My joy

It DOES go by....and way too fast

2012-01-26T06:16:00.000-08:00

When you're in the thick of it, it feels like an eternity and your mind races towards the future..."I can't wait to sleep through the night"..."I can't wait for them to be out of diapers"..."I can't wait to move all the toys out of the living room"..."I can't wait for them to be in school".

But before you know it...those days are behind you....forever. And you can never go back.

Our Nicholas...

Our Julia...
Our Gianna...
This woman took the words right out of my mouth. It says it all for me.

A wonderful reminder.

It brought me to tears.

I know I'm just like every other mom out there. I had those feelings. I said those words. Those days were HARD. But I do know that I enjoyed my babies so very much. I remember trying to memorize their tiny little bodies and the squeeky little sounds they made so it would be etched in my mind forever. And it is.

I know the next ten years will fly by as fast as the first ten. I wish I could slow them down. But I can't. All I can do is enjoy them and live in the moments.

They are my joy. They are my everything. I am so very lucky to be their Mom.

Our Weekend

2012-01-23T06:38:00.000-08:00

Lots of playing in the snow this weekend for the kiddies. Street hockey, sledding in the yard, forts...

I heard banging on the backdoor and this is what I found. A little girl covered in snow head to toe but still smiling!

A sleepover Saturday night that ended at 10:00 p.m. A little boy wanting his mom. So cute.

Lots of dancing for Julia. She is getting so good but I worry that she is dancing too much on the weekends. So much for her tiny little body sometimes. She had her physical the other day and she's only in the 20th percentile for height and weight. "Petite" is what the doctor called her.

Nicholas had a hockey game last night which they WON! So proud of my boy in the net.

Sister Kerry's birthday celebrated yesterday. Made her a yummy cake. Fun to get together and celebrate with family.

And another week begins...

It snowed!

2012-01-20T06:16:00.001-08:00

Finally...it snowed! Here it is, nearing the end of January and we haven't had any snow since October. We woke up today with a pretty blanket of about 3" inches of snow. Tomorrow it's supposed to snow lightly all day too. The kids are really looking forward to it!

Pretty crafty

2012-01-17T16:31:00.000-08:00

I'm not a "crafter". I never enjoyed art classes when I was a kid. But now the kids bring home all these "family craft projects" as part of their homework. But I have to admit, I'm actually starting to enjoy these projects. Look at what Julia and I have made recently...

Aren't they cute? The little snowman was something Julia found in her new American Girl magazine. And the bigger paper snowgirl was one of those "family projects." I helped make the tutu!

On another note, Gianna gave these little guys some breakfast while she ate hers. So cute.

Funny of the day

2012-01-16T12:08:00.000-08:00

Since the kids had the day off from school today, Danny took Nicholas to Lynwoods (our favorite pizza place) and I took the girls to see Beauty and the Beast in 3D. After the movie was over, Gianna looked at me with a super serious face and said, "Wow. I should have gone to Lynwoods". What little girl doesn't like Beauty and the Beast?

A girl can dream

2012-01-05T14:26:00.000-08:00

Welcome to my fantasy home! Come on in! Make yourself comfortable while I get us a glass of wine before dinner. I'll be right back...

I may be just a minute though. I have to tend to the fireplace in the kitchen...

What was that sound? Oh, yes. The buzzer on the dryer. I'll be right back. I have to toss in another load of laundry. Oh, how I love my bright and sunny laundry room. It's such a joy to do laundry these days I tell you.

Would you like another glass of wine before dinner? Oh, you want to see the rest of our home? Sure! Here is our bedroom. We just love the sunshine that pours in through those large windows...

Would you like to freshen up before dinner? There are plenty of clean fluffy towels in that basket under the sink cabinet...

Are you ready for dinner now? Please take a seat at the table. Oh dear. The kids left the orange juice out from breakfast. I'll get the table cleared so we can start our meal...

Did you have too many glasses of wine? Of course you can stay the night! I don't blame you if you don't want to leave our home. (Giggle.) Please feel free to spend the night in our comfortable guest room. I'll help set up the daybed for you. I left some water and fruit for you on the table.

I'll see you in the morning!! : )

Our Christmas

2011-12-28T17:41:00.000-08:00

The Christmas festivities started with the school parties...

Gianna's class had make your own sundaes...

Julia's class also had yummy snacks...

Julia's self portrait hanging in her classroom...

and her friends...looks like "Maddie" is giving Julia the evil eye, doesn't it?

and they played fun games like this one...they had to draw a snowman on their head without looking...

I really like all three teachers this year. Look what Julia's teacher has hanging up in her classroom...

So different than the awful teacher Nicholas had in the 2nd grade. A year I am trying to forget.

Nicholas' class also had yummy snacks and lots of fun activities...

Three little girls in his classroom were following him around like puppy dogs. Oh boy. Are we in trouble!

Christmas Eve afternoon was spent at Kimmy's house...

and lots of fun gifts were opened...like this one...

This rock was our favorite when we were kids...we pretended it was a horse...now my girls run to the "horse" when they visit Auntie Kimmy's house...

Classic Gianna face...

Then it was back home for our traditional Christmas Eve as a family...

We make and decorate cookies for Santa...

sprinkle reindeer food on the lawn....

watch the Polar Express...and put cookies by the fireplace for Santa...

Christmas morning...the kids were SO excited! They woke us up at 6:30. We make them sit on the stairs (just like my parents did when we were kids). Oh, the anticipation!!!

They all ran to the biggest gift...it was for Nicholas!

This is fabulous...babycakes donut maker...it makes super yummy donuts!!!

Julia was thrilled to have a new American girl doll under the tree...Rapunzel meeting Kanani...

Gianna got lots of new horses for her collection...

Julia loves to draw and this is a great doodle book for girls...

Gianna's entire Christmas list for Santa was stuffed animals...so of course she was thrilled to open this guy...

A gorgeous new dress from Justice...

more stuffed friends...

a second remote and a Kinect (which DIDN'T WORK!). Ugh. It was their big present too. Very disappointing. But we finally got it to work late last night (two days AFTER Christmas).

And this is always MY favorite present...a new Nancy Drew PC game...these games are so much fun to play...

and another stuffed guy...
and another horse...

and his favorite present...a new street hockey net...

It was a very nice, happy Christmas.

The day after Christmas, we headed to Cape Cod for Nicholas' hockey tournament. Isn't this just the cutest picture of Gianna?

The hotel had a great wave pool and hot tub...

And now it's time to relax and enjoy the rest of the week at home. How was your Christmas?

