A Family United

Sickie

2012-01-27T08:05:00.001-05:00

We spent part of last evening in the ER with Oliver. He couldn't stop coughing and throwing up last night.

Matt took a car from the city to the hospital and when he arrived the staff knew exactly which toddler he was talking about. I believe they used descriptors like "he's a pistol" and "a handful" to describe Oliver. Let's just say it took a staff of 3 to restrain a 38 lb. toddler to administer a breathing treatment.

Oliver was given the compliment that he was extremely polite. He kept screaming "No Thanks!" as he screamed, kicked, spit, squirmed and put up a fight.

We're seeing the pediatrician later today to further evaluate his condition and we are giving breathing treatments every 4 hours.

Big sis is a trooper as always. She packed Ollie's favorites--the iPad and some cars-- and some items to entertain herself. She also helped me give Oliver his breathing treatment this morning.

Favorite Foods

2012-01-27T07:48:00.001-05:00

I did the weekly grocery shopping for the family of my friend that passed away. Many friends and family have pooled together to help her husband with the three children. Making dinners and doing the weekly grocery shopping for staple food items is one. As I shopped from their family's staple items list it made me think about our weekly staples (and how I don't have a weekly shopping list of staples and I probably should). You could see the three kids in their family had food/brand/flavor preferences and opinions and I thought about Chloe & Oliver's food likes/dislikes and what items they would insist would be on their staples list.

You can see from the list below that the kids have a very different palate.
Chloe's staple food items--cheddar rice cakes, rice cakes with nuts, dried seaweed & frozen strawberry fruit bars (not pictured). She will come home from school and eat all three of these! She will usually eat 2 packs of the seaweed. She has to be going through a growth spurt! Today she came home from school and ate a frozen fruit bar, finished off a bag of the cheddar rice cakes, ate a regular nut rice cake and 2 packs of seaweed all within a matter of minutes. She then demanded, "When is dinner? I am starving!".

Oliver's palate is a little less refined. He's going through the "if it's green, I am not touching it" phase, and this from the kid whose favorite food as a baby was Ratatouille. His staple items are--Pi*rate's Booty, GoG*urt, cheese sticks, chewy peppermints (I have to move these daily after he goes to bed to a new hiding place--he's stealth and can sniff them out. He doesn't get one daily, but he makes a good attempt), strawberries, Milano cookies (not pictured), doughnuts (not picutred and again not an everyday item though it is an everyday request) & chicken nuggets (not pictured). Oliver loved doughnuts and chicken nuggets so much he has combined them into one word, "Chicken doughnuts", which is an everyday lunch time request. And, NO, I have never served him chicken nuggets and doughnuts at the same time.

And our other staple, Nu*tella. Chloe has it on her waffles and an occassional sandwich. Neither kid is a peanut butter fan. They prefer Nutella. Who wouldn't? I know a lot of people freak about Nu*tella and go lecture on how it has so much sugar, etc., etc. One of Chloe's closest pals Mom shared her dislike of Nu*tella with me and how she would never serve it to her kids because "it's expensive junk food". I had to bite my lip because I know that her daughter brings a Ramune soda with her everyday at lunch--expensive and full of high fructose corn syrup and no nutritional content---but keep preaching against Nut*ella sister.

The Asian Grocers

2012-01-26T16:17:00.002-05:00

The majority of the items are not in English though some are.

I had Recipe Club this week and our theme was "Chinese NewYear". I was assigned the entree and after some research I decided to make Char Siu, Chinese BBQ Pork. A few of the ingredients aren't readily found at my usual grocery store so I went to the Asian grocers. I forget how I love this place and I always wonder why I don't go there more often. I enjoy the feeling of being a bit out of my element and discovering new things. I love to roam the aisles and pick up foods and items that look interesting.

It made me realize one of the best things about living outside NYC--easy access to many cultures right in your own backyard. I have to remind myself of these things sometimes, most often after I return from visiting Dallas and lament on giving up massive square footage to live in a 1/3 the space at over twice the price.
There are many, many Asian grocers in our area. We have an enormous Korean supermarket chain that is throughout our county but I prefer the smaller, Tawainese grocer only a few miles from my house. While it's set up like your typical grocery store, the items inside and the way they are displayed transports you. (I so wanted to take photos in the meat section & seafood section but I was purchasing items and didn't want to bust out the iPhone and snap some shots with the butcher).

I could have spent forever in the meat section. I bought pork butt for the Char Siu but couldn't keep my eyes off the pork uterus, pork tongue and ears. I also love to cruise by the seafood department and see the open display of jellyfish.

I spent 20 minutes on one aisle looking at soy sauce. I had no idea that there were different variations of soy sauce--Light, dark, aged, tamari. For someone who is well-traveled by American standards, I felt totally unworldy and unknowing. And when it came time to find the Xiao Hsing Cooking Wine I felt stupid not being able to find it and only locating a bottle that read "XiaoShing Cooking Wine". I suspected it was the same, spelled differently. Instead of asking, I "googled" it on my phone. Of course, I could have asked, should have asked. When I went to checkout, there was a friend from my days in the Newcomer's Club asking for help finding yellow rock sugar. She was also making a dish to celebrate Chinese New Year.
I ended up buying things not on my ingredients list. I bought a mango pudding made with aloe vera cubes, Fragrant pears from China, Korean pears, rice cakes and dried seaweed. I could have definitely bought more, but held back when I passed through the pastries and sticky buns.
I told Matt that as I walked through the store and felt out of my element I thought that someday too, Chloe could be shopping in this grocery store and feel the same way as I do, despite her Chinese heritage. And it made me a little sad. But, then again, I remembered that one reason we moved where we did was because this influence existed. And, while it was only a grocery store, there was a myriad of cultural opportunities for Chloe & Oliver.

And, besides, now that I discovered that they have dried seaweed in abundance and better packaging (and cheaper) than where I was buying it before, we will be back. Frequently.

A Style All His Own

2012-01-20T15:45:00.001-05:00

Oliver is giving me a little pushback on potty training. He did however insist that he wear his Toy Story underwear. Like this....

Snow is coming! There is much excitement.

Philly

2012-01-19T17:17:00.001-05:00

I realized I didn't post of photos from Philadelphia. It turned out it was pretty cold that weekend and Oliver wasn't willing to keep his gloves on which led to lots of temper tantrums because someone was cold. We drove to Philly, saw the Liberty Bell, saw Constitution Hall and then left. On the way home we stopped at the go-kart place for some fun.

There is nothing like two kids fighting in front of a symbol of our nation's freedom.

Outside Constitution Hall.

Matt & Chloe--getting ready to race.

Oliver enjoyed playing on all the video games, especially this motorcycle race.

Of course, he cheated a little at some of the games. He got away with it. He's little & cute.

Chloe playing the motorcycle race game with her brother playing on the iPhone. That's cool.

Chloe on the track.

Matt on the track. Fastest time in the group.

Power Nap

2012-01-18T14:42:00.001-05:00

Oliver and I attended Mommy & Me this morning like we do every Wednesday. Except today we left 30 minutes early. Seems we are in the "mine" stage and don't want to share. Oliver also thought he needed to push and kick to make his point. So, we left after time out in the hallway didn't deter the bad attitude. There were tears once we were at the car and he really knew we were leaving. We got home at 10:30 and after a quick snack I put him down for a nap to much protest. And then I went about my chores. Then I watched some HGTV. Then I caught up on some blog reading. I researched day trips for our upcoming vacation to Costa Rica. I played with the dogs in the yard. I wondered how long he was going to sleep....Four hours later, I heard Oliver stir on the baby monitor. A FOUR hour nap!I went to his room and was greeted with, "Mom! I want to behave now!"Seriously, this child!

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I Thought it was Clever

2012-01-13T15:42:00.001-05:00

January isn't my favorite month. After New Year's there isn't much else in the month except cold weather, and we haven't had much of that. I never know how to decorate the blank spaces left from the Holidays so I thought I would put out some Valentine's decorations. I saw a pic on Pin*terest of candles with conversation hearts and thought it was cute so I decided I put out the Valentine's decor.

It was festive and cheap. I thought it was cute and clever UNTIL Chloe discovered it was candy and then she clued her little brother in on it too.

I caught them red-handed this afternoon.

And Oliver, well he wasn't even trying to hide that he was eating the candy decorations. He had made himself a little pile!

When I saw this candy pile I said, "Hey! Where did you get that?" He was ever so gracious to show me the container of candy and to grab another handful at the same time. "No more!" I exclaimed, to which Chloe said, "Yea, he probably shouldn't have anymore, he's eaten like a thousand."

Well, it was a clever idea in theory.

Mind Dump

2012-01-11T17:17:00.000-05:00

Complete randomness...

Its been really warm here, as it has in most of the country. Last year at this time, 2.5 feet of snow had already fallen. If you had told me during the freakish snow storm in October that we wouldn't have anymore snow through the middle of January I would have laughed. Now, I'm just complaining that there's no snow for skiing. It is supposed to get cold just in time for the three-day weekend. We're hoping to get a ski trip in and perhaps a day-trip to Philadelphia. It will be a weekend of fun no matter what the temperatures.

I have been really working on not putting too many expectations on the kids. I have a problem with stepping in and taking over when things don't look the way I want them to look. I'm working on letting the kids just be kids. I was pretty proud of myself this week when I didn't take over Oliver's snowman project at Mommy Me. He got the general gist of the picture and art projects have never been his thing. He doesn't like to paint or color. They don't hold his attention. In fact, he flat out refuses to paint. He's pretty vocal that he doesn't like it. So, I sat back today and let him create this Picasso-esque snowman. I was quite chuffed that I didn't take over and quite proud that this is totally Oliver's creation.

But, then I faced a bigger challenge in the afternoon. Chloe came home with a field trip form and needed $29 to pay for the field trip. I handed over the money. She put it beside her backpack and I found it like this---

Many people will look at the money and say, "Yea, so?" but I look at it and go into complete fit. I'm not anal, just anal about bank-facing money and putting it in descending order. In a matter of 10 feet--the distance from my wallet to her backpack, the money is in disaray! Two black eyes below a nose and on a snowman's stomach I could take. Money out of order, I couldn't. I told Chloe it would be safer in an envelope (i.e. safer in an envelope neatly folded and put in descending monetary value and the presidents all facing the same way). I guess I'm still battling with the not stepping in and taking over thing....

Forever Family Day--2 Years Later

2012-01-09T00:01:00.002-05:00

It was on this day, two years ago, that our plane landed at JFK and we officially became a family of four.

We first met Oliver in Ethiopia on January 3rd.

I love to re-read the blog entries and read how we thought him to be the most calm, even-tempered baby. Oh, how things would change. Today, two years later, he's a two and a half year old full of energy, opinions and personality. We love our little man!

Ye Ganna Bal

2012-01-07T01:59:00.002-05:00

Today is Ganna, or the day Ethiopians celebrate Christmas. We were in Ethiopia in 2010 and got to celebrate the holiday and attend church wearing the traditional Shamma, a memory I will always keep and cherish.

You can see video of our church visit and our Ethiopian Christmas story here.

The Holidays--Christmas & New Year

2012-01-03T11:44:00.001-05:00

Chloe (looking the part) and Oliver in Texas.

Happy New Year!! We rang in the New Year with our friends, Bryan and Sue, just across the Hudson in Jersey City. Chloe got to see the NYC fireworks and stay up late. She thought she was so BIG.

We returned from Dallas on Saturday afternoon, celebrated NYE and relaxed on Sunday. We took down all the decorations, washed clothes and played with all the new toys. Matt and I attended the Giants vs. Cowboys game at the Meadowlands on Sunday evening in the rain. We cheered for the Cowboys though it didn’t seem to help.

Matt at the football game---in the rain.

Monday was our last day of the holiday break and it led to the discovery that we needed a new dryer. The heating element seems to be shot on our old one and it doesn’t make any sense to spend hundreds of dollars on fixing it so our new one arrives on Wednesday. The delivery guys are just going to love removing the old dryer and installing the new one in the basement. It’s a tight fit.

We had a nice 10-day break in Dallas and the kids had lots of fun. Matt and I got to spend some time alone, dining out and going to the movies. We also got to spend time on Christmas with Matt’s brother, Rob, our sister-in-law, Ashley, and our two nieces and nephew.

Oliver and his cousin, Harrison, in Harrison's police car.

Chloe having fun with her two cousins.

The kids visited Santa on Christmas Eve. Oliver did well until he saw Santa and then he tried to kick him. Luckily Santa didn’t put him on the “Naughty List” but let him have a pass at sitting on his lap. Chloe had her photo made with the Big Guy. He was a pretty authentic looking Santa and even cynical Chloe who informed me that morning that “Santas at shopping malls aren’t the real Santa. How could one guy be at stores all over the country? He doesn’t have time for that.” was almost convinced he was the real deal.

Chloe also got to go go-karting with Matt, Deanna and John. I think all four kids had fun.

Chloe heading out onto the track.

Matt on the kart track.

Both Chloe and Oliver enjoyed seeing Shakey again. Thankfully, Oliver has learned that Shakey is Aunt Deanna & Uncle John’s dog and this time we don’t get asked 14 times a day, “Where’d Shakey go?”.

When in Dallas, you do as most Dallasites do…you shop and dine out. Matt and I ate at the restaurant where we had our first date, we also ate BBQ, Ethiopian food, and frequented the many eateries that we miss not having in the northeast. Dallas may not have the gourmet line-up like NYC, but it does have the family-friendly variety in abundance.

John, enjoying a rib at Rudy's BBQ.

We also visited the myriad of shopping malls and stores Dallas boasts. Yes, we have lots of shopping in our area, but there are a few stores that we don’t have in our area and some that we do but we had to visit because of the after-Christmas sales.

The weather in Dallas was cool but it warmed up as we left and Chloe was convinced it was short-wearing weather. Problem was, she didn’t have any shorts. In stepped BeBe to resolve the problem. Of course, once she had her new basketball shorts, she needed new hightops too.

