Lesley Lambert (413-575-3611) Real Estate Agent,Realtor,Westfield, MA,

Not registered yet? What are you waiting for? Go to our registration page now!

Today I had my first experience at the fish elevator at the Holyoke Dam in Holyoke, MA.

I have lived in Western MA my whole life and somehow missed out on this curiosity until today. 

At the Hadley Falls in Holyoke Ma the annual migration of anadromous fish is no small affair. A visit to the  website explains the technical aspects.

I stood watching the fish through the observation windows with my daughters and I listened to my guide and date explain to us that these fish are swimming up the river to mate and then die.   This brutal trip takes them up the rocky Connecticut River where they cease to eat.  Eventually they make it to Holyoke, where the dam constructed in 1849 prevented them from migrating.  The once plentiful shad and salmon of the river valley were extinct to this region until the first fish lift was built at the Holyoke Dam in 1955.

After watching the complicated process that ushers the fish into the elevator and seeing them deposited into the tank, we made our way to the viewing windows.  There we were met with  busy scene encompassing hundreds of shad, one salmon, many lampreys and some tiger striped bass.  The shad, in particular, were looking worse for the wear on their journey.

Several seemed bitten, one had almost lost an eye and another had a fish hook hanging from a side gill.

I can't relate to their ultimate and undeniable goal of mating, but I have swam upstream.  I did it for a long time and I think I have a few scars from the hooks and bites along the way.

I am unsure about the nature of these fish or what drives them upstream to fullfil their destiny.  But I did get a glimmer about myself during my observations today: I  swam upstream HARD for years.  I thought I was doing what I was supposed to do.  I made promises and set goals and was determined that I would do things RIGHT.

Well, that didn't work out much better for me than it does your average salmon (except of course I don't have to expire), but it did teach me a lot.

As I stood next to this great man watching our children meet for the first time it occurred to me that life doesn't have to be a constant struggle with unattainable goals at the brink.  Life can be spontaneous, sweet and easy:if you let it. 

You can swim upstream....I am going to follow the course downstream and guide it the best I can while I let life ebb and flow around me in a beautiful froth. 

So, thank you Morriss for sharing today with me...you teach me something new all the time, even when you don't realize that is what you did.

In my over 20 year career the one client that has always been a favorite is the first time homebuyer.

What isn't to love about the flush of excitement as a young adult sheds the protection of parents, landlords or school and makes the decision to strike out on their own? Their energy is contagious and they are open to education and guidance.

These fledgling buyers almost always do everything on time and as you requested because they don't have the bad habits of more "experienced" buyers.

I am working with a series of first time homebuyers lately, most of them are young women (neat!) and have been caught up in their excitment. There were issues with the last two closings, but these ladies kept their cool, took my (very good) advice and hung in there while things were sorted out.

Getting to the closing with these buyers has been so much fun....seeing them take the keys to their new home is a gift to my spirit.

What is even better is the recognition and thanks that they freely offer to me. Both young ladies are having me to their new home after they settle in and both stay in touch with me regularly. One of them texted me when she hung the "Welcome Home" picture I gave her and today I got a thank you note in the mail from another.

What could be a better feeling than opening up a note like this?:

April 28, 2009, Westfield, MA...no one knows how to dress today. It is 95 degrees and everyone is complaining about it being too hot, too soon. The daffodils and tulips are wilted in protest and I didn't unpack my summer clothes yet...what happened to spring?

May 5th, 2009, Westfield, MA...I sit in my office shivering. I unpacked the summer clothes and now I am ready to go unpack the sweaters! Again I sit wondering where did Spring go? It is raining, which isn't so odd, but it is CCCCCoold today. Isn't it supposed to be warm in May?

Well, after living here my whole life I can attest to that old adage: If you don't like the weather, just wait a minute, it will change!

I have been asked numerous times why I wouldn't like to move somewhere with a better climate. Friends who have gone South or who live in temperate California wonder what could be appealing about what I just described above.

When they ask this I usually shrug and respond: "Well, it is never boring." Truthfully, though, it is a lot more than that. So here is my list of why I love Western Massachusetts even though the weather is tempermental:

---It is gorgeous. Lush, green, picturesque and beautiful.

---I adore the seasons. All of them. Yes, I even like winter!

---My favorite people are here!

---My career is here and I love my job.

---2 hours to Boston or 3 hours to NYC when I need a big city fix

---1 hour or less to great skiing

---2 hours to the beach

---Great safe community

---Outstanding support of the arts and culture

---Amazingly gifted, generous and intelligent people

---Excellent colleges and schools

---So many amazing outdoor activities available

So even though I don't always love the extremes in the weather, I always love it here. I travel and can't wait to get home to my little corner of the world: (of course the two sweeties are the best part of my home!)

Lesley Lambert, The Real Estate Natural at Park Square Realty AND Member of the #twitterqueens

Day One Westfield, MA Spring School Vacation. +

Me at home with two daughters, eight and four. +

Weather: cold.+

Listing to show, broker price opinion to photograph and report and a lunch appointment =

MONDAY MANIA MOMMY MADNESS!

Started the day working from home and mentioned on twitter that I had to take my "cherubs" with me on a house showing. The responses that I got varied from "I will pray for you" to "use a carrot and not a stick". All helpful, but most of these people have only ever seen pictures of my girls...

