Easter

Not only did the Easter Bunny leave candy...he left them each a gift. Julia got this pretty shirt with pink flip flops...

Nicholas got a super soaker...

and Gianna got the new Alvin and the Chipmunks DVD...why does she look like a crazy person in this picture???

Julia colored a cute picture for the Easter Bunny...

and left him a note with questions...and the Easter Bunny wrote back...

(I used to do the same thing when I was a kid too!)

Nicholas did too but asked lots more questions...

Nicholas and Julia dressed up for church...but Gianna did not. I begged her to wear a dress..."pretty, pretty please??? For Mama???"....nope. But she did wear her pink sparkly shoes.

Then we went to Auntie Diane's for Easter dinner. It was such a beautiful day. We spent most of it outside. Diane and her kids always make the holidays fun. And our kids love their cousins!

Breanna is in culinary school. She wants to open a bakery when she graduates. Now that's all Nicholas talks about. Bre was so good and made Nicholas some fondant.

And the kids made this!

Then they went on an Easter egg hunt...




Lots of fun stuff inside...especially the $$$....

Nicholas helped fill the cannoli. I love how he went from wanting to be a state trooper to now wanting to make and design cakes. The Cake Boss is his favorite show.

They live right across the street from the beach...

A wonderful way to end the day...

More rain anyone?

Ugh...the rain! I feel like we need a boat to get around. We got water in our basement like many others. Not fun but it could have been a lot worse, right?

So to help brighten the mood, here are a few pictures from the past few days. They make me smile. How about you?
Julia brought this home from school today. So cute. I think she is so creative with her artwork. She has such a wonderful imagination. She added the spots and put a red bow in the bunny's ear...

We bought Gianna some new play doh for her birthday and here's what Julia made...again so creative!
Pasta and meatballs, drink and a napkin....

Look at this! A cheeseburger, green beans and chips!

Another view...
Here's Gianna opening her birthday gifts from us. She was disappointed in the little stuffed dogs I bought her (which I thought she would LOVE...and she does now). She ended up being sent to her room for being so unappreciative. But in the end, after many tears and hugs, I think I got my point across.

But I have to say...she's one joyful, happy little girl 99.9% of the time.

Gianna is FIVE

Once again I say to myself...how did this happen? How did we get here already? How is it possible that our little girl is FIVE?

I loved four. I really, really, really loved four. It's my favorite age. Now I don't have a 4-year-old anymore...and never will again.

But I keep telling myself, five is good. Yes, five can be good. They start testing the waters more, get a little fresher, a little wiser. But I guess five will have to do.

Gianna has had three days of birthday fun. Her preschool party was Saturday. Gymnastics fun!



We went on a search for the perfect birthday cake for her party. At the first store Gianna spotted a ninja turtle cake and let out a shrill of delight! Julia said, "OK. That's it. You are going to be a tomboy" and proceeded to make gagging noises. So we moved on to the next store and thankfully found this cake. She doesn't even like cake. I think it was more for the fish so she could play with them in the tub later...

Sunday we had a family party with grandparents, aunties and cousins...



Nicholas and Julia took turns helping her read the birthday cards...

And again...no cake for her...
only peppermint ice cream would do...


And today is her real birthday...and she will celebrate at school with more ice cream and later tonight with our little family. I bought her something she is going to absolutely love...I'll show you that later...
Oh Gianna. How you make us laugh. You are so witty, funny and unique. A personality larger than life and simply all of your own.

Happy Birthday funny girl!!

Love

Nicholas...

Julia...
and Gianna...

Sometimes I can just feel my heart bursting with all the love I have for you.

You make me so happy...

and you have made my life complete.

This Weekend

Another busy but fun weekend...

Saturday morning Nicholas went to the annual Cub Scout's Pinewood Derby...followed by TWO birthday parties!!!



Nicholas and Daddy didn't win but they had lots of fun. I have to say what a FANTASTIC Daddy Nicholas has. He spends so much of his time with him whether it's making these cars, taking him to cub scouts, being his hockey coach, taking him to baseball practice, playing with him in the yard...you name it...Daddy does it. Daddy loves his boy.

And I found this while changing Gianna's sheets...

She actually sleeps with them under her pillow.

Julia went shopping with her friend and came home with this cute little top...

Posing...always posing.

She looked so cute and it was such a beautiful day so I whipped out my camera and we took these...

And today we celebrated Dad's 77th birthday with yummy food and a very pretty and yummy cake...(good job CeCe!)

Fun and chocolate was had by all...

My kids blew out Pops' candles before he got to make a wish!!!

I guess that just means he already has everything he needs...Happy Birthday Dad!

Spring is in the air

The weather has been simply glorious around here.

I, on the other hand, have not been feeling glorious. Getting better though...ever so slowly...

Happy bubble blowing!

Father Daughter Dance

You looked so beautiful tonight...
Your Daddy looked so handsome...
How did you get so grown up looking?So pretty...Such confidence... Before you know it, you'll be getting ready for the prom... But let's not rush things...

You're still our little girl for a while longer...

Random Friday

Just a mish mash of what's been happening around here...

Today I was really in the mood (need) for homemade chocolate chip cookies. I found this recipe and decided to try it...oh my...sooooo good! Way, way, way better than the Toll House recipe. When I make the Toll House cookies they always come out flat and greasy. Not these. The dough was exceptionally yummy.

It makes a TON of cookie dough. I made about 4 dozen cookies and still had lots of dough left over. So I put it in the freezer for future chocolate chip cookie cravings. Mmmmmm....

Here's where my cute black boy sleeps most of the day...and he sleeps with me at night.

I love when the girls play together. Julia has a great imagination and keeps Gianna entertained for hours at a time.

And speaking of Gianna...this is her bed. She loves it like this. I clean it all off and she puts it all back on. This is how she sleeps every night.

So that's it. Busy busy busy around here but those cookies with cold milk...man...they made my day. Happy Friday.

House Beautiful

Can I move in???

Lately I've been dreaming of a house full of white furniture with pretty white curtains, white picture frames on the walls and white fluffy bedding...

Then I snap out of it and come back to reality. We have three young kids and a BLACK cat with lots and lots of black hair.

A girl can dream, can't she???

The best compliment ever

Yesterday, I received this email from a mother of one of Nicholas' friends from school. I've never met her before.

"We look forward to seeing you on Saturday. Nicholas is such a nice boy. I see him in computer lab on Tuesdays. He is always doing what he's supposed to be doing and is exceptionally friendly and polite. I'm happy that Brendan got to know him this year."

This is THE best compliment a mother could ever receive. We must be doing something right.