What happened to the big family dinners that I remember from my childhood? Maybe I have watched the Godfather movies too many times or too many Sopranos episodes where the families would get together for dinner on Saturday or Sunday and I am projecting that onto our family, but I seem to remember getting together a lot at 90 Eggerts Crossing for meals when I was a kid.

I don’t mean holiday meals those we still do, just at different locations in Mercer County. I’m talking about the Sunday morning breakfasts and the meals in the yard during the summer with Rose and Louis, Fran and Angelica, Clora and Dean, Henry and Tim, Bea and Ray, John and Bea and Terry and Willie and me and sometimes other family members and friends. Those are the meals I am talking about, and the birthday celebrations with a huge carrot cake and funny hats.

It seems when Rose and Lou died, things began to change. Family gatherings were fewer and something seemed to be missing when we did get together. It’s understandable that things change. A few of us moved away and we all have families and lives of our own. Sure, today we visit once in a while or meet at wakes or weddings and on holidays. It just seems we are always in a hurry to get through dinner and get back to our lives.

In the old days the adults used to sit around the table and talk back and forth while the kids would go outside or into the other room to play. Now when we get together we are in a hurry to eat and get going. We meet at diners and restaurants too much these days where we are always having to go, so we can’t sit and talk and the food is not as good as if we cooked it ourselves. With the amount of money we spend for our meals we could have better and more food if we were to cook it ourselves.
I get a glimmer of these family dinners I am discussing at La Vigna meetings, when Fran and Corine’s families and Aunt Bea and Aunt Lorriane descend on the beaches of the Jersey Coast or on the days leading up to and after the picnic in the yard at 90 Eggerts Crossing. These glimmers always just make the loss of these dinners felt much more in my mind.

It was these family dinners that gave me the sense of what the family is and taught me to respect and cherish the family as a whole as a child. I feel that my child and my cousins’ children have been cheated out of a wonderful piece of heritage and learning of family.

Well Christmas 2007 has come and gone and everyone in the Bilancio household had a great Christmas. I spent most of it in the kitchen working on Christmas dinner but it was fun working with food and my folks.

The big gift this year went to my wife Carolyn. I gave her a romantic getaway vacation to the Florida Keys for both of us. We still have to pick where we are going to stay but I have booked the air fair and car rental. We will be going sometime in May. I know I am looking forward to just sitting by the ocean or pool relaxing for a week with a few day trips to Key West and other sites in the Keys.

The family started showing up promptly at 4:30 and dinner was served around 5:30. All the food was great and we all had a great time enjoying each others company. Things started breaking up around 8:30 - 9:00.

Hope everyone had a great holiday and is looking forward to the new year.

Well the new TV season is starting and my DVR is working overtime.  I have found a few new shows that would be interesting and will have to check out.  That’s the beauty of haveing a great piece of equipment like the DVR.  So much easier to use and watch then a VCR.

Other then the new TV season a lot has been going on.  We have hired a new person at work to help me out and to start working on documentation and other stuff.  I had a list of stuff for him to do and he seems to be doing a great job. 

Parents came back from Turkey last weekend after a 3 week trip of the country.  They seemed to have had a good time.  Dad heads to the Cleavland clinic at the end of October for a check up on his heart stuff.

Avery started High School this year and seems to be doing well in the new school.  She also started another year of dance and is taking Jazz and Hip Hop this year.  I am sure she will do great and be one of the best in both her classes. :)

Carolyn is doing great and is out looking for a job. 

I know I know it’s been a while. Work and family stuff and Karma
have been taking up a ton of my time. The last Saturday of July was the
La Vigna picnic and it was great. My uncle Fran, cousins Ira and Lou
came back from Michigan for it and we all had a great time. The weather
was very hot and humid so that made for a low turn out of people.
Weather like that usually makes the older crowed stay home, this
happens about once every 5 years. So hopefully next year it will be
better.

August has been flying by in a blur. Karma, Avery and I have been
going to puppy class for the past 3 Saturdays and have 2 more to go.
Karma is doing very well on his learning. I just have to remember that
he is only 3 months old and to not get frustrated when he forgets
things or just won’t do them. I had the same problem with Avery when
she was small. Hey I expect big things from my family and pets at an
early age :). Yesterday was Carolyn and my 14th wedding anniversaries,
we went to H.I. Rib Inc.
for dinner. It was very good and tasty and filling. We had a sampler of
ribs for an appetizer. Carolyn had the steak and I had the pork chops.
Then we went to Peggy Sues for ice cream then home to sit in the back
yard to play with the dog. I will say this about having a cattle
dog…the amount of time I am getting him exercised has gotten me away
from in front of the television and the computer…so that’s a good
thing.

I am looking at what the next big project will be in the house. I
know that I want to get the back door replaced with a new one and a
full length window/screen storm door. I am also looking at putting the
kitchen redo back on the schedule. I want to take the wall out between
the kitchen and the dining room, opening up the whole down stairs. This
is for a few reasons. 1. To get more air flow through the house. 2. To
open up the kitchen for more space and there other reasons. Of course
the whole room will need to be gutted and new flooring needs to be put
down and new cabinets need to be put in and hung. If I take the wall
out then I can put an island in and move the cook top to it or move the
dishwasher to the island giving me more cabinet space. It really is
time to do the kitchen, I am getting real sick of the tangerine colored
counters. I just have to figure out the money. There is also the
laundry room and back bathroom that needs new flooring and Avery’s room
that needs the paneling ripped off and dry wall hung and painted. And
to do the major ones (kitchen and Avery’s room) I need some money and I
need my uncle Dean to help me. But I look at it this way any upgrades I
make on the house will increase the value of the house.

So that’s whats going on in the world of Carolyn, Avery, Karma and William…..

In honor of my 14th anniversary yesterday and to say I love you to my wife. All the way from Bedrock: