Timing is everything....

N: Water please Mom
(I open the cabinet)
N: Red (cup)
Me: Why does it have to be red?
N: Because it does
Me: Is that the only answer you've got?
N: No. I got alot more of them. That's the only one right now.

What do I know anyway???

K: Poppo! Poppo! (pointing at toaster)
Me: That's Mommy's Pop Tart
K: Why?
Me: Because I want it. Why did YOU eat one?
K: I don't know it
Me: (giggling) You're silly, do you know that?
K: (making squinchy face) NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!

And THAT'S the truth! Or is it???

Kingsley looking intently at Gabbie: Bak la dee dee ah bah kih dah

Gabbie: Really? Are you kidding me? Is that true?

Kingsley: No!

Kingsley: Gup nee nee ahhh do ga na lee dee

Gabbie: Hmm...Are you sure about that?

Kingsley: Yeah

Gabbie: Are you REALLY sure that's how it happened?

Kingsley: Ummmmmmm.....no
Bye Bye See you....Bye Bye See you!

Shamless Plug :-)

Ok my whole foods foodie friends....I want to recommend that the next time you are in Maine, make a trip to the quaint town of Belfast and visit the Belfast Co-op"Maine's Oldest and Largest Co-op" I learned last night that my aunt Donna is their asst mgr, but also the cook in their new cafe. Let me tell you, this lady can cook! She and my uncle owned various baking and food businesses over the years and only retired from it in recent years. However, Donna is now cooking at the Coop and whole foods are new for her, but she loves it and so do her customers. So if you can, stop in and tell her I sent you! :-)

You can't handle the truth!!

Nikolas asked for a Tootsie Roll the other day. When he unwrapped it, it was still stuck to its little cardboard backing. He held it up and with a very stoic expression and tone (which those who know him call "Stone Face"). He spoke quietly and firmly as if he was giving whispered statements rather than asking questions.

Nikol: Mom, what is it

Me: Ummm... a Lincoln Log?

Nikol: No! It wooks wike a poop!

Me: (stifling a giggle) No it doesn't Silly, it looks like a Tootsie Roll

Nikol: No! It IS a poop! A big poop.

Now THAT is O-L-D!

Tonight I asked Eli to answer the trivia questions on the oatmeal packets. Afterwards.....

"Mom, now can you ask me more of those questions about the ooold days?"

Thankfully, my back was to him so he couldn't see me smirking.

"Umm...ok, what are you calling the OLD days?"

He pauses and thinks a moment....

"Like the 70s or something"

Go ahett! Athk me how muth it hoowt when I bit my tugg off to keep from waffing!

Fun & Affordable Gift for All!

I saw a side ad on a blog I was reading and thought it was clever enough that I checked out the site. Now this may not be what we all would automatically think is the perfect gift, but it's fun, made for adults and kids and despite it being more expensive that Walmart, it's still affordable in this day an age if you're looking for deliverable gifts. At the very least, it may give you ideas for how to do it yourself for less. Welcome to Sock Grams

Woo Hoo! Another bargain!

I had forgotten that there was a Kris Kringle fair at one of the nearby churches today and I had told Eli that I would bring him to it. It finally dawned on me at about 1pm and I quickly turned on the community access channel to find the ad again. We saw the ad, quickly headed down and got there with about 15mins to spare!

For $9 we got:

2 items that Eli picked out as gifts for G & Q (25c ea)
1 item that Eli picked out as a gift for Daddy (50c)
2 clever little items I picked up for silly tokens for friends (50c ea)
2 felt embroidered tote bags with a wooden toy in each ($2 ea)
3 Beanie Babies (3/$1)
1 item that I'll give to David for Christmas (50c)
1 6qt crockpot (50c !!)
The crockpot was clearly the biggest bargain and I'm just tickled because David and I have been saying that we really need to replace ours. Done! It didn't have a lid, but that's really no biggie; we've used plates in the past on our old one and it worked fine. I'll find out if I can get replacement either on Freecycle or direct fro Rival if I need to.
Later, I had to go to Rite Aid for children's Motrin for Nikol (didn't have any coupons and it wasn't on sale so I just bought the store brand) and as I was standing in line, I saw that there were a few Halloween costumes for 75% off and among all the long black gothic styles was one itty bitty little 2T angel costume. Yeah, it came home with me LOL I put it into the tote for next year's Halloween. To go along with the witch hat, face paint crayons and false eyelashes that I got on clearance at CVS last night. :-)

Now to go check out crock pot sites and come up with recipes for the coming week!

Start couponing off with a BANG! For my buck that is!!

