Merry Christmas 2009

Here is my photo from Christmas Eve. Starting from the left is my daughter Madison, then Anna and Patrick (Lisa and Jim's kids - Partick has his back to the camera and has a hat on), My brother Steve in the orange shirt under the Christmas tree, then Scott and Jenn (my daughter and son-in-law - Jenn is in the white sweater) and below them my oldest daughter Lynda with Camden on her left, your right (my son's son), then my son-in-law Todd (he is married to Lynda) and next to him are Rachael and Danny, both looking like they are texting, which they are. Peeking out in front of Rachael is Lisa, Jeff (my son) is in front on the right with the striped shirt and his wife Amy (yes, one of the many Any Rossis) is in front with the green shirt.

From all of us to all of you we wish you a joyous and wonderfilled new year.

Alex

Merry Christmas

to you all from out here in the west.  I hope you all have an enjoyable day!

Hello and Merry Christmas!

It sounds like Thanksgiving was pretty amazing for some of the Rossis! We actually had a rather quiet day, but that was nice, too!

Think of you all often and especially at Christmas. We will all be at Leigh's house this year - it will be good to be together. I hope everyone has a wonderful day full of memories and full of new stories to be made into memories! Looking forward to a happy and healthy new year for us all - guess with all the new body parts or refurbished originals, some are already off to a good start!! God Bless us all -

Love,
Jill

From Thanksgiving...!

Hi all-

Uncle Paul, the Westwood branch of the Rossi's doesn't have any photos from Thanksgiving either, but I did snap one quick photo of the kids' table on my phone!

Hope you all enjoy, and have a wonderful, safe, happy, and very Merry Christmas!!!

Love,
Catherine

Hello Family,
It's 20 degrees here in Ashland as winter is making it's way into New England in it's usual cold and blustery fashion...
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving, as we surely did with our cast of 36. Believe it or not there were no leftovers as we somehow ate 50 pounds of turkey and all the goodies with it. Fortunately Amy had desserts at her house, so she was left with all the big calorie leftovers.
I failed to get a picture of all of us together, but the memories are warmly ensconced in our hearts. The 12 kids had a total blast together and were all happy to see each other.
Hugo & Renee and their daughters Grace and Sophia came all the way from Seattle to stay with us and it was a treat for all of us to spend time with so many family members.

As for me, I'm recovering well from my hip resurfacing surgery and getting stronger by the day.
It's a wonderful thing to be able to get new parts for all these worn-out bones that come with the wonders of aging. I'm very thankful for modern medicine.

By the way, I figured out that since that picture on our blog was taken in 1955, there have been
128 new members of the Rossi Family (including spouses) with Mason Campion being our newest member.

Hope all is well with everyone and it would be nice to see some more blogs being posted here.

Merry Christmas, Cousin Paul

Paul Update

Hi All,

I just heard from Paul and he is being released from the hospital today - just 2 days after his surgery and he is doing great!

Enjoy the weekend -

Amy Dolores

Paul Gets Hip!

Hi All,

Paul is at Newton Wellesley Hospital today continuing his efforts to become more bionic with another hip resurfacing. He's already had the other hip done, and had a total knee replacement 10 or so years ago, so little by little he is upgrading the parts in order to keep up with his 4 grandsons!

This seems to be a common theme in this branch of the family: Robert had a hip replacement several weeks ago and was looking quite limber on Thanksgiving Day. In the meantime, I'm hoping my parts hold out for many more years.......

I'll keep you posted!

Love to all,
Amy Dolores

Happy Thanksgiving from the West

Hello All,

Happy Thanksgiving. I too had a moment of rememberence for the family members that have recently left us. I am thankful for the legacy they left and the wonderful family I am part of.

Our house will host about 25 this year. All my kids and grandkids, my brother and sister and a few stragglers, adopted family. We will remember all of you in our prayers.

Alex

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello Family,
Just wanted to wish everyone a joyous and festive Thanksgiving. Although there
will be some sadness with the recent loss of loved ones, I know their spirits will be
with us all and help us make this a day of true thanks for all we have as a Family.

Judi and I will be hosting a small group of 36 at our house and we are thrilled to have
so many family members to make this a great day of celebration. I'll try to get a picture
of all of us together to put on our blog.

Boun Appetite!

Love, Cousin Paul

Blog List

... It was commented that I don't post on here too often.  This is true.  Mostly because I have my personal blog that I've had going for over a decade now, and sometimes it's hard enough to keep up with one blog, let alone two.  I also figured this may be true for others in the family.  You want to post here and keep everyone up to date, but why post the same thing to two blogs.  And picking and choosing what to post on which blog is a whole other chore. 

... So I added the blog roll to the left hand sidebar.  Anyone who has a blog that they want to add to the family blog roll just needs to email me the URL of the blog and I'll add it on there. (slim@srossi.net)

... For those of you just visiting, or just posting here, keep an eye to the left and see what's going on with our other blogs.

weezie and catherine :)

hi all! here's mom and i at a girls' night out shopping event in boston the other night! hope everyone is well and has a lovely thanksgiving!
love, catherine

Let it Snow!

It's snowing here, just thought you might want to know. We have about 2-3". I can't wait for the ski season.

Alex

Welcome Mason!

Congratulations "Nana Patty" and proud parents Kevin and MaryAnn! And welcome Mason to our ever growing family. Your timing is relevent to help bring a new joy into our lives, especially considering the difficult past couple of years the family has endured.

Cousin Patty, you are in for some of the best years of your life as you bond with your new grandson. I know you will cherish every moment and he is blessed to have you as a grandmother.

Love, Cousin Paul

Welcome Mason!

A New Family Member

Dear Family,

I'm very grateful to have this blog as a means of staying connected with all of you. I have fabulous news to share! On Monday, November 9th, another small Rossi was welcomed to the family when Mason Rossi Campion was born to Kevin Rossi Campion and MaryAnn Whalen Campion.

Although he is an average weight of 7lb 6oz, he is a very long 21.25 inches long. It looks like he will resemble his tall father and many other tall family members. He is absolutely gorgeous. Even though I am his "Nana", that is a totally objective observation. I know because his maternal grandmother agrees with me completely!

Another observation about family resemblances: I think it was Stanley that commented during one of our recent sad gatherings that we all look alike. I had an illustration of that last week when I was having contact lense issues and put on my glasses. I looked in a mirror and was surprised to see Auntie Elsa looking back at me. It was a nice comfort to see that.

Love to all, Patty

Remembering Hugo Augustus

Hello Family,

I am also bloging in remembrance of my brother Hugo Augustus Rossi who died 25 years ago on 11/09/84. For those who remember our dear brother, father, cousin, and friend, you well know how much the Rossi Family meant to him. For those who did not have the pleasure of knowing Hugo, let me try to give a little insight into who this "bigger than life" man was.

Hugo had many gifts, but perhaps his greatest gift was his "gift of gab". Whether it was about sports, politics, religion, or just people and places, Hugo could talk with the best of them. As well read and intelligent as he was, he did not always need the facts to tell his story, for Hugo could embelish on a story with even the likes of Uncle Robby or Aunt Florence (and many of us still remember their fabled stories!). Hugo was a great orator and he never approached a podium he didn't like whether there was a mike or not. He was the MC at many functions and even stumped as a moderator at town meetings when needed. Hugo did not just "talk the talk" he also "walked the walk" by helping many people of all walks of life, usually without any notoriety.

Besides being a devoted husband and father, Hugo was active in his community in numerous ways. He was a coach, ccd teacher, politician, and leader of people. Hugo was a man who "took the bull by the horns" and got things done (unless it was finishing something on his house, like painting). Hugo did not care about superfluous things, he cared about people and most of all he cared about his family.

In 1981 it was Hugo who began the Rossi Family Reunions at the K of C in Ashland. He loved those reunions: the food, the beverage, the banter, the stories,the bocce games, the softball games, the cribbage games, the hugging, the kissing, and just the fact that we were all together: La Familia Rossi. It is for Hugo and all those who have passed on that we must keep these blogs going and the Family Reunions alive, to honor their lives and their spirits in all of us.

