Category Archives: Family

Genealogy and history

Sophia’s Grand Tour

Posted on by annandmeg

When I think about a grand tour, I envision the Italian Riviera, Big Ben, ancient cities and wonderful museums.  But we are talking about Sophia.  She is only two.  Besides, she already lives in the one the world’s most wonderful cities, with its canals, museums and tulips.  So for Sophia, a grand tour involved flying to the United States to see what we have to offer.

Kansas City

Sophia and her mom and dad arrived in Kansas City International Airport for a 3-week vacation to visit relatives and have a change of pace from the cold European winter.  Granddad met her at the airport.

Our schedule revolved around her naps, her bath and her periods of high energy.

Food was always a source of entertainment.  She prefers dark breads, tangy cheeses and her dad’s great cooking. She also ate local foods that were unusual for her.  We tried to remain consistent with mom and dad’s preference that she eat only organic eggs, milk fruits and vegetables.

She visited many of our favorite haunts: including the Country Club Plaza and Kauffman Gardens.  She ate dinner at a lovely little restaurant at 17th and Summit.

Her uncle Bill and Aunt Sherry came to see her.  She spent a lot of quality time with Casey.

Way too soon, it was time for her to leave Kansas City for a week in:

The Heart of Texas

Sophia and her parents flew to Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas to visit family and old friends.  She went to the zoo with her Aunt Christina.

She visited her great aunts and uncle in Springtown, Texas, where she got to get “up close and personal” with cattle and donkeys on the family farm.  

She went shopping with her mom and dad.  She visited her Grandmother Judy and all her family.

We know how hard it must have been for her grandmother Judy when she got back on a jet to travel

Sunny Florida

The real treat for Laura and Michel was the week in Southern Florida.  Despite Amsterdam’s beauty, they cold gray weather is a great motivator to get Laura, Michel and Sophia to meet us somewhere warm and sunny.  Siesta Key fit the bill perfectly.

Siesta Key is such an amazing place for children.  Sophia loves the water and the sun.  

She loved to run back and forth into the water, seeming to mimic the water birds nearby.

Way too soon for Terry and me it was time for Sophia and her parents to return home.  It is always bitter-sweet to see them because the joy of the visit is tempered by the knowledge that every visit is a gift, and that she will change and grow during the months we are not with her.  But, we love every minute we have with her.  We also know that waiting for her in Amsterdam are her wonderful grandparents.

Return to Amsterdam

Sophia’s grandparents, Rudy (Opa) and Evelyn (Oma) are waiting at home to welcome Sophia with open arms and happy hearts.

We miss Sophia every day and wish we could be with her, but we are so grateful that she is surrounded by wonderful parents and grandparents and that her world is filled with love.

Old Soil and New Life

Posted on by annandmeg

I have been focused a lot lately on children. From childhood illness, to separation, to challenges at work, my world currently feels child centered.  Our family now is looking forward to two happy arrivals in the coming months.  As a future great-aunt, I am just filled with love and curiosity about the little ones who will join the current members of our next generation: Elliot, Asher and Sophia. I wonder about how their lives will be impacted by the world around them, the values that will come through our own children and those that will be formed by the outside world.

I love the description of family in Naomi Ragen’s book The Ghost of Hannah Mendes: We are planted in old soil, enriched by the lives of so many who came before us, the nourishment is meant to flow through us on to the newest branches so that every branch grows a little taller and blooms more beautifully still.

Our family is fortunate that Meg’s generation shows every indication of growing tall and blooming beautifully.  They seem to share the best of our family strengths and values rather than our weaknesses.  Universally they care about the environment, a healthy economy, healthy life habits.  They care about respect for human dignity.  They take an interest in government while maintaining a respectful regard for civility and understanding the importance of forming opinions based on research and study rather than on demagoguery.  We have raised them well, and now we rely on them to nurture their own children, nieces and nephews.  Understanding that, and understanding that it is they who will have the primary responsibility to shape the environment in which their children are raised, what wisdom can we pass on to them.

My mother used to say that when you have raised a child you become an expert in raising that child, but that it doesn’t really how to raise another child.  Of course, every child needs to be raised lovingly, with an early focus on healthy diet and healthy life habits. They need to be read to, to be given lots of hugs, and loving discipline.  They need to see modeled the values that have shaped us as strong, productive family.  They need to be intellectually stimulated from an early age, and to have parental involvement in the schools where their educations will continue.

But these basic parental responsibilities (and joys) do not directly speak to respect for the uniqueness of each child. Dr. Mel Levine, in his book A Mind at a Time, describes parenting this way: “Some minds  are wired to create symphonies and sonnets, while others are fitted out to build bridges, highways, and computers; design airplanes and road systems; drive trucks and taxicabs; or seek cures for breast cancer and hypertension . . . Parents have a special responsibility and joy as they get to know well and to cultivate their children’s individual minds.”

So the wisdom I would want to share with them is that parents support  their children best, when they learn to understand and nurture the uniqueness in each of them, helping them to develop their special strengths and to help them to accommodate to their inevitable limitations.  As to the future, I can only chuckle that Forrest Gump’s mother was probably right when she reminded us that “life is a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get.”  I am excited to find out.

Sophia is in Town

Posted on by annandmeg

Sophia is in town and all is  right with the world.  My husband is a great guy.  He is a wonderful man who, at age 65, is still a workaholic. He is enticed from work for Sunday drives, to play tennis, or to take one of our many great trips. Then  he returns to work with renewed determination. He loves me, our family, our friends and our dog, Casey. But more than anything else, he loves his granddaughter, Sophia.

Sophia is two.  She lives with her parents in Amsterdam where she is loved and pampered by her wonderful paternal grandparents. We only see her a few times a year when she is  in the States or we are in Europe. When we are not with her we Skype constantly and watch her grow and change through the lens of a camera.

While Terry wishes Sophia lived just around the corner, she doesn’t. We live with life as it is presented to us for good and bad. For now, Sophia is in town and all is right with the world.

Ring in the New Year: Happy 2012!

Posted on by annandmeg

Meg has a J.D. in Urban, Land Use and Environmental Law. She focuses on maintaining the balance of community and environmental health, healthy lifestyles, and encouraging sustainable living.

What an amazing year! A lot of things happened this past year, and 2011 definitely did not disappoint. We adopted a new handsome greyhound, my husband got a new job, I graduated from law school and passed the bar exam, and we moved to sunny California! All in all, I’d say it was a pretty good year. So naturally, we had to say goodbye to 2011 in style.

Last year we went to a fabulous black tie party in downtown KC with even more fabulous friends. This year, we celebrated in CA with a yummy dinner party at Auntie and Tio’s. After a delicious five-course meal, with each course prepared by a different couple (I made chocolate pots de creme!), we all stayed up until midnight drinking champagne and swapping proposal stories at the table. What a wonderful group of people! Auntie and Tio (the hosts of the evening), Robert and Kathleen (from Roswell, NM), Lina Jane and Bruce (from KC), Janet and Michael (from Manteca, CA), and me and my cute hubby (Petaluma of course!). It was a wonderful evening, and hopefully we can do it again next year.

As we look to the future and what we have planned, it is good to reflect on where we’ve been and what we’ve experienced. This last year was very busy and exhausting, but also very rewarding. I hope 2012 is not quite as stressful, but I look forward to discovering what the new year has in store for me.

Happy New Year everyone. I hope you have a wonderful 2012!