Wednesday, February 15, 2012

A childhood spent around the world

 Hey everybody~this is me and my mom and dad in the '60s
at the Taj Mahal. Pretty iconic!
I just wished my blue eyes could have 
been able to look towards the sun at
my brother Paul as he was taking our picture...
I remember how the interiors of the Taj 
were filled with the odors of incense,
and I remember all the marble walls  
with floral inlays of colored stones.
It was very pretty inside~and quite majestic outside.
Today is my birthday and this post is to say 
THANK YOU Mom and Dad 
for giving me a great childhood filled with love and adventure.
 My dad was an environmental engineer and had jobs in exotic locations. 
Dad and mom took us all along for the ride~
here we are all dressed up at Logan airport in Boston
ready to get on Pan Am and head to East Pakistan for 2 years!
 Since we were the two oldest out of the five, 
Paul and I got special side trips to see exotic sights 
with mom and dad like when we traveled to the Taj Mahal 
and here to Nepal where we visited a temple with prayer wheels.
 Our birthday parties had elephant
 rides in our back yard! I was loving this!!
 When we lived in Thailand, we visited the 
temples of Siam and posed with the monks.  
The monks were not allowed stand next to a "woman". 
 I will forgive my mom for having my hair cut in 
the Mia Farrow style~which was very trendy at the time. 
I HATED it!!! 
And I have an aversion even thinking of having short hair to this day.
 One of the special trips my brother and I made with
 mom and dad was to visit the ancient temples at 
Angkor Wat in Cambodia.  
Look at this huge temple at Pimeanakis.
 You can see me standing half way up on the right, 
while my intrepid brother forged ahead and is sitting at the peak.
  I was scared stiff and couldn't climb any higher, 
and the steps were so broken I was quite convinced 
I couldn't get down either....so I shouted down to my parents, 
who were sitting on a blanket under a tree,
 "I can't get down!!!"...well my wise parents 
shouted back to me the old parental cliche,
 "If you can get up, then you can get down"....
 Ahhhh, that was not the way it turned out. 
 I fell and tumbled two stories down and landed
 in a brick pit moat that surrounded the temple and 
suffered a fractured skull! Well, that would teach them!!  
Being in Cambodia, we were whisked off in a ric shaw
 to find a doctor and ended up in a dark clinic somewhere 
where the doctor only spoke french. 
Dad kept asking me to translate what the doctor was saying 
since I had been studying french in the 4th and 5th grade...
I was not much help. But we could clearly see the 
crack in my head on the x-rays~no translation necessary.
And looking back now, I realize my dad would have
 been quite the blogger, as he was constantly 
snapping our pics, like it or not.  
And finally, my Mia Farrow-do was starting to grow out~
 Here I am in front of a gorgeous beach at Pattaya, Thailand
 while on family vacation with my sister Ellen.  
Sometimes we didn't want our picture taken, like this time,
as dad was constantly snapping! 
We lived in Bangkok for three years, and mom and dad
 would take us to this beach for fantastic vacations! 
This was such a fun place to go
with water skiing and bareback horse riding
 along the white sandy beach.
 Of course our parents took us to regular places too~
like Disneyland. 
 This was a big time treat, as when not overseas, 
our family was based in Boston 
and Disneyland was in LA.  This was before 
they built Disneyworld on the east coast.
 We had fun parents~they did fun stuff with us. 
Every couple of years we would come back to the 
states during the summer, called summer leave.
Me and my little sisters Susan and Ellen in 
our blue pajamas posed for a pic in front of the mini-bus.
Here is the traveling family~taken at my grandparent's house.
  I would later buy this house and plant a 
big perennial garden along the hedges and paint the house pink!
 My parents always let us have pets, I am holding my kitty, Tiger,
 and our weanie dog, Snoopy is cut out of the shot. 
Good parents let their kids have dogs and cats!
Last summer my parents even let my son Colin live 
with them on Marthas Vineyard~they are the best parents! 
They gave me a great childhood and still 
do nice things like let my 20 year old mooch  live with them. 
So thanks again for being the best parents a girl could have.
I love you mom and dad!

Photobucket

49 comments:

  1. Such a beautiful post Amy!
    Happy Birthday to you and i hope your day is filled with love and happiness!
    Love your childhood pictures and what a fabulous childhood you have lived...ouch! at falling down the stairs,you have the most amazing blue eyes,
    Lots of love to you xxx

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  2. Happy Birthday Amy! This was such a fun blog post....I really enjoyed seeing the pictures of you as a girl living the adventurous life! What a nice way to say thank you to your parents! Have a happy day!

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  3. Great photos of an incredible, adventurous childhood! Happy Birthday!

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  4. Happy Birthday, Amy
    Like the title of the old Jimmy Stewart movie, we agree that for us "It's (been) a Wonderful Life". Loved your selection of pictures. We have indeed been blessed.
    Love, Dad

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  5. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMY! My what a life you've had!