A footnote to Hugo's memory: on November 9, 2007, a new Hugo Rossi was born, son of John & Chrissy Rossi, eighth grandchild of Hugo Augustus Rossi. We can never have enough Hugo Rossis!

Remembering Hugo

Hello Family,

This time of year always makes me reminiscent, and 2009 is particularly so with the 25th anniversary of our loss of Hugo Augustus Rossi, Jr. on November 9, 1984. Hugo is shown in the family photo in the right top corner, with his open collared shirt and a big grin - I'm guessing him to be about 14 years old (assuming the photo was taken in 1955).

Hugo was always a larger than life figure to me - literally and figuratively. He was first born, I was last and there is 12 years between us, so to me he was a big person from the beginning. He used to carry me down the stairs on his back in the morning, calling himself "Rea, The Wonder Horse," and I was "Duck" (where do we come up with these nicknames?) His heart was always huge and open, and he made me feel special whenever I saw him.

He went off to Bridgeton Academy when I was 6, and then on to BC and married Judi when I was almost 12, but ever remained such a prominent figure in my life. Everyone wanted his attention, and somehow he always made time for all of us. As his life as a husband and then father grew, so did his circle of family, friends and associates, but he never exchanged one relationship for another - he just widened his reach. And that is the most amazing and profound memory I have of Hugo; that he had a genuine connection to every person in his world, and with his gift of gab and true interest in so many people and so many subjects, that is saying something!

So Monday will be a time for us to remember Hugo and all the wisdom, compassion and laughter he brought to our lives. We are lucky to have such a close bond with Hugo's children and I always think of how proud he would be of the fine, strong, good people they have become, and how well they are raising their own children. Though his time with us was far too short, his impact has never faded. Let's think about Hugo and all of our relatives who have left us, and our good fortune to have such a wonderful family - and our very own blog to celebrate it!

With Love to All,
Amy Dolores

You may occasionally see these little hints from me....

So if you're not new to blogging, just go ahead and ignore them, I'm writing them with the poeple who are new to it in mind.
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If you look down at the bottom of a blog entry, you'll see where it says x comments, that tells you how many people have commented on the post.  If you click on the title to the post (New to Blogging on the post below), you will be able to see the post with all it's comments.
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If you want to make a comment to the post, down towards the bottom there is a link that says Post a Comment.  Just click on it and follow the directions.  It's quicker if you already are logged in to Blogger, but you can still comment even if you do not have a blogger account.
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Please, feel free to ask if you have any questions on how to do anything on here.
Thanks

New to Blogging

Is Blogging a word? Regardless, this is my first official Blog posting. I am just going with the flow because I am not really sure what this Blogging is all about... Bare with me...

Saw a few fellow Rossi's last weekend as we had a surprise 70th birthday party for my mom, Lorraine. It was horrific weather and the venue was located on the water. I had imagined a gorgeous Fall day with the sun shining in through the windows instead we got rain and lots of it. So much that the windows were leaking! The winds were hurricane like and the monsoon was coming down hard.

But indoors all was warm and cozy and Mom was totally shocked and surprised! That is all you can ask for at a surprise party. The look on her face was priceless as we all yelled out Surprise when she walked in from the storm. I think it took her about 15 seconds before she even comprehended what was transpiring. We got her good!

It was hard for me not to think of Nana Grace and how she would have enjoyed herself. Sitting at the table, being her usual quiet self, but enjoying the fact that her family was all around her. She was there in spirit as well as pictures....as I passed out some copies of her wedding photo that I had recently made.

All in all, a great day.

Alas, that is all I can post now. Jack, my 2.5 year old son, is snoozing after a long day at the zoo. Any of you moms can relate that nap time is a cherished time so no more blogging for me...got to use my time to make a few calls without a screaming toddler in the background.

Thanks for reading.
Hope you are all well and taking care.

Love,
Susan

What’s the difference?

