Mis Tres Hijos

Introducing: The Newest "Big Kid"

2012-02-13T13:16:00.001-05:00

We were generously given a large amount of furniture (we have issues with saying "no," especially when it's such great stuff!) and this was the great push we needed to move Miss Meredith up into her "big girl room." The furniture was getting to Cincinnati at 3:30pm so we had only a few hours between church and that time to find the best deal on a bed. Daddy didn't disappoint.

When it time to go to bed, she climbed in with her baby nestled in next to her and went to sleep. It was actually her two oldest brothers that had the qualms about it. They both asked questions like, "Is Mere going to be ok in there all by herself?" even though she's been in her own room all her life. I hushed them before she could hear it because I think it's pretty easy to "create" worries for kids that they wouldn't have had in the first place!

She had a great night of sleep, in fact, I had to wake her out of her cozy nest to take the boys to school. I worried all night that she'd come waltzing down the steps of course, so I left a bunch of lights on, but those worries were all for not. Now, if we can only have her part with her beloved paci...

Pictures courtesy of Daddy's phone

Wooden Shoe Gardens

2012-02-11T15:31:00.001-05:00

I'm thankful for a lot of things. I'm thankful for good friendships. I'm thankful for fun outings. I'm thankful for unexpected surprises. How amazing is it that I got to experience all three in one day!

A few years back I came across a book called "Wooden Shoe Hollow" in the Museum Center's gift shop. The area that the novel takes place is a real area of Cincinnati close to the Spring Grove Cemetery. I purchased the book for my grandpa as a Christmas gift knowing that he'd love the history in the book as well as the area--he was born in that section of town. My grandpa read the book, shared it with his friend who is particularly interested in German-American culture, and then passed the book on to me.

I loved it, not so much for the story that it told, but for the insight into what Cincinnati used to be like at the turn of the 20th century. It fascinates me and when I like something I tend to ramble on and on about it, so when Amanda came across a sign that said "Wooden Shoe Gardens" on a road she often takes she knew just who to share that information with.

And then, she saw that it had fallen on the ground. As though no one cared about it. Like it was forgotten and needed to be salvaged. We were the gals to do it. We set a date and went out to "save" this piece of history. Well, it turned out to be quite a bit bigger than actually thought. And it was in pretty bad shape, which is probably why it had fallen down to begin with.

Although bummed, we soon realized that there was land to be explored. Maybe not on that particular day when the temperature was below freezing, but someday soon. We left and I decided that I was going to do some research. What is/was this place? Is it open to the public? Could we hike through when it gets warmer? I'm excited to see where this leads.

Wax Museum

2012-02-09T12:26:00.000-05:00

For the last few weeks Louie's class has been preparing for the annual Second Grade Wax Museum. The "great American" that Louie got to portray was Jackie Robinson.

He did a fantastic job with researching and writing a speech, then memorizing it to tell each time someone pressed his "start" button (the red circle on his chest).

It was pretty warm in the cafeteria where his class's museum was located. That, on top of the fact that he gets a little nervous speaking in front of people gave him a somewhat unhappy look on his face, but afterward he said that he enjoyed doing it.

There was a mix of characters portrayed and one that stuck out in my mind was the young lady who portrayed Jane Goodall. Her family must have had some sort of relationship with the gorilla expert because not only was she very thorough in her speech, one of her props was a "scrapbook" that had real pictures of her mom as a baby with Goodall and gorillas!

There were some parents who were concerned with the kids having so much pressure on them to do speeches in front of people at this young age, but I disagree. Coming from someone who considers herself shy and extremely uncomfortable in public speaking situations, I wish that I would have had the opportunity to practice this skill early on before the self-consciousness of the teenage years sets in and then there was no hope! Congrats to Louie and his classmates; they did a terrific job!

Cincinnati Cyclones

2012-02-09T10:53:00.000-05:00

A co-worker of Kevin's had extra tickets to a Friday night Cyclones game a few weeks back. They were free; it was $1 City Barbecue sandwich night; and the kids have never been to a Cyclones game. It was a perfect fit!

We didn't realize that these "free" tickets were in the third row! I spent a good portion of my pre-teen/teenage years going to games when they played at the Cincinnati Gardens. It was a smaller venue so I wasn't too far away from the ice, but I was never this close!

I'm sure they would have loved the experience regardless of where we sat, but to see the players' bodies slamming against the walls right in front of us was quite a sight for them! Meredith's attention somewhat waned toward the middle of the second period (we only stayed for the first two because the boys had basketball bright and early on Saturday), but luckily there were twin two-year-old girls sitting right in front of us. They bonded over their love of suckers.


Anyone know how to rotate pictures?? Sorry about this...

It was closing in on 9pm so we had to leave with the Chicago team leading, but there were five goals scored overall so they definitely witnessed an exciting game. We had a safe trip home, but it wasn't that way for everyone. There was a car who attempted to cross the bridge and ended up on its back. The next morning we woke to ice-coated cars and canceled basketball games. Too bad we had to leave the game early, but we did enjoy the day "stuck" at home in our jammies.

Happy Groundhog's Day

2012-02-02T16:19:00.000-05:00

Phil may have seen his shadow this morning, but if this is the winter we have ahead of us, I'm ok with that. There's nothing like the sound of baseball coming through my *open* windows, although it worries me that if we're having a mild winter, does that mean the spring and summer will suffer because of it?

January 31st

2012-02-01T15:41:00.003-05:00

Tuesday was a rare, gorgeous January day. It got up to 60 degrees and although a bit windy, it was a perfect day to be outside. After Meredith, Charlie and I picked up the boys we went to French Park to take a hike. Unfortunately, wanting to be detached from everything and just hang out with the kids and nature, I didn't bring my camera. Or even my phone, which I have been taking more pictures with than the camera.

So...what I didn't photograph:

Charlie walking up an asphalt hill with his wet jeans rolled to just below his knees, barefoot and holding Louie's hand. Louie's other hand is being held by Meredith as they trekked up the hill to our van. Benny was just behind them, though he was facing me because he assigned himself the duty of watching for oncoming cars.

It was warm, but certainly no responsible mother would let their child walk barefoot in January! After picking up the boys I realized that I left the bag of boots in the kitchen. We left the school, hurried back home and I grabbed the bag...not realizing that Charlie had knocked it over earlier and one of Ben's boots fell out. The honest soul that he is let us know that when we were at the park and I was scrambling around looking for the boot's partner.

Of course Benny was upset, but he agreed to be careful in his gym shoes while on the trail. He was obviously bummed because they are used to walking through the creek. He wasn't the one I had to worry about. We were three-fourths of the way through and Charlie misjudged the depth of the water and the ice-cold creek crept over his boot, soaking his legs and getting his socks wet. Crying ensued and our outing was over.

Charlie was sobbing hysterically and Lou and Ben were not happy that their hike was cut short, but all-in-all they were good sports about leaving the park. They knew that it stinks to be soaking wet and cold. We have since made plans to start our own "hiking club" complete with notebooks to keep track of what trails we take at different parks, what we find and what happens on our adventures. I'm excited about this.

Gung Hei Fat Choy!

2012-02-01T15:18:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year! Daddy got back from his trip to China just in time to celebrate Chinese New Year, and this is the year of the dragon. He brought with him decorations like the little dragon above that he gave Meredith.

We tried to eat a traditional New Year's Eve meal so we had noodles and oranges which are considered good luck, chicken and vegetable stir fry, and egg rolls. Kevin said that he didn't have egg rolls, though, or even saw a fortune cookie on either of his trips.

I told the kids that there is an animal assigned to each year and of course they wanted to know what animal they each are. They then made a puppet for their animal. Louie is a monkey; Benny is a rooster; Charlie is a pig; and Meredith is an ox. Charlie and Meredith liked each others, so that is why it is switched. (And, in case you were wondering and I know you were, Kevin is a dragon and I am a horse.)

I do not remember why Charlie is crying in this picture...but the rest of the kids are having fun!

And this is a sign Charlie painted at school for Daddy's homecoming.

Christmas in Columbus

2012-01-20T08:50:00.000-05:00

Here are a couple pictures from the start to our Christmas Week (literally, two). We got a new video camera and spent more time taking video than taking pictures. So strange for us, but it's about time! These little voices and personalities are starting to change and grow and I'm worried about forgetting them, as I've said hundreds of times before!

Baby G is coming this May and we wanted to make sure that he was going to

follow in is mommy and daddy's footsteps and "bring it."

We had a relaxing weekend, playing games, eating good food and starting off the week right. I can only imagine what next Christmas will be like, when there's a cousin for the kids to play with! There were pictures taken on the video camera, so if I figure out how to get them off of it, there will be more to share!

Resolutions

2012-01-06T08:46:00.000-05:00

Some people have New Year's resolutions to get more organized. Others want to exercise or lose weight. With Charlie, it's making sure Meredith stays out of his room because she jumps on his bed too much. Check out her crazy-cool carrot-top :)

Neighbors

2012-01-04T09:56:00.000-05:00

Last Thursday our beloved neighbor, Don, passed away. I stood watching with the kids in the window as another car pulled into his driveway. At the time I wasn't sure what was going on, but an hour earlier a paramedic pulled up with a police car and firetruck not far behind. The car in the driveway emptied and the woman, who was obviously crying, came walking up to the house with a man and young boy. The paramedic was gone by then, but the police car was still there. Earlier I had gone out to ask the police officer if Don was all right, if there was anything I could do. I should have known then when he said, "I'm not medical; I'm sorry I can't tell you anything" that things weren't right. By then I saw that Don's daughter's jeep was in the driveway so he wasn't alone. That made me feel better.

I started to feel a lot of guilt. A year ago I made plans with him to take him on a driving tour of our town. He spent his whole life here, in three different houses, had so many stories he wanted to share and I was eager to hear them. Why didn't I put off going to the grocery another day, or fold laundry after the kids had gone to bed instead of wasting a perfect afternoon for taking Don out for a drive? He called to talk on the day that happened to be the day that my Grandpa died. I tried my best to make my voice sound like I hadn't been crying and answered the phone. I couldn't not talk to a guy who was someone's grandpa, and we ended up having a really great half-hour conversation. That was when we made tentative plans to go for a drive.

The kids were really cute while watching all the commotion in the window. We said a prayer for Don and then the sun came out from behind a cloud. Louie informed us that from his extensive worldly knowledge from movies that when it gets brighter it means that good things will happen. The sun kept ducking behind and in front of clouds over the next few minutes, so they kept a running commentary. At that point we didn't know that Don had passed overnight, that the paramedics didn't have a chance to save him. Charlie asked why all the people were going to Don's house and Lou told him that Don had an accident. Benny shared, "Wouldn't it be funny if the 'accident' was pee?" Oh, to have just the concerns and worries of a child.

The first impression we had of Don as a great neighbor happened after we moved into our house. At that time it was an older neighborhood and we worried that a party we were having for Louie's Baptism was going to be too noisy for those around us. On the contrary, Don told us that he was happy there was noise in the neighborhood again. As the boys grew older, he also loved that they hit baseballs in his yard and had no problem with them having free reign to go into his yard. He was a big Reds fan and often sat on his patio, listening to a game while watching the kids play in the yard.

Even though he remained independent until the end, the past couple of years were hard on him and he couldn't answer the door each time trick-or-treaters rang the bell. That didn't stop him from having a special bag of chocolate for the kids. He also made sure his feeder was filled for all the birds that visited his yard; he sang in his church's choir each Sunday; and as a veteran of the Korean War, he played the big bass drum each year in the Memorial Parade that the boys walked in for their baseball team.

Obviously, this man will be missed by Casa Llena. I realize how blessed we were to know and love our neighbor as we did. Goodbye, Don!

Happy 2012!

2012-01-02T08:54:00.000-05:00

Hope your new year brings you lots of happiness and surprises!

I'll be posting some pictures from our end-of-the-year celebrations very soon.

Happy New Year!

Found on my Phone

2011-12-21T07:03:00.001-05:00

Thought I'd post some pictures that I had forgotten about on my phone, and I want to apologize early on for the awkwardness of this post. I'm still trying to get used to the new format apparently! Also, I want to give a shout-out to Pinterest because if it wasn't for my favorite site I wouldn't have been able to make the last two pictures.