Merry Christmas

2011-12-22T17:10:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas, Dad. We miss you.

"They may forget what you said, but they never forget how you made them feel."

Carl Buechner

Cookies with CeCe

2011-12-22T07:57:00.000-08:00

CeCe took the kiddies to dinner last night and then back to her house for their annual cookie decorating. They take all their goodies, knock on her neighbors doors, and deliver them. So fun! Such great memories in the making. You have to check out this video of Gianna....here

December

2011-12-19T17:23:00.000-08:00

this picture was taken last year...just two days before Christmas...i don't think we'll have a white Christmas again this year...but we can still hope...

Cirque Holidaze

2011-12-18T18:29:00.000-08:00

We took the kids to see "Cirque Holidaze" Friday night. It was wonderful!

our tree...

my mantle...I love it this year...(and yes, the stockings are hung by the chimney with care but we had to take them down to have a fire. We didn't need them going up in flames.)

Danny and the kids made home made pasta tonight. So yummy. Then we spent the night in front of the fire playing games and reading Christmas stories. I love my little family.

My babies

2011-12-18T17:35:00.001-08:00

December happenings...

2011-12-15T20:08:00.001-08:00

We finally got our tree last week. It was a lot later than usual due to our hectic schedules. We even went in the pouring rain but it was still a lot of fun.

KoKo loves when we decorate the tree because he can hide in all the tissue paper...he plays this same game every year...

And lookie lookie what I made! I'm not crafty at all but I put this old thing together in just a few minutes. I'm very proud of myself! It will make a very pretty centerpiece for our Christmas dinner.

The kids made their annual gingerbread house yesterday...

And look how it came out!!!

Well, OK...if you look closely, you'll see there is no way they made THAT one.

It was THIS one...

They are just acting by the way...not REAL sad faces! : )

My sweet Mom bought these for me...aren't they cute?

And why don't we look at that centerpiece one more time... : )

Our friend "Luke" (a.k.a. Elf on the Shelf) has come to stay with us until Christmas. He has been hiding in the best places! The kids have been leaving him notes every night hoping he writes back...and he does! He's keeping a close eye on them to be sure they are being extra good! He goes back to the North Pole every night to report to Santa!

And tonight was our neighborhood cookie swap. Oh dear. How am I going to resist all these yummies?

Tomorrow night we are taking the kids to see Cirque Holidaze. I can't wait! Only a little over a week until Christmas! I'm hoping for snow...what are you hoping for?

Have you seen the movie "Elf"?

2011-12-02T15:43:00.000-08:00

We thought it was hysterical! Danny and I kept playing this scene over and over again until my sides hurt!

Elf the Movie: The Angry Elf

2011-12-02T15:34:00.000-08:00

Another favorite scene!! "Look at you!!!"

Shut Out

2011-11-30T06:57:00.000-08:00

Nicholas got his first shut out last weekend! That's when he goes a whole game without letting the other team score a goal. Not sure if he'll play goalie next year or not. I'll be honest. I really miss watching him skate. He was a fast little bugger on the ice! But he's done a good job this year as goalie for his team . I'm always so proud of my little boy!

Birthday Fun

2011-11-14T07:40:00.000-08:00

I know this picture has nothing to do with birthday fun but I thought it was a funny sight. Gianna has a cold and when I walked into the living room yesterday, I found the room strewn with dirty Kleenex. I know...gross...but she just looked so pitiful and sick. And yes, I made her pick them all up.

So yesterday was my Mom's birthday. We had a fun little party for her last night to celebrate her big day.

Julia always makes the cutest cards. I told her to include Nicholas on hers because I knew he wouldn't have time to make one himself...

And Gianna's was sweet too. She always has to put KoKo in her pictures. It looks like he's taking a flying leap over Nana's head...

I bought Mom some Christmas decorations. What else do you buy someone who has pretty much everything under the sun?

And Julia and I found this adorable picture. It looks exactly like her dog, Daisy!

Happy Birthday to my wonderfully, funny, thoughtful, spontaneous, silly, loving Mom!! Love you!!!

Can you find me?

2011-11-12T15:58:00.000-08:00

Something so sweet

2011-11-10T13:09:00.001-08:00

The kids had a book fair at their school recently. I gave each of them a little bit of money to buy a book. If they wanted anything extra (like pencils, erasers, a.k.a junk), I told them they would have to bring their own money for that. Gianna came home from her book fair with one cute book about dogs. She never likes to spend her own money so there were no "extras" for her.

The next day Nicholas and Julia had their book fair. When I picked them up from school, they said, almost at the same time, that they each had bought a book for Gianna. I told them how nice but they were supposed to buy themselves a book. They both said they did and used their own money to buy her something. And when they pulled out their books....guess what.

It was the SAME book!

See how much they love their little sister? I gave them each a big hug and told them how wonderful they were!! They used their own money to do something nice for a change. Wow. I must be doing something right.

Waiting for the school bus this morning...

2011-11-09T05:30:00.000-08:00

Nicholas has been sick since Friday. But let me tell you, I know he feels 100% better today because he woke up to his old self this morning. What is his old self you ask??? Hyper, hyper, hyper, not keeping his hands to himself, LOUD outbursts, and bugging his sisters. Oh yes, he's better alright. I had to get in his face twice this morning with a stern reminder to work on his self control and that he can't act like that in school today.

Julia is trying to learn how to ride a ripstick. It's not easy....

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T16:35:00.000-07:00

We'll always remember this Halloween...the year with snow!!! We had quite the Nor'easter over the weekend with lots of rain, then snow, and wind. There was a lot of damage to trees around here and many power outages. We were very lucky that we didn't lose power. A lot of surrounding towns didn't even have school today. Again, so glad it wasn't us. We really don't want to start missing school so early in the season.

Gianna made this guy with her Daddy...

Pretty good for not all that much snow but it was very sticky which makes for the best snowmen!

Julia was a "sad dead bride"...her idea...

Notice the mascara tears??? My idea.

Nicholas was "Harry Potter".

He wanted to go trick or treating with his friends this year. Kind of sad for us but it's all part of growing up I guess. Danny and I still laugh about the Halloween when he was 3 or 4. He couldn't believe people were actually giving him candy!!! He was so excited that he kept falling down and spilling his candy at every single house he went too. It was hysterical!

And Gianna was a "goth witch". She added the "goth" part. She saw how much money we were spending on costumes this year that she actually said, "Mom. I'll save you some money and just wear Julia's costume from last year." She didn't want us to "go poor". So that's what she did! So thoughtful and cute!

