Thanksgiving up and down the East Coast

Family members gathered in various groups around various tables this Thanksgiving. Dan and Julie spent Turkey Day at Marie, Brian and Xander's home in Virginia, along with Brian's parents, Steve and Barbara. Marie served a fabulous dinner, after which the seven played an intense game of Settlers of Catan. As this group has now played that game at Thanksgiving more than once, it has officially become a tradition! 

Meanwhile in Maryland, Dolores and Hugh were joined for dinner at their Oak Crest residence by son Doug, daughter-in-law Lisa, daughter Cathy, grandddaughters Liz, Rebecca and Stephanie and grandson Christopher. 

The next day saw the traditional Black Friday gathering at Doug and Lisa's home, with some of the same characters - minus Stephanie, busy with school work, and Rebecca, driving home to Rochester, but plus Dan and Julie, en route from Virginia to New Jersey.

Back in the Garden State on Saturday, Dan and Julie spent the evening with Andy and Wren, who had visited Wren's dad on Long Island Thursday and some of their New Jersey friends on Friday. (Here they hold engraved glasses that were a wedding gift from Liz.) The four had a fine meal at a local restaurant before Wren and Andy drove back to their upstate New York home.

On Facebook we see that Austin, Cindy and Rachel enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner together in Florida...

...and Rick, Shanna and Lucy continued their Thanksgiving weekend tradition of driving up to Connecticut to choose their Christmas tree.

New photos! Andy & Wren's wedding

The digital album of professional photos from Wren and Andy's wedding is now available, and it's a fabulous collection capturing the special moments of the day.

Here is the link to the whole 1,000-photo album:

Wren and Andy Wedding Photos

In addition, we have a selection of "behind the scenes" pictures taken during the wedding weekend by Christine. Here, for example, the official photographer takes romantic shots on the porch of the house where the wedding party spent the weekend.

Here's the link to the album of Christine's pictures: 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/ckzM1SZihtvY4jhA7

In addition, more photos - and dancing videos! - have been added to the album of photos taken by Dan and Cathy: 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/R28sSt2yVMLhbMjW6

Get-togethers in Maryland, Virginia complete Dan's birthday tour

Dan's traveling birthday celebration finished up finished up on the last weekend of October with visits to his in-laws in Maryland and his daughter, son-in-law and grandson in Virginia.

Dan and Julie set out southbound on Friday, his actual birthday, and arrived at Oak Crest Village for dinner with Hugh and Dolores, Doug, Cathy and Stephanie. Afterward, they enjoyed an overnight visit with Doug and Lisa at their home

The next day, Dan and Julie drove down to Fredericksburg to Marie, Brian and Xander's home, where they spent the afternoon talking and catching up. Xander is now a high school junior, preparing for college by taking AP courses. He is also an accomplished video-gamer, having been on a very successful team in a local e-sports league, and now focusing on a single game in hopes of moving up in competitive ranks.

That evening, the family enjoyed a wonderful meal at a Bonefish Grill restaurant and then a movie night back at the house. On Sunday, they met at the house again for lunch and more conversation before Dan and Julie hit the road back to New Jersey.

California get-together: Dan's birthday tour part 3

The Northern and Southern California branches of the family came together on the Central Coast last weekend as Dan and Julie continued their traveling celebration of Dan's "significant birthday."

The New Jersey residents flew to Los Angeles on Oct. 21 to visit with Christine and Jamie. The next day, they set out northward, while the younger Dan set out southward from his home in Santa Cruz. They met in Morro Bay, the Central Coast city known as the site of Morro Rock.

The 561-foot-tall rock, the remains of an ancient volcanic core, sits on the shore looking like it dropped out of the sky. 

On its north side is a wide ocean beach, and on its south side, the entrance to the bay.

The five family members spent the afternoon sightseeing around the rock, viewing sea lions and sea otters in the bay and swimmers and surfers along the beach. They then enjoyed an excellent meal at the Harbor Hut restaurant as the sun went down behind the rock. 

This was the first time in several years that Christine and Dan got to spend some time together, and the first time Dan met Jamie. Everyone had a great time catching up with one another while taking in the sights. 

After a night at one of the many hotels in town, they found a great local spot for breakfast (Frankie and Lola's Front Street Cafe) before parting. 

On the way back to LA, Jamie, Christine, Dan and Julie made a quick stop at El Matador State Beach, where they looked down from the cliffs at the rocky Pacific coast. (Jamie and Christine previously spent a summer day down on the beach with Jamie's mom.)

A Downstate NY get-together

Continuing Dan's traveling birthday celebration, he and Julie met his sister, Kathy, brother Brien, brother Kevin and sister-in-law Kathy for a fine dinner in Yonkers on Oct. 15. Although they'd all seen each other at Andy and Wren's wedding a few weeks earlier, it was a great chance to catch up in a smaller-group setting. And there was no better place for the occasion than Rory Dolan's, the neighborhood restaurant where the siblings' dad celebrated an equivalent birthday 25 years earlier.   