The first found picture is of Thomas and Meredith. Thomas's seat is turned around so the two can easily talk...and hold hands if they like!

The fall was fairly warm and after the boys get out of school is when Meredith usually naps. I laid her down and sent the boys outside. That, along with the window in her room being open and her not wanting to nap caused this to happen.

I heard her calling out to them through her window, but she was so tired on the ride home from school I thought for sure she'd conk out sooner or later. The boys thought they'd be her rescuers instead! It took Benny a minute to realize I was there, taking a picture of them in the act, and the other two quickly backed off like they had nothing to do with it.

I like how they thought to arm themselves with protection (bike helmets) but didn't think it was an awful idea to put a stack of plastic chairs on top of a plastic Adirondack chair. Last week I saw a great quotation in the "Seeing the Everyday" magazine: Before I had children I didn’t realize how many times I myself would walk into a room, let out a short gasp, close my eyes, and utter, “Don’t get mad. Get the camera!”This seems to be one of those times and I'm glad I thought to grab my phone.

Thanksgiving came and along with it, the 16th Annual Family Turkey Bowl. I can't believe we've been doing it for this long. The girls were more interested in the snacks and the car driving video games at the bowling alley than any of the excitement on the lanes.

Charlie gives his goofy grin and you think that he is all blue skies and puppy dogs, but he can be quite the instigator. Here is evidence of that; although, there are many in Charlie's corner who would say that it's just a hug that may have gone a bit too far. We all know that there's a fine line between a hug and a strangle.

Poor Benny, he's always getting picked on by his little brother. He's also not happy because Charlie ended up the winner of the little kids' division. All the boys are competitive, but Benny takes it all to heart and he isn't excited about being beat by the youngest brother.

And then Charlie is presented with the plaque. Can you see his buttons popping?

Uncle Hog conducts the post-game interview (this is one of those times I should have been video taping--classic!)

In November, Grandpa had his hip replaced and we sent him a couple of "Get Well" pictures to his phone.

These are Olive Penguins that I made for Billy and Lisa's Couples shower.


And these are Donut Snowmen that I made for Louie's Christmas party at school.

Joyous

2011-12-19T16:01:00.001-05:00

We have had a great start to the holiday break. Friday evening we took the kids to see The Muppets Movie and really enjoyed it. It was Meredith's first time at a theater and even though she and Charlie got a little restless at the end (may have been the time of day?), I think it was a great experience.

Saturday we headed up to Columbus for Kevin's side of the family's Christmas. We had a big meal at 1pm and spent the rest of the day hanging out, exchanging gifts and playing games. It was very relaxing. Part of the celebration was congratulating Uncle Jay and soon-to-be-aunt Christina on their recent engagement. They're looking at a July wedding, so with a family wedding in May and one in October, we have a lot of wonderful things to look forward to in the new year! We spent Sunday in Columbus, going to Mass then relaxing at Grandma and Grandpa's house for the day.

Today we've had a lazy day (except for Kevin who had to work), playing with our new toys and games; cleaning up after a whirlwind came through our house last week; and listening to Michael Buble's Christmas cd (thank you Aunt Jill and Uncle Nick; we love it!). Although we have some things planned over the next week, we're looking forward to more of the laid back nature we've had to start off Christmas week.

A Partial Family Picture

2011-12-13T10:25:00.000-05:00

I apologize for blurriness in this picture, and the lacking of half our family! The other half didn't have everyone looking and I thought I could zoom in to see how cute the kids were...and how sick Louie was! Meredith loved walking down the aisle with Charlie and Gracie, and Charlie was a trooper, for normally not enjoying being the center of attention. I didn't get to see Benny and Louie walk Grandma down the aisle, but heard they did a great job. I hoping that soon someone shares some more pictures of this special day!

A Handful of Shots

2011-12-12T16:17:00.000-05:00

One day soon this will end. Probably next year, when Charlie goes to kindergarten and I throw him in the shower every night with the big boys. For now, we'll capture these two water monkeys and all the mischief they get into while taking a bath.

Benny and Charlie were proud of the Lightning McQueen puzzle they finished. I tell you, those puzzles that change the picture depending on what angle you're looking at it (the term is escaping me at the moment...) are not easy! They have a Star Wars one featuring Darth Vader that had me stumped before I realized I was attempting to put a "light saber" piece in a picture of the "Death Star."

Meredith is the best little helper you could ask for. She's always wanting to join in on whatever household activity I'm doing at the moment.

Here, she is helping to make some really delicious pumpkin bars!

This is a picture of me with my niece and goddaugther, Maggie. We celebrated her 1st birthday with a "Winter 1-derland" theme. Too cute.

Happy Birthday, Magnolia Jean!

St. Nicholas Visits

2011-12-12T15:59:00.001-05:00

It is a tradition in our house to put our letters to Santa in our stockings before we go to bed on December 5th and the next morning the letters are gone and in its place are treats left by St. Nick. It is assumed that St. Nick and Santa are buddies and he does us the favor of dropping the letters off at the North Pole.

The kids found fruit, candy, and a Christmas activity book in their stockings. The boys also got baseball cards and Meredith had hair bows.

I'm not sure why the boys wanted to stick their goodies right in front of their faces; maybe they weren't all that awake yet. One thing about St. Nick's Day is that there is no problem whatsoever getting the kids out of bed!

I wish these pictures didn't have to be so washed out with the flash. It's such a nice morning, with the only light coming from the Christmas lights in the living room. One day we'll get a camera who has the ability to take non-shaky pictures sans flash.

Later that night we had a special dinner--pancakes and strawberries! (Not going to the grocery entitles me to call whatever we have on hand "special" and then the kids get excited.)

Charlie informing Daddy where to put the whipped cream.

Happy St. Nicholas Day! Christmas-fever has hit our house and we can only hope that Mom and Dad survive. Luckily, St. Nick left a letter informing the kids how "good" boys and girls act, especially during the Christmas season. Let's see if this works...

Fun December Posts to Come!

2011-12-12T14:20:00.002-05:00

The last month has been filled with fun activities and busyness preparing for those fun events. Below is one that we've been waiting for over a year for! More posts and pictures are on their way. :)

Introducing: Uncle Billy & Aunt Lisa!

2011-12-12T14:16:00.000-05:00

Congratulations, Billy + Lisa! They were married on a brisk, but sunny December Saturday and a good time was had by all :)

I'm embarrassed with the lack of pictures I took over my brother's wedding weekend. I'm posting what I have, even though only one includes any of the kids! The first is of us on Friday after we got mani/pedis, taking a break before the rehearsal and dinner.

Doesn't Lisa look gorgeous? I've never been to a winter wedding before and I love all the beautiful details they were able to include in connection with the season. Their colors were apple green and gold.

We got ready in her hotel room downtown at the Hilton, which is connected to the salon where we got our hair and makeup done. Here we are getting ready to have pictures taken. (Back of the dress shot; not entirely random.)

The reception was at the Glendale Lyceum, a beautiful and historic venue. I love that there was a library with a fire place, couches, and a 15-foot Christmas tree complete with ornaments as big as your head. You'd think I would have taken pictures of that as opposed to my husband trying to duck out of the shot.

Uncle Josh, Aunt Joanie, Aunt Erin, and Uncle Joe were all part of the wedding party, too. The wedding wasn't until 6:30pm, so all the pictures were taken beforehand and a bus was there to shuttle us around.

We get to the church and...the entrance for the bride and her maids was locked. It was about 30-degrees at that time, so these ladies are a bit chilled!

The church ladies let us in and we wait patiently for the ceremony to begin.

It is difficult to take good pictures in a church, but Maria graciously took this one of us with my dad's family. Most of us look like a bunch of raccoons with those eyes...ha ha.

And poor Louie. Not long after this shot he was walking down off the alter and threw up in his hands. It was so sweet that he had the thought to catch it all! It was then that I noticed how white his face was and unfortunately the wedding was not the night he had hoped for. Louie loves to dance and all he did was sleep on the couch in the library by the Christmas tree until he went home with Aunt Cassie. I feel awful for him, but we do have two family weddings coming up in the new year so he'll have other chances to show off his moves.

To end, I'll post these two pictures taken from the newlyweds' room at the Hilton. It was neat to see the city from this angle, one I've never seen before. It was a beautiful, clear day, a perfect one to have for a wedding. Welcome to the family, Aunt Lisa!

Married: To Be or Not To Be

2011-11-15T16:30:00.003-05:00

I'm not sure where they got this from, but I heard the last part of this conversation:

"You're half-married already, Ben." (says Lou)

"What? No I'm not!" (Ben replies)

"If you walk down the aisle you're half-married." (Lou shoots back)

"Well...I didn't like it!" (Ben shouts)

The story I got later was that this interaction was a result of something I had Ben do with his homework. He rushes through the stories he reads and I'm not sure that he's digesting what happened in them, just reading the words.

After he read a book about a little boy going to his big sister's wedding I had him draw a picture of something that happened in his life that was similar. He drew a picture of him walking down the aisle as a ringbearer with the adorable flowergirl Alice at Aunt Joanie and Uncle Josh's wedding. The wise and all-knowing older brother had to clue Benny in that he has entered partially into matrimony because he walked down the aisle with Alice.

Girls are gross, I suppose. Let's hope that feeling stays around for a while...

Conferences

2011-11-11T08:11:00.004-05:00

As a former teacher, conference nights were always something I dreaded. But I imagine it's different when you're dealing with parents of teenagers, as opposed to parents of 6- and 7-year-olds. Last night I went to meet with Louie and Benny's teachers for the 1st quarter conferences and it went well.

It's always neat to see a side of your child then isn't familiar to you. The reports their teachers gave me made me smile in that they are kind, courteous, respectful, helpful to their classmates and work really hard from 8am-2:30pm. The story may be a bit different when they get home, but it's good to hear that at school they are on their best behavior.

Louie is entering into more math and they're teaching it differently these days. I understand why schools do it--giving more options to get to the end result will allow students to find the answer. Kevin thinks otherwise, that the old way was good enough for him and it's good for our kids, but I also think that math came naturally for him. As for me, I can't math.

On the Hot Seat

2011-11-02T11:03:00.002-04:00

The ten minute drive to take Charlie to school is always filled with big questions:

Why is it not warm even though the sun's out?
How do vampires grow their teeth?

And my personal favorite:

How does food get bad?

For most of the questions I try to explain in simplest terms, if I even know the answer, but for that last question I was stumped. How in the world do you explain the science of food spoiling to a four-year-old?

I'll update with more questions, if I can remember them. He's got an very inquisitive mind and I love it!

Spooky School Days

2011-11-01T10:43:00.004-04:00

Charlie's school celebrated Halloween on this past Thursday and it was such a crumby day outside that the did their "parade" into the hall in the school and performed their songs there. Although he did it quietly, Charlie sang each song and did all the hand gestures that went along with it--all with a big smile on his face!

Louie and Benny's school really lucked out with a brisk but sunny day for their parade around the neighborhood. I love that each class--Pre-K through 5th grade--dresses up and so do their teachers! Grandma went up to watch the parade with Charlie, Meredith and Thomas.

The classes went by so quickly, I barely got a shot of Louie as a Bengals player. The kids were supposed to bring make up to put on (I can only imagine a teacher trying to paint up an entire class's faces!), and Louie's zombie costume couldn't have been pulled off without face paint. But with a big Bengals win this past Sunday against the Seahawks, it was a great costume to have.

I caught a bit of Benny behind his classmates as the vampire with big purple teeth.

I wish I would have taken a picture of Thomas in his big scary werewolf hat, but this will have to do:

Benny called to me, "Hey, Mom! Thomas and Meredith have been holding hands the whole way home!" I turned to catch it right before they let go. Too cute :) Louie asked if they were going to get married. I told him that second cousins weren't far enough apart.

Time for Treats!

2011-11-01T09:17:00.005-04:00

We have left the cutesy stage of Halloween costumes and entered into the scary stage. Louie wanted to be a zombie and Benny wanted to be a vampire. Charlie was Spiderman sans mask and Meredith brought back the Curious George costume--a great investment at $15 at Old Navy when you get four kids to wear it! I need to get a collage together of each of them wearing it...

