Owen and Santa Claus

Last night, as Jason and I were getting ready for bed. We did our usual night time routine in checking all of the kids. As we were leaving Owen's room he slightly woke up and asked me "Mommy, when Santa coming" This has been an on going question of Owen's since Christmas. The poor little guy expected to see this jolly man, at our tree, giving out gifts. We have told him he has already come. But I guess its hard for a two year old to understand the concept of someone "delivering" presents. I think its the cutest thing really. I just tell him he will come again when he is three and that seems to make his mind happy :-)

His other questions he asks lately too is "When is papa coming." Or are we in Maine? His vocabulary is really picking up. Though not everyone can understand him, its pretty easy for Jason and I to get almost 90% of his sentences. Gosh, he is getting so big. Makes me want to cry.

Countdown to New Years

New Years is only 2 days away. And I am curious if anyone has any life changes they hope to make for the New Year. I would love to see what others have in mind! If you comment on this post, I will happily add everyone's on this list. It would be fun to see what kinds of changes everyone hopes to make for the New Year. I will start.

*More patient with my kiddos
*Work harder with Olivia on school
*SPEND LESS, SAVE MORE. That bigger house is going to be needed sooner then later
*Spend more time with my husband. We seem to not get enough 1 on 1 time
*Find a job

Mrs. Said:
*Becoming a super Mom to our first born
*Saving more money
*Not letting house projects drag on, getting them done promptly
*Make a revised plan for work
*getting back to practicing yoga daily

Trisha said:

*I, with the help of my husband, will jump threw all the necessary adoption hoops to adopt a child from Kazakhstan. Hopefully by 2011.

So what kind of changes do you hope to make this coming Year? I find that making Changes in your life is much better then trying to make it a "Resolution" So, what's yours?

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas Everyone! Sorry its a tad late in writing, but time seems to slip away when your visiting family.

It was really a wonderful day. The kids woke up at 7:30am and begging me to wake up and see that "Santa" had eaten all the cookies and drank the milk. And even more exciting was how cute Emma was to notice that the reindeer had eaten the apple she left him. She is completely in heaven with reindeer and her favorite movies as of now are "The Santa Claus 1, 2 and 3" We basically watched them the entire trip up here about a dozen times in the van. Thank heavens for DVD players!

Any-who, we had a wonderful breakfast cooked by my dad. Pancakes, french toast, scrambled eggs, toast, and bacon. YUMMY. We patiently waited for the rest of the family to arrive. My sister and her family and my grandparents. But ended up having to call and tell them to come over. My kids were NOT waiting anymore. After breakfast, the big kiddos, Olivia, Emma, Tyson and Owen opened up their stockings. That managed to get a good 15 extra minutes for us adults to get cameras and videos ready. By then, the chaos had begun.

Jason was "SANTA" this year. His job was to pass out all the gifts to the adults and kids. We tried to make it be so each one of the little ones opened a present, we all oohed and ahhed it and then they would put it in their "pile" and someone else would open it. This of course lasted all about 3 presents and then bam, it was pretty much a free for all as paper went flying everywhere. The kids had a great time and so did the parents. Here is a few things each of the kiddos got this year:

Olivia:

*Nintendo DSi (Jay and I promised this to her if she was up to a good 2nd/3rd grade reading level. She is doing fantastic and so Santa brought it to her)
*2 DSi games
*2 new Barbie dolls
*A "Project Runway" fabric set. ITS HUGE
*A Liv doll (Sophia)
*A Nutcracker (She has been bugging me for one for years now)

Emma-James:

*A dragon dungeon
*A camera of her own
*Fancy Nancy
*Play-dough
*A little play laptop

Owen:

*Rocky the truck
*Chuck the truck
*matchbox cars
*Zoo railroad

Ezme:

*New outfits from Auntie Ryann and Nana
*mittens

Mommy aka Kiley

*A new pair of PJ's
*Hubby bought me a cute little jewelry ring
*My mom got me the best gift ever. She had a brick engraved with Anabelle's name and a little saying on it. It will be laid at Woman and Infants hospital. I am so very excited that after 5 years, she will have a little place to call hers. Because we never wanted to have a proper burial, I feel this just gives us a nice place to have others remember her without ever knowing who she was. Seeing her name and reading it will give me the best hug ever. I can't wait to see it!

Daddy aka Jason

*A fun Scrabble computer GO JASON GO beat my mom.

Christmas was so much fun this year. The kids even though they didn't get a lot, I made sure what they got was something that they would play with often, keep the mess at bay, and they would use it even as they got older. I would say all of my purchases this year, not to mention Santa and my family, it was definitely a success.

Unfortunately, I don't really have any pictures right now. I will try hard to post some soon. But with New Years right around the corner, my birthday and Anniversary as well as the kids birthdays, it might be hard to think about Christmas. Until then, I hope everyone had a wonderful and VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Christmas Eve and Church

We arrived at my parents home safe and sound. Though we didn't have long to visit before we were out the door again. We managed to get a few bites of food, the kiddos dressed in their matching PJ's and out the door in time just to make the last half hour of the church gathering before Christmas Eve service began. I have to say just how much I love and miss my old church at home. I always felt so loved and wanted their. I loved being a part of something and how close I felt to God when I was their. After Father Lance died over three years ago, it really never has been the same without him. I still go though. Many of my "church family" is still attending and its really great to see them. I have yet to find the same warm and welcoming feeling in a church near our home in RI, but I am sure someday.

The kids had a wonderful time with the new Father. He did a great little exercise with all the kids that were attending church that evening. He had them all go up to put together the tiny manger. Adding Mary and Joseph, the goats and cows, and of course the Angel. The first thing he asked all of the kids were "What is one of the animals that was their when Jesus was born?" And my wonderful loving three year old Emma-James, very matter of fact and loudly stated DRAGONS. To which he said "No no, no dragons I am afraid." Of course the whole church started laughing. She then proceeded to say "OK then, Dinosaurs!!" To which again he said no no. She then gave up and said to me, "Mommy, then their wasn't any important animals their that day." God I love her!!

