Nerds & apple pickin'

Today was the typical perfect New England day, crisp and cool, to spend the afternoon apple picking. Luckily we have a great orchard nearby where they have fun weekend festivals with apple picking, live music, face painting, yummy food, and hay rides.





OK...where do nerds fit in? Of course I'm not talking about "nerds" as in "dorky", etc. I'm talking about nerds the candy. While making lazy man's apple pie, Julia proceeded to dump her candy nerds all over the floor. I'm sure we'll be finding nerds for months to come.
My kids are strange. Well, strange in the way that they don't like sweets. I baked this...
and they both took one look at it and said "YUCK"! Well, that means more for me and Danny! I shouldn't complain that they don't like sweets though, right?

Learning about kindness

The nastiness started early this summer. Just too much together time and the fighting was terrible. They were simply not being nice to each other. So I tried something new this summer. I explained to them what "kind" meant and how to spell the word. (They were 4 and 5 when we started this so learning to spell a new word was a bonus!) I know this looks really simple but it worked! I had them make up their own chart with the word KIND at the top. Every time one of them was kind they would draw a star on their own chart. Before you knew it they were aware of their own kindness as well as other peoples random acts of kindness. But of course they were sneaky about it too. For example, Nicholas would say, "Julia, I love you! Now do I get a star?". They often spell the word out of the blue. "K-I-N-D" is what we hear around the house when the other one isn't being nice. I'll tell you it worked like a charm. We still have fights of course but at least they are aware.

Next up...patience! (Maybe I'll make a chart for me too!)

Oh...and please ignore the wallpaper in the background. We will be remodeling the kitchen soon and I've picked out something much prettier!

Kindergarten & Kindergarten

Yesterday was the first day of school. This year we have two in kindergarten. Since they have August birthdays, they will each be doing two years of kindergarten, one private and one public. Of course as luck would have it Julia goes mornings and Nicholas goes afternoons. Figures!

 

Julia is now at Little Blessings five days a week. She only has nine kids in the class this year, only three are girls. I'm a little disappointed in the boy/girl ratio but maybe there will be less fighting. (We all know how little girls can be.) But you cannot beat the small class with two teachers. She told me she can't wait to get homework!

Now compare that to Nicholas. Yesterday, when he got off the school bus he said, "I love the bus! But I don't like school". Ahhhh...my boy. He would much rather be fixing or building things with his tools or riding his bike or watching his favorite cartoons. We'll have to work extra hard to get him through school. His class size isn't too bad for public school with 17 kids.

They both had great days and weren't the least bit nervous. On the other hand, there was me, Miss Nervous Nelly, awake at 1:00 a.m. worrying for them.

Works-for-Me Wednesday

Today is "brand loyal" edition a.k.a. what brands I can't live without. As I posted previously, I simply love the new Secret Clinical Strength deodorant. I've tried every single deodorant on the market, mens deodorants included, and never has one worked as well as this one.


The other is the #1 stain remover...Shout. It works like a charm...every single time. Even for the Sponge Bob or Spider Man ice cream from the ice cream truck that stains the kids teeth and lips blue for days. Not to mention my little ones nose! She looked like Rudolph but her nose was blue instead of red. But I'm happy to report that it came out of her clothes!

And how can I not mention my absolute favorite breakfast food ~ Frosted Mini Wheats (regular flavor, bite size). Every morning I pour my bowl of cereal and then spoon out a little of the stuff that has settled on the bottom of the bag over the top of my cereal. It makes for yummy, sweet milk. I have all three of my kids eating this cereal now which is very high in fiber. It sticks with you all morning long.

And for more great ideas visit Rocks In My Dryer!

Exploring

The summer is winding down and Nicholas and Julia are off to school in five days. I'm sad to see the summer end but I am so happy to get the kids back into a routine and let someone else take care of them for a while. Does that sound selfish?

Desiderata

I can't tell you how many times throughout my days I am reminded of these words. It is a life worth of lessons in one poem.

Go placidly amid the noise and haste
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.

You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

~ Max Ehrmann

Happy 5th Birthday to my mini me

She is me...everything from the way she looks, thinks, eats, personality, likes, dislikes is me. I can get into her head and know exactly what she is thinking and feeling. Hopefully this will help me when she reaches the crazy teenage years. At least I hope so!

