Good Things Come In 3s...

As if we weren't having enough fun with our wild little boys we decided it was time to add to our family. We got a cat!! Ok, just kidding we didn't get a cat...or any other type of animal. But we did decide to have another baby which is why I'm happy to announce to everyone that........

I'M PREGNANT!!!

Yes you read that right! We are expecting our third little bundle of joy in July and we can't wait!! We are thrilled about it and the boys are too! Mason is a bit small to understand but we're teaching him to say baby and Owen is so happy and has spent lots of time contemplating what his predictions will be. Some days he votes girl, others boy and sometimes dolphin! Once he thought I was carrying a whale with a blow hole, but now we've managed to get it back to a baby again. Hopefully that one sticks because I do not want to give birth to a whale that's for sure...my babies tend to be big enough already! We are extremely excited and happy to share the news with all our friends and family! Here's a pic from my first ultrasound! Whaddya think...does it look like a girl or boy?

Our third little peanut :)

Fortune cookie anyone?

"You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have."

I've heard this quote just a handful of times, but was reminded of it tonight after thinking about someone whom I believe to be one of the strongest people I know. I don't know where it came from or who said it first...but just to be clear it wasn't me. I think that a statement like this couldn't be any truer and I'm sure that each of you can probably recall a certain time in your life where you felt like the walls were caving in around you and you'd never get out. I know I've been there myself and yet here I sit to tell you about it today. Whether we've dealt with sickness, finances, heartache, whatever have you...the same goes for all of it. Who knew you could be so strong? If someone told me way back in the beginning of time that throughout my life I would have to overcome such obstacles as I have, I think I would have asked for a redo. Honestly, sometimes life just plain sucks. But if you really think about it, it's just like you always hear..."there's always somebody whose worse off than yourself." And what is that supposed to even mean? Is that supposed to make us feel better to know that people out there are even more depressed and miserable and are suffering through even more difficult trials and tribulations than what we can barely tolerate ourselves? Wow, how horrible to be so self centered. Or maybe it's just to get us to stop complaining about it so much...how could I possibly complain about the leak in my roof when I come face to face with a mother much like myself who has NO roof at all to even complain about right?? Ya, that must be where the saying comes from. Oh and no, my roof isn't leaking-it just fit here so I said it.

Now that I've been rambling on all Debbie Downer-ish, I guess we should take the time to look at it in a more positive light. Like the quote says, we don't know how strong we are until we need to be and should be proud of ourselves when we make it past the challenges we often face. It absolutely amazes me the things that some people experience and yet they go through life with such positivity and are doing their best to live a meaningful life through their struggles. And yet there's others out there who go through difficult times and then there they sit amidst a sea of pain and suffering and are drowning there. If you know someone like this, take the time to throw them a life jacket please!! I hope to always strive to be one of the first kind of people and pray that those who have trouble finding their way again will make it through to see the joy that they're missing. Life isn't easy and as the great Rocky once said, "The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward."  Rocky was a pretty smart guy is you ask me! So, I think we can all agree that the common goal here is to keep moving forward. No matter how hard life hits...keep getting up and fight. Afterall,  someone out there has been through worse and is probably out volunteering somewhere so it's the least we can do to pick ourselves up and be better off afterwards right? ;) 

And about that woman I admire so much...I'll spare her the publicity of naming her without asking since I'm pretty famous these days haha...but let's just say that she was dealt a pretty difficult hand. She endured what many of us could never even imagine and yet continues to go through her life with such a joy and a genuinely positive outlook. She is an amazing woman and an inspiration to myself and others and I'm proud to call her a friend. If you're reading this and think it's you, it probably is and just know that you are an extraordinary person and I think the world of you! And if you'd like to pretend that I'm referring to the rest of you as well...then go ahead because I think you're all great too! Now when going through your own obstacles, always know that, "everything will be okay in the end and if it's not okay, it's not the end." Alright, alright I'll stop with the fortune cookies now. But it's true, someday we'll be old and sitting in a rocking chair somewhere and look back on our lives with pride! Alright one more, "Just keep swimming!" :)

Until next time...

Crying and Cookies

Our home has been filled with all of the traditional holiday festivities already and I just can't get enough of it. I hate hate hate the freezing cold weather but as cold as it is, I remind myself that I could be in New England right now and it'd probably be way worse! That always makes me feel better! One of the things we've done that I'm sure most of you've all been doing as well is decorating the Christmas tree. Ours was a little bit more chaotic than the sweet way you'd imagine two little boys placing shiny little things gently on the branches. In fact, our tree right now is a very sore sight to see and wouldn't normally be something I'd allow to be displayed in our house...but I think as I raise two very active little boys I'm beginning to loosen up a little and let things be as they are. Good lesson to be learned I suppose.

