Knock Knock...who's there?

Well.....the first day of school I placed a note in Sam's lunchbox. He is now old enough to read notes and I thought he would enjoy knowing how much his Mommy adores him.....WRONG! Apparently, he is now old enough to pretend he thinks a love not from his Mommy is not the coolest idea. So, I sadly posted my news on Facebook. Unfortunately, I am not the coolest mom in town...that would be Amber who suggested I write a cool fact or joke instead of a proclamation of love. WHAT?!? Being the diplomat I am, I proposed this idea to Sam, who thought it was the BEST idea he ever heard. I placed a knock-knock joke in his lunchbox the next day...making sure he knew how to read the words "knock" and "police". A huge success!!! The joke by the way....."Knock knock...who's there....police....police who?....police let me in-it's cold out here!" Don't worry--there are hundreds more online waiting for you, too! Don't thank me--thank Amber--she is far cooler than me, and I owe her, because I earned cool points in my son's eyes! :) That is priceless.

The mixed emotions of a Mommy :) / :(

*Sigh*--first of all, I never can get my pics. in order on here....very frustrating to me!! I am a chronological person. Anyway, you can see that my boy had his first day back to school---I have a 1st grader now!! That sounds so old to me. How did this happen?

He is doing sososo well this year. He LOVES his new teacher, Mrs. Decker (God bless her!)--who wouldn't love her---she adores Grape soda and macaroni and cheese!! I am hearing other Mrs. Decker facts float out periodically. I am so thrilled my boy is connecting with his new teacher and classmates and loving his 1st grade year, thus far. He told me the second morning of school as we were getting in the car...."Mommy, I just LOVE school....this is my Favorite time of year---the time when we get back to school!" That really does a Mommy's heart good. I didn't think I would struggle this year with sending him back, but I did. I slept very poorly the night before (which was part of it) and was very weepy most of the first day, spending most of my time wiping away quiet tears (so Sarah Grace wouldn't notice) or glancing at my watch to see if we could go get Sam yet. SG and I had to leave the house because it was way too quiet without Sam. We went to Barnes and Noble, out to lunch, and to the park, then still had an hour to twiddle our thumbs. I can't describe it unless you have been through it, but the beginning of the school year brings so many emotions to Mama's! We are through that part now and into straight fun and excitement! :) Doesn't he look precious in these pics?

Happy Birthday America!

Here are some pictures from our weekend trip to MI for the 4th! We all had such fun. The car trip is a little bit of torture, but so much easier this time than in the past. I no longer have to pack the kitchen sink and that is wonderful! The kids really enjoyed time with their MI cousins. Greg and I enjoyed being part of the adult group without spending so much time chasing after our little ones. Although it is difficult to watch our babies grow, we realize we are entering a different phase of parenting which is requiring less physical energy and more mental energy. In these pictures you will see Greg's mom and her sister/brother-in-law, Greg's sister and her family and us! Memories from the trip include: the children each catching frogs at Aunt Laura's which they played with for a long time, Sam getting sizzled (slightly) by Uncle Art's wayward firecracker, purchase of our first whoopee cushion and Pop Rocks during car ride, stopping at IKEA (which I loved!!), Sam's swim across the length of the hotel pool (first time), Sam and Sarah Grace sleeping in a bed together for the first time. What a wonderful time with our family we had. I LOVE the 4th of July.

he said what?!?

I just love the things that the children are coming up with lately. Last night Sam bent over in the bathroom and said "Ouch.....that hurts".....I said "What hurts Sam?" and he said "Mommy, as your body gets older, it sometimes hurts when you bend over" !!!?! I thought I would fall over laughing. I am blaming this one on my husband (who is older than I ).......I do not yet complain of bodily aches and pains (even when I feel them, I'm too embarassed to admit it just yet).

Things you forget....

My son, who is now 6, is reminding me lately of a lot of things I had forgotten from my childhood (maybe some of you remember these as well, especially if you had brothers!). Lately, Sam has developed a new talent.....he can make a toot sound (we do not use the f word in our house) with his armpit....does this ring a bell anyone?!? This is one of the joys of having male cousins a few years older than our son. He has also learned that you can burp a word! I am sure these skills will serve him well in the adult world someday.

Above is the talented young man that I speak of......and the little girl, who I know wouldn't dream of doing such things! (not until she is 6 anyway)

Good News!!!