Louie called himself "Road Kill" and had a whole story made up how he was killed and became a zombie (those are tire tracks on shirt). Benny's eyes are freaking me out in this picture. Surprisingly, Charlie was not as pumped as his siblings and halfway through the trick-or-treating. Not surprisingly, Mere was hamming it up for the camera and was really excited for the night.

Not really needed, but we got out the wagon for the collecting of loot. Meredith wanted to ride from house to house with Maggie and Gracie. She acted like it was her homecoming float, waving to everyone who passed by.

Gracie and Maggie showed up in their adorable costumes. Grace was Minnie Mouse, but had no interest in wearing the ears. She carried her bowling bag/treat bag with Minnie's image so there would be no confusion as to who she was. This picture was an attempt for her dad to give her "mouse ears."

Maggie enjoyed the wagon, although she also enjoyed the freedom of trying to throw herself out of the wagon as well. She didn't last long in there! She wore Grace's costume from last year, the cutest little garden gnome you've ever seen.

The cousins!

At the end of the night the kids went up to the neighbor's to get their picture taken with some great blowup decorations. And now Charlie's loaded with sugar and enjoying the night!

The kids were doing their best cat impressions.

And it's just not a good Halloween night if M&M vampire guy doesn't make an appearance.

Halloween Decorations

2011-11-01T08:35:00.004-04:00

The "Welcome" sign is kind of deceiving with the spooky images below it.

Louie was cracking me up with the humor in his Halloween decorations. Instead of a human crying out, "On no, ghost!" he had his ghost say, "Oh no, guest!" which he hung on the door where our guests entered.

Louie's candy corn fanged bat he made at school.

Another funny Louie drawing: The Rattlin' Bones (or, The Rattlen Boens). He hung this above the radio in the kitchen. He told us that the singer only had a skull because that's all he needed to do his job.

I took this today and was really impressed with how well the scotch tape held to the brick overnight. This was Benny's banner to warn visitors to stay away from this spooky house.

We had lot of bats (and cute bears dressed up like pumpkins) in our bat cave of a house.

Aunt Erin brought lots of spooky treats for our party. These ridiculously cute cookies taste even better than they look, too!

Quick Overview

2011-10-26T12:33:00.002-04:00

I've been stockpiling posts from the summer and am just now attempting to finish them. I started with our family trip to Lake Barkley (the first week of August!) and went in order from there. I'll have to see if I can round up some things that we've done since then.

I just got back from a 60-mile walk in Atlanta that benefits breast cancer research, so I'm feeling wiped out enough to hang out in front of the computer and post pictures.

Enjoy!

Lake Barkley II

2011-09-30T11:21:00.009-04:00

This trip was no different than any other in that if there was beautiful scenery we took 79 pictures of it and afterward, the camera didn't capture the little nuances that made each shot special. I wasn't able to post the other 78 of this same perspective, so hopefully I chose the best one.

One night, the house's owner and caretaker took us out on the boat, showing us the animals and features of the lake that make it unique. Another day we took the boat out on our own and did a little swimming.

Each of the kids got their turn to drive the boat with Mr.Rogers, the owner. They took their job very seriously!

I chose the wrong shot of the four kids together, but am not going to change it out. Sorry that they're not looking this way!

My favorite story of what happened on the boat happened to Uncle Nate (sitting in the foreground on the right, in the red hat). We had heard that Lake Barkley has tremendous fishing, often hosting some big fishing tournaments. We soon learned why when Nate was sitting at the front end of the boat--a gigantic fish practically was begging to enter our boat when it leaped out of the water and smack Nate square in the head. You'll have to trust me, it was hysterical.

Lake Barkley

2011-09-30T11:21:00.007-04:00

As is tradition, we get a kids meal before leaving so that the youngins are entertained while we drive. Fortunately, this trip was only going to take five hours.

We went with Kev's family to Lake Barkley, Kentucky, further west in the state than I thought was possible. We stayed in a quaint house with quite a history!

The house sat on the lake and we took the boat out a couple of times.

The original owner made his money in pantyhose (yes, pantyhose) and traveled the South selling them. He wanted this house to be modeled after the Biltmore Estate, in Asheville, North Carolina.

The house was great in that there were plenty of spaces for all of us to go and do our own thing, but there were places for the entire family to gather as well.

Lake Barkley III

2011-09-30T11:20:00.003-04:00

It was such a relaxing week. We played games, swam, went fishing, read, anything that sounded good to us, we did.

We celebrated all the July and August birthdays--there's quite a few!

A lot of fishing occurred that week. They went down to the dock in the morning and in the evening. From what I heard, the morning trip proved more successful. I couldn't tell you firsthand because I was still in bed.

And thanks to the ones who made it happen--Grandma and Grandpa! We had a great time.

Hocking Hills Part 1

2011-09-30T11:19:00.008-04:00

It's been a long time since my family and another we grew up with all got together--parents, kids and, now, grandkids. We met up at Hocking Hills with two neighboring cabins. The first day we went up early to hike Conkle's Hallow with Grandma and Grandpa, and Aunt Joanie and Uncle Josh.

Hocking Hills is in Bobcat territory and here's to hoping that we've got a lil' bobcat on her way to Harvard-on-the-Hocking!

The kids love hiking and exploring and the trails here are perfect for our adventurers. We could have spent all day in the woods, but we had more friends and family to meet at the cabins!

More Redleg Fun

2011-09-30T11:19:00.005-04:00

Kevin's all-out effort did not bring the Reds out on top of this...Titanic struggle. They ended up losing to the Padres, 7-3. We were wishing that Harang could have pitched that game, but he wasn't slated to go that whole series. However, the Reds recognized Aaron and his wife for all the work they did in the community while he was a member of the Reds organization. We miss him, but how awesome is it that he's had an incredible season in San Diego?!

We headed down to GABP the day after our Lake Barkley trip, trying to soak up as much baseball as possible before the school year started and the Reds' season ended.

It was a nice day, although we did get sprinkled on, and even though our beloved team had a disappointing season one good thing came out of it: Meredith can sit through a game!

I was a little worried when all three of the boys could watch a game with little difficulty since they were born, and more often than not we were leaving the girl-child with a sitter so we could enjoy the game. No more! Meredith is die-hard fan now and she proves it with her awesome rendition of "Take Me out to the Ball Game" that has "Redlegs" substituted for "Home Team."

Thatta girl!

Hocking Hills Part 2

2011-09-30T10:05:00.004-04:00

The second day we went to Old Man's Cave and these trails were a lot more crowded with visitors than the day before, but with good reason. It's a gorgeous area, difficult to believe it's in Ohio!

Joe and Erin were smart in bringing carriers for the girls. We ended up carrying Mere for a lot of the hike. There was some dangerous terrain for wee ones.

After hiking we went to get ice cream cones at a local general store before heading back to the cabin for a big party...

Hocking Hills Part 3

2011-09-30T09:39:00.006-04:00

Uncle Joe turned 30 the week after Hocking Hills so we threw him a bit of a surprise party while we were there, party hats and all!

With Lexi as the leader, the kids had a blast running around the cabin and out on the deck. It's neat to see them all get along, as well as we did when we were growing up!

We had decorations and pictures of Joe, and Erin brought three different types of Bon Bonerie cakes. Yum.

The family portrait :)

We left on Sunday, a weekend gone by too quickly, and it was also Grandpa's birthday. What a great weekend!

Schoolin' Time (2011-12 Edition)

2011-09-30T09:30:00.006-04:00

The summers go by too quickly. We love our late nights, slow-to-wake-up mornings, picnics and trips, baseball and swimming...these are some of our favorite things. Now we're going to get back into a routine, mandatory showers, homework, early mornings, set times for meals, practices and all the other things the school year brings. It's not that I don't love to see how my kids grow and change with all that they learn and experience, but I do cherish those days between June and August.

Indoor Rainy Days

2011-09-30T09:23:00.006-04:00

The boys' school has struggled with their roof. It was supposed to be repaired over the summer and it didn't happen and, with the absurd amount of fall rain we've had, it started to leak. This was a good thing for the boys (and, I confess, for mom too as I wasn't ready to let go of the summer) in that they got two days off of school. We took advantage of that and the fact that Uncle Paul was visiting from Cleveland to go down to Union Terminal.

We don't get down there as often as we used to, but they still enjoy it. It's neat to see them like different aspects of the museum, especially now that they're learning to read! They really like the exhibits they thought were "too boring" before, and they play the games on the computers scattered through all three areas of the museum center.

Summer Fun Coming to an End

2011-09-30T09:20:00.004-04:00

This is one of the last things we did from our "Summer List."

Soccer Shots

2011-09-30T09:16:00.005-04:00

Lou, pumping the fist after a goal.

Benny in goal, Lou at halfback

Not sure what's going on here; they're too quick for my camera.

It seems like all the pictures I take at soccer games look the same, so these may be the only ones you see from this season.

This year started out rough. From practices it was easy to tell this team was young--mainly first graders, and the first time on a big field (read: lots of running). The first game was a disaster, as they all looked shell-shocked and not one goal was scored by the good guys, while the other team had quite a few balls make it into the net.

The second game and those thereafter have been much better. The boys are working together and although their passing game could use some work, it's been neat--and exciting--to watch. They haven't won every game, but they've played competitively and they are having so much fun. It's hilarious to see a goal score and the boys do chest bumps and pump their fists in the air. They deserve it. That's a lot of running around for only one goal!

A Fun Fall Weekend

2011-09-30T09:11:00.008-04:00

The pictures are a little out of order (we went to the game on Sunday), but I didn't have the patience to rework the post. My apologies.

We have a collection of photos like this and I love them.

Our seats were in the bleachers, but this worked out just fine.

Once again this fall we went to Lake Lorelei and it was such a nice weekend for hanging out by the water. Too cool to sit outside the first night, we made up for it on Saturday by fishing, boating, and having a bonfire. Lou and Ben had a soccer game so Kevin and I left with them, but rushed back to get as much out of the lake as possible.

On Sunday was the boys first PSR class, so we had to leave right after breakfast. And later that day we went to Fan Appreciation Day down at the ballpark. After the game we celebrated Katie and Matt's engagement with dinner at my parents. An absolutely great (but busy) weekend!

We must have been having a great time at the lake--this is the only picture there that I took!

September Birthdays

2011-09-30T09:01:00.006-04:00

My mom was just five days into being 22 when she gave birth to me, and although we are different astrological signs we get to share a birthday month. It's been nice to celebrate her special day with lunch and the kids while everyone else is at school or at work. She then returns the favor on my birthday.

This is the first year that Grandpa wasn't a part of the festivities. I was missing him a lot this year, although I don't think he even realized last year that it was Mom's birthday. We had a sign and balloons that we brought over, but it didn't click with him. I guess that should have been a sign that the days were short.

For my mom's birthday we had turkey salad and Busken's tea cookies for dessert (her favorite) and the kids had pirate/princess cupcakes. Mom got out the dress-ups for the girls to try out and Gracie tried it on, but it was Mere and Charlie who really got into it!

Sunday was the day before my birthday and Kevin and the kids surprised me with a special cake, my favorite ice cream, balloons and a great dinner! I am very blessed to have them all.

The Old West Festival

2011-09-30T08:54:00.005-04:00

Last Saturday Louie and Benny had a soccer game way out on the east side of town. Friends of ours with sons on the team suggested that we go to the Old West Festival afterward because the field isn't far from it. Great idea!

We needed to wake the kids up earlier than usual to get them out the door because it's a good 35-40 minute drive and the team is supposed to be there before the game starts at 9am. The first couple of steps on our to-do list for the day were done when we get a call saying that the game was canceled because the field is under water.

It stinks because we all could have used some more sleep, but it ended up working for the best because we were able to get the kids there in time to be deputized by Dodge's sheriff. The festival has a permanent town built and the kids were impressed with all the buildings and the people in their costumes.

We first saw a cancan show which the kids did not like that much. Truth be told, the parents didn't like it too much. One by one we filtered out of the saloon. Some of the shows were canceled, including the horse shows, because of the soggy fields. But there was plenty for the kids to do and see, with their favorite being The Pickled Brothers show.

