Our Yesterdays: January 2008

Saturday, January 26, 2008

Jeremy Arrives

Here we are right after Jeremy was born. Boy I look wore out and I was! That was quite an experience.

The proud pappa holding a bundle of joy in the hospital. Jeremy was born at Women's hospital in Las Vegas. June 10, 1987. My doctor was Freida Fleisher. The hospital gave Bill and me a steak and lobster dinner on the second and final night of my stay. Jeremy and I were given a ride home in a limousine. That was my first and only time riding in one. Bill could have rode with us but he had to drive our car home from the hospital.

Here is dad playing Jeremy like a guitar. A baby of the Rock and Roll age.

Many , many moons ago - look at us!!!

Pregnant with Jeremy

Here I am when I was pregnant with Jeremy. It seems so long ago and then it seems like it was just yesterday. I don't understand how that works.

Bill was nice enough to gain some weight with me. Two are better than one you know!

Our Wedding Day

I know that eventually I will add more pictures to this post. But these are the pictures that we have scanned.

Here are Modena and Bill. Groom and Mother of the Groom.

Here I am with my mom.

Here are my brides maids. Left to right, Clara, Marylynn, Me, Cleta, Anne Marie and Tish. We planned the whole wedding in two weeks. I just told the girls get a blue dress to wear and they did.

Here is the wedding party. Left to right, Tish Publo (Carrol now), Clara Borreggine, Marylynn Schaller, Cleta McKinney (Bomba now), Me, Barry Diamond, Bill, Frank Beckwith, David Ruta, Louie Shields, Doug Linderman and David Foresythe. In the front was Jennifer Borreggine as our cute flower girl!

Our wedding was such a wonderful event. A real joint effort among all the friends and family that we had. The body of believers at Fish City really pitched in and blessed us. This was Barry's first wedding to officiate. Fish City was just becoming a church instead of a Bible Study. Eventually it became a Vineyard. Barry was still waiting for his ordination papers to arrive so Pastor Don Frasier from Neighborhood church in Henderson had to sign our marriage license. Barry was his assistant pastor and Don and his wife Winnie were at the wedding.

We had such a huge amount of support and help. Cathy Demon sang a beautiful song during the ceremony. Jani made silk flowers, Bill's mom friend made the cake, Clara organized the people that decorated, David Foresythe rented his apartments clubhouse for us for the reception, people made delicious gourmet type food for our reception pot-luck. It all came together like a dream. Cleta, Gaston, Marylynn and Willie provided some crazy musical entertainment. They made up funny songs about us. I remember Gaston singing Gilligan's Island theme song while he played the tune of Stairway to Heaven on his guitar. They sang a Beatles song about us. "When I get older losing my hair, bout a year from now. Will you still be sending me a Valentine, birthday greeting bottle of sparkling cider. Then when it came to one part it said Gannchildren on my knee instead of grandchildren. It was very fun!

Many of you know about the fun parts that made our wedding something to remember. The wedding was held at Fish City, we were meeting in a house on Desert Lane right off of Charleston blvd. near the I-15. It was held on a Monday evening. Bill and Barry were very nervous. I remember seeing Bill sweat like crazy. This was a tense situation indeed. Barry wanted is first ceremony to go just right. It was obviously a Christian wedding and Barry was stressing the somber and seriousness of the institution of marriage. He was talking about how the Bible says that the marriage union is to be a picture of Christ and the church. How Jesus loved the church and died for us his church. Well, like I said it was tense and everyone was listening when it happened. Barry made a little mistake. He misspoke. During the ceremony he meant to say that Bill should lay down his life daily for his wife. Well it didn't come out that way. He said, "Bill you should lay down your wife daily." And then there was this great silence in the sanctuary we all heard it and didn't know what to do. After a long pause.............. the biggest roar of laughter was heard. I'm sure I was beet red!! Well that broke the ice and we knew that nothing worse could happen so the rest of it was just fine.

Bill as a Young Adult

I don't know when this one was taken but by looking at the sideburns I would say late 70s!

Here he is in overalls! You know this is how I remember him when I first met him. We met at Fish City Bible Study. I had gone there for a couple years and saw him but didn't know him. At least we never really talked. But I remember that he did wear overalls a lot.

Here he in on a bus. This was taken during a trip he took with his friend Willy Lemaster. They went up the west coast and I think into Canada.

Here he is with Bob Smith, Michael Smith and Jeremy. This is at Bob and Karen's house. Most likely around 1988.

Pictures of Bill as a Little Guy

Bill reminds me of Steven in this picture.

Bill in the bath! He prefers showers today!!!

Howdy Partner - I see your cowboy hat!

Here is a picture of all three kids, David, Sheryl and Bill. They are probably around 2, 6 & 8.

Disneyland with the Smiths

Here we are, Jeremy's first ever trip to Disneyland. He was 11 months old. Michael was almost 2. So long ago, we were so young. I was pregnant with Brian here. You know I have gone to Disneyland so many times pregnant and unable to ride some of the rides.