Well, I'll give you a little insight into how the whole thing went down. We had planned to decorate the tree one night when Eric got home from work but as duty calls, he had to stay late. Once he got home we decided to just put the tree together (yes, it's a fake one in the attic) and save the whole decorating process for a few days later when he would be home earlier. Once that day came around, Eric had to work late again so I decided I was sick of having boxes or ornaments and ribbons lying around asking to be rummaged through by the boys and decided to attempt to do it with them on my own. Big mistake that was! Owen kinda got into the process but was a little protective of the tree. He wouldn't let Mason anywhere near it...and go figure, All Mase wanted to do was rip that tree to shreds. He tried everything he could to pull every ornament, ribbon, light and bell off that tree and when he was told "No!" or pulled away it was the most obnoxious and yet extremely heartbreaking cry you've ever seen. Not to mention the fact that Owen was so mad he kept pushing him away which made things oh so much better...or not at all. But anyways, after about a half hour of refereeing the two of them I realized Mason had done enough crying and Owen had done enough pushing that it was best to call it a night. Off to bed they went and since then our tree has been a complete disaster. Mason has continued his love of ripping apart the tree which led me to keep ornaments on only the very top which he can't reach, and the ribbon strung around the bottom half has been unwrapped and ran through the house with the other end still attached to the tree. It's awful looking...and yet I leave it because I've come to realize that no matter how many times I string everything back up to perfection, it's inevitably going to be undone again so I gave up and am beginning to enjoy the sad looking tree I stare at everyday. It reminds me how crazy and funny those brothers can be when they get going and I don't mind so much anymore.

Owen playing with an ornament and Mase...crying.

Our tree now

Among some of the other holiday festivities we've been partaking in are Christmas shopping until midnight, reading books about Santa, changing the snowflake in the pockets of our December countdown calender, enjoying roasted marshmallows from fires that Eric's building as if he's competing for a prize, and baking Christmas cookies! Yesterday my friend Lindsey had posted on facebook that she and her son Kyle were baking all kinds of cookies. Well, that's all it took was for me to read that and then it was off to the store to buy our own ingredients. Owen requested oatmeal cookies that Nana always makes so I looked it up in my little homemade recipe box from Mom. We set up all our stuff and the boys helped with each step of the baking. Actually Mason didn't really do much helping, he played with measuring spoons and ate crackers while he watched us. But Owen definitely enjoyed doing all of it. He loved tasting all the ingredients and had a hard time laying off the brown sugar. We had tons of fun and the cookies came out AMAZING. It was my first time making those by myself and I am pretty impressed with how soft and golden they turned out. We left some out for Daddy since he was going to be home late and he even told me they were better than Nana's but I didn't tell you that!! Ma, I'm sure he was just kidding so no worries! 

 The baking team

 Owen mixing the cookie batter

He wanted a silly picture before we baked them

As you can see we've been enjoying the holiday season and I hope you're doing the same. If you have yet to indulge in Christmas cookies or sit by a warm fire reading books then allow yourself some time to do it, or find some other way to relax and enjoy this time of year. It only comes once!

Thanksgiving, Part 2

Thanksgiving Day was exactly what it should have been...relaxing. We spent the day at home with our family that was visiting and did the usual Turkey Day festivities. My brother Dave and I spent lots of time in the kitchen cooking the meal for everyone and the kids got to hang out and play together. My niece Lisamarie is an artist if I ever saw one and if she's around you know there is going to be a little crafting going on. She decided to get out all the art supplies and make a turkey hat to wear during dinner. With a little help from her Mom, Steph with making the head and myself with fitting the headband we managed to pull it together. Of course as soon as Owen and Sienna saw how cool she looked they had to have one too. Steph whipped up a little hat for Sienna and I was busy in the kitchen and kept telling Owen I would do his in just a minute. Well, a minute turned into an awful lot of minutes and I kept forgetting until each time he asked if it was done. Just as we were sitting down to eat Owen asked where his hat was and I had to run in the kitchen and make one while everyone was waiting to dig in to the food...but, I pulled through and Owen got to wear a turkey hat! 

Dave made us a ridiculously good New England turkey and by that I only mean he brought it from Massachusetts. Maybe they're better up there than here in the South...? I don't know but it was pretty awesome if you ask me...juicy and flavorful just the way it should be. And he even achieved turkey perfection after having a pierced turkey pan that had to be lined with foil and trayed with a pan to try and keep the juices in...long story short, he tried to sew the turkey up and stabbed it a little too deep...remind me not to let him perform stitches on me anytime soon! haha Just kidding Dave...if I was super desperate on a remote island with no one else around I would absolutely let you stitch me up!! ;o) 

We all enjoyed an awesome meal together and stuffed ourselves til we couldn't move...then fell into the traditional turkey coma just as every good Thanksgiving dinner should leave you with. We relaxed and had one of our many dance parties with the kids in the living room and then finished off their night with baths and bedtime. After the little ones were tucked in their beds the four of us were able to spend the night talking and laughing over some drinks. It was a perfect Thanksgiving and a great way to spend time with family...and the best part is we had leftovers for the rest of the week! Yay for turkey sandwiches!! haha Happy Thanksgiving and hope you all had as nice of a holiday as we did!

