Happy Dirt-Day

Just celebrated James and Eric's birthdays. Love how James sings "Happy Dirt Day." Eric had a bunch of boys over for a beyblade celebration and James had a few friends over for pizza and cupcakes. We had a family party for them combined over the weekend. James blew out the candles like a pro. He was adorable running around in his new construction vest and hat fixing everything in the house.

Little pumpkin

James is getting so big! In a month he'll be 3. We finally took the side off crib to make a
Toddler bed and he loves it. It was a big moment the first time he walked
In to get me out of bed instead of calling for me to get him.
Tucking him in the other night I said "good night little pumpkin."
He said " I'm not a pumpkin mama I'm james Gregory."

Monster Jam Minivan

Today Andrew said maybe we should have the plugged tire moved to the back so in case the tire went flat the car wouldn't go off the road. Eric "that would be soooo awesome... just like Monster Jam."

You Mean

James "Daddy.. you mean."

Mommy "James, that's fresh, we don't say that."

James "Daddy you not cute."

Townie

was just driving through Norwood Center and Eric said "I'm probably not gonna move out of Norwood when I grow up cause I'm definitely gonna wanna see what it looks like here in 30 years...." Oh boy....

Prince and Princess

Andrew was being funny and put a screensaver of Prince William and Kate Middleton on my computer. James thought it was Auntie Lindsay and Uncle Jon. I guess that's a compliment!

Funny Day

The kids had some finny stuff to say today:

Ellie -- "When I am 17 and James is 16 I bet he's gonna talk a lot better than he does now."

Eric -- "Mom, how many liquor stores are there in Times Square?"

Christmas Vacation

What an awesome week we had hanging out as a family. Andrew was home all week and we really didnt have a lot of plans but ended up having so much fun.

Thursday- Took James to lunch at Panera and LLBean while the big kids were at school
Friday- Eric went bowling, Ellie spent the day baking with Nannie, Xmas Eve dinner at Lindsay and Jon's
Saturday-CHRISTMAS... barbie house, beyblades, monster trucks, wonderpets beanies, trains... breakfast at Auntie Carole's, Dinner at Nannie and Papa's
Sunday/Monday-big blizzard, 18 inches, they loved making snow balls and looking for animal footprints
Tuesday-Kids go to work at Oracle with Daddy
Wednesday-Sledding, Afternoon movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
Thursday-watched Madison, Ellie playdate with Leanne, Eric playdate with Mikey
Friday- Train to Boston for First Night Sculptures, Westwood Fireworks, Lindsay and Jon's party
Saturday- Rob and Anita visit
Sunday-Patriots Party

Blizzard

We were outside playing in the snow storm today and it was really windy. James yelled "mama the snow is making me sad."

I love all my people

Tonight I was putting James to bed and I said I love you… he responded with I Love mommy, daddy, sissy, brothy… I love all my people.

Shower

Tonight they wanted to know if they could wear their rainboots in the shower.