So far I’ve had two votes on the poll over there to the left, and both have been the question.
PUBLIC: Anyone, anywhere on the web can read everything on the blog.  This means anyone who posts or comments just has to keep that in mind and not always tell all.
PRIVATE: Only people that are invited to read the blog will be able to and everyone reading it will have to have a username and password and will have to log in to read it.
MY PERSONAL OPINION: Public is fine as long as we follow a couple simple rules

1. Never post personal information (phone number, address, even the bank you bank at)
2. Be especially careful about posting information about the children in the family.  Never name the school they go to, where they like to go to play or the mall they hang out at.  Leave it at “the park”, “their school” and “the mall”   rather than Liberty Park, Bonneville Elementary or SouthTowne Mall.

That doesn’t mean we don’t say anything.  I’ve even posted pictures of my house on my blog, but I always photoshop out the address.  Even though there were a lot of clues to the name of the high school I worked at, I never actually named it until after they closed it (because by then it really was obvious, especially to anyone living in Salt Lake) and I still usually don’t even name the schools I used to work at.
I don’t think having it public is really that much of a risk, as long as everyone keeps in mind that it is actually accessible to anyone in the world, although not easy to find in the literal sea of blogs out there.

How to become an Author

If you haven't already emailed me - the send me an email.

Here is the link that will download a PDF file with directions.  If you can't read it, just download the Adobe Reader.

Becoming an Author

Thank you for wanting to be a part of this.

Good Response

Well, I have to admit I was a little worried that this project would be met with some apathy, much like certain experiences with teachers and technology.
Fortunately in this case that was not the case.  I already have sent out invitations to 6 people who were interested in becoming authors here, and got some good comments.  First the comments, then a little tutorial on how to get set up.

Hi All,Just want to thank Steve for the FAMILY BLOG.I will leave the technology to you young people. Love to read the news about the Rossi Clan.Lorraine is feeling much better these days.She hopes to be at full strength by the holidays.Have a HAPPY THANKSGIVING>

Donald & Lorraine

Donald - we all are hoping she if feeling great for the holidays!

Hi Steve - I think it is a great idea. Throwing some technology into the family should help bridge the miles!! I'd like to be an author. Thanks for doing this - Arches must be a very inspirational place! Jill Rossi-Peterson

Jill - Arches is an incredible place, the rock formations are amazing.

Steve,

Sounds great, please place me on your author list and let me know what I must do...I'm low-tech, not hi-tech. By the way, I'm the goofy kid in the front row with his front teeth missing. I love that picture, it was taken in my parent's (Hugo & Amy) house in Wellesley I believe in 1954; it's also a testimony to how well things were built back then to support that many Rossis in one room!
Look forward to participating in many blogs with this great family!
Cousin Paul

Paul - I love looking through the old family pictures.  I'm trying to get a bunch of them scanned, so we'll probably be seeing them on here as I ask to see if anyone knows who is who.

Hi Steve-

I think you have a wonderful idea. This is the very best method of maintaining contact with the whole family and keeping abreast of current news concerning family members.
Please certify me as an author. And thank you for your enthusiasm and creativity.
Cousin Robert
(Son of Hugo)

Robert - Hey, I'm son of Hugo too.  Different Hugo, but what the heck.  But, that's what I'm hoping - that we get a bunch posting on here and keeping everyone in touch with what is going on with this huge, great family.

Thank you all for your interest.   My next post will be a tutorial on how to get signed up and a how to post a simple post.  Occasionally I'll post little things on how to add a picture, how to change your profile and profile picture, anything I can think of or you ask for.
Thanks

Welcome all you Rossi folk out there.

Ok, so we don't all have the last name Rossi.  Marriages, adoptions, Witness Protection and a myriad of other cultural rituals have given us a ton of different last names.  But if you are one of the people in the title picture, or if you are related to any one of them or just know them, then you are a Rossi.  And this blog is for you.

Read, enjoy, comment.  And if you want to become an author so you can post on your own, just email me and I'll put you on as an author.  After all, this is not my blog, this is supposed to be the blog for all the Rossi clan. 

Hope to see you all posting here often.