Here are some of my favorite pictures of her. Happy birthday to my beautiful baby girl with the prettiest smile!

Party

The kids' party went well yesterday. Thirteen kids and not one problem. And the best part? Not that many presents! For some reason everyone got small, simple gifts. Nice!!!

Happy Birthday to me

Today is my birthday. So many birthdays in the month of August besides me like Nicholas and Julia and two of my closest girlfriends. So in honor of my birthday I'm eating some Boston baked beans, one of my favorite candy, that my sister gave to me yesterday. And it's only 10:00 a.m. Who cares, right?

Also for my birthday I bought tickets to SYTYCD. I'm so happy! We got fantastic seats right up front only about eight rows from the stage! I can't wait to see Danny up close and sweaty...mmmmmm. He's a major hotty. I really hope Hawk is part of the tour too. What a bummer that he was the last to leave the show right before the top ten. He is amazing. My guess is that he's probably an understudy so why not let him perform too?

Let's see...what else would I love to get for my birthday?

Here's my fantasy list:

1) ten pounds would magically dissolve off my body by the end of the day...I guess that would mean I have to stop eating my Boston baked beans though



2) Someone would hand me tickets to leave to Cancun, Mexico today for five days...all alone...all by myself...with a pile of books and magazines (this is where Danny and I stay when we go)



3) I would receive big, beautiful, sparkly diamond earrings to replace the stupid one I lost a few months ago


4) Then off course there's the wish for winning the lottery BIG.

But it's all a fantasy as I sit in my kitchen surrounded by three little, loud, fighting, whining children. Reality stinks sometimes.


Happy birthday to me.

Six years ago today

....our Nicholas was born. After years and years of waiting to have a baby he finally arrived. My best memory was the morning after he was born, the nurse came in the room with him to wake me up for his feeding. I was still so groggy from the night before that I had briefly forgotten that I had had a baby. He was making squeaky noises and he was so warm and cuddly. It is incredible how much he has filled our lives with joy. He is our sunshine and laughter each and every day.
One day old...

One year old...

Two years old...

Three years old...

Four years old...

Five years old...

And what he looks like today...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET BOY! WE LOVE YOU!!!

Quote of the day and more...

Tonight as Danny was putting Nicholas and Julia to bed they told him to tell me that I'm as "beautiful as a princess, a rainbow and a shooting star". How sweet are my babies?

Also, tonight was the second time in a week that Gianna pooped in the tub during her bath. At least last week she was in the tub alone but tonight she was in the tub with Julia. Talk about gross...I had to use a strainer to get it out, disinfect the tub, give them both another bath, toss the bath mat and wash clothes in the washing machine, toss all the toys in the dishwasher (and had to throw some away). Meanwhile, Gianna both times just stood there watching me do all this saying, "I didn't...I didn't...I didn't". Oh yes you did little one...yes you did. And it was gross!

Canobie Lake Park

We went back to Canobie Lake Park this summer because we had such a great time last year. And yet again we had a fantastic day. Ricky and Tyler are here visiting and came with us.

Uncle Ricky loves to spoil his Julia...

Here's Tyler with Nicholas...I really wish he could be here all the time.

Mae Mae got to enjoy the rides for the first time!

Nicholas and Ricky are in this picture somewhere...the splash from the ride was so huge! I'll try to post a video of the kids, Danny and Ricky on that ride (The Boston Tea Party) later.

We finished the day by going to the water park. I wasn't able to take any pictures because Gianna wouldn't let me put her down. It was very, very wet and loud there and she was a little nervous. We went to the Rainforest Cafe for dinner and then headed home. So fun!

ABC Family? Family???

Today I was at the mall when I saw a stage being set up for some kind of performance. Signs everywhere said "ABC Family". I thought, oh some kid concert must be happening here today. As I was walking by that stage again on my way out of the mall there was a performance starting. On the stage were some young male dancers probably around 16 or so. The singer was this cute blond who couldn't have been more than 14 or 15. The music started and I'm thinking to myself that it sounded like a cute song. Then the girl starts singing in this seductive voice, "taste me...taste me...taste me". Excuse me??? This is ABC Family people???

Ogunquit mini vacation

We spent a few days in Maine at Kim and Paula's place. We had two beautiful beach days spent swimming, playing in the sand and boogie boarding. We played mini golf and went to a make your own sundae bar.