Do you see who is checking out her costume in this picture?

The girls are going through and tasting all their candy as I'm writing this...

and are very happy with all their goodies!!!

But I think Nicholas hit the jackpot!!!

A very special day

2011-10-28T16:57:00.001-07:00

Today I surprised Julia with a trip to the American Girl doll store! I showed up at school this morning to have her dismissed. I knew she would be all nervous when they called her name for dismissal but I thought it would be fun to surprise her. She kept asking me what was going on. I told her she would know once she got in the car. (I had strapped her American Girl doll into Gianna's booster seat.) As soon as she saw her doll she was so excited!! She knew exactly where we were going! She told me she loved me, gave me a huge hug and started to cry! Of course that made me cry!

So this is the doll she wants for Christmas. Her name is Kanani. She is the doll of the year. Isn't she pretty?

When we walked into the store, there was a huge display for her...

I made a lunch reservation for us at their Bistro restaurant. It was so pretty!! Everything was pink!!! Our favorite color. They even had a chair for her doll (which was given to her by her Auntie Kerry)....

Of course she picked pink lemonade to drink. So yummy!

We both got yummy appetizers...

And typical Julia, she ate just a few bites and was full....but she did enjoy it!

Of course we had to order some dessert...

It was OH SO GOOD!!!

Then it was off to get her doll beautified!

She got her hair done and her ears pierced...

And Julia picked out these super cute glasses for her.

It was such a special day for both of us. It doesn't get any better for me than spending the day with my sweet little girl.

Full of love

2011-10-22T08:37:00.000-07:00

Gianna brought these home from school the other day. I absolutely loved them and wanted to share...

"I love my Dad. My Dad makes us laugh. I love my Dad."

"I love my Mom. She is nice. She cuddles with me. I love her so much."

"I love my brother. My brother loves me too."

"I love my sister. My sister is really nice to me. Me and Julia laugh a lot."

"I love my cat KoKo. He is so cool. He is very soft. Me and Koko love each other so much."

"I love everyone. Everyone loves me so much. Me too."

Teaching a little one how to read

2011-10-20T06:40:00.000-07:00

I've always been fascinated with how little ones learn how to read. I remember when Nicholas and Julia were in kindergarten, their teachers said by the end of the year they would be reading on their own. Well, that didn't quite happen with them. Nicholas couldn't read at all and Julia could read a little bit but not as well as I had hoped. So when Gianna was 3, I took matters into my own hands and decided to teach her myself. And guess what, success! By the time she was 4, she was reading on her own!!!

So here's how I did it. I started with the alphabet. I made it fun with flash cards and letter magnets. I wouldn't just stick them in her face and ask what the letter was. Instead, we played all kinds of games with them. For example, starting with the upper case letters first, I would lay the flash cards out on the floor in order from A-Z. Then I would have her close her eyes while I would take a few of them away. Then it was her turn to put them back in their correct places. We would also point to each letter while we sang the alphabet song. Then we moved on to the lower case letters. It may take a while for little ones to recognize all the letters. But if you make it a fun game, they will want to play along!

So once I knew she recognized all the upper and lower case letters and knew their order, then it was time for her to learn the sounds each letter made. A very important step! So I had her watch this video over and over again...

And she loved it! It's a super fun video with a very catchy tune. It makes it so fun and easy to learn (and gave me time to do my other mommy duties around the house)!

Next, it was time to learn some sight words. Forget sounding things out at this point. And forget sticking flash cards with words on them in front of their little faces. As I learned with my older two the hard way, that just gets them frustrated and bored. So here's what I did. I went out to my local library and picked up a few Dick and Jane books. I cannot begin to tell you how WONDERFUL these books are! The pictures are fun. The stories are fun. They use all simple sight words that repeat and repeat and repeat. Forget those ridiculous "Step into Reading" step 1 and step 2 books. I mean seriously. For example...I'm looking at one right now that is a princess Disney level 2 book. It's supposed to be "reading with help" for children in preschool and kindergarten. I'm sorry, but do most kids that age know how to read words like "leaps", "floating", "high", "prance", "whirls","royal" and "dreams"? I suppose not unless you are an official princess being raised in royalty. Those books are way too hard for little ones to read on their own. So stick with the old Dick & Jane series. They use simple, repetitive words like "up", "down", "play", "mother", "red", "funny", etc. It's the real deal.

Then we would settle down on the couch for story time. I would point to the words as I read along and Gianna would echo me. Slowly, as she started recognizing the little words like "and", "the", "me", etc., I would stop reading those words and she would read them on her own. It really built her confidence. After a while, I noticed she was learning more and more of the words. And because we had read that first book so many times, she actually started closing her eyes and reading the book. Yes, she had memorized it. So that's when it was time to pull out a new book to see how many words she had actually learned. I'm telling you...it was an amazing experience and it didn't really take all that long! Now she is in 1st grade and reading Junie B. Jones chapter books!! She can read all her instructions on her school work with no help. It makes life so much easier for her and us, that's for sure. It was definitely one of my life's biggest accomplishments.

Finally!

2011-10-17T15:55:00.000-07:00

We've been waiting and waiting and waiting for this. It took a bribe actually. I told her that if she got her back bend, then I would buy her a Webkin. Well, now she gets her Webkin! Gianna's been doing gymnastics/acro for ages and she just flat out refused to do a back bend on her own. She is just so cautious about everything and afraid of getting hurt. Well, she just proved to herself that she CAN do things like this. I'm so proud of her!!! Next up...learning to ride her bike. Ugh. That one may take even longer.

Sweet

2011-10-15T17:38:00.000-07:00

Me: "Gianna, can I have a hug?"
Gianna: "Why? Are you all out of love?"

This past week...

2011-10-09T17:00:00.000-07:00

Nicholas has been mowing the lawn. I think it's fabulous! It's something he's always wanted to do. Now let's see how long it is before he starts complaining and saying he doesn't want to do it.

Gianna was watching the new movie "Spooky Buddies". She loves these movies. It's about a bunch of cute puppies and their different adventures. So she was watching it on her portable DVD player and had her little dogs lined up watching it with her. I thought it was so cute that I took this picture....

Well, she wasn't so happy about that. She's getting to the age that she's starting to get a little embarrassed about that kind of stuff. I promised her I would delete the picture. Well, sometimes Mom's have to go back on some promises. I just couldn't erase that kind of memory!

The other night I saw this...

They were watching Sponge Bob together...thus all the BIG smiles!