Thanksgiving, Part 1

Happy Thanksgiving!!! I know, I know it's a little late...but it's been an awfully busy week for us so I'm just settling down to catch everyone up on the latest and greatest in our house. Well, if you read my last post you know that my brother Dave was coming down to Virginia with his family for the holiday. Owen and Mason were so excited since they were going to have three of their cousins here to visit. Lisamarie is 8, Sienna is 3 and Tavian is 1. Sienna and Owen are only a month apart and Tavian and Mason are just a day so it was great for them all to have a buddy. Then of course Lili fits in with everyone and makes herself the life of the party. We wanted to give them the opportunity to see some of the sights in the city as well as relax around the house so we managed to do a little of each.

We made a trip into DC to see some of the monuments and check out the Air and Space Museum. We got into the city late due to traffic so we tried to see as much as we could while there. The kids loved exploring the interactive exhibits and the planes you can actually get inside. I think that all of the kids favorite part about this whole day was riding on the Metro, the railway system in DC. The three big kids got to sit together in the seats and loved how fast and wild the ride was. If you've been on the T in Boston it's the same thing and when you're little like the are, all that jerking around can be somewhat of a rollercoaster effect...whatever the case may be, they loved it! By the end of the night we were all exhausted and happy to be heading home to bed!

Waiting for the Metro

 Sienna became a Pilot

 A view from upstairs

Ready for bed!

Eric promised Lili that she could see the White House before she went back to Massachusetts and since we didn't get to check it out while in the city, Uncle had to pull some strings and make it happen. Friday night we went to dinner and when we came back, Eric planned to take Lili and Steph, her Mom to make a special trip to the White House. They headed out around 9pm, way past Lisamarie's bedtime and she couldn't have been more excited. They drove in and saw the sights and Uncle got to keep his promise. He even got to surprise Steph with a stop just for her as she had been looking forward to seeing the Lincoln Memorial which we didn't go to either. They got to go check that out as well as visit some other memorials that were in that area. The girls were so happy and got lots of pictures for Lili to show off back at school. Here's a few of the stops they made along the way...

 Lisamarie at the White House

 Lisamarie at the Treasury 

Lisamarie at the Lincoln Memorial

There are so many fun and exciting things to do in this part of the country and if you've never taken the opportunity to check them out, you should! It is such a fun time for people of all ages to learn about the history of our country and take in all the sights around you. I feel pretty lucky to be living right outside all of this and hope to be able to experience it with our boys as much as possible. I also highly recommend checking out some of the monuments and memorials at night as there are hardly any people around and they're absolutely beautiful when they're all lit up. Stay tuned for more pictures and to hear about our Thanksgiving with the Persuitte Family! You don't wanna miss these turkey hats!!!

Couch Bound

And the new week begins! Thankkkk goodness!! Since I hadn't posted last week, that means most of you don't know what an absolutely boring and drawn out week we really had. Allow me to enlighten you...

We got back from Mass and then Eric immediately had to be back to work to make up for the lost time and to get things rolling at the gym again.  We started out Monday planning to get back to our gym routine,visit our new playground and maybe meet up with some friends. However, I realized around lunchtime that the boys had doctors appointments coming up and when I saw the date I found out the appointments were about 2 hours later. Luckily we noticed in time and were able to make it to the office so Owen could have his 3yr checkup and Mason could have his followup with a second set of shots he needed. Owen was really nervous and kept asking if he was going to need any shots too. I knew he would, but just explained that they might but that we'd have to wait and see what the doctor said. He went through his checkup like a real champ and impressed those nurses and doctors like only Owen could. He is such a little ham and full of so many cute and interesting little things to tell everyone...they just loved him. Finally things started to wrap up and the nurses and I secretly planned to have Owen get the shots first so that he didn't see Mase get them and freak out before we had the chance to give him his. Owen got a flu spray up his nose and 2 shots in his left thigh. He screamed and cried for just a couple minutes but sucked it up quickly so that we could move on to Mason. Masie got 3 shots in one leg and reacted about the same. They were both happy to be heading out of there and with stickers to show their bravery.

As soon as we started walking out of the patient room I noticed that Owen was limping a bit but thought that he was just babying it since it might be sore. Once we got home he asked me to carry him because he couldn't walk on his leg. I played along for a while getting him into some comfy jammies and tucked him into bed for a nap. Once he woke up he was just as dramatic as ever and I even sent Eric a text message telling him that the Emmy for best performance in a daytime drama went to Owen. Well, I was kicking myself come Wednesday because after continuing to fight me over walking and complaining about every little thing that even came within 3 feet of his leg, I decided to check out the wound again. I looked at his thigh and saw that the shots were red all around a pretty good area of his thigh and it was swollen in that area as well. I called the doctor and they said it sounded like a localized reaction of some sort and to baby it, as well as give motrin, warm compresses and baths. Here I was yelling at my son to get his butt out of bed and take himself to the potty all the while he's got a bad reaction to some shots and can't walk...awful mother I am! But, then again how was I to know it was anything more than a bad case of the "poor me" scenario we often hear from our guys...if you're a male, skip over that part! After a long week of doing absolutely nothing, once Friday came along he was back on his feet and out running around.

I am so happy to be done with this week where we were pretty much couch bound and going stir crazy to say the least. Looking forward to tomorrow and getting into our routine again...starting the week off by getting back to the gym and preparing for our big Thanksgiving visit from family coming into town. My brother Dave and his family are coming for the holiday. Owen is so excited that his Auntie Steph and Uncle are coming to see him along with cousins Lili, Sienna and Tavian...and their pug Tony of course. It's going to be a fun week!! Hope you're all enjoying preparing for your own Thanksgivings too!
 Until next time...

