The Last Two Months

So what have the Choisezs been up to:

Nicole ran for Vice President of Student Council and lost. We had a Sarah Palin party for her and her friend Emma who ran against her. She also turned 10 which means no one in the house is in single digits. She still has not decided on how to celebrate her birthday with her friends.

Jessica continues to help out the freshman class at FPM. She started and completed her science project on hydroponics. She grew bamboo in four mediums: soil, water, legos and cloth. She also had her first horse jumping competition. She did really well with a fifth place and two sixth place ribbons. She loves her horse, Humble Pie, and now wants a horse along with a dog.

Jim is trying to get back into running. He is working many hours of overtime and enjoys the work. While he will be working Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, he says it is okay because he is saving lives.

I have been very busy. I went to West Point for three days for work, was home a day and then went to Disney to help with the new Disney Moms Panel winners. Only 17 days to ask me a question. I have become addicted to social media and regularly update Facebook and Twitter. Now I need to get them to work in tandem on the iPhone which is my favorite treat ever.

We are all ready to go on our first vacation over Christmas-yup we are going to Disney!

Crispy Sugar Treats

I saw a recipe on the Food Network to make healthy treats. The recipe was by Ellie Kreiger, and it is simple enough so we tried it tonight.

You take a package of wonton or egg roll wrappers, 2 tablespoons of canola oil and powder sugar.

You heat your oven to 375. You cut the wrappers into triangles and dip them in the canola oil until coated. You then bake until light brown - about 5 minutes in our oven. When cool, you sprinkle with powder sugar and they store for up to four days. These are great snacks for under 100 calories.

Jessica's Present

Jessica recently started taking riding lessons. She goes to Lakewood Stables every Saturday for her lessons with Taylor. She rides a horse called Humble Pie. She is very good at trotting and is learning to jump.

Grandmommy and Grandpoppy gave her money for her birthday to buy a riding helmet. You may ask why she chose pink. The reason is one you cannot see in the picture. The sides of the helmet have silver horses.

15 Years

Okay so I am not as technically savy as my children but here is a picture of Jim and I on our wedding day. We had a great day and dashed off to Disney, the first of many trips there, the next day.

I remember missing my Grumpy but knew he was with me that day.

Now, we have Jess and Nicole and though it has not always been easy, we still laugh a lot.

We share are anniversary with two other sets of friend:

Patti and Ed -Happy 25th!

Neha and Ash - Happy 3rd!

Student Council Representative

Nicole was elected as Student Council representative for her fifth grade class. As a fifth grader, she can go on and run for Vice President of the entire Student Council.

I wish she was 25 years older because she would make an excellent President.

Congrats!

Happy Birthday Jessica!

On Sunday, Jessica turned 12! She celebrated the day with homemade french toast and bacon for breakfast. She had a scavenger hunt to find her presents-new digital camera and case. She went to King Umbertos for dinner. Finally, she celebrated with a Carvel cake. Her best friend, Kaitlyn, decorated her locker for her. It seemed weird not to have to bake anything to send to school. She is still deciding on a party but at least this year I have some notice.

Finished

Michelle and her husband, Brian, and Darcie and her daughter, Tori, are glad the race is over. They looked like they had fun after running 3.1 miles, going through an obstacle course and then returning back into the park to complete a scavenger hunt.

There was a party after the race and Michelle and I headed to Expedition Everest to ride the rollercoaster. We met up with most of the other ladies and Lou Mongello. We rode the coaster in the dark which was awesome!

My family does not have to worry about me jumping ship again as I am not do in Disney until December 5 for 4 days and then back down again for 6 days with them.

Triceratop Spin

While my friend, Michelle, ran the race I played Mary Poppins for her daughter, Elizabeth. We waited in the corral with the other moms to start and even got videotaped as we stroded out of the gate and into Animal Kingdom.

Elizabeth made sure we went on Triceratops Spin two times before we ate ice cream and then two times after we ate ice cream. We had no problems.

Disney again?

Thanks to Jim, Erin and Lillian I was able to join my friends in Disney for the weekend. They were all there to run a 5K race called Expedition Everest. I was suppose to run but during race registration oil was at $125 a barrel, and I was not taking a chance of having no seat to fly in.