They LOOK so sweet!

Actually, they can be extremely sweet, but vacation with bad weather+mommy working = them acting up.

So after three versions of breakfast (don't ask) and a battle into the clothes, two fights and a meltdown because we didn't sleep on the couch (hello we have been up for two hours!) we start to head out.

SO- I pray and accept the donated prayers then take the carrot advice and offer lunch at their fave spot if they manage to not drive each other (and ergo me) nuts during our little escapade. That was mostly sucessfull.

I arrive at my showing to find that the owners were unexpectedly home and I wasn't aware. The buyer who shows up loves the lot and location of the house, but doesn't have much good to say. We have to leave before we see the 2nd floor because the seller is up there with a GI infection (thank you...I am OUT). Set up a date to return with buyer who is suddenly very sad they didn't see the 2nd floor of the house they hate and take off with daughters to take pictures of a house for a broker price opinion. After that...

Lunch at The Summer House in Southwick, MA on a cold day isn't my idea of fun, but the girls had some, which was the point. Of course it wasn't without life's little moments: 8 tells me she wants cheeseburger, 4 wants dino nuggets (don't ask). We sit down and 8 melts down because, "I never listen to her at all, she SAID she wanted the same as 4 and how didn't I get that?" 4 won't eat anything but two french fries, sprite and her icecream, so I give 8 the friggin dino nuggets and try to move on.

While there my phone is chronic and three calls came in that were "urgent". Now mind you...my idea of urgent is one of my houses for sale is on fire (which has happened to me incidentally) or something happened to one of my kids. I hustle them into the car amidst vociferous complaints and start making my calls.

I head to Park Square Realty, Westfield, MA with my little "assistants" in tow and proceed to deal with a couple of the "fires" that needed attention. While I do that, my cherubs play kickball, wrestle, argue over a marker, freeze cold water: cold water with ice cubes and hot water as an experiment (led by a co-worker) and get threatened by their lovely mother for making so much NOISE!

Done at the office I take the girls to mom's house and am met by mom's husband who rats out my mother for taking a walk (which I think she should be doing more of personally) without her oxygen in tow. I placate the children, scold my mother (wtf?) and head out for lunch with my friend Morriss Partee who is going to give me pointers for the TwitterQueens Social Media event in NYC in June.

Morriss is detained, but keeps me amused with random texted updates so I head in to grab a seat. After being sat I am met (and I didn't say greeted for a reason) by a very surly waitress who asks me in hard to understand English (sushi joint) when my other person was joining? She stomps off and the host asks me the same thing in somewhat better English. (I didn't even get to tell Morriss this part). Apparently they actually "close" for the end of lunch at 2:30pm, but they allow people to sit and enjoy their meal while they take a break...I charm them into leaving me alone (it is a gift, that strangely has no effect whatsoever on my children) and after Morriss' entrance I enjoy a very good conversation about things Western MA, social media, TwitterQueens, PodCamp WesternMA and a wee bit about my lovely children.

Back to get said lovely cherubs from my mom.

Home again, into my sweats (did I mention it was cold today?) and start working on my broker price opinion report...or rather TRYING to since 4 demands my attentions no matter what I do to placate her. This report is already bordering on late when I realize:

I took the wrong friggin pictures. I swear I am about to blow a gasket, but at least the house is not far and we bustle out the door to Southwick, MA to take the pictures of the RIGHT house this time....good gracious I was mad at myself.

Home again after a decent discussion/warning to the girls about Mom's deadlines and the importance of being paid (ummm you know that roof we are so fond of?) and get the report done FINALLY.

As I complete the report, ex-husband arrives to finish painting the kids' room. My friends all tell me that I have the most disfunctional divorce (a badge of honor to me) and I decide to cook dinner for the whole "family" to enjoy together. 8 is thrilled, 4 pitches a fit and wants to eat at the tv (we don't do that....ummmm more than, well moving on now). After some negotiation (read debate) I get 4 to the table and we have our dinner.

Ex finishes room (thank goodness for small favors in this life cuz I HATE painting) and the girls and I settle in. They can't sleep in their room, so I set them up on the couch. WHY would I think that this would be fine? They won't sleep...they are up (whining because they are exhausted but won't sleep) until almost 11pm. One falls asleep, the other whines and wakes up the first, and the cycle repeats.

At this point, if you are still reading you are either nodding vigorously in understanding, have long since clicked off or are contemplating hari kari with a spork (I think of that daily...messy though).

After Cinderella and part of some Land Before Time (which is much better than Cinderella, btw) they FINALLY fall asleep and what do I do? That's right, write a post about them.

Moral of the story?

I am as much a work in progress as they are. I learn from lots of people (yes I actually listen to the advice) and try my best every day. Today was a bit more challenging than some, but not bad. Exhausting, but not bad at all.

To all you other Mommies (and Daddies, too) out there, I salute you! (with a LARGE red wine)

If you like a flawed person who is really really good at real estate, look me up, but do me a favor and do it tomorrow: I am totally fried today!

Lesley Lambert, The Real Estate Natural at Park Square Realty, Westfield, MA

413-575-3611