    Sue
    xo

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  6. Happy Bday Amy
    Loved seeing all of the pics so fun
    Hey we have a family home in Marthas vineyard too have you ever gone to the flea markets in Falmouth AMAZING!!!!
    xxoo
    Pam

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    Replies
    1. no, But many times I go to the flea market in Chilmark on the island. I will have to check out the Falmouth ones~we usually blow right through Falmouth to get to the ferry over to the island.

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  7. Wow, what an interesting childhood. Your parents not only sound fun but very adventurous. What a wonderful gift to give their childern.
    Traci

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  8. What an adventurous life you have led thanks to your sweet mom and dad! This is such a neat post. I would have loved to have been in your shoes!

    Wishing you a wonderful birthday, Amy!

    XO,
    Jane

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  9. ¡ Qué familia más bonita y unida! Te deseo un cumpleaños feliz.

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  10. Amy, I thoroughly enjoyed that post. Just so you don't feel like you were alone, I think all of were given the Pixie at one time, whether we resembled Mia or not. Probably because our mothers were sick and tired of working through knots in long hair. What wonderful memories you have thanks to your parents, memories that have surely impacted to you sense of style (which is great by the way). I definitely think your parents deserved a shout out for 'hosting' your 20 year old. Not something all grandparents would be up for!

    Many happy returns of the day............may all your wishes come true,
    Pam

    ps- oh my. angkor wot is beautiful, but your face isn't. you must have given your parents an aweful fright with that fall!

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  11. wow! what a truly wonderful chidhood you had. So very different from mine. I must admit I was shocked when I saw the pic of you after you took your tumble. Your poor parents must have been mortified when you fell. Bless you, you lucky, lucky lady xx

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  12. That was so sweet. What a special treat to go with your family on such great vacations. Your parents sound like wonderful people. My son lives with his Grandparents too.

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  13. Such a great post, Amy. Love all the wonderful photos! I would love to see photos of that pink house, thanks for sharing it all with us. Happy Birthday!!

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  14. Happy Birthday! My uncle was also an environmental engineer and he, my aunt and 2 cousins lived in Israel, India, Africa and Europe. What a grand adventure you all had!

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  15. Amy....I LOVE this post. This is one of my faves of yours! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!
    This is fascinating, I got to live and travel to some pretty exotic locales but there was no India and Thailand in my travels. So enjoyed looking at the pictures, and you were adorable (even all banged up you looked pretty)! And I can see you climbing to the top of the temple...see you were a "superwoman" even back then.
    Wonderful post...looks like many fond and warm memories were made. Lucky lady!
    Enjoy your special day...I love this tribute to your parents:)

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  16. HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMY! I loved your pictures. And, that one of you with all your scrapes and scratches is adorable! Just look at those blue eyes! Poor thing, i'm so sorry you fell, you knew it wasn't going to be easy getting down! And, oh my gosh, that VW bus... wow, brings back memories. Sounds like an amazing childhood, and your parents sound like the best!

    Cindy

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  17. Hi Amy,
    thanks for sharing your wonderful childhood story with us. It's so fascinating. I enjoyed seeing you grow up right before our eyes in the photos. You were a cute little girl and still are!
    I'm so glad that you were able to experience such an exciting childhood that's an education in itself.

    hugs
    Sissie

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  18. Hey!
    I'm the youngest of five!
    Happy birthday, you'll soon be as old as ME,!!
    Bwa ha ha.

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  19. Happy Birthday!!! I had no idea you had such a diverse childhood. What great memories you have of all those fascinating places to live and visit. Mine was VERY different from yours! I grew up and lived in the same house until I moved out to get married. Love seeing all those old pics of you. I hope you're having a great day today!

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  20. Happy Birthday! What a WONDERFUL childhood and Bravo to your parents for staying together all those years. They gave and still give you such wonderful memories...you're a lucky gal!
    Lorraine

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  21. Hi Amy,
    Happy Birthday to you. Such an adventurous childhood is a good basic for the further live. You have really good parents when they could make you feel good everywhere in the world. Your family looks so sympathetic.
    Best greetings, Johanna

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  22. What great experiences you had. LOVE the pink bikini! Also interesting that your parents thought to take a picture of you with scabs on your face from the tumble. It's really a beautiful photo; looks like it's out of LIFE magazine for some reason.

    Happy Birthday, Amy!

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  23. Hi Amy ~ Happy Birthday to you today! What a wonderful childhood you had! How magical! I did a fair bit of world travel during my 20's for years at a time and it is the one thing that I simply do NOT regret! There's nothing like having new experiences in far off locales. Those memories are simply priceless! ~Stacy~

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  24. Wow, what a great childhood with all those travels and ouch to your fall. Lucky you to survive that. Could have been much worse. Happy happy birthday!