Though Church was a little longer then I hoped. And my kids could have been a bit better behaved then they were. I was mostly impressed. They were in a car for 7 hours and barely had time to loose that energy before being we took them to church to sit for 2 hours quietly. But honestly, I am glad we went as a family.

Merry Christmas Eve everyone. I hope you have a wonderful one with family, friends and those who mean the most to you!!

Merry Christmas 2009

Due to a lack of funding this year. Christmas photos had to be cut in half. Everyone will receive a Christmas card, but sadly I wasn't able to give the usual family photos and individual photos of the kids to everyone. If you like to have one, please feel free to contact me and I am happy to order them for you. The gentleman who took our photos Mr. Genes as the kids call him, does not destroy any photos he takes. So they will be around for a long time. In the meantime. Enjoy the beautiful job he did capturing a great family photo of us!!

Christmas Family Photo 2009 (Daddy, Mommy, Olivia, Emma-James, Owen and Ezme)

 

Individual Photos of the Kids

 

Sorry the pictures are a little fuzzy. We did not ask for proofs, and the photographer was nice enough to mount the pictures for us free of charge. So I wasn't able to scan them.

The snow must fall

Here marks the pictures of the end of the 14 hour blizzard we received from Saturday straight through to Sunday evening. We managed to score about 17-20 inches of snow in a small period of time. It started right on time at 10pm on Saturday and lasted until about 4pm Sunday evening. Sadly, I don't think this wonderful white stuff will be melting. The kiddos tried to enjoy the fluffy stuff. But ended up going from my front door, to my back door in 30 seconds and begged to come inside. Definitely not winter children. Despite the fact they they were all born in the winter. Here are some pictures that I managed to capture after things settled down.

The cars covered

 

The car dealership across the street.

 

More snow in the streets. Notice the snow in between the window and the screen

 

The backyard and some of the porch

 

This is how Ezme enjoyed the snow

 

Baking our Christmas Presents

The kiddos and I have been hard at work today baking up a storm. Can I just say again how much I LOVE my double ovens!!!!! Seriously, it cuts down my cook time by more then half. I am actually able to get things in and out and not have to fuss around with different baking times. Its fantastic.

Anywho. Since we have moved into the house over 4 years ago. We decided that it would be fun to bake yummy goodies for those special people in our lives. It first started out for our "trash buddy" friends. These guys work so hard all year long picking up other peoples "leftovers" that they deserve to have something special. We also included our mailman in that "through sleet, or rain, or snow". Sadly, he left us about over the summer. But we were blessed with a nice mailman, who just got married in fact!

So besides are good buddies, we also bake for our wonderful neighbors. They are all so terrific with our kids. They are the only ones in the neighborhood, so they put up with WAY MORE then they have too. I try hard to keep the kids from bothering them, but its hard when they love talking to them so much. So, today we are baking for the people we love. Pumpkin bread, Choc. chip cookies, smores, even moose balls! I will probably be baking until tomorrow afternoon, with the hopes to deliver sometime tomorrow or Tuesday before we head out. Pictures to come of all our goodies. I am really excited!!

Owen

I took this picture of Owen the other night. I can't help but laugh when I see this picture. He looks so serious. I swear he is thinking "Don't mess with me mommy". Doesn't he look like he could be in the mob???

What you lookin' at?

 

No News

So, I haven't heard anything more about the house. It looks like its pretty much a dream at this point. I know that there is a huge company looking to purchase the home and they might be signing the agreement tonight. On top of a bunch of other things going on, I am feeling super blah right now. I find that I am super hard on myself with situations that are beyond my control. Or even in my control where I feel I have somehow said the wrong thing, or have done the wrong thing. I try hard to be honest, and sometimes my honesty is a little too much. So today, I am feeling really blah. Blah about a lot of things. I am trying to have a "positive" outlook, but its hard. So if you could, would you think of me today. I sure could use some peace in my heart and know that I am still a good person, despite all that is going on.

Dream House Continued

Just wanted to update everyone about the house Jason and I are dreaming about purchasing. He will be calling some mortgage companies in the morning to see if they will even potentially give us the loan for the house. If they will, then we will be calling the Realtor that I have been in contact with to start the paper work on both our home, and the purchase of the new one. Then things will get a little complicated. We are hopeful and saying many prayers. So if you think about it, could you say a little one for us tonight. Nervous right now for sure.

Our DREAM HOME need prayers

About a week ago, I was searching through the REMAX website just to look around at homes in our area. I wanted to know what the current rate of homes were going for as we are gearing up to start looking for a BIGGER home. We love our home now, but the size is becoming a bit of a issue. We have managed to make our 2 bedroom 1 bath home work for us. But now, with homeschooling, gearing up to start baby-sitting, and lets not forget Girl Scouts here once a week, my home is less then desirable. We are starting to slowly to feel the crunch. I feel bad that I am constantly telling my kids to pick up. They really don't have a designed area to play, and its not far to them. Plus we are doing all of our school stuff on the dining room table, and my "classroom" is a tiny little corner at the far end of our dining room. We did a lot of remodeling last year on our home. Completely gutting out the bathroom and kitchen. As well as new ceilings, new roof, new windows, brand new hot water tank and new rugs upstairs. Its a great little home for a small family, or even a retired couple. But for a family of six, with two cats and a dog. Its starting to feel cramped.

So, onto my adventures in house hunting. Well, I found the perfect home. Fell right in love. Jason of course was less then thrilled that I was home hunting. But because he loves me so much, he amused me with a LOOK-SEE of the home. Well, to make a long story short. We are in love. The kids are in love. We wouldn't have to compromise on space or anything for ANYONE. Plenty of bathrooms, plenty of bedrooms. Office for Jason. School room for me. Place to have company, the whole nine yards. Yes, it will need work. Yes, its a little pricey but we believe we can talk them down. The biggest problem is our financial situation is well, not terrific, but not so bad that we are bound by the home we are living in now. We have figured out some creative ways to get this house and make the payments as well as the tax on the home work for us. Me getting a job, Jay asking for a raise, renting out a room to a local college student, etc. etc.

