New Beginnings

A Very Sweet St. Valentine's Day

2012-02-15T11:33:00.001-08:00

It's official! Yay! I am blessed with another precious little baby, due October 18, 2012. :)

Gifts from Aunt Jan

2012-02-04T14:53:00.001-08:00

My dear sister wasn't feeling well during the month of December (and for a very good reason!) and I'm sure a trip to the Post Office seemed like a very big task. I completely understood and decided I just wouldn't say anything to the kids. Well, kids are smart. And they notice things. :)

When I was a child, my Nana started a tradition of giving her grand kids an ornament every Christmas. I have a wonderful collection of ornaments and each one remind me of my Nana and of my childhood. It's lovely. My sis decided to carry on this tradition with my own kids and they look forward to it every year. Last Christmas, I had the crazy idea of getting our tree on St. Nicholas Day. That day is busy enough without adding "Get and Decorate Tree" on the list. But what WAS cool about that idea was that the kids put their shoes outside and after decorating the tree, they checked their shoes and Aunt Jan's ornaments were there! So, of course this year on St. Nick's Feast Day, Chatterbox asked if we were getting our tree. I told her, "No". Then she asked if they could at least put their shoes outside and see if St. Nicholas would deliver Aunt Jan's ornaments for her. Kids have great memories, don't they?
Christmas came and went and the kids did not mention Aunt Jan's ornaments or ask why Aunt Jan didn't send any presents. But they did tell me they wished Aunt Jan could have came for a visit on Christmas. This of course made me very happy. I love that they love their Aunt Jan even though they only see her about once a year. She does a great job of keeping in touch. I was so proud that my kids were more concerned of seeing Aunt Jan than of getting gifts from Aunt Jan.
But then came the day of taking down our tree. "We can't take down our tree! We haven't gotten our ornaments from Aunt Jan yet!" protested Little Miss Chatterbox. I was glad that the ornaments mean a lot to them. I assured her it would be okay.
Then came February 2. The day of Candlemas. Candlemas ends the Christmas season. During our morning prayers, I read to the children about Candlemas and Mr. Funny shouted, "What?! It can't be the end of Christmas! We haven't gotten any gifts from Aunt Jan!" Hahaha. There went my lovely ideal of how my kids were not concerned with getting gifts from Aunt Jan! But, as luck would have it (providence, maybe?) Jan's packages were to arrive that very day! What a great way to end the Christmas season. And as far as the kids know, they think Aunt Jan planned it this way. ;)

Here are the Fab Four, waiting to open their gifts. Mr. Funny went outside to get the packages which is why he has his jacket on. They decided to open their ornaments first because they couldn't wait to see what they would be this year!

We always go youngest to oldest so Little Miss Sunshine went first. Chatterbox helped her get the box open. My sister made all the ornaments this year and Sunshine got the sweetest, cutest little felt bird. Sunshine immediately starting making the sign for bird and saying, "Bird! Bird, Momma! Bird!"

She studied it and smiled at it.

She made chirping noises.
She showed it off to her big sis. She loved it.

Next up, Mr. Tickles. A cute little snowman with a green hat. Tickles favorite color. :)

Then Mr. Funny. He got a cute little snowman with a blue hat! His favorite color!

Here he is, explaining to us that Aunt Jan knew their favorite colors! he thought that was really cool.

"Show me your new ornaments and say cheese!"

Last but not least, Little Miss Chatterbox opened her ornament and found a gorgeous, crocheted fan with roses and a jewel. Absolutely perfect for Chatterbox.

She was in awe.

She is very pleased with her 2011 ornament!

Then came the gifts. I love this shot of Sunshine! Can you tell she liked her gift? She seems to be following in her sister's footsteps as far as loving books go. This little set of books are just perfect for her. She loves to take the books in and out of the case and of course loves to look at them even more.

Mr. Tickle got a set of Hot Wheels!

After seeing Tickle open it up, Funny immediately grabbed his package of the same size.

"Yes! I got Hot Wheels too!"

In the meantime, Sunshine sat looking at her books. In fact, Chatterbox was looking at them too. :)

Then the boys opened their second gift. Dallas Cowboy aprons, handmade by Aunt Jan!! They're even personalized! (Hmm.. it appears I didn't get a picture of Funny opening his)

Here they are, showing off their awesome new aprons. Aren't they cuties?