Halloween

Darth Vader
Buzz Lightyear
Wicked witch of the West

Barbie Day

The last day before school starts so Ellie and I spent a long time together playing Barbies. Her story was so cute that we were acting out. Barbie (Viveca) was getting married to Brian (the African American Ken doll.) She dressed all the bridesmaids and even little flower girls. Ken (the best man) got hurt in a surfing accident so one of the Barbies was his nurse in the hospital. Since his wife, Cheryl, was the maid of honor she asked the videographer to take a video so she could bring the DVD to show Ken in the hospital. The nurse fed Ken orange soda and watermelon to get his strength back. (contents of Barbie BBQ set) Viveca and Brian went to Hawaii on their honeymoon. I asked how long the flight was but she said let's just pretend it only takes two hours in the Barbie car. In Hawaii they met another couple (Ken2) and another Barbie. The realized they are both from Norwood and they are neighbors.
Viveca got a couple phone calls on her cell phone... one was Cheryl calling to say Ken was ok, and he liked the DVD. And one was from "Auntie" who babysitting the doggie but the doggie wouldn't drink anything. So Viveca told Cheryl "believe it or not all that dog drinks is orange soda." (Ellie herself hates orange soda but the Bbq set came with 3 bottles)
Then Viveca and Brian went to the beach to go suntanning (we discussed the danger of UV rays) and they met a mermaid! The mermaid's pet dolphin got a "stubbed flipper" so Viv drove the mermaid and the dolphin quickly to the vet in the convertible.
The vet put the dolphin in the pool and put a bandage on the flipper. Then Viv and the mermaid took the dolphin back to the ocean and Viv said she would come in 2 weeks to help bring the dolphin to get the bandage off.
Later, Brian and Viv ran into the mermaid again and she told them the dolphin was ok so they didn't need to go to the vet.
So, they get back from the honeymoon and Viv has a baby girl at the hospital. ("She didn't know she was gonna have a baby and it didn't take 9 months")
Ken comes to visit now that he is out of the hospital and brings a new carseat and a new hat for the baby.
The new baby is named Elizabeth and the baby's older cousin Dorothy came to see her in the hospital. DOrothy couldn't stay because she had to go to her first day of Kindergarten.
Then Grandma Midge (the short haired Barbie from the 60s my aunt gave Ellie) came to see the baby too. This is the same grandma that held the flower girls on her lap during the wedding.
And that's where the story ended... with Dorothy off to Kindergarten.. and that's where Ellie will be tomorrow. What an imagination... and wow.. can you tell what's going on in her life!!!!

Eric's Eating

Eric was unimpressed with the turkey sloppy joes I made for dinner. I told him to tell me 3 things he would eat and of course, chicken fingers, hot dogs and pizza were his choices. He also told me he likes vegetarian food better so I asked him what about chicken fingers and hot dogs and he said he could be a vegetarian except for those 2. We had a similar discussion when he was 3 but I thought by 6 he would have changed his tune.

Awww

Worth mentioning that the same six year old in the previous post just called me upstairs (he's in bed for the night) to tell me to close the sandbox in case it rains. So responsible.

Uh Oh

So tonight my innocent 6 year old said " can you hose me off... I'm really freakin muddy."

No Song

James hates whenever I sing. Whenever I sing along to anything... he screams "no song, no song." Aren't all kids supposed to love their moms singing to them?

More Jamesisms

Gotta love this sentence... "Water, messy, James did that one."

When he doesn't want to get out of bed "No James another one sleep."

Ellie in the Mud

Ellie loves dirt.. no matter what kind of dress she is wearing. So when she was at Nani and Papa's in a big mud puddle in a pretty dress I said "oooh Ellie..." And she replied "what... I'm washable."

Ellie at Oracle

Ellie went to Oracle one afternoon. Amazing what a kid can do at an office. Free apple juice, a whiteboard, phones, paper, staplers, long hallways, elevator. Wouldn't it be nice if we could all have that much fun at work?

Ice Cream

Andrew is in Philadelphia because Aunt Barbara passed away. It is so sad. I was just looking at pictures of us last year at her house visiting and one year later she is gone.
The kids are a bit off with Daddy away so I decided to take them to Crescent Ridge tonight with Nani and Papa. We met Lindsay and Jon there. I could not stop laughing at James screaming E-I-O to the cows over and over. Ellie tried to tell him that they moo but he was adamant. It was also so cute to see the three of them singing Ring Around Rosy together for a few minutes.
Moving on Friday... cannot wait.

Kippies Peas

Rice krispies Please

Soh-dee

How James says sorry. if you ask for a kiss and then make a sad face when he says no.. he says "soh-dee hug hug" So cute.
Eric and Ellie have become "sissy" and brothy."

memory Lane - Part II

Eric at age 2

Memory Lane - Part I

Eric wearing a shirt we got from Tony in England. Circa 2004

Eric's 6 Year

Eric had his 6 yr physical today. He passed with flying colors and amazed the nurse by guessing he would be 49 pounds, which is exactly what he was. He is 46 inches tall and has grown 3 inches in one year... wow!!
He passed vision ok and we already know about the ears.
One shot and he recovered from it very quickly, no tears!

Funny Kids

Ellie told Auntie Julie "why don't you just swallow some baby clothes and then the baby in your belly can get dressed."

James has finally named Eric and Ellie -- "inky and sissy"-- I love it!!!!!!!

