shoot!

I did something wrong! To read day one in KC you have to scroll way down.
Sorry, am new at this blogging stuff! I just know you don't want to miss reading any part of this exciting tale!
How the heck did I manage to screw it up?

KC day 2

Well, Saturday we had a lazy beginning. Drank coffee, chatted and put off showering and getting dressed.

Joe had 'the plan' for the day, in his head so, after 2 pots of the coffee, we got ready for the day and then we were off.

We did a lot of shopping this day. Our first stop was at Asian grocery store. So much to look at. We had fun looking at the products and trying to figure out what it was how it was used. We each left with a bag of treasures to sample. Second stop, a Fair Trade store. As we entered the shop, we were greeted by a woman that told us the shop was non-profit and all the sales clerks were voluteers! Very cool atmosphere and so many beautiful items from around the world. Wish we didn't have any weight limits with our luggage! In that same general area was a Farmer's Market. We bought some unsusual dried pastas that Joe and Silvia had tried and wanted to buy more of. Each pasta included recipes. We love recipes!

Off to find some lunch. We had a great lunch, but, the best part was our waitress. She was friendly and very helpful. Joe was trying to remember exactly where he wanted to take us next. He told her that the buildings were gray and there was a luggage store! Well, she got directions for us just with that amount of information!

At the next stop we just walked in and out of shops. At one place, I tried on a Halloween crown. Joe took my picture. When I saw the picture, I said that I wished I could fix my baggy neck, I hate it! Well, my sister helped me out by standing behind me and pulling the wrinkles out for me! She also was choking me!! Here is the result.

I guess you can see her hands, right?? It didn't work too well. We were laughing so hard!

A lady walked past us and said "you are having too much fun! I want to play!"

We all got a kick out that.

Hallmark has their headquarters in KC. and they have done a lot for city. There is an area called the Crown Center.

It is a large building with shops and businesses and a small theatre.

My brother king/saint Joe said to us "hey, let's go see this play, they still have tickets available" We could not believe which play he wanted to see!I

MENOPAUSE THE MUSICAL!!! Oh my GOD.......we had so much fun! The best part was watching Joe laugh! It was all hysterical! At first I felt badly for the handful of men there. Well, I believe they all had the best time. Besides, look at the 'brownie points' they must have all gotten! Good job, guys. Cindy and Silvia ended up dancing on the stage with all of the other 'menopausal' women. If you haven't seen this play, you must try to do so.

Then it got to be 'cocktail time' so we thought we would head to our dinning destination.

We planned to eat at Lydia's. The restaurant is owned by Lydia Bastianich, a cookbook author and host of her own cooking show on PBS.

We headed to the bar and Joe went to put our name in for a table.

We ordered drinks. The part we all loved best was the bowls of olives and little cheese sticks on the tables in the bar area. They roast and marinate the olives and they are AMAZING!! Joe joined us at the table and informed us that we would probably not be able to get a table for dinner that night! Well, we decided that we loved the bar area so much that we would get a reservation for the next night! I myself was perfectly happy drinking my Maker's Mark and eating the treats provided at the table and would love an excuse to visit again. We should have thought about the fact that it was a Saturday night and 'Obama' was in town that night so there were a lot of people in town. We never thought about reservations that day.

Joe was the designated driver so let's have another round, girls.

The drinks had made my cheeks pretty red and we had finished our olives, so time to go. We said good-bye to, Steven, our waiter and photographer. He told us to ask for him by name, when we come back. We said 'ok, see you tomorrow'!

Got back into the car laughing again. Our sister, Cindy, Republican, was afraid that all the 'Obamians' walking around loose would try to capture her and get her change her vote. Now, remember, we had been drinking. This was one of the those times when 'you had to be there'. It looses in translation so I won't even try. Trust me ....funny as hell. Well, we thought so anyway.

We ended up having dinner at a 'Chef Burger' near, I think it is called, the Power and Lights area. While we waited for our burgers we started looking around. Oh, oh........'Obamians' had found their way to the same spot for burgers after the speech had ended. I went to a table of young people and asked them how things had gone. Another young family joined in. Their daughter was just standing there smiling. I loved her shirt and asked her parents for permission to take this photo.

Cute, huh?

"Poor little girl doesn't know what she is wearing" is what Cindy said. "Must have been brainwashed by her parents!"

While we were eating Joe told us that place we were headed was for 21 and over and maybe we would get carded. HA!! I lOVE getting carded! I always say I could kiss them when they ask. Silvia said 'I never get carded' We finished dinner and started walking.