Following my SIL's lead BK on a Budget I have decided that it makes mucho cents (LOL) to get my butt back in gear with coupons. I bought two newspapers on Sunday and spent at least an hour clipping coupons for all the items I know we'll use. The next day, it took another hour or two as I organized them all in conjunction with the store sales circulars for the week. I was wondering how I'd organize all the coupons when Gabbie realized that she had a small photo album with many, many sleeves for 4x6 photos. She offered it to me for separating all the coupons by category...BINGO! It's small and easy to fit into a large purse or reusable shopping bag which we have quite a few of. I bought some colored sticky tabs to add to each category page. If it doesn't work out to be a good system, I'll come up with something else and let you know.

Armed with a list (I'm a list person btw) and coupons -both store and manufacturer's, Nikolas, Kingsley and I headed for Walgreens. Truth be told, the sale ends tomorrow so I didn't expect to find much left for sale items. As it turns out, the only thing that they did not have left was the flavor of Scope that I wanted so I crossed that off my list.

I can't upload a photo yet, but here is a list of what I bought and how much I spent/saved.

16 holiday theme pencils
16 holiday color votive candles
16 holiday theme paper gift sacks
2 Hefty One Zip storage/freezer bags
2 boxes of Celestial Seasonings tea
3 bottles of Clairol Herbal Esssences shampoo
2 rolls of store brand invisible tape
2 bags of Ricola throat lozenges
2 bottles of spices
8 rolls of curling ribbon for gifts
1 bottle of Dawn dish liquid
1 Advil PM
1 Glade Flameless candle starter kit
3 Crayola Color Wonder kits (paper/markers)
1 Post Its color tags (for my coupon book)

The Crayola Color Wonder kits are something I would never buy because I can't justify the price. However, after walking around shopping for 45mins and being amazingly well behaved, I saw the sale price and treated the kids to them. They were reg. price 10.98 each and on sale 3/13.98. For that price, I COULD justify it and they don't often get unasked for goodies like that.

Grand total I paid: $51.82

Savings: 58.39 !!!

Now THAT is some serious savings. Granted, I didn't NEED the candle, but I ended up paying only $2 for it which made it ok and I may just put it into my box for things being saved for holiday gift baskets since it's not my favorite scent. Everything else was something I'd have to buy anyway. And now I can put away the holiday items and not worry about them at the last minute.
Today's mail brought more circulars for the week ahead; I hope to get more deals. We still have to pick up a few necessities at CVS tonight if we can so I'll post my bargains if they're good.

And her name shall be Mommy...and it shall be good!



Yes, I have yet another endearing "Kids Say" story to share. I know you've been waiting ;-)

It's not news to anyone who knows me well that I often mix up my children's names when I call to them. We often refer to it in the same way that my beloved grandmother of only 2 children did when she was raising them years ago. She would call out her husband, her son and my mother's names until she hit the right one if she was stressed, frazzled or such. Anyway, having 5 children still at home, this is a regular occurance at our house.
Quite some time ago, a year or more I'd say, I began for some unknown and silly reason to spontaneously and intentionally call Eli "Fred" and Nikolas "George" and they found it to be quite funny and great fun and they still do to this day. Well, the other day the following took place.....

Nikolas has become very happy that he can now say his entire name and enjoys saying it often if he can. At only 3yrs old this is excitement and accomplishment in his world I guess :-)
We were in the kitchen making lunch when out of the blue I called him George. He laughed and told me his full name and that he is not George. This continued for a few minutes and he giggled harder the more I insisted on George.
Finally he said he gave up and laughing said, "Fine! I'm George!" It was very cute.
Afterward, I told him how he actually got his real name. Do I expect him to remember at this age? Not really, he'll hear the story as he gets older, but I like to tell the kids little things like this about themselves so they always know in their hearts that I shared the stories of their lives.

I told him why we named him Nikolas is because when he was in my tummy, I had a dream that he told me his name was Nikolas. (That IS the truth btw)

Then very seriously he told me,

"Well, Mom, this is what happened to me."
(Mind you he was on my lap on the kitchen floor and very serious.)

"Mom, a wong time go when I was sweepin' and at Nana's house. And I was sweepin' in your bed. Then Uncle Kaffee and Pete came over to sweep over at Nana's house. And you were big growing in my tummy. And I sweeped and I dreamed about I named you. And I named you Mommy. And that's REALLY what happened!"

Pretty tough to argue with that logic!

Hug your babies tonight and love 'em for always!

More Funny Things Kids Say

I was tucking the little boys into bed tonight when the following took place.

Nikolas: Mommy, should we say our pwayoos?
Yes of course Honey. Do you want me to hear them tonight? (sometimes he says no)
Nikolas: Yes (he proceeds to say them)
Your turn E-why

Eli proceeds to recite his prayers.
Nikolas: E-why you forgot to say bless yourself
Eli: I'll be fine Nikol
Nikolas: What if sumfin bad happens to you?
Eli: Nothing bad is going to happen to me Nikol (pause) unless I get abducted by aliens


Amen! (says Me)

Play the Savings Game!