Today was a gloriously warm mid-October day. I can't believe how beautiful the weather has been! So we decided to head to Newport for the day. We went out for a yummy lunch and then on a harbor cruise. I'm not sure though how much the kids liked it. Julia felt a little queasy although it was really calm. You know how it goes with kids..."I'm hot!"...."I'm thirsty!"...."Is this almost over?". Ugh. Sometimes you leave the house with such high expectations of having a fun day together and then the reality is, it just doesn't always end up that way. We had a little man who decided to get a little fresh at the end of our trip and it really put a damper on the day. That little man didn't get an ice cream with the rest of us. (I will not reward bad behavior). And that same little man is now grounded for a while too. It bothers me to the core but hopefully it will pay off in the long run. Let's hope so anyway.

Like I said, it was a GLORIOUS day!

And funny how we sailed right past our house....

A girl can dream, can't she?

See our little man in action....

Salad?!?! You want SALAD???

2011-10-07T13:17:00.000-07:00

See this little girl?

How many little girls, or boys, do you know that come home from school and ask to have a SALAD as their after school snack? I'm serious! My other two raid the cabinets for cookies, chips, granola bars, etc. But not Gianna. She looks in the fridge for salad and one day even begged me to heat up some left over steak! She loves healthy food. I just can't relate. I'm a carb queen and seriously would probably shrivel up and die if I didn't have some kind of sugar daily. And when Gianna wants something sweet she will specifically ask for something "unhealthy". She does love ice cream and chocolate chip cookies but I will bet you not more than healthy food. How can I be more like her???

Happenings

2011-10-02T06:25:00.000-07:00

We had open house last week at the kids' elementary school. I really like all their teachers. So far so good! Julia had this waiting for me on her desk. I always think her ideas and drawings are so cute! (If you click on it, it will get bigger so you can check it out.)

And Nicholas lost tooth #9! I think the tooth fairies forgot to talk to each other because tooth fairy #1 left $3.00 under his pillow and tooth fairy #2 left $2.00! : )

Funny

2011-09-22T06:46:00.000-07:00

The other night at bedtime, I was reminding Gianna that she had her tumbling class after school the next day. Gianna said, "Mom! Can you not call it that? It sounds dangerous!!"

I'm lonely...

2011-09-16T07:24:00.000-07:00

The toys lay still...all over the house...

I can't even put into words how much I miss the kids being around. Everyone keeps telling me I'll get used to it and eventually love it. But I just don't know if I will. Today is a gorgeous, crisp fall day. All I could think about this morning was heading to Briggs with Gianna to feed the animals and taking her to the playground. She was so upset last night saying she never has enough time anymore to play with her stuffed friends. And you know what? She's right.

Why am I so sad? Will I ever be able to accept these changes? It's been two weeks and I still don't feel better about it. What's wrong with me? Why do all the other mothers seem to be fine?

But hey, I'm not totally alone. I have KoKo to keep me company....

I remember when Julia went off to first grade I felt exactly like this but at least I had Gianna home still. So Gianna and I made a picnic lunch that first day of school two years ago, and I put our lunch on handprint plates that Nicholas and Julia had made at preschool. I know...sappy. For a moment, I started to cry, yet again, just thinking about them at school all day. Gianna looked at me and said, "MOM! They're coming back!!!" She snapped me right out of it. So yes, they are coming back at 3:30...everyday...and they are still young. I have many more years with them "home" with me. I'll be just fine.

We went apple picking last weekend. We found this new place last year and it is fantastic. Tons and tons of apples and lots of yummy food...

Like homemade donuts....

and unbelievably good kettle corn made fresh....

4th, 3rd and 1st grades

2011-09-06T10:57:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day of school. Let's hope they don't make these faces at their new teachers...

This is my first time in 10 years not having a little one home with me during the day.

I was a little weepy this morning. After they left, I walked into the living room and saw Julia's doll, Gianna's stuffed dogs and Nicholas' red blanket just laying on the couch. The house is so quiet. I know I'll get used to it pretty fast.

But I still miss them...and the noise.

Julia and Irene

2011-08-29T05:13:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to our Julia who turned 9!! And goodbye to Irene who blew in and out of town but left quite the mess behind. Even Julia's little friends were neater than her!

It was supposed to be a pool party/sleepover but Irene messed that up too! We moved the party into the porch because of the rain but it worked just fine.

Julia asked me to make this pink confetti cake.

Julia invited 5 school friends and 5 dance friends. Ironically, all her dance friends couldn't sleep over because of Irene but all her school friends were able to stay. : )

My personal photographer (Nicholas) did a great job capturing all the fun...

They played in her room and made the best of it inside. Then we put in a movie and the kids had lots of candy and popcorn. They were in bed by 11:00, pancakes for breakfast in the morning and then the girls were on their way home before the storm got too bad. It was still a good party and Julia was very happy.

By early afternoon, this is what Irene did to one of our trees...

It knocked down some wires but no one in our neighborhood lost power thankfully...

And I spent over an hour cleaning the pool and it's still not clean...

So we spent the rest of Julia's birthday weathering the storm inside and Danny made a delicious meal of homemade eggplant lasagna, homemade pasta & ravioli, and homemade sauce.....yum!!!

One of Julia's favorite presents was her Tangled doll. I love that she still loves dolls. I was thrilled to go into the Disney Store to buy it for her!!

The last of our summer list

2011-08-28T06:34:00.000-07:00

We're almost done with our "summer list"...

We picked a beautiful day and went into Boston to the Children's Museum of Science...

Then we headed over to Faneuil Hall for some fun. The girls and I found this awesome store. Forgot to take a picture of the front of the store but it had to be one of the prettiest stores I've ever been in. We found so many girly things....

Then the kiddies had ice cream and watched a street performer...

and a guy banging on a homemade drum set....

Then we relaxed a bit, enjoying more entertainment and the beautiful day...

My boy held my hand the entire day. And I enjoyed every second of it because I know it won't last forever...

Danny and I used to go to the North End all the time before we had the kids. It was one of our favorite things to do. We would just walk the streets browsing the menus and trying new places. We really wanted to share this with the kids.

We showed them this place...just add the Di and this place could be ours....

We showed them the church where we stopped in just over ten years ago to light a candle and say a prayer for a baby. Along came Nicholas shortly after. I believe it helped. This time Nicholas lit a candle for his Papa. The peace garden outside the church is gorgeous...

We passed a cigar shop and it reminded me of Dad. I know he would have loved it.

We picked a restaurant that we thought the kids would enjoy...

No trip to the North End is complete without a visit to Mike's Pastry...

