i am andrea from e. massachusetts 9 mi west of boston at the intersection of I 95 and I 90 and 128

hubby's name is paul and we have been married for 24 yrs

1 son named kevin, age 21 and now a senior at massachusetts maritime academy as a marine engineering major

we visit aruba as frequently as the checkbook allows and own 70,000 bluegreen points (approx 11 lacabana brc units)

we have a 3 yr old cockapoo named belle and a 2 yr old torty kitty named middy

we care for a feral colony that numbers somewhere between 8 and 17 and have trapped them, had them spayed/neutored and then released back into the neighborhood much to the dislike of the neighbors. we feed them, and water and during cold weather there are cat houses on the far corner of our property so they can take refuge from the winter winds. we care for 1 or the 22 feral colonies here in our town

hubby works for raytheon in andover ma as a production specialist (management) and i work for the local boys and girls club as the swim coordinator/director.

my husband, son and i take a very active role with my niece's family (husband and 2 daughters) and they are our joy.

my parents are deceased..........dad from post polio syndrome, mom from dementia related to thyroid disease.
i still feel like a 52 yr old orphan.

paul loves to putter around the yard and house and fix and organize stuff.
i like to crochet and stare at the internet.
we both love to swim and were very active scuba divers.............but no longer as i have arthritis in my neck and it is too painful to scuba.
i love to ride horses. paul likes to watch.

son kevin, is very active with school, friends, girlfriend, oceanwood camping and conference center, scuba and having fun like all 21 yr olds do. upon graduation from mass maritime, he will ship out for 3 month stints aboard some type of a huge vessel OR go to nuke school (nuclear engineering) in puget sound or pearl harbor. when he graduates in june from the mass maritime academy he will have a bachelor of science degree in m arine engineering and will be an ensign in the us naval reserve merchant marine division.

we are building a home in waterville maine, near colby college where we will retire to sometime between july 11 - nov 1 2008.


now your turn!

Hubby: engineer, pasta lover, tennis addict, welded to his computer, knob twiddler, white socks and sneakers, never owned a tux, old movies fan.

Moi: wicked stepmother, easily distracted, only comfy clothes, proud to be politically incorrect, pocketbook fetish, grammar queen, hates junk science, foreign film fan.



Duo: Met at an Aikido dojo, both now retired, living in Jersey (near Philly), four grown-and-gone kids, no pets. Current joint interests: travel, photography, dining in restaurants with real chefs, cooking classes.

Website: www.septemberhouse.net/wordpress

Aruba Trip Reports

Well Auntie...............nice to know another with a pocketbook fetish

Thank goodness your hubby is not the black knee sox and sneaker kinda guy

Upstate NY born and raised...

Kelly- 26 years old, work full time at a walmart return center doing internet returns. Not the dream job but it pays the bills and pays for the vacations we enjoy so much. Enjoy computers, fall time, traveling, rescuing siberian huskies, cleaning (yeah crazy) and would love to learn how to knit. Getting married Nov 9th in sunny Aruba to my fiancee Travis. Currently 11 weeks pregnant with our first child together. Step mother to be to two wonderful children Anthony is 10 and Isabella is 5. They are great kids unfortunalty they come in the package with the evil mother... but enough about her..

Travis-33 years old- works for target distribution center. not a life career either but we need the cash to afford all our hobbies.. He enjoys soccer, remodeling our house, being outside anyplace, working in the yard and cutting down any tree that he doesn't feel belongs...He likes to start projects that take forever to finish and he is absolutely a god sent in the kitchen.. which is a good thing because I can't cook very well..
He has two wonderful children whom he adores (so much that we are moving closer to his ex wife so we can be closer to the kids.. we really must love those kids. haha) He enjoys our three siberian huskies we have, two are ours, one is a rescue and we currently have a fourth as a rescue at this time also. The rescue is our most time consuming pass time.. walking,brushing and bathing our dogs is very time consuming but well worth it to know we have saved so many in the group.

Shanook, Mila, Koda and new puppy- Our Siberian Huskies... They love walks, belly rubs, stealing the couches, treats, rides in the truck and pulling carts in the off season and pulling the sleds during the winter.

Anthony-enjoys soccer, video games, board games, snowboarding and dislikes homework and school...

Isabella- Loves to dance and is a total girly girl. She is a princess and growing up so fast.. She loves school and has so many friends..

Baby in belly- We aren't going to find out the sex.. but this kid is making me sick and so tired and better sleep through the night and not cry too often.. I guess I can wish. We are going to do the nursery in Classic Pooh.

We are currently home owners in a city and in the process of closing on a new house with more of a country setting...

Plans for the winter include saving for an addition on the new house and getting fat from this baby..