 Owen working on an art project with the leaves we found outside

My happy little boy Mason

My blog is just my blog.

In case you haven't noticed, I've taken the week off from blogging...and I have no doubt that you've noticed since I'm sure you've all been checking back daily in hopes that I've posted something new right?? Wink, Wink! Well, I didn't intentionally stop blogging, it just sort of happened. As you can tell from my last post I got somewhat of a writers block situation....and you might say that it just didn't go away. I'm not sure that it was even writers block to tell ya the truth because honestly, it's not very often that I run out of things to talk about. I had a conversation with my mother about this yesterday and realized that it was the pressure that was getting to me. Do you believe it?? The pressure of this insignificant little hole in the wall blog that is for no such purpose other than to document the life of my oh so sweet little family. And that's what I finally came to realize...that my blogs purpose is just that. I think I stacked myself up to have so much in depth and profound wisdom that should be offered up to the world and yet I wasn't really sure where to begin. At the same time...when I tried to begin to write about something I thought was a bit more interesting, I felt as if it were so unimportant that nobody would really care to read it. Imagine that, nobody would want to read something I wrote? Hard to believe I know...but I can guarantee I'm not the first person who set themselves up with too high expectations and got cold feet in turn...kinda like stage fright. But I hate that I let myself sabotage the experience, especially when it comes to something that is supposed to be a fun little hobby as simple as writing.

But, the good news is - It only lasted for a week and now I think I'm out of my funk. I've come to terms with the fact that I'm blogging because I want to. Because I want to open our lives up to our family and friends, because I enjoy writing and a huge part of it is honestly because I am actually happy to have something to call my own. Yes, it's about my family and our lives...but it's MY blog. I do the writing and I write when I want, about what I want, and whether people like it or not. I don't do it because my kids need me to or because I think it will make me a good wife...I don't do it because I'm trying to please someone or want to appear to have it all together...it is completely for me. Well, and for those of you who follow along of course. The truth is, I'm a stay at home mom to two small boys and a wife to a husband who works his butt off, a lot, so that he can support our family and allow me to stay home with our children. Now if you're having trouble putting two and two together that means that I don't get a whole lot of anything for myself...I don't even remember the last time I peed with the door shut or slept without a third or fourth little monster kicking me all night, fifth if you count the dog. Life is crazy and I love it, but if you've ever had children or can understand a little piece of what I'm telling you, you will know the importance of having something to call your own. And that's just what my blog is...mine. I really love the process or having meaningful experiences and telling those stories and then when putting it all into words to share with others it just brings a whole new life to it all. I get to relive the good times and sometimes the bad, and let others in on a very special piece of who I am and what's important to me...pretty cathartic I suppose. 

I hope to continue to blog regularly as I really do enjoy it. Tonight, Eric was home and I even asked him if he'd mind if I went upstairs to our bedroom so I could blog by myself. "What? Why?" he asked. And since Owen was still awake I told him that it's just difficult for me to gather my thoughts when I have distractions so I wanted to take a few to write in our bedroom. He didn't mind so here I am lying in bed, alone, in the peace and quiet...did I mention alone??? Well, if that doesn't get me to blog more often than I don't know what will!! It's almost as good as going to the gym and leaving the kids in childcare!! hahaha just kidding...kinda. But in all seriousness, I hope you'll continue to follow along and share all our experiences with us as I write about them. I love knowing that people are interested in what I have to say and that someone cares to take time out of their own busy lives to step into ours for a moment...people are reading this right?? Anways, if you are out there... I appreciate you! 

Lesson for today - Stop setting yourself up to fail. No need to give yourself unreal expectations that will only bring you down...Sometimes things need to be simply what they are. Which is why I'm happy to announce that my blog is just my blog.

Until next time...

To blog or not to blog?

To blog or not to blog? .....That is the question. And if you're reading this it means I posted it so we all know the answer now. This is my last attempt at writing tonight and I don't think it's going to end up being anything worth writing home about so don't get your hopes up! ..actually I guess in a way this is like writing home so forget that part, you get the point. Well, the truth is I have already written more than one post on this very same page only to get halfway through and delete them. What is my problem?!? I just can't seem to get in the swing of it tonight....it seems I've lost my mojo! haha But really, I have! Don't people call that writers block? Yup, that's what I've got is writers block. I sat here contemplating whether or not to blog because I didn't have too much on my mind and wasn't sure what to write about. I guess I should have stopped there because here I am writing about absolutely nothing, blogging about not blogging. How interesting is that?

I started out telling you about my day. But then I realized that I didn't have a very eventful day. We had our morning coffee and spent some time with the boys and then decided to tackle a few cleaning projects we'd been procrastinating on. Then Eric had to head off to work for a while so I spent the rest of the day doing laundry and playing referee for my very active children and dog. Oh, and I did have a great phone conversation with a very good friend whom I've recently began catching up with again -  Hi Christy!! You're famous now! :) Then it was on to dinner and baths before winding down for bed....exciting?? See, told ya it was nothing to brag about!