I think the whoopie pie was as big as her face...

Gianna wanted a chocolate chip cookie (I mean really?) but all they had left was M&M. But it still made her happy....

It was a great day...

This is hilarious! The kids could "be on TV" in the museum. Gianna went crazy! And Julia's shirt was invisible I guess because of the color...

Canobie Lake Park

2011-08-22T14:02:00.001-07:00

I love Canobie Lake Park. It's close to home, it's super clean and it has lots of really fun rides for everybody. It was kind of sad this year though that Gianna said she was "too big" for the kiddie rides. She is actually tall enough to go on some of the bigger rides but still small enough for the little rides. But no. She wants to be like her big brother and sister and do what they do.

My parents used to take us here when we were kids. I love that a lot of the rides are still the same....

Like this one. It was one of my favorite rides when I was a kid too. Julia and Nicholas got to drive their own car (with Mom and Dad in the back). Nicholas said it was his favorite ride of the day...

Of course we had to take a break for some fried dough. OK...my favorite part of the day!

We always end our days at Canobie Lake cooling off at their water park....

The summer is winding down. Only two more weeks left of summer vacation. I'll be happy to have the kids back on a schedule but I will miss the lazy mornings and all our fun "summer list" activities.

Danny, Nicholas, Julia & Gianna went on this....

Nicholas' friend party

2011-08-22T13:20:00.000-07:00

Really...my cake tasted better than it looked...

Nicholas' 10th Birthday and some randomness

2011-08-11T05:05:00.000-07:00

Well, it's official. My baby boy is now in double digits. Yikes! But he sure does look and act like a 10 year old so I guess I have to let him turn 10. Oh, it's so hard just thinking about him growing up so I have to try not to. He'll be leaving us in 8 short years to go off to college...OK Dini...STOP!!!

Pancakes for breakfast....

A ripstick...

and some more Harry Potter movies to add to his collection...

He picked a restaurant to go to for dinner and then we went back home for some ice cream. He's saving his birthday cake for his friend party on Friday. Happy birthday sweet, precious, loving little boy of ours!!!

So here are some random pictures from this past week. The kids buried Gianna in all her stuffed friends...

Julia and a few of the girls from her dance studio put on a mini recital for a nursing home...

The residents loved it!!!

Not sure what game Gianna was playing here but it totally cracked me up!! She loves these little plastic dogs and now has over 70 of them. And all 70 something have names!

Ogunquit

2011-08-09T18:55:00.000-07:00

More like him

2011-08-01T04:12:00.000-07:00

Let me give you two scenarios.

Julia is at a dance competition. Her group gets up on stage and Julia makes a silly mistake. She turns to the right and the entire group turns to the left. The teacher is really frustrated because it's an important competition for her and she's been working so hard with this group of girls. After the kids get off the stage, the dance teacher goes up to my 8-year-old little girl and in front of her dance team, other dance studios, parents and audience yells, "Is that how I teach you?!?! To turn to the right instead of the left?!?! My preschoolers wouldn't make that kind of mistake!!!"

Thoughts. First of all, you would probably think the teacher was a "bitch". And you would probably think "Really? It's just dancing. Isn't it supposed to be fun?" And you would probably think "That woman needs to get a life".

So did that really happen? Of course not!!! And if it did? I would have spoken to the dance teacher about it and promptly found my daughter a new dance school.

This brings me to scenario number two.

Nicholas, who is 9-years-old, is playing in his All Star baseball team playoff game. His team is starting to get killed by the other team. He's in the outfield and a ball comes to him. He scoops it up nicely and throws the ball to first base. I'm cheering because it is a beautiful throw!! Right after that play, the coach yells loudly at Nicholas, "Hey Nick!! Is that how I coach you?!?! To throw the ball to first instead of third?!?!" Silence. You could hear a pin drop. Right after that, he called the boys in and gets them in a circle. He says very loudly, looking straight at Nicholas, "Even my preschool t-ball team wouldn't have made THAT mistake!"

So did this really happen? Yes it did. And did anyone say anything to the coach? Of course not! Because he's the baseball coach and the baseball coach is always right.

Nicholas has said how he gets anxious when he's in the outfield and the ball comes to him. He gets the ball and sometimes doesn't know where to throw it. Everyone is yelling at him..."Throw it!!! Throw the ball!!!"

I understand correcting mistakes. I understand positive reinforcement. What I don't understand is yelling at a 9-year-old little boy in front of his whole team, opposing team, coaches, parents and bleachers full of people. Really??? I know my boy. I know every single thing about him. I know his facial expressions. I know his body language. I saw how his face changed. I saw how his body slumped slightly. I could feel how he was feeling. And I know how I was feeling. For an instant, I felt like I was going to cry. Then all I felt was anger. My parental instinct kicked in. How dare this man yell at my child in front of everyone, in the middle of the game, and embarrass him like that over a simple mistake...at a GAME of baseball that is supposed to be FUN. At a GAME he is supposed to be learning. It made me so angry. It made me feel disgusted. It made me feel embarrassed to be part of it. He is MY son. I don't want other people making him feel bad about himself. I understand correcting bad behavior. I get that. But when teachers at school over punish (like Chisholm) or call him an idiot (like Bertino) or yell at him over a mistake (like Rajotte), my motherly lion instinct kicks in. How dare they pick on MY child. He's mine. Not theirs to knock down.

But you know what the most wonderful thing is about my boy? He's innate ability to forgive. He can shake off all those negative things in seconds and is so quick to smile and love again. My boy is so filled with love. It just bursts out of him. He tells me over and over again how much he loves me. He reaches over to hold my hand and give hugs so freely. And I knew that within minutes of that bashing at the ballgame, it was gone from his brain. He had moved on.

After the game we went for an ice cream. While sipping on his mint chocolate chip milk shake (well deserved I might add) he declared, "I love baseball. It's my favorite. Even more than hockey." See? All was forgotten in his mind...but not mine. I want to be more like him.

Summer happenings

2011-07-28T17:02:00.000-07:00

Summertime = art camp, dance camp, vacation bible school, baseball, hockey, gymnastics and swimming lessons...

Nicholas...

Gianna....

Nicholas learning how to dive....

Gianna....

Nicholas....

Gianna....I can't believe she can swim this good...she just took off the swimmies a week ago!!!

Gianna jumping in the pool...

This is BIG for her...

and Julia (on the left)....

Cape Cod Part 3

2011-07-17T15:15:00.001-07:00

I'm really bummed our vacation is over. This had to be the best Cape vacation we've had as a family.