We are praying so hard that this works. And I am asking you if you read this, could you please say a little prayer that things will fall into place for us when it comes to this property. We are trying to be optimistic and truly believe that we found this house because we were suppose too. It would be such a great opportunity for all of us. So if you have a moment just think about us. We will be talking to some loan people next week. See what we can do. Plus the sale of our home will be the biggest obstacle.

I promise to keep everyone posted as how things are going. There will be a lot involved, and we are ready to at least try. Both Jason and I feel if we didn't at least try to buy this home, then we will both feel like we didn't listen to our hearts, and most importantly, listen to the kick that God is giving us. Until then.

The Sickees times 4

That's right folks, all the kiddos are sick *sad face* After 2 nights of Emma coughing so badly, and keeping not only herself up at night, but me is well, I decided it warranted a trip to go see Dr. Flynn. I made the appointment Friday morning, and we were all set to go in at 4pm. The morning was pretty busy for us, as Jason had a few errands to run, and I was taking Olivia to home-school function near our house. We went to go see a Ballet with another friend of hers who is also home-schooled. She had a pretty good time, though for 2 1/2 hours, I can understand why she kept telling me she was bored. The ballet is always a beautiful thing, but when little ones don't have the chance to move, stretch or talk, it can be a little tough. Olivia too was also complaining about her ear hurting (something she NEVER does) so I told her that I would take her along with me to go see Dr. Flynn as well.

We returned from the ballet around noon, had some lunch and managed to get every one down for a nice long nap. The kiddos were tired, lack of sleep during the night will do that to you. We woke up just in time to put our shoes on, and rush out the door to make our appointment.

Poor Dr. Flynn though was swamped with people. There must have been 15 people in the office. Everyone is sick and doing the last minute run so they wouldn't have to worry about emergency room craziness over the weekend.

When we were finally seen (poor Dr. Flynn wasn't able to get to us until 7pm) she checked her lungs, said they looked and sounded pretty good, but she definitely had an ear infection in her left year. Was I surprised. I mentioned to her that all the other kids had been sick and she said to bring them in. Thankfully Jason was on his way already for something else, so in the others came. She was so sweet to look at all the others for me. The running total for sick little kiddos was this:

Olivia - Ear infection left ear

Emma-James- Ear infection left ear and chest congestion

Owen- Double ear infection little bit of chest congestion

Ezme - Head cold

Everyone expect for Ezme is on an antibiotic. With Emma-James being on a cough suppressant as well. When we got home, we managed to get everyone supper and in bed by 8:30. And to my amazement, everyone slept fantastic last night. No one was up coughing, crying or sad. They slept like rocks until 9am. I think another good nap and a good night sleep and they will be completely back to themselves by tomorrow. Its always so hard to figure out when it comes to my kiddos being sick. They never complain, and never have the normal high fevers or such. So figuring them out is always a mystery. But it still makes my mommy heart hurt.

Today we are planning on sitting in the house and avoiding the cold weather. Its a good day to get our house in order and clean, clean, clean. Not to mention wash bedding and disinfect the house. Next week is a pretty busy and crazy week for us, so this weekend is the perfect one to get a bunch of things done. Ahhh, no rest for the busy that's for sure.

Anabelle's Angel Day

5 years ago today, I said good-bye to my sweet little Anabelle. It still has me in awe of how fast the years have gone by. In 5 years she has missed so much. The memories both Jason and I wanted so badly to make with her are gone. I remind myself though, that she is making memories herself with her Grandma and friends in Heaven. Happy and wonderful memories that I am sure she will share with me one day. It gives me peace and a warm fuzzy feeling to know she is safe and loved. I love my daily reminders that she is always near and misses us just as much as we miss her. My keys will suddenly be missing, or I will hear a mom call her little girl in the store Anabelle. The little things are what put a smile on my face. I miss her dearly, and it just doesn't seem the same without her. My three girls are the world to me, but there is always that constant reminder that there should be four. I am sure this day will be hard, but I plan on doing what I do everyday. Remember the month that I was blessed to have with her. The memories we created, and the love we not only gave her, but received as well. I miss you little one. HUGE HUGS FROM US!

Mommy and Anabelle (Night before she passed away)

 

Tis the season for BAKING!

Last year I decided that it would be fun for my GIRL SCOUT troop to bake some yummy pumpkin loafs as a little Christmas gift. I put a little spin on it by making them in some really cute loaf pans that I happen to find at the Christmas Tree Shop for a dollar each. So I managed to scoop up 2 for each girl. We decided it would be really nice to give one away to someone, and keep the other. We had so much fun doing it, that this year we continued with our Christmas tradition. With 12 girls in the kitchen, I am blessed right now to have a double oven. It sure does come in handy to get things cooked at the same time. Especially when you have that many pans going in at once. The girls really did a great job listening, mixing, pouring, and stirring. Everyone got a little something to do, but I let the leaders take care of the actual filling of the pans, just to keep the mess down to a low. This is the final outcome of of the girls hard work. WAY TO GO!

Pumpkin bread. Neatly wrapped and packaged and ready to go!

 

Snow Day number 2

It started snowing mid morning, I would say around 4am. We weren't expecting snow at all, so I was a little surprised when I woke up to see the ground covered in the white stuff. Rain was the only thing on the forecast. Needless to say, the rain, mixed in with snow, has made the roads yucky. Of course, on the day I have a million errands to run, and my husbands office party. We have decided to stay inside for the better part of the day, and Jason will come and pick us up tonight for the party. Unless due to bad weather, they have canceled it. We will see. Until then, here are some pictures of our "messy winter wonderland" outside.

The backyard covered in snow

 

Looking through the garden window of the kitchen. See the rain on the window, blah.

 

Ezme is 3 Months Old

Gosh, its doesn't seem real that Ezme is 3 months old today! I wish that it wouldn't go by so fast. I spend 9 1/2 months waiting for the little peanut to arrive. And then when they do, bamn, their growing up goes by faster then the speed of light. Its been a great 3 months so far. She is such an easy going baby. In the beginning she wanted to make it known she wasn't anything like her big sisters or big brother, but we found a great routine and for the most part, we stick to it. Right now she is busy eating her breakfast and happily watching cartoons with her big sister Olivia. Ezme definately makes our house a lot more fuller and we are all so much in love with her. Here is a little rundown of the things Ezme can do now.