Erik and Travis juggled fire batons, swords, and some stick with spiky things on the end; ate fire multiple times and swallowed a sword at least three times; both took turns lying on a bed of nails and Travis had the largest man in the audience stand on his chest while doing so. Eric had the man jump up and down on the area below Travis's belt. This brought lots-o-laughs from our boys sitting front and center.

At high noon there was a shoot-out on Main St. I use "shoot-out" in the loosest terms possible. The men who put on the show were probably in their 70s and maybe they have been doing this for quite a while and at one time it was a really good show. However, when you leave the excitement of the Pickled Brothers show to see a shoot-out, what we got did not leave the kids wanting more. Eventually it got to the point where we had to slip away and go to a booth that sold wooden weapons. Each of the kids got a pistol and they were happy.

What happened a bit later was the highlight of the day for everyone, including those who we didn't even know. Our four kids, along with the five little ones we came with and a group of kids that just happened to be on Main St. with their weapons, started their own shoot-out. A couple of the kids acted as organizers, but it was so neat to see them make up their own teams and rules and they put on a show for all in attendance. No parents were telling them where to go or what to do; no fighting over who was being mean. It was just kids getting into the spirit of the old West and loving every minute of it.

Even my lil' Annie Oakley got into the spirit of things, although her gun sounded more like Han Solo's weapon than a cowgirl's (PEW!PEW!PEW!). We'll work on that.

*Feel free to share your spellings of a laser gun's sound.

My, Have the Tables Have Turned...

2011-09-30T08:37:00.003-04:00

Today, on the way back from dropping Louie and Benny off at school, Charlie is flipping out because it is not a school day for him.

This is the same kid who pretty much cried every day right up until the Christmas break last year. The kid who Miss Sue had to peel off my leg to get him into the classroom.

One year makes quite a difference and Charlie is the happiest 4-year-old in preschool. He bounces out of bed in the morning. He thinks about what he's going to bring for show and tell for a whole week. He tells stories about his day for hours after he's home.

Charlie is making friends, making art, and showing us that he's more than who he was at 3-years-old. It's been a neat transformation to witness.

Zero Control

2011-09-12T16:24:00.003-04:00

I have read that once a child leaves the womb, parents have zero control over what happens to him or her. With that in mind, I do not claim any influence over the fact that Meredith has been 98% successful today with potty training and has pooped without any ushering.

I can't figure it out. I rush Child #1, get less and less pushy with each kid on the start time of learning how to use the toilet on their own and...they teach themselves by Child #4. Amazing. The things I could write a book about...to myself, of course. There's no way that what worked for our house would work for anyone else, but then again whose to say that doing a hands-off approach would have done any good for Louie? The only thing it would have done is made me less crazy. I worried so much about him being potty trained for the sole reason he was two-years-old.

And I would be a fool to assume that the successes she's had today will be replicated tomorrow. I can dream, but I've learned that my job is to be the supporter and praiser. She is doing great and has just enough words in her vocabulary to call Daddy at work and tell him the good news!

Hooray for Candy!

2011-09-12T10:23:00.002-04:00

A couple of weeks ago we bought Mere some Dora underwear and set out the little potty in the bathroom. She'd go, get candy, and then she pee her pants a few times.

Today she has gone multiple times, got multiple pieces of candy, and has not had one accident! In fact, I put her in a diaper after her bath because we'll be going out later and I didn't want to have her in underpants when we leave the house. She took off her diaper and then peed on the potty!

I'm not convinced that she is "potty trained" but I am convinced that for her, candy is a motivating factor!

~Homecoming~

2011-08-05T11:39:00.004-04:00

The tilde on either end of "homecoming" are our wings of happiness! Daddy is finally home and we couldn't be any more excited about that. After a night of talking to Kevin on the phone while he had a layover in LAX, I got a call from him at 6:30am saying that the plane was taxiing at CVG.

I woke up the kids and we jumped in the van to go down to pick him up. I didn't realize how easy it would be to get the kids out of bed. They jumped up and put their sandals on and were out the door. Promising them that we'd take Daddy out to breakfast afterward probably didn't slow them down.

Kevin was already waiting outside the terminal by the time we made it down there. He went through customs in Los Angeles, so that helped sped things along. Standing outside wasn't too bad for him because that morning our humidity was almost non-existent, especially compared to what he's had to deal with the last month.

We went to IHOP for breakfast, as promised. Then we spent a lazy day swimming and relaxing, all in the company of our favorite guy. He even treated us to a dinner of pulled pork that he whipped up himself. Man, are we spoiled!

Later, I'll post some pictures from his trip. They are very interesting! But overall, his observation of China is that it really isn't all that different from our life here in the US. Of course, the details and customs are a bit different, but day-to-life really is pretty similar.

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness."
--Mark Twain

When Tragedy Strikes

2011-08-03T16:24:00.003-04:00

By "tragedy" I mean that over-sized window that no longer has blinds because Charlie pulled them down upon himself. And by "strikes" I mean that that window is striking birds in the face left and right.

And if you're wondering how the lil' guy is doing, he's just fine. He got his way, though. I couldn't get him to take a bath until the next day, which is fine. He was a mite tender-headed on Sunday. We got him cleaned up and saw that it was a complicated scratch. One small part was a bit deeper than the other "legs" of the scratch, but it's healing up nicely. Thanks go out to Grandma R. and Cousin Katie for saving the day with help and advice.

More Pictures from Cleveland

2011-08-03T16:10:00.005-04:00

These are some pictures that I meant to transfer from my phone to the blog back in May, and just saw that they were still residing on my phone. The boys love fishing with Uncle Paul, and Mom and I love taking our chairs and relaxing by the shore.

Hard

2011-08-02T16:21:00.002-04:00

It has been the hardest today. I'm not sure if it's because we ran errands in the morning that made us cranky, then spent the rest of the day at home being bored. Or if it has something to do with the fact that we are all in need of a nice nap, but it's been difficult. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Kevin gets on a plane in less than twelve hours and the minutes can't go by quickly enough.

August 1st?!

2011-08-01T07:40:00.002-04:00

I find it hard to believe that it is the beginning of August already, the end of summer. I would love for the school year to go Labor Day to Memorial Day, but that's a discussion for another day.

Checking out the "Summer To Do" list, we still have quite a few things still to check off. Namely, a Reds game. Can you believe that we haven't taken the kids to one in quite a while. Meredith, none at all, although I'm wondering how she'll do seeing as she doesn't like to stay in one place for very long!

Here are some of the other things we'd like to knock out before the school bell starts ringing:

Go on a picnic (We had a mini-picnic in the backyard, but I'd like to go to a park or someplace.)
Go bike riding (This is somewhat prohibited by the fact that Louie is not confident in riding his bike. He has pedaled for a great distance now, but he has it in his head that someone has to hold onto the back of his seat, which he doesn't need any more. And yes, I'm aware that it is a failure in my parenting that he has yet to learn.)
See an outdoor movie (I'd love to be able to take them to a drive-in but there are so few left around here. There are places to see movies outside, in parks, on Fountain Square, though.)
See an outdoor concert (Apparently these happen on Wednesdays. The next couple of Wednesdays are taken, so hopefully we can get the last one!)
Make bird houses (I have these little houses that may be good for a rainy-day activity.)
Have a lemonade/vegetable stand (Our vegetables haven't reached full-bounty yet; we haven't had much for ourselves! But maybe later this month they can do this.)
Teen ballgame (The boys love to watch the big kids play baseball and we were trying to come up with someone we know who might be playing this summer. If nothing else, we could go over to Crosley in Blue Ash to catch a game.)
Sharon Woods (We haven't visited many of our old haunts. Not a big deal, as we go here quite a bit during the school year.)
Visit Pipkins (I thought we'd walk over to the market after a trip to the library, but this just hasn't happened yet.)
Findlay Market (This will definitely happen at some point. The kids love going down there and so do I, but we have to make time for it.)

It must seem like with a list this long we haven't done anything all summer, but we actually have many things marked on the list. They've had a very full summer of swimming and swim lessons, multiple visits to Grandma and Grandpa's house, and all sorts of picnics and parties. Let's see how much we can fit into these last few weeks!

Home again, Home again

2011-07-31T14:06:00.003-04:00

I'm taking a break from unloading to cool in the a/c. It was a hot weekend. Not completely unmanageable,but quite muggy. We had fairly shady spots, lots to drink, and a really great swimming pool to retreat to in the afternoons when the humidity became oppressive.

Meredith is sleeping in her crib. Lou and Ben are relaxing on the couches in the basement watching the '60s version of Spiderman shows. And Charlie is on the couch in the living room watching Tom and Jerry. With a big gash in his head. No, this didn't happen when we were camping, just minutes after we got home.

I carried him in the house because he had fallen asleep on the way home. But he had other ideas than sleeping. He wanted to watch Grandma and I unload the van of Grandma's things and he pulled the blind down out of the wall, on top of his head. We have a pretty big window and the blinds that cover them are also very big.

I was outside when it happened and I heard the crash, saw that the blinds were no longer hanging, and I heard the screaming. But I didn't rush inside. Terrible, I know, especially knowing what I know now! However, this was a "Charlie cried wolf" story in that he complains or cries about everything, and most of the time the hurts aren't as serious as the screams are making them out to be. This was not the case here.

There was quite a bit of blood but I think that's common with head injuries. I got him to slow the tears by having him suck on a popsicle while I took a look at the cut. I couldn't find it, partly because he didn't want me touching his head and partly because there was already blood drying in his hair. I called my mom, knowing that she wasn't far away and she came because I was not sure how serious it was going to be.

Grandma saved the day in helping Mommy clean up the cut, put ice on the big growing bump, and put on a movie to calm down poor Charlie. The bleeding pretty much stopped when he stopped crying, so we figured that even though we can't see the cut it mustn't be that bad.

Charlie is resting comfortably, has finished his popsicle, and is trying to talk me into taking a shower tomorrow as opposed to when I'm finished unpacking. That's not going to happen, but I better get out there and finish unloading the second vehicle before I decide that a shower sounds better than a car full of camping stuff.

Oh, and not one picture was taken this weekend. I feel bad for that. It was such a lovely weekend, despite the heat, and we had a wonderful time. We must have enjoyed it too much to stop and take get out cameras. The only thing missing was our favorite camper: Daddy.

Today

2011-07-28T10:22:00.002-04:00

Today the kids are home.
Today we're getting ready to go camping.
Today the high will be 97 degrees with a heat index of over 100 (this will continue through the weekend!).
Today we found out that Kevin probably won't be home until next Thursday.
Today I will go to the grocery for the first time in almost two weeks.
Today the boys will be going with Grandma and Grandpa to our campsite while Meredith and I finish packing up for the trip.
Today there are 25 days until the first day of school.

Mysterious Garden

2011-07-24T11:26:00.003-04:00

So the kids have been gone with Kevin's parents for almost a week. Kevin has been gone to China for two weeks. I have had a lot of time on my hands!

This has also been the hottest time of the year thus far, so one of my main duties has been keeping the garden watered. I love our garden, and I love gardening even though I know almost nothing about it and am probably making many mistakes in it all.

But we do get some produce from it and this morning I was pleasantly surprised to find beans on the vines! I did not get to water yesterday because I had a yard sale with my brother and his fiance, but luckily the rain took care of that (and our yard sale!), so maybe they were already there then. For breakfast I had some right off the vine and it was delicious!

I am continually amazed at all the miracles occurring in the garden, and too often I am rushing to get the watering and weeding done that I don't get to notice it all. I am thankful for this time without the kids and with Kevin being gone to appreciate some of the things that have gone unnoticed. Although, I'd rather have them here and be able to enjoy these little mysteries!

My poor radishes have failed again this year. Or, I should say, I have failed the radishes once again. The squash are growing wildly but no fruit just yet. The corn is doing amazingly well. Who know about the carrots; they may just be all green and no root. The tomatoes are so-so. They are growing well and there are quite a few tomatoes (I had one yesterday!), but half of the plants have bugs (aphids and white flies), so I'm trying to correct that. I'd like to not use a chemical, but I may have to turn to that. No more eating off the vine!

I know that I could be a better gardener, but I feel like I am laying the groundwork for when I have more time. Like, after my days aren't filled with the kids. I am making mistakes now so I will be a veteran gardener later. (That's what I'm telling myself!)