Gianna came out of the house one night dressed like this...

She said, "Good evening" in this funny voice...

Isn't this just the prettiest church?

We had one really chilly day. The temperature had to be in the 60's. So we took a break from the beach and went out to eat for every meal, did some shopping and played mini golf.

Later that night we went down to the beach....

It was a gorgeous night....

There was a beautiful full moon that night. My smart little girl, Julia, turns to me and says, "Mom!! Look at the sunset!!!" I told her, "No, Julia. That is the moon. The sunset is over here." She looked at me all confused. Oh dear. Like I said before, she should have been born a blond.

Our last day at the beach....

The kids dug a huge hole in the sand and made a bench to sit on...

And this cracked me up....

Cape Vacation Part 2

2011-07-13T03:48:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was a very relaxing day at the beach. It was hot and the water here is beautiful! I spent a long time swimming in the ocean so you know the water had to be nice for me to do that!

I bought Julia a magazine to read. She devoured it. Is she exactly like me or what? It was filled with all the Disney stars she watches on TV. I wonder if they still make Tiger Beat?

Gianna picked out these sunglasses. Aren't they cute?

Of course Nicholas has made a friend down here. They've been playing together for days. He makes friends everywhere he goes. And that's a good thing because otherwise he would be bored and driving us crazy!

Last night we went to this inflatable park. It was awesome! The kids had a ball! They were a sweaty mess within seconds. After we went out for some peppermint, cake batter and butter crunch ice cream. It was good...but not as good as Bliss of course!

I love making fun memories for the kids...

Cape Vacation Part 1

2011-07-12T06:31:00.001-07:00

Ahhhh...we're on vacation down the Cape. One of my favorite places to be. This year we rented a REAL house...not a tiny, moldy cottage. I just can't rough it.

This house has a REAL kitchen (not a tiny galley kitchen like last year) and a table that can fit all of us...

and enough furniture for all of us to sit on. Last year we had one tiny couch.

Plus a really big, pretty yard...

The girl's bedroom....

our bedroom....

Nicholas' bedroom...

AND a washer and dryer...unlike last year. They told us it had them and it didn't. This house also has air conditioning in the kitchen/living room and the master bedroom. You can't beat that!

Our first day we packed a picnic for dinner. My favorite time of day at the beach. It was beautiful. The kids swam and played in the playground.

We also took them to the candy store.

They can fill their tray until it's full..

Nicholas calls the store "Candy Co" not realizing the "Co" stands for "Company". It's cute.

We also have this nice glider in the backyard. I love to swing here and have a Corona after we come home from the beach.

After the trip to the candy store it was off to jump on the tramps...

Starpower Nationals

2011-07-03T05:35:00.001-07:00

We're back from Mohegan Sun where Julia was competing with her dance teams at Nationals. It was a very long three days but we had a wonderful time.

Her junior acro team, Russian Circus, won 1st place and title of National Champions!!! They were on fire and brought the house down! They were selected to compete in the Battle of the Stars competition on the last day (the best of the best at Nationals). They danced again and came in 2nd place, won the 3rd place Victory Cup for the highest score in the entire 11 and under division (huge accomplishment) and a "showmanship award" (for being respectful to others and for great team work).

This is just some of her acro team....

Julia's mini dance team won 3rd place for Aye Carumba at the National competition. They too were selected to dance again in the Battle of the Stars competition where they came in 2nd place!!! What a huge accomplishment for these girls who have only been dancing together for a year! Look at the size of that trophy!!

And her senior acro team, Jewel of the Nile, won BIG!!! They looked incredible!!! They won 1st place at Nationals winning the title of National Champions! They competed in the Battle of the Stars and won 1st place again, took the 2nd place Victory Cup for the 2nd highest score in the 12 and over division. That was a HUGE deal! So many amazing dances and they had the 2nd highest overall score?? Amazing!!

Danny, Nicholas and Gianna came down to support Julia for a day too which was really nice.

When it was over and we were on our way back home, Julia and I stopped for dinner and she celebrated with this huge treat for dessert.

Her eyes were bigger than her stomach. I think she had three bites and was done.

And so was I. Can you say EXHAUSTED???

Schools OUT

2011-06-27T17:52:00.001-07:00

So the kiddies are officially done with 3rd grade, 2nd grade and kindergarten. Boo hoo. Makes me sad but I'm happy that the school stuff is over with. I still plan to work on multiplication facts and reading over the summer, but no more projects and homework. Yes! And it will also be nice to get on a summer schedule of swimming lessons and summer camps. Julia is trying art camp this summer. I love when they can try new things. Summer is the perfect time for that. Also it's time for swimming in the pool after dinner and drinking homemade mint chocolate chip milkshakes. Yum!

Nicholas' classroom party....

They signed t-shirts....

and made ice cream sundaes...

posed for a class picture...

and made funny faces...

Julia had a class party too...

They had ice cream sundaes too and she posed for pictures with good friends...like Haley...

and Josie...

and Emily...

and Leah (who is moving to California)...

and Lizzie (who is also moving but just across town...sad for them though as they won't be neighbors anymore)...

Posing for the "last day of school" picture....

On another note, the dance recital on Saturday went really, really well. Julia was amazing!! And Gianna was a pro! I am so proud of my girls!!

Julia and Alyssa....

Julia and Miss Stephanie...

Gianna and Savannah....

Look how pretty and grown up she looks!

And here's our "Summer List"...

I wonder how much we'll get to???

Busy busy June

2011-06-23T07:51:00.000-07:00

Someone said to me the other day that she thinks June is worse than December. I have to agree. June is a crazy busy month. We have all the end of the year school stuff, the dance recital, a dance competition and endless baseball games. And don't forget all the end of the year gifts that have to be bought for the dance teachers, school teachers, coaches, and even the bus driver.

Saturday is the girl's dance recital. This will be Julia's 5th recital (she'll get a trophy this year) and Gianna's 2nd recital. I'm preparing for a crazy day. Julia is in both recitals this year as she's on the acro and dance teams. She has 4 dances in the afternoon and 6 at night. I better put on my running shoes! I'm already starting to sweat just thinking about all the costume changes. And I can't forget Gianna also has one dance at night too...so wait...that's 7 dances at night!! Oh dear.

Remember Julia's very first recital???

Now look at how grown up she has become....

Rock-a-hula...

The kids had Spirit Day at their school. They have lots of outside activities. I only went for Gianna's class as she is the only child of mine that really wants me there anymore!

Here's Gianna with two of her little friends....