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  25. Happy birthday! what a lovely post! You have seen and experienced so much of the world and you appreciated every moment. Your parents involved you all in their adventures during a time when children were not as cherished as they are now. I do wonder though, did you buy your Grandparents house to make yourself feel more rooted? I only ask because my own parents moved around a lot, and although I made lots of new friends along the way, I felt pretty rootless. I envied friends who had lived in the home they were born in. My own children get tired of having their photo's taken too, but how wonderful for you to be able to look back at all those times ( and in color too!) Thanks for sharing.

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  26. Happy Birthday Amy and what a wonderful childhood you had!

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  27. Wow you had an amazing childhood! yo are one lucky gal to have had such amzing and loving parents!I had the short hair too! My kids look at some of my chilhood pics and ask who's the boy? Traci

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  28. Happy Birthday, Amy! What a wonderful memories...!
    Blessings,
    ~Wendy

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  29. What amazing places you have visited....I never even made it out of the state I lived in until I moved across the country at the age of nineteen! LOL
    Happy Birthday :o)
    ~Des

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  30. What a great tribute to your amazing patents. I was laughing because I had the same haircut, and when new neighbors moved in they thought I was a boy. I hated my mom for that and have never let my hair be short again! We have the exact same photo at Disney, too, with me squinting into the sun!
    Stacy

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  31. Happy Birthday Amy!!!!

    Loved seeing all these photos..what a childhood they gave you.

    Gotta love the haircuts our Mom's insisted on giving us.

    janet xox
    The Empty Nest

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  32. Happy Birthday! What an interesting life you have had. That fall looks horrible! I never went further than one state away as a child--and not too much farther than that as an adult! Thanks for sharing.

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  33. Thank you for shareing.You must have had a wonderful childhood !That is great ! Loved seeing the pictures. Happy Birthday.

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  34. Wow! Gotta love all that traveling and getting a first-hand world wide education. Happy Birthday to you! I've got a friend who's husband travels to some pretty great places around the world for his work. I keep telling her to go along...so far she hasn't taken my advice ;-) How very wonderful to write such a thoughtful tribute to your parents.

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  35. Hi Amy, just stopping by to say how delightful your blog is. Thanks so much for sharing. I have recently found your blog and am now following you, and will visit often. Please stop by my blog and perhaps you would like to follow me also. Have a wonderful day. Hugs, Chris
    http://chelencarter-retiredandlovingit.blogspot.com/

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  36. This was a great post...seeing your family pics. I can't believe you got to visit all those places and ride an elephant. Funny, how you knew better about coming down off that temple. You knew you couldn't do it. I bet your parents felt terrible. I wish Snoopy had not been cut out of the photo. You'll have to send a special one to me. I loved the last photo of all of you together.

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  37. Oh, the hat at the beach. You were stylish and fashionable even then. Maybe all those early inspirations is where your love for design entered your mind and stuck.

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  38. Happy Birthday!! This is a fantastic post and I love how you honour your parents by thanking them on YOUR birthday. I envy your childhood. Not too many kids get an elephant to come to their birthday!!

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  39. I would love to meet in your person!!!! I love traveling but did not do any traveling with my parents since my mother was a single parent :(
    But I have traveled with my son to Japan and my daughter to Europe and
    know that one of these days they will do what you just did...
    Remember the good old days...what a happy family you are!!!!!!
    Happy Birthday!

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  40. Edited
    My mother was a single parent because she was divorce and had to provide for the three of us.
    Even as a single parent she was able to send us (my brother and I) to Europe in the 70's. WEll, I must mention my Dad, he worked for PanAm and we traveled for almost nothing$$$$

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  41. Happy Belated Birthday! Hope you had a fabulous day. I think I enjoyed reading this post more than any other you've ever written. What a great childhood you had! No wonder you have an adventurous spirit. You have wonderful parents!

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  42. Happy Birthday Amy!
    What an adventure your life has been and what fabulous memories and photos you have. You have seen more of the world than most of us ever will. Thank you for sharing about your childhood.
    Have a wonderful day!

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  43. Seems like you have a lot of great memories. Thanks for sharing.

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  44. First of all Happy Birthday!!!...How fortunate it was for you to travel the world with your parents and be able to experience first hand the cultures of each country where you lived A truly incredible childhood journey of memories to pass on to your children...

    Again, Happy Birthday...May you have a most incredible day with your loved ones!

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  45. That's awesome Amy! I love your sister's expression in that photo on the beach, too funny! Happy birthday, I know I am a day late, hope your day was great!!! xoxoxo

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  46. Hey Amy! I have tried commenting twice now and blogger seems to hate me this morning! =) Anway, first, Happy Birthday! And second, what a FABULOUS childhood you had. I loved seeing all those pictures. And wow - your poor little face and cracked skull. You still looked adorable though!

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  47. Thank you for sharing a glimpse of your childhood. HaPpY BiRtHdAy!!!

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  48. Happy Birthday, Amy!! Thanks for sharing such a wonderful glimpse of your life, growing up around the world. What a joy to read!

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