Family

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I have always cherished hearing stories about my family from my grandmother.  I can envision my great-great grandfather working at a haberdashery in one of the now boarded up buildings in downtown Buffalo.  I make up stories in my head about potential mafia connections on the Italian side of the family.  This comes from seeing the "mad men" style of attire in photographs with my great grandma in the background cooking sauce.    Especially when I see my grandfather refer to himself, jokingly, as "the black hand."  Some family members, such as my 3rd great uncle, invented the windshield wiper and was known for his philanthropy.  Today, I am reminded of him whenever I pass O'Shei Children's Hospital, named in his honor. 

I can't help but wonder how much impact these ancestors had on where I am today.  Their bravery and determination got them on a boat to America to ensure a better life for generations to come.  Had they stayed put or married someone different, I would not be here today!  

When I was pregnant with my twins, I became very interested in having a more confirmed family history.  After joining ancestry.com and interviewing family, I have gone back to the 1600s.  I have developed relationships with distant family and feel a stronger connection to my past.  Check out my family tree 

Adam and I met in April 2002 at Michael's Banquet Hall in Hamburg, NY.  He crashed my sweet 16 surprise party bringing roses.  Although we dated, it was never serious.  We went our separate ways for college.  Upon graduating from UCLA, I returned home for a vacation to visit family.  Upon attending a Buffalo celebration event, the news interviewed me.  By happenstance, Adam was channel surfing and saw my interview.  He text me: "Saw you are in Buffalo, let's grab a drink."  Despite the discouarging response of "who is this?," Adam met me out and my vacation turned permanent.  I moved back home and we were engaged a year and a half later.  We married at St. Louis church on May 28, 2011 with a reception of 400 people at the Connecticut Street Armory. 

While my past is important, my future is the most important.  I get to live on through my three amazing children. 

Louis Adam and Estelle Frances Roma were born on November 1, 2012 at 25 weeks and 6 days.  They were 2 pounders born at Sister's Hospital.  Their birth story proves miracles happen.   More of their story can be found here.  They keep us busy with hockey, hip hop, Irish dance, piano, basketball, swimming, and more!  Estelle loves reading and is a natural athlete.  Louis is very inquisitive and has a good sense of humor.

Then comes my baby, Maria Theresa Roma. Born on August 30, 2016 just two weeks before we moved into our forever home.  Maria is the most independent child I have ever met.  She is determined, funny, and smart.  She is a force to be reckoned with and keeps me on my toes!

I have always grown up with dogs.  Currently, I have two rescue dogs: Bauer and Orla.  

Bauer is 17 years old and was rescued from the South Central Los Angeles Animal Shelter minutes before his scheduled euthanasia.  He was labeled as vicious and but to bleed.  I took a chance on this 20 pound terrier.  He was sedated for the ride home and slept standing up.  It took a long time to come around, but he eventually fit in well as our family dog.

Orla was rescued from a Texas shelter during COVID quarantine.  Her mom, a miniature pinscher/chiahuahua/miniature schnauzer mix, crossed the Mexican border to have 4 puppies on November 6, 2019.  We adopted her in April 2020 and slowly socializing her to our crazy lives!

I grew up in a blended family.  I have two sets of parents with three younger sisters and three older step sisters.  During grandparents day at school, I was the kid needing 11 placemats.  I never knew any different, since my parents were divorced by the time I was born.  I love having such a big family! Extra love and support to go around!