So we are in the final stretch. That’s getting quite literal for Amy – her belly seems to be straining to unheralded proportions, but she looks and feels great. There are some more oopmhs and groans this week as Trotz 2.0 adjusts positions, and we’ve seen some great Alien-esque effects as a knee or elbow strain for room inside the womb and extrude from her stomach. No signs of any activity yet – stay tuned here or via my Twitter page or Facebook profile or Flickr gallery to get the first notification that we are on our way. Sam seems a little stressed these last few days, being a bit more tantrum-prone than usual – I think he realizes his solo gig is soon to end. I still know he’s going to be a fabulous big brother.
Tag Archives: Family
the great southwest
This year’s Admonsters excursion (to conference #17 to be exact) took me out to the environs of Albequerque and Santa Fe at the Hyatt Tamaya resort in Bernalillo, New Mexico. We decided to make this a family affair since very soon Amy will be on a no-travel regimen (due date is October 31, only 10 weeks away). Amy’s parents also joined us for a bit of R&R&Sam. To top that all off, Amy’s aunt (who is from Albequerque) and uncle came down from Denver – and their son Jonathan came out from LA. So all in all it turned into a little Handelman/Siegel/Gardenswartz reunion.
We had a great dinner with Bobbi’s 90-year-old father and the rest of the clan on Friday night, headed up to Santa Fe on Saturday along with 100,000 of our closest friends for the annual Indian Market and Art Show. It was a madhouse, but a great way to see the full scope of what the area’s artistans have to offer. One celebrity spotting, Curtis Stone of TLC’s Take Home Chef. Despite rumors of both Oprah and Dennis Hopper being seen around our hotel, neither was confirmed.
iCandyJewelryDesigns.com
My very talented sisters-in-law who both live up in Amy’s hometown of Rochester, NY have launched a website for their already-thriving hancrafted jewelry business there. Amy and Lisa are marketing and sales professionals who, with the inspiration of Amy’s mother SueAnn, decided to launch this venture. icandyjewelrydesigns.com recently went online, and showcases a wide variety of styles they create. They have a wide variety of original designs with the latest trends well represented, included custom beaded designs, lariats, turquoise and other styles. Anyway, I took many of the photos for the site, so check it out. Visit them here.
Rochester & Canandaigua Lake
The last leg of our vacation began 
with a 7-hour trek with Amy’s folks down the Mass Pike to Rochester. Sam was our main source of entertainment, shunning even the mention of taking a nap, instead regaling us with songs and stories most of the way. Once in Rochester, we had a great time – heading down to Bristol to see Uncle Stan and Ruth as well as more Handelman cousins than I’ve ever seen in one location. Sam enjoyed his first time in a lake, and on this trip, the male cousins of Boston were replaced by girls, girls and more girls. Sam did not mind one bit. We also took in a game at Rochester’s Frontier Field, and despite anticipation that Giambi was going to appear in the course of his rehab before joining the bigs again, that didn’t happen. More photos can be found here.