When we got across the street, sure enough....a bouncer! He just sort of waved Joe and Silvia on. I had my ID in my hand and as Silvia looked back at us, I said under my breath "ask for my ID" He smiled and said to Cindy and I 'Ok.....both of you, ID!" I then smiled and said "can I kiss you?" He pointed to his cheek and I planted one on him! Cindy said "what about me?' Poor guy........the cougars(old women after young men) were out in full force!

Went into the Maker's Mark restaurant and then to an Irish Pub. No way could I eat or drink another thing. Joe finished his Guiness and we decided that it had been a long, but, very fun day and we were tired.

We got home, put our jammies on and were all on the couch, with our feet up in no time.

We had walked, eaten and laughed all day. Life is good.

KC day 1

As Cindy and I were decending upon Kansas City we had to wonder if Joe had lied to us. He had promised sunny skies and warm temperatures. What we saw was very gray and very wet! The only ray of light in the airport was Joe's smile as he saw us!! We were so very happy to see him too!

We got our luggage and got into the car. We started our stay 'the Smetana way' and that meant food, of course! Lunch was the first order of business. We had arrived late in the morning and we were hungry. Remember, Midwest airline, no cookies on morning flights!

On our last visit we had eaten at 'Mimi's Cafe' and thought that would be a good place for lunch. We sat down and looked at the menu. The soup and 1/2 sandwich choice sounded really good to all of us. So we all ordered 5 way grilled cheese and baked french onion soup!
After we started eating I was sure that I could actually hear our arteries clogging. It was very yummy, and very cheesy!

After eating every bite, we thought we should probably walk for a while. The cafe is located in a new shopping area so we thought we should look around. We ended up at a Marshalls store. After about 15 mins. Joe said he would walk back to the car and then pick us up.
Cindy and I tried on a few things and made our purchases. We went out to wait for Joe. We waited for about 10 mins. and all a sudden I thought, maybe the cheesy lunch was too much for Joe and he had a heart attack!! Would we ever see him again? Just as I was sharing my fears with Cindy, he drove toward us. Whew!



When we arrived at his home we were greeted by Silvia, our sister-in-love. Oh, and of course Mocha, their doggie. They were both so happy to see us!

We talked and got settled in. They suggested that we visit a nearby casino. Now, I happen to enjoy an occasional slot machine, but, Cindy isn't really a fan. We drove there and decided that 1 1/2 hours was as long we would stay. Thank God we weren't there any longer because I wouldn't not have been able to afford anymore time. We 3 girls left the casino with the word 'looser' stamped on our foreheads. Joe won a bit, he had better luck a the video poker machine.

We had BBQ at Arthur Bryant's for our dinner. Now, broke and stomachs full we decided to go home.

We got our jammies on, watched the news and started yawning. All of a sudden we could 'hear' Cindy and Silvia sleeping. Time for bed, we decided.

We had to get our strength up for day 2 in KC.

back home

Just got back home this afternoon.
Everyone was on their best behavior this weekend because they were afraid that 'What happened in Kansas City, wouldn't stay in Kansas City!' They knew it would end up on this blog and the WWW! Ha.........we had a great time.
The stories and some photos in the next couple of days.
My brother truly is a King/Saint!
Always so good to be home.

kansas city here I come!

They got some crazy little women there!

My sister Cindy and I are heading to Kansas City, Kansas to visit our brother Joe and CRAZY Silvia, our sister-in-love! We leave bright and early tomorrow, Friday, morning. We will spend the weekend and come back home on Monday.

I have been doing 'cheek' exercises to get in shape for laughing! Oh, gosh, we laugh alot when we are together!

They have found the best BBQ spots, shopping areas and maybe even a CASINO!

Joe is the official tour guide and the man must be a saint to put up with the 3 girls all weekend! Or, he might be king, because he was wearing a crown the last time I saw him.

There will be posts and more photos. You can count on that!

the girls in my life

These are the famous 'daughters-in-love' I am always talking about.
This picture was taken during the summer on our deck.
Bill looks like one very happy guy! Well, we both are!

Amy, Bill and Jess

the men in my life

These good lookin' guys are mine! I am one lucky woman!

Now when I mention their names, you will know who I am talking about!

Michael, Bill and Bj.

voices from the past

I am so happy that I have started this blog and spent time learning how to use Facebook.
All of a sudden, I am hearing from our 'daughters' from around the world.
Anyone that knows Bill and I, knows that since 1994, we have hosted 14 exchange students!
Bj, our son, was an exchange student to Japan that year and we started hosting.

Rotary has been wonderful for all of us. Our international family grew and so did our friendships here and around the world.

I hope that we hear from more of the voices from of our past. For some it has been way too long.
If you are reading this and the memories are still important to you....... come on.....email your American parents!

NYC wedding weekend day 4....going home

Got up Monday morning feeling pretty darn good!

We showered and got all packed. Because we were in one of the 'upgraded' rooms, we went down the hall to have breakfast. That really was a nice perk!

Don and Sheila, the groom's parents were leaving soon so we all said our good-byes. It was lovely wedding and I know they are very proud of their son and his new wife. The 8 of us that had arrived together would leave together on a later plane.

Left our bags in the rooms and off we were to do as much as possible in the time we had left.
Our first order of business was to take the subway to NBC studios. We all really wanted to get to the TODAY show and see if any of us could get some 'on air' time. Well, Al Roker thought Bob looked like one of the camera guys, so Bob was lucky enough to get some time on air! Bill was standing just behind him smiling! That was a lot of fun. We all were calling people on our cell phones to watch for us on tv!

We then walked to Central Park and took one of the carriage rides through the park. We were total tourists, but, it really was nice and we all enjoyed it.
After walking around a bit more, we went to the subway again. Our destination now was China Town.
Donna had the address of a shop were if we said 'Alex, the driver sent us' we would gain access to all of the really 'special designer' bags!! A very mysterious event. They unlocked a portion of the wall inside the shop and we all went through the door and up the stairs to see what treasures we could find. Kinda creepy! I didn't really need or want anything so I went back down and stood outside with Bill. The shopkeeper told us to either come in the shop or go away. Our presence in front of the shop was bad for business. Donna and Celeste came out with their purchases in plastic bags and were told to NOT open them until they were away from the shop.
We walked away to find watches next. There was haggling on prices and watches were purchased.

Time to get back to the hotel to check out and have lunch before we left for the airport.

We checked out and went to the rooms to collect our things and the doors were locked. We had to get our suitcases out!
Security had to let us in. When we got all the bags, we then checked them with the hotel for about an hour and a half. We decided that we would have lunch at Fat Annie's. We had been told that they had the best burgers in town. Bill and I shared a burger because I still didn't know if my stomach would want to eat too much.

When we finished eating and collected our bags again we went out to wait for our driver to take us to the airport. He was already there for us so, no waiting. We had a quick trip to the airport, checked in, got through security and had plenty of time to wait. We ended up sitting at an airport bar. We all sat as we watched the Dow Jones DROP almost 800 points!

We were all in the air and on our way home. About half way through the flight you could just smell those chocolate chip cookies. My stomach and I were ready for them.

We knew we wouldn't starve over the weekend and we didn't.

We knew we would have fun and boy did we ever.

I know everyone realized know how lucky we were to be on this very special trip together. You know almost 40 years of friendship, how can anything be better than that?

I hope we can have 40 more.

NYC wedding weekend day 3

Well, I made it through the night. I woke up Sunday morning with a very dry mouth and lips. Had to slowly drink some water to rehydrate myself. My stomach felt like I had been kicked several times.
I would not going anywhere today. I felt very weak and kept falling asleep.
I told Bill he should not waste the day. He decided to get cleaned up and went out to see what everyone else was up to at Harrington's. That is the bar where the Packer game would be on and people would be laughing and having fun. Unlike our hotel room!
Bill left. I turned the tv on. I slept. Woke up.......slept. You get the idea.
I did manage to see parts of the Jets game. One of my friends at work said that seeing Brett play with the Jets was like seeing an old boyfriend with a new girl. Yep, she was right! So, back to sleep. Later in the afternoon, I thought I should maybe eat something to regain some strength. I called Bill and asked if he could find some chicken noodle soup for me. He said he would. Poor guy had to go to 4 differents spots to find it for me. Oh my gosh, it was the BEST soup! Or was I just hungry? I took my time, but, ate every bit and started feeling human.
As I laid there that afternoon, I had decided that the room I had been so critical of really wasn't so bad. The bed was super comfy and sheets clean. The shower was hot and towels clean. My only real gripe, as I found out later in the day, was the quality of the toilet paper. Yikes!! I think you know what I a talkng about!
So that was my day 3 in NYC. I was thankful that we would be flying home on Monday not today. I still had a bit of time to see some sights and have some fun.
Slept very well all night.

NYC wedding weekend day 2

Saturday Sept. 27 was a gray and overcast day. I heard one time that it was good luck for it to rain on wedding days. Yep, we will go with that story and cross our fingers for sun at some point today.

Our son, Michael, and our daughter-in-love, Amy came to our hotel to ride with us.

Umbrellas in hand the group met in front of the hotel to grab a taxi ride to the 35th. St. Pier. We were to take a ferry ride to the venue where the wedding itself and reception would be held.

In one of the cabs , Mikey was busy talking to the driver who then became distracted. They ran into the vehicle in front of them. Thank God no one was hurt.

We boarded the ferry and rode the short distance to the Brooklyn side. Some of the members of the wedding party were waiting with smiles and open arms to greet us. We entered the building and had a glass of champagne.

The wedding itself was so lovely. The background was the skyline of Manhattan. The bride, Kim, was radiant. She choose the most beautiful dress that suited her perfectly. Jared, the groom, looked very handsome although he also looked like he was about 13 years old!! Clean shaven face and a new haircut. That will do it every time!

What a happy couple.

The ceremony now over, it's time for a beverage and a feast of food! There seemed to be an endless parade of food plates being served and different stations of fresh fruit, veggies, cheese and the pasta table. We all seemed to have a very good appetite and enjoyed each morsel that was served. Jared, the groom, and our son are good friends. When they both lived in Chicago they brewed beer together and share the passion. Jared now living in NY has been brewing while living there. He even grows his own hops! Now that is a true passion. Jared's home brew was served at the bar. Pretty cool, we thought!

So we all ate our fill only to find out that we would soon be ushered into another room. When seated, we found out very quickly that we would now have a full meal served to us. Gosh, it was going to be difficult, but, we were going to eat again. It was so fun to have a live band and dance between courses. We had the best time dancing. I think that the 'old cheese farts' from Wisconsin showed the New Yorkers how to have a good time. The band was wonderful. Who cared that the weather wasn't very nice? We were having a wonderful time!

At one point near the end of the celebration some of us 'girls' noticed that some of the guys had gone missing. Sure enough, they had crashed the wedding being held downstairs so that they could watch a part of the Wisconsin Badger game! Pretty rude, right?

Now it was time for us to leave and we boarded a very big boat to tour the harbor and have a view of Lady Liberty and the skyline. A wonderful way to end a very special day. Thank-you for inviting us.

Michael and Amy left to join some of their friends for the evening.

The rest of us, not involved in the wedding party looked for cabs. Believe it or not, we were headed to another restaurant!! Gosh, how could eat again?

We succeeded in finding rides and ended at Rosa Mexicana. A popular place in NYC we had been told. One by one our taxis dropped us off. I along with Linda, Mikey's wife, were standing outside waiting when we heard a crash and a very angry BMW owner yelling at poor 'ole Mikey!! Mikey had opened his door on the traffic side of the cab and at just that time.....the BMW got in the way. Well, everyone calmed down and took information and photos and all the details. Our friend Donna, however, was not feeling too well. The last ferry ride and the taxi ride were too much for her. Donna and Greg walked back to the hotel for the night. The rest of us headed for our table. What to order now, I wondered. Well, just an appeitizer maybe. I tried the chips and salsa and yikes, the salsa was so very spicy. I hate when food burns your lips. I don't want anymore of that for sure. Mikey got up from the table. He walked into the wall. Bad day for him...poor guy. Our orders came and mine looked very tasty. I began eating it when I realized that the same salsa was on it. I couldn't finish. As I sat there, I realized that my burning lips were now swelling and in doing a quick survey of my mouth with my tongue, realized that I had hives on the roof of my mouth too. Oh oh, my voice is going..........could it be the broncitis acting up? Did the damp weather and talking too much cause it? I felt ok, but, just thought it was time to go back to the hotel and our room and take Benydryl. Bill went for one last drink. I stayed in the room, took the pills, got pj's on, washed up and brushed my teeth. I had found the night before that the bed was very comfy and at that moment it looked pretty good to me. Well, for about 5 mins., I was right. Then I was drenched in sweat and had such stomach pains that for a while I believed I was dying. A heart attack? Stroke? Bill didn't have his phone. What would I do? Got my cell phone. Maybe I should call 911? Just as I was at the worst, Bill was at the door. I couldn't even talk to him I felt so awful. There was nothing he could do for me I told him. Well, lucky for him, he had no problem falling asleep while I just lay there....dying.

I didn't die, but, that sounded like the best option when I started running to the bathroom. For about 4 hours I was as sick as I ever remember. Then I fell asleep and slept for the rest of the night. Guess it was a food allergy. I better find out, I never want to go through this again.....not ever!

NYC wedding weekend day one!

On Friday, September 26, Bill and I, along with 6 of our oldest and dearest friends, boarded a plane to New York City. We were visiting the big city to attend a wedding. Jared, the son of our other old friends, and his beautiful bride, Kim. Weather caused a 2 hour delay, but, when you are laughing and having fun, time passes very quickly!