On Friday, May 29, we received the most wonderful news. My Dad, who has been battling Hodgkin's Disease the past year, had a clean PET scan!! The doctors said he will not need to come back for 6 months. I did not stop smiling all day. It was a day when my face hurt from smiling so much. This had been weighing heavily on our hearts, and we had to wait nearly 2 weeks to receive the news, but was it ever worth the wait! These are some pictures from Sarah Grace's b-day party of Dad with the children. These pics. are very special to me because Dad has not been able to be hands on with the children this year, mostly because of fear of germs. Seeing Dad with the children again and enjoying their time together is sososo special to us. My Dad (and Mom) have been warriors this past year. Besides Dad's health issues, we have had many other family issues to deal with this year. They have stayed strong and optimistic through all of this and I feel our good news is the big pay off! My parents are a shining example to all of a couple who have stood by each other through everything. They are such an inspiration to me. Congratulations Dad on such wonderful news. You are a survivor and I love you!

Family weddings

Greg, Charley (brother), Laura (sister), Joe (youngest brother and groom)

Laura, me, Aunt Michele (married to Uncle Ken with boys Scott and Brad), and Heather (married to Greg's brother, Charley)

Cousin Scott, Charley, Uncle Ken, Greg, Art (Laura's husband), and Cousin Brad (Scott's brother)
Greg giving a toast to the bride and groom---he did so well it brought tears to my eyes. The bride and groom were lovely. Greg and I at the rehearsal dinner. I am willing to admit my fav. part of the weekend was adult time with my husband!

This weekend Greg's youngest brother, Joe was married. We had a lovely weekend with all of the hectic events that come with weddings. It was a really fun time--we had cousins/Aunts/Uncles come in from MI that we do not see often enough. We got to remember how it is to be 20 something (not us, but the bride/groom and their friends) WOW--how things change in 10 years. Mostly, I guess, what I think about with weddings now that I have children and am old enough to consider things...is what a beautiful and amazing occasion it is...how it brings families together and helps people let by-gones be by-gones. How it gives people hope and reminds people to love and laugh better. It was a lovely weekend. I thank God for Family every day. Here are some pics......

Sarah Grace turns 4!

Well, it happened, my baby turned 4 on Tuesday. Just as I say every year, I cannot believe 4 years have passed since the day she was born. She came into this world with an adventurous, loud and bold spirit, and that is still who she is today. Sarah Grace enjoys parties and would like to make time to attend all of them. The "special treats" alone are enough to make them worthwhile, but any new adventure-person, place, etc. is always good in her book. She thought her birthday was "100 good" which is how she describes things she REALLY likes these days. We had a small family party on Sunday and she just really had a wonderful day. She was the perfect birthday girl appreciating everything she received and passing out hugs and kisses a-plenty. I thank God every day that he gave me the priviledge of being this little girl's Mommy. Happy 4th birthday my precious baby.

Grilling again---YUM!!

Typically we grill food all year long, but Greg's grill needed a new part this winter which we did not get taken care of until a few weeks ago. We are grilling again and I am SO happy. This was a recently grilled meal--- Blackened chicken and mini portobellas stuffed with mozz. and marinated artichokes. If you shop Kroger Richmond Road, on the olive bar they have mini mozzarella balls and marinated artichokes (in separate containers). We grilled the portobella's (lightly olive oiled, salted/peppered) until nearly complete and then filled each with the diced mozz and artichokes and grilled long enough to allow that to melt/get warm.....oh it was so yummy. We will be eating it again this week (probably tomorrow). My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

If you give a girl a dinosaur...

This one was supposed to be last...we found a wooly worm on our walk which Sarah Grace adored and allowed to crawl all over her. Towards the end of the walk a pre-teen girl in our neighborhood informed us that some caterpillars are poisonous. Fortunately for us, this one was not! She named it "Turtle" because it moved very slowly. She played with it for over an hour so sweetly then threw it in the water table where I had to rescue it from being drowned. :)

If you give a girl a dinosaur........she will bathe it with water from the table and blue sidewalk chalk "paste" (this is what happens to sidewalk chalk that is left out in the rain and then trampled on by little feet....warning: do NOT try this at home!)

Bathing dinosaurs with blue sidewalk chalk paste makes little girls very happy!

Some old pix..feeling nostalgic today

Can't believe this was only 2 summers ago....

Baby Sam Christmas 2004

Two peas in a pod...Daddy and Sam (early 2004?)


Sam....squishing some edible substance

My sweet l'il punkin Sarah Grace Halloween 2005

The good thing about boys

It is hard to know where to begin and end with "the good thing about boys"....For starters, there is really something to "Mama's boys" and "Daddy's girls"--boys are just very near and dear to your heart. Sam told me today, "I think you are the best cooker in the whole world" and he has said similar things about other virtues he believes I have. While I do believe I am a good cook, I am certainly not the best, nor am I these other things that only he sees in me. Boys believe their moms can do no wrong (not so with girls). Boys keep you on your toes by leaving rubber frogs in your freezer and other science experiments (which I will not go into detail about now). Boys look out for their younger sisters and although they may cause bodily harm to their sibling, NOone else will! I could go on and on about boys, especially the one in this picture. He is a very special young man. If you are reading this, I do hope you have the pleasure of knowing him. This is a picture of Sam on one of our first really warm days in KY this year. He and Sarah Grace played in the sprinkler and had such fun.