* Giggles and laughs hard when you tickle her under her neck
* Wakes up at 8:30am despite the fact that her siblings wake up at 7am
* Eats about 8 1/2 ounces in the morning and about 8 just before bed
* Is starting to hold her head up more
* Is working harder on focusing and following objects. Still struggles, but is doing better then she did a month ago.
* Loves to bat at toys
* Loves to talk to herself in the mirror and her buddy "Mr. Monkey"
* Enjoys cuddling, being held, and put to sleep at night by someone holding her
* Is starting to roll over, but hasn't reached the other side just yet
* Is sleeping through the night still from 8pm-8:30am
* Stays awake for 2 hour stretches
* Loves to suck on her fingers
* Can hold toys and bring them to her mouth
* Enjoys standing
* Enjoys playing with her feet

As you can see, she is a pretty amazing little girl. We are so in love and can't wait to see what the next 3 months will hold. I am sure it will go by just as fast as the first 3 have. HAPPY 3 MONTHS LITTLE EZME. WE LOVE YOU!

Ezme 3 months old

 

Smiling for Mommy

 

The new way to sleep

Last night I went upstairs to check on all the kiddos before I finished up the last of the laundry and heading to bed myself. As I was getting ready to tuck Emma-James in, this is how I found her. I guess you can be cool looking even when your dead asleep. Thanks to hubby, he managed to capture this on camera! I also want to say that Emma-James has the second biggest bed in the house. And still managed to sleep right on the edge every night. Despite me trying to move her closer to the middle.

Emma-James and her Thomas sunglasses. Snoozing away!

 

First New England Snow

Yup, you read it right. The first snow fall of the winter season is upon us as we speak. Its been snowing here since 6pm. Yucky I tell ya. As much as my kiddos love watching the beautiful white stuff fall from the sky, I have to say, I am not a lover anymore. Its cold, its wet, and its a pain to drive in. It makes the roads slick, and dangerous. And people seem to be crazy when it comes to their driving skills. It will probably be a day where I sit inside and be thankful I can rest easy without having to brave the roads. Tomorrow is jam packed full of cleaning, laundry and organizing. WOOT! The kids were hoping to go outside to play, but no one has boots, hats, gloves, or snow gear, so its a "stay inside helping mommy out" sort of day. They don't mind. Tomorrow is a great day to do our yearly toy donation. We go through all the toys, books and clothes and donate a good bag or two of things to give away. Plus this year, the kids and Jason and myself decided to go shopping for other kiddos and save Santa visiting for another year. Plus, Santa was pretty good to the kids this summer. Along with Santa, the Easter bunny and Grammie and Grampa helped buy a nice big playground for them! But I think he might drop in for a small gift for each of them. They have been pretty good all year!

The Princess and the Owen

I took a few fun pictures of Ezme yesterday. Its hard to capture her at just the right moment where she isn't crazy or tired. Its either got to be right at 9am or about 9pm. So, I took some last night while the other kids where sleeping. I also managed to score a few good pictures of Owen using a big boy cup. I think we will be retiring the sippy's pretty soon. We will only use them occasionally. The still come in super handy sometimes.

Owen drinking from the big boy cup

 

"I big boy now mommy" (What he said to me when he was done)

 

Ezme Smiling

 

Big blue eyed Ezme

 

Ezme in the Tub

I really haven't taken many pictures of Ezme taking a bath, but here is one for your viewing pleasure. We had just arrived home from Maine, and while the big kids were in the bathtub, Ezme got her own wash down in her little chair in the kitchen sink. It took her a few moments for her to realize where she was, because she truly HATES being wet.

Ezme in her bath

 

Watching my new friend

I was reading the new posts that my friends from Arizona updated about the little kiddos Abby and Rachel. I had Ezme in my lap while I was watching some of the videos they posted. Well, as I was watching them, Ezme's eyes were glued to the computer screen. Jason happened to come up from the cellar at the same time she was watching the video, so he snapped a picture. As you can see, she is completely in love with watching her far away friends.

Ezme watching Abby and Rachel on the computer

 

Floor time

I happened to look on kids.woot.com one afternoon and found this terrific floor mat for Ezme. It is awesome! Really colorful, the toys are so cute, and it even moves. Thats right, the whole thing moves back and forth to music. Its really cute to watch. At first, she was a little angry to have been put on the floor, but after a few minutes, she realized that she loved it. The music especially. She has two favorite toys at the moment, Mr. Monkey whom she will talk to for a good hour. And of course, every baby's favorite thing, the mirror. She loves to giggle and smile in the mirror and see the other baby smiling back at her. Its cute to watch. I was able to capture a few photos of her while she was happily playing.

Ezme enjoying her floor mat

 

Half smile

 

Watching the mobile move

 

Pictures came out fantastic!

We were able to go this afternoon to order pictures. They came out so great. I am really pleased. We ordered Christmas cards and then a few pictures for ourselves. I hope everyone enjoys them as much as we do. Sadly, you will just have to wait two weeks before they arrive, and probably a few days after that before they are delivered. Until then, happy waiting!

Picture Day

Jason got a quick snapshot of Owen before we headed out for pictures. Isn't he cute

My handsome little man

 

Christmas Pictures 2009

Ahhhhh. The yearly Christmas Photo. The one, where you spend an entire month picking out outfits, deciding on hair do's, making sure everyone matches, and looks fantastic. The one day out of the whole year everyone in your family will be in a picture together, smiling, looking happy. Well, in previous years, its been a true NIGHTMARE. Last year alone it took two days, 3 hours each just to get a decent family photo and a group shot of the three kids. I was sick inside just knowing how bad it was going to be this year around with the extra little one. So I took this as a sign to figure another way of getting a good family Christmas photo without the tantrums, whines, and screams. This year I decided to call and give the gentlemen who does our kiddos Pre-School pictures a call. He does a fantastic job, has managed to get not one, but both of my girls to smile. They have come out awesome and I have never once complained. I figured, if he can work magic on them, I wonder what he can do with 6 of us!!