I thought they looked so cute walking around together.

Gianna with her good friend, Ella...she's a school and dance friend. (Is her belly ever going to deflate?!?!)

Then Gianna had her end of the year party for kindergarten. I'm so sad I won't have a "little one" anymore. They will all officially be in school full time next year. It will be the first time in TEN years that I won't have a little one home with me anymore. Boy, that first day of school next year will be a sad one for me. But I also know I'll get used to my free time really, really fast! : )

The last time we'll be in this room. All three of my babies had the same teacher....

Today, the 3rd grade classes did an animal presentation. They did such a great job. Nicholas did his on the Black Bear....

Look at his diorama....I thought he did a fantastic job!

Here's Gianna reading what she wants to be when she grows up...an animal doctor. I have no doubt that's what she'll be too. She is one super smart girl who loves animals!

Good-bye Kindergarten...forever... : (

Baseball 9 year old champions

2011-06-20T11:48:00.001-07:00

Nicholas' baseball team won the 9 year old championship! My boy is #2.

Getting his award...

Our handsome boy...

Our proud little family...

Now he moves onto the All Star Team! Go Nicholas!!

Norwood HS Last Hurrah

2011-06-15T12:30:00.000-07:00

My old high school is being torn down so the town decided to have a function at the school called "The Last Hurrah". And let me tell you, it was a blast!!!

We all met up at Christine's house before the event for some apps and drinks. Then we all marched up the street to the high school. It's so fun to have a friend who still lives in that old neighborhood. We got to walk the halls of our old school. We went to "senior hall" where our lockers used to be. Of course we don't recall exactly which ones were our lockers but it was fun just hanging out there with all of them exactly as we did 28 years ago. I think that's just crazy....28 years ago! It just doesn't even seem possible. We hung out in the auditorium where we spent endless time together when we were in the marching band. As we walked in, it just so happened they were showing old pictures up on a screen...and weren't they on 1983...and didn't they show me at my junior prom...and didn't they show a picture of a creepy old boyfriend of mine...and didn't my friends let out huge howls and all kinds of silly jokes at my expense. I love my friends just for that reason. It felt so good to laugh that hard.

Me, Anne, Ann, Marcy, Christine, Michele and Patty....such good friends then and now. How lucky am I?

They had one of those photo booths you could cram into and take lots of fun pictures...and that's exactly what we did.

Here we are sitting in our old cafeteria at our old table. We laughed about how awful we ate back then...sundaes and Suzy Q's for lunch...I'm not kidding...every...single...day...and we were all so skinny back then...and Michele still is...brat...

This is our usual pose at Christine's house before high school reunions...We tried to get in the same order...

Did I say how lucky I am to have such wonderful friends? I've shared so much with these girls. Wow...28 years since graduation day. Still don't know how that's possible.

Random school work

2011-06-15T12:02:00.000-07:00

JULIA:

NICHOLAS:

If only that were true...("I will be nice to the girls.")

JULIA:

I love that she wants to be a teacher when she grows up!!

GIANNA:

They have to make up their own sentences and then draw a picture about it. It says, "This world is out of control. It is raining steaks."

"Me and Brady are best friends."

"Everything is so perfect here. Everything is so pretty today." That's so Gianna. She loves her little life.

"I have a cool toy. My toy is special to me. I sleep with it." Gianna is a smarty pants. She just turned 6, is in kindergarten and is already reading CHAPTER BOOKS!! I'm not kidding!

Oh Nicholas. All year this is what his spelling tests have looked like. I swear it's because he can't do two things at once...like write cursive and spell. I bet if he was allowed to print, he would do better!!

And Nicholas loves to bake just like his cousin Breanna. I think this is really good! He made it all by himself!

NKOTBSB concert

2011-06-15T07:03:00.001-07:00

Kimmy and I went to see The Backstreet Boys again for what I think was our 5th time. They were fantastic as usual. This time they are on tour with the New Kids on the Block. I'm not a big fan of them but they were fun too. We had great seats as usual. The perks of being in their fan club. Yes dorkie...but worth every penny!

My handsome Howie....

My favorite...AJ!

And this was a riot!! Joey from NKOTB said,"I think it's time to meet our fans up close and personal!" So didn't he jump off the stage and hop up on the chairs right in front of us! We tried to keep out of the way so his fans could shake his hand and get pictures. But I still reached out and he did shake my hand and sang right to me. Very funny! Kimmy and I laughed about that all night. What are the odds of that happening at a sold out concert? And why wasn't it AJ or one of the Boys? Oh well...still fun.

Loved the Bruins shirts!! They are in the playoffs so it was fun they did this...

We also got into a fight with a street vendor over a BSB t-shirt. Crazy funny! He's yelling that t-shirts are 1/2 price...$10!!! So I hand the guy a $20 and he hands me the shirt and starts to walk away. We're yelling for our change and get into a tug of war with the dude over the money. We laughed and laughed all the way home over that. What a night!!

How I wish this was AJ singing to me....

Here is Joey from NKOTB singing right in front of us. I was so distracted I forgot to video until the very end.

Starpower Dance Competition

2011-05-22T13:01:00.000-07:00

Julia had her third dance competition this weekend. She had lots of fun!!! Can't you tell?

Aye Carumba (this dance) won 1st place! The past two dance competitions it placed 2nd to America. But not this time...

Aren't they just the cutest?

America took 3rd place in their division. They looked beautiful. Isn't this a gorgeous picture? She makes it look sooo easy.

The girls had a lot of fun waiting for the awards to begin. The older girls at the studio are so good to the little ones. The girl hugging Julia in this picture just adores her. She's always hugging Julia and carrying her around.

Julia got to accept the award for Aye Carumba...

What a great first year of competition so far...nationals are the end of June.

Aye Carumba won 4 3/4 stars (out of 5) and 1st place in their division

America won 4 1/2 stars and 3rd place in their division

Russian Circus won 5 stars (perfect score) and 2nd highest score out of ALL age 11 and under dances.

Retro Funk won 4 1/2 stars and 5th place in their division

Jewel of the Nile (don't know yet...we skipped the award ceremony for that one and we're still waiting to hear)

Julia's 1st Communion

2011-05-12T08:51:00.000-07:00

Our beautiful Julia Rose had her 1st communion this past Sunday...on Mother's Day no less. It was a nice day celebrating with family but not very relaxing.

Look how gorgeous she looked...and I know she felt beautiful too!

Proud Mama and Daddy...

And I did her hair all by myself!! It came out really nice!

Our niece made the cake. So pretty!! And so delicious!!