Then after deleting that post I moved on to write about how important good friends can be and how lucky I feel to have friendships that have lasted so long and can pick up right where they left off - hence the Christy call that sparked this topic. But, after a while it just seemed very cliche and I decided to delete that one too...you're welcome for not boring you..although someday I will tell you how much I love my girlfriends because I really do think they're just fabulous!

Which leads me to my last and final attempt at blogging tonight, this very one you're reading right now. If you're just tuning in to The Laundry Room, I'm usually not so boring and don't ramble quite so much...ok, not true...I ramble a lot. But, that's what makes me a good story teller! So, there you have it...my very unexciting, very poorly executed, and not so interesting blog. Please forgive me and don't boycott this site for the lack of content tonight...like I said, writers block people!! Maybe I'll drink some tea before writing tomorrow, or go for a run...isn't that what people recommend when you're in a funk? Or maybe we'll just have a little bit more of an exciting day so I'll have something to share! Thanks for coming by anyways, and if you actually read this whole thing through - You're either my mother, or a true fan of my work...Maybe next time I'll choose not to blog ;)

PS. I had every intention of deleting this post as well...however my husband really liked it and compared it to Seinfeld...he says it's a show about nothing, and my post was about nothing...Well, Eric...this post is for you babe!!

Family Park Day

Recently I came across this great park that the boys and I went to. I heard about it through a local Moms group that I joined after moving down to Virginia. They scheduled one of their meetups there for a walk with our strollers followed by some running around at the playground. We went and had such a fun time. Lots of Moms showed up and we all headed out on the path with our babies in tow and then brought them over to the playground to stretch their legs too. It is a really cool place with about five different play areas, tons of slides, and swings for both big kids and babies. I was even more pleased to find it since I've had a difficult time finding a spot that's age appropriate for both Owen and Mason and this one seems to fit them perfectly! The walking trail is almost 2 miles which is just enough time to let the boys enjoy the walk without pushing any limits of being strapped in a carriage for too long...and honestly, it's probably a perfect distance for a Mom pushing two very big boys in a double stroller up and around some twisty little hills! The trail winds through the woods and along this cute little pond with a fountain in the middle that we even saw some ducks swimming in during our first visit there. We enjoyed this place so much that we decided we needed to share it with Daddy too!

After Eric came home from work today we packed up and headed out to show off our new little spot. Owen was so excited and insisted that we all run from the parking lot so we followed along and hit the pavement. Once we got to the playground I ventured off with Owen to run wild and race down the slides while Daddy and Mason checked out the swings. Mase loves to be pushed and makes it clear when he's not ready to get out. If you ask and reach out for him too soon, he grips the chains tighter and starts to make noises which I'm sure is his way of saying we better not touch him. Owen can't get enough of chasing eachother around and seeing who can get to the bottom of the slide first. After exploring all the different parts of the playground, we crossed the parking lot to show Daddy where we walk and look for ducks. Although there were no ducks today, Daddy managed to find a neat spot near the water where they could sneak down and throw rocks and sticks. Mason and I decided to hang back and soak up the views while the two of them spent some time together.

Once the sun began to go down and a chill came along we started to head back even though Owen was a little disappointed that our trip was ending. We promised to come back soon and that he could have hot chocolate once we got home which made parting much easier on everyone. What a wonderful day we got to have together, sometimes just spending time enjoying the little things in life makes you appreciate how truly blessed we really are. I have a great husband who has been taking the time to thank me daily for being his wife and I have two amazing little boys who are so full of love and joy that it is contagious just looking at them! Thank God for my happy little family for I would be lost without them! Here's some pictures we took throughout the afternoon. I finally got a new camera this week so no more snapping pix with the cell phone...Yay, Thanks hubby!!

Massachusetts

If you don't already know that we've been on vacation - We've been on vacation! We left last week for a trip up to Massachusetts where we visited family and friends and celebrated Owens 3rd Birthday as well as a baby shower for my sister-in-law Nahir. Busy, busy, busy!!! It wasn't a long trip since Eric had to get back to work but it was well worth it! We had so much fun and enjoyed spending time with everyone and only wish we were able to visit more. 

We started out by making the 9hr drive from Virginia all the way up to Winchendon, Ma where my Mom and Dad moved to this past summer and offered to take us in for the visit, Rocco and all! It was nice to kick back and relax and nobody takes care of people like my mother can! She has this way of always filling up your coffee cup or bringing you homemade cookies and making sure every meal is taken care of. Meanwhile, Pepere keeps the kids occupied with all his special toys and surprises all the time. Eric and I appreciated having the help since the move has cost us that luxury. 

Saturday was Owen's Birthday party at Auntie Janelles house. We went with a big pirate theme bash as he's recently sparked an interest after getting a new pirate bed set, pjs, and has watched Captain Hook get chased by the crocodile on youtube over and over! He had lots of cousins, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends all come out to help celebrate. We had such an awesome time and can't thank everyone enough for all the help that went into making Owens birthday such a hit! 