Lucky for me, the flights were able to squeeze me on and I made it to the party! I went to Mickey's Halloween Party Friday night, breakfast at Boma Saturday and then toured EPCOT for a few hours. Saturday night, I was at the race in Animal Kingdom. Sunday, I went to Disney's Hollywood Studios and then home.

JBU at T5

JBU was waiting for ice cream during the afternoon. Bernadette, Randal, Wendy, Terri, Shana, Dan and Lynn wait for anything Mr. Softee has in stock.

Neha was smart and got her ice cream before lunch!

T5 Opening

On Monday, September 22, JetBlue opened its new terminal to its Crewmembers to tour and explore. We had a good old fashioned cookout, guests and then a party at 3:00 pm to rock out.

The restaurants served some amazing food -stop by Revolution for made to order guacamole. There was a passport to have stamped which entered you for some fun prizes.

Here I am with Bernadette, Neha and Wendy my main peeps at Blue!

Jim Radiographer

So Jess and Nicole thought Jim should have his picture taken on the first day of his new job.

He is officially a radiographer and is at the same hospital he trained at South Nassau Communities Hospital. He works 12-8 so he takes the girls in the morning and I have them right after school as I now work 7-3.

He also works a lot of overtime but seems to be enjoying his new career!

Nicole Fifth Grader

Nicole is venturing to Floral Park-Bellerose alone this year. She has Mr. D the most popular fifth grade teacher. She is continuing chorus this year and is going to join the drama club.

She was even selected to be in Probe which is for gifted children.

Jessica Seventh Grader

It is bright and early for Jessica heading over to Floral Park Memorial High School. She is now officially a Knight!

She seems to be enjoying school and has been helping the Freshman class with their activties.

Some classes on tap this year besides the standards-French and Home and Careers.

The Whole Gang

Here are all the kids who enjoyed the last Saturday of summer on Daisy Avenue!

Block Party 2008

So we ended our summer with a block party. One of the games the deejays played was Stuff the Shirt. Each team had to blow up balloons and then stuff them under a shirt. Jim was the winner with 40 balloons under the shirt.

The party was a lot of fun!

Trainer in Training

Jess took a picture with one of the orca trainers. I know she would have loved to have been a trainer for the day but she needs another year before she can do it.

Wrapping it Up in California

The whales came right over to us after dinner. We headed back to our hotel so that we could get a good night rest before heading home in the morning. We all loved California and I know Jim and I would move in a heartbeat. It was relaxing without being slow and the weather was perfect. I am glad we went!

Dinner with the Whales

Okay so I got a little crazy and decided at the last minute to eat with the whales. The food was good but the experience was unique. I do not know if I would go back but those whales are about ten feet from my girls.

Dolphins

Nicole and Jessica are petting and feeding the dolphins. We wanted them to experience these gentle and kind creatures before we go swimming with them on our next vacation. The girls really had a lot of fun with the dolphins.

Rays

Jess and Nicole pet the rays. Jess and I actually swam with the rays but they always make her sad now because of Steve Irwin. Hopefully, they will make her smile again!

A really big whale

This female whale is the star of the show. At almost 40, she is kind to the new trainers and other whales. All of the other trainers have learned from her. Her fin which is bent is due to genetics and not because her tank is too small as noted in the Free Willy Movie.

Sea World

For our last day in California, we went to Sea World. Jess and Nicole are in front of Shamu's Stadium though there is no longer a Shamu.

Nicole decide we needed to sit in the splash zone so I am standing at our seats taking this picture. Jim who was buying popcorn could not believe we chose these seats. But where else would any kid choose to sit?

We did not get soaked but we did have fun!

Wanted Two Cute Girls

Nicole and Jess stand for their mugshots in front of the Shrek attractions. This was one of our favorites rides at Universal and it was well done. After a long day in LA, we headed South again to San Diego for the final day of vacation.

Universal Studios

For our final day in LA, we headed to Universal Studios.

Though it was a part of our City Pass Ticket, it was not a favorite stop for any of us.

The park was split in levels and the food lines were long.

We enjoyed the Backlot Tour and Shrek but the other rides were just okay.

Walking under the Golden Gate Bridge

This is the gang heading into the park after dinner.

California Adventure

We spent our second day in California Adventures. This is Disney's version of the old fashion theme park at the beach but with Hollywood Studios thrown in for the Disney twist.

