Sprinting into Fall...

It's been such a long time since my last posting and so much has happened.

In August, I celebrated my golden birthday. My sisters all flew in to celebrate with me and we spent a glorious weekend at the Phoenician's fabulous pool and talked and laughed and truly had time to appreciate each other for the first time I can ever remember.

Which leads me to my next comment: Sisters are wonderful!

A mere 2 weeks later, my parents arrived by plane on my Dad's 76th birthday. After 6 years of annual visits to take a break from Vermont winters, my folks finally placed their home on the market and made the move to sunny Arizona. While Dad was not feeling his best, we managed to celebrate his birthday and start their househunting that very weekend. After seeing 3 homes, they put an offer in on the 2nd house they toured, which was accepted on Labor Day. The following week, my Dad was admitted to the hospital. Thanks to Vickie, my amazing friend and super-realtor, my folks became homeowners during my Dad's hospitalization and after a few very tense and tearful days, we we were able to bring Dad directly to their new home. The new house is starting to look and feel like home. Dad is getting better with every new day. And I am enjoying dinners on the patio with my parents and watching them settling into life as Arizona residents.

Thanks to my wonderful family and friends, who have helped me survive the whirlwind month of September. I couldn't have done it with out you.

I've enjoyed a fairly mundane (dare I say boring) October so far.

Let's see what November has in store...

Celebrating Sisters

My sister's birthday is right after the New Year - January 2nd to be precise. Finding the right gift for my sister isn't easy. But this year, I think I hit a home run. My sister is specific about her wants and needs. I searched for a suitable gift for her tastes and my wallet and this year, from the feedback I received from my sister, I think I find the perfect combination.

Of my sisters many traits and talents, she is an avid reader and writer. While shopping on http://www.theliteracysite.com/ store, under the Gifts That Give More section, I found I could make a donation that would send 2 girls to school in Afghanistan for a Year. The ad mentioned the Central Asia Institute, a non-profit organization supporting community-based education program in Central Asia. Wanting more information, I went online to http://www.ikat.org/ to learn more. It was during that process, I learned about Greg Mortenson, the CAI, and a book entitled, Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace, One School At A Time. Satisfied that this was a cause my sister would most certainly support, I made a donation in her name and purchased a copy of the book, which I had shipped to her house.

I was thrilled to hear from my sister when the book arrived. Apparently, the book was already on her "to read" list. I was more excited to learn how touched she was learning about the donation to send the 2 girls to school. As we chatted back and forth online, she wrote to me exactly what I was thinking - we both hope the two girls they send to school with our donation are sisters.

Happy Birthday, Sis!