An Ordinary Day...

Wednesday, April 12th started off as an ordinary day. The alarm sounded off at 6:00 a.m. like it always did. Reggie did his work day morning ritual, showering, grooming, selecting a suit and accessorizing with the perfect accents for Read more

Why are some people mean?

Why are some people mean? I'm not talking about a little mean, but bazaar, go out of their way to be mean. Recently I've encountered a few mean people, I remind myself that these situations will make me a stronger Read more

Maldives

Our last trip of 2016 was to the Maldives. Last year was one full of excursions, We traveled to Cameroon, Paris, Bali, Hawaii, New Orleans, New York, Chicago, Lake Tahoe, Atlanta, Napa, San Francisco, Dubai, and I must say Read more

Quote

It's okay to venture out of your comfort zone... Lately I've been doing it quite often. This weekend is going to be one of renewal, my personal Super Bowl. What are your plans? I will be working today and tomorrow. Happy Read more

Do you enjoy yourself?

Both of my kids are in New York, my son is in school in the Hudson Valley and my daughter is living in Brooklyn and working. So we are officially empty nesters, and have been so for a while Read more

Amani

Mother Daughter Connection

Posted on by Gigi in Family Comments Off on Mother Daughter Connection
Gigi's Daughter

24 year-old Amani

24 years ago today my daughter entered the world and my life has not been the same. I got married at 30 and Amani was born a year later, so my life as a couple was short lived.

young african-american family

young mother Gigi

She went every where with us, which I know contributed to her independent spirit and the need to constantly explore. At the age of 6 weeks we took her to Hong Kong, against the advice of our pediatrician, when I think back on that time I don’t know what we were thinking.

I made sure Amani did all the things that I could only dream about – dance classes, acting, boarding school, traveling to Australia by herself at the age of 12, exposure to all the things that I thought would enrich her life. I wanted her to be this young woman who would be fearless and willing to conquer the world.

Amani

Amani

Currently living in Brooklyn, working and taking care of herself for the most part, it is nice to sit back and watch the process, to see her and observe subtle similarities of myself – like the way she tilts her head when looking in the mirror.

Amani

Amani

As time goes by I can’t help but to think about the next phase of parenting, will she marry, have children, where will she settle down, and  although I pushed for this independence  will it back fire in the future when perhaps I would want to live close to my children.

Gigi and Amani in Rome

Gigi and Amani in Rome

For now I will be happy that both my kids still want to go on “family” vacations and as of this date, Amani has not missed one, we are connected. I will appreciate  the “texts” that I get just because, and the occasional tag on instagram, and of course the rare phone call.

It is scary and exciting to see our family dynamic shift, especially with my son looking at colleges in the northeast, and Amani applying to med schools all over and Reggie and I starting the discussion of what retirement looks like for us…as I have said before I will embrace each day and savor it…

Happy Monday,

Xoxo,

Gigi

"The Manhattan"

“The Manhattan”

 

 


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