It's the most wonderful time of the year!

I have just not been very good with blogging lately!
November came and went so quickly but we had lots of fun!

The friday before Thankgsgiving, a friend and I had the great idea to take our children to the Boston Children's museum. Five kids. No dads. Friday evening. Boston. Need I say more? : )

We actually had a very good time once we got there. The kids loved playing in the "Arthur" room.

They also got right to work in the "construction room". Must be all the home projects they have seen their daddies do over the years!

The best part for us Mommies were the five sleeping "babies" on the way home!

Two days later we had a bunch of family over to the house. In less than a year (Feb. 2009- Jan. 2010), Mike's grandparents welcomed four new great-grandchildren into their lives. We decided to try and get some pics of all six great grandchildren together for them for Christmas. We had all these great ideas but funny enough none of us ever thought that they just might not be up for this great idea!

All in all though it was a great time and so good to get all the kids together!

And then came Thanksgiving! While Vinny and I stayed home to watch the parade and bake some desserts, Mike and Isabella hiked up Pack Monadnock. Isabella (and Jackson!) did a great job!

My parents joined us for dinner and afterwards the rest of our families stopped by for dessert and drinks. This is the only holiday that we stay in our own home for and as it is the last one in this home, we were really glad to spend it here.

This weekend we are off to Boston! Mike's work is having their company party and Mike, me, the kids and my parents are all going to spend the night and do some fun Christmas-y ( I think I made up a word!) activities!

Happy Holidays, everyone!

Trick or Treat!

This past Sunday was Halloween and was the one day of the year that my children could be little monsters without the disapproval of mom and dad. : )

They were really excited to have Grammie Reli and Papa Joe come over for dinner and to take them trick-or-treating. After a yummy dinner of worms and witch eyes (spagetti and meatballs!) they got into their costumes. Isabella was butterfly and Vinny was a bumblebee. We kept trying to have him say "Bzzzzz" but all he wanted to do was growl. So he was a growling bee.

Our first stop was up to see Uncle Craig and Aunt Lou- we are so lucky to have them as not only family but as our neighbors! Afterwards we drove down to see Uncle Sam, Auntie Michelle, Grammie Pat and Papa Rog. Vinny was introduced to jelly beans for the first time and Isabella was very happy to sort and count out her "loot".

We then went up to see Uncle Bruce, "Auntie Jen" and Uncle Nick. We did a little trick or treating on Prospect Hill and then got into our jammies. On the way home Isabella was very quiet which is quite unlike her. When I opened the door a wave of empty candy wrappers fell out of the car! Will have to remember to check her pockets next time she leaves Uncle Bruce's house! : )

We tucked our little monsters into bed and then turned to each other and said,

"One holiday down! Two more to go!" : )

A very successful (and spooky!) Halloween was had by all!

Happy Days

Ohhhhhh Vinny...

Yesterday I just knew it was going to be one of those days with my son. I can usually tell how much of a "weasel" he is going to be within the first five minutes of him being awake. And yesterday he managed to throw everything including his pajama pants and top out of the crib within those five minutes. Sigh.

After Isabella was off to school and the other two children had arrived for the day, I decided to tackle some laundry. And I made the quite foolish decision to not put Vinny somewhere (i.e: crib, high chair, etc.) where he couldn't get into trouble. Instead I quite naively put him on the couch with his cup of cereal and ran downstairs to throw a quick load in. Was gone no more than five minutes.

When I came back upstairs an entire box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch was dumped on the living room floor and someone (couldn't imagine whom!) had smashed every single square into a million pieces. Grrrrrreat...

After vacumming up all the cereal I had to clean up the little gremlin's face and hands which were completely covered in cinnamon and sugar. He pointed to his diaper that I discovered was a bit on the soggy side. I took that opportunity to put him on the potty with a book and told him to use the potty before snack time. At this point it was time to switch the laundry and he looked so innocent on his "frog pot" that I decided I could quickly run down and throw the clothes in the dryer. Wrong-o...

I came back upstairs this time three minutes later (I timed it!) to find my son walking around the living room floor, buck naked. And he did "use the potty" except that the potty wasn't the one shaped like a frog but instead my just vacummed living room floor. EVERYWHERE! After cleaning up now the second disaster and having to throw him in the tub I was feeling a little less than super mom. Once Vinny was all cleaned and dressed, I put him in the high chair for snack.

"Oh Vinny, what am I going to do with you?" I asked him. To which he replied,

"Happy Day!"

