Cheers Louise

21 years ago my husband and his family had a dream and they opened Skappo Italian restaurant. They believed in their dream with all their hearts and left their previous lives to create an extension of their Umbrian Italian family dining table. They brought an authentic trattoria experience to New Haven Connecticut where you entered as strangers and left as friends and family! My father-in-law…

I love how the United States Military Academy West Point celebrates Christmas and the holidays. Plebes are the freshman. They are in charge of decorating their company table for the festive occasion. After the meal the cadets enjoy a celebratory cigar. This is also a big celebration for the Firsties (Seniors) who received their branch duties a few days before. One of my favorite West Point…

My Mom, Amy Gustilo Lopez, earned her wings in April 2025. This is my eulogy to her. In life she was loved. In death she has been immortalized. It was sudden and unexpected, but she was at peace when she said goodbye. In the Philippines we believe that death is not final because it is just a “change of address”. My Mom Amy lived the life of a songbird. Flying gracefully among us, sharing the…

When you vacation in Italy your day typically starts with a light breakfast of cake and coffee. Italian blood runs through my husband’s veins, and he often craves for simple lemon ricotta cakes. Buying this cake is not an option because even the best bakeries in our area can not quite capture the exact Italian flavor. For those who know, you just know. Also, we only use King Arthur flour in our…

Happy Veterans Day! Thank you for your service. Recently we became part of the Army family. The meaning of Veterans Day feels more personal now. We have our liberties and freedom because our Veterans have heard the call of duty to serve. Thank you my son. Thank you for your service.

Google Ai defines “mamarazzi” as, “”Mamarazzi” is a playful portmanteau of “mama” and “paparazzi” that refers to a mother who frequently and enthusiastically takes many photographs of her children, often with her phone.” When my kids were younger they would allow me to take multitudes of videos and photos. Their early life was like my private version of Jim Carey’s, “The Truman Show“. I had…

A few days I learned how to harvest oysters. In Connecticut we are so lucky to have blue point oysters in our fingertips. Today my husband decided to fry the oysters New Orleans style. We reminisced about a road trip we took a few years ago from Connecticut to New Orleans. We ate so many Po Boys. M decided to make Po Boys for dinner. The final Oyster Po Boy was amazing! I still have so many…

I have a motto that I try to live by, “Everyday learning. Everyday improving.” I read somewhere that was Henry Ford’s philosophy. Yesterday, a friend taught me about oyster harvesting in Connecticut. We were able to find some delicious blue point oysters. It is legal to harvest shellfish in parts of Connecticut, like Milford. The State of Connecticut has a flyer with instructions on how to…

I have been taking a Google AI Certification course because I like learning. Prompt engineering is a new field that is part of generative AI. To improve your prompting skills you just have to start using your preferred LLM, whether it’s Gemini, Co-Pilot, ChatGPT, etc. Today I took still pictures and created imagine videos using Grok’s tool. AI prompting has to be clear and concise in order to…

On December 21, 2025 Skappo New Haven will permanently close. The 21 year journey was amazing. We are excited about our new chapters. It’s not goodbye…it’s see you later! View this post on Instagram A post shared by Yvette Somerville (@yvette_somerville526)

My husband makes the best breakfast! When my son was younger breakfast at our house was such a big deal that he created breakfast art!

On September 11, 2001 Stephen Siller lost his life while trying to save many. When the planes hit the towers of the World Trade Center he heroically ran from Brooklyn to Ground Zero with all his gear. Stephen lost his life, but his memory lives on with the Tunnel to Towers 5K. On Sunday, September September 28, 2025 around 30,000 people participated in the race to celebrate Stephen’s memory and…

A few days ago my husband, a friend and I were reminiscing about New York City in the 1990s and early 2000s. I wish I had written my observations then because a lot of that New York no longer exists. This was the time when we carried a Zagats guide to give us “inside” tips. We were told that after 1999 something would happen in the year 2000 because of the Y2K bug. The world was suppose to end…

It’s been years since I worked on this blog. Going through it is like meeting my younger self! My kids were little when I first started this in 2012. My oldest son was in Kindergarten and my youngest was a toddler. Now one just entered college and the other is an incoming sophomore. Life is a blink of the eye. In the time I’ve been away there have been family births, deaths, celebrations,…

Hello World! I’m back! If you are like me, you may have started a blog years ago. You dedicated time, life, love, and energy. Suddenly things around you get busy and your blog may have not been as much of a priority. This is what happened to me. I started my original blog “I Choose Happy Now” in 2011. It was a blog about being a Mom with two young kids, and seeing life in a positive…