We also visited PaPaw's farm and the kids got to spend lots of time outdoors.

Chloe with her walking poles, a gift from Aunt Deanna & Uncle John.

John & Chloe.

Visiting the horses behind Mom & Dad's house. And, yes, I now this feeds the stereotype that everyone in Texas has a horse.

Chloe with flat Santa and the flat snowman at The Heard dinosaur walk.

Chloe getting eaten!

Oliver plays soccer.

Oliver attempting to feed and round up the chickens all at one time.

On a tractor ride at PaPaw's farm.

Here's to a great 2012.

Happy Christmas!!

2011-12-25T01:00:00.002-05:00

Chloe's School Holiday Performance

2011-12-20T22:09:00.000-05:00

Chloe’s Holiday pageant was at school today. Oliver and I attended. The kids sing songs and Chloe watches me to see if I will cry.

She had a speaking part today. Her line was, "And don't forget the apple pie!". She has the cutest voice if I do say so myself. This is Chloe's 2nd grade class doing the opening monologue on the United States.

Most of my pictures came out blurry and the video isn't much better. It was dark in the gymnasium and I didn't have the proper flash. I also had a two year old with me who didn't like me looking through a camera lens and not at him. Wonder how it got blurry??? And, yes, I realize the lens was not open in the previous video until a few seconds after I recorded. As you can hear in the background, "Mom, Mom!", I was a little distracted.

I have one ok picture I am posting. I realize the children look like they are possessed. Chloe is to the left of the boy in the necktie on the first row.

Our Family Christmas Celebration

2011-12-19T10:41:00.000-05:00

We are going to celebrate Christmas with my parents at their home in Dallas. Instead of taking all the presents for the kids to Dallas we had our own family celebration on Sunday evening. We ordered Indian food and opened presents by the fire.

Chloe served as “Santa”—the person who retrieves all the presents from the tree and passes them out. She was convinced this was a made-up duty and we only wanted her to “do all the work.” Despite some sassiness from our seven year old, the evening was one of the best Christmases we have had as a family. We didn’t do any over the top presents this year, we didn’t spend a fortune and the kids really loved all their presents.

Chloe received a sled, a Playdoh “Doctor Drill ‘n Fill” which she played with for hours, a West Ham football club sweatshirt from Nana (which she proudly wore to school today), a dress from GrandDad and Marie, a kite from GrandDad, a DS racing car game, a password protected diary and a Kindle Fire which she adores and feels so big girl.

Chloe with her password journal.

Opening the Kindle Fire. She was a little unsure what it was at first.

Once she discovered it was like Mom's iPad she was all over it.

The Hammers.

Oliver received a jacket from GrandDad & Marie, a West Ham football club soccer kit from Nana, some Matchbox cars & track and the hit of the evening, Buzz Lightyear & Woody dolls from Toy Story. He slept with the dolls last night. He also asked to take them to pre-school today and I had to tell him “no”. He then responded, “I no like school. No go”! After I explained that Woody and Buzz would be here when he gets back, he agreed to go, but he wasn’t happy about it.

Opening his Buzz doll with Daddy.

He can't wait to get it out of the package (which took a lot of cutting, prying and twisting I might add).

Playing with Buzz. He loved him at first sight.

After unwrapping the Woody doll he introduces Buzz and Woody. Woody's first comment to Oliver was "Keep it Down!"

Had to take a photo of Oliver's name on their feet. Just like the movie!

We can look ahead to a week with family, more presents for the kids and fabulous Mexican food in Dallas!

Children's Pageant

2011-12-18T21:48:00.004-05:00

Our church held its annual children’s Christmas pageant today. The children conduct the entire Sunday worship and reinact the story of Christ's birth.

Chloe was an angel in the pageant and Matt was a shepherd. Oliver was supposed to be Matt’s lamb and he was also supposed to be Jesus when the wise men came, but Momma nixed his performances and put him in the nursery instead. I didn't think he could make it through an hour long service and he didn’t want to wear the lamb costume, he didn’t want Matt to hold him during the performance opting to run around like a rabid lamb and he didn’t want to greet the wise men instead demanding to know why they brought him gold, frankincense, and myrrh instead of an iPhone. At one point our youth director recommended the wise men hold an iPhone if it would get Oliver on cue. I didn’t think Oliver snatching an iPhone from a wise man and playing “Talking Tom” would really be the best portrayal of Jesus. Perhaps he can attempt again next year when he is 3.5 years old.

Chloe waiting for dress rehearsal to begin.

Chloe with the other angels and shepherds.

The stable scene.

Matt rehearsing his role as one of the lead shepherds. He is missing his lamb.

Oliver having fun in the nursery playing with Legos. He was happier here than onstage. He was dressed for his part and looked quite handsome in his traditional wear we got him in Ethiopia.

Whirly-Twirly Angels

2011-12-14T11:11:00.000-05:00

Chloe was a whirly-twirly angel at church Sunday for the Call to Worship. She will be an angel again this Sunday for the Christmas pageant which will also feature Matt as a shepherd and Oliver as a lamb!!

Swimsuits in December

2011-12-08T11:22:00.001-05:00

I got a great deal on swim trunks and rash guards for Oliver--no doubt, it's December! They arrived on this COLD day and made me smile. In two months these swimsuits will be splashing in the Pacific Ocean in Costs Rica on our winter break escape!!

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Presents Under the Tree

2011-12-07T10:43:00.000-05:00

The tree is up and the presents are wrapped. My Christmas shopping is complete and today the doorbell keeps chiming with deliveries which means the dogs are constantly howling.

The kids were very helpful this year. Chloe decorated the tree and I um, realigned some of the ornaments that seemed to be clustered in one area after she went to bed. The kids also put the presents under the tree and in doing so found out that one of the presents is a Buzz Lightyear--he wouldn't shut his trap! The gift is for Oliver which led to lots of whining on the part of Chloe because she requested a Buzz Lightyear too. Of course, I let her whine and complain because I know that BeBe got her one and its waiting for her in Dallas.

Matt pretty much knows the contents of all his presents. Its not easy keeping things a secret when your spouse can see where you've been spending money when they log in to the bank account. We decided this year we were going to get fit. We both have gym memberships and rarely use them. I belong to a gym that has childcare but I hate going. Matt works out at his gym, the YMCA, on the weekends when Chloe is at swim practice but its difficult to make it to the gym during the work week. So, we're making space in the basement to include an exercise machine and Matt has been talking about getting a weight bench.

I thought it was perfect timing when I came across a fantastic Cyber-Monday deal on a home gym and that I was so sly buying it until he told me he saw online that I bought him said home gym. Yes, he could have pretended he didn't see it and played along but he enjoys finding out what presents he got in advance.

Besides, its kind of enormous. Many heavy boxes were delivered this morning and our house isn't big enough to conceal that many boxes. And, after Matt looked online at what I bought, we kind of found out we have a problem....

it doesn't fit in our basement exercise area. In my excitement to get a super Cyber-Monday steal on this home gym, I didn't read the specifications--especially the measurements. Seems this gym is a little too tall for our low-ceiling basement. We're keeping the gym because it WAS such a deal (65% off) but are having to get creative in where we put it---the unfinished part of our basement. It's really the only option unless we want to start knocking out the ceiling. The ceiling is higher in the unfinished part but that means I have to clear out a lot of items stored in there. I've donated some items in my pre-Christmas purge and am in the process of moving them to the attic---up three flights of stairs. Its a workout, especially maneuvering around a two year old and a lazy 108 lb. dog that insists on laying right where you need to walk.

I'll be busy clearing out the next few days and then Matt will have a major project to assemble.

Growing Up

2011-12-06T18:33:00.001-05:00

It was a banner day in our household. Both kids reached big milestones that signal they are growing up (a little too fast if you ask their parents)--Chloe got braces and Oliver went pee on the potty for the very first time.

Where have my babies gone?

The Latest

2011-12-01T13:56:00.002-05:00

I have about 14 things that I MUST do today, so I decided to ignore them all together and post an update on the blog! Nothing like procrastination.

The weather the past 10 days has been lovely--high 60s! Of course, now that the calendar has turned to December 1 the weather is back to normal---cold.
I have begun decorating for Christmas but have gotten sidetracked so my house is half Christmas and half fall. The front of the house has a pumpkin, a fall window box and Christmas wreaths on all the windows. It looks insane.
A neighbor walking by commented that she likes to look at my wreaths on the door. Apparently I have the most colorful and vivid wreaths. I didn't know if it was a compliment or she was telling me they were tacky. Most people don't decorate their doors here. If they do, its usually a 6" wreath you can barely make out.
Chloe told me she wanted a little sister. I asked why. Her response was priceless, "Because she will be calm because she is a girl and she will be closer in age to Oliver which means they will play together and leave me alone." Had to document that one.
Oliver had a check-up at the dentist. I asked the dentist to talk to Oliver about letting me help him brush his teeth. Its always an ordeal and it ends up with me having to restrain him and then waiting for him to stop biting down on the brush so I can actually brush his teeth. The dentist ever so sweetly talked to Oliver about the importance of brushing his teeth and that he must let Mommy help him brush so we can make sure they are clean. She then handed him a prize, a sticker and let him pick out a cool tooth brush and told him he could keep all of that stuff if he agreed to let me brush his teeth. He then looked straight at her, handed her the bag of goodies & toothbrush and walked out of the room. No deal. The dentist said that was the first time a child ever refused the prizes & toothbrush. They usually agreed to brush their teeth for the cool toothbrush. Not our Oliver.
Chloe has been pestering us to get her a helmet, driving gloves, driving shoes, and a race suit. According to her, we are keeping her from driving fast in the go-kart by making her wear her high top sneakers and a borrowed helmet and race suit.
Chloe informed me this morning that I was unprepared for the start of Advent. Where was the chocolate Advent calendar? Oh, and she added that she didn't like the Advent calendars I bought last year. It was cheap chocolate. Is she her father's daughter or what?
Chloe's teacher is making her bring two pairs of shoes to school---a separate pair for recess and one for the classroom. Kids that go into the playing field must do this as she believes they step in goose poop. This pre-occupation with goose poop has rubbed off on Chloe who now wears her Converse sneakers for recess because I can wash them and remove the poop from the soles. I haven't seen any poop on the soles of the shoes and if there were, why is she having the kids shove them in their backpacks when they change into their classroom shoes? I guess that means I now need to wash Chloe's backpack too?
Part of the reason my house has half fall and half Christmas is that we have been hit by the craft bug again. Chloe helped me make fabric balls for a glass bowl in the entry and then I made paper-punch Christmas trees. I obviously have a lot of time on my hands. Matt said I had a lot of patience. Both projects were inspired from one blog--here and here.

I am looking forward to the busyness that December 1st brings. We have special performances at church, school, pre-school and holiday parties to attend before we head out early to Dallas for Christmas. Lots of fun to be had in the next 25 days!

Go-Karting

2011-11-26T17:57:00.002-05:00

For a while now Chloe has been asking Matt to take her go-karting. We checked into a couple of indoor go-kart/amusement places and they allow seven year olds to drive, but Chloe doesn't meet the height and weight requirements--they're a one size go-kart and they can't adjust or make modifications to them.

And, lets get real, did you think when one of Matt's kids told him she wanted to go go-karting that he would really take her to your run of the mill putt-putt and go-karting place? I'm fairly certain that's what Chloe had originally thought when she said she wanted to drive a go-kart but we found this place instead.

Its some distance from us in NY state and so we decided to make a day of it and drive up to check the place out yesterday. Lots of young boys and girls practicing their skills for club kart racing or kart racing nationally.

We met the owner, Tim, who was a super-nice guy and he showed us all the karts and told us about the kid kart racing club. Chloe was excited to learn to drive a go-kart especially when she saw the other kids on the track and we made an appointment to have Chloe's first kart racing lesson with Tim today.

The lesson was 2.5 hours and Chloe got to wear all the protective gear and her favorite, the race overalls. The lesson began with a lesson on braking and using the gas and then Tim took Chloe out on the track.

Tim instructing Chloe before she goes out on track for the first time.

Chloe and the kid kart she drove for the day.

Firing up the engine to go on track for the first time.

Chloe did fantastic and had lots of fun. Oliver was a little disappointed that he couldn't drive a kart, but he enjoyed running around with Mommy and watching the karts & motorcycles on the unseasonably warm, sunnny day.

Oliver playing with the iPad.

After the lesson was over, Chloe got to go back on track with Matt and both of them loved that. She even had a spin out. We are taking the karting slow with Chloe and are approaching it with a wait and see attitude---which means we aren't rushing out to buy her a $6500 super-tuned kart anytime soon! Of course, a super-tuned kart for Matt is a different story....

Looking good!

Chloe following Tim in her first lesson on track.

Chloe takes a turn.

Of course, we had to be fitted with the GoPro camera so Chloe & Matt could analyze her driving at home.

Chloe (with the GoPro on her helmet) and Matt on course.

Danica Patrick, eat your heart out.

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-25T12:05:00.001-05:00

We spent Thanksgiving this year with our friend Bryan. We missed having Sue, Bryan's wife, come this year too, but she was in Texas with their daughter.

It would just be five of us this year--3 adults, 2 kids and 2 begging dogs. Oh, and a 21 lb. kosher turkey. Its go big or go home with the turkey around here. We use the leftovers for "Turkey Curry Buffet" day!

After the turkey was in the oven, it was time to set about tuning and charging the batteries in the RC cars. It was like Christmas morning for Oliver when he came downstairs to see all the RC cars on the coffee table. "WOW!" he exclaimed.

Late morning is when we break out the cheese tray, dips and a quiche.

Then, its time to race.

Oliver driving his "Ghini" (aka Lamborghini) RC car with Bryan. Most the time he preferred pushing it rather than using the remote.

Chloe and Matt set up the race course.

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines.

Oliver is impressed.

Chloe tests her skills by trying to drive the RC car without the cones falling off.

Not to be outdone, Oliver attempts too.

After racing, we prepared for the big meal.