My Mom and Me With a Guitar

This is me pretending to play the guitar. This was taken in a rental house, Waddel Avenue in Clairton, PA. November of 1967. My mom took us kids back to PA for about 8 months. Jim stayed in California. They separated for a while and Jim's kids and x-wife came to California. They were seeing if perhaps Jim would go back with his other family. But eventually we went back to CA and they got back together.

Tricia and Santa

This is at Santa's Village in the San Bernadino mountains.

Goldrush Casio Near Hoover Dam

This was taken in 1967. We took a trip from California to see the Dam, Boulder City, Red Rock, Valley of Fire and Las Vegas.

This is my mom, my brother's and me. I was 6 years old.

My Mom and Aunt Rose

This my mom at 16 years old. This was her day of Confirmation at Saint Claire's Catholic Church in Clairton, PA. Her Aunt Rose (her mother's sister-in-law) was her sponser. 1947, they were standing on Park Avenue near the apartment that they lived in.

Tricia's Early Days

This is me as a baby. 1961! I only have a few pictures of my baby years. I am thankful for the ones that have survived. I was about 5 months old.

Here I am in the high chair playing with linking toys. Here I am about 7 months old. We were living in the house on Williamsport road, living in the foundation (basement). The upstairs was not finished yet. It was almost finished. This high chair survived all four children. Then my mom even gave it away. She said it was very expensive $40!

Here I am with my mom. We are in Pennsylvania, below us is the Monongahela River. There is a lot of air pollution because of the mill. I remember seeing the sky out there a pinkish orange and smelling an awful smell in the air. It was some mineral perhaps sulfur.

Me and my dad, I think we were at a park. My parents divorced when I was 4. I think I was about 5 here. My dad came to visit us in California.

My First Holy Communion. Don't I look saintly! I was 8 years old.

Tricia's Grandparents

Here we are with my dad's mom. Grandma Borreggine. Her name was Barbara. Her maiden name was Quilla. She was born in Italy . Her family came from the northern part of Italy near the northern border. She came to America when she was around 18. Her brother was already in America. He was in Pennsylvania and he was a coal miner. His wife died and left him with several children. He sent for his sister, my grandmother , to take care of things. I never met her husband he died before I was born. His name was Pasquali. He died of Pneumonia in his early 40s. My dad was about 9 when his dad died. His dad lived from 1888 - 1938.

Grandma Borreggine lived in Clairton, PA. In this picture she lived my Great Aunt Mary. Later I remember that she lived alone above a bakery. It was on Miller Avenue in Clairton. I remember climbing the steep stairs up to her place. She didn't speak English and would always say, "Mungia!". That meant eat and she always gave us plenty to eat. Lots of spaghetti, one thing that I remember as a very small child was her giving us ice cream. She got out a 1/2 gallon carton of Neapolitan ice cream and sliced it in about 3 or 4 slices and gave me a huge piece! Wow, I had never been given so much ice cream before in my life. She would also give Putsagala kisses. This is where she would stretch your cheeks out wide and kiss you. My dad came from a family of 6 children. Two other children died. Mary is the oldest she is 84 now. Besides my dad she is the only sibling still alive. Then came Angeline, she was a twin but her twin brother died at birth, then came Dominic, my dad Pete, Joe and Orlando. My grandmother had another daughter after Orlando but she died as a small child.

Here are my mom's parents. Antionio and Catherine Giansante. They also lived in Clairton, PA. Clairton is a mill town. My grandfather and my dad worked in the steel mill. US Steel was the name of the mill. My brother Alan still works there. My grandfather also was trained as a cobbler, shoe maker. He came from the old country as a young man of 16. My mom's family came from the southern part of Italy. My grandma was an excellent cook. She was born in Pennsylvania. My grandfather liked to garden. I remember my grandfather singing with me on his lap. It was an Itialian song it went something like this, "Satacha, satacha, ...................................." He would bounce me on his knees then drop me a bit and hug me at the end.

This is my great grandmother Sgroi. Yes, she lived in Clairton. She owned a little grocery store called Sgroi's Corner Store.

Some Teenaged Pictures of Tricia

Here I had to have been in junior high school. We were still living in Ontario California on Amador Avenue. My dad came for a visit at Christmas time.

Here is a picture of my brother Dan at Milano's. This is where I first worked. I was 15 and became a waitress at my brother's Pizza restaurant. He owned it with his partner Paul Corra. In the background it looks like a time of demolition. My brother and Paul remodeled and expanded the restaurant. I worked at Milano's until I was 18.

Alan came for a visit. This is the only picture I have of my family together. I was in my uniform for Milano's. So from left to right, Jim, Dan, Alan, Pete, Me and my mom. Definitely 70s hair styles on my brothers.

Here I am in drill team. I was a Junior in high school so it would have been 1978. I was a captain and really liked the girls in my rank. This was the best year of drill team. We even made our own headdresses the summer before that school year. We were the Alta Loma Braves.