The last few days, my cool and thrifty SIL BK on a Budget has been blogging about her great deals and savings at various stores because she was a savvy shopper. Coupons, store sales and online deals can really help you cut financial corners if you can make the time to look for them and make a game plan for saving. A few years back I was just as much into the game as BK is now, but I got busy with kids and the couponing took a back seat. Foolish isn't it? We add more people to our family and I quit doing the stuff that will help make that a little more affordable? I know, 20 lashes with a wet Ramen noodle! Anyway, I'm back! Since my readers and hers are not necessarily the same, I invite you to join us both in this adventure in saving. I'll try not to post the same links that she does and with all that the internet has to offer, I'm sure there'll be plenty to go around. I'll post a list of survey sites that I participate in for money and points and free sample sites as well. We all can use the pennies at the end of the month, even better if they're dollars!
So come on, put on your saving cap and get in the game!

Songs for my heart....

You'll see that I have added a playlist on my right hand sidebar. Since I typically blog about my kids who are indeed my heart, I decided that my playlist should reflect them. I may not be the perfect mom, but I do so love them more than they will ever know. Enjoy.

From The Mouths of Babes.....

I love the things kids say when they don't realize that it can be "heard" differently from how they mean. Take the following conversation for example. Keep in mind that my children are all about Halloween these days, decorations, costumes, "Boo-ing" the neighbors with treats etc.

As I was making breakfast yesterday, the following conversation took place and just made me giggle.

Nikolas: Mommy, milk is made from cows

(Me: No Honey, cows make milk. Goats make milk too)

Eli: And pigs make bacon (pause) and ghosts make BOOS!

Now, are you smiling too? :-) If only our forefathers had known, just think of how different "moonshine" would have been LOL

Potty Training Aint For Sissies!

The following took place withing the last 15mins and was too amusing not to share; I'll catch up on life another time.


My darling, brown-eyed, impish 3yr old who has been potty training for the better part of an year and a half came into my room a short time ago saying (and I shall spell it as you would hear it), "Mom, I assidentawee peed Gabbie's foor" Me, not remembering that he was in undies today said, "WHAT?" I looked and realized he was indeed wet. I cleaned him up with a few reminders about how I told him only about 10mins before that what a good idea it would be to check the potty. How it feels like he doesn't seem to care if he uses the potty etc. Nothing harsh or derogatroy. After cleaning him up and putting on fresh undies, we went into Gabbie's room where he pointed out his mess. Exhibit B...Lake Peesalot lay before me and let's just say that I got there just in time. Upon cleaning it up, I asked my dear brown-eyed boy in a somewhat exasperated, but deflated tone, "Nikolas John-Paul, what am I going to do with you?"
His reply came with that doe-eyed look of innocence, "Momma, you gone keep me." As I tried to hide a smile I asked, "I am? Why?' And just as innocently, but with a hint of certainty he told me, "Cause I ohways say sohwee to you evwee day."

Beat THAT logic! LOL

He will eventually potty train and we'll look back on this and laugh. Of course I may be in "the home" by then and I won't know what the hell I'm laughing at, but it will still be funny somehow.

Smile, it's good for your heart :-)

Here's where Gabbie & I have spent the last few days...