Thumbs up to Daddy

I had to work this morning and Greg was home with Sarah Grace. He made pancakes for her breakfast. He recently read in a magazine that a good husband/father should be able to make great pancakes or waffles (thank you, magazine!) to give Mommy a break every now and then. Of course, this required the purchase of a new pan and some really fancy/expensive pancake mix, but I am not complaining (well I did complain a little bit to Greg about the cost of purchase, but I'm not complaining anymore is what I mean)! Clearly Sarah Grace is not complaining---kudos to Daddy!!

The good thing about girls

Girls give you a good excuse to give yourself a pedicure (and, of course, one for them!). They also really take care of the family pet, tucking it in and even giving it a ladybug to snuggle. I can assure you that Lacey does not get this kind of love from me (not often anyway). :) Girls also tell you on a regular basis "You are the best mommy in the world" (this sometimes guilts your son into telling you the same thing, if he is in earshot of this comment). They are snuggly and lovey and are born knowing how to have girl talk.

future paleontologists

Sam is home from school again today. This is the last day, even if I have to send him medicated, otherwise I will need to be medicated. Anyway, this is Sam and Sarah Grace excavating dinosaur bones which we then pieced together to make a dinosaur. When you have had sick kids home for awhile, you become desperate. We have had this kit since Christmas and Sam has asked on a regular basis to do this. Knowing that it would be a team effort, I have put him off, until 4 months later, I decided to be a good mom. If I had known how easy it was, we would have done it 4 months ago. They had a big time.

Nana

This is a picture of my Nana (Mom's mom) who passed away yesterday. Others in the picture are my Aunt Cindy and my cousins, Taylor and Shelby. I will always remember my Nana as a woman of great dignity, style, and grace. Nana was born in England and she and my grandfather met during the war and were married for over 50 years. As my Dad said on his blog, they are "together again". My grandad passed away in 2002. I have spent yesterday and today recalling my wonderful memories with Nana and Grandad as I feel good memories are the best way to honor our loved ones who have passed. I am sure my Grandad welcomed her with open arms. We will miss you Nana.

Good timing

This is no date with my husband, but it sure does make me want to date my husband! There is nothing sexier than a man bringing you flowers completely unsolicited. Thank you honey....you have no idea how much I needed this today. This makes me want to go change into a shirt without throw-up on the sleeve. :)

Mommy is very tired

It doesn't matter how cute they are, or how much you love them, when you have been cleaning up various bodily fluids for nearly 2 weeks, you get REALLY tired. Being a mom is about 97% loving them with all your being and 3% (maybe 5% this week) cleaning up bodily fluids. Sarah Grace is on the mend now, but Sam began throwing up last night. He has complained about a belly ache this week, but being the super Mom I am, "no fever, go to school", he has gone to school. Yesterday, he almost talked me into letting him stay home, but "no fever" won out. When he came home, he ate a LOT of pizza for dinner......and we just had the carpets cleaned last week. You can guess what I was dealing with, of course, right as I was about to drift off to sleep.

Greg got booted to Sam's bed, which had to be totally stripped and re-made. This morning, before 8 a.m., I am mopping, cleaning carpets, and working on laundry.

I was supposed to go on a date with my husband tonight. That is NOT happening. **sigh** Instead, when he comes home, I will be looking VERY un-dateable (I know this is not a word), and likely still in my bathrobe. One word you cannot attach to motherhood is glamorous!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy 65th Birthday Dad! This picture was taken Easter 2008, about 2 months before Dad had a heart attack, open heart surgery and was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Disease. It seems impossible to believe that this was only 1 year ago, and we were blissfully unaware what was to come. My Dad has survived this horrible ordeal with strength, grace, and courage, and a whole lot of love, prayers, and acts of kindness from friends and family.

My Dad is my hero. He is a man with tremendous virtue, family values, and kindness. I do thank God every day that he survived this difficult year. I also pray to God that we will have many more years with this great man. I love you Dad!

Memories of a dear friend

This is a picture from our wedding. The man in the grey suit, Ron, passed away last Friday. We will miss him terribly. He became very important to us when my father-in-law passed away in January, 2004. He was a very dear friend of my father-in-law and took Greg under his wing when his Dad passed away. The loss of a parent is so overwhelming and Ron was always there for Greg to share memories of his Dad and to lend moral support to him when needed. He was a man so full of life, love, and laughter.