An Upstate NY get-together

Dan and Julie headed North for the weekend of Oct. 7-9 and paid a visit to the newly married couple, Andy and Wren, at their home in the northern Catskills.

The trip was the first of several D+J will be making this month, to visit various relatives as a way of celebrating a significant birthday that's coming up for Dan. The four had a fine meal Saturday night at the Bulls Head Inn in Cobleskill (which dates to 1802).

The next day they spent some time hob-nobbing with A&W's Nigerian dwarf goats (currently two males, two females and three kids).

Sunday afternoon they met up with cousin Mary, whose new home on the shore of Sacandaga Lake is only about an hour from Andy and Wren's. They took the short walk past a few neighbors' houses to Mary's slice of the lakeshore, where she keeps her kayaks, and later headed to a nearby brewpub to taste some local beers.

Congratulations newlyweds Andy and Wren!

Andy and Wren were married in a lovely ceremony on Sept. 23 at the Mountainville Manor in New York's Hudson Valley. 

The couple designed their own ceremony. They sealed their vows with a handfasting, in place of an exchange of rings. One of their attendants wrapped their hands together with a cord - an ancient Celtic tradition symbolizing the joining of lives, and the origin of the expression "tying the knot."

The wedding date coincided with the Autumnal Equinox, and came some 13 years after the two got to know each other as members of the Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School Marching Band. 

The bridal party included Christine and Jamie, who flew in from California and visited with Dan and Julie for a few days beforehand. (Afterwards, C&J visited Jamie's mother and other relatives in New England.)

The ceremony was followed by a reception featuring excellent food and plenty of energetic dancing, with some of the youngest guests showing themselves to be stars on the dancefloor.

We're collecting photos and videos of the celebration in this Google Photos album. If you took pictures or video, please add them to the album or email them to birchstreetweb@gmail.com!

Cathy, Dan and Julie meet up for an outdoor concert

An outdoor concert not far from Cathy's home in Pennsylvania, featuring one of Dan and Julie's favorite singer-songwriters, provided an occasion for the three to get together and enjoy a beautiful late-summer evening.

The three grabbed take-out food set up their chairs in front of the Bryn Mawr Gazebo, where Carsie Blanton and her band performed. After stopping at the merchandise table to say hello to Carsie (and buy a book of her songs), Dan, Julie and Cathy finished the evening over ice cream at a local shop.

In memory of Owen

Our family is saddened by the passing on July 16 of Owen, beloved husband to Ellen and to the late Tish; loving father of son Gerrit (and fiancee Erin), daughter Elizabeth, stepdaughters Lindsey (and husband Adam) and Jessica (and husband Scott); proud and loving grandfather of Gerrit's children, Nolan and Josie, and of Lindsey's daughter, Audrey; and brother of Austin.

A large gathering of family and friends attended a funeral mass July 28 at Our Lady of the Cape Church in Brewster, followed by a luncheon where they shared their memories of Owen. 

Donations in Owen's memory may be made to the American Heart Association.

Owen was born in New York City on January 6, 1952 to the late Dr. Austin S. and Mary. After graduating from Fordham University, he began his career in insurance and sales. He went on to start Printex, a successful business on Cape Cod, where he raised his family.

Owen was a caring and loving son, husband and father, and family was everything to him. He loved his life on the Cape, long walks on the beach, spending time with family and friends and sitting by the fire on a cold winter's night. He was a great storyteller and a big Three Stooges fan, and was often found at Buncey's in Dennis on a Friday night. He spent his past few years traveling, and always looked forward to his yearly Maine vacation with his wife and long-time friends. He will be greatly missed and will continue to live on in all of his relatives and friends.

A hot time at Disney for Dan and Julie

Julie traveled to Florida to attend the Girl Scouts National Convention, held at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort on July 20-22. Although not an official delegate, she enjoyed the activities and events and took notes to report back to the Heart of New Jersey council.

Dan flew down to join her as the convention was wrapping up, and the couple spent the next three days visiting three of the Disney parks - Hollywood Studios, Animal Kindom and EPCOT.

Pacing themselves in the midsummer heat, and avoiding the thrill rides that had the longest lines, they had a great time exploring the parks. Neither had been to Disney Florida in decades. Only Dan had seen EPCOT before (on a long-ago trip with young Marie and Danny), and neither had seen the Hollywood and Animal parks. They finished up by watching the EPCOT fireworks, then flew home on the 26th.