James' 2 Year

James' appointment started out great with a happy little guy sitting there pointing out everything in the room with his new vocabulary. We waited a long time though so he finally started saying "done..done.. done" When he realized we weren't leaving he started his usual kicking screaming head banging tantrums. This is when the doctor came in. i was actually thrilled because I wanted the doctor to see him in action because I have been worried about the frequency and intensity of his tantrums.
Turns out that because of his ears he is slightly behind verbally and becomes easily frustrated when he can't make his wishes known. The doctor assured me this was perfectly normal so hopefully he will start to outgrow it soon.
Weight: 29.7
Height: 33 inches

He passed his iron test, I knew he would, the "carnivore" that he is.
A healthy 2 year old!

April Stuff

So I just realized that ALL of my posts from my laptop have had Andrew as the author. Not that I mind if it looks like he is the author but...Things have been so hectic lately.
We are planning for our new house to be built and it is exciting yet stressful too. I love seeing the kids' reactions when we drive by. Eric is thrilled to have so many friends in the new neighborhood. Ellie can't wait to have her own room and a little girl next door.
So to continue James' words... in the past few days he has added geeeeeen (green), mik (milk)re (red) boots tuck (truck) ec tuk (eric's truck)he can recognize the colors now when I ask him what color things are. He has an appointment on 5/2 at Mass Eye and Ear so I am hoping we can figure out why he got the ruptured ear drum even with the tubes, and whether he is having any speech delays. I thought he was having trouble but all of a sudden daily his vocabulary is growing.
Ellie's class is getting ready for graduation so I attached a video of one of the special graduation songs.

More words

hekker= helicopter
airpeeee= airplane
airbaby= not sure, some kind of airplane
mine
uh uh
yeah
mik=milk

Outside Bathroom

We are so excited to be building a new home. When we decided to move I never imagined we’d be doing this… so exciting!! The kids have really enjoyed driving by to see the progress.  Today we drove by and Ellie screamed “look!!!!! it even comes with an outside bathroom!” (porta potty)

Airport Visit

Top reasons to go to Norwood Airport:

• The kids love to do it
• Its free
• Its close
• The weather was finally nice
• James now says “Airplane” pretty well

James’ Words (almost 2)

 

I love this stage. he is learning new ones every day, here are some:

mama, dada, nani, papa, amy, elmo (yaya), meeeeee,

one, T, choo choo, bummer, ya

dida (banana), appi (apple/pineapple) acka (cracker) cook (cookie) baahh (fruit bar), baba (milk cup) bac (juice box), duck, raaaah (any scary animal including shark at the aquarium), gaaa (star), mah (moon), iaga (triangle), onge (orange) purpa (purple) booo (blue) pittie (pretty picture) bee (baby doll)

car car, dog dog, ball, block, BUZZY (Buzz Lightyear-major obsession)

feeeeeeee (freeze in freeze dance)

and today’s new word.. fishy!

Ellie Being Convincing

“But Mom, you’re the best mom in the world and the best mom in the world would let you do that.”

Another Sentence I Never Thought I’d Hear

“Mom, help, my pickle is blowing away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Ellie’s kitchen set food was left in the car and so I was actually chasing a plastic pickle.

Temporary Quarters

So we moved out of Redwood Drive and into Gay Street while we are looking for a house. It was sad to leave but we can’t wait for a bigger place where everyone has their own space. Ellie told Nan the other night “I think we’re gonna stay a couple more nights.”

Buzzy

James first obsession is Buzz Lightyear and all things Toy Story. He seems to have skipped the typical train/car phases but he is hooked. He goes around Nani and Papa’s house carrying Rachel’s old Buzz Lightyear bank in one hand and a mini Buzz in the other. He will actually sit (or stand) and watch the entire movie which is pretty good for a not quite two year old.  Last night he was tucking Buzz into Ellie’s baby bed and lovingly saying “buzzy” over and over.  The other day he broke Buzz so that the top half of his body was hanging over to one side. Andrew put him on the table while he was fixing it and James just sat and stared saying “Buzzy” in the saddest voice ever.  Toy Story 3 is coming out in June and I think it will be his first movie!

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Fun times in NC

Kids had a blast with their cousins. I liked this pic because there us one of Eric from a couple years ago with Leah. She is the nicest pit bull I have ever met, and the kids really get along with her. Hard to imagine a dog sleeping through 6 kids running around breaking everything, but it happens.