And carved the turkey, which Oliver declared "No like turkey!". So he ate mashed potatoes, which he spit out, and all the strawberries and blueberries from the fruit salad. He then asked for ice cream. At least he stayed awake this year for the meal.

The adults enjoyed our Thanksgiving meal with a celebratory nice bottle of wine.

We capped the evening off with dessert and a marathon of Grand Turismo 5 on Bryan's PS3.

We hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving.

What Thanksgiving Means to Me...

2011-11-24T11:27:00.004-05:00

Family & Stuffing.

That's it. That's Thanksgiving. Having my family around & having the family recipe for stuffing.

My grandmother's stuffing as interpreted by my Dad because we don't have a written recipe.

Its not put in the bird (yuk), its not gourmet with hard to find ingredients and special seasonings. It's a meal unto itself and it's Thanksgiving to me.

I'm glad I had my sous chef to help me make it for this year's Thanksgiving dinner.

And now, I am going to document the family recipe. Of course, you will note that there are no measurements. There is no specific amount to put in, you just eyeball it.

First ingredient: Cornbread. I used two packages for the base of the stuffing. I live in the north and there is an abundance of corn muffins. Regular cornbread mix is hard to find so I had to go with the corn muffin mix. It has more sugar than the regular cornbread mix.

My sous chef mixed the cornbread and then I poured it into my pre-heated cast-iron skillet and baked it.

The finished cornbread.

While the cornbread was baking, I boiled some eggs.

And Chloe helped me chop some celery, onions, sage, jalapenos and garlic.

Oliver wanted in on the action. He actually just wanted to play with the measuring spoons and eat a boiled egg.

We then gathered the next two ingredients, chicken broth and a whole chicken. I used a store bought because I am lazy. Chloe and tore apart the chicken.

We added the chicken to the other ingredients.

I then took the cooled cornbread and crumbled it in the baking pan. Fancy pan, I know.

I then added in the rest of the ingredients and a little salt and pepper. After it was well mixed I poured the chicken broth over to make it moist. I baked mine at 375 until browned.

Yum!!! I always have an obligatory piece of turkey, some potatoes, a vegetable and a huge, heaping helping of stuffing.

The Ugly Side of Fall

2011-11-22T10:21:00.000-05:00

One of the three piles of leaves outside our house. This one is pretty tame. Most piles also have tree limbs (from Snowtober), mums, and discarded hay bales from fall decorations in them. Its a mess.

The leaves are dropping swiftly now. Only a few more trees hold on to their leaves which means that there are huge piles lining the roadways making it impossible for more than one car to pass through. I am sure it is a daunting task for the clean up crews to remove all the leaves from the streets, but it seems like they have just thrown their hands up this year and declared defeat. Most years the first snow fall comes before all the leaves are removed making the roads messy and nearly impassable. I expect this year to be no different.

Chloe upset that Oliver is destroying her leaf pile.

Oliver "helping" (wink, wink, nudge, nudge).

Of course, two people I know like the piles of leaves. We'll see if this keeps up when they are in their teens and it is one of their jobs to clear the yard of leaves. Right now though, they love to rake. Chloe loves making piles and romping through it. Oliver loves to destroy the pile of leaves and send the leaves swirling around the streets and neighbors houses.

Playing with Daddy on a warm, fall day. And just a note, our yard had been completely cleared of any and all leaves just a few hours before hand. Look at it---leaves everywhere.

I have also been busy baking. Somehow I am perpetually on the bake sale committee every year at Chloe's school. Matt "volunteered" me when Chloe was in kindergarten and since I get an email in the fall and again in the spring telling me to bake something and drop it off at the bake sale chairs house. The fall bake sale is always the Tuesday of Thanksgiving week. I don't mind doing it, but its just an added stress to bake all these goodies when you are also the one who cooks Thanksgiving dinner. And, of course I always channel my inner Martha and plan something a)containing tons of ingredients--none of which can contain nuts or processed in a nut factory---the rules of the bake sale and it makes for a long time reading labels b) requires assembly c) contains hard to find special ingredients.

Why do I do this to myself? Why can't I just bake sugar cookies? Anway, my great plans included turkey cake pops, "pumpkin" cupcakes, M&M cookies on a stick and chocolate mini loaves. Two out of three came out as planned. One didn't happen at all (cake pops). The ingredients were to hard to find. I went to two specialty cooking shops and one specialty grocery store before finding all the ingredients for the "pumpkin" cupcakes---and they are just cake, icing, orange sugar crystals and green fruit roll ups. How hard could that be? HARD apparently.

I've learned a valuable lesson---even though I live in the shadow of the largest city in the U.S., no one bakes here. There are specialty bake shops in NYC, but they didn't have all the ingredients. I did find one specialty shop that carried everything for all of my bake sale wish list---but they were in a small town on the NJ/PA border. Most of the stores in our area have their Christmas baking items out and have clearanced their fall baking items and its not even Thanksgiving yet! I was so worn out that I gave up searching for all the candy parts needed for the cake pops---too difficult to find it all. In the end, this is how it turned out....

The "pumpkin" cupcakes. I guess I should have started searching for orange sugar crystals and orange food coloring back in August. And green fruit roll ups don't exist. The fruit roll up stems were an improvisation---lets just say blue and yellow make green.

Popsicle sticks for the cookies---good luck finding those. In the end I just made giant cookies.

It was Oliver who reminded me, it all eats the same anyway....

Enjoying his M&M sugar cookie sans popsicle stick.

Crayola Factory

2011-11-11T14:27:00.002-05:00

I took the kids to the Crayola Factory in Easton, PA yesterday. It was on our summer to do list and we never got around to it. Chloe was super-excited to go, though she started complaining about the distance about half way through our hour long trip.

The factory itself is not really the factory and you don't really learn about making crayons. I thought there would be exhibits about crayon making, etc., but the place is more of a homage to crayons and all the cool crafts you can make using all of Crayola's products---which my kids were totally not interested in. They know what crayons can do and they weren't about to sit down after being in a car for an hour and make a craft. Here's our tour in a nutshell:

Wanna make an owl puppet using Crayola school glue? NO!
Want to use the modeling clay to make a sculpture? NO!
Want to use crayons to color the picture of the leaves? NO!
Want to use the sidewalk chalk to color on the floor? NO!
Want to run like wild banshees through the building? YES!

Getting my two to sit down and create something just for the sake of making something? Not going to happen. They could do that at home. There were some exhibits and activities they did like---using the two coins given to you at the Crayola vending machines for a glow in the dark marker, writing on the glass wall using Crayola dry erase markers, the color dance wall and of course, the Crayola Factory gift shop where you could find every Crayola product ever made.

The trip wasn't a total bust as you also get admission to the Canal Museum along with the Crayola Factory tour. My kids loved the Canal Museum. You get to learn about canals by helping a canal boat go through the locks and dams in a small scale creation of a canal. I didn't get a photo of them learning about locks and dams as I was too bust trying to help Oliver get his boat through the locks and not flood the entire place out.
The Canal Museum was definitely the highlight and was lots of fun and both Chloe and Oliver loved it. There are also lots of other hands on activities with water, canal building, building blocks, etc. which I did manage to photograph.

Chloe at the entrance to the "factory".

In the Canal Museum learning about water flow, canals and dams.

Building blocks in the canal museum.

Chloe with the world's largest crayon!

Not Sure What I Was Thinking

2011-11-09T16:49:00.001-05:00

Last year I paid a professional photographer to take photos of the kids. The editing and proofing process took a really long time and I wanted to use the photos for Christmas cards. The entire thing stressed me out so I thought that Iwould take the photos this year since I have a nice DSLR camera and there are some great spots outdoors to snap photos. It all worked out in my mind....

Today was a beautiful day and there is no school the rest of this week. This morning, I set out to get the kids dressed and ready but it all went terribly wrong when I wiped a certain toddler's face. What followed was a 1 hour temper tantrum and rage-enduced vomiting.

Later in the afternoon, everyone seemed to be in better spirits so I got the kids ready and headed out the door to our favorite outdoor photo spot in a nearby county park. In other words, the same location our professional photographer took us to last year. Upon arriving at the county park, we discovered that there was lots of damage from last week's noreaster and much of the park was off limits, including our photo spot. So, I went to another county park a couple of miles away. I managed to snap a few photos before my DSLR decided to stop working. Unfortunately, most of the photos were of Chloe, who sat nicely for the photos. Oliver was already covered in dirt before we even took the first photo.

Hopefully, Matt can figure out what is wrong with my camera and we can make a second attempt at Christmas card photos. If not, looks like I will be making an appointment with a professional photographer.

In the meantime, I leave you with the best of what I got today.

Chloe--she listens and sits and smiles while Oliver runs amuck.

I managed to snap this as Oliver was walking by to throw rocks. He is NOT posing believe it or not.

I'm thinking that this photo may be the Christmas card winner. It's just not what I imagined I wanted though.

So Oliver. He's showing me some rocks he just picked up. I so wanted to get the kids outfits in the photos because I think they are darling.

School Photos--2nd Grade

2011-11-08T16:49:00.000-05:00

What Oliver Does at Chloe's Swim Meets

2011-11-06T14:32:00.001-05:00

Do I sit and watch my sister and her team mates swim laps in a loud, giant room that's warm and smells like chlorine? PUH-LEASE!! I'm two! I don't sit in the bleachers and cheer...I want to play.

Thank heavens for YMCA's and their playgrounds.
Here's a video of Chloe at the swim meet. This is the relay and there are four swimmers, of which Chloe is the anchor (last) swimmer. Of course, Matt and I didn't know that and you can hear us debating which swimmer is Chloe from the parent bleachers high above the action. Her group is in the lane on the far left of the screen. You can tell from the video that Chloe's swim team needs to work on their starts from the block--the relay was lost from the very beginning. But, Chloe loves relay and thinks it is so much fun!

Ollie

2011-11-04T17:40:00.000-04:00

As I pulled into the pre-school parking lot, I was still on cloud nine, thinking of my sweet Oliver, who just a few hours before at drop off had given me a big bear hug and yelled out, "Mommy, kiss me!" with his arms open wide. So sweet. Then I walked in the door to see my boy and he threw a toy dump truck at me, knocking me right off that cloud. He wasn't trying to injure me and he wasn't mad at me. He was excited to see me walk in the door and hurling a dump truck was how he showed it (FYI: he tackles his sister when he is excited to see her come out of school each day).

Oliver brought this home from school today. It was supposed to be for the Halloween party, but that was canceled thanks to the snow storm. So cute!!

Chloe had a play date this afternoon and it was just Oliver and I. He wasn't too happy about Chloe not being around so we played downstairs with the train table. I'm not sure which he likes better, pushing the train on the tracks or dismantling the tracks.

Nap Time

2011-11-03T14:11:00.001-04:00

I put Oliver down fully clothed. This is how I found him when I went to check on him about an hour after I laid him in his crib.

His shirt is off. His socks are on his hands and his shoes are on his feet.

What a crazy little guy!!

More of a Trick than a Treat

2011-10-31T15:24:00.000-04:00

The kids are super excited about Halloween despite the recent events. There was no school today and the town has put a curfew out for this evening. No children out after dark because of the downed trees and power lines. We just had our first trick or treaters at 3 p.m. and they weren't little, little kids either.

I took advantage of having both kids at home today by draping a white sheet and taking some photos of them in their Halloween costumes.

Chloe keeps asking when it will be time to go trick or treating. She is so excited and I am worried that it could be a giant disappointment since many around us are still without power.

It does seem like it will be an early night since there will be no ringing of the doorbell after dark. Good thing that Cars 2 was just released today and I have it on DVD!!

Have a happy and safe Halloween!

Snow-tober

2011-10-30T14:50:00.001-04:00

Isn't it still fall? What's this white stuff falling from the sky? What started out as a laugh--snow in October became a nightmare.

The snow wasn't a total surprise. Weathermen in the NYC area said that we would get 3-6" of snow but that it wouldn't stick to the roadways. They were wrong. The snow came and fell fast. It was a white out and it was wet, heavy snow that stuck to the trees and caused many to topple over into power lines, houses and roadways.

Chloe had a swim meet about 20 miles away on Saturday. I kissed her goodbye and loaded her on the bus with the rest of the swim team just as the snow began to fall. Matt was in W. Virginia racing for the weekend and he had my SUV. I had the 911 turbo. I don't care what the clever P*orsche commercial says about it being all-wheel drive and a "snowmobile", it's not.

I headed out to watch Chloe swim and as soon as I got on the highway I knew it was bad. I called our Y and asked if the swim meet had been canceled and the bus turned around. It hadn't. Cut to the chase...I was in super freak out mode. Cars were sliding all over the highway, trees were falling on the highway and it was quickly becoming bumper cars as people were crashing into one another. I made the decision to turn around after a tree fell into a road blocking any further progression. It wasn't until 2.5 hours after Chloe left on the bus that I received a call that she was ok and the swim meet was canceled (duh). I wasn't back home yet so I headed to the Y to wait for Chloe's bus.

Chloe and I made it back to our house safely, despite dodging the fallen trees and downed power lines, to discover our power was out. I made dinner by flashlight---thank goodness for gas stoves! It was getting cold in the house since we had no heat and we made a fire in the fireplace. The kids played on the iPad until it ran out of battery power and then we broke out the cards. It was a nice evening until the house filled with smoke and the fire department showed up. It was nice to know that our security system can still call for help even when the power is out. We had three firemen (in the yellow firetruck!) and a police officer wandering our house checking the carbon monoxide levels (which were ok) and debating why our chimney wasn't drafting. After an hour of debate, they threw a D*uraflame on the fire to make it burn hot and all was well. Until they showedd up an hour later---it was just to check in and see we were still doing ok. Yea, we live in a nice town where firefighters come by to check in.

We slept under lots of covers listening to the tunes of police cars heading to downed power lines and the "chirp chirp" of all of our safety devices alerting us that the battery power was low. All was right with the world Sunday as the snow began to melt and our power returned about 24 hours after it went off. Matt returned safely later in the evening.