Sandy Baby

2011-07-23T20:45:00.002-04:00

I play sand volleyball in the summer and the kids usually go to the game, not to watch, but to play at the park. Kevin is normally the one who supervises, but this past week Uncle Josh and Uncle Billy got the honors.

Mere is going through some crazy attachment thing and does not like it when I leave her, even when it is with someone she loves. Fortunately, while Uncle Billy threw batting practice for the boys, Uncle Josh took over and used that magic only uncles have to put a smile on Meredith's face.

By the end of the game she was having a blast and didn't want to leave.

When we got home I asked her if she had fun with Uncle Josh. She said, "Yeah! He's cute!" Apparently she has found someone else to wrap around her finger :)

What We've Been Up To

2011-07-22T15:18:00.002-04:00

We are entering in to the final weeks of July and I haven't posted since the beginning of June. You can see what's happening to our summer! Below I'll post some of the highlights of our summer so far. The boys made a list of things they wanted to do in these months and we're doing a pretty good job of knocking them off.

Kevin has been in China for just about two weeks now and when he gets home (hopefully soon!) I'm hoping we'll be able to do some of our Summer List '11 activities with him!

The posts below are mainly photos so that I don't overwhelm myself with trying update the kids' lives :)

Slip 'N Slide Time

2011-07-22T15:15:00.003-04:00

We've had some hot-hot days and the boys have been enjoying the different backyard water toys we have. Notice, this picture was taken from the inside of our house...

Family Wedding

2011-07-22T14:54:00.011-04:00

On June 18th, we had Kevin's cousin's wedding and we all were invited. The kids were mainly shy through the reception, even though there were more than enough kids their ages to run around with.

Meredith and Aunt Jill

The kids, being goofy as long as their parents were around

She is very possessive of her Mona, and would not share with the sweet little girl who wanted to play!

Although Benny and Charlie said that they would rather hang out in a chair, the music was too much for Louie and Meredith and they decided to bust a move.

cheeks :)

2011-07-22T14:54:00.005-04:00

These are some pictures taken by Charlie of Mere and she is very good as saying "cheese." As all of our kids have had, she has some really great cheeks that I love.

Final Game of 2011

2011-07-22T14:53:00.006-04:00

This game was rescheduled three times before they were able to play, due to the amount of rain we had this season. Finally, the game was set for a Friday night, June 24th, and...the other team doesn't show up! Fortunately there was a concert going on in the park, the other team's coach was there, and after about an half hour delay they were able to round up enough kids to play against our Tampa Bay Rays.

The boys were gone for a week at the beginning of the month and we were worried that they wouldn't get to participate in this last game. The reason why it was such a significant event? They played on the big field, as in, the high school field. With dugouts. Under the lights. They had their names announced and the national anthem was played and in between innings there were "baseball songs" on the PA system. They had made the big time!

In the first inning, Louie played first and Benny was the catcher. They had some hits, made some good plays throughout the game. Luckily, I brought a camcorder to record most of it. Because of that, I don't remember all the details, but Kevin could probably tell you. I do know that Louie had two doubles. He was very excited about that.

Coach Kevin

Brothers: At Bat, On Deck

Benny and Louie always batted right after each other. It was a neat thing to see. They stood together, warmed up together, cheered each other on. For this age (7 and almost 6), they were pretty intense and took each at bat and play seriously--most of the time. Being so young, every once in a while their minds wandered.

I'm really looking forward to the years to come, seeing the boys play together. Next year, Charlie will join the team. He will play with Benny and Louie will move up--to a league where the kids pitch and you're allowed to steal, slide, and all the other good stuff that happens when kids play and parents get out of the way.

A Backyard Picnic

2011-07-22T14:40:00.006-04:00

This was on June 30th, during the week all four kids went to VBS. Turns out, even though Meredith continues to point to the church and say, "MY school!" every time we pass it, she only lasted 30 minutes before someone called to say that I needed to pick her up.

When we got home we decided to make it special and have our peanut butter bagels, fruit and vegetable sticks outside on a blanket. It was a very warm day, but thank goodness for the tree that provides a nice shady area.

It was a very relaxing way to spend the afternoon, but the kids wanted to get in the water, so I brought out the water snake and hooked it up for them.

This picture cracks me up! All of Meredith's swim suits were at Grandma's so she went in her diaper and she was in heaven. Do you see that look on her face? She is surely a water baby.

All the while I laid on the blanket and read the newest addition to the Anne of Green Gables series. Life is good.

Celebrating with "Tom and Jerry"

2011-07-22T14:38:00.008-04:00

After putting a lot of work into Benny's Star Wars party, I was kind of wiped out. Because of that, I didn't put a lot of effort into the boys' request for a Tom & Jerry party family. I'm mad at myself because what a great theme! It is something that all in attendance watched and loved and we could have had a lot of fun with it. As I look back, I'm going to say that we did the episode where Tom and Jerry hang out by the pool in California. Some mayhem ensues, but we just skipped that party, which is a fortunate thing because who wants either Tom or Jerry to have a bad birthday party? (By the way, Benny is "Tom" and Charlie is "Jerry.")

My beautiful goddaughter, Maggie, who just loves the water!

Not sure what the girls were doing here. All the kids sat at the kids table and that is fun for them and the parents actually get to eat their dinner.

The sad excuse for party decorations. I really don't think they minded.

Benny and his godmother, Aunt Joanie

The kids with Grandpa and Grandma

Charlie and his godmother, Aunt Erin

Clifton Gorge and Young's Jersey Dairy

2011-07-22T14:25:00.011-04:00

Friends invited us to go on a day trip to the Yellow Springs area of Ohio. It was about a little over an hour away and we started the day at Clifton Gorge, which was a short walk from the Clifton Mill.

There were definitely some spots on the trail that were less safe than others. I always liked exploring on my own as a kid and try to allow my kids to do the same, but today was not one of those days!

Charlie has yet to grow his big boy legs, even though the day we went was he and Benny's birthday. On this day he was officially 4-years-old.

It is a gorgeous area of Ohio, one I would imagine that many people who have never been here (and maybe some who don't travel around the state much) would be surprised to see. There are regions of our state that aren't corn fields. There are caves and hills and many beautiful landscapes. I love living here.

This was our stopping point. We had walked about an hour to this bridge and...no one had any idea how long it would take if we continued on the path. A local we ran into on the trail offered to take our group in the back of his pickup to the beginning of the trail, but we just decided to turn around and go back the way we came.

This did not make the group of boys + one girl happy. There were lots o' complaining and I ended up carrying Charlie a good portion of the way. But...there was light at the end of the tunnel.

We went to Young's Jersey Dairy and everyone picked out their own ice cream. Louie got cookies 'n cream (he's just like his dad; he finds a favorite and doesn't branch out from there); Charlie got bubble gum; and Benny got chocolate. I got "Cow Pie" and I recommend it highly. It has all different types of chocolate in it, as well as pieces of toffee. Regardless, from the looks on the kids' and moms' faces, you cannot go wrong with any choice you make. Especially after a long, hot walk!

Birthday Celebrated, Star Wars-Style

2011-07-16T17:18:00.010-04:00

When my kids are in kindergarten they get to have a friend birthday party. Benny has turned six this July and we invited his buddies for a themed celebration of his choice. Currently, my three boys are obsessed with Star Wars, so that is what I set out to create. I need to point out that I know very little of the series of films, tv shows, etc. Fortunately, a friend let me borrow this book that was essentially a college course for me on anything and everything Star Wars!

I struggled for a while on what to do with a possible group of sixteen 4- to 7-year-olds. Some of these kids know what they were talking about when it came to this topic and I feared being called out by them. Silly, I know.

From reading the Ultimate book, I took three major battles and came up with games for each. I should rephrase that, I borrowed a lot of ideas from multiple websites to come up with something that would work with our group and our house.

The set up of the party went something like this:

Boys arrived and were given a Padawan poncho and belt that I just cut out of some neutral-colored fabric I bought on clearance.
When all had arrived Adi Gallia (myself) sat the young group of Padawans down and gave them an overview of the day, including the Rules of the Jedi Temple. (Even though the lightsabers I was about to give out were just pool noodles, I feared sending home a crying kid. No worries, all the kids had a good time.)
Then we went into the activities portion of the party:

After the opening speech they were given their lightsabers. All blue (I tried to keep everything the same, focus on the fact that they were Padawans at a Jedi Training Academy. They all took well to this.) Before the "Battles" they had to do the Arturu Lightsaber Training--keep balloons afloat for 30 seconds. This was fun.

First, we had the "Battle of Naboo." They had to go through an obstacle course to save a slave from the camp. The "slave" was a blow up ball that they could take home for a prize. (I'll post more pictures from the games later.)

Next was the "Battle of Geonosis." This essentially is the Clone Wars that all the kids are familiar with. I filled up clear 2-liter bottles with water and blue food coloring and then had some green 2-liters filled with water. On the front of the bottles I taped pictures of the bad clones--Bobo Fett and Jengo Fett--and set up a game of bowling that I called "Blaster Ball." I told them that there was a new weapon called a "blaster ball" and they had two tries to take down as many clones as possible. This was the favorite game of the day.

The last activity was the "Battle of Yavin." This is when the Rebel Alliance finds a fault in the Death Star and destroys the ship, even though Darth Vader escapes. Many parties have used this scenario to bring in a pinata and we did the same. I made the Death Star using the paper mache technique, along with spray paint, a white paint pen and electrical tape.

Afterward, the kids got drinks and plates of food from the snack table while I announced the names of the new Jedis and Benny out certificates to his friends. We took a picture of Benny shaking hands with each guest.

My sister and brother-in-law's dog, Zissou, who was Chewbacca for the day. Everyone loved this, especially his belt!

Afterward we opened gifts, and when each friend came up to hand Benny's his gift he had to say what his favorite Star Wars character was--Yoda was by far the favorite. This, again, was an idea borrowed from one of the many party idea sites out there!

I just made cupcakes and put Darth Vader and Yoda erasers on top of each one. That was much easier for me than doing one of the many cool but time consuming cake ideas out there!

Thank you to Benny's godmother and aunt, Joanie, for taking all the pictures. She took a ton so I'll put up some more in a different post. Thanks also to Uncle Josh who provided the soundtrack for the day--Darth Vader's theme song and random sword fighting sounds, as well as Chewy shoutouts. The kids loved it all!

Our Annual May Cleveland Trip

2011-06-06T13:19:00.004-04:00

We try to make it up to Cleveland in May to visit Aunt Cassie and Uncle Paul before summer's craziness starts. We've been fortunate that both last year and this year we went up when the Reds were in town to play the Indians.

We thought it was only the weekend we were up there, but it turns out that every weekend they have "Kids Fest" where the lawn outside the stadium has great activities for all the kids. They had to sign a "contract" (waiver) first, then they could do speed pitch, hit in the batting cage and run the bases.

Charlie is our little Southpaw. He threw the lowest speeds that day, but he has great form and you better keep your eye on him--he's going places that only left-handed pitchers can.

I was surprised at how well the boys hit in the cage--all three of them. I don't think they've ever hit a ball pitched from a machine like that and they made contact with almost every pitch.

They had to of changed up the speeds depending on what age the kid was because the two boys that went in before them weren't hitting anything. And it cracked me up that the one right before was "waiting for the right pitch" even though it was a machine getting the ball across the plate each time. Louie, Benny, and Charlie get in there and start whacking the ball. You can see Uncle Paul and Grandpa looking on while Louie hits.

They even had little sets where the kids could get their picture taken. I thought Benny looked pretty believable here.

It was a hot, hot day and what brought out smiles in these sweaty babies? Well, besides shade and a cool breeze, Grandma bought waffle cones filled with soft-serve! Because the Reds certainly weren't bringing any smiles to their faces that day.

The Good Guys went home losers that day, but we enjoyed the rest of the weekend. After the game we went back to their house for a seafood dinner and once again Benny cleaned house with the beloved mussels. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of that--Benny, Grandpa and Uncle Paul with a big bowl of empty shells.

We look forward to our next trip up North, and if I can get the pictures off my phone, I'll post some of the boys fishing at Lake Erie before we left to go home.