April vacation & Easter

2011-04-26T06:51:00.000-07:00

April vacation. Probably the l-o-n-g-e-s-t week of my life. The weather wasn't the best so the kids were cooped up inside most of the time. I tried to break it up by taking them out to lunch, playing at the mall, visiting with family, etc. but still the bickering took over. They are either the best of friends...or the worst of friends. I was happy to see the week come to an end.

We did have some fun at Southwick Zoo though.

I always find the deer park so fascinating. It's so fun to see the deer up close and have them eat right out of your hand.

The girls rode on the ponies...

and Nicholas rode on a camel...

Easter morning the three of them woke up extra early full of excitement...

So glad they all still believe...

Makes me sad to think this is probably the last year for Nicholas. And once he doesn't...I'm sure she won't either...

See? They love each other here...

It's not ALL fighting...

Father Daughter Dance

2011-04-21T17:47:00.000-07:00

Starquest Dance Photos

2011-04-16T08:06:00.000-07:00

Squirt B Champions!

2011-04-11T06:35:00.001-07:00

What a game they played!!!

They had a playoff game on Saturday and lost to a team of all girls...7-1. Then yesterday they came back fighting and beat that same team 3-1!!!

Everyone played their best!

It was a great season. Congratulations Nicholas!

Happenings...

2011-04-08T18:09:00.000-07:00

Nicholas had his Squirt hockey banquet last night. What a great year he had! I've seen a huge improvement in his skating and overall playing of the game. I'm so proud of him! He has a big game tomorrow. Hopefully they'll win and make it to the championship game!

And Gianna learned how to tie a shoe! She's known how to do the first part for a while now. It was the bunny ear part that took some getting used to. She's growing up too fast for me.

Starquest Dance Competition

2011-04-04T07:24:00.000-07:00

What a great weekend Julia had at her very first dance competition! Her duo won High Gold, a costume award and placed 2nd out of all the petite duos & trios. Next up was her jazz dance "Aye Carumba". That received a Platinum (highest you can get) and 2nd place in that category.

Her lyrical dance "America" also received a Platinum and 1st place in that category (actually outscoring Aye Carumba by a bit).

Holding the 1st place trophy...

Out to lunch with the girls and then back to the hotel to swim...which she said was the best part of the whole weekend!

Russian Circus, her junior acro team, was amazing! They won a Platinum and 1st place in their division!

Last was the senior acro team "Jewel of the Nile" which also won Platinum and 2nd place in their division (the studio's production placed 1st).

Wish her luck!

2011-03-31T18:19:00.000-07:00

Julia drew this picture of herself (and some other little person next to her). She's wearing her acro costume. I just love her pictures! So tomorrow we leave for the weekend for her very first dance competition. I really hope she has a great time and it's a positive experience for her! So go ahead...wish her luck!!!

Who is Sick & Who is Six?

2011-03-30T06:05:00.000-07:00

Who's sick? My poor Julia. She tested positive for the flu. She was down and out for 6 days but finally turned the corner and appears to be on the mend. And thank goodness just in time for her very first dance competition this weekend! She missed a dress rehearsal yesterday but I think she knows the dance well enough by now. I'm just praying that her chest congestion and cough get better soon. She went back to school today. The other two have been sneezing and blowing their noses. I hope it's not the flu again.

Who's six? My baby girl Gianna! Six!! Wow!! How did that happen?

What a day she had yesterday! We went to dinner at Uno where the kids got to make their own pizzas. Then it was off to Chuck E Cheese to play games! After we had a party with cake and her favorite ice cream to finish off the day. She got lots and lots of new stuffed friends and a big girl bike. Our girl has the biggest personality and just loves her little life.

March 18th

2011-03-22T17:33:00.000-07:00

My Dad would have turned 78 a few days ago. We always did fun things to celebrate my Dad's birthday. So this year, the family went to dinner and then back to Kimmy's house to watch some old family movies starring Pops himself. We had a lot of laughs...and cake...and ice cream...to celebrate the wonderful husband, father and Pops he was. I miss him terribly. But I have such wonderful memories. How can I complain about sharing 45 wonderful years of my life with him?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD. LOVE & MISS YOU SO SO MUCH.

Quote of the day

2011-03-13T13:29:00.000-07:00

"I love my toys. They give me such good love", Gianna said as she was squeezing her stuffed animals.

Father Daughter Dance

2011-03-12T15:24:00.000-08:00

The girls were so excited! It was Gianna's first Father Daughter dance...

Julia picked out her dress weeks ago...

And Gianna...well...she wore one of Julia's old dresses. She's not really a dress-up-kind-of-girl.

They looked so beautiful tonight...

Just so so sweet....

My little artist

2011-03-10T07:41:00.001-08:00

Julia brought this home from school yesterday...

I think it's wonderful for just 8 years old!

Celebrating

2011-03-08T07:18:00.001-08:00

Nicholas went on a field trip today to the "Little Red Schoolhouse". They had to dress in colonial times. He looked so cute going off to school this morning and he didn't mind wearing this costume one bit!

Sister Kim celebrated the big 5-0 this weekend! We had lots of fun celebrating right along with her!

I don't know who likes to snuggle more than my boy....

Winter Fun

2011-02-22T04:57:00.000-08:00

We went to Ogunquit over the long weekend. My sister has friends nearby who live on a farm. We had a blast hanging out there for the day.

Gianna tried to make friends with some of the animals.

Then we went sledding and snowmobiling...

It was cold but we were all troopers!

Thank you Kimmy and Paula for a fantastic time!

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T06:23:00.001-08:00

Gianna made this for KoKo this morning. She thought he needed a Valentine and named her "Sophia". It's now hanging over KoKo's water dish.

And Happy Valentine's Day to the love of my life...

Missing you

2011-02-12T15:50:00.001-08:00

I have this picture hanging on my fridge. It never, ever makes me sad to look at this one. I feel like I just called "Hey Dad" and he's glancing over to look at me. I know this look so well. It captures him perfectly.

Julia's drawings

2011-02-11T13:14:00.000-08:00

I absolutely love Julia's drawings. She did this one for school. It says, "I have a snowball fight with my brother."

Just look at the smile on her face while she's throwing the snowball at her brother...

and look at his face as he's being hit by the snowball...

She learned the word "affection" for vocabulary this week. Her sentence for affection, "I show affection by giving my Mom a hug."

I'm so lucky to have a daughter who loves me so much.

Buried Alive...

2011-02-10T18:04:00.000-08:00

This is how I've been feeling lately...