So today was the day. I got up at 8am. Thanks to my husband everyone was fed and ready for my instructions. I managed to get all the kids dressed, hair done, baby fed, and myself showered and dressed by 9am. We were out the door by 9:10 and surprisingly were only 5 minutes late due to road construction. So far so good. Everyone was happy, kids were smiling, no fuss from anyone. WOOT! We got there, and finally got to meet the Man of Emma's dreams. She talks about this guy all the time. Mr Genes this and Mr. Genes that. Well, Mr. Gene indeed was a nice guy and I can see why she loves him. It took 40 minutes, yes I said that right, 40 minutes to have a family photo done, individual shots of the kids, and a group shot of all the kiddos together. I was amazed. Owen was completely in love with him. The girls did everything he asked. We were in and out in an hour. SHOCKED I TELL YOU!! We will go back this afternoon to pick out our photos. I am hoping for another great outcome. I need headshots of all 4 kids, family photo, and a kids photo. I plan on keeping things simple this year. Card photos to family and friends, and just a large photo for us of the kids and the family. Money is tight, so sadly I can't do large orders like I use too. However, if you want something bigger, let me know. I will be happy to order it for you if you want to pay for it.

I will update everyone how how this afternoon goes. Wish me luck that there are plenty of nice ones to choose from! I will not be posting photos until after I have mailed out the cards!!

Friends for life

Sara was one of my best friend growing up. She also happened to live directly across the street from me. Even though she was two years older, it never stopped us from playing barbies, talking about boys, or what our life would be like when we grew up and got married and started having kids of our own. Of course, it didn't help that she got married when I was 18 and she was 20. And it also didn't help that I moved 300+ miles away. I never thought in a million years (nor did she) that we would someday not only have one, but two little kiddos together. I will never forget that day in June when I called her up out of the blue from my summer dorm room to tell her I was pregnant. It was so funny, both of us had to tell each other the same news. So of course, we did what every person would have done in that situation. We counted to 3 and blurred it out at the same time. We laugh still about that day. Well here are some pictures I happened to find. And how much they have changed in almost 7 years. Time really has flown. So much has changed. I wonder what the next 7 will hold for us. Only time will tell.

Joshua 3 weeks Olivia 5 weeks March 2003

 

Joshua 9 1/2 months Olivia 10 Nov. 2003

 

Joshua 15 months Olivia 15 months May 2004

 

Joshua 19 months Olivia 19 months September 2004

 

The Expanded Gang Joshua 6 Olivia 6 Emma-James 3 and Austin 3 April 2009

 

Sadly, I have lost a lot of pictures from the kiddos between 2004 up to now. I am lucky to have her and her family still in my life. She is one terrific person and its hard to believe that we have known each other as long as we have. And now are kids will grow up to be friends. Even if it is long distance!

Jason and I when we first met

Gosh, I was looking through all of our old pictures and I came across this one of Jason and myself. Look how young we are. Better yet, look at all the hair Jason has!! We met by chance thanks to a mutual friend of ours (thank you Tanya) one evening in October. Ahhh, memories. Someday I will have to write how Jason and I met, fell in love, and had 5 children and a beautiful house. Gosh, time flies so fast.

Jason and Kiley Fall 1999

 

Thankgiving

Thanksgiving this year was at my sisters house. My mom was busy cooking Wednesday night and Thursday day to help prep some food for my sister. She baked a few pies and made mashed potatoes as well as my favorite, sweet and sour meatballs YUMMY! My sister did a great job making the Turkey as well as a few pies herself. The table was set beautifully and everything was terrific. I was hoping to get some pictures of the table and food, but everyone was too hungry and dove right in. We basically starved ourselves and the kiddos so we could make room for Thanksgiving supper. HeHe. I tried to take some pictures of the family and the kids, but you know how it goes. Starving people, and hungry munchkins, make for bad pictures. But here they are for your viewing pleasure!

From left to right: My Nana holding Ezme, Grampy, my Mom holding Emma-James, my Dad holding Tyson and Owen and Olivia in the middle

 

Emma-James, Olivia, Ezme, Tyson and Owen

 

It was really a fun evening. My Nana even suggested we do a YANKEE SWAP this year. Each of us gets a gift of $5 dollars or under. It was a lot of fun, and I was surprised that only two people did any amount of swapping. I traded my item for a Moose bell that I am going to hang out in the backyard to call the kids in during the summer! And my dad took my hubby's present of scratch tickets. LOL. The tickets in which we purchased. Everyone was stuffed and happy. And the kids were so tired that when we got home everyone fell fast asleep. YAH! HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE. I hope everyone was able to enjoy good food, great company and tons of wonderful memories.

The Morning Grumps

We managed to get all of the kids asleep with Olivia pulling up the last of everyone at midnight. Unfortunately, it wasn't a good night for anyone. Emma-James woke up a few times thinking that her daddy left her and went back to RI. She wants to go home so badly. I am hoping the fun activities of the day will change her mind. I was also up with Ezme all night as well. She too just couldn't get comfortable without the regular comforts from home. She managed to sleep, but fussed about every hour looking for a binky. Then comes Owen. Who I believe slept okie. The only bugger is all 4 kids felt that they needed to be up at 6am!! And if you know my kids, if they get by 8:30, then we are doing pretty good. I made the hubby get up and tend to the kids and Chloe while I attempted to sleep in with Ezme. No such luck, everyone was cranky, overtired, hungry and miserable. I was up by 9am. Fed the monkey got the older girls dressed, and changed Owen and Ezme. Now I have everyone down for a good nap, including the hubby! Hopefully we will be more happy and chipper come 4pm when we head over to my sisters for Dinner. I hope everyone is having a nice Thanksgiving morning so far. I'll post more later on.