Pictures from the last day of school

2011-06-06T12:47:00.002-04:00

There's times that I go to pick up the boys from school and it is a downpour. That would not have been fun on the last day of school, and we've been lucky that both last year and this year it has been a gorgeous day.

We got there early and Charlie and Meredith ran around the school yard with some of the other little siblings.

The preschoolers and kindergartners get out first, so this is Benny (and Charlie) with some other kindergarteners. I couldn't get over how nice they all stood together--and this is with no instruction.

Apparently something happens between kindergarten and first grade because this is about the best shot I got of Louie and his friends. Although, two of the goofiest are Ben and Char. Louie's wonderful teacher was kind enough to step in for the picture. I kept thinking that must be relieved to have a break from these goobers, but I swear that when I went to say goodbye she had a tear in her eye. I think she grew very attached to our little monsters, and they in turn were very good for her.

This is afterward at the water party. It cracks me up that they are choosing to stick their heinies and faces in the spray of the water. Is that a boy thing? (Look at Benny's face.) And Charlie also chose to wear black sweat pants. It was part of his "baseball" outfit, that also included knee-high gray socks and a plain green T-shirt. He said he was on the Green Sox team.

The Garden Party

2011-06-06T08:54:00.006-04:00

On Sunday we celebrated Meredith's second birthday with family in our backyard, making use of our newly planted vegetables and flowers by having a garden party. This suits Miss Meredith because she's is quite the little gardener herself, helping in all aspects of keeping up our yard. She loves to mow, weed (sometimes not the right "weeds"), and she especially loves watering, but what kid doesn't?

But we did more of a "dressy" garden party, wearing nice outfits and drinking lemonade out of jelly jars, and then we threw in the theme of The Very Hungry Caterpillar to help come up with ideas for the food.

This is the happiest, bubbliest baby you'll ever meet--Miss Maggie, my goddaughter. She and her sister Gracie were wearing matching outfits that had flowers on them and they coordinated well with their cousin!

I got this idea from one of the many sites out there that used the book for a theme. I really wanted the menu to include food that didn't require a lot of heat (the oven or the grill), so we made deli sandwiches and because the caterpillar ate sausages, I used the slowcooker to make a peppers, onions and sausage recipe. Easy, and it did make anyone too hot (poor Kev, always stuck with the grilling!).

Instead of individually serving it, we cut up the caterpillar's fruit and tossed it in a bowl, except for the watermelon, which the kids love eating by the slice. I saw another cute idea where you use a watering can to serve "bug juice." At our house the "bug" was a lemon.

The caterpillar ate a piece of chocolate cake, so I just threw a box of devils food cake in a bundt pan and then used a 4-inch Pyrex bowl to bake a little topper to make this grassy hillside where paper butterflies hang out. I made some icing for the cake but that did not work because the frosting is supposed to drip over the sides and the stuff I made kind of clumped. What's funny is that I got the idea from a variation of a cake Katie Brown did on her PBS show. Lou and Ben watched it with me and they thought it would be the perfect cake for Mere's bug/garden party. When Lou saw me struggling with the icing he said,"Remember what she said, Mom. Wherever there's a mistake, just stick a flower." Such a smart kid, I have. Unfortunately, there weren't enough flowers or butterflies to cover this cake!

Benny's batteries were worn out by the time we sang "Happy Birthday." We went ahead and sang anyway. (You can see the caterpillar's cherry pie in the picture, courtesy of Grandma H.)

That Mere is one excited little candle-blower-outer! She blew it out a few times before we were done with the song and I had to re-light them.

All in all, we had a nice time and the weather cooperated with us this year, as opposed to the catastrophe that was her first birthday!

The Most Wondeful Time of the Year

2011-06-03T07:16:00.003-04:00

For many of you who know me, you may think this is contradictory, but I absolutely love the relaxed pace of the summertime. Yes, I schedule things entirely too far in advance and I can be wicked-good at planning out each minute of the day. But when it comes down to it, I like the kids (and me and Kevin!) being able to wake up when we're ready; go to bed when we feel like it; play whatever game interests us at the moment; go to the park when it's warranted; or go swimming whether it's 10am or 6pm. I just love summer.

Yesterday the boys got out at 12:30pm and we went to a friend's for a "water party" consisting of water guns, a sprinkler, water balloons, and a game of "chase the deer in the park behind the house." It was a perfect way to end the year!

Last night, Kevin and I were getting the house and yard ready for a busy weekend of cookouts and celebrating Meredith's birthday and the kids played baseball into the twilight, with one of my favorite backyard accessories lighting up the night for them (my globe string lights--thank you Joe and Erin!).

They went to bed two hours later than usual and I wish they would have slept in a little more, but as I type this, one by one they are waking up and heading downstairs to watch Spiderman, from the sounds of it. It'll take about a week, I'm sure, but soon they'll be taking advantage of sleeping in, if for no other reason than that the activities of summer wears a body out!

Baby Mere is all grown up :)

2011-06-01T07:31:00.006-04:00

Today is Meredith's second birthday and she will be greeted with a beautiful, sunny day...when she wakes up. That is one thing about Mere, she loves to sleep!

This little girl doesn't speak a whole lot, but she has plenty to say! She has her words she likes to say, but regardless of that Meredith is very expressive. She is so funny--and she knows it. She has a whole slew of faces that she uses to get a laugh. She will find a hiding spot and actually stay there until you find her, which can be nerve-wracking for a mom!

Her favorite song to sing is "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." She loves to color (especially on herself). She loves to mix it up with her brothers, diving on top of them, wrestling around. But then she'll turn around, put on her purse and walk off with her shades and cell phone!

She loves playing "Mommy" for her cousin Maggie and her second cousin Thomas. She is a big help around the house--unloading the dishwasher, vacuuming, and using every last diaper wipe to clean the surfaces of the house!

We are so lucky to have this little pistol in our lives. She sure makes each day fun and exciting!

These pictures our from our community's Memorial Day parade this past Monday. To read about the day Meredith was born click here.

Wonderful Day

2011-05-17T09:16:00.005-04:00

On Sunday I was one of my niece, Maggie's two godmothers. Her aunt Pam and I shared the duties and we have been blessed with the most pleasant and happy little goddaughter you could ever meet.

She was so good in church and when the time came for the ceremony the priest doused her head pretty good and she was all smiles. And by doused I mean that he soaked her face and the water went streaming down her back and little Magnolia Jean just smiled up at him, taking it all in stride. What a sweet little baby.

All the kids were so good in church--people in the choir even came up to us after Mass and told us. It was very nice not to have take them to the back, especially when we were sitting in the very front of church. But I think that is part of why they didn't act up. It's hard to pay attention when you're just staring at someone's bottom in front of you! It helps that St. Francis de Sales is a gorgeous church and there's plenty to keep their attention.

After, we celebrated both Gracie's 2nd birthday and Maggie's baptism. It was supposed to be at a nearby park where they had Grace's first birthday party, but it was so cool and there was a constant mist, that it was moved to Grandma and Grandpa's house. We had wonderfully delicious cake from the Bon Bonerie.

On a roll

2011-05-17T08:49:00.004-04:00

We had tickets for last night's Reds game out in centerfield, just three rows from Drew Stubbs...and completely surrounded by Cubs fans. The boys definitely got an education about how not to be a fan, but we brought enough good-spirited Reds fanaticism to make up for them.

We dressed like it was November but with all the jumping up and down, clapping and hootin' and hollerin' we didn't get cold. It did help that Charlie would rather sit on my lap than in his seat!

Meredith hung out with Grandma and Grandpa because between the cold, the late night, and her love of running around, it probably wasn't going to be the best night for her. She was missed, but we're hoping that soon she'll be a regular participant in these mid-week trips to the ballpark. Charlie says she'll have to be three.

The sixth inning was the most exciting of the night, with the Reds scoring seven times and one of the boys' favorites--Jonny Gomes--dumped his hitting slump by hitting a two-run homer over the centerfield wall. So much excitement for one night! The boys did so well until the walk back to the parking garage. Lou and Ben did it without much complaining, but Charlie has yet to grow his big-boy legs and had to be carried most of the way.

The Reds take on the Cubs once more tonight, but our family won't be at GABP, just listening on the radio with hopes of another win over the Cubbies!

Good Start

2011-05-16T07:32:00.003-04:00

After breakfast the boys rush to brush their teeth and then, it begins. In the ten minutes or so before Lou and Ben's ride comes the three of them play a high-intensity game of baseball in the small space between the front door of the house and the dining room table.

They've created rules for this version of baseball. Sometimes they all agree on these, sometimes they don't (but really, isn't this what they see on the big league fields when players, managers and umpires come together to bump chests?).

But right now they are getting along. I'm typing, listening to the play by play that they call out, imitating the broadcasters they hear. Little Charlie is still in his jammies--pirate-looking striped pants with a "Great American" T-shirt--and the boys have their clothes, shoes and jackets on (yes, it has dipped back below acceptable temperatures for May).

Their ride has driven past our house to drop off a little sister to grandma's, pick up another boy, and they know they only have a few minutes to play baseball before it's off to school.

I love mornings like this.

Oh, and the Reds just swept the Cardinals. It's a good start to the week :)

Caught In Between

2011-05-12T15:23:00.000-04:00

I have a traffic jam of pictures waiting to be loaded on here. I have thoughts and memories and funny anecdotes to share. But what I'm giving is a whole lotta nothing.

I'm finding that it is similar to my feeling with the video camera. I'd love to do it more, and I'm going to regret that I didn't, but picking it up (or, in this case, typing it up) causes me to be away from it actually occurring. Ok, maybe not entirely, but that's what I'm saying to make myself feel better.

These days of searching high and low for lost gloves and pacifiers; of reading books and doing math worksheets; of wiping noses and bottoms; of whipping up "three course meals" or nuggets and mac 'n cheese; of playing baseball and Star Wars and house and whatever else strikes our fancy...they are going by quickly and I'm going to be mad that I don't remember the details because I don't write it down as often as I'd like, I don't take as many pictures as I'd like...they're still going to be there. I'll be able to recall them, however fuzzy they may be. But, regardless, I am aiming to do a better job at typing them out and reflecting on why so many parents of grown children tell me that these are the years that you will remember.

The Joys of Opening Day Morning

2011-03-31T07:28:00.004-04:00

I feel bad for people who live in Cincinnati who aren't baseball fans and don't get into the festivities of the beginning of the season. Everything--from the television, radio, to the billboards--is throwing this One Day in your face, assuming that you're as excited as everyone else about the Redlegs' return to the Queen City.

Well, you can go ahead and assume all you want about Casa Llena because we are completely on board with all the hoopla. I wish I could video the boys right now. They woke up and put on the Reds Rewind 2007, the DVD giveaway from the RedsFest four years ago. It's a highlights reel of that season and how I wish we had one from last season. Poor Charlie. He was just a newborn that year and keeps asking, "Where's Jonny Gomes?"

The most common used phrase to describe today is that "it's like Christmas." The thing is with cliches is that often they hit the nail right on the head. The boys couldn't be any happier if there were piles of presents for them under the tree when they woke up this morning. What gift will the Reds give us this year? With so many players starting the season on the DL it's still up in the air. But that's the great thing about Spring: it's rebirth, filled with hope for what's to come. So often it isn't the actual gift that you're excited about, but the anticipation of what could be in store for you.

This may be the year for our young Reds, and we'll be there rooting them on every step of the way!

Opening Day Eve

2011-03-30T21:29:00.004-04:00

Tonight we ate our dinner in the basement so that we could have our first viewing of 4192, the documentary made about Pete Rose's path to breaking the hit record.

My opinion of Pete Rose the man has changed over time, but nothing can take away from the ballplayer that he was. This is the man that I want the kids to see. The guy who sprinted full-steam to first when the pitcher walked him. The guy who supported his teammates, encouraging them to be better than they thought they were.

Times may have changed, the work ethic of a ballplayer may have changed with the rising paycheck and the fame that comes along, but Pete stood out forty years ago because he was different than all the rest. He played hard, gave every ounce of himself for every game, and when it came down to it, he just loves the game of baseball.

For the kids to have passion for something in life--whether or not it is baseball--it a good lesson to learn.

