm very excited for the Olympics to start and hoping the Opening Ceremony doesn't offend my faith this time.  

What were they thinking?

Let's just have a nice non-political celebration of these awesome individuals who make me cry because they are so talented and determined and strong, m'kay?  Also me:

Catholic Schools Week got split into two weeks due to snow days, and the only photos I got were of the "Parent Picnic" where Maggie got to appear as the third parent she's pretended to be all her life:

It was also crazy hair and wear your clothes backwards day, in case you think he always looks like this.

And the 100 Days of School, where Declan turned his favorite bball player into the number 100 and Brendan dressed as a centenarian who has fallen one too many times and now wears a life alert (he just wanted an excuse to wear Maggie's old boot):

Week in Review: Snow Globe, Prom Dress Stress, and a Fitness Faux Pas

 Happy last Friday in January!  Did y'all het hammered with snow and/or cold temps this past week?  We sure did!

JP's roommate digging out in Pittsburgh

Grandpa looking at the snow drift outside the window

Andrew's view of campus

Eamon + friends playing in the snow

Week in Review: Say it Ain't Snow, Skin and Bones, Tata Toys and Anyone Have a Meatball Recipe?

 Happy Friday!  Winter has certainly arrived in Massachusetts, and driving home from watching the Patriots game at my brother's house was frightful.  I put the Rosary on and we prayed our way home.

But it was worth watching the Pats win and *most likely* go to the Superbowl.  My niece's boyfriend is working in construction on a house across the street from Drake Maye's house, and his wife Ann, who is famous for being the cutest baker, brought over cookies one day to the crew.  How sweet!

Phil made pigs-in-blankets and I made a Maple Dijon dipping sauce and those suckers got eaten up fast!

Week(s) in Review: Back to Ordinary Life

Happy Friday!  I'm looking forward to a three-day weekend as these five day workweeks after Christmas break have felt extra long.  Do you feel the same?

JP went back to Pittsburgh on Dec. 31 because he had to fly out to a wedding in Nebraska on Jan. 1 (he did a reading) and school started back up for him on Jan. 5.  He loves any chance he has to get back with his college buddies!

There was one night this week that I looked at the kids' locations and I saw JP and Andrew were 1 building away from each other in Pittsburgh.  Turns out JP was still at school studying and Andrew was at a Duquesne basketball game with friends.  So close!

Christmas Break 2025: Disney Springs, Aquatica, Celebration and New Year's in Maryland

On the day after Christmas (and a long park day at Busch Gardens) we stayed at the resort for the day.  The bigs played pickleball before swimming, and the littles just swam all day:

After showering and dinner, we surprised the kids with some Christmas gifts!  We had originally asked them if they would rather have gifts or a vacation for Christmas, and they chose a vacation unanimously.  But then JP mentioned wanting an instant pot for his apartment, and Eamon needed a winter coat, and my mother's heart couldn't only buy two kids gifts...so one purchase led to another, multiply by seven and carry a one to make it all "fair" and we ended up with some presents for everyone.  They really had no clue, so it was extra fun to give them gifts: