Gram's obituary

Virginia G. Leblanc
RANDOLPH , Virginia G. Jean (Moran) of Randolph, formerly of Boston, February 12, 2009, at the age of 84. Loving mother of Theresa Chestna and her husband Thomas of CT and John LeBlanc and his wife Dianne of PA. Sister of the late Donald Dodge and Moore W. Dodge. Dear grandmother of Thomas, Tamara, Donald and Allura. Also survived by 1 great grandchild. Reposing at the Cartwright Funeral Home, 419 No. Main Street, (Rte 28), Randolph until 8:15 a.m. on Monday followed by a Funeral Mass at 9 a.m. in St. Bernadette Church, 1027 No. Main Street, Randolph. Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend. Visiting hours Sunday 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. Burial in Forest Hills Cemetery, Boston on Tuesday. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to Rosie's Place for Homeless Women, 889 Harrison Ave. Boston, MA 02118. Virginia was born in Boston and graduated from Roxbury Memorial High School. She was the former owner of the Corner Store in Randolph from 1955 2003. She enjoyed traveling to Aruba and trips to Foxwoods. For additional information, directions or to leave a sympathy message please visit our website www.cartwrightfuneral.com.

To see the write-up online in the Patriot Ledger, click here.

Virginia LeBlanc

My grandmother, who would have been 85 on Feb 21st, passed away this morning, and I thought a nice way for me to remember her would be to write about some of my favorite memories of the times we spent together.

When I was growing up in CT, we would spend a good chunk of the summer up at my gram's house in Randolph, MA. She had a pool and when I was really young, an awesome husky dog named Sheba. I owe my love of baseball and the Red Sox really to my Gram, as it was the nightly tradition to watch the Sox games in the summer...and I remember her always falling asleep on the couch by the 8th inning and I would wake her up when it was over. I am so glad that she lived to see them win, not just one but two, World Series.

We also had really amazing times in Nova Scotia, when we went to visit her Aunt Thelma...we would take the overnight ferry from Portland, ME up to Canada. It was so fun b/c it was a gambling boat and my Gram would let me pull the lever on the slot machines. Plus I could play bingo and actually, once we were up in Canada, I went with her and my mom a couple of times to these big Bingo nights and won some serious cash! The house we stayed at was pretty much in farmland in the Anapolis Valley of Nova Scotia, and it was so beautiful. Right near a river and blueberry fields...we loved to pick the fresh berries and bake pies!

The biggest thing about my Gram and how my memories are tied to her are through her and The Corner store. She ran her own "mom and pop" grocery mart for 49 years in Randolph. I loved running in the back door and grabbing lunch everyday that we were there. She'd sometimes let me help her make the egg salad sandwiches for the deli...and I remember how much the house stunk like eggs after they'd been boiling all afternoon. I didn't get to run the cash register often, even when I was high school...somehow she never saw me as being old enough to handle it. We went to the warehouse places to buy supplies and make orders together...I got to sometimes help her restock. I remember I loved being able to go in the freezer with her or other employees and help. It was so much fun...and such a part of her life. I mean, Gram was a hard worker. She almost always opened and closed that store - 6am and 9pm. And I know that in some ways that lead to problems in the family over the years, her being almost overly devoted to the store, but at the same time, I respect that she was so independent and very committed to the business.

I loved her and I'm so glad that Chris got to meet her a few times. Especially glad that we saw her so recently on New Year's Day. Love you Gram!

Feel the Love...

Just a post to give Chris props for sending me these flowers as an early Valentine's Day surprise :) yay Chris!

Visiting C & D....

This weekend, Chris and I traveled down to San Marcos (a bit north of San Diego for those not from Cali) to visit our good friends Daryn and Chip (see left). We'd been meaning to get down to see their new digs for quite some time, and of course, we finally make the trip about 10 days before they are moving out and back down to San Diego. Whoops. But regardless, it was great to see the house they'd been renting since last summer and feel the appropriate jealousy for all the space! AND we got to meet their two kitties, Finley and Hanson. We'd heard so much about them and I was dying to meet them. They are adorable and very active... you can see them sitting on top of the fridge to the right.

So we arrived Friday night after a drive in the rain (which on the highways in California is risky since no one here knows how to drive when any water falls from the sky), had a drink and caught up with one another. While we hoped for some sunny skies so the boys could golf, the mother nature was having none of it. It's been like 5 days or so of rain here. So instead, we drove to Temecula on Saturday for some wine tasting, something Chris and I looove to do! We went to a couple of our favorite wineries, had a HUGE lunch and then went home for a nice afternoon nap. Here you can see Daryn and I toasting with a special dark chocolate shot of port and almond champagne. yum!






Later, got to play some games and hung out at the house while the weather continued to be bad, but it let up just enough for Daryn to grill some delicious Mahi Mahi for fish tacos. (On the right, you can see the cats are observing her every move in the kitchen.)
Sunday, we woke up and went to a really great local brunch place in Cardiff By the Sea (near where Daryn grew up) and omg- delicious! We then had to get on the road to get back to our own kitties and my book club meeting.

Thanks for the hospitality Daryn!! We had so much fun and it was such a nice, chill weekend.

Not much new to report

Hey guys and gals...it's been a pretty work-filled week, which doesn't make for a ton of fun blogging. So I'll just say hello and let you know that Chris and I are doing well. We're a bit worried about his job situation, but Chris is out there and interviewing. We found out that his termination date at Hilton will be between April 6-20th, unless he's kept on during the transition....which they won't tell you possibly until March 31st. How nice, right?

Other than that, we're just trucking along....heading to visit Daryn and Chip in San Diego this weekend, so we'll have lots to report on Monday!

Are you ready for some football?!

Yes, yes we were. Even though I wasn't super into the teams that were playing, I kind of have an affinity for the Steelers, so I was okay with watching them. But then during the game, I really was rooting for Arizona. When they came back in the fourth quarter, I was like "Oh yeah! It's on! Go Kurt Warner"....and then when the Steelers came back, I was like, "wow, this sucks but where the F is defense!!" And THEN this morning while I was watching Sportscenter and saw all the film of Ben Roethlisberger and how well he was moving in the pocket, over and over again....he totally deserves it. Gotta give him some respect and some love!!

Anyway, we watched the game at Jerry and Kristen's apartment and had a great, gluttonous time!! Seriously there was SO much food. Four different dips for chips, wings, pulled pork sandwiches, potato balls (like mini-shepherd's pies), veggies, pizza, blondies, cupcakes, fruit tartes and some cake. Wowza. Chris and I had to be rolled home and then felt like we were going to burst.And of course, we all had our 3D glasses on and I thought it was pretty cool that they did that. I think 3D is here to stay now and we'll see more and more of it - both in the theater and at home.

First Birthday...Russian Style

In Russian culture, apparently the first birthday is a big big deal for the parents and the child. So they throw a big party... not really for the kid, but for the parents, family and friends to celebrate this occasion. So we got all gussied up and went to Romanoff's, a Russian restaurant and club (sort of) in Studio City. It was really fun! The tables are strewn with family-style Russian food and it just keeps on coming!! We didn't even get our main entree until midnight-ish! By then, we were already stuffed and pretty tipsy. There was music (this really fun bad), disco lights and even go-go dancers at the end of the night. Randomly, Mel Gibson was there on the balcony smoking a cigarette for a bit, but I didn't get a photo of him. He looked bad anyways with a random mustache.

Here are some photos from the night!