We will miss you, Ron. We are praying for your family and loved ones that they may find peace in the months to come. We know they have so many wonderful memories with you that will help them get through this difficult time. We also know we have another special angel in Heaven looking out for us.

My husband

Oh yea, this guy deserves honorable mention, as well. This is my husband, Greg. I showed him my blog for the first time last night. He thought it was "pretty good" but wanted to know where he was. Can you see where Sarah Grace comes by her love of being in the spotlight?!?

This is a picture of Greg and Sam on their way to a UK football game last fall. They are two peas in a pod. The day Sam was born, he looked EXACTLY like Greg. The doctors even laughed about it, stating they had never seen a baby look more like 1 parent. It seemed that I was merely an incubator all of those long months! However, I do think I can accept a little credit these days. I can definitely see a little of myself in Sam now (don't tell Greg...oh yea, you may read this).

Greg has always been able to make me laugh, even at times when all I felt like doing was crying. He has a terrific sense of humor. He is kind and loving, a good husband and father--is that good enough honey :)? I'm not saying it just because he may read this, it really is true. He is another true source of happiness in my life. We will be married 7 years on July 20.

Sarah Grace Star

This little girl is STILL sick. She developed a fever last Tuesday evening and we still have a fever today (1 week later). She has been to the Dr. twice and they assure me it is just "viral funk", but we have never kept a fever this long. It is a really BIG bummer. I hope she is feeling better soon.

These pictures were taken back in the Fall (2008) at preschool. Sarah Grace was "star of the week". As star of the week, you get to walk through this curtain which cheers, help the teacher, bring snack, pass out snack, sit on a star mat, be line leader,....you get the picture. Sarah Grace REALLY enjoyed being star of the week. Being the center of attention is always a good thing as far as she is concerned! She told me the other day, "Mommy, there is NOTHING better than a party!" and all of her expectations for her upcoming birthday party. This is a little worrisome for me because we kind of went overboard with Sam's this year....we had a family gathering on a Sunday, dinner out on the actual birthday, and a birthday party for his friends at the bowling alley.....I'm not sure if I am willing to go through this all again with Sarah Grace, but I'm going to have to figure something out!

Last year, Sarah Grace and her best little girlfriend (whose Mom happens to be a dear friend of mine) went out for their first pedicures (Moms, too!) followed by lunch at PF Chang's. I need to start thinking about this year......as she clearly is!

My inspiration

I am working on my page aLOT today....(this requires much child neglect on my part...please don't report me)--- anyway, my BIGgest inspiration is my Dad. This is his page, if you should like to visit---www.lexpage.com. He has recently finished his chemo/radiation treatments and we are very hopeful for a bright future for him. He will have follow up visits to the doc. this week. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

Loves of my life.....

Food and Family

These are my 2 loves...food and family. This was my first annual Super Bowl Paella. Greg loves to take pictures of our favorite dishes, and I have to say my paella is really good. Cooking is one of my greatest passions. It is great therapy to me to spend time in the kitchen cooking for/with my family. I love to try new recipes and my current favorite cooking mag. is Everyday with Rachel Ray (that is not where I got this recipe). I also adore watching Food Network--probably could do this for an entire day (have never had this opportunity). I spend time on foodnetwork.com, too. I'm not sure what this says about me, but chopping is one of my favorite things. Some people find this very tedious, but I find it heavenly. If you have any chopping jobs you need help with, I am your girl! My other favorite thing to do with food, is to find a creative way to use my leftovers. This is one reason why I love to make soups. I can make a soup with just about anything (and no recipe). I made a crab bisque this weekend with leftover crab meat and leftover asparagus and spicy rice from another meal. It was a masterpiece if I do say so myself!

Love this picture!

I love this picture of Sam and Sarah Grace. It is not a current photo (as you can see), but there are some pics./memories that you just really want to hold on to. This was Sam's first day of preschool, and as you can see, I believe Sarah Grace was ready to go (and stay) with him. She really idolizes Sam and he is really sweet with her, too. I am not saying that we don't have our moments of rivalry, because trust me, we do. But, overall I would say we are blessed to have two children that truly do love each other and enjoy being with each other.

They used to hold hands in the car...Sarah Grace would say "Would you hold my hand Dammy?" (before she could say her s sound) and hold out her chubby little hand in his direction. He would then oblige for a short period of time until "his hand was tired". It is these little moments in life that I hope I never never forget. My memory is short these days, though, so hopefully, that is the gift blogging will give to me. It seems impossible to believe that we could forget these moments, but I know it can happen.