On the California Pier, they had the new ride, Toy Story Mania. Since there was no FastPass option, we headed there on the rope drop. We then proceeded to wait about 45 minutes.

But the fun we had!

Splash Mountain

This is team Choisez prior to going over the falls of Splash Mountain.

Unlike Disney World, you ride single rider for this log flume with one double seat in the rear.

The trick here is that you must be at least 5 feet to ride in the first spot. Since I was not going to volunteer, Jim got the best seat in the house.

Indy's Helper

Nicole got to help Indiana Jones with one of his adventures. Here she is helping the "assistant" solve a clue.

Disneyland

So we finally arrive in Disneyland. We leave the Comfort Inn where we stayed overnight and head to the Disneyland Hotel. We check in at 9:00 am and then walk to Disneyland.

The hotel is located on the other side of Downtown Disney. This whole area has completely changed since Jim and I were here 14 years ago.

We enter Disneyland and who do we find but Jessica's hero, Indiana Jones in Adventureland. She was so excited she got to touch him! I could not image what would have happened if it was Harrison Ford. Nicole was a part of the show and we had a great day at the park. We loved the quaintness of the park and never felt rushed to get everywhere like we do in Disney World.

We ate in one of the restaurants in the Bayou and of course I had to have the ratitoulle and the Mickey Mouse beignets.

So Jim...

So Jim took the "big" test on Monday, August 11 to get his radiographers license. He was happy he passed.

Since he passed, we got to go on vacation without much stress except getting on a flight. Thunderstorms have been bad this summer and it forced us to change where we flew into for vacation. We landed in San Diego with me flying the jumpseat. I actually helped the crew and met Billie Jean King.

This is Nicole and Jim on the bus tour of the San Diego Zoo. We arrived around 3 and had lunch. We took the bus tour and then went back to see some of our favorite animals. We loved the meerkats, giraffees, koalas and the panda bears.

It was a nice way to stretch our legs before we headed two hours north to our hotel in Anaheim for the LA portion of our trip!

Jo Bro Concert

So it is off to the Jonas Brothers Concert for the Choisez women and the honorary Choisez, Brigid.

Jim travelled all the way to Trenton by train to pick Jess up from camp at my parents.

We left for Jones Beach and what fun we had. We signed the band's tour bus and mailed them cards.

Demi Lovato opened for the boys and the boys came on at about 9:00 pm. It was about this time Jess decided she wanted to go home as she had been up since about 7:00 am that morning and spent the day in camp. However, she stuck with it.

All of us were signing and dancing and agreed that our favorite song was Burning Up and Big Rob. If they would have been selling Big Rob shirts, we would have bought four!

The Rest of the Crew

Jim's cousins, Rick and Erin, along with Nicole, smile for the camera. Rick is Nicole's Godfather and Erin could be her mom because they look so much alike! We love hanging out with them whether it is out their house or on their boat! I always smile when I think of them especially when I am making my coffee!

Women in Jim's Life

Jim's mom and Aunt Hilda congratulate the Valedictorian. Both of these women are very special to us and Jim is who he is today because of them. When one of the sisters could not help, the other one was right there! We have spent a lot of good times with these ladies!

Xray Technician Graduate and Valedictorian

So after 104 weeks of blood, sweat and tears, Jim graduated from Radiographer school. He gave the class speech because he did it last year and no one in his class wanted to do it this year.

He also was the class Valedictorian! He squeaked out a 97% average and made us all proud. For his cousin, Rick, and our friend, Andy, they were both shocked he was smarter than 10 other people in this world. I of course proclaimed Jess the reason for his knowledge.

After a lovely reception at the hospital, we had a celebration here. Of course, still has to study for the Registry test on today but he starts his new job at South Nassau where he trained!

We are all proud of him!

The Ben Franklin Bridge

Nicole, Ryan and Jess are standing outside the Aquarium at the Camden Waterfront. New Jersey has done a nice job trying to revitalize the area.

The bridge in the background is the Benjamin Franklin which is one of the many which connects New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

This bridge plays a big part in my family's history. My grandpop, Grumpy - a name a gave him, used to work on the bridge. However, one day he fell off the lower portion of the bridge into the Delaware River below. He then got out of the water and walked home to his apartment in Philadelphia. I am not sure if anything was broken but he did go to work the next day.

