Connecticut Fun

Alex was working like a dog at the start of the summer and I was in over my head with wedding planning. Our summer work schedules don't give us much time off...one day to be exact. We knew we needed to escape the city for some relaxation, so we booked a weekend away to Essex, Connecticut.

The trip there was surprisingly easy! A short subway ride to a short Metro North ride to an hour and a half drive. Easy peasy! We stayed at the Riverwind Inn, a cozy bed and breakfast with lovely hosts, delicious breakfasts, and all the charm of a small New England town. During our stay we visited the Florence Griswold Museum and bought a beautiful painting at the Lyme Art Association, we spent an afternoon at the Connecticut River Museum, complete with a boat ride on a historic sailboat, hiked in the Gillette Castle State Park and took a tour of the castle, had beers and a bite to eat at the Griswold Inn...for a weekend away, we sure did a lot of fun things.

As one friend captioned this photo of Alex exploring the Connecticut River Museum: "I've literally never seen Alex look happier!" And it was true. It was just the two of us exploring and relaxing.

Now, whenever I see Alex stressing out, I'm reminded of the importance of unplugging and enjoying the weekend. Because the work will always be there on Monday morning waiting for us. And sometimes the fresh air and an ice cream cone is more important than clean laundry and a fridge full of groceries. Here's to more working for a living and less living for work!

Sweet Virginia

Whenever we're invited to an out-of-town wedding in an interesting spot, we make a habit of turning it into a mini-getaway. So when Alex's close friend from law school invited Alex to be in his wedding in Richmond, Virginia, we knew we were in for a jam packed, fun-filled weekend.

The wedding itself was so southern and proper. At a beautiful church with a reception at the Jefferson Hotel. The bride and groom were glowing with happiness and it was a beautiful day.

Apart from the wedding festivities, we took it upon ourselves to have little adventures. We grabbed a night cap after the rehearsal dinner with our good friend who got married earlier this year in Korea, checked out the Virginia Museum of Fine Art, had a seriously mouth-watering BBQ lunch, and explored a bit of downtown Richmond, including a fantastic dinner at Rappahannock.

It's crazy to think that our own wedding is in the near future. I'll miss calling Alex my fiance and I'll miss all the anticipation up to our big day, but I won't miss all the planning and preparation and logistics. Even though I've planned tons of events for work, it's so different now that it's my own. Add an extra layer of pressure from the crazy wedding industry that exists these days (Say Yes to the Dress, Pinterest, Etsy,the Knot, Wedding Wire)...and it feels a bit overwhelming at times trying to meet so many expectations and deadlines. But I've got a great partner in Alex and at the end of the day, that's what's most important.

Foreign Relations

Alex and I were instructed by our rabbi to get some preliminary genetic testing in preparation for having children in the future. As Ashkenazi Jews, there are a few scary diseases we have to worry about passing on to the next generation such as Tay-Sachs and cystic fibrosis. Before going in to a genetic counselor, we decided to have a little fun and do 23andme - both to check out our gene pools and learn about our ancestry.

From kit receipt to lab results, the entire process took about 6 weeks. Luckily neither of us carry variants for the array of horrible things we could pass on to a child. (WHEW!) With our diverse gene pools, I can't say I'm surprised! I did learn that I'm at high risk for developing Alzheimer's Disease late in life (yikes). As the time comes closer for us to plan for a family, we'll go through additional, more thorough testing just in case.

One cool thing the site tests for is ancestry. I found out that I'm about 47% Italian, about 48% Ashkenazi Jew, and the remaining 5% of my genetics are from the Middle East, Northern Europe, and Asia. Alex is about 55% Ashkenazi Jew and the remaining 45% of his genetics are a mixed bag: Middle Eastern, Northern African, Iberian, Balkan, Italian, Northern European, Eastern European...fascinating!

The highlight of this process for me was discovering a new family member in San Francisco! My dad's mother, Sylvia, had 3 siblings: Floyd, Melvin and Pearl (THOSE NAMES!). Floyd and Sylvia were the closest of the siblings (they shared a birth day of August 30 although years apart). My grandmother's stage name during her short career as an opera singer was Sylvia Floyd. I know that she grieved for Floyd for many years. He died very young (in his 40's) while his wife was pregnant with their second son, also named Floyd. His widow was also caring for their older son, Gordon when she moved back into her parents' home and lost touch with my grandmother and her family. Gordon's son, Aaron, was also on 23andme and our genetic results matched us as 2nd cousins. I reached out and connected with him and it's been amazing getting to know my family. Aaron has 2 sisters with very interesting backgrounds: one is married to a transgender rabbi and the other is a single mom who works as a nurse. I'm so thrilled to learn all about my family and it gives me the perfect excuse to (maybe, one-day) travel to San Francisco for a family reunion. It's been so interesting learning about my family history!

Here's a photo of my paternal grandparents' wedding that hangs on the wall in my aunt's apartment:

from left to right top row: Pearl*, Jean's husband, Jean**, Melvin*, Lois**, Floyd* [*=grandmother's sibling; **=grandfather's sibling]

from left to right bottom row: Golda, Paul*, Dena*, Sylvia, Irving, Dora**, Philip** [*=grandmother's parents; **=grandfather's parents; Sylvia and Irving were my grandparents and Golda was my great great grandmother!]