And here is the reason:
See that tiny little bone on bottom called the Stapes? This little tiny thing which is about the size of a baby's pinky fingernail (and by baby; think an average size 1yr old) is the bone that is causing Gabbie's hearing loss. She was diagnosed a few years ago with Otosclerosis.
http://www.doctoronline.nhs.uk/masterwebsite1Asp/targetpages/specialts/images/ear.gif Bear with me since I'm not sure how to put nifty links in here without the whole web address.
At any rate, she first failed a school hearing test at age 9. We did as recommended and had her re-tested at the dr's office since it was possible that she was just distracted during the school nurse's test. Failed it at the dr's office. Ok nothing major to worry about, go back in a year if she fails again. Next year at age 10; same result and saw a specialist who thinks it's Otosclerosis, but since she's young it's uncommon. See us again in a year. Me thinks maybe it's odd, but dr must know best. Age 11, she failed again and this time we were sent to Boston to see an otolaryngologist with Children's Hospital. He agreed that it's Otosclerosis,but she's still so young that surgery isn't recommended.
Flash forward to age 12 when we're in another state and see another dr who says that hearing aids will be the cure. Ok fine, never did I think I'd see a child who WANTS them, but Gabbie did. She got to pick out what they'd look like and chose sparkly bubble-gum pink. We rejoiced when she wore them for the first time and could hear us! She heard everything and it was LOUD. In fact, we stopped for lunch on the way home from that hospital trip and she actually had to turn the ha's off because everything was too loud! With time she got used to them. What she found out though was that the ha's only increase volume and Otosclerosis is about clarity as well. Ahhhhh something that the ha's cannot fix. Gradually, she stopped wearing them and continued to muddle through hearing what she could and us repeating ourselves. It made life difficult in school and socially because she couldn't always hear what was being said and some kids thought she was just dumb or ignorant. Don't get me started on THAT one.
Back in Boston again, we went for her annual hearing exam. Not surprisingly, Gabbie's hearing had diminished further. However, we had the good fortune to be scheduled to see the top Neuro-Otolaryngologist in the country! After Gabbie's hearing exam, my hearing was tested. That's another piece of the puzzle. How did this 9yr old girl get this disease so young? Was it hormones, heredity or maybe both? Well, my father as it turned out has Otosclerosis, but was no dx'd until late in life and he wears ha's. The option of surgery has never been suggested to him, not sure why. How then did it go from my dad to my daughter? Could I be a missing link? Well, yes indeed I am! As the hearing exam revealed to us, I too in fact have Otosclerosis. Mine is very mild and at age 40 that is to my benefit. Hopefully, it will not progress quickly, but only time will tell. Gabbie had 56/55 % loss in each ear at now age 14 and my father at 66 has 76-80% loss in each ear. I count myself as fortunate as you can imagine.
After the audiology tests, we met with the doctor who was considerably younger than I expected, but clearly knowledgeable in his field. He examined Gabbie's ears and within a few minutes asked her if she wanted an operation that would fix it. I thought she was going to hug him!! She was SO excited!! He also informed me that he could do the surgery for me if I ever want it. He went on to explain that she was right all along when she would tell us and others that her ha's don't help her and in fact he was disappointed and puzzled about why the dr who saw her in CO told us that surgery wasn't a good option for her. We discussed the risks, benefits etc and went home to discuss it and by the end of the day booked her surgery.
She had her first stapes surgery on Thursday. In some cases, it's day surgery,but since she tends to get quiet nauseous and dizzy, they opted to keep her overnight for observation. Lucky they did, since she had severe side effects. We were told that about 1% of patients has blood (mere couple of drops) fall into the ear canal and that increases the volume of fluid which sets your balance and such with your inner ear. Guess who is in that 1% ? Yep, my girl. We ended up staying in the hospital until Sunday afternoon and now she is home and bored, but resting comfortably for the next week or two. She has restrictions, but if all goes according to plan, we will see the good dr again in 6wks for a hearing test and she should have 90 hearing in her right ear. At that point, she has the option of having the surgery done on her left ear. And despite the awful nausea, dizziness, pain etc she wants to have it done! She said that it's worth it to have a lifetime of hearing. I'm proud of her; very proud. After watching her these last few days, I don't know that I would choose to go through what she is going through. She's a strong willed young lady and she knows what she wants. She can't do much for herslf right now since she's not mobile yet, but she's not letting it get her down. And since the dr said that her surgery went very well otherwise, in a few weeks she should be hearing things she hasn't heard in years and that will be an amazing thing for her.
I have to plug Children's Hospital in Boston. The drs, the nurses, everyone was so kind and so caring. They really treat each patient and family with care, concern, humor and friendliness. We met people with all different personalities, ages etc and each was just as nice as the next. It really makes it easier to be in hospital when you're treated well and not like you're just another person they have to deal with. The nurses were funny and friendly, the Child Life Specialists gave Gabbie things to do, the drs treated her like her own person and spoke to her instead of just speaking to me becuase I'm the adult. We plan to return there in a few months for Gabbie's next surgery of course and I expect that it will go just as smoothly as this one has.

Thank you for the love, prayers and good wishes for Gabbie; they have been very special and we love and appreciate all of you for taking the time to send them.

A new look.....and a day at the farm

There's alot going on here lately and we're running around like chickens without heads. It's not about to slow down for awhile either. At any rate, here are a few pix from David's company outing this past Saturday at Kimball Farm in Westford. It was a nice day and everyone seemed to have a good time. It was nice for me to put faces to names of people I've been hearing about and with a few I've spoken to on the phone now and then. Nikolas made fast friends with a co-workers little girl; so cute. I wish I'd been able to get a photo while they were playing tag around a picnic table.

All except for Kingsley got to play at the driving range which excited my 3 sons greatly! Nikolas long ago declared golf to be "his game" although he'd never so much as touched a golf club. When we were told there was a driving range he said, "Mom, they have golf....THAT'S my game!!" Too funny. He got out there with Eli each having a bucket of balls and they loved it! Nikolas discovered on his own that he's better swinging lefty which supports our theory that he's left handed. Eli for the love of Mary wouldn't swing the club like a club, but rather "shoot" the ball like he was holding a hockey stick!! I suppose he comes by that fair enough, David and one of his brothers are great hockey players as are several of their cousins. I have a cousin (second? third?) who is professional hockey player and former Stanley Cup Champion so maybe hockey blood does run through my boy's veins? David, Quinn and Gabbie enjoyed the driving range as well and all of the kids (except for Kingsley) have asked for golf lessons for next summer.