After the birthday party Owen and Mason got to go home with Gramma and Grampa for a sleepover. The boys were also lucky enough to be able to spend lots of time with their great grandparents while there as well. Sunday came and they were off to watch their cousin Tyler dominate the soccer field! Meanwhile, Eric and I got to take back our nieces Lisamarie and Isabel for a sleepover. We had tons of fun and managed to keep those wild girls under control, even if I did threaten to glue Belle's butt to the couch. Sunday came and all the girls headed down to Aunt Greta's for the baby shower. Nahir and Dan are expecting my little nephew on Jan 5th and we decided to celebrate the occasion. We spent the day talking, laughing, playing games and eating good food with good company. Nahir got some great gifts and big sister Belle was such a good helper which I'm sure is just a preview of what's to come with her soon to be little brother! 

After all of our big to dos were wrapped up, Eric and I each closed the weekend with a girls night in for me and a guys night out for him. Thanks to my parents keeping an eye on the boys, I was able to meet up with a couple of friends and spend the night catching up while Eric and a few friends went out and did the same. Then we finished up with some last minute goodbyes on Monday and it seemed like Tuesday came all to quick. Before we knew it we were back on the road yesterday afternoon. After a very busy and fun filled visit we were sad to say goodbye as is to be expected. But, as much as we're going to miss everyone there is no denying the fact that coming home after a vacation is always a great feeling! We were all so happy to be back in our beds and routines, except Eric who was dreading leaving us to go back to the world of DC traffic and a pile of work on his desk. When all's said and done we're home sweet home! So....until next time Massachusetts! Thanks for the memories!!

Captain Owen

Just a quick note to everyone - The day has come. My baby isn't a baby anymore!!! :-(  Ok, ok...it's not that sad. This is just one of the many days in your childs life where you're supposta use that line. lol I'm sure you're all wondering which big milestone this is so I'll go ahead and fill you in. Today Owen got a big boy bed! He has had a cute little racecar toddler bed since before he was two, and we figured it was about time he moved on to bigger and better things. The truth is, our almost 3 year old is actually about the size of an almost 13 year old. haha, not really..but almost. He is very big for his age and that toddler bed just doesn't seem to be fitting quite as well anymore. He wakes up all night long and climbs into our bed only to be carried back to his room time after time. Needless to say, everyone in our house is long overdue for a good nights sleep! With high hopes and a whole lot of desperation we decided that his third birthday would be the perfect time to "talk up" the whole idea about being big now and needing a big boy bed...with me? 

Thank the good Lord for my wonderful in-laws who so generously took on the project as their big birthday gift to Owen! Steve and Laurie, You are the best!!! He doesn't turn three until Wednesday, and we leave for Massachusetts on Thursday to have Owen's big party up at Auntie Janelles house this weekend. But, luckily Gramma and Grampa didn't mind giving the present early as I think it would be a little difficult heading back to Virginia with a twin bed in tow. We set it all up and had the big box full of pirate sheets and bedding and pirate pajamas and different accessories all wrapped up on the bed, accompanied by a super cool bean bag chair with a big bow! Owen got on the computer to skype the big to do so that they could watch the unveiling. He hadn't the slightest idea what was about to happen when Gramma told him to go check out his room and SURPRISE!!! He was over the moon! Daddy put the pajamas and bedding on quickly and before you know it there was a 'pirate ship' right there in the room. He was jumping up and down, climbing all over it, pretending to sleep, making Daddy walk the plank while he threw him off and then yelling "Man overboard!" while he laid on the floor. We even dubbed him Captain Owen! This was such an awesome present and he could not have been more thrilled about it. Thank you Gramma and Grampa for such a great gift, and here's to hoping that we all get to sleep through the night!! Sweet dreams friends...

Trick or Treat

Happy Halloween!! or Happy Belated anyways. Did you celebrate? Dress up? Take your kids out? Well, here in our house we have been looking forward to it for quite some time now. Not that Eric and I get into Halloween very much, we never were big on dressing up or going to parties...not sure why, I guess it just plays into our whole "homebody" type personalities. We always preferred to see the kids all dressed in their princess and monster costumes and pass out candy from home. Although there was that one year where things changed a bit and it will surely go down in history as one of my all time favorite Halloweens. It was back when Eric and I were first together. I might have been 16 years old at the time, Eric 18. We had been planning to stay in at his parents and pass out treats while we watched the little ones run from house to house. So the time comes and there we sat waiting...and waiting...and waiting. I don't think we got one single trick or treater. We even made our way to the front porch to see if we could gather up any kids that we could empty our candy bowl to and not one! I was so disappointed and Eric felt bad as he knew how much I was looking forward to it. He said he'd be right back and left me to talk with his mother for a while. Out of nowhere I finally see someone coming to the door and believe it or not, there was Eric...dressed in a giant pumpkin costume that was in the basement from a Halloween past. He had snuck down to dress up so that I wouldn't be disappointed in our wash of a night. What a guy huh?! No wonder I married him ;)

Now that you've gotten through my reminiscing I'm sure you're all waiting for the details on THIS Halloween. Not that Eric isn't interesting and all, but let's face it - Owen and Mason take the cake in this post. Like I said earlier, we have been looking forward to this night for a while now. We had gone back and forth for a couple months about what Owen wanted to dress up as, and what he thought his brother might like to be. We considered a fireman and a dalmatian, sharks-because his cousins in MA were sharks so he jumped on that idea for a while, and then we contemplated the famous Wolfman (a character from a NH theme park) among many, many other ideas along the way.  But no matter how many different costumes we came up with Owen always seemed to come back to the same one. He insisted that he and his brother should be tigers. I have absolutely NO idea why, where it came from...who knows. But, he was not going to let this one go. So, we finally get the costumes and tried them on while practicing the "roar" and "trick or treat" lines. It wasn't to long after that when Owen decided that he wished we was Mickey Mouse instead. Well, luckily I didn't run out and buy that costume too because he forgot and went right back to the tigers just like every other time. 

