AARGGGGHHH!!!

And HERE are the pictures after I gritted my teeth and said, "listen, you people--you begged for costumes, and you will wear the costumes mommy bought you and daddy paid for, and you will be happy and this is fun don'tyouknow so you WILL have fun and blahblahblah" right until my head popped off and landed in one of their ghost buckets.

Happy Holler-Weenies!

So, there's what the kids WANTED to be for Halloween. Sydney announced about 1/2 hour before we left to trick or treat that actually, thankyouverymuch, she'd just like to forgo her original costume and be a "hula fairy". See above. COLIN announced that he'd also like to go as something else--himself. Once again--see above. He looked at me and said, "I don't even LIKE candy, geez!". Ummmm...alrighty then.

Tastes like chicken

Sydney: "Mommy, kiss me."

Me: **kiss**

Sydney: "Smell my breath."

Me: "ummm...okay...sniiiif."

Sydney: "Kiss me again."

Me: "Really? Okay-- **kiss**."

Sydney: "Kiss me one more time."

Me: "Okay, Syd--this is it. **kiss**"

Sydney: "HA! I just let Pooch lick inside my mouth!"

Ewwwww....

Ooh Ooh Ooh...just one more!

Okay...looks like that last link thing worked. So--just one more for tonight. Check out http://facesinplaces.blogspot.com/ How very very very cool is this??? PROMISE you won't be able to stop seeing faces everywhere you look! (thanks, dooce!)

HA!

So, I'm gonna try something here. I find so many things just hilarious each day, and I'd love to be smart enough to figure out how to link them here on our little blog--so that ya'll can laugh. I just might be opening myself up to some serious ridicule here, though...as I can pretty much GUARANTEE that many of you aren't going to find even HALF of the things that I find funny to be all that particularly so. (Read that sentence again--it'll make sense. ) So, for what it's worth--here's the link http://www.flickr.com/photos/matthewbaldwin/472963329/in/photostream/ You're gonna be so bummed if it doesn't work, huh? And you're probably sitting there thinking, "what if it DOES work, but I don't get it or think it's funny?" or "what if I'm getting linked to something other than what she meant to link me to?". No worries...here's a hint--Colin's turtle's name is Franklin.

God bless!

One out of two ain't bad...

I'm putting the kids to bed tonight, and it's Colin's turn. We have a good snuggle, pray, kiss, and I lean in for my final words. "Colin, I love you very much". "Mommy?" "Yes, baby?" "I love Daddy better". Ummm...do I laugh or cry? Colin sees my shocked expression, and before I can answer says, "Don't be sad--Sydney still likes you better". Before I can even laugh, it gets better. He pats my leg and smiles & winks. SMILES AND WINKS. Like this is gonna soften the blow?! He may LOVE Daddy more, but he's ME all the way.

Miss me?

Yup...been almost a year. Honestly, I just forgot about this blog thing--and every time I remembered, it just seemed like so much WORK. Finding time to pick. my. nose. in a day is a big thing, and as you know, my nose is always with me. The computer? Not so much...so thus the time problem, see?

All is well. So well. I will make a point of trying to hit this blog with some stories & pictures at least monthly this year. There really just is so much to share, and this is such a great way to do it. Stay tuned for more in September. For now...here's Pooch. He joined our family last December. He's a jack-a-bee. Part Jack Russell, part Beagle, part jackass. He's naughty, loud, and we're pretty sure his parents are related--if you know what I'm sayin'. Look for many more Pooch stories in the future.

Whoops!

Okay... sorry about the long break. Things just get so busy around here, and then a month has passed! I've put some pics of the two little monkeys on tonight. That should give you a CLUE as to why I'm so busy! Yes, that would be them insisting on not only taking a bath together, but doing it in their lifejackets. Whatever...you're only young once, right?!

The Harvest Party was tons of fun and a big success! Because it was so fun, however, I managed to miss capturing most of the action. So, here's one shot of Colin (pumpkin) with our babysitter Kelsey (scarecrow)! You get the idea!

Had the quarterly progress report from Colin's school, and he's really doing well this year. We're thrilled with the progress he's making academically, and his social stuff is really coming along. It's funny how it's so hard to see progress until someone sits you down & points it out! Sydney continues to be dramatic & hilarious. She went with me to Kentucky to see my brother, his wife and their daughters. They both do alot of singing/dancing/acting, etc. and Sydney got to see them perform in two Christmas shows. She is now asking for "glitter cheeks" every morning, dancing to ANYTHING that has a beat, and singing into any cylindrical object she can get her hands on. Too much.

We're good. Eric's wrapping up his jobs before things get too cold around here. I am busy doing everything you see in the pictures, and trying my very best to get enough time alone not to LOSE my grip. We are blessed, and we are happy.

Til next month...

Busy, busy, busy!

Fall is here, and it's beautiful! We had some friends here this past weekend, and were able to spend some time on the Harvard Business School campus in Cambridge. Just a great campus, and a beautiful day.

Colin's on new medication. Ahhhh...it's such fun to try to muddle our way through life with him! He seems to be responding well. He's a little "jittery" for a couple of hours immediately after dosing, but is overall more even keel. He continues to be such a sweet kid. It's frustrating (to ALL of us, including him!) that there still are times when he's just "overloaded" in the sensory department. You'll tell him to calm down, and he looks at you with frustration & says, "I can't!". Which, darnit, is almost true!! Who can blame him for spinning around in circles, flapping his arms, and singing?! Honestly...there are times when I consider that doing just that may help me get through a day myself!!

We are having a huge harvest party here this weekend. It's a tradition we enjoyed with Eric's mom & her husband for the past few years, and now it's moving to our house. There are currently 50+ people coming...26 of those children. Yikes! It's gonna be great, but the preparation is consuming most of Mommy's energy & brainpower! It's gonna be an old-fashioned, hay riding, apple bobbing, costume judging, game playing, bonfire having good time. I'll be sure to post pictures...particularly of my costume...which isn't to be missed! Eric, of course, is going as...well...himself. What a party animal.

Sydney & the potty

So, for those of you who thought you may get to hear about the potty "training" adventure...sorry. Make that officially potty "trained". Sydney is now a full week in her very favorite & much talked-about new underthings. Let the record show that she has now peed in just about every potty in every place we have been for the past few days. I now know that WalMart has very clean potties, and that our local bank branch has a very yucky "private" potty. (Which we would NOT have visited had it not been for our girl yelling I NEEDAH POOOOOPY at the very tippity top of her lungs whilst we waited in the teller line. They took pity on us!)

So, Sydney is now diaper free, and I look forward to figuring out where to allocate the new unspent diaper funds...perhaps I should take myself out for margaritas once a month instead?!

Pictures from Summer, 2006

The house in "full bloom" this summer. Colin LOVING the beach.

Sydney having fun in the pool. She's not dramatic, or anything!
Teaching the kids to be GENTLE at the petting zoo.

Here we go!

We're off! So many of those near and dear to us are just too far away to properly keep in touch. So--we've started this site so that everyone can stay "in the loop". I'll post the big stuff as well as the "minutiae" of our lives. We'll be posting photos, too. So, bookmark the page--and we invite you to visit often. After all--is your day really complete without hearing about potty training and our family trips to the zoo?!

We love you, and thanks for playing!