Kingsley had fun seeing horses, roosters, goats and two dogs and calling them all "PUPPY!!" and walking all over the place, can't keep that girl still for long now tht she can walk on her own steam. She did settle down a bit to play with her baby doll and Nikolas' teddy bear. David and the 4 older kids rode the bumper boats and loved it; sorry too dizzy a ride for me.

Overall, a good day had by all and I let David's boss know that it was a very nice idea to bring everyone there.

Ok enough play by play, bring on the pix. It's going to be a very busy week for us so I'll update when I can.

David & Nikolas in the front boat

Eli was so excited to drive a boat alone!

Eli & Nikolas at the driving range


5 Owls

Tutorial Anyone????

I don't suppose one of you brilliant people can tell me how to display my whole 'family sticker' and not just me and D? I had it created with all of us and regardless of whether it's on top or the sidebar; we don't all fit. Techie input anyone????

QUOTE OF THE DAY:



A man came to a guru and challenged him, 'I will give you an orange if you can show me where God is.'
The guru answered, 'I will give you two oranges if you can show me where God is not.'

Author Unknown

And thankful I am to have you! These last few weeks have been a bit of a roller coaster ride for us. We have been trying to decide if we want to return to CO or stay in MA. Doesn't seem that long ago that we were making the same decision from out there. We're glad that we have had the opportunity to reconnect with old friends and see familiar places. Our kids have done better in school this year with better quality staff and they have enjoyed playing sports again. However, the reason we came here hasn't turned out all too well and we need to put our children's needs ahead of everyone's. What parents can't understand that? Some want to stay in MA, some want to go back to CO. We have people who love us in both places; a blessing in itself. The cost of renting or buying a home here is nearly prohibitive for us so we contacted someone we dealt with back there who is going to work with us on finding a house back there if we choose to return. The temptation is there, better climate for allergies, quieter lifestyle, more activities locally than there were when we lived there and of course there is KeeKee. We thought we would raise the girls together and if we don't return, how much of a bond will they have?
Two weeks ago we saw a house that friends from church are selling. It's been in their family for three generations having been built by our friend's grandfather. The house comes with a legacy of life and love of the people who were raised there. There is plenty of house and land for us to make a home for our growing family and from what we can see, being there long enough for our own grandchildren to come back. Our friends and their family very much want us to be the ones to buy their homestead. Ironically, we had just made the decision that if we can't find a house by x time we are going back to CO. Then this opportunity came to us from out of the blue. There is a group of folks at church and even dear friends who are part of our personal life who are praying for us to get this house so that we can stay here. We thank you all of loving us enough to want this for us.
David has applied for a job in his field for another company that would pay him more. He only found out about this opportunity at about the same time we saw the house. As my sweet friend Moe said, "coincidences are miracles where God chooses to remain anonymous" so I guess just learning about that job op and applying for it was another "coincidence." We haven't heard back about that job yet and in a few days we'll meet with a lender to find out if we can even buy the house. We haven't told the family yet that we have even looked at one. David's mom just asked us (the same night we saw the house!!) if we plan to stay here in town or go back to CO because she has some changes going on in her life that have her thinking that she may sell the house. Well, that gave us a little sigh of relief because then he was able to tell her that we've been looking for a place. It's overcrowded here and she doesn't have her space and we don't have space we need for so many of us. It will be best for all of us if we find something soon.
We are thankful to have so many people who love us and want what's best for us; whatever that may be. Today, Lisa, Keaghan and the rest of the family came to see us. They are here for a week and boy did we miss them! Seeing KeeKee & KiKi togethere after almost a year was wonderful and we all just stopped and stared to see how they would react to one another. They were shy, but pretty much accepting of eachother. Lisa did get a couple of photos which she said she'll email to me and I'll share them. David and the older kids are at work and school so they have not seen any of them yet and may not until Sunday. We'll have a big family picnic (weather permittig) at Nantasket on Father's Day. Seems appropriate to bring KeeKee's two dads together on a special day.
For now, we go on praying for God's will to be done and keep the faith knowing that He has the best plan in place for us. No matter what, family is family and love is love and no amount of distance can take that away.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR. BLUE!!!