Millinocket, safe and sound

Well, we made it here with pretty good timing I might add. We ended up going to bed at 11pm. I had finished all the laundry, packed, did some last minute cleaning and decided to just do the rest in the morning. The kids slept until 7:45am and by 8am we were showered, dressed, and ready for breakfast. Hubby extraordinaire ran out to grab milk and fill up the van with gas or "food" as the kiddos call it. We were planning on taking the kids out for breakfast along the way, but the refused. They said cold cereal was faster and didn't want to waste all there time eating. LOL. The car was packed, kitty's taken care of, doggy put in the van and we were out of the house by 9:20am!!!! Yup, you read correctly. We stopped off a few times along the way. We had to grab the camera from one of Jason's clients and the we got as far as Danvers and of course we had to have a potty break and since it was at a D & D's we needed a midday snack as well! The rest of the way was great. We managed to make it to the first rest area which is about 2 1/2 hours from our home in RI. Kiddos got to stretch and run around, took the doggy for a little walk and then went inside for food all around. Fed all 6 of us and then changed 2 bums, potty break for the daddy and myself and then a treat for us. STARBUCKS!! We were on the road again exactly at 2. From that stop until we reached my home in Millinocket is about 3 1/2 hours so I popped in a movie and prepared for the long hall. Took a little nap as well as everyone else. Except for daddy, he was driving. We pulled into the rents house at 5:20pm. The drive was great, the kids were excellent and now we are all pretty tired. Ezme has been sleeping since 8:45. Olivia is still up helping Nana cook and Emma and Owen are begging to go back home. So they are being a tad tough tonight. Overtired and not being in their own beds is stressing them out a bit. Hopefully for a better morning. Until then. Happy Thanksgiving Eve everyone!!
Night all.

Thanksgiving here we come...

We will be leaving this morning for our trip up to Maine. 7 wonderful hours with 4 kiddos and a dog. Should be very interesting. Thank you lord for 2 DVD players, lots of reading material, and my I POD. Luckily the kids are great in the car and really don't mind the trip. I am just worried about Ezme. Its her first time on a long distance trip. Wish us luck. I promise to post with pictures when I return!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

Ezme's Eye Exam

For those of you who don't know, today we took Ezme to see a Pediatric Ophthalmologist. Both myself and our Pediatrician were concerned that she was unable to focus or track objects that were in front of her (especially the face or a bright object) when we took her last week for a well-baby visit, she was unable to even focus or track a flashlight. Nor did she blink or shun away when the flashlight was put directly in her eyes. This called for concern, so an appointment was made right away to get in to see the doctor. Our fear was she might be blind. Dr. Donahue's office was booked until March of 2010 but because he is good friends with Dr. Flynn, he was able to get us in today.

The Doctor was great. At first her report said she was 2 months old. Because of this, he wasn't as concerned. But when I corrected him and told him that she was 3 months old, his concern grew at that point. He did say that her eyes look great. No blockage, cataracts, or glaucoma. He said from what he could tell (now mind you, she is still quiet young) her eyes looked good for a 3 month old. However, she is definitely not focusing or tracking any type of object. He said that right now he is diagnosing her as "VISUALLY DELAYED" There is chance this all could correct itself and no need for worries. We made an appointment to see Dr. Donahue again in 3 months. If things have not gotten better and especially if things are getting worse and she is not reaching milestones at appropriate times, then we will go back earlier. Until then, its a wait and see. Which as every parent knows, IT SUCKS!
Until then, I will keep you posted on how she is doing.

Don't Forget to Vote

Voting is open for the poll DO YOU HOME-SCHOOL! Just look on the sidebar. I would love to find out how many people really do so! So vote vote vote.

And if you would like, I would love to hear comments. All are welcome.

Olivia and Mommy at the Beach

 

Picture of the kiddos

Mommy, Olivia, Emma-James, Owen and Ezme

 

Spring Cleaning Day 2

The Upstairs Portion of my house!

3 Bedrooms and 2 closets

Wash, fold,and organize all the laundry
Wash all bed sheets 6 beds
Wash windows
Clean out toys (time to donate!!)
Vacuum all 3 rooms

The upstairs should be easier as its not too too bad. Its just more time consuming. Hopefully it wont be too hard as Jason will be at work all day and we have to be at swim lessons at 5:30pm (leaving here at 5pm) So I plan on accomplishing everything on my list not only with all 4 kiddos, but with all 4 kiddos upstairs the entire day with no access to the downstairs as its already clean!
Hopefully this wont be so bad. I will just designate one room to their play and clean the rest and save the worst for last. We shall see. I'll keep everyone posted again on my accomplishments. Again, encouragement is always welcomed!

Spring Cleaning in NOVEMBER??

Yup, today I decided what better day to so-called SPRING CLEAN my house then today. We are heading out of town on Wednesday for Thanksgiving in Maine. And I wanted the house to be clean when I come home. It will be just about 3 weeks from the time we come back until we leave again to Maine for Christmas. Lets not mention the fact that I will be having Girl Scouts, Swim lessons and Christmas parties going on for the entire 3 1/2 weeks we will be home in December. So today is the day. I just hope I can actually finish it by tomorrow night!

So for fun I thought I would keep a tally of all the things I have done so far. Check back often to see what I have accomplished. Encouragement is always welcomed!

11-22-09

*I have actually finished

Downstairs Part of House

*Moved furniture in living room. swept and vacuumed.
*Washed Mirrors and windows
*Washed Floor
*Organized School cabinet
*Vacuumed floor
*Moved furniture
*Wash walls
*Wash windows
*Washed Floor
*Organized cabinets
Wash floor (this is last since our kitchen connects all the rooms up and down)
*Cleaned off counter-tops
*Washed toilet, tub, shower, sink
*Washed floor
*Washed and organized cabinets

Keep coming back to see what I have finished. This is just the downstairs part of the house. I still have 3 bedrooms and 2 closets to do upstairs.

COMPLETE!! COMPLETE!! COMPLETE!! COMPLETE!!

Done for the day. Night all.

It's A Girl

I just want to give a shout out to Seth and Janelle Pillips and the big sister Abby. They had A GIRL this afternoon. Rachel Marie Phillips 7lbs. 14 oz. and was 19 inches long. A peanut!! Hugs to all of you guys. Can't wait to see pictures of the new family of 4!!

