I Remember
I read a book when Zane was a newborn called “A Lie Someone Told You About Yourself” by Peter Ho Davies. I didn’t know it was a book about parenthood when I picked it up, and maybe it wasn’t great to read as the mother of 6-week-old because it confronted some difficult parenting issues that I didn’t really need to concern myself with at the time, but I enjoyed it nonetheless, and it ended up being one of my favorite books I read all year.
Mother’s Day
Years ago my mom showed me a journal she kept after I was born that detailed my entire first year of life. She received it as a gift at her baby shower and it’s in the format of a calendar with a space for a short entry each day—which she dutifully filled out in full because that’s the kind of person she is.
He's Here! Meet Zane Francis Kaplan
In the early morning of November 20, 2021 after a casual 35 hours of labor (you’d better believe I’m not leaving that detail out), Dan and I welcomed our little Zane Francis Kaplan into the world.
On Pregnancy
Pregnancy–specifically the thought of me being pregnant—has always terrified me. If I’m being honest, I’ve always felt a little unsure about the idea of having kids in general (thus why we waited so long in the first place), but it’s pregnancy in particular that was the part of the process that I just couldn’t get excited about.
My Cousin David
A few years ago I got very interested in genealogy and ended up connecting with a distant Dzenawagis cousin I discovered through the powers of the internet. She shared a lot of interesting information with me, but what I loved the most was what she told me about the meaning of our shared surname.
To My Dad, On His Retirement
Many years ago, right after she got married, before my brother and I were even a thought in her mind, my mom had a psychic reading. The psychic told her all sorts of things, some of which proved to be true, some of which did not, but I remember her recounting to me that she was told that one day she would have a daughter, and that her daughter would have a special bond with her father.
My Parents on 40 Years of Marriage
This October, my parents, John & Donna (O’Connell) Dzenawagis, celebrate 40 years of marriage. Since I’ve become the unofficial family historian, I thought it would be a good opportunity to document the story of how they met, their wedding, and get their thoughts on the highs (and lows) of the 40+ years that they’ve spent together
This St. Patrick’s Day, A Toast to My Grandfather, “The Wild Irishman”
This St. Patrick’s Day, in honor of my Irish grandfather, Francis Stevens Joseph O’Connell, I’d like to share an article that was written about him many years ago.
Aunt Carrie
There are moments in all of our lives when everything changes like that. The moments when you physically feel a shift occur. When the pieces fall out of place. When the ground drops from underneath you.
Dzenawagis Genealogy Part 3: Ancestry DNA Test Results
A few posts ago I wrote about how I recently decided to take Ancestry.com's DNA test. I've been using the site for a while now, building out my family tree, sorting through old census documents and public records to expand on the family history that I've been taught all my life.
One and the Same
Last weekend when I was home visiting my parents on the Cape, I asked if they could pull out their old duffel bag of family photos so I could go through them. I loved rifling through this bag when I was a kid and I still love to as an adult.
Easter at Grammy’s
Since my grandmother died two years ago, Easter has become a sort-of a "non-holiday" to me. Grammy Helen was the matriarch of our family, the one who hosted every single holiday at her house without fail—even when she was well into her 90s.