My Grumpy was an amazing man. He survived seven heartaches in a row where they could not stabilize his heart and lived to the age of 79. He always new how to make me laugh, and his favorite express was "Down in the front peanuts" because we always blocked the tv. (Of course, it was a large color console tv which was amazing when we only had 19 inch black and white-remember I am 40!)

He had a bar in his den, and one year for Christmas I got a 7 Up Soda dispenser which my mom would never let me fill with anything. Not Grumpy, all soda was dispensed from my 7 Up machine. He and my grandmom always let us get away with these small infractions.

He passed on my one week aniversary of being married but he got to see me in my dress that day! He was very sick the month before, and he told my aunt he had to make it through my wedding. So if ever asked what my favorite gift is or was, my Grumpy being with me on my wedding day is the winner every time!

New Pets?

Grandpoppy, Ryan, Jess and Nicole are all petting bamboo and sand sharks. They enjoyed this little sharks and I think they would be easier to take care of than a dog-no shedding! They also touched stingrays and jellyfish as well.

In the Belly of the Beast

Nicole, Jess and Ryan make a very nice meal for a great white shark!

Mini Vacation and Reunion

After the first week of Jess being away, we went to visit her in Pennsylvania. First stop was to Uncle Bob's because the cousins, or namely Zack, was whining about how he never sees us. Now this mainly because Zack is an amazing athlete and is on two travel teams. It is tougher to see him than the Jonas Brothers! We spent the day hanging out in the pool and had dinner with them before heading back to PA.

On Sunday, my dad and I took Jess, Nicole and Ryan to the Camden Aquarium. I had not been to this aquarium since it opened but enjoyed it! They had hippos, seal show and numerous touch tanks. They had a scavenger hunt to participate in as well to keep little minds active.

My favorite part and Jessica's least was the shark tank. Now Jess likes sharks but she did not like them swimming over her head!

After dinner at the house it was time to head home without Jess:( but I think she grew 10 fold with her grandparents who we are truly blessed to have in our lives! :)

Camp Round Two

With a Mets game in
between, the girls headed to round two of camp. For Jess, this meant traveling down to Pennsylvania and Camp Expressions. She got to stay at my parents house and go to camp daily. At camp, she worked on social skills through a variety of activities including writing the newsletter, taking karate and her favorite, stream stomping.

Her camp had a luau, favorite color, an animal show and crazy hat day. Of course, Grandmommy could not let Jess go with any old hat. So Grandmommy and her designed a hat which of course won! Besides camp, she went horseback riding and shopping as well as scooter until her heart's content with Ryan.

Nicole got two weeks without her sister and a minimum of four hours a day with one of her best friends, Brigid. They attend an acting camp and then got to hang out afterwards. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, it was pay dirt as they were together almost 12 hours!

Nicole got the part of Annie for the finale which she was very excited about. The problem, her very cool parents, got Jonas Brother tickets for the same night. The drama over what to choose!

Camp Round One

Jess and Nicole spent two weeks at camp at Hofstra University. Nicole chose soccer with her friend Emma and Jess chose Camp Adventure which is a program that physically challenges you.

Each morning at 7:45 am the girls would board the bus and would not return home until 5:30! For Jess, it was not so bad because she could relax after camp. For Nicole, it meant going to lacrosse at 7 on Tuesdays and musical theater at 6 on Wednesdays!

They were both great and made new friends as well. Jess had the added responsibility of being in charge of Nicole and Emma and texting us and Emma's mom when they were on the bus.

Both girls want to go back next year which means we finally made the right choice!

Jess and Nicole's Gift

Jess and Nicole gave me vanity license plates for my birthday which say WDW MOM on them. I immediately asked Jim if this meant we were moving to Virginia because this is the only state where everyone has vanity plates. Luckily, we are staying put.

The funny thing about this gift is that I was driving with illegal plates for about a month! This is why Jim was volunteering to take my truck because he did not want me to get the ticket from the cops!

I would have had a heart attack if that would have happened!

Party Extras

So no party in the Titus household would be complete without some fun. My sister and Aunt Mary decided I needed to wear a tiara, pink feather boa and have a magic wand to sprinkle pixie dust. I think they are taking the Disney thing too far!