I do intend to blog more and put more pictures on the site.

Good Boy

Eric said after Christmas “I can’t believe I got so many presents even though I wasn’t good all year!”

Santa

Santa visited school today and Ellie wanted to know where were the reindeer and sleigh!

Today’s Dinner Conversation

Eric : “Liar liar pants on fire”

Ellie: “Whose pants are on fire?”

Eric: “Yours.”

Ellie: (Touches pants) “But they aren’t hot.”

Ellie: “Is it cause they’re pink?”

Braids and Charlie Brown

Just had a really nice Thanksgiving at Mom and Dad’s.  Ellie had a braid in her hair and when I took it out her hair was all wavy.  She couldn’t stop looking in the mirror.  I always forget little things like that the kids don’t know about.

As a treat I let the big kids stay up and watch Charlie Brown’s Thanksgiving. I forgot the sayings like “blockhead” and “stupidest person on earth.”

James is One

When you ask James how old he is he points one finger up to the sky. I tried to ask him how old Ellie is but she is 1 too. :)

James is Growing Up

Since James had his ear tubes in this month, he is a lot better about being less cranky and actually plays with toys.  He is currently into blocks and cars, and likes to show us things.

Eric and Ellie are playing soccer on Saturdays when it isn’t raining, and they go to school and learn all week. Ellie goes to sleep with Christmas music on (still), and Eric sleeps in our bed to radio sports.

Hug

Ellie was so excited today to go sleep over Julie and Mike's house. She got her sleeping bag ready by 2pm.. picked out a movie for her and Mikey, packed up her backpack. So cute. Julie said Mikey is still running around and Ellie went right to bed :) The cutest was when she left Eric ran outside to "give her a little hug." That's a first!!

1st day of Kindergarten!

Well, I survived the first day of Kindergarten. Eric had a good day. His teacher's name is Mrs. Mahoney. I think he is missing his Mrs. Perry's preschool friends, mostly Niko, but he was thrilled to ride the bus with Christopher. Today he didn't get home until 3:30 and the bus driver said "tomorrow will be better, the first day is always long." And Eric said "if it takes this long imagine how long it will take him to find my new house."
I was a little teary and Ellie said "don't worry mom you still have me home." Awwwww..... except she is going to school 3 days a week now!

17 Month Vocabulary

teeeeeeee- tree, flower, grass.. anything green
nigh night- blankie, binky, nap or going to bed
ma ma, da da, papa, nani
kiiiis (Eric and Ellie-kids)
baaa- block, ball, bat
nose- just points to it, knows where it is
driving noise- car or truck
airplane- reaches to the sky

Sun Roof Experience

So today I opened the sunroof of the car because I thought the kids would get a kick out of it... they responded with:
Eric "I hope no space craters crash through there."
Ellie 'And I hope no dead birds fall into the car!"

Mama

James said mama... hooray!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

James' Bump

Today I took James to the doctor because we noticed a lump on the bottom right side of his head at the hair line. Turns out it is a "reactive lymph node"... his body is going into overdrive fighting off infection and making it swell. The dcotor said out of 100 1-3 yr olds 40 have this at some time. Just need to watch it.

James' Checkup

25 lbs, 33 inches. 86% for height! He is going to go Mass Eye and Ear for an ear tube evaluation just like Eric.

His latest words: night night, knock knock, (ball, bat, bottle, block= baaa), dog, da, cookie, cracker (caka)

When will this child say mama????

Oops!

 

Ellie and James had fun cleaning this mess up!

Birthday Beauty

We have a 4 year old!! Ellie had a bounce house for her birthday. Because of the hoilday we got to have it for 4 days and the kids were in heaven. She has had a butterfly theme for the 4th time. I offered her a store bought cake but she LOVES baking so she wanted to bake it with me. I can't believe how fast she is growing.. and how smart and gorgeous she is!!

Buzzing Baby James' Hair

Awwww

Lately James has been such a sweet boy. Today Ellie was overtired and in tears crying and James toddled over and held out his blankie, when she wouldn't take it he tried his binky. No luck with that either but he did clap for himself when we said good job.