We all were on Midwest Airlines. Did you know that they do not have breakfast on breakfast flights? Well, that is bad enough, but, they only serve their famous warm chocolate chip cookies after noon. So we didn't have cookies! We all realized that we probably would not starve over the weekend.

We got to NYC and found our way to baggage claim. Good 'ole Mikey found transportation for us all. Our bags came very quickly and we loaded the van. The driver was great. We took his card and we promised we would call him for our return trip.

The hotel was located pretty well. Across from Madison Square Garden and Penn Station.
Our rooms were........well, adequate, and that is being kind. I did mention to Bill that I was thankful to be on antibiotics for bronchitis as the air-conditioning unit was well......questionable. Think 'Legionaires Disease.' Old hotel and small rooms that needed a major face-lift. Thank God we we had been switched to the 'upgraded' rooms! I don't want to think of what the basic rooms would have been like!
We dropped off our luggage and headed out for the beginning of our adventure!

Because we didn't have those cookies, we were all pretty darn hungry by then.
Lindy's diner was right there in the hotel lobby so that is where we had lunch.
Stomachs full for the moment, we headed out to the street.


Walking.........walking...........smelled something yummy cooking on an outdoor grill. We needed to check it out, of course. Chicken Mexican style corn with the cream and cheese. Also, noticed a lot of activity down this street. "What is going on" we asked a guy eating a bowl of the corn. "They are filming the TV show Ugly Betty" he told us. Well.....down the street we went. We were tourists, remember. Got to see some of the action. 'No flash photography' and 'be quiet' on the set we were told. Well, we were actually able to control ourselves long enough to see them film a bit. 'Be Quiet' is not something we are really good at........Sorry, Betty.

So now, at least 20 mins. had passed. Where are all the hot dog vendors? All that walking helps to work up a 'powerful appetite'. Scouted out and found a place to watch the Packer game on Sunday. Cheeseheads have priorities. Finally found the hot dog guy. He was selling 'fashion hot dogs'. We wondered what made them 'fashion' dogs? Well, I decided that the difference in Wisconsin hot dogs and fashion hot dogs in NYC must of course be 'lipstick'!

Dogs eaten and we are walking again. We ended up on Times Square looking for the same day ticket place. Found it at the Marriott hotel, in the back. Mikey found a good spot for us on the 8th floor. It is a bar called the View. What a VIEW it turned out to be! All 8 of us sitting at a prime table at the window overlooking Times Square. Mikey was narrating to us what he was seeing as he looked across the street at Virgin Records and connecting business offices. We all seemed to get interested in what he was saying and all found the office where, instead of going home, one couple decided to put in a little overtime. For the next 8 mins., we all watched in surprise as 2 people proceeded to have SEX!! They did turn the lights out, but, those were the most DETAILED shadows we had ever seen! Lights back on, quick hug, coats on.....light back off. Home for the weekend! Yikes. Yes, we timed it.........it was 8 mins. start to finish. Well, the show sort of made up for the $110.00 dollars that it cost us for 8 drinks!

Back to the street. We were seeing Grease on Broadway but had time to kill so found another bar to spend some time. Grease was really good and we all enjoyed the music. Ace Young, former American Idol did a great job. He is pretty darn easy on the eyes, too!

Walked back towards our hotel. We found a bar on a side street that we didn't look too crowded so thought we would check it out. Sorta funnny, the door was locked so we had to wait for the bouncer to let us in. That didn't seem too friendly or too good for business, I thought. 'Why is your door locked?' I asked the bartender. 'We just kicked out 3 drunks and we don't want them to come back in". Oh. So now, we were watching the baseball game on TV with one eye and the drunks on the street, that wouldn't go away, with the other eye. Well, one drunk must have had a lot to drink because he decided to make the phone booth his own personal urinal. They went away then and the door was unlocked.

Day one in New York. What a city!

when sons marry

Our oldest son and the love of his life became engaged last night.
It seems my dreams have come true. Both of our sons have found love and I have found two wonderful friends.........my daughters-in-love. Best part is, they seem to love me as much as I love them!
What a wonderful additions both of the girls are to our family. Bill and I couldn't possibly be happier!
Congratulations, Bj and Jessy!!

keeping up with technology

One day, several years ago, I was watching an episode of Oprah. The topic, that day, happened to be aging. The 'expert' said that not keeping up with technology was the best way to show that you are getting old. Hopefully, beginning and continuing, this blog will be my personal fountain of youth.