My parents always had music playing in our house. It would be a potluck of music from their generation, their parents' generation, the current soft rock and Christian contemporary. There are a few songs that really stick out in my memory and "Our House" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young is one of them. When I finally got to the age when the words I was mindlessly singing started to grab real significance, I remember thinking that this song is what represented being an adult with a home and a family and not just a place to live.
Well, I finally have my home, an awesome husband and a cutie daughter, so I decided to buy a bunch of frames and decorate the walls and bookcases. As we were figuring out the best placement and arrangement of the photos, I started to see how some of my favorite photos/artwork represented some of the people and memories that mean a great deal. Here are some examples.
This is at the edge of the kitchen and dining area. The bagel sign on the top is of Finagle a Bagel, a chain bagel shop I tried to eat at every time I visited my friends in Boston during their college years. Boston still stands as one of my all-time favorite cities because of all the great times I had up there.
The frame in the middle with the colored glasses and champagne flutes was taken at a bachelorette I threw for a friend. Actually, that was from the first try. There was a do-over for the party, which is a much longer story.
The framed quote to the right was decoration taken from Derek and Ashley's weddingish, May 17, 2009. It reads, "The quality of your life is the quality of your relationships. ~Anthony Robbins." That weekend is still one of my top 5 best weekends ever, and it was also very significant to my relationship to Scott.
The house is where I grew up in Wyckoff. It was a lovely home and sadly, it no longer exists. The man who bought it from my parents in 2005 decided to knock it down and build a monstrosity. Very sad.
The Chinese garden was a photo I took from an outing to Duke Gardens with Cyrus Chi. The Man-Chi and I had a great time wandering around the huge indoor botanical gardens and I was able to take a bunch of great pictures. For anyone who lives in NJ, check it out - you will not be disappointed!
Duke Gardens
The picture of the waterfall is from a family trip to our relatives in Montana. I have no idea where this particular waterfall is located because I took this photo either in middle school or early high school.
The collage of pictures are of my friends from NJ. The group photo of the girls are of my close gal pals from high school; the group photo above it was from our prom weekend (with the Funqwat buried underneath us); and there are a couple other pictures of a different prom, my favorite of which is the one with all the guys hanging off a swing set.
The large frame hanging on the wall is something that Scott received when leaving the base in Minot, North Dakota. A bunch of people saying how awesome he is, which is all true.
The frame on the left sitting on the bookcase was taken from my exploring Jonesborough, Tennessee. Every year they have a festival dedicated to storytelling and it's a big, big deal. The town is so tiny and quaint, I couldn't help but feel like I've been transported to a different time. The hats are bolted to the side of store and people can stand underneath them for a photo. I just thought it was super cute.
Oldest town in TN
The two smaller frames next in line are both mementos from my brother-in-law's wedding. This was one of the first few 'dates' I got to have with Scott back in 2005 and I'm happy to have kept the escort card.
The frame to the right is a collage put together by Derek and Ashley given to us as a wedding gift. There are several pictures of Scott and me from their wedding and a couple from when our group of friends would just hang out at the Sonderfans' home in North Haledon or at the pool hall in Pompton Lakes. The quote on the top is, "The art of love... is largely the art of persistence. ~Albert"
The frame on the top shelf is a group photo at the Cheesequake rest stop. I forget who started the tradition, but anytime our group of friends went down to the Jersey shore, there had to be a photo taken at this rest stop. I believe this one was from summer of 1997.
The black and white photo is from our wedding ceremony at The Garden of the Gods in Colorado. There were a ton of pictures taken by our family and friends, but this is my favorite of the few friends who got to come to our very small ceremony.
The frame on the right is of my family at Hershey Park, Pennsylvania. I can't remember how long ago this was taken, but it was before my sister had her two little daughters and when I still lived with my parents.
There are more pictures and artwork I tacked up on the wall, but I just wanted to share a handful of the love mementos with which I surrounded our home. Pretty soon, there will be many photos of Violet as she gets to meet the rest of my relatives and friends. I look forward to all of it.