A fall landscape covered in snow.

I inadvertently took this picture of myself while I was trying to answer the phone hoping it was one of the swim coaches to tell me Chloe was ok. You can see the amount of snow falling from the window.

The kids eating and playing in front of the fire.

The fire that cause us so much grief.

Oliver in the dark.

Chloe in the dark.

Many are still without power and school will be closed on Halloween. Chloe's school has two trees down in the front, one on the power line. This is not a Halloween we will soon forget.

Next Time Bring a RED Firetruck

2011-10-25T14:32:00.012-04:00

The fire department came to Oliver's pre-school today. It was a day for Oliver to attend but the teacher invited us to come anyway. Oliver loves all types of big trucks and I knew he would like the fire trucks. But, there was some confusion.

Oliver thought they brought a school bus. He kept insisting it was a school bus, "Look Momma, bus!". Who brings a yellow fire truck to a pre-school?

Later, we were running an errand and a school bus passed us. Oliver insisted it was a fire truck!

Photo(s) of the Day

2011-10-20T14:24:00.001-04:00

Playing with his trains. This boy loves his train table and disassembling the train tracks. As you can see, this isn't his train table but part of the train table that he removed.

We discovered his toy police car behind the couch...where he hid it. The kids are very into hiding their favorite toys so his/her sibling will not play with it. **Sigh**

The Pre-Bike

2011-10-19T10:45:00.000-04:00

Its raining which doesn't make for a very good day to unveil Oliver's new pre-bicycle. I've been researching Christmas gifts for the kids this year. Oliver & Chloe both love to go outside and ride their bikes but Oliver's tricycle has seen better days. In my research I came across a recommendation that tricycles actually make learning to ride a regular bicycle harder. The theory is that children don't learn to balance on a tricycle. If you teach a child balance first then riding a bicycle is easy---all they have to learn is to pedal. And, it looks like a big kid bike, which Oliver is all about. So, I lept ahead and ordered a pre-bicycle for Oliver. If we gave it to him at Christmas, chances are that he wouldn't get to ride it until the end of March. I was going to save it for Christmas, but I figured getting a bicycle on a rainy day in fall is better than unwrapping it on the frozen tundra that can be winter in the northeast.

Oliver was very excited to put together the bike. However, he wasn't as excited once he got on it. It will take time...I hope.

Here's a video of Oliver's reaction. And in case you don't want to be deafened by a 28 month-old, a general summary is this--Oliver has an unnatural fear that Flash the dog is going to eat the bicycle. He thinks his bike is cute like a puppy but he would rather play with his cars or watch Max & Ruby.

A Crafty Day

2011-10-15T17:47:00.001-04:00

Matt had to work today which meant I on-duty with both kids. Chloe had plans. I had plans. Mine involved laundry, sweeping and mopping. Our plans were two very different plans. Chloe's plans won out. We had great fun.

We made a thank-you video to BeBe and PaPaw for the Halloween goodies our postman brought to our house today. The kids had lots of fun playing with the splat balls, funny eyeglasses and blow-up Halloween balls.

Chloe and I made our first loaf of white bread in the bread machine. Turned out great. I was the only one who wanted to eat any.

We had lunch from our local deli. Its across the street from Chloe's school and she asks to go there everyday. Even Oliver has gotten in on the asking. He calls the place, "Candy". "Go Candy, Moma?" he asks when we go to pick up Chloe from school. Yes, they have strategically located all the candy about 3 feet off the ground at kids eye level. There is no escaping the candy.

Our final project for the day was the mason jar pumpkins. Southern Living magazine featured these in their last issue. They called them Jar o'Lanterns and they were right--lots less mess--and Chloe declared they were lots more fun. Thanks to Hurrican Irene, there is a pumpkin shortage in the northeast and what pumpkins are for sale are expensive. We made 11 mason jar pumpkins for about $10, which is the price I paid for one real medium-sized pumpkin last week. I have yet to spray paint the lids black but here's a photo essay of our handy work.

I bought some orange spray paint at the hardware store. I already had the mason jars.

I squirted some orange paint and Chloe finished it off. We found it was easiest if she sprayed the paint into the jar while I held and turned the jar. You get an even coating.

Chloe's lips are blue from some of the candy she got at the deli. It looks like she is already dressed for Halloween.

We used a paint pen to paint the faces on the jars.

Some of the finished jars on the front steps.

A jar all lit up. This is with a real candle inside but I have the LED light in the outside jars.

The Lunchroom Craze

2011-10-12T11:02:00.000-04:00

Chloe has been asking and asking for a certain food item to take to school for lunch. Her friend, Ava, had some and Chloe tried it and loved it.

I thought she was kidding at first. Really? Seaweed? After we bought it, she ate an entire pack. Shoveled it right into her mouth like it was candy. She loves it. I'm not complaining as long as she doesn't make me eat anymore. I tried it. I put on a good face, "MMMMMM, I see why you like it. That's good!" but really it tastes like your licking a fish--salty, fishy and a bit oily. Not for me. But for her, yes!

How's Your Morning Going?

2011-10-11T10:53:00.001-04:00

I am awakened at 6 a.m. to the melodious sounds of my toddler screaming “Mommy!” and I am pretty certain that it is too early for that toddler to be awake because they didn’t nap yesterday and then they didn’t fall asleep until 2 hours past their usual bedtime.

I roll over to get out of bed and discover that no, that's not my husband next to me, I hear him in the shower, it's my older child asleep next to me. She somehow managed to sneak her way into our bed in the night. I get out of bed, get the cranky toddler out of his crib and I am already thinking about all the stuff that I have to accomplish today, like the school fundraiser I got guilted into being in charge of that starts next week and I haven’t done a thing to prepare for it, the piles of laundry waiting to be washed and folded, on top of the regular activities of the day.

Everyone is awake now. I am making breakfasts and school lunch and I remember I am out of coffee and dog food. I didn’t get to go purchase those items yesterday because my child had a HUGE tantrum/crying fit because I wouldn’t take her on a bike ride after I took her apple picking, then to gymnastics, and then to dinner at her favorite restaurant. I am startled from my thoughts by a screaming match over control of the iPad, which was only placed within their reach because it was being charged.

After separating the two kids, plugging the iPad back in and feeding the dogs and children I go to place the checks I wrote for Brownie dues and another school fundraiser (headed by some other sucker) into my daughter’s school backpack only to discover a letter from the teacher. It seems my daughter hasn’t been completing all her homework and has been doing a sloppy job. Oh, and it seems my daughter is forgetful, because she conveniently forgot to give me this note on Friday.

I speak with my daughter about the incomplete homework where I am told some lengthy story about how she didn’t get to finish it or forgot or something to that effect and when she realized at school the next day she tried to finish it BUT would you believe her teacher wouldn’t let her finish it in class? Yes, yes I can believe it. Then we have a discussion on why homework is called HOMEwork and how she’s barking up the wrong tree for sympathy lest she forgot that prior to her arrival I was a public school teacher. Few excuses make it by me and I wasn’t buying what she was trying to sell.

I send her up to her room to get dressed for the day only to hear her shriek and that I need to come to her room immediately. She's going into some hyperventilation hysteria. I arrive at her room to find that one of her fish has died. We have a burial in the bathroom. She's over the hyperventilation hysteria in two second and she tells me she has to be honest and is thankful it wasn't the other fish, the one that she actually named and has survived for two years.

I then proceed to coax her into wearing the outfit I placed out for her. She doesn't like it. She doesn't want to wear Capri pants--have I forgotten she doesn't like Capri pants! Forget she picked these Capri pants out herself. Can't she change her mind? NO, no she can't.

She gets dressed. She comes out of her room wearing the Capri pants, bright pink tie-dyed socks and her black high top sneakers.. "This looks stupid!" she tells exclaims. Yes, yes it does, I think silently to myself. "No it doesn't," I tell her as I gather up and attempt to stuff the overflowing pile of dirty clothes back in to her laundry hamper so I can carry it downstairs to wash. While she is watching me do this, she tells me, “You know, sometimes I knowingly put clean clothes into the dirty clothes pile because I don’t want to put them away.” Thanks for the honesty.

I go to get myself dressed and while doing so the toddler squeezes himself into my too tiny closet and drops the giant, heavy toy he’s also crammed into the small space onto my big toe, cracking my toe nail. I scream in pain, which startles my toddler, who begins to cry. I feel terrible at frightening him and then assess whether I should attend to the crying toddler or to my bleeding toe?

I proceed to calm the toddler, forgetting my toe which is getting blood on the wood floors and dress the toddler. I then dress myself while the now calm toddler goes back into my closet and starts playing “dress up” with my jewelry. I hear the distinct sound of small beads hit the wood floor, which is still spotted with blood from my toe. I discover my toddler has broken a necklace and hundreds of tiny beads are all over my bedroom and closet floor. My toddler then tries to show me the broken necklace and attempts to take a few steps towards me over the hundreds of tiny beads on the floor only to slip, fall and hit his head on the footboard of the bed. He's crying again. I calm him. I throw whatever on and try to get my older child out the door and to school on time. Forget the blood and beads on the bedroom floor.

As I head out the door, my oldest child tells me she’s thirsty and can she have a drink? I’m also attempting to put shoes on the toddler, who is still upset from his fall and is telling me, “I don’t like shoes!”. He throws himself on the ground- kicking and thrashing. I get my oldest a drink of milk, I scoop up my toddler and his shoes and I head out the door to wrangle a screaming toddler into his car seat.

School drop off goes without a hitch but my toddler is still crying, now exclaiming he doesn't like his sister going to school. I head to the grocery store to pick up the needed fair trade Ethiopian coffee. I make it into the grocery store, find my needed item and head to the checkout. There are two lanes open. One is express and one is the regular check-out line. Both lines have women in them with massive amounts in their shopping carts. I stand in the regular check-out line only to be asked by the cashier to go to the express lane because it will be faster. I comply.

The express lane is next to the automatic door, which leads to the very busy parking lot. The toddler, who I didn’t put in a shopping cart (why bother? I was only getting 1 thing, coffee beans) thinks this is great fun to pop in and out of the door. I check the sign in the checkout lane. It clearly says “Express Lane: maximum 10 items” above it. I check the number of items in the ladies shopping cart in front of me. Way over 10 items. I roll my eyes and chase the toddler who has managed to stand outside the exit door which has automatically closed on him, shutting him outside. I re-enter to find a man, with 3 items has taken my place in line. “Sorry, I was in line,” I say. He rolls his eyes at me and goes to the other check-out lane. That cashier is done now. He doesn’t send the man with three items to the express lane, like he did me, he begins checking him out. I continue standing in line, attempting to hold on to my toddler, who doesn’t like being held. He wants to play with the automatic door. The man with three items is done. He walks past my lane and out the automatic door.

I wait for the lady with too many items to be in the express lane to finally be done. AT LAST! The cashier tells her the total--she takes out her checkbook! WHO GETS IN THE EXPRESS LANE WITH A MASSIVE AMOUNT OF ITEMS, KNOWS THEY ARE WRITING A CHECK AND THEN DOESN’T WRITE IT WHILE THEY ARE WAITING TO BE CHECKED OUT? AT LEAST I COULD HAVE WRITTEN OUT “TRADER JOE’S” WHILE I WAS WAITING!!!!! Forget that, WHO WRITES A CHECK ANYMORE? GET A DEBIT CARD! The lady then asks the cashier for a pen. I feel an aneurism coming on.

The cashier looks for a pen. “Oh wait,” the lady says, “I’ll pay cash.” I feel the twitch in my eye and the veins beginning to burst.

Finally, it’s my turn. The cashier smiles at me and my wriggly toddler who is trying his best to scratch my eyes out because he wants to play with that automatic door right by the express lane checkout. “Does your son want some stickers?” the cashier asks. “NO!” I say a little too loud, “my son wants you to ring up the one item his mom has so he can get out of here!” I say. I feel bad for being rude, but I’m annoyed and I have scratch marks on my face now, though I successfully averted the aneurism and all I wanted was their whole bean, fair trade Ethiopian coffee.

I make it out. My toddler is highly annoyed. I rethink whether I am going to stop at the pet food store. “Can he make another stop?” I wonder. Let’s give it a try. I arrive at the pet food store. I make it in the door. My toddler sits on the floor. Refuses to go further. I scoop him up, he's covered in snot from so many tantrums today. I'm not even going to attempt cleaning him up. Don't even think about it. I just turn around, I head back to the car. I go home with only the coffee.

Will try again later, maybe. I begin thinking of items I have at home to make homemade dog food as I look at the clock in the car. It’s only 9:15 a.m.

Is it too early for nap time?

Apple-Picking

2011-10-10T14:43:00.001-04:00

The kids were out of school today for Columbus Day so we took advantage of the summer-like weather to take part in a fall tradition—apple picking. It was a gorgeous day, perfect for spending it outdoors with friends.

The apple orchard in NY state. The leaves are starting to change colors. It was a beautiful day.

The apples were hard to find at first. They had been picked over. Then, we looked up. The apples were high in the trees. We were determined. We broke some rules--but we got our apples!

Where are the apples? Most were rotting on the ground. None were within easy picking reach so we had to get creative.

There were no apple picking poles so we had to go to where the apples were. Alex climbs in the tree.

Chloe, Alex and Ben reach for the apples at the top of the tree.

Somebody didn't like apple picking. Oliver was bothered by the squished apples on the ground and the bees surrounding them. He thought it was messy. He doesn't like messes he didn't make.

Maria made everything better. She held Oliver while Mommy was "reaching" for some apples.

An apple!!

Surveying the bounty. We picked $75 in apples!

Friends in the pumpkin patch!

Referral-Versary: Two Years Ago Today--The Call

2011-10-09T04:27:00.002-04:00

We got "the call" two years ago today. It was a Friday afternoon and Chloe and I were playing. I almost didn't answer the phone!

The 80s are Back

2011-10-07T16:18:00.001-04:00

This just opened at our local mall....