There was a picture of me when I was about 4 months old and had no hair, and the party favor was my picture at about age six on a cookie. The cookies were brought all the way from Piazza's Bakery (my favorite bakery) in Pennsylvania.

Finally, a scrapbook with all my embarassing pictures was passed around the room.

The best is that I now have a year to plot Kathy's 40th and three years to plot Mary's 50th.

Revenge-priceless!

As for my Schlegel family contributions, Erin did the invitations and held my presents. Also, Rick and her arrived early to decorate and start the beer tab. As for the flowers on the table, compliments of Aunt Hilda's garden.

Truly a family effort!

Happy 40!

So I have finally joined an elite club the over 40 crowd. What a weekend I had.

On Friday, my actual birthday, I went to lunch in Jackson Heights at the Jackson Diner for Indian with my friends from work. It is my favorite place even if they did not have samosas and then we had 7 Up Cake at the office.

When I got home, we went to dinner at the St. James and then to Frozen Cup for ice cream just the four of us.

Saturday had us at the pool and then I went and cut 10 inches of hair off my head to be donated to Locks of Love.

Finally, my surprise party with my family and friends was Saturday night at a great Italian place called Piccola Bussola. I had my parents, sister Kathy and Aunt Mary from PA come up as well as my best friends, Bob and Trish from Jersey. (Trish did not believe it could take four hours from their house to ours!)

I recieved my first, second, third and fourth gifts from Tiffany's compliments of my sister and friends as well as Disney items, more jewelry, gift cards and my own Kreuig coffee machine. Jess and Nicole have drunk more hot chocolate this week then all last winter.

This was all pulled off by Jim and my cousin Erin. Great party folks!

Our Family from Holland

Our good friend Trisha's mom is from Holland. This year Oma's family came over to visit for three weeks. Since Oma has always taken care of me, it was my pleasure to play tour guide in my home city.

We visited the World Trade Center, Battery Park, the Empire State Building, Bryant Park, Chinatown and Little Italy where we had delicious pizza.

The girls, Chloe and Nicky, were most impressed with the MTV Store in Times Square.

Here is a picture of Chloe (blue tank), Alex, Nicky (behind Jess), Jess and Uncle Bektus on the Brooklyn Bridge. We did walk halfway and could see two of the Waterfalls which are a part of an exhibit.

The Whopper

Okay so here I am with the only keeper of the trip - a 23 incher baby! Of course, I really should give credit to Jim for not tangling up my line and Rick for diving under the boat to hook it.

Seriously, the credit goes to Jess who picked my bait!

By the way, it tasted delicious!

Just Fishing

We got to spend a Saturday with Brendan and Rick on the best boat, Oppa's Crew, for a day of fishing. Everyone had a lot of fun and the kids had fun just sitting on the back of the boat.

Last Day of School

Nicole poses with Mrs. Oerzen, her fourth grade teacher, and Carroll outside of school. She is dying to look inside her envelope not to see her grades (straight As) but to see who she got for next year.

The lucky teacher - Mr. D. He is the most popular 5th grade teacher and she is happy!

Graduation Party

Jessica decided to have her graduation lunch at Benihana's. Here she is with Kelsey, Nicole and Brendan. Her friend Gabby decided to have her party here too!

It was the first time to Benihana's for Grandpoppy and Grandmommy who both enjoyed the meal.

Later, the rest of the family came to our house for cupcakes and snacks.

Best Friends and Seventh Graders

Jessica and Kaitlyn pose for the first time together as seventh graders. Kaitlyn won many awards at graduation. She is a great friend and since Jess finally got her cell phone as her graduation gift the texts have been flying.

Graduation

On June 25th, Jessica graduated from Floral Park-Bellerose School. She won the award for the highest average in reading which was a great achievement.

At the ceremony, awards are given, the band and orchestra play a song and the class sings a song. This year's song was Breaking Free from High School Musical.

Afterwards, a reception follows in the gym which is still decorated from the dance.

Here Jessica is with Grandmom Lillian, Grandpoppy, Grandmommy and Aunt Hilda along with Jim and I. Nicole was still in school as siblings in school cannot attend the ceremony.

Elvis and Neil

The dance had funny cutouts to take pictures behind. Jess and Kiera decided to be Elvis and Neil Armstrong.

Also, this year the school hired a digital photography company to take pictures of the kids with their friends and teachers and then had an assortment of frames to display each.