We spent the day talking about what we would do, how exciting this was, when we would go. We couldn't wait to get out there and experience the fun. Owen said Daddy needed to dress up too so Eric threw together a last minute costume and posed for a few pictures while I was in tears from laughing so hard. He decided not to go out in public in my leggings afterall, but I still have the proof that he wore them! At Owens request we had pizza for dinner and then got the boys dressed to go. We snapped a couple pix, got the boys in the wagon and off we went! Thank God we brought that wagon because as it turned out, our neighborhood doesn't seem to have much Halloween spirit. House after house and nothing but dark porch lights. Come on people!! Don't you know that my adorable little tigers have been looking forward to this for months?!? We could not have been more frustrated while we tried to stay positive and not let on that this trick or treat thing was turning into a bust. We walked for what seems like miles and finally came to a house with a light on! Owen did his cute little lines and the man gave him a fruit by the foot AND a full size butterfinger. WooHoo! Jackpot! We continued down a couple more streets while little Mason froze his little whiskered cheeks off and Owen shined his flashlight at us all. We only hit a few more houses who luckily filled the bucket up with a few things each,  so it turned out to look a lot more than you would think. We decided to head home as it was dark and cold and there wasn't a house in sight that looked to be welcoming trick or treaters. The boys didn't seem to mind and so we went back and opened up a few things to eat before getting ready for bed. I would like to say the whole thing was a flop, but I won't. To me it was at first, but after seeing the smiles on the boys faces and how much Owen enjoyed going up to peoples doors, even if it was only a handful of times it made it worth it. The boys wouldn't tell you that our neighbors stink at holiday spirit or that it wasn't fun walking around all night in the dark and cold. They'd tell you that they had a blast getting candy and got to be tigers while Mama and Daddy pulled them around in their wagon and that's what's important. Halloween turned out to be pretty happy after all! And lesson learned-when it comes to trick or treating next year, we're driving to a new neighborhood! 

Peanut Butter & BooBoos

Peanut Butter and Jelly Smile! This kid is just WAY too cute!!!

Here's Mason! He is either picking his nose or showing you that he got a booboo at gym today. On the opposite side of his finger he has a little red cut. The childcare worker said that he fell over a toy and hit his nose, personally I think that the little girl from the other day paid him a visit! haha, Just kidding! Mason is walking but still unsteady on his feet so I have no doubt he fell right over. 

Be Thoughtful!

Do you ever notice how thoughtful people are? Every once in a while something happens and I literally stop and think, "Wow! I can't believe someone actually did something like that." It's amazing how truly caring and generous some people can be and yet other people out there don't know the first thing about putting others before themselves, know anyone like that? Ugh, hopefully not! Selfish people get under my skin like you wouldn't believe! But back to the nice people...I don't know if it's partly because I have two small children who happen to be very cute, or partly because I probably always look like I'm scrambling around trying to get from Point A to Point B, but either way it seems like strangers are always being so polite and helpful to me. Almost everytime I walk into the post office, the gym, anywhere really there is someone going in or out who stops to hold the door for me as I make my way through with a baby on my hip and a toddler dragging me by the hand. Whatever the reason may be, it still gets me everytime...to the person taking two seconds to hold a door it probably seems like no big deal, but to the mom whose always feeling like she needs about 15 more hands-it's a whole lot more! 

Just this past weekend Eric and I took the kids to the mall. when it was time to leave I was putting back the little baby carriage that we had to rent since we forgot the stroller, and Eric went out the door to the car. I looked down and saw that the basket of the carriage was full of all kinds of stuff- sweatshirts, empty water bottles, a shopping bag, my purse, some trash...it was a mess to say the least. Meanwhile, Owen is practically having heart failure over the fact that Daddy went to the car without him. I turn to yell to Eric for help but the door shut behind him and he didn't hear. Although I'm not pleased to share this, I have to admit to you that I must have done the good ol' fashioned sigh and eye roll because the next thing I know theres a woman about my age standing next to me. She leans in and touches my arm and says, "Do you need help?" I was really taken back and I probably gave her a confused look while I told her I would be fine. She explained to me that she noticed I gave my husband the same look her Mom always gave her Dad when he did something wrong. I laughed and thanked her for the offer and managed to get out the door by myself, crying toddler and all. And honestly I forgot about it until yesterday when someone else did something really thoughtful...