Happy Mere

2011-03-30T13:46:00.004-04:00

It is on a daily basis that lil' Mere grows and changes. She is such a happy baby! Is 22-months too old to call her a baby? I hope not. She is Miss Independent now, keeping up with her older brothers.

Each day she is talking more and more, and maybe it's only those who live in Casa Llena who understand her, but she is making great strides.

She is so funny, and even when the rest of us aren't laughing, she cracks herself up! I can only imagine what is going to happen when the flood gates open completely and she is a non-stop talker. Watch out!

We are so blessed to have this fiery little spirit in our house!

Birthday Fun

2011-03-30T08:26:00.004-04:00

Louie had a good day. He brought "puppy chow" in for his friends and teacher at school; he was presented with a special ribbon and pencil marking his birthday; and he came home to a poster made by Charlie and a table filled with birthday cards!

How much fun are 7-year-old, really all kids, cards? The cards he received featured sports, superheroes, cartoon characters, and even two that played music!

Charlie was so excited to show Louie the banner he made. We tried to make it like the "Star Wars" font, but it didn't work out, but we did make a Darth Vadar on it with the warning "Beware the Dark Side."

When Daddy got back from the airport we headed to Frisch's for dinner, then brought back UDF ice cream for dessert in the basement. Uncle Billy, Grandma and Grandpa joined us for the special treat while watching a spring training game between the Twins and Braves. What more could a 7-year-old ask for?

They're all saying "Happy Birthday, Louie!"

March 29th

2011-03-29T08:13:00.004-04:00

Louie.

My first born and such a special, special kid. Today he is seven and it is hard for me to fathom that I have a child all grown up. When I was seven I was into Velcro gym shoes (they were cool!), Rainbow Bright and Garbage Pail Kids. He's into baseball, Star Wars and video games (of which he has none, which is probably why he's so "in" to them).

He continues to be such a sweet kid, who works hard in all he does, especially in school and sports. He can be the voice of reason amongst he friends, often sounding "wise beyond his years," which cracks me up when I get the chance to overheard it.

He loves to dance and be silly. He loves to read. He has his favorite shows and movies (Rugrats, Star Wars, Batman--the '60s version). He fights with his brothers as much as he loves playing with them. He is a such a great big brother to Meredith.

If you want to read about the day he was born, you can go here. Much has changed since that rainy Monday seven years ago, but one thing's for sure: Louie keeps getting better and better.

P.S. He is looking so much like Kevin with each passing day!

City Mouse, Country Mouse

2011-03-28T09:47:00.003-04:00

On Saturday our "friends from the farm" came to visit us. It's not like Trent and Nick don't go to the city and it's not like my kids aren't familiar with a rural setting, but the two families do live fairly different lives.

Good news: kids will find things in common and play together no matter what.

We took our friends to the Museum Center and we all had a great time. The favorite part for our guests? The Cincinnati History Museum, with the miniature replica of the city and its neighborhoods and historic landmarks with working trains and street cars. And that is the picture that I captured above.

They were excited about this picture (and running around the streetcar), but unfortunately our camera doesn't have the ability to clearly show that.

This was the first time that I had been to the Cincinnati museum since my Grandpa passed away and it was a bit tough. I have so many good memories of our outings there, especially on this street car where Grandpa and Bennie the volunteer worker sat here and talked of their memories riding the street cars while living downtown. With as many trips as we took down there, I really wish we did more of them. I guess you can never have enough. I just feel like I have more to learn from Grandpa, know about him and his life.

Anyway, enough of that sad stuff. We went through all three areas, ending up at the Children's museum. Amazingly enough, I think that part might have been the least favorite of the kids! We left after that to go home for lunch. Nick and Louie have March birthdays so for dessert the kids decorated their own cupcakes with lots and lots of toppings! Hard to see?

With lots of sugar comes lots of smiles :)

Preparation

2011-03-27T21:05:00.003-04:00

Today while I was at work the big task at home was to find the boys' spikes from last year's baseball season (they weren't found); then try them on (couldn't); then, if needed, head to the store to find appropriate spikes (mission: accomplished!).

My co-worker had a coupon they could use, so Kevin stopped by before heading to the store. It was neat because the kids got to stop in and see for the first time what it is that I do when I leave the house. I don't think they wanted to leave!

But leave they did, and found what they were looking for at the store. Even Charlie, who is not old enough to play this year, got a pair of spikes. Meredith, who actually learned to say "spikes" for the trip, did not get any. Maybe next year, Mere. Maybe next year.

Practice: three days away

Opening Day: four days away

Life is good.

Second Cousin Mania!

2011-03-25T11:25:00.003-04:00

Today our house has the pleasure of hosting my cousin's son, Thomas! Charlie and Meredith woke the great surprise of Thomas's happy face saying good morning. They both have been great helpers with their second cousin, and Meredith especially has been showing Baby Thomas the ropes!

However, when she saw that he had his paci in his mouth when he was getting ready for his nap, she went right in to get hers. So much for being a big kid!

Baby Thomas is eight months old today, and is getting in his first tooth. I love pictures when babies are sucking on their gums!

Spring Training Begins

2011-03-25T07:44:00.003-04:00

Today teams were announced and Louie and Benny will be a part of the "Rays" team, and Kevin will be one of their coaches!

Their practices begin next week already and they'll have a full month of practices before starting games.

Let's just hope that the rain starts weaning itself off because every park around here is currently in a swamp-like state!

Good luck to the 2011 Rays team, and if you're interested in the boys' schedule let me know. Once games begin, they'll be playing 2-3 times a week!

Brilliant!

2011-03-24T12:49:00.002-04:00

A worry that many parents have is the toxins that kids are exposed to, and what possible effects there are. I thought I heard something about there being scientists who are working on making chemicals non-toxic from the start so that the worry is completely eliminated!

I was hoping to make a link to the article, but wasn't able to find anything. Maybe I dreamed it up? It didn't occur to me that it was even possible to make chemicals that weren't "harmful" in one way or another.

Definitely an interesting approach. Did anyone else hear something about this?

A Happy Heart

2011-03-23T09:38:00.005-04:00

When I woke up this morning I saw this on the fridge. It made me so happy for many reasons: I love spring; I can relate to all of these; I love being able to see a bit into my kids' minds.

I especially love the "I smell Baseball" because that was always a big part of my spring as a kid, and still is. He could have easily put that in any of the other senses but he chose "smell," the sense tied most closely to memory. And I'm hoping that very soon we will be making many baseball memories.

P.S. Eight days.

I recently updated some posts with pictures back in February, in case you want to look back on the month that I skipped.

Growing Pains

2011-03-22T08:33:00.001-04:00

Last night Charlie woke up a little after 3am crying in pain. He has been eating like a horse lately (e.g. we normally have to work to get him to finish one plate of food, and he has been eating two plates +), so we are assuming that he is having growing pains.

Lou and Ben have obviously grown, but not with the difficulties that Charlie is feeling these days. He gets the pains behind his knee caps and it was obviously bad enough last night that it caused him to wake up in the middle of a deep sleep.

He took some Tylenol and went back to sleep fairly easily. I'm planning to rub out the muscles in his legs before bedtime so that it makes it easier for him. I've read that they should be drinking a lot to help with the pain, but that is something that we struggle with Charlie as well. Good news is that Charlie is on his way to not being the shrimp anymore!

Is there something wrong with this?

2011-03-21T14:39:00.003-04:00

Charlie is waiting for the boys to get home from school. It's a gorgeous, warm day and he can't wait to go outside to play with them. But while he waits...

He found a radio-type-thing, small so you can put it in your pocket or strap it on your arm when you go walking or running. It's white and a metallic blue and has all sorts of buttons on it, as well as a round screen. It has become his hand-held video game device.

The boys do not have anything like this, but they covet the ones they see their friends play with, these games that have a mixture of letters and numbers that mean nothing to me. I'm not sure if a child will be negatively affected either by playing with a hand-held device or not, but it's strange to me to be pretending to play with one.

Charlie tells me what each button is for, who all the characters are and what they can do, what weapons they have. He's come up with an interesting story, to say the least. I haven't figured out if the boys will hold a grudge against us when they're older because they were the only ones that went without.

Controlled by the Weather

2011-03-21T08:53:00.012-04:00

I've written before about how I do my best to not listen to the weather report because more often than not the forecast tells us it's a bad idea to enter out into the world, and then the day is over and no impending doom as occurred.

Today we decided to venture out and take a walk around a lake with some friends. It's a potentially dangerous idea because if you're on the opposite side of the lake when it starts to rain there's zero place to go for cover. The forecasters were using words and phrases like "torrential," "moving rapidly" and "positive omega forcing," none of which I'd like to be caught in.

Fortune was on our side, however, and we had a delightful walk and the kids even got to run around the playground before we went home for lunch. So, I'm done with it. I do like Larry Handley, but I think I'm going to skip the weather newscast from now on.

Curls!

2011-03-21T08:53:00.010-04:00

For someone who was born with bone straight hair (only after having kids has my hair gotten some wave to it), I am so very excited for Meredith to have not only a gorgeous red color to her locks, but for her curls that are coming in as well!

Today she woke up with a big one sticking right up on top of her head and it is just so darn cute. It looks like we took a tomato paste can and wrapped her one strand of hair around it. Lou and Charlie got little curls on the back of their heads, but they didn't get anything on top. I think she's the real deal: both red head and curls! Slowly but surely those hairs will start growing in.

Please disregard the face covered in yogurt. We're concentrating on the hair!

Roller Derby

2011-03-21T08:53:00.008-04:00

When we got the invitation for a friend's roller skating birthday party I thought for sure we'd end the day at the emergency room. Fortunately that didn't happen for Louie or Benny, or any of the others invited!

Not surprising was the fact that Louie enjoyed playing the games at the rink more than skating; or, that Benny fell a couple of times, but really had a great time on wheels. It sounds like the party was split, on those who were comfortable on skates and those who weren't. I did not share my reservations with the boys because I wanted them to have a good time, but I was always terrified at skating parties. Put me on a court, field, whatever, and I'm fine. But put me on skates or skis and it's over. And from what I know about Kevin, he feels the same way!

As I've gotten older I've learned that it's great to try new things, but not to be discouraged if the new things just aren't for you. Regardless, it sounds like all the kids had a great time.

St. Patrick's Day, Revisited

2011-03-18T08:01:00.004-04:00

Non-traditional SPD meal of hot dogs, mac 'n cheese, grapes and green milk

I didn't get many other St. Patrick's Day pictures of the kids from St. Patrick's Day, but I did get a few stories out of them. Charlie went out to the playground with his class and while they were away a leprechaun came into their classroom, wreaking havoc but also left them gold coins that were actually chocolates!

Louie's class did some sort of math and science activity that involved rainbow sherbert and Skittles. Hmm. They had a good time, but I never got the full story on what they were doing.

Benny's class had stories, made special hats, and then did a categorizing activity where they each got a bag of Lucky Charms cereal and had to see how many of each piece they had.

Below are the highly anticipated pieces that the boys did in the Art Fair. These were taken before the kids got there, so no photo ops for the artists.

Benny's hand-flower-heart

Louie's magic mold fish with sand and shell

This was earlier in the evening, too, but by the night's end all the students made their impression on the Picasso quotation.

Nature vs. Nurture

2011-03-18T07:50:00.003-04:00

Most school mornings go like this:

I quietly wake up Louie and Benny at 7am so that Charlie can get a few more minutes of shut-eye (this doesn't always work).
They come down to the living room where their clothes are laid out, often items that they have picked out the night before.
They eat breakfast, usually cereal or cinnamon toast with juice.
I have to remind them (multiple times) to be quiet when brushing their teeth because Meredith's room is right by the bathroom.
If need be, they put on their coats, hats, gloves; put their backpacks by the front door; then plop down on the couch to watch Arthur or Martha Speaks.

Today I found the three boys on the couch poring over a Oriental Trading Company-type catalog. They were getting ideas for birthday parties--theirs and other people's--and other ideas for get togethers we could have.

Of course, I jumped right in and joined in the fun. Not sure if this is something that they have learned from their crazy mother, or if it's something already hardwired into them.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T08:27:00.005-04:00

(I downloaded this from my phone so I could be sure to have a picture to share with you!)