This was a favorite of me and my high school pals in 1989. They're back. It made me laugh and smile as I thought of high school and making a run for yogurt. Yogurt--how 80s. And then I laughed again because I spotted TCBY as I was walking out of the mall, putting my latest purchase on my face--

Ray-Ban Aviators. How 80s indeed!!

One Full Week of Autumn

2011-09-30T12:42:00.000-04:00

Eventhough fall is fabulous and one of the best seasons in the northeast, I have been reminded daily of some not so fabulous things about fall....

This accumulated on the floors not even 24 hours after the last time I swept. Dog hair I expected, but the pile of evergreen needles!!?? LOTS of pine needles, and that's just the beginning. The first leaves are starting to drop. That means that the broom and the vaccuum will be daily items for the next 2 months.

Happy fall.

The 27-month Update: Oliver

2011-09-28T12:45:00.006-04:00

I haven't done one in a while and the little man is growing and changing daily. I felt I had to post an update on his progress.

As of September 16th, Oliver is 27-months old (I have been meaning to post this update for some time but someone was a little uncooperative when it came to measuring his height, so I just skipped that in this update. If I am able to get his measurements I will add them in the post). The director at the nursery school where Oliver and I take Mommy & Me described him best when she said, "He has a BIG personality!". Oliver doesn't do small. It's go big or go home. Having a temper-tantrum? It's full on, no holds barred. Happy? He's really happy.

The screaming/shrieking has subsided (knock on wood) and is only pulled out in cases of extreme emergency (i.e. he didn't get his way). We rarely get blind-sided with a shriek that will make you jump out of your skin.

Oliver is independent. He can entertain himself, playing with his cars, but he likes to have Mom race the Matchbox cars with him on the carpet race track. He's started to color...pictures of cars of course. He likes to tell you that he is two, as he holds up one finger. He likes to give big, bear hugs, especially to Daddy.

Current Stage: He loves Daddy. He tolerates Mommy but she comes in useful when there is a boo-boo. Chloe is his idol.

Language: He's a parrot, so be very careful what you say around him. He's picking up words, phrases and making sentences every minute. He's a regular chatterbox. Right now, his favorite things to ask/say are:

"Where'd Shakey go?", which is Deanna & John's dog. Oliver asks this question at least 10 times a day.
"PaPaw went home." Another favorite. This is told to me at least twice a day.
"I don't like it" or "I don't want it." I hear this A LOT, even when he really does want it and even if he really does like it.
"Money honey." This is randomly said and oftentimes sang throughout the day. He learned this from PaPaw. It's a Willie Nelson song, If You've Got the Money, I've Got the Time. Apparently Oliver wants to go honkey-tonking.
"Bye, see ya!" and followed by blowing a kiss. This is his farewell to the ice cream man, the postman or any other person, known or unknown, that we encounter each day.
"Daddy go race car." Oliver believes Matt leaves each morning to go race cars. I once corrected him and told him that Daddy takes the bus into the big city and works in a big office tower. Oliver's reply was, "Yuck!" He prefers to believe Daddy races cars.
"Uh-oh, Bwoke it!" (Broke It) I hear this one A LOT too. Oliver's good at breaking things. Real good.
"Oooh, cool, like it!" This often is said as we run errands and a car that Oliver thinks is nice drives by. The louder and shinier the better, though we are noticing that he has taken a fancy to BMWs. And is it any surprise that at 27 months old he can spot a Porsche?

Pre-School: Oliver is doing well at pre-school two days a week. Lately at drop-off he wails and grabs hold of me and will sometimes chunk his sippy cup at me in protest but as soon as I walk out and close the door its all over. I know, I stayed and watched after I was upset that he got so upset. It took him all of 2 seconds to regain composure after I left the room and to begin playing. He likes to put on a show for Mom.

Favorites: Oliver still loves cars. We have an entire Matchbox collection. His favorite is a Morris Minor. He has two of those. He also likes planes and trains. His favorite tv show is Bubble Guppies which he gets to watch before nap time. He also likes to play with the Talking Tom app on my iPhone. In an attempt to regain my phone, I purchased him a hamster that will repeat what you say when you press his hand. He calls him "Puppy" and its his favorite. He goes everywhere with us. I did catch him trying to give Puppy a bath in the sink the other day and now Puppy sputters a bit when he repeats. He loves it so much I had to purchase a back up.

His favorite food is yogurt, chicken nuggets, fries, strawberries and grapes. He also requests "cookies" and "bagels" frequently. Neither of which is actually a cookie or a bagel. It took several hours and a giant temper tantrum from Oliver to finally decipher that when he requests a "cookie" or a "bagel" he is actually requesting donut holes (Hey, we live in the land of Dun*kin D*onuts. Every kid event has DD. People even bring it to potlucks as dessert. There is NO escape).

Oliver's F1 car he uses to scoot all over the house.

Oliver "feeding" Puppy.

Bubble Guppies--an Oliver favorite, along with Chuck, the dumptruck.

Yogurt. Ollie loves yogurt from the tube. I have to put these things on lock-down otherwise a certain big sister and little brother will eat an entire carton when Mom is busy folding clothes.

The Pit Crew

2011-09-25T12:39:00.000-04:00

Matt did some work on the race car this weekend. We've had a lot of work done on the race car lately (cha-ching) and Matt wanted to save some $$$$ and do the work himself. Luckily, he has his own pit crew. Its just unlucky that they have a small attention span and are easily distracted.

Ooohh! Gloves!

Crew chief Chloe inspects the work being done.

Where the real work happens.

Looking over the situation. Unfortunately, one of the crew is all about the camera.

Oliver loves to ~~mess up~~ look at Daddy's tools.

Doing some repair work on the toy scooter.

Mommy & Me

2011-09-22T13:17:00.002-04:00

Oliver, playing in the Oatmeal with his craft project hat on his head, at Mommy & Me.

I must admit, there was trepidation. Lots of trepidation. I haven't had too much success in Mommy & Me styled classes with Oliver and I had just signed us up for the wildly popular Mommy & Me class at a very strict, very religious local nursery school.

First, there was G&ymb*oree classes. He ran like a wild man mowing the other children down and swatted at me or had a general meltdown when I reigned him in. The G&ym*bor*ee solution was to keep moving Oliver up in classes until he was in a class of kids one year older and of a size that he couldn't trample as easily. The trampling was solved, but Ollie soon discovered he could use the play equipment for unintended purposes, like climbing to the top where he could make a running leap and into a splat on the mats. I had to hover over him on everything, which he did not like and led to tantrums.

Then, there was music class. He liked dancing to the music and making his own in the forms of screams...as he attempted to shove items in the electrical sockets, remove all the tap and dance shoes and open and close the bathroom door of the not-so toddler friendly dance studio where the class was held.

I had been advised by a "child professional" that Mommy & Me wasn't a good idea. She recommended I put him in nursery school, without me, for another day a week. I just couldn't. I did the same Mommy & Me with Chloe, I felt too much guilt not doing it with Oliver. So, I signed up.

As the first day of class approached, I have to admit that I was nervous and kicking myself for paying for the entire year of Mommy & Me in advance. I fully expected things to go the way of the other Mommy & Me classes---I expected him to run wild, not participate in circle time and for us to "lock-heads".

But, Oliver proved me wrong. He participated, he listened and he did quite well with the 10 other kids in class. He sat on my lap during circle time, though he got a little bored with storytime and made an attempt to snatch the children's Bible for himself. He enjoyed free-play (what two year old doesn't?) and he and I made a craft together (see his hat). He even attempted to play with the play-doh, which he always declares as "Ooooh, ucky! Gwoss! I don't yike it."

He even stood at the door at the end of class while I gathered my purse and our coats and told the other kids, "Bye, baby!", as each one walked out (apparently they are babies because he is the oldest child in the class--I guess he just knows that).

Here's to a good year of Mommy & Me and lots of fun crafts and songs with my little man.

The Added Bonus of Having a Pre-Schooler...Colds

2011-09-19T12:45:00.000-04:00

The chill of fall has arrived. Its dark in the mornings when we wake and the air is crisp and cool. I'm switching my closet over and am preparing to say goodbye to my shorts and summer skirts.

Also with the cooler air came our first round of colds. Oliver was super grouchy Wednesday and as I heard him coughing through the baby monitor, I knew why. On Thursday he was cranky and clingy and was sporting a full-on runny nose. No fever though. On Friday, I blew off that I felt like I could go back to bed and sleep for hours and the irritating, scratchy throat I had. I told myself I had allergies until Friday night Chloe told me her throat felt dry and scratchy. Saturday morning she woke up to a runny nose and cough. I still told myself it was allergies until Matt declared he had a cold too.

Oliver and I are on the mend, Chloe is carrying around a box of tissues and Matt never has time to be sick, the man has colds for minutes, not days.

It's Official, I'm a Swim Mom

2011-09-14T14:00:00.000-04:00

Chloe will be spending about 4.5 hours per week in the pool. She was accepted on a local dive team and practices once a week for 90 minutes with that group. She's the only elementary school student in her group. The others are in middle school. I was worried that she was intimidated by the older girls, who patted her on the head and kept telling her she's cute. After dive practice last night I told Chloe she shouldn't be intimidated. Her response, "I'm not! I'm just as good as they are and when I am their age, I'll be doing hard dives and not in a beginner group like they are!". Geez. I guess she told me.

Chloe also made our local YMCA swim team and will be swimming with them three nights a week for an hour each night. The tryouts were a little nerve wracking (well, they were for me anyway). About 70 kids competed for the few spots open in the age 8 and under group. Chloe was selected. We are so proud of her!

Chloe P.I.

2011-09-13T16:39:00.001-04:00

Got to love the prizes in the orthodontist's office....

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Halloween Costumes

2011-09-12T09:54:00.077-04:00

For the last two years, Chloe has dressed as a Star Wars character and she believed for a while that she wanted to be *Dar*th V*ad*er this year. That was until a new catalog came in the mail. She then had lots of choices and she couldn't pick one.

We spent Saturday morning looking on-line for Halloween costumes. I would rather gouge my eyes out than go to a Halloween superstore to buy a costume. Buying on-line is easier, quieter, and I don't have to dig for sizes. I do however go to a big box retailer after Halloween to snatch up some deep-discount dress-up outfits for the kids dress up chest. But that's after all the hype and excitement is over.

Chloe always gets really excited at the prospect of getting a new costume and she loves to scroll through the choices. Oliver even joined in on the fun. It became quickly apparent what Oliver wanted. Two guesses. Do you need that many? Hint: Perhaps it has something to do with CARS. Of course, when it comes to automobiles we don't do anything half-a*s---I wouldn't think of buying Ollie a basic race car driver costume. No, I had to troll the UK websites and UK Ebay to find this costume.

Looks plain, right? Well, if you are familiar with the BBC show, T*op G*ear, of which we are big fans, then you will recognize that this is the costume of the "tame racing driver" on the show, The Stig. Identity Unknown---until now. It's Oliver!

That was easy. Now, on to Chloe.

First, let me lament at some of the trampy Halloween costumes that are out there for girls. Unbelievable. But, I should note that after searching for Oliver's costume on UK costume sites that the trampy costumes for young girls seemed to be unique to the U.S. I didn't see one inappropriate costume for pre-pubescent children on those sites. Perhaps because Halloween is bigger business in the U.S. or the Brits are just more reserved? Who knows, but score one for the U.K.

When searching for a Halloween costume for Chloe, you NEVER look in the girls section. Don't even think about it. If I would rather gouge my eyes out than go to a Halloween superstore, then Chloe would rather gouge her eyes out than think of dressing as a princess, fairy or anything remotely girly for Halloween.

After throwing around different choices---ninja, Pow*erR*anger, monster, bandido, Star Wars, etc., it was determined that she favors a costume that requires you not see her face. I don't get this as she can't wear the mask during school on the day of the big Halloween parade. Whatever.

Here were two choices from her top three:

Really? I had to nix the creepy evil skeleton costume. What's with that!? No way. And, the Red P*ower*Ra*nger? She says she likes them, but I couldn't take it. Have you seen their show? It is possibly the worst thing I have ever seen---silly story lines and ridiculous monsters popping out of the ground. I think we both lost IQ points after we watched it.

So, this was Chloe's final pick. It is actually the first one she picked when the very first Halloween costume catalog arrived in the mail two months ago and it meets her selection criteria---it's not girly, it's got cool props and her face is covered. What more could you ask for?

A side note: After Chloe discovered that Oliver was to be The Stig for Halloween, guess what she decided she wanted to be too? After I ordered the above outfit. Grrrrr.

Purging

2011-09-10T09:24:00.001-04:00

One of the best things about Back to School is that I have some time to purge the clutter that seems to accumulate in our house. I took the opportunity on a rainy day to go through the kids toys that seem to be taking over the house and purge the unwanteds.

Of course, this could never be done under the watchful eye of two children. I would hear protests that they love the Light Brite that is missing every peg or the remote control car that is covered in dust & is missing every tire. No, I took this morning to sort through the piles of toys and games that are no longer loved and are no longer played with. They simply sit, discarded and gathering dust. After a quick call to the local charity, they will find new homes.

Sad thing is, Chloe & Oliver probably won't miss one of the toys I donated. They won't even know its gone, with the exception of this toy.

Not because they play it, but because it makes noise--CONSTANTLY. It has NO OFF SWITCH!! Who makes a game where the batteries are encased behind screws and doesn't make an off switch? The slightest movement sets this thing off into a quacking furry. Oh, how excited I was to place you in the box and donate you! Of course, you were quacking when I handed you over. Fare the well, you won't be missed.

Oliver's First Day of Pre-School

2011-09-09T11:54:00.000-04:00

Obviously school makes him very thirsty.