This child is going to have me gray before I turn 30... : )

Scantic Valley Farm

This past weekend we took a trip down to Somers, CT for some fall fun with family. Mike's mom and dad were high school sweethearts and grew up in a small town in western CT. Much of the family still lives in Somers including Mike's aunt and uncle who have an incrediable farm. They raise cows, pigs and chickens in addition to growing a variety of different crops, the largest of which is tobacco. They started a new tradition this year though by creating a corn maze. We just had to check it out!

We stopped first at Mike's grandparents. I think it is so incrediable that the kids are able to knpw their great grandparents. They are both so loving with Isabella and Vinny and I feel really blessed to have them in my life, too! Mike's cousins (who are nine and six years old!) were at the house so the kids were able to spend some time with their second-cousins. After lunch, we all headed over to the farm.

It was incrediable! They had a tent set up with a huge variety of pumpkins, gourds, etc. There was a man playing a fiddle and a food truck making all sorts of yummy foods. There were a ton of different games for the kids including a "corn pit". For those of you who don't know what that is it was an area that was completely filled with corn kernels instead of sand and then surrounded by hay bales. Inside were trucks, shovels and a bunch of other toys for "Junior Farmers". Vinny had a blast in there and would still be there if he had his way!

Isabella loved the pumpkin ring toss, the "chicken coup" and posing for pictures!

We then made our way over to the corn maze. The maze was an awesome halloween design (created by Mike's incrediably talented aunt!) that was done through GPS. The aerial shots that we got to see were amazing! Inside the maze were five posts that the kids had to find before exiting the maze. So neat! Unfortunately we got a little lost at the end (that's what happens when you let two six year olds take charge!) but we did finally make it out.

Afterwards we took a hay ride which was pulled by Papa in his tractor and had some hot drinks to help us warm up- there was quite a wind! We found some great pumpkins to take home with us and then headed back home to NH.

We are super excited about our move to Minnesota but we will defintely miss this next year!

Next Post... Halloweeen!!!

Life's a Circus!

Well I have been pretty bad about posting blogs the past few weeks- I don't know where the time goes! Oh yeah, my two adorable but highly needy children suck it all up! ; )
In the beginning of the month we took them to the Ringling Brothers Circus. We go every year and although the show seems the same each year to Mike and I, the kids love it!

This year we took Mike's mom and it was her first time ever going to the circus so that was kinda neat. Vinny was so little last year that this was the first year that he really got into it. He was so into it that for a couple days after the circus he would drag all the pillows of the couch and bring them to the bottom of the stairs, climb the stairs and then try to jump down. Too bad Mommy had to ruin all the fun!

Isabella was so quiet this year (part of that might have been the snowcone!) but was just taking it all in. Her favorite parts were when the animals came onstage- she really liked when the one tiger was bouncing up and down like a bunny. I could just see her wondering if she could teach this same trick to Jackson at home!

Life has been going on as usual. Mike is super busy at work, Vinny is talking more and more each day and Isabella is adjusting to first grade. Two weeks ago, she took a fall of off Grennie and when she was on the ground he stepped on her arm. Ouch! She has got quite the bruise but luckily nothing was broken. What can I say... life is a circus!

Mr. Sweeney

So this blog is for and about the kids but I got some news yesterday that hit me pretty hard and thought it might help to write.

Tuesday evening, my eighth grade teacher ended his own life. I say teacher because that is what he was but he was so much more than that. He was a shoulder to cry on when I was upset over a boy, a supporter when I got an "A" in French or was cast in the school play and above all a friend. It hurts so much to know that he was in pain and thought that that was the answer. He touched so many lives and I don't know how he didn't know that there were thousands of "shoulders". Supporters. Friends.

I feel like this will be one of those losses that I never completely move past. One of those "what ifs" that I will still be asking myself twenty years from now.

Mr. James Sweeney- you were loved. I hope that even if you had forgotten that in life, that in death you can now see that. And I hope you are in peace.

Happy Birthday, Cousin Maggie!

On Sunday, we went down to Rhode Island to celebrate Maggie's first birthday.

We were very excited about this! Well almost all of us...

We did eventually perk up and had good "cousin bonding".

Auntie Annie made a really cool pinata and we had a fun time trying to break it open!

Maggie is so smart- she even blew her own candle out!

We really liked the cake!

And were sad when it was over...

Happy Birthday, Maggie! We love you!