Every morning James get his bottle warmed up. (He's 15 months I know he should deal with the cold) The minute it's done and I screw the top on he runs into the living room and stand next to the couch because that's where I've been feeding him every morning since he was a tiny baby. It's so cool that he is starting to really understand things.

What a rooster says

Crock a doodle doo!

According to Ellie :)

Yay for Me

James just learned to clap and he claps for himself whenever he says "mama" or stands up on his own. He is very proud of himself and sometimes just walks around clapping.
I think it is a big achievement that when I say "no give that to mommy" he passes whatever is in his hand to me.
He tantrums just like Eric did.. carefully easing himself onto the floor so he doesn't hurt himself while he is screaming.

Sportsnut

Eric is a huge sports fan, especially of the Celtics and Red Sox. He now watches Sportscenter any chance he gets. The commercials for the sports are making an impression on him too.. he told me today when we drove by a Chili's "Mom, did you know they have fire grilled quesadillas there?" and when I got a turbo shot at DD he told me "turboshots make you better at baseball." (Duston Pedroia is a Dunkin Donuts spokesperson)
Today I got him a black Nike sweatband and we colored the swoosh green to be like the Celtics. He looks so adorable wearing it.

13 Months 2 Weeks

When little James started walking, yay James!!!! I love the toddling stage with the arms up for balance.

Yo

Is a nickname for Yo-yo, according to Ellie.

Uh Uh

I think James thinks the bathroom is called the "uh uh" because I always try keep him out of it. Now he crawls up to it or in it if he's fast enough saying 'uh uh, uh uh, uh, uh"

One Year Old

We have a one year old!! The cake was an bit of a let down, James wasn't overly impressed and ate it with little fanfare. He is obsessed with his solid foods now and happily kicks his feet while he's eating. I love his cute words: na-na (banana) Mum mum (mom) da da (Dad) na na na (NO NO NO)
His best skill is waving hello and goodbye and knowing when to do it. He waves and makes a noise that sounds a bit like haaaaaa. When you put his jacket he waves or if the door opens.
He can stand and cruise around and lets go for 10 seconds or so but not quite ready to go. Speed crawler!!!!
No more formula! He has en ear infection and is getting better thanks to Zithromycin, the only medicine that seems to work for him. He weighs 22 lbs.

Stuck Plane

I told Eric and Ellie that they wouldn't see Grandmom tonight because her plane was stuck in North Carolina and she was going to be 5 hours late.
Ellie said "What's the plane stuck to?"

Tea

Today we went to the Four Seasons for tea to celebrate Mom's birthday. Ellie, Mom, Julie, Lindsay and I went. We had tea and pastries and Ellie dressed up in her beautiful dress. My favorite part was when Ellie said "Is this what real princesses do?"

Ellie's Wish

"Star Light, Star Bright... I want the wish I wish tonight. I wish I had no brothers."

More of Eric's Religious Ponderings

With the discussions about James' baptism, Eric would like to know "why did God give his baby to Mary and Joseph?"

Finally

James can sleep through the night!!! 11 hours straight woo hoO!!!!!!!

Diginal Camera

I know when the kids get bigger I am going to forget their cute baby ways of saying things but I just can't get over how Ellie says "my diginal camera" She got a pink one from Santa.

James at 9 Months

20 lbs 1oz. 29.5 inches! Perfect!!! He is doing so well. Crawling (sort of) and standing. If he wants something he has his own method of rolling/dragging/crawling to get it. Still up at night at midnight and 5am... will it ever end!

Eeeeww

So today on the radio we heard "I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus" and Eric said "Who would kiss Santa-he doesn't even have a mouth!"

The true meaning of Christmas

Grammy gave Eric and Ellie a little manger and all the little figurines to put inside. Eric set the whole thing up and thought about it for a couple minutes and then said "well... where's God?"

Apples & Oranges

These kids never cease to amaze me. In thinking about how Tina and I differ, I guess I can understand. Tina can draw anything, and I couldn't even write my name so you could read it. Funny how I see that in Eric and Ellie. Little science guy and budding artist. Both smart but in different ways. Just really good kids I enjoy being around. When I m able to drop everything including my crazy thought process, I start to appreciate just how far they have come in a couple years. Reading, learning, and remembering everything reminds me of me. So does stubbornness and nosiness. But hey, as long as we can help them grow up and be a part of it every day, they'll be fine.