Oliver started pre-school today. He will be going twice a week for 2.5 hours. We thought about it long and hard, consulted our pediatrician and a child psychologist. Eventhough he's only twenty-six months old, everyone thought he was ready for pre-school. Oliver is bright, smart, inquisitive, very independent and has tons of energy. He also hangs mostly with his momma and seven-year olds. It was time to socialize him with other two-year olds in a structured fashion. He will also be starting a Mommy & Me class once a week with me which will start in another week. But, today was pre-school sans Mom.

Once we arrived at pre-school he was so excited that he ran straight to the room and told everyone, "Hi!", waving with a giant smile. Oliver explored the room while I spoke with his teacher. When it was time to go, Oliver was too busy for a proper goodbye. He gave me an inquisitive look and then continued playing. My baby was in pre-school. I thought I would be excited and happy at the possibility of 2.5 hours by myself but instead I burst into tears and cried all the way back to the parking lot where I really "lost it" once I was inside the car.

Once I composed myself, I set out to run errands. I kept checking my phone, waiting for the school to call to tell me Oliver spit on someone or hit another child. The call never came. I arrived at pick-up eager to hear how he did. Ms. Dawn, Oliver's teacher, told me he did fantastic and "had the best first day of any two-year old in the history of the pre-school!". Wow! To say I was surprised would be an understatement. I had anticipated some tantrum or some report of not sharing, refusing to participate ("Don't like it!") or general unruliness. Apparently that is just reserved for home.

I then turned to Oliver who was sticking his finger in a fellow classmates peas and carrots saying, "Eat!". (Some of the children stay for a full day and they are served lunch during the pre-schoo pick-up.)

"Oliver, great job today buddy!" I told him. "Lets go have lunch."

"No!" Oliver yelled. "I don't want go," he exclaimed, pushing me away.

Fabulous. He's been in pre-school for 1 day and he's learned a new sentence and he doesn't want to leave with me. And I cried when I dropped him off?!

Seriously, I am glad that Oliver had fun and a great first day. He feels very "big boy" as he goes to school like sissy. Here's to a great year little man!

Perhaps We Were Over-Zealous

2011-09-08T13:24:00.000-04:00

...but we didn't complete all that was on our "Summer To Do List" before school started. It isn't because we had a bad summer, but because this summer was so chalked full of fun activities. It was one of the best summers!

A Recap of Summer Activities:

JUNE: school gets out & diving lesson & swim team begins; Chloe gets her tongue-thrust device; Chinese Dance recital in NYC.

JULY: First swim meet; Camping for 4th of July; annual summer BBQ; Oliver becomes a U.S. Citizen; Shannon's 20th high school reunion in Dallas; visit BeBe & PaPaw; boating

AUGUST: Grandad & Marie visit; Finger Lakes; boating; Lake Sunapee vacation; Hurricane Irene; Land of Make Believe; Back to School shopping

But, of course, there was A LOT more than that....

First Day of Second Grade

2011-09-06T22:36:00.001-04:00

It was a wet and cool first day of school. Chloe's elementary has MAJOR parking issues and it is located on a busy thoroughfare which made for some first day drop-off nightmares. It's always nice to arrive for the first day of school with horns honking and people yelling at others to "MOVE!" from out their car windows.

Since the rain was coming down, we drove and had to park on a side street. I made the wrong shoe choice--sandals--and my feet were slipping and sliding as I pushed Oliver in the stroller, who was soaking wet because he didn't want the umbrella over him.

We made it to the classroom after having a photo made with the school mascot and wandering aimlessly through the halls searching for Chloe's classroom. Side note: Strike one for Chloe's teacher---no name on her door. I hear great things about her but she teaches elementary school----put your name outside your door so the kids and parents can find your classroom. She didn't make a great first impression for me.

Chloe also had "try-outs" for a local diving team. Chloe loves diving after her lessons this summer so we found a local diving team. I believe Chloe is the youngest on the team. She was the youngest last night by five years. I think she was a little intimidated that the older kids were doing flips and pikes into the water but she did well and listened to the coach. I told her that if she sticks with diving that she will be able to do the same dives as the older kids.

Chloe, preparing to dive as the coach looks on.

An Upgrade

2011-09-05T12:35:00.001-04:00

Chloe's moved up to a bicycle with gears!

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Random Photos from the Week

2011-09-02T15:49:00.002-04:00

1. Matt & Chloe wash the car just after the hurricane blew through. 2. Oliver goes for a wagon ride to assess the hurricane damage. 3. Oliver peeks from the bathroom. 4. John helps prepare dinner for the family. 5. Chloe and Oliver enjoy a ride at the Land of Make Believe. 6. Oliver and PaPaw play basketball.

I Think She's Tired

2011-08-31T17:51:00.001-04:00

On our way to dinner. Looks like it's take out and not dine in. Guess she is tired after vacation and all the guests are over.

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Back to School Shopping

2011-08-31T13:42:00.002-04:00

The family has cleared out, summer is coming to a close and its time to start thinking about returning to school. Chloe starts school next Tuesday and we decided that Oliver needs some socialization with other two-year-olds and he will start a two-day a week program on Friday of next week.

I once loved shopping for clothes with Chloe, but I've admitted before and will again, its not fun---what I would like Chloe to wear and what Chloe wants to wear are polar opposites. Chloe doesn't like dresses, except on the first day of school and Sundays. She likes high top basketball shoes as her everyday shoe and either jeans or elastic-band shorts. Tights and leggings are a NO-NO. Its her style. That's fine, I just miss my toddler who wore whatever I put on her without protest.

With that said, we had to take inventory and see what Chloe needed for the school year. That meant going through her over-stuffed drawers and her closet full of clothes. Deanna was still in town and she helped me go through Chloe's drawers and remove clothing that didn't fit or that Chloe just wouldn't ever wear---yeah, she had a LOT of that. Chloe will tell you she likes something just so you will buy her something and then she NEVER wears it. Examples would be skirts and sundresses. So, we made her help us which really seemed to bore her--ha! ha! Deanna also had to hold a plaid intervention with Chloe. Did I mention Chloe likes plaid? Really, really likes plaid.

Rejected clothing to be donated--either it was too small or Chloe admitted she would never ever wear it.

Chloe's favorite drawer. This is her "go-to" drawer. Soccer shorts and ratty t-shirts she got from a sports camp or that she tie-dyed at summer camp. She believes that these clothes are appropriate for every kind of occasion. When we pack for vacation or trips, I let her take one outfit from this drawer. Guess what she ends up wearing the entire week of vacation? The one outfit from this drawer!!! I've tried to tell her that they aren't appropriate attire for every event in life and so has BeBe but I think when Aunt Deanna explained this to her it seemed to have more value. She explained that these are weekend/play clothes. I HOPE IT WORKED.

Chloe's favorite outfit. Guess what she's wearing today? This outfit doesn't even cool off from the dryer and she's putting it on her body. She once attempted to wear it to a friend's birthday party---it was a fancy-dress tea party at a historic mansion. And she thought it was suitable.

We set out for the mall and I was sure that would find just what we needed at our first stop---a high-end discount chain unique to the NYC metro area. She liked nothing they had on offer. Not even in the shoe department. I did manage to get Oliver all of his fall apparel including two pairs of shoes at this department store. One kid down, one to go.

The additions to Oliver's fall wardrobe.

Of course, when Deanna said she wanted to go to the Ni*ke store Chloe perked up at the idea of purchasing all her school apparel there. I don't think so. Deanna took the little man while Chloe and I stopped in another store. This store seems to be more Chloe's style lately and she began picking out some items. We got all we needed, minus the shoes. The shoes we purchased this morning, right when the children's shoe store in our town openend. I get the majority of Chloe's shoes there. The owner is just so nice and he lets Oliver run like a banshee and play while we fit Chloe's narrow foot. He knows her foot and what shoes will work and what doesn't. He also knows she doesn't like flowers and pink, so he never tries to go there. Its easy and we're all happy in the end.

Chloe's stylings. Two pairs of cords, a pair of jeans, a sweater, a dress and leggings (gasp!), a jean jacket, two knit shirts (one has a logo character on it which I usually oppose but it was on clearance for $2.99 and she begged and I'm a sucker) and yes, that would be a plaid shirt you see. Whatever.

I did have to set some ground rules (i.e. NO HIGH TOP ATHLETIC SHOES) with Chloe and explain that we were looking for an everyday shoe that would look good with jeans and the majority of her outfits and that she could wear on the playground and most school activities---I thought Mary Jane but she thought this--

Fine. At least I know she will wear it. I still tried to push a Mary Jane, a nicer shoe for nicer outfits but she wasn't biting. Her solution was this:

I know, I know, I'm a sucka. Yes, she got it and yes, I thought it was too stinkin' cute on her foot to say no.
And then, she asked for these...

She liked the heel and she wants to wear them to church and to school recitals. YES!!!! Now, if I could only convince her that they don't look good with this outfit, which she has currently paired them with and has worn the remainder of the day.

An Earthquake and a Hurricane in a Week

2011-08-30T17:10:00.006-04:00

Tuesday, August 23rd, while we were touring Vermont, there was an earthquake. We didn't feel anything but Matt did in his office in mid-town Manhattan. He said the building shook enough to make you take notice and to unnerve some.

As our week of vacation progressed, we became more aware of Irene's intended path and that it was heading straight for NYC and our home. We were due to check-out of the rental house on Saturday morning and we scrambled to pack, clean the house and get out of dodge before the heavy rains came. There was also word that the bridges crossing the Hudson River would be closed if the winds picked up. We didn't want to be stuck in NY in our car with a boat in tow. I had also been alerted by some friends back home that the grocery stores were picked clean in our town so Mom & I stopped and did a quick grocery store shop in New Hampshire.

We made it back home just as the rain started and managed to secure the patio furniture, boat and potted plants. We stayed tuned to the weather channels. Through the late evening into the next morning it poured rain. The winds didn't come until the rain ended and it toppled trees that were soaked and couldn't stay in the ground. Power lines were taken out and the rivers, brooks and streams flooded and poured into homes and streets.

We managed to escape unscathed. We didn't lose power, though many of our neighbors did, and we only lost minor branches on our trees. However, there was plenty of carnage all around.

On Sunday, there was sun for a little while in the afternoon before the winds came and everyone ventured out to access the damage. We went for a walk to see for ourselves and these are the photos from our excursion.

This is a street and a parking lot near the brook in our village.

Flooding on a street that ends at the brook.

More flooding. The house that sits to the left of this photo just went up for sale two days after this photo--coincidence?

Blocked streets due to flooding.

Downed trees that pulled up the sidewalk.

More downed trees.

Flooding and a car that attempted to drive through the flooding but didn't make it.

Lots of downed trees.

The high school football field.

Flooding in the 1st floor of this apartment building.

Things are slowly returning back to normal. The downed trees and branches still sit piled along the roadways and many are still without power but the water has receded and all streets are back open in our village.

Lake Sunapee

2011-08-29T12:17:00.000-04:00

A view from our boat---one of the lighthouses on Lake Sunapee (they warn boaters at night of rock croppings) and Mt. Sunapee in the background.

A week at the lake...so nice. My parents, sister and brother-in-law all flew out and we drove from NJ to New Hampshire's Lake Sunapee. After some foul weather delayed my sister and brother-in-law in Chicago we all managed to make it in town and head out on Saturday, August 20. We rented a lake house in a quiet cove on the lake. It was private and a great spot.

A view of the deck of the rental house down to the lake.

The weather was in the 70s and it was a nice break from the 100+ temperatures my parent's were experiencing in Dallas. We brought the boat and quickly learned that Lake Sunapee can be a little tricky if you are new to it. Lots of shallow rocks. Moral of the story, stay away from the black and red poles in the lake!

Our boat moored off the dock.

We kept the boat moored off the dock of the house. The dock was lovely and we spent lots of the week there.

Matt & Chloe kayaking in the cove.

Flash relaxing after a swim in the lake on the dock.

Oliver looking at the water through the wood slats on the dock.

Deanna in her inflatable kayak.

Chloe ready to go on the boat.

Flash taking a swim.

Chloe fishing with Uncle John. They did a lot of fishing from the dock.

Chloe striking a pose on the rocks, which were part of the dock.

Shakey, Deanna and John's dog, preparing to go on the boat.

Deanna and I in the inflatable kayaks after we moored the boat. It was chilly and I didn't want to swim back to the dock. Some members of the family were hoping for a splash!

We also spent time on the lake in the boat:

BeBe & Chloe.

Matt at the helm.

Chloe, holding Shakey, and Uncle John.

And we had some fun on the lake too:

Deanna and Chloe tubing.

Chloe and Uncle John tubing and getting fancy with some tricks.

Deanna preparing to knee-board.

We also did some sight-seeing in the area. We went to Vermont one day and visited the cutest town--Woodstock, VT. We also visited a farm, a maple sugar & cheese maker, and covered bridges.

Shakey and Oliver at the community beach.

Chloe, Shakey, and Uncle John, who is carrying Oliver out of the corn maze at the local farm stand in NH.

Visiting the dairy cows at Billings Farm in Woodstock, VT.

Chloe at the river in Woodstock.

BeBe & Oliver watching a newborn dairy cow.

The restaurant we ate lunch at on our tour of VT. It didn't look like much from the outside but it had great, homemade food.

John, Deanna, Chloe, PaPaw & Matt getting ready to hike Mt. Sunapee.

On the hike.

It was a great vacation, but as luck would have it we had to hurry back to NJ to secure the house for the impending hurricane. There was lots of flooding in the area of Vermont & New Hampshire we were in as a result of the tropical storm. One of the covered bridges we had seen during the week washed away in the flooding.

Mom, Dad, Deanna and John were supposed to fly back on Sunday, August 28, but that didn't happen. Mom & Dad managed to get a flight back to Dallas on Monday and Deanna & John went back to Arizona on Wednesday. Thanks to Irene, their vacation lasted a little longer.

We're making plans for next year's summer vacation with the family--Finger Lakes of NY--watch out!

Chloe's Photos

2011-08-11T12:00:00.000-04:00

Chloe really enjoyed hanging out with Grandad at the racetrack and taking photos with my Nikon. She took some 500 shots at the racetrack. She took a LOT of the cars on the track but she couldn't see over the protective fencing placed around the course, so I won't bore you with photos of chain link. I posted some photos she took in the previous post and I'm posting some of the best she took at the track below.

