Winter VisitorsGTuesday, February 26th, 2013 A little over a week ago, my parents flew into Hartford, Connecticut, for a seven day workshop in macrobiotic cooking at the Kushi Institute. We met them at the airport hotel, and spent a wonderful day and a half together before strapping their su...
A Family Visit to our LandGSunday, October 14th, 2012 Brimming with anticipation, we wend our way through rural southwestern Vermont, passing scenic farms with red barns nestled at the feet of breathtaking mountains. As we draw near to our land, fiery-colored trees line either side of the road, creat...
An Alan Family VacationGSunday, October 14th, 2012 A few months ago, my grandmother mentioned wanting to see Vermont again. Years ago, she and my grandfather went on vacations to New England, taking trains to see the fall color. She wanted to go again, and to see Tyler and my land in person. So,...
Second Thoughts in VermontGFriday, October 5th, 2012 Burrs and sweat clinging to our clothes, we bid our land goodbye and head into town for a bite to eat. As we drive together in silence, evening falls, smothering the landscape in a misty blackness. For reasons unspoken, our triumphant mood is dar...
Hanging OnGFriday, February 17th, 2012 About a month ago, when the adventure of moving my mother's parents into assisted living and clearing out their house was finally nearing its end, we received a call from my dad's brother, informing us that my other grandmother was in the hospital—...
Stuff Stuff StuffGSaturday, December 10th, 2011 With my grandparents settled in their new home, we've moved on to the task of cleaning out their old one, and it's been an eye-opening process. As we sift through the accumulation of sixty years in living, we are reminded of when we went through a...
With GrandparentsGThursday, December 8th, 2011 During the month of November, Tyler and I spent most of our time in southern Illinois with my mom and dad, taking care of my grandparents. My 92 year old grandfather had been in the hospital for major abdominal surgery. It was touch and go at tim...
A Skype ChristmasGSaturday, December 25th, 2010 Pleasantly full from dinner, and feeling joyful about our unexpected visitors, we come home to our hotel room with a renewed sense of peace. At last, it's late enough for our families to be awake (we're twelve hours apart). Now we can call them o...
On Family: The Cost of AdventureGSaturday, December 25th, 2010 There is a price to be paid for following our dreams. This morning, while our loved ones halfway around the world are tucked into their beds, sleeping on the night before Christmas, a quiet melancholy has swept over our little hotel room. Righ...
HomesickGWednesday, April 7th, 2010 It being a sleepy, rainy morning, we almost succumbed to the desire to stay put for one more day. Thinking better of it, we slowly pushed ourselves to motion, dutifully packing our things in a half-awake and hungry daze. It took some time, but on...
Welcome to the World!GTuesday, April 6th, 2010 Our thoughts are with Amanda and Paul (Tyler's older sister and her husband) today as we celebrate the birth of Elijah Paul Noskowiak. We wish we could be there with you! All our love from Serbia, Uncle Tyler and Auntie Tara ...
Family RemedyGSaturday, February 20th, 2010 Last night I went to bed with a hurty, swollen feeling on the left side of my neck, but I didn't think much of it. When I awoke this morning, I felt wretched. When I tried to talk, it sounded as if I had a pillow shoved down my throat, and felt l...
This is MarkGSunday, September 20th, 2009 I woke up early expecting to tour the farm, meet Lidia's parents, and participate in making sheep's milk ricotta, the creamy cheese Tara had used to make our tasty ravioli filling. As it turned out, Lidia wasn't able to shepherd us over to the fam...
This is LianGSaturday, September 19th, 2009 Hi all, This is Lian, Tara's brother. I have been enjoying my week with the "Going Slowly Crew" here in Italy. We are having a wonderful time here in the countryside with short trips to the towns. The highlight has of course been seeing Tara and...
This is LisaGFriday, September 18th, 2009 This is Lisa. Im Tara's mom, and I'm filling in today to allow Tara and Tyler a bit of a break from their usual discipline of daily journaling. Their dedication to daily journaling is impressive. To them "daily" absolutely means daily, as in, "...
Florence with FamilyGThursday, September 17th, 2009 The morning began with some harried navigation on busy Italian roads leading into Florence. Traveling by bicycle is definitely easier than by car! After several wrong turns and subsequent complicated GPS/written direction consultations, we finall...
Thank you, Dad!GMonday, June 22nd, 2009 We have been biking 80-90 kilometers a day lately; quite a bit more than our usual 50-70. When the phone rang last night, we picked it up and were greeted with the cheerful voices of my parents wanting to chat. Relieved to be home, but tired and ...