Ears

Eric "I'm lucky, I have tubes in my ears... all Ellie and James have is ear wax."

James's First Ear Infection

Poor James has his first ear infection. Runny nose, very fussy, won't sleep at night. He has a look on his face like he wants to be happy but can't. He is taking amoxicillin. At the doctor's he weighed 19 lbs 1 oz.

Naked Heart

Today I took off James' shirt while he was playing because he was drooling through everything. Ellie walked in the room and said "Mommy, why is James naked around his heart?"

Awww....

Tonight Eric told me "I have the best life ever" (must note this was in response to me organizing a playdate with his buddy, and driving our neighbor to school with us)
Ellie fell asleep reading without her binky and never mentioned it.. we have a big girl now!

Trick or Treating... again

The kids are obsessed with trick or treating. Ellie asked if we could go trick or treating again on Thanksgiving! Then they were amazingly playing together dressing up in old costumes and going around the house pretend trick or treating. It was nice to see them playing together with out fighting. Ellie did fall down and Eric screamed "Ellie bumped her head and I didn't even do it this time."

Carnivores

Eric: "Mom, how do dinosaurs eat meat if they don't know how to cook?"

James at 7 Months

At 7 months James is sitting for a long time, rolling across the floor several times in a row...even getting himself stuck half under the couch. He loves his doorway jumper and exersaucer.
We had to put him in a big boy carseat (sniff sniff) so no more carrier. I can;t believe he has already reached that stage.
He is a very smiley baby now and loves to watch his brother and sister. He always laughs. When they have tantrums or cry he laughs out loud and they can't help smiling too.
He has about 4 bottles a day and some days loves baby food and some days not.
His favorite thing is to drink out of our water cups. he grabs it with both hands and actually drinks, which he won't do with a bottle or sippy.
He is a blondie and it looks like the blue eyes are staying. Everyone who sees him comments on how beautiful his eyes are.

Potty Party

Just writing it is jinxing it, I know, but today we are one week accident free with Ellie! To celebrate we went to Panera for bagels and got her some play food at Toys R Us. Hopefully we are finally diaper free (well 2/3 diaper free I should say )

Spacesuit

Today Ellie pointed to a spacesuit costume and called it a "blastoff dress."

Blackberry

Today Eric told me I should get one!

27 Days

Today Eric said "Your birthday isn't for 27 days." It is actually in 28 but I was shocked that he was so close so I asked how he came up with that and he responded with
"I start at 31 and count backwards 3 because it's October 3rd so 31-30-29-28, wait actually it's in 28 days."
I think that is pretty advanced thinking for a four year old.

Secrets of a Mom

The other day I had to take a shower with a dirty car seat! There was no other way to take the covering off. Now it is sparkling :)

I love baby food. I always taste James' food to see if it is hot and for some reason I really like the baby rice cereal and bananas.

Ellie the Cowgirl

Ellie rode the horse today on her class field trip to the stable. She had such a fun time. She fed carrots to the horses by throwing them over the fence and screaming "there it is horse."

Help me please... I need a Dictionary

Today Eric and I were talking and for some reason I said "You are awfully good at that." And he said how can I be awful and good at the same time!!!

Did someone say...

it was easier to potty train a girl than a boy. Not quite the case around here!

Obama/McCain

So yesterday while the kids were sitting in the kitchen having some hot chocolate (rainy and cold), I told them they could watch some videos. I meant videos of themselves but when I turned on the computer yahoo news was on and Eric saw the pictures and he said "are we going to watch videos of Barack Obama and John McCain."

James' 6 Month Update

height: 27.5 inches... too big for his baby carrier :( 75th percentile
weight: 16.13 lbs 40th percentile

doing great... eating fruits.veggies.oatmeal.rice.formula.nursing

rolling over. not sitting yet but close

Imagine Eric and Ellie's faces when the doc said "we can give them flu shots while they're here."

Picture it: a tiny HOT room with three kids all getting shots. Not the ideal way to spend an afternoon. Ellie was amazingly the only one who cried.