Eleven years ago, I woke David in the middle of the night in pain like I had never felt before. It was time to go to the hospital. After a couple of false alarms, my mother was a little leary when he called her. Was I sure? "Well, she's got her hands digging into my juggular vein because the contractions hurt so bad, I think this is it." The same would be repeated when calling my best friend Lisa. The passenger door of our minivan had been hit a couple of days before and was jammed so I was quite a sight trying to hoist my huge tummy through the van. LOL When they got me to a room, I was only 3cm, but they weren't sending me home (things were different then). As a nurse explained pain med options, I hit transition and couldn't speak. Lisa & David told her to give me the epidural and I just nodded enthusiastically. After that, I was in La La Land! We are big fans of the PBS Auction and I bored them to tears as I watched every minute from 12noon until I delivered. And yes, I even tried getting them to bid on an auction item while I was pushing! And no I didn't win it. I asked my MW how I'd know when it was time to push (I'd previously had a c/s) and she said, "Don't worry, you'll know." Yeah right. When the time came, L & D noticed I was acting funny and couldn't get comfy. They asked a couple of questions and yelled "THAT'S the urge to push!" and they were out of the room like a shot getting the MW. Quite funny to see. I pushed for 45mins and Quinn got stuck at his ears (which ironically, are not big at all) and when he came out, he spun like a football they all told me. There were two midwives and a labor nurse standing there and it took the three of them to keep him from hitting the floor becuas he came out so fast! He also tore me in half in the process I'm told. YOWCH!! I asked how many stitches I was getting and the MW looked right at me and said, "You don't want to know" Lovely...not! Recovery left much to be desired believe me.
Ok so he was a beautiful baby and the apple of our eyes. The girls were excited to have a baby brother. He turned out to have a birth defect that was not detected in my Level 2 u/s and it wasn't found until he was nearly a year old. We spent the first year going through several tests and seeing different drs until a wonderful, amazing doctor named, Stuart Bauer at Children's Hospital discovered the problem, did surgery and made our little boy well!! God bless you Dr Bauer! Thanks to you, we now have a healthy, wonderful son who will be 11yrs old tomorrow.

I love you Bear! To infinity and beyond plus 2!!!

Age 10
Age 5

Age 6

Age 7

Age 8

Age 9

From the Mouths of Babes :-)

The following conversation took place this morning between Eli and I and I thought it was too sweet not to share. Sometimes I think this 5yr old is wiser than his years.

Eli: Mom, do some people live to 99?

Me: Yes Honey. In fact, some people live to be over 100!

Eli (looking surprised): Wooow. They must be really special.

:::::::::::thoughtful pause::::::::::::

Eli: Do they work for God?



On that note, may we all be so blessed!

PANAMA !!!

My dad and his wife recently visited Panama. And Dad didn't miss a chance to send souveniers to his grandkids. They of course were quite happy to receive his package. Here are a few of the goodies he sent; not all of us were photographed,but we too enjoyed our trinkets.

Cool tshirts and brochures for the boys

the princess showing us her new dress

and she found this pretty leather thing that holds jingly silver things

Mr Blue showing off his hat/shirt/bracelet

Murphy's Law

Falling asleep during a movie that you've waited a week for and endlessly asked, "Mom, how many more days until Friday?" "What time is 8:00?" Sorry E.T. we'll have to catch you another time.

Feelin' the love....
Eli & Nikolas were drawing on the blackboards and made these for me yesterday. I love how Eli worked to write "love Eli" in there whereever it would fit. Nikolas clearly needed my help to write his name,but he did help and it appears btw that he's a lefty according to how he typically writes and draws. Ok by us, bring on the big league contracts, this boy can throw!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!
I've had 14 Mother's Days and I think this was one of the best! Naturally, my first was very special and there have been a couple of others when I was pregnant,but for some reason this one was just really, really nice.
On my first Mother's Day, David and I brought 13mos old Gabriella into Boston for the day. We took a ride on the Swan Boats,fed the geese & ducks, saw the Make Way For Ducklings statues and the annual Mother's Day MWFD parade. We had lunch in Quincy Market and walked through Fanuiel Hall. It was a very nice day. I had wanted to repeat it this year with all of my kids,but the weather wasn't cooperative; I didn't know what we'd do if anything.
In the morning, David and the three little ones and I went to church as usual. One of our friends gave me a lovely calla lily plant, a plaque to hang, a bracelet, a corsage and a lovely card; all so thoughtful! We went out for coffee while the boys were in Sunday school after the service. When we went back to pick them up, Eli & Nikolas had each made a picture frame and coffee mug for me. The teacher had taken pictures of each child a few weeks ago and put them into the frames. Very sweet. Typically, we stop for donuts on the way home for all the kids. Oddly, we went to two Dunkin Donuts that only had muffins and bagels! When we got home, Gabbie & Quinn had belgian waffles, fruit and cake waiting for us! I guess that's what my friend Moe calls "not a coincidence". We had a nice leisurely brunch and the kids & David gave me a Red Sox hoodie, a candle and chocolates along with some very nice cards. On Friday afternoon, Gabbie had bought me a new purse and wallet with her own money that she earned babysitting. She said that I shouldn't have to carry the diaper bag ALL the time. So nice. And she's glad to have Mom looking a little cooler LOL
David grilled dinner and I was able to get a few pix with some of the kids; a couple were uncooperative. I took Nikolas for a walk and bought him a ring pop. He was so sad about Eli going to play at their cousin's house. I told him that things aren't always even; Eli got to go out,but he (Nikol) got a pop. He smiled quite confidently and said, "Yep, because I'm SPECIAL!" LOL
Overall, a nice, leisurely day and full of happy surprises around each corner.
We had to wait on the cake because the little boys were up past bedtime so we had it last night instead and Gabbie started a tradition. She made the cake and put candles on it. I had to make a wish for each child before blowing them all out. Isn't that a neat idea? She only had 5 candles,but I made wishes for all of them.
I hope all of you had a very Happy Mother's Day as well. We are all abundantly blessed.