We love to travel- got engaged in Cape Cod last July and getting married in a few weeks in Aruba which was our very first vacation together! We've been together three years Nov 13... Took a while to find each other but this is true love.

Aruba is our paradise

My name is Janice, and I live about 3 miles from Andrea! I work part time for private investors/philanthropists and LOVE my job. I've been here 9 years. My husband is a software specialist who works in the school system in our city.

43 years old, married 19 years (will be 20 in May) to my soul mate - the best husband and father anyone could ask for - whom I have known since I was 15. He is 46 years old. We have 2 wonderful children - a son who is 15, and a daughter who is 12. We are blessed with a strong, solid marriage, 2 very special and loving children, special friends and family, and a lovely home that we built last May.

We love to travel - with the children and without. Our trips to Aruba is our special time together, we don't bring the children, it's our special place. Our first trip to Aruba was on our honeymoon in 1988, and we finally went back in 2003 when hubby surprised me for my 40th. Next March will be our 6th trip, and god willing, we hope to have many more!

you girls really know how to make an emotional pregnant girl cry... I hope my fiancee and have as many memorable trips as you have!

Aruba is our paradise

Ahhh, the joys of pregnancy hormones!!! Be warned - the crying all comes back (for me anyway) in your 40's. I cry at anything sentimental.

I wish you and your fiance MANY happy years with many memories!!!

Written originally for my first blog entry June 14, 2006

How This All Began

People have asked us why Jerry and I did not go to Aruba in 2005. It was indeed an interesting story actually. In the late part of 2003 we decided that we would like to become parents through adoption.


We already had a few "irons in the fire" so to speak, when we last visited Aruba in June 2004. Domestic adoption is much less expensive than International adoptions, but nonetheless, enough red tape enough to go around the world.

We received "the" phone call a few months after our return from our "home away from home". C. came to live with us as a foster child. It soon became of year of many "firsts".


When she came to live with us, she had only been out of state once and that was a car trip to Ohio. November of that year she had her first plane ride to New Jersey to visit with my in-laws for Thanksgiving. Boy the things we take for granted: her first plane ride AND her first visit to the beach and view of the Ocean! Then in December my grandmother took the entire family, including her on a Caribbean cruise for Christmas. Naturally this was C's very first cruise.


After a long winter, Jerry and I usually look forward to that day in June when we take our customary flight to Aruba and a week of sunshine, relaxation, beautiful beaches and good food. At the age of 9, C. had never been to Disney World.

Most people, I think would agree, that each and every child, and adult for that matter, should be able to have this experience at least once in a lifetime. Many of us have been to the home of "the mouse" and there is nothing in the entire world that compares to this adventure.

Thus our annual trek to Aruba was replaced by a visit over the 4th of July. Jerry's birthday is on the 4th, so why not celebrate with fireworks? We stayed at the Wilderness Lodge for 5 nights and as we anticipated- it was excruciatingly hot. Never in my life have I had the experience where it was too hot to putter around in the swimming pool. Aruba was cool by comparison.

My in-laws met us in Florida for our adventure and of course, spoiled C. to no end. We would get back to our room about 4 o'clock after a full day at one of the parks. C. would get right on the phone and call her grandmother next door and ask her if she was ready to go shopping (they had some shops in the lobby). My MIL loves to shop, so they were very happy shopping together.

There was a court hearing a few weeks before we left for Disney, to determine C.'s availability for adoption. The judge reserved judgment on his decision for 30 days, so this well planned and much anticipated trip was a fantastic summer diversion. C. knew the day she moved into our home that Jerry and I wished to adopt her when she was legally free for adoption. The judge rendered his decision 3 weeks after our return. The speed of the adoption process was almost unheard of in these parts, we were all extremely grateful when a month later we became a family. One where she would always have love, safety and a forever home.

In September of 2006 dh and I return to Aruba with our new daughter. A celebration of one year since her adoption, this blog will document the journey.

Aruba Bound! ~ Hoosier Kitties ~ Our-Cruises ~ Blogging to Aruba
Back to paradise Trip #18
Christmas & New Years Aboard the Queen Mary 2

Lisa,thanks for sharing that story about your family.May God bless you ,your husband and your family.I got chills reading it.

Love the stories so I've got to add ours in.........



Hubby - Medical Technologist, works at 2 different hospitals
Me - Stay at home mom (at least for now) Used to work in Acct Dept of a large business.

We have a son together who is 2. I also have a son who is 17.

Hubby and I met 11 yrs ago at an 80's bar

We will be married 5 years on March 15th and we honeymooned in Aruba and got our first taste of the Island March 16, 2003

Michelle & Mike