Father's day gathering in Maryland

On Father's Day, Hugh was joined by two of his children and three grandchildren for a fine meal at one of the restaurants in Oak Crest. The waiter was kind enough to take this photo. Hugh, wife Dolores and daughter Cathy are in the front row. Standing behind are son-in-law Dan, daughter Julie, grandson Christopher and granddaughters Liz and Stephanie. 

Congratulations newlyweds Patrick and Kelsey!

Updated 6/26

Patrick and Kelsey celebrated their marriage in a joyous ceremony on May 26 at Le Chateau in South Salem, New York. 

After exchanging their vows, the couple hosted a fabulous reception for their families and friends, featuring a band that kept the crowd dancing into the night. 

Dan took some cell-phone video and has started posting some highlights. So far: Intro/First Dance; Father-Bride Dance; Mother-Groom Dance; Uptown Funk; and Call Me Maybe! More to come.

Click here to open the video album

Catching up with Mary and her family

Editor's note: At Brien's St. Patrick's Day Parade party last month, Mary shared several pieces of news - and agreed to write them up for The Birch Street Web. Here is her account.

So much has changed, so I’ll just dive right in and start with myself. I decided to sell the townhouse I was living in, that I inherited from my mother, and I bought a house on Sacandaga Lake - 15 minutes from my son’s house, so, closer to the grandkids. I’m directly across the street from the lake and have lakefront rights.

I moved in last spring (2022) and spent a lot of time kayaking and then snowshoeing this past winter. It’s a cozy 3-bedroom, 1½ bath ranch with den and full basement on half an acre, perfect for me and my dog, Luna.

I rescued this little hound last March and she has been amazing so far - loves kayaking and going snowshoeing with me. (I had to put the Big Guy / the great dane down.) Roger and I have parted ways so it was perfect timing buying the house. I have incredible neighbors and the Sacandaga Brewery is less than 3 miles away (nice bike ride LOL).

I am switching positions at my job within my organization, the Boys and Girls Club of the Capital Area, which operates Universal Pre-Kindergarten programs at public schools in the area. I am currently the UPK Director for the Cohoes City School District. I oversee 8 classrooms and have 21 employees. But I will be transitioning to the role of Director of Operations and will be overseeing all 24 of our UPK classrooms in 3 different school districts (Albany, Watervliet, and Cohoes), with a staff of 56. I also will be overseeing the directors that run after-school programming and aquatics -- so, exciting times, venturing a bit outside of the Early Childhood world.

I am also starting a consulting company: WOO Consulting (Wise Old Owl), offering life coaching, spiritual life coaching and holistic healing. During the pandemic I became certified in all three areas. I have been running a free 6-week pilot program with 6 clients to get feedback on their experiences and overall impression of the coaching and goal-setting. So far, the follow up conversations have been incredible and so helpful. I am meeting with a business consultant to file a DBA and set up web-site and social-media platforms -- so more to come on that once I am up and officially running.

Now, updates on my children:

Brienna is still living in Saratoga with her boyfriend, Tommy, and is currently attending art school. She is concentrating on graphic design and seems to be loving it. (Photo: Brienna and Tommy with Barkley, a Christmas gift from Mary.)

Brienna's son, Cash, is turning 12 in August and is in middle school -- crazy how time goes by. He lives in Lexington, Ky., with his dad and stepmother, and has a baby brother who is now 6 months old. Brienna still sees Cash often throughout the year and every day on FaceTime -- thank goodness for social media.

Brennan and Shauna Rae and their kiddos, Brooklyn (11) and Brennan (8), are doing amazing. My son and his wife have both completed their Masters degrees. Brennan is currently a physical education teacher for Fulton/Montgomery Elementary School and Shauna-Rae is teaching special-education high school math in Broadalbin, as well as pursuing her administration degree. The kids are busy playing basketball, soccer, baseball and softball.

The family is thinking about relocating to Tampa, Fla., after the school year ends; their house just went on the market to see if this might be feasible. They might not be 15 minutes around the corner from me for long! But I reassured them that I will just book more frequent-flyer miles -- and the kiddos can still enjoy snow on their winter break, as they can spend it with me in NY!

Shannon and Mary

Shannon is a staff sergeant in the U.S. Air Force. She has been married for 3 years -- and she and her husband, Frederick, are expecting their first baby, a girl, in mid-July. 

The couple met when both were stationed at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio. (Their wedding was simple, with no reception; a friend of theirs married them. Young military, haha!) They later transferred to Eglin AFB in the Florida Panhandle, and bought a house in Crestwood, Fla. Frederick, who was a staff sergeant and medic in the Air Force, just separated from the service and is pursuing his degree in medicine through the GI Bill. Shannon works as a pharmaceutical technician at Eglin.

Shannon and Frederick

Brienna and Mary at the Terrapin Brewery in Athens Georgia - a pit stop on the way to see Shannon in Florida