I don't think any of you know how close to impossible it is to find light cream in Northern Virginia. We have about 10 groceries stores in about a 1 mile radius and only one store has it. We use it in our coffee every morning and I have needed it all week and kept forgetting to get it...Not a good thing! If you know Moms, you know we run on coffee! Yesterday I finally stopped at the store on our way home from the gym. It was pouring buckets and I had children who were overdue for lunch, needed a diaper change (really bad!) and me  in all my shining glory from working out...no joke, i was full of sweat. We ran in soaking wet and grabbed some milk, sweet potatoes, and cream cheese and out the door we went. Once we made it home I start putting the stuff away only to realize that in all my chaos, I FORGOT THE CREAM! Talk about kicking myself! I later spoke with Eric while he was at work and rambled on about how awful the experience was. He sympathized and then we went on with our days. 10pm rolls around and  Eric walks through the front door holding a grocery bag and guess what's in it? LIGHT CREAM! He made my night!! ...Actually, he made my morning since I got to have my coffee just the way I like it today!

The moral of the story today -  BE THOUGHTFUL! Stop and hold the door when you see a scrambling mother, offer to lend a hand if you notice the famous eye roll, and always take notes when you're significant other complains! But in all seriousness, be nicer to people, you never know when they might need it the most!

Gym

So far so good! I think I'm gonna like blogging, hopefully I'm the slightest bit interesting so that you keep coming back! Feel free to leave comments, or become a "follower" too! It's kinda nice to know I'm not writing for my health ya know? haha! Ok, on to the good stuff...

The big deal in our house right now is the gym. I mean, it's always about the gym in our house actually since Eric happens to work in one...but this time it's about ME and the gym! Who would have ever put those two together?? I've never really been into working out that much...which is unfortunate. Not only because I'd probably look a whole lot better...but because I'd feel a whole lot better too! Think about all the energy it gives you, what a good example you set for your kids, all that alone time you get (haha we all know I value that being a stay at home mom) ...But the list really does go on and on and I've been passing it up all these years! I used to go now and then before I had kids, but mostly just because my best friend worked there. And my husband has always worked in the fitness industry so you might expect I'd have more of an interest in the whole thing, not the case. Between naps, diapers, dogs and everything in between I barely have time to take a shower, nevermind bang out a few miles on the treadmill. Not to mention that fact that I'm a crazy overprotective mother who has barely let my children out of my sight for the past 3 years. I know I know...I'm nuts and need to cut the umbilical cord, I get it. But that's just me...So leaving the kids with strangers in a childcare room was always a scary thing for me.

Now with all that being said, it's a pretty big deal that I've been going since Sunday and have left my boys in childcare 3 times now! Granted it's in a room right next to me with windows that I peek in from time to time. But it's still a big step for a nut like me! And the best part about all of this is that the kids actually like it! Owen is SO excited when we get ready to go and has to be bribed when it's time to leave...today he even told me he was sad because he wanted to stay there forever! lol I am so happy he enjoys it and it's a good time for him to get away from the humdrum days we sometimes have being in a new place without many friends. As for Mason, I wouldn't say he's exactly thrilled with the whole experience. He goes in and plays around with the toys but when I peek in he always looks so sad. Today I happened to take a minute to look in the window and some little girl was attacking my baby! I see her grabbing the front of his shirt and yanking it back and forth and poor Mason is sitting there with the biggest frown on his face. I waited to see if the girl working would notice but she was writing something at the desk. All of a sudden the girl reaches out and starts pinching his face and mouth and my scared little boy burst into tears. I walked in just in time to calm him from the meltdown but figured I'd call it a day after that. We'll be back at it again tmw but hopefully that monster of a child isn't there to harass my kid again!! lol ok, just kidding...she's actually just a little bit bigger than Mase and is really cute...maybe she just liked him-we all know how brutal girls can be! I'm really looking forward to sticking to it, for myself and for the boys and I will be so disappointed if I manage to fall out of the routine! A friend said to me it's all about making it a routine and it's so true...So, feel free to keep me motivated! Off to watch some mindless tv while I wait for my hubby to come home, Night All! 

I have a blog!

Hello Hello! Welcome to my blog!! I can't believe I actually have a blog...weird. I don't really know much about blogs. Never done one, followed one, all new to me. Well, I did actually see a movie about blogging...Julie & Julia anyone? Anyways...back on track - I decided to create a blog after stumbling upon some other personal blogs and thought what a great way for everyone to keep up to date on our family.  I have been a fan of facebook from time to time but never really enjoy it.  I post a few words about what I'm doing or how extremely adorable my children are and that's it. Where's the fun in that?  If you know me, you know I like to talk...I'm a bit of a story teller...a really really long storyteller.  What can I say? I pride myself in details...after hearing one of my stories you might think you actually lived the experience.  And since we've moved a million miles away from everybody we've ever known on the planet... (ok, just to Virginia but it feels really far )...wouldn't everyone like to hear detailed, exciting, and crazy stories about the adventurous and not so adventurous lives that we're living?? I thought so!!!

Well that's just what you'll get!  Hopefully. Like I said before, this is all new to me so stick with me and we'll figure this whole blogging thing out together! I'm looking forward to sharing our family with yours and hope you are too! Thanks for checking in!