Sweet Saturday Mornings

Happy Saturday Morning!! Daddy slept in until just now. The plan today is to get the house cleaned and organized before we leave next week for Maine. I am going to jet out later to get my hair cut. I look like I have a fur ball growing on my head. Hard to believe I just had it cute 5 weeks ago. Ugh, it grows too fast.

I am waiting for the arrival of my friend Seth and his wife Janelle's new litle baby. Since they live in Arizona, the time will affect when I find out. Hopefully he will text me as soon as he can. They have an adorable little girl Abby. I am sure she is just as excited to become a big sister. We can't wait to see pictures and find out if you are a little boy or little girl!

Emma-James holding Ezme

 

Nothing in particular

Dear fellow blog readers. Its about time I finally started my posting. I have taken so much free time its crazy. A lot of things are happening in our life. She is by far the biggest and tallest baby to date. She is a sweetheart though. Very lovable and loves to cuddle. Her favorite thing to do these days is to be carried around EVERYWHERE. Though she usually will settle and prefers her bed during her long afternoon nap and her bedtime. Speaking of bedtime, she is the best sleeper ever. She usually goes down between 8pm and 8:30pm and will sleep until the next morning usually waking up between 8am and 8:30am. Its awesome too, because the two little ones, Emma-James and Owen go to bed at 6pm. Olivia, being the oldest gets to stay up longer and enjoy some reading time or homework, and usually goes to bed when Ezme does.

The older girls are busy with there swimming lessons twice a week at the Cumberland High School. They swim for BLUE FISH SWIM CLUB and absolutely love it. Though if you had asked me last year, I would have told you there was no way we were going to get past the first class. But the girls are doing fantastic. Both of them now are able to swim on there own, float on there own, swim under water and even jump without fear. The girls are slowly started to swim from one end of the pool to the other without assistance. They need to grow stronger and continue to work hard, but I think in a few years they will be doing the competitive swim. Olivia and Emma-James are super excited for the day they get to swim with the BIG KIDS.

Owen is busy being the ham that he is. He just finished fighting off a nasty cold that I swear has been with him for more then a month. He hasn't felt that great at all. Cranky, miserable, unwilling to do anything. But his mood seems to be better today, so I am excited to say I might be getting my happy down to earth Owen back. FINALLY!!

Well that is all for now. I am sad that everyone has missed out on so much of the kids growing up, and even more sad that I haven't been able to write down all the stuff we do, just so the kids will have it for when they grow up. But at least I am starting now!!

Kiley

Anabelle's Memory

Here is the Memory card we put in each of the "A is for Annabelle" books. Hope you enjoy.

 

Anabelle's 5th Birthday!

Wow, I am still in shock that 5 years ago today Anabelle was born. So much has happened in 5 years. We got Chloe our dog, we bought a new home, we found Moose our kitty. Emma-James, Owen and Ezme were born. We remodeled the inside of our home. Made a beautiful waterfall in the backyard to bring the butterflies in memory of her. Purchased a new van. Traveling to Disneyworld. Jason and I got married!! Celebrated 5 birthday's without her. I truly could go on and on. It makes me sad sometimes knowing how much she has missed out being here with us. But I try to remember how happy she must be in Heaven with her Grandma and little brother or sister. We miss her terribly, but I know that someday I will get to hold her and love her again.

For her birthday this year I wanted to do something special to remember her 5th birthday. You know, 5 is special because you are now a WHOLE HAND. This year I donated books in Anabelle's name to our Pediatrician's office. "A is for Annabelle" by Tasha Tudor. I told the girls (aka the nurses) to hand out them out to children who would be visiting Dr. Flynn in her office today. Here is the snippet that we put in each book.

Pregnant with Anabelle Taken October 2004

 

Anabelle trying to sleep

 

Anabelle December 10th 2004

 

Christmas Family Photo 2004

 

It truly was a wonderful day. My heart still aches for her to be with us here. I never was truly sad about the diagnosis, the outcome or her passing. The fight for her is what kept me strong, and the time with her is what kept me alive. I cherish all the memories that we were able to make with her.

I LOVE YOU MY SWEET ANGEL ANABELLE! XOXO from your daddy, Olivia, Emma-James, Owen and Ezme too.

Well-Baby Visits for Owen and Ezme

I took the kiddos to see our Pediatrician today for their well-baby visits. Owen was suppose to have his last month, but due to the rising numbers of kiddos going in with the flu, our Pediatrician called and said it would be best to hold off. LOVE HER!! They did a great job, we were there for 3 hours because of the high number of sick kiddos, but I didn't mind. I enjoyed the time that I got to talk with the staff and just hang out quietly. So nice.

Here are their stats:

Owen at 2 years old.

Height 38 1/2 inches

Weight 28 lbs and 4 onces

He received just the regular non-chemical flu vaccine up the nose and we decided to hold off on other shots until next year. No rush. Since they don't go to public school I don't have to worry to have them done by Kindergarten. Owen is doing fantastic! evelop over the next couple of months. Here is a list of things my little man can do now at 2! She is amazed at his skills already. Here is some of the things my little man has mastered already.

* Can speak in 3 or 4 word sentences. Ex. "Mommy...I love you." or "Mommy, where is me pacie?"

* Can jump on both feet (3 years old)
* Can kick a ball
* Can climb on EVERYTHING with ease and keep up with big kids on the playground
* Loves to read and flip through books appropriately
* Has been sleeping in a BIG BOY BED (twin size) since he was 22 months.
* Feeds himself with appropriate utensils at every meal
* Eats EVERYTHING
* Will answer questions you ask him with correct answer. Ex. "Owen, do you want more cereal?" (Yes please)
* Uses please and thank you on his own
* Loves his big sisters and dots on his baby sister
* Is funny and loves to smile
* His favorite things in his life are his Nemo blanket (just a white fuzzy blanket) his duck and his penquin. Must sleep with them every night.
* Is complete boy. Loves his trucks, dirt and mud.
* Favorite show is "Peep in the big big world"
* Is a daddy's boy but loves his mommy too
* Can name everyone in our family and extended family
* Can name of all of his body parts, point to body parts on himself and others
* Can say animal names such as Moo for Cow, Oink for Pig, Meow for Cat etc.
* Can put pants and socks on himself
* Attempting the potty

It wasn't me in the sugar mommy!