Back to School

So Eric and Ellie are in preschool. Ellie goes Tue/Thu and Eric Mon/Wed/Fri. It is so nice for them to have time alone with me in the mornings and they both adore school.
Last night Ellie made us sit down and she read us an entire book that they have at school. Only 2 days and she is already playing the teacher.
Eric told me "you know school is a little bit more fun than home, there are more people and more things to do." I had better make things a little more exciting around here :)

Bad Pitch!

So due to peer pressure from her brother, Ellie decided to take up baseball. After she missed the first ball she said "bad pitch" and then continued to say that each time she missed!

Just Around the Corner

Andrew ran into Olympia Sports to get some soccer shin pads for Eric. While Andrew was in there Eric said "You know, there's always an Olympia Sports just arpund the corner."

Our Trip to Asheville

We came back on Saturday from our long road trip to Asheville. We had such a great time, things couldn't have been better... well maybe a little more sleep for the kids :)

We started off on a Thursday Morning (8:30am) and got to Philadelphia around 3. We stayed overnight and the next day until about 4. The kids slept in the car for about 3 hours then we stopped for dinner and finished the drive to Roanoke Va. (arrived 11pm) The next morning we woke up early (8am) and drove straight to Asheville and got there around 2 after stopping for lunch.

The kids had so much fun playing with Marley, Ally, and Ayden. They keep talking about Grandmom and Pop Pop and Auntie Tina and Uncle Mike and Grandpop and Ros and Grandpop and Aunt Barbara and Uncle Ted. I wrote like they speak.. listing EVERY person. Too cute.

We went to the Nature Center and Arboretum. The big hit for the kids was the Farmer's Market because Grandmom bought them ice cream. One night Grandmom and Pop Pop babysat so we could go out and when we walked in the door the kids were screaming "No.. go back out."

Ellie is in love with Tina and Mike's house. She said that she wants to "live on a hill like Auntie Tina with 3 dogs and 1 cat."

The kids got a kick out of sleeping in sleeping bags. They did miss out on naps though, it was too hard to calm them down in the middle of the day.

Can't wait until our next trip!!! Although, this went a little too well, next time, who knows! Pics as always, coming soon :)

Off Limits

Or in Ellie's words "Eric, Mommy said that toy is off lemons."

1st Dentist Visit/Spring Onions

Today was Ellie's first dentist appointment and Eric's 3rd (yes he's counting) Ellie was all excited and insisted on going first, then when the hygienist was about to start Ellie jumped off the chair so we let Eric go first. Eric loved every minute of it, especially wearing sunglasses so the light didn't get into his eyes. After watching him Ellie went next and did great. It cracks me up how they call flouride "special watermelon jelly" and toothpaste "princess paste."

And the Bad Mother of the Year Award goes to... ME! Well it wasn't exactly my fault, but I am supposed to have eyes in the back of my head. We were outside playing and went in to make dinner. I put James in the exersaucer and put some veggies from the garden on the sink to wash for dinner. I went into the red room to put on the TV so the kids could watch Curious George while I made dinner and the next thing I know I hear Ellie laughing and James making funny sucking noises. So I go in to find her trying to feed him spring onions...OMG!!!!!!! He actually liked it and was laughing. I picked him up right away and there was nothing in his mouth, thank god, but he reeked of onions! I think she has been paying attention when I have said "we're going to try rice cereal, bananas, carrots..etc." So she was just trying something new. Ugh... can't leave her alone for a second!

Mentioning food, at the pediatrician's advice we started James on rice at 4 months. He has no problems eating it and practically jumps out of the highchair when he sees it coming. So I started with bananas for a couple days, then apple, and now carrots. I can't believe how much he is eating but the other kids were early too.

Rain..Rain..Rain

August has been the rainiest month. Eric said the other day "I don't like August, it just rains too much." We try to run outside in between storms and play a little baseball or ride the trikes around the block.

Today my darling 4 year old told me (in the pouring rain as I was strapping him into his car seat) that I looked like a "wet dog."
Thanks a lot, Eric!

Three Musketeers

Can't get much cuter than that!

One of Our Favorite Things

The kids and I LOVE going for walks right after it rains. Today I let them jump in all the puddles, even the muddy ones, and put them in the bath afterwards.