Random Shots....Random Thoughts.... George Burns LIVES
Firetruck Fun!
For Girls TOO!
Playing with cousins...9mos 13mos who's bigger?

Sisters sharing bday cheesecake
Ready for the garden!
Dad & Boys after a long cold ball game
Birthday Party Craziness!
Smiling even with the MEASELS!

How I've Spent My April Vacation

Friday 4/18 Gabbie turns 14...YAY
Saturday 4/19 Gabbie bike rides with her friend for a few hours and boys play while dad is out dj'ing a benefit gig. Saturday night Gabbie comes home with a possible dislocated finger from falling off her bike and Daddy comes home with a broken nose from when he was struck by a piece of equpiment while loading it into the truck.
Sunday 4/20 church goes well except that Miss K is super clingy and won't leave me to go to nursery as she always does. Sunday night Gabbie feels icky and we think she's just worn out from riding her bike for 4hrs the day before.
Monday 4/21 Gabbie still doesn't feel great,but her friend asks her to visit so she does and I bring Eli to the pedi becuase he's running a temp and has a sore throat. We suspect strep,but the test comes back negative. Pedi tells me that it's just a virus, but be careful because Hand/Foot/Mouth (Coxsacki? virus is going around). Go home and let him rest and keep him comfortable the rest of the day.
Tuesday 4/22 Gabbie is sick again; lethargic, achy and generally not feeling well. Eli is spunky again and has no fever. Gabbie manages to go out for a bit with Daddy and I bring Quinn to his baseball game. Dad treats kids to BK for dinner. Gabbie manages part of it and goes to bed.
Wednesday 4/23 Gabbie can't get up. Feels really lousy and has no strength, coughing, tummy ache; let her rest all she wants. We figure it's the virus that Eli had. Miss K is not drinking well, but since we just introduced milk we guessed that she just doesn't like it. She's also a little more clingy than usual and I remember that she did have her vaccines last Thursday so this could be a side affect.
Thursday 4/24 Both girls are not themselves. Gabbie can't get up off the bed and has a temp over 104 and Miss K still doesn't want to drink much and her temp is 101; call the dr. Dr said to piggyback Tylenol and Motrin and make sure they're both getting fluids in and bring them in next morning to be checked for strep (it was too late at this point by the time they had the fevers). Thursday overnight Gabbie is alseep off and on because of coughing and Miss K wakes up 2-3 times crying; VERY unusual for her.
Today, Friday 4/25 bring both girls to the dr with 101-102 temps and same symptoms as yesterday. After various tests and exams, Gabbie has pneumonia and Miss K has measels!! Mind you the pneumonia IS possible to get at this time of year; something people keep questioning. And the measels? They only popped out on her while we were in the dr's office!! A rare but possible side affect of the MMR shot she had last week. I've had 5 babies and she's the first to react. Gabbie is on antibs and an inhaler and Motrin as needed. Miss K is on Motrin as needed. Thankfully, neither of them is contagious. I just feel so sad that my girlies are sick. I'm doing all I can to keep them comfortable and hopefully both will be well soon. Of course none of this comes without some MommyGuilt because I thought I should have just known it was pneumonia and that if only I had been able to breastfeed Miss K she wouldn't be sick. Logically, I know that's silly, but sometimes my mind just goes to those places. I know that what matters is that I'm taking care of them properly and they know that too. Poor Gabbie though; she didn't get to enjoy her Spring Break, but as I told her, it would probably be better than missing 5 more days of school.
Now it's on to better things. Tonight Eli had his very first TBall game and tomorow he has another. He loved it and the kids were so cute to watch; looked like the Keystone Cops! LOL And Eli the silly boy, every time a player on the OTHER team hit the ball, HE would run the bases!! LOL By about the 4th time he figured out he didn't need to do it. He had fun though and that's all that counts. Tomorrow is another game simultaneously with Quinn on the adjoining field. We've got some VERY busy weeknights and Saturdays ahead of us with all three (G,Q, E) all playing ball, but they'll have fun.