The boys were so excited to wake up this morning and see what mischief the leprechaun caused over night. They set a trap, and it had fallen, but there was no leprechaun to be found. What they did find was a chair and ottoman turned upside down; the coffee table upside down; their box of markers and crayons dumped out (Mommy was not happy about that!); laundry baskets dumped out; and the milk in the fridge was turned green! Where the sneaky leprechaun went, he left shiny pieces of chocolate for the kids. This was a great incentive for the boys to clean up the messes!

I'll have to update later or tomorrow about what fun things the boys did in school today for St. Patrick's Day. Everyone is wearing green and also a shamrock necklace, and bouncing off the walls with excitement. And to top it off: a high of 70 today!

Doubts/No Doubt

2011-03-16T07:47:00.004-04:00

Kids are really good thespians. They know what to say and what to do to get their parents to take pause and wonder if they really are (scared/hungry/tired/hurt/etc.). This talent gets really good at night, just after they are put to bed.

Last night it was Benny and (of course) Charlie. They were both "scared." They sat on the top step calling my name, making it sound more like a song than calling out in fear. I've been able to manipulate my hearing to know if there's cause for concern, but every once in a while I second guess myself. Last night there was no doubt. They weren't scared of anything, they just didn't want to go to bed.

I do feel bad for them. Because of the time change they wake up before they're ready, then are put to bed before they are ready. But please don't feel bad that their mom isn't listening to their needs. Last week Benny had a legitimate fear in his voice. He came down and we talked it out (the fears, concerns on his mind--things that are common with both children and adults), then he went to bed feeling better.

All I had to say last night was that if they didn't get into their beds we weren't going to put out the leprechaun trap that they've been working on. That got them jumping up and scrambling for their beds.

See? No doubt.

Taking a Cue from Amanda

2011-03-15T16:02:00.005-04:00

My friend Amanda has a really great blog where she posts almost daily. That, in itself, is pretty amazing but the posts are really great, as are the pictures.

I may not be able to write as eloquently as often as she does, and I definitely won't be taking shots like she does any time soon, but the point is to write about the little things every day and when all compiled together they are a special treasure, a collection of my life together with my family, and that really is my point in doing this.

My details about Tuesday, March 15th, 2011? It's been raining almost all day. Mostly drizzling, but now it is starting to really come down at about 4pm. The good news, though, is that the temperature is rising. It might be about 50 degrees or warmer out there! The kids are eager to get out there and see how durable their rain boots are. None of the boys' old boots fit Meredith, so we went and got her own pair the other day. She will not be left out of anything!

Meredith's had a runny nose for a couple of days and that, along with the time change, have had her sleeping in rather late. I'm glad that so far there hasn't been much to stand in her way because sleep really is the best remedy for so many ailments. (I wonder if I'll be saying the same thing when she's a sleepy teenager who doesn't want to get up before noon!)

When she got up Charlie was already at school and she and I had breakfast together. She loves these bowls with a straw built right into them. She sucks up all the milk before she's had more than a couple of bites of the cereal. Then, of course, is pretty much done with the flakes. She like tangerines, though, and had some of them. Afterward, I folded clothes while she played with the blocks, put things in her purse; then curled up on the couch. She still isn't feeling well.

At school today Charlie learned all about Transportation. He told me he made a really cool painting using truck tires, but it is at school drying. I'm so happy for him that he has gotten more confident in himself and enjoys going to school. He is so proud of all the things he has accomplished this year!

When Charlie got home we had lunch, then ran errands before going to pick up Lou and Ben at school. It's such a rough time of day for the two of them. I really wish there was an easier way to get the boys home from school but there is not, so they unhappily squirm in their car seats until they either fall asleep or decide to watch a movie in the van. Today Meredith fell asleep and Charlie watched Lady and the Tramp.

After we got home from school, Mere went to her bed and Charlie crashed on the couch and now Louie and Benny are playing hockey outside with wiffle ball bats and a plastic hockey puck. I'm hoping that these equipment (instead of the real sticks and ball) won't bust out a window in the garage door. They got a really neat hockey set for Christmas, but we have yet to figure out how they can play without doing major damage involving broken glass and a ball flying out into the street while cars speed by. We have plans to take it down to the nearby tennis court that is lacking a net.

Anyway, this is nothing earth-shattering, but it's a snapshot of our day. And, hopefully the start to a better documentation of the kids.

Unexpected Visit

2011-03-14T07:35:00.003-04:00

Saturday night Uncle Jeff called to say that he was in Ohio and he was coming down on Sunday to visit. The boys had church school; then we went to church. I had to work the majority of the day after that, but when I got home I was greeted to Jeff, Nate and Grandma and Grandpa, as well as a delicious pizza dinner!

The kids told me all about all the fun they had playing with them during the day. The highlight for the boys was playing "hockey" in the driveway. They also all got to watch an Ohio State basketball victory on TV. The visit wasn't on the calendar, but what a nice day it turned out to be.

_____________________________________________

This nice day can be offset by the next day, when the time change was fully felt by the boys. It was difficult to get them to go to bed when normally they get to stay up an hour earlier. Monday morning comes and I literally have to carry them out of bed. I then had to dress each one individually, then give them a "special" breakfast just to get them to eat! I can only imagine how difficult it must have been for their teachers! It seems like schools could start an hour later for a week to break them (and us!) in. I'll have to put that in the suggestion box...

Family Dinners

2011-03-13T10:00:00.004-04:00

One of my favorite things in the world is having family dinners. It's not often that we don't eat together as a family, but so often it is rushed; or the radio is on in the background, making it a noisy meal; or there are those who are starved or not hungry, so that makes themgrumpy. There are many things that can detract from how nice a family dinner can be.

Today's dinner was one of the ones that I really cherish. The kids are all getting along, taking turns talking. They eat their meal without complaint, but not so rushed that they talk with their mouths full. Kevin and I get to have a discussion with the kids about the day. It was really nice.

I guess it's all the other days that makes meals like this stand out and make me appreciate them for what they are!

Already?

2011-03-13T09:58:00.005-04:00

I can't believe that I already missed a day to post.

It was a great day for the kids. The warm weather was welcome and they went outside shortly after breakfast, playing in their rain boots because our backyard may not dry out until July.

I had to work the majority of the day, so Kevin and Uncle Nate took them to the zoo later in the afternoon. Apparently it wasn't the best day to go there for an outing as most of the animals weren't ready to come out and show their faces to eager kids. The lions, however, were all wound up and gave the kids a show.

A special dinner was waiting when I got home from work. Kevin grilled chicken for dinner and it was delicious! I married a really great cook, and as you know "chicken on the bone" is the boys' favorite meal, and grilling is our family's favorite method of cooking. It helps when Kevin's the one doing all the work--ha, ha!

Today was a small "taste" of what's to come with us knocking on Spring's door. We are all very excited!

Success of the Art Fair

2011-03-11T09:18:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was a very long day, but it was well worth it. the Art Fair was during the school's conferences, 2pm-7pm. We had to wait to set up in the cafeteria (the "art gallery") until after lunch was finished. Another mother and I walked in as the last class was walking out.

We were still hanging art work when school let out and the kids, parents, teachers and others walked in to see what was going on. There was a lull in patrons until conferences got in full swing and after that we had a steady flow of parents, grandparents and, of course, the artists!

It was awesome to see the kids so proud to show off their hard work to the ones they love. They were excited to do the potato stamp painting project we had set up for attendees (parents participated, too!). And both kids and parents took home the idea sheets for easy to do at-home art projects--made from things that you most probably were going to throw away anyway.

I wanted to get involved in the Art Fair this year after volunteering last year. It was run by an outside company that had all the kids' artwork in frames that you could buy. They had kits and supplies for sale. They had projects for the kids to work on at the Art Show, but you had to pay to participate.

That was the table I worked at, and I can't tell you how heartbreaking it was to turn away kids who just wanted to create, use their imaginations, but didn't have the money to pay for the project. Now, I can't tell you what I had for lunch yesterday, but I can tell you that I recognized those kids' faces when they came up to the project table (fun! free!) this year.

That was the focus this year, the famous Pablo Picasso quotation: Every child is an artist. It is important that kids know that you don't need fancy supplies or kits to create. You should have seen what the kids made last night. We have quite a few artists on our hands!

I've been having trouble uploading the boys' art from the fair. I'll update in a later post!

Busyness

2011-03-10T07:46:00.004-05:00

I never would have guessed that the jump from one kid in grade school and one kid in preschool, to two kids in grade school and one kid in preschool (and a crazy toddler running around) would be that big of a deal. It's been a busy year, and has gotten even more so since I decided to get involved in events at the boys' school.

I'm coordinating the art fair (which is happening today!) and next month, a recycling project/contest where the winning class gets to have dessert with Mr. Redlegs! I'm enjoying both projects immensely, but it has been keeping me on my toes, and then there's the trickle-down effect with the rest of the family. Fortunately, these are the two main things I've decided to get involved with, so after April I'll be done!

It's been nice getting to know more of the teachers and staff at Louie and Benny's school, getting to know the other parents. It's such a great place and I believe that it is not just up to the staff to make a school great--the parents have to get involved, too. For me, I guess I'm taking baby steps into full-blown involvement!

I have some last minute details to do for the art fair, so I better hop to it. Hope to have some good shots from the event to share with you!

A New Start

2011-03-09T07:50:00.004-05:00

Today starts Lent and with it I am going to make myself commit to writing at least a blurb each of the following 40 days. Things have been hectic around here, but I'm only hurting myself (my poor memory) by not recording things about our days on this blog.

Last night we had our annual Mardi Gras gathering. The weather was mild and we spent part of the night outside, the boys playing baseball and Grandma and Grandpa making up probably the best shrimp I've ever had--coconut-beer-battered shrimp. If I can get the recipe from my mom I'll share!

I don't have any pictures from the night (which, when that happens, is probably a reason I don't blog more often), but we did pull out the video camera to catch the girls in their first film shots together. I think. We definitely don't video the kids enough!

In years past we have gotten a King Cake, but this year we did sundaes instead because Charlie won a giant sundae basket at Lou and Ben's school FunFest. And Joanie came out the winner as she had the baby in the bottom of her bowl. Well, she actually ended up biting the poor thing's leg :)

OH! And I'm very excited to share that Gracie asked me if I wanted to be Maggie's godmother. I am very honored and cannot wait for the big day!

Valentines for Friends

2011-02-13T20:39:00.003-05:00

I got this great idea last year for making your own valentines and decided to make them for the boys to give to their friends this year. Charlie had his party this past Thursday and they got a great response. For whatever reason it just cracks me up.

Good Read

2011-02-10T16:00:00.006-05:00

Each night the boys bring home a book to read for homework based on their current level (i.e. A, B, C...not sure how high up it goes). For the parent of the beginning reader these can sometimes get somewhat tedious. There's not much to the plot and the illustrations leave much to be desired. Not so today, with the book Benny brought home, If You're Angry and You Know It.

It had the repetition that kids at this level need to reinforce sight words in their head, but it had a great message as well. Too often I tell my kids "don't do that" or "that's not how we act" but what they really need to know is what is an appropriate way to handle a situation. We all get mad and there's nothing wrong with that, it's all in how you handle it. This book showed a number of ways to deal with your anger, but also how you don't have to stay angry, that you can let it go, too.

I'd definitely like to see more books like this!

Winter Art

2011-02-07T13:43:00.006-05:00

Louie

Louie (this is based on the hot chocolate mug he made for himself and his siblings)

Benny, from church school

Charlie, learning big, bigger, biggest

Charlie's painted train

Benny's robot vs. alien

Benny's diamond (or a rhombus, he says) and trapezoid snake

Charlie's shape train

Benny's cat picture and sentence

Benny's cowboy boot

Louie's "The Redest Boot in Texas"

"Ice Painting" by Charlie

Benny's Gingerbread man (with a mohawk)

Benny's boy walking to his neighbor's, scared by neighbor's dog

Benny's "I Love" signs

Charlie's penguin

Charlie's "M" (he was so proud when he got home--he knew it was for "Mommy" and "Meredith")

Louie is so excited for Benny's birthday party--Star Wars themed

Charlie's polar bear puppet

Charlie's "stained glass heart"

I'm hoping to get better about positioning the pictures!