Daddy's car #'s (yes, they're pink, they can be seen easily. That's all I'm saying about that.).

The engine of Matt's 944 Turbo. I think this was prior to it blowing up.

A shot of Grandad taking a shot of Matt pulling away.

A photo of Grandad taking a photo of the cars racing.

Matt sitting on his track car.

The "back shot" of me and Marie watching the cars on track.

The crest on Matt's car.

The Turbo's roll bar.

Grandad & Marie Visit

2011-08-11T11:51:00.001-04:00

We've had a whirlwind couple of weeks. The kids and I spent nearly a week in Dallas for my 20th high school reunion. We returned on a Tuesday and the next day, Matt's father and his wife, Marie, came in from Sweden. We hadn't seen Marie in six years and hadn't seen Matt's father in two years. It was their first time meeting Oliver who took to them pretty quickly and took to calling them "Dad" and "Ree".

Matt had a Por*sche club event at Watkins Glen and on Thursday morning we all piled into the cars with the two dogs and made the 5 hour drive to the Finger Lakes region of NY. We rented a house for the long weekend. It was a 200+ year old farmhouse on a working dairy farm in between Waneta Lake and Keuka Lake. The kids loved seeing the dairy cattle and calfs on the farm.

The front of the farmhouse.

Back of the farmhouse from the cornfield.

The apple tree in the front of the house.

The calf barn which was very close to the house.

Chloe visiting the calves. She probably came here at least three times a day.

Chloe and Oliver checking out one of the farm cats.

Chloe and Oliver on a walk.

Chloe posing after she rolled down the hill to the side of the farmhouse.

A view of the dairy cattle and milk barn.

The first few days we spent time at the track watching Matt drive. Matt's father enjoys taking photos and Chloe liked staying with Grandad at the track and serving as "cameraman #2". I gave her the loan of my Nikon and she took over 500 photos at the track!

Matt's Dad (taken by Chloe).

A crash we witnessed during one of Matt's runs.

Matt (lead car) making a turn at "The Boot".

Matt and his Dad (taken by Chloe).

When the weekend arrived, the rain arrived too. Saturday was pretty much a wash out for Matt and he didn't get much track time in his car. Marie, Chloe, Oliver, Matt and I went to Swedish Hill Winery in the afternoon on Saturday. Matt and Oliver stayed behind while Marie and I tasted and bought wine. Chloe served as our own personal camera man.

Swedish Hill Winery

Chloe's artistic shot of the wine being poured into the tasting glasses. Thats her apple juice box on the counter in the background.

Marie. You have to bring a Swede to Swedish Hill Winery. Its obligatory.

Marie tasting the Svenska White.

Chloe with the wineries pet donkey, Doobie.

Sunday started out great until Matt's car blew a head gasket, ending his weekend on the track. Luckily the guys from the repair shop were on track too and had room on their car trailer to tow Matt's car back to NJ for the needed repairs. We decided to make the most of what was left of the weekend and head to Lake Keuka. We had towed the boat all the way up and hadn't used it yet, so we didn't want to miss the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful lake. We had dined at the lake on Saturday night and wanted to check it out a little closer.

The restaurant, Snug Harbor, where we dined on Saturday.

Oliver checking out a Harley parked outside the restaurant.

The view of Lake Keuka from the restaurant.

Chloe and Oliver throwing stones into the lake from the restaurant parking lot.

We had a great afternoon on the lake. Matt knee-boarded and gave Marie a lesson in knee-boarding as well. She did great! Chloe and Grandad also flew kites off the boat.

Chloe and Marie swimming in the lake.

Grandad flying kites from the boat.

A view of a sailboat on the lake.

On Monday morning we drove back to NJ, one car down, we were all piled into the Navigator. Tuesday was Marie & Grandad's last full day with us so we headed into NYC to do some sightseeing. Oliver stayed behind with the babysitter and we all took a very memorable tour on the Gray Line and got soaking wet in a downpour. I, of course, forgot my camera.

On Wednesday we finished up some shopping before Grandad and Marie headed to the airport. We were so glad that the kids got to spend time with them and we have lots of great memories of the week.

We have a low-key couple of days at home before Chloe starts golf camp next week and then were headed off to New Hampshire for a week at the lake with my parent's, sister and brother-in-law.

The 20th High School Reunion

2011-08-02T16:25:00.001-04:00

The kids and I went to Dallas for my 20th high school reunion. The time of year wasn't the best-- middle of summer and temperatures in Dallas in excess of 100 degrees--nevertheless the trip down memory lane was so much fun and the kids had a great time seeing their BeBe & PaPaw, swimming & eating snow cones to stay cool.

I bought the kids some authentic cowboy boots this trip. Chloe picked out matching ones with Oliver and she wore them with her shorts in 105 degrees. So cute!

The purpose of going to Dallas was to go to my high school reunion. I attended with my longtime friend, Stacie. We went with few expectations and maybe that's why we had such a fabulous time!! The venue where the reunion was held was very dark and the photos didn't turn out so well. I do have a few.

Stacie & I at the reunion.

Stacie is smiling while I am taking photos.

Nakina, Carmen & I. Carmen is a childhood friend and it was so much fun catching up with her.

Traci & Stacie.

Chloe, Oliver and I met up with Stacie, her husband and kids at their swim club so we could rehash the reunion and *snort* and laugh at old yearbooks. Stacie's oldest daughter and Chloe are the sweetest together and play so well together. Perhaps they will be lifelong friends like their mothers?

It was great catching up and having so much fun. This trip marked the beginning of our month-long vacation(s). We landed at home long enough to do some laundry and repack for our Finger Lakes racing getaway with Matt's Dad who is coming in from Sweden. I hope to have lots of photos of that!

Citizenship

2011-07-26T12:35:00.000-04:00

Oliver is officially a U.S. Citizen! We woke very early this morning and made our way to the Federal Immigration office in Newark. We stood in the snaking line around the building to go through security and then we waited in another line to meet with the adjudication officer. Lets just say Oliver made his presence known---he only expressed what all the adults were suppressing---frustration at having to wait.

Once we got his Certificate of Citizenship, we weren't required to stay for the swearing in ceremony, we left. I didn't take a photo in the ceremony room because Oliver just wasn't feeling it at this point. I decided to take a photo when he was a little happier...after he had had his celebratory Dun*kin D*onuts.

We Put Another Check on Our Summer List...

2011-07-18T21:15:00.000-04:00

playing in the sprinkler!

The BBQ

2011-07-17T17:42:00.000-04:00

The BBQ was Saturday and I think it was lots of fun. Chloe and I spent the best part of our Friday afternoon prepping and making some dishes in advance so I could be outside with the guests instead of in the kitchen. Unfortunately I was sporadic with my photography and didn't actually get many shots during the dinner.

The Setup---

We had two large tables for the adult and a children's table. Chloe helped me spray paint the mason jars earlier in the week and they were so cute on the table with sunflowers in them. I love BBQ places that have the brown paper on tables so I copied that idea. I also had the last minute idea of writing the menu on the paper.

The Menu---

All the berries in the desserts were the berries the kids and I picked. I prepped the meats the day before and Matt fired up the smoker early in the morning. It may not be the prettiest, but it is the real star of the show---

And, as seems to be the new tradition, there was the washing of Paul's Porsche. Its amazing the labor children will put in if you let them play with water.

And the finished product....

InstaFriday

2011-07-15T18:40:00.000-04:00

A week in my life via Instagram....

Things have been busy with swimming and diving eating up most of our days. We have two swim meets this week in addition to practice. Wednesday's swim meet was 6 hours long!

We have our annual barbecue coming up this week and I have been menu planning and grocery shopping. My food shopping was interrupted Wednesday when we had to evacuate the store because of a bomb threat! I wasn't going to let a hoax stop me and I eventually completed all my shopping once we were allowed back into the store. I didn't get to snap a photo of all the hoo-haa because I was trying to wrangle two kids in a parking lot full of fire trucks, bomb squad vehicles and 100s of people.

I had to make a beverage run for the weekend BBQ and I may have wept with joy when I placed these two cases of beer on the checkout counter. See, this beer just became available in NJ. It has only been sold in the neighboring states of Texas recently and now its making a national debut. It tastes of Texas. It's my favorite, so much so that we named our first dog, a Clumber Spaniel, after it.

If anyone at our BBQ finds this beer unacceptable, then I find them unacceptable and they can go home...without tasting the 'cue cause its a Texas BBQ and you have to have a Texas beer that you can now buy in New Jersey!!

We've had wonderful weather this summer. Not a lot of humidity like summers past. Perfect weather for sipping some iced tea, which I have been keeping in mass quantity in the refrigerator.

I realized that with the evening swim practice and late night swim meets that I haven't cooked a decent meal since summer began! I could only remember making spaghetti. I had to make it a priority to make a decent dinner one evening--Parmesan chicken cutlets, grilled corn and rice. The kids ate it up like I hadn't fed them in forever.

The kids and I went raspberry and blueberry picking. Oliver wanted to hold the container. About halfway through filling the large container with raspberries Oliver decided to try one. He tasted the raspberry, yelled, "Goss!" (that's "gross" in Oliver speak) and dumped the entire container on the ground. Raspberries aren't a lot of fun to pick---they're scratchy and have lots of bees on them. I'm using these berries to make a cobbler for the BBQ. If the cobbler has a little dirt, grass and rocks in it too, sorry. I had to salvage what I could from the ground.

Now, when it came time to pick the blueberries, Oliver was all on board! We couldn't pick those fast enough. Lets just say I had to give the farmer a few extra dollars for the amount in my son's stomach.

Complete Randomness

2011-07-14T22:37:00.001-04:00

Random photos from my camera and phone from the past week.

At Chloe's swim meet---I tried to snap the chaos when it began raining, sprinkling really, no lightning, all the kids bolted out of the pool and began acting like they were going to melt. Weren't they in a pool filled with water in the first place? I found it all a little absurd that people would wrap themselves in towels and huddle under umbrellas when they were wet to begin with.

Oliver's face after he got into his sister's Fun Dip and decided to use it as war paint instead.

Matt & Chloe at Candlewood Lake in Connecticut.

Oliver at the pool during Chloe's swim practice. He carries the football everywhere while at the pool and it usually leads to some toddler confrontation when someone tries to snatch it from him or offer to throw the ball to him--which he doesn't like.

This is Oliver's Heisman Trophy shot. And, yes, he's running at the pool and I am probably shouting, "No running!" as I am snapping this photo.

The First Swim Meet

2011-07-08T09:58:00.001-04:00

I wish I could say this summer has been relaxing, but the truth is that it has been busy. Busier than when Chloe is in school. There is little down time and besides Kung Fu twice a week we are at the pool twice a day for diving lessons and swim team practice. We're home just long enough to throw wet towels in the washer/dryer and to let Oliver nap. Diving lessons end next week and we will just have swim team practice going forward so the back and forth at the pool can end.

Chloe's very first swim meet was Wednesday. It was my first experience at a swim meet and it wasn't the best introduction to competitive swimming as it was chaotic and disorganized. I can't even begin to describe the confusion and chaos at the meet. The meet was supposed to start at 5: 00 p.m. but after an hour of standing around trying to find someone that knew what was going on and where we should be I had enough and stepped in to organize swimmer check-in while three other moms obtained the master swim list and began organizing the swimmers by using pens to write the event, heat and lanes on the kids arms so they would be able to know what they were doing. We did get an apology letter from the head coach and staff this morning apologizing for the chaos--which was really her passing the blame on the pool for staying open during the swim meet. She promises the next event will start on time and be organized---lets just say I have my doubts. For someone that has been coaching this team for 15 years she should have it down like clockwork regardless of whether half the Olympic sized- pool is open for general swim (especially when the event was in the 25M pool, not the Olympic-sized pool).

All the chaos and confusion put stress on the kids and Chloe began whining that she didn't want to just "sit around" while this all got figured out and kept asking to go to the playground. Not knowing when the event would start or the order of the event, I couldn't let her run off to play for fear the event would start at any minute.

When the time finally came for the event to begin (almost 2 hours after the original start time) I was totally stressed and on "high alert". As Chloe stood at the side of the pool waiting to compete I didn't know how she felt or what she was thinking. She kind of looked like a "deer in headlights" not quite sure what was going on.

And, she got a little miffed when she learned she was only swimming 15M because she swims in the 5-6 age bracket because of her June birthday (even though she's 7). She's been in swim lessons (both group and private) since she was 11 months old and can currently swim a 25M pool back and forth for 45 minutes straight). I'm not bragging when I say the kid is good, really good for her age, and that she should be in the 7-8 age bracket but the coach told me those are the rules and then quipped, "she'll do really well and win all her heats, " which seems unfair to me & Matt. I was still a nervous wreck when it came to Chloe's first event, the 15M freestyle and the "Tiger Mother" may have come out in me. Chloe won handily over the others--2nd place is to the right of Chloe in the video.

Chloe went on to win backstroke too. Its hard to read her sometimes and what she is thinking. After the backstroke, she got out and asked, "Did I come in first?" to which I said, "Yes!" to which she responded with, "Can I go to the playground now?".

Its all good fun.

So, what does Oliver do during all this swimming? Well, he stays with our babysitter for the swim meets but is in tow for diving lessons and swim team practice. He spends his time in the kiddie pool area.

Have a great weekend, I'm off to diving practice with the kids....

Momentary "Girliness"

2011-07-06T12:08:00.001-04:00

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

First Full Week of Summer Break

2011-07-01T07:50:00.000-04:00

We're one full week into summer break and two catalogs arrived in the mailbox touting "Back to School". SERIOUSLY? The kids in this part of the country JUST got out of school and we are supposed to start thinking about back to school clothing and backpacks? Not a chance.