I hope you all had enjoyable spring breaks! :-)

TAG! You're IT!!
If you're reading this, I'm tagging YOU to do this on your blog.

I am...debating about cutting my hair really short today
I think...I should probably go eat since I forgot breakfast
I know...I have to do laundry which never seems to end
I want...to go to FL and see my dad before he leaves and bring my kids to DW
I wish...I was in Disney World
I hate...control freaks with bad tempers
I miss...the people I rarely see
I fear....being trapped
I feel...tired and want to go out in the sunshine
I hear...the tv
I smell...like baby food
I crave...ice cream and brownies
I search...for the answer to how to handle my life
I wonder...if I will get to go to FL for my birthday
I love...my kids
I ache...for freedom
I care...about lost souls
I always...pray
I am not....a quitter
I dance..when nobody is looking
I sing...to any song I know when I hear it
I cry...when nobody can see
I don't always...share my feelings
I write...very well and should do it more
I win...each time I make the choice to start again
I lose...when I buckle under
I never...want regrets
I listen...always
I can usually...bring the positive out when someone is upset
I am scared...snakes and fire
I need...a happy and fulfilling marriage
I am happy about...having good friends
I think...I deserve better than I allow myself to have

April 1st, but no April Fool!

It's so hard to believe that only a year ago this sweet unexpected blessing of a girl came into our lives. I can still so clearly recall the conversation wherein I told David that after losing yet another baby to m/c, I would not have another unless I could be sure it would be a little girl; something I wished for again after three wonderful sons. Now don't get me wrong, I adore my boys, but I longed for another little girl to raise since my other girls are so much older now. Since there are no such guarantees I didn't want to try again and maybe suffer yet another loss. I have a condition that causes me to lose pg's by 8wks so the fact that I've had all the kids I have is a real miracle. After some impulsive thought, I made an appointment to end my baby making career. Just before the day came, we found out I was pregnant again. I cried mostly for fear of losing yet another baby. I cried in shock because it had been so difficult to make the decision to stop having babies; I had felt like it wasn't up to me, it was up to God. Apparently, I was right! It was a rocky start, but the dr's kept a careful eye on us and after a few worriesome weeks of wondering and praying that this baby would be a keeper, we found out that this little blessing was indeed a little girl! I cannot tell you how stunned I was!! And the due date? The day after our older daughter's birthday. After 13yrs she would finally have a baby sister; something she'd always wished for was finally coming true and she was SO thrilled!! The perfect birthday gift she said. It was a complicated pregnancy and at 25wks I went into labor. My husband was a 25wkr himself and I sadly lost a cousin who was a 25wkr so needless to say I knew the risk we faced. That day is forever etched in my mind; I'm crying now just thinking back on it. Well, thanks to the advance of medicine and technology, the dr was able to give me Terbutaline to stop my labor. I was put on bedrest for the duration of the pregnancy. Not fun with a 1yr old and 4yr old under toe,but this little girl arriving safely in our arms at the right time was worth it all. My labor began two other times in later weeks and again I was giving the Terb. shots. We prayed, wished and watched the calendar because every week I made it through was another week she grew. Ultimately, I made it to 37wks and had a wonderful, easy birth. We went to the hospital on her cousin's birthday (another cousin) and she passed the midnight hour and arrived on her great-grandma's 90th birthday instead. I remember looking at her and she was SO tiny! She weighed all of 6.4 which was very small for my babies. She would end up losing more weight quickly in the next few weeks and had some minor complications,but they have resolved. Today we have a beautiful, loving, charming, funny, sweet ONE YEAR OLD daughter who brings so much joy to our lives. God proved to me that he does things in His time, not ours and that he does hear the prayers of our hearts.
Happy Birthday Kingsley Faith, we love you Princess Baby!

One day old....

One YEAR old...

What have we done lately???
We colored eggs..first time and the kids loved it

We had a playdate with our baby cousin (both boys are NJS)

We had a tea party and told Bear how to play

The last few weeks have been really hectic and the only time I get to blog is at night when the kids are asleep and I'm just too tired and brain foggy at that point. I'll try to do better. Sleep is grossly under-rated. LOL

Are YOU Aware ???

This morning, I was wondering what color a certain support ribbon is. Imagine my surprise when I found a list as long as my arm! The colors that I have used represent all the ribbons I would wear just in support of my family. Honestly, I don't wear them all. I DO have a couple of pink ribbons that I wear, but I don't have all the colors. So just out of curiosity, do you wear ribbons? Do you wear them all?

Things we've done in 2008....

We cheered on our Patriots!!

Learned to feed a baby...

Traveled out of the country & had the 1st beer (not really!!)

Ran over someone's grandma...

Played hide & seek from Mommy