 

Ezme also had an appointment today with our wonderful Pediatrician. She did great as well, and enjoyed the quiet at the office. She good a great nap, until we woke her for a quick weight and height check. And with this, we had to make her naked. Not so happy. Her stats today were:

Weight 11lbs. 2oz.

Height 22 1/2 inches.

She also needed a shot today (we are holding off on others for awhile) and had a liquid form of medicine as well. All in all the kids are doing great. We will not be recieving the H1N1. Since the kids aren't in public schools and we are keeping the kids safe when we go out in public, we decided against it. I had a long discussion with my doctor and I just don't feel comfortable enough or have enough reason to give it to my kiddos who are otherwise healthy. I rather save it for those who truly need it the most. I will share however Ezme's accomplishments at 2 months old:

* Can hold her head up when on her belly
* Is starting to smile and giggle
* Is able to grasp objects if put in her hands
* Is sleeping through the night from 8pm - 8am or later
* Loves the sound of daddy's voice
* Loves to listen to the T.V.

At the moment Ezme is only tracking objects that are a far distance from her face
(6 inches or more) so she will be visiting a pediatric ophthalmologist Tuesday the 24th just to be sure its not something more serious. At first we thought she might be completely blind, but we have noticed that she will try hard to focus with lots of light in the room. So we will see. I promise to keep everyone posted. Until then, enjoy a picture of the little princess.

Ezme 2 months old

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

The kids had a great time at their friends house for Halloween. We managed to make almost all the houses in the neighborhood and they enjoyed their goodies when we returned from the Trick-or-Treating they did. Steph and myself were completely amazed at how well the two 2-year-olds stayed steady with the older bunch. Way to go Owen and Mia! The kids are jonked and so are Jason and I. I am sure tomorrow is going to be more of a great day. Can't believe it will already be November 1st.

Olivia, Nicky, Emma-James, Owen, Mia and Ezme

Ezme 7 weeks old

Ezme is now 7 weeks old, and I am still in awe at how time just seems to fly by. I guess that happens when your mom to 4 and your life revolves around school work, swimming lessons, Girl Scouts, changing, feeding, cleaning and organizing. Not to mention the numerous trips to the library, grocery store and target. Busy busy.

Ezme had another check up today. Nothing too big. Just a over-all well baby visit. Weight is great. we are up to 9lbs 10oz. and 22 inches long. She is growing like a week thats for sure. We are still eating about every 4 hours, but we tend to cluster feed in the morning. Ezme has no problems drinking sometimes 12 ounces in a single morning feed. She is also sleeping through the night and has been for about a week now. Usually she will go down around 8:30pm and sleeps until about 8 or 8:30 the next morning. HURRAY. Now if only mommy could relax enough to sleep through the night as well. *giggles* Its hard though when you are listening for 4 sets of breaths all through the night. Ahh, I don't really mind though. I have plenty of time to sleep when I am old and gray.

Ezme 7 weeks old. Lounging around in her seat

 

Tomorrow is Halloween. We plan on spending the evening with some good friends in Lincoln. They live in a great area for Trick-or-Treating. Lots of friendly houses and and its mostly a dead end road, so we don't have to worry so much about cars. Unlike our area that is very busy with cars and trucks and sadly not many people on our street keep there lights on for Trick-or-Treaters. Its just nice that we have a place we can go. I will post pictures as soon as I can.

Auntie Ryann visits and Birthday Wishes

My sweet sister decided to come down this month not only to see her newest niece again, but to also be here for Owen's 2nd birthday. Plus I have been dying to take Tyson to the Zoo here in Providence, but the weather doesn't always seem to understand that we don't have time for rain, wind or snow. So with that, we were very lucky to have beautiful weather while they where here. Thank Heavens. I wasn't quit sure how to explain to my 3 year old nephew that we couldn't go see the Elephants again this time. Sadly though, it was me who was unable to attend this years Spooky Zoo at Roger Williams. I was a busy beaver cleaning the house and getting party things ready for Owen's 2nd birthday. My parents along with my sister took the kiddos to the Zoo while hubby and I handled the party stuff here at the house. It really worked out great that way too. By the time they arrived home, everything was just about finished.

Tyson and Owen enjoying MUD

 

Emma-James and Tyson hanging out in the toy box

 

I was so happy that my sister and nephew as well as my parents could come down for Owen's 2nd birthday. It was such a great day. Warm weather, great food, lots of friends and family. I still can't believe that we managed to pack almost 30 people in the house and that included at least 12 kids. WOW. I still have been horrible getting Thank You cards out in the mail, but I have not forgotten. I keep hoping for a good picture of Owen to send everyone along with the Thank You's. But those who have had pleasure to spend time with a 2 year old, knows that its always a hit or miss with them. So keep a lookout. I promise I will send them to you!

Owen blowing out his Big Birthday candles

 

Opening up his presents

 

I would have to say all in all the day was a complete success. Everyone to me had a good time. We had the pleasure of spending his birthday with some great friends as well as our great neighbors. Owen had a fantastic time being the busy body that he is. And by the end of the day, was so tired that he fell asleep in his clothes. Poor bugger. HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY LITTLE MAN, MOMMY LOVES YOU TONS!

Ezme is a MONTH OLD!

Ezme is now one month old. Hard to believe the time has flown by so fast! I couldn't wait for her to arrive, and now she is already one month old. In one month she has made about two dozen trips to the Mall. She has gone to watch her big sisters at swimming lessons 6 times, she has rode in mommy's van at least everyday sometimes twice a day since she was born. Walked around Boston Common, has been Apple Picking,and enjoyed the sunny outside. Here is a picture of the big blue eyed girl!

Ezme 1 month old