So far summer has been busy. Chloe has diving practice in the morning and then its back at the pool in the evening for swim team practice. In between we either spend time at the pool, ride bikes or try to get some grocery shopping done. Thankfully, one of my friends has been taking Chloe to swim team practice in the evening and a few diving lessons so I can get Oliver to bed on time or to other appointments. We've dubbed her Chloe's "swim mom" and she cheers for Chloe and even taped her at lessons.

We've made a few checks on the "Summer to Do" list---we made stepping stones and caught fireflies.

The garden is coming along nicely, though the only thing ready to harvest are the pole beans. I have been mothering the yellow watermelon plant, trying to ensure that it produces fruit for Chloe.

Enjoy your holiday weekend!!

Diving Lessons

2011-06-30T13:16:00.001-04:00

Want to know how someone is taught to do a backwards dive into the pool? Check Chloe out....

Tongue Thrust

2011-06-28T10:56:00.000-04:00

At her last dental check-up Chloe was diagnosed with tongue thrust. She keeps her tongue on the top if her mouth and has pushed her top teeth out of alignment. So, we've been seeing the orthodontist regularly. Today, Chloe was fitted with the appliance that will train her where to keep her tongue.

It felt a little funny to her, she kept drooling and sprayed when she spoke, but she still had her sense of humor.

Chinese Dance Recital

2011-06-27T14:47:00.000-04:00

Chloe at the TriBeca PAC before the recital.

Sunday was Chloe's Chinese Dance recital in TriBeca, just a few blocks from Chinatown. It's so nice that Chloe has the opportunity to learn traditional Chinese dance and about the Chinese culture through the Chinese Cultural Center in NYC. Each Friday afternoon, her instructor takes the subway in from NYC to teach language and dance to the girls. The recital is with all the students of the cultural center, those from NYC, our village and Westchester county in NY.

The performers in the first half of the recital (Chloe is in here somewhere).

This year's dance was a handkerchief dance.

A New Crib

2011-06-25T17:24:00.000-04:00

Matt & Chloe were running an errand on Saturday and I was home with Oliver, who was supposed to be napping. A giant THUD soon alerted me that Oliver was not asleep at all. I went to his room to discover that Oliver had unassembled his crib and not in a good way. He had pushed and pushed until the front section had shirred from the sides of the crib. How he managed that kind of strength I don't know. All we know was it WAS a nice and expensive crib.

Oliver met me with a big smile and an "Uh-oh", as he held the very large, broken section of his crib.

When Matt returned home he surveryed the damage and declared the crib to be beyond repair. A quick trip to the baby superstore landed Oliver a new crib (we're not quite ready to put him in a toddler bed) and round 2 of nap time.

First Full Day of Summer Break

2011-06-24T11:14:00.001-04:00

I hope this first day isn't a sign of the summer to come. Summer vacation started rainy and cool. We planned ro spend the day at the pool as Chloe had her first swim team practice.

Oliver spent the parent's meeting screaming for his sister and Chloe spent it in the first aid station. She fell during sprints. Not the best way to start your first swim team experience.

We also discovered that Chloe has swim team practice at the same time as dive practice. That's not going to work.

School's Out!!!! (FINALLY)

2011-06-23T16:14:00.001-04:00

While the rest of the country is in the middle of their summer break, ours is just beginning. Chloe is finally out of school for the summer!!!

It was a half day today and she is already asking what we are going to do this summer and stating that she is BORED. Geez, give me a chance! We still have 75 days of summer vacation and didn't we make a poster of all the things we are going to do this summer?!!

GRRRRR....

Chloe's first grade class dancing with their teacher, Mrs. K.

In other news, I went to school yesterday for Chloe's class party. Her teacher gave me a photo with all the student's in Chloe's class and a thank-you note signed by everyone for being class mom. It was sweet.

Strawberry Picking & Measurements

2011-06-17T08:04:00.002-04:00

The kids had their pediatrician appointment yesterday and then we went to pick strawberries afterwards. First, the measurements:
CHLOE:
Height 47 inches (27th percentile)
Weight 44.5 lbs. (34th percentile)

OLIVER:
Height 37 inches (70th percentile)
Weight 34 lbs. (80th percentile)

We went just along the NJ/NY border to the u-pick farms we visit each year. I thought Oliver would go mad for the strawberries since he loves them so, but, he didn't seem to recognize them on the plant. He preferred to play in the plowed, dusty field next to the strawberries where he got filthy. Chloe helped pick and she even tried to teach Oliver which strawberries to pick. "Oliver, pick the red ones and only the red ones. You can't just pick any strawberry you see!" she told him, obviously remembering what she had been taught.

Teaching little brother which strawberries to pick.

Already Oliver has lost interest in picking strawberries.

Lots of berries!!

Chloe picking "the perfect strawberry". She picked quite a few before she called it quits claiming it was just too hot to pick strawberries. Apparently, it wasn't too hot to run around a plowed field though.

Oliver and Chloe playing with a "found" ball in the plowed field next to the strawberries. Oliver looked like he had a dust bath when he was finished. He also had a flailing tantrum in the field when his sister wouldn't give the ball to him. He was so loud the farmer asked if he could retain Oliver's "services" to scare away the birds from the berries.

We picked 15 lbs. of strawberries. I couldn't resist. There were so many red, juicy berries. I couldn't just leave them there! These strawberries are so much better than the strawberries commercially produced and sold in the supermarket.

It Isn't Easy Being Two

2011-06-16T20:02:00.001-04:00

Oliver, our dear son, you have made our lives more interesting, entertaining and I must admit stressful. You're crazy wild. You don't sit still unless you are asleep. You are as smart as a whip. You want so much to be a big kid and do all the things your sister can. You're as strong as an ox and as stubborn as a mule. You are strong-willed and wily. You are LOUD. You are a screamer and a screecher. You want it YOUR WAY. You have a wicked sense of humor. You love cars, trains, planes, dogs and cats. You love singing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" just as much as you love singing Jus*tin Be**iber's "Baby, Baby". You love to brush your teeth, help clean up and reading the book, Goodnight Moon. You are precious.

Still too young to get the cake and candle thing. He did smash his hand in the icing to see what it was all about but decided he didn't really want to partake in the cake.

TWO!!

2011-06-16T07:32:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday Oliver!!! The present from BeBe and PaPaw arrived yesterday and the kids couldn't wait to take it for a spin. Oliver loves it.

Excuse my pestering of Oliver. When he says "two" its the cutest thing on the planet and I wanted to get him saying it in the camera---which never works out.

Oh, and we did move the roller coaster to a better location--not on the patio.

The Birthday Day

2011-06-15T09:13:00.000-04:00

HAPPY 7TH BIRTHDAY CHLOE!!

Chloe is officially 7 years old. She celebrated her birthday at school today with her friends and then we went out to eat as a family at Chloe's requested restaurant.

This place is great. It keeps Oliver's attention and we get little to no screeching. And that's a good thing.

After dinner, we had a second cake and opened some presents....Le*go and Sta*r War*s was a theme.

Later in the week I will post some facts about the kids to record their birthday milestones. We go the pediatrician on Oliver's birthday and I will have some height/weight info. then.

BBQ Festival

2011-06-11T19:20:00.023-04:00

A BBQ festival in NYC is a pretty cool thing. Standing in line for over an hour in the rain with a screaming toddler. Not so cool. We were willing to do this to get some of our favorite BBQ from Austin, TX. .

Maybe this wasn't the wisest of ideas. Over one hour in the rain...you know its not going to live up to what you remember

It really started pouring and there was another BBQ stand from a local NYC BBQ place that cleared out so jumped in to buy us some ribs. Chloe liked the beans.

BeBe, who is visiting for the kids birthdays, enjoying a rib while standing in line.

More waiting in line and eating ribs.

Still waiting. Even the down pour and screaming Oliver didn't drive people away from this BBQ.

Preparing the brisket. They couldn't cut it fast enough to keep up with the demand. By the time we got to the front of the line we had to wait another 10 minutes for them to "prep".

The final product...FINALLY!

The 7th Birthday Party

2011-06-11T12:09:00.003-04:00

Chloe's birthday party was last night. Below is her invitation---

We had 24 kids all "wired for sound", bouncing, dancing and shooting balls. Pizza and cake rounded out the party. Chloe had a fantastic time and Oliver did too. The icing on the cake was that it was such an easy birthday party. All I had to do was bring the cake and candles. The staff was great and took care of everything else. Yipppeeee!!

BALLS! Oliver hung right in there with the 6, 7 and 8 year olds at the party. He didn't care for the bounce house obstacle courses or the shark slide. He liked the balls and the roller coaster ride (which his grandmother determined he would get for his birthday next week).

The push-ride roller coaster was a big hit.

The Hurricane Simulator--hysterical. The kids loved it and even Oliver got in on the action.

The shark slide.

On the light up dance floor.

The ball shooters. Oliver was ball boy. This was BY FAR his favorite activity of the party and it was pretty much the hit of the night. I would say at any given time half of the kids at the party were in the ball shooter area.

Chloe's birthday cake---it was beautiful, with real flowers. The manager came to ask if we REALLY wanted to put Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker on the cake. This cake fits the birthday girl's character to a T---a little bit girlie and a little bit "tom boy".

Eating pizza. They were quiet for about 15 seconds during this time.

Blowing out the candles on the cake. I love the fact that it's Chloe's best pals surrounding her in this photo---her oldest friends (our weekly playroup pals) and her best friend from class--the little boy cheering her on behind her. Love this photo so much that I'll ignore the fact that Chloe removed the clip pulling the bangs out of her face!

The party was a great success and so much fun. We did have on snafu...Chloe's presents got mixed up with another party's presents and we came home with the wrong gifts. Daddy made a quick trip back up to the party place to exchange for the right gifts. Of course, this was agony to Chloe who laid on the couch waiting with such drama over what felt like an eternity to the ever eager party girl.
And, oh, parents, you can thank me later for tiring your kids out on a Friday evening. Hopefully they were worn out and tired and slept like a rock like mine did!!!

1st Grade Performance

2011-06-09T11:24:00.000-04:00

BeBe arrived on Wednesday and we whisked her from LaGuardia straight to Chloe's first grade performance at school. It was hot and the gymnasium has no air conditioning. Sweltering. The performance was great even though a certain soon-to-be-two-years-old didn't want to have any part of watching it.

The Summer List

2011-06-04T21:42:00.000-04:00

School is not out yet (14 days left), but that doesn't mean we can't start planning our summer. Really excited about this summer. It's going to be so much fun!

Chloe and I made our list and our poster tonight. Oliver even pitched in a little (by trying to eat the markers). I totally stole this idea from here.

InstaFriday

2011-06-03T07:00:00.003-04:00

I skipped last week's InstaFriday because I just didn't get it together. This week was a tough one, but I managed.

Oliver loves hats and he loves to dress up in the army hat while spreading out all the Cra*zy Fo*rt pieces all over the playroom.

He also like to bring me this video that he snags EVERY DAY from the DVD's in the playroom/media room. I think he's trying to tell me something....

But, alas, Recipe Club is calling and so is the Blackberry Pavlova I made.

And then there was this little mag that arrived and made me drool....

Besides, it's too hot to exercise. We skipped right over Spring and went straight to Summer.

And, on a more serious and heartfelt note---this week was a tough one because a friend unexpectedly and suddenly passed away from a heart attack at 38 years old, leaving behind a husband and three children all under the age of 6. Its been tough to come to terms with her passing and what it means for her family. Right now, I'm holding on to my dear friends I have and everyday I am given with my family as a gift and reminding every female I know to get their hearts checked and to know the signs of a heart attack for females because they can be very different from a man's symptoms---which are the symptoms most people know.

R.I.P. Jen

Memorial Day Weekend--Eaten Alive

2011-05-31T13:07:00.002-04:00

Just a few weeks ago we decided to go camping on Memorial Day. It was hard to find a campsite that had availability and maybe that should have been our first clue that we should have just gone out on the boat instead.

I did manage to find a campsite and it wasn't too far away from Sara*toga Springs, NY, a very nice town with lots to see and do. It was also near a lake that Matt and I had wanted to check out. We had found out that there was a private, RV resort on the lake and we had put ourselves on the wait list for next year. We thought this was a good idea since we could leave the RV at the resort and bring the boat up on weekends.

At first everything seemed to be going well. We pulled into the RV campground in early evening and were surprised at how nice the campground seemed to be. We were given our campsite location and a map. We weren't too far from the main entrance to the campground so it was easy to find, we were told. Seems whoever drew the map of the campground put our assigned campground at the wrong end of the map. We had to get out of the car and walk up the driveway to search for the site. Fifteen minutes later we found it. It was uneven and too small for our 30 ft. RV. Matt went to the office to speak to someone. It was at this time that I took note of the insects flying around. At first I thought they were gnats, but I quickly realized they were mosquitos. Chloe, wanting to know what the problem was, opened the car door, letting in 100s of mosquitos, and the screaming began. There was no escape. I unlocked the RV, grabbed a bottle of bug spray and hosed everyone down, including the dogs and the inside of the car.

In the meantime, Matt had spoken to the campground manager and got us a new assignment. Unfortunately, someone was camped there and they were moving to a site. We had to wait for them to pack up and move. It took them over an hour to pack and move campsites as a fuse blew in their RV. It seemed to take an eternity. We finally rolled into our campsite about two and a half hours after we arrived.

The next morning we arose to discover Chloe was covered in mosquito bites and her left eye was swollen. Matt's legs were covered in bites. Oliver and I seemed to fair better.

Chloe has terrible reactions to mosquito bites. You can see her swollen left eye after a bite just below.

We didn't accomplish much Saturday, we let Chloe ride her bike and we scratched our bites. We were miserable but determined to stick it out and enjoy our family time together. But, by Sunday morning enough was enough. We woke to more bites despite our spraying and campfire to ward off the pests. We packed up and went home to the local pool and made lemonade from the lemon of a weekend.

MMMMMM....ice cream at the pool (and no bugs)!

Riding her bike at the campgrounds...getting eaten alive!