Chatterbox was so excited with her art bag! She especially loved that it had her name on it. And she thought the fabric was "sooooo beautiful"!

She also got two new books! The Christmas Carol & Beauty and the Beast.

Here she is, posing with her new bag after putting some art supplies in it.

Hmm... and what is Sunshine doing? Still looking at her new books, of course!

I got a Knitting Journal!! I think this is such a neat idea and it's got me itching to start a knitting project!

Here's Tickles explaining that this car has wings like a dragonfly. Sure enough, the name on the bottom is Dragin' Fly.

Chatterbox got right into one of her new books. (She finished that book that day and finished the second book the next day)

And Sunshine starting organizing her books.

The boys lined up their cars and gave them all names.

And for the next hour or so, the living room looked like this:

The girls with their books and the boys with their cars. It definitely felt like Christmas! When mike got home he opened his gift: a Dallas Cowboy pillow! He loves it! (forgot to get a picture though...)

Jan, thank you so, so much!!

Daybook #7

2012-01-25T05:16:00.000-08:00

Outside my window... cold this morning. But hoping for another beautiful, sunny, winter day like yesterday.
I am thinking... about how to embellish the new curtains I bought. I painted my living room pale yellow and bought brick red curtains. The curtains are too.... well, red.

I am thankful for... Mike's new business and how well it is doing! Also thankful for his partner who keeps this business going.

From the learning room... our co-op has had to cancel the past two weeks because too many families were sick. I'm working on a new Math system that will include more games and hands-on activities. Little Miss Chatterbox is a very visual person and needs that.

From the kitchen... This was the third week of trying new "kid friendly" recipes in hopes that my kids would actually EAT their dinner. But I'm still getting complaints. Every.single.night. I don't know what I did to these kids but they are the pickiest kids I've ever met in my entire life. I'm starting to think it's all some kind of sick joke they've got going between themselves. Last night we had Mexican Lasagna. Taco meat between layers of tortillas and cheese. Chatterbox said she doesn't like tortillas. Funny said he didn't like the meat. Tickle said it smelt bad and wouldn't even try it. Sunshine pointed to it and said, "Yucky". Oy.

I am creating...

-decorating plans for a few rooms in the house
-Funny's birthday plans
-new school routine
-chore list for the kids

I am reading... The Letters of Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque.

I am hoping... that I will have the heart to wean Sunshine and get her to sleep in her big girl bed. (sigh) I don't want to. She definitely doesn't want to. But the longer I wait, the harder it will be.

I am praying...
-for something my sister's been creating.
-for my friend who still hasn't been able to bring her premature baby home from the hospital
-for James Brogan. A friend's teenaged son who was in a car accident and is still in critical condition
- for Jonathan Turner. A teenager of a family from Church who has cancer and will be starting 9 weeks of chemo.

I am hearing... Pandora radio. Veggie Tales songs. The kids love to dance to this.

Around the house... the smell of fresh paint. I have always loved dark, bold colors. All of a sudden I'm loving pastels. Not sure what developed this change but I'm loving our new pale yellow walls. It makes the room look bigger, brighter and cleaner. Love, love, love it.

One of my favorite things.... the quiet, peacefulness of snow days. It's the end of January and besides the snowstorm we got in October, we haven't had any significant snow. The kids and I are wondering, "Where's the snow???"

Living the Liturgical Year... Candlemas is just around the corner. I need to gather some candles together.
Little Miss Sunshine this week... is copying everything we say. She doesn't pronounce words too well but I'm glad to see her trying. I understand her and that's all that really matters, right? ;) The best thing of all is when she says thank you. She communicates to me. I'll understand and help her with what she needs and then she gives me a big smile and says in the littlest, sweetest voice, "Thank you, Mama!" Which sounds more like, "Toot do, Mama!" It melts my heart every time. You gotta love a toddler with manners. ;)

Here is a picture thought I am sharing...

It was so nice to see my brother and his family at Christmas. It had been way too long!

Christmas Morning

2012-01-17T08:43:00.000-08:00

First a picture with mom and dad.

The boys put baby Jesus in His manger.

Then we gathered around our big baby Jesus who resides under our tree to remind us of the greatest gift of all. Little Miss Sunshine LOVED that baby Jesus.
She was continually kissing his head and rocking him. It was so precious. We knew there was a chance that she might drop him, but it was just too sweet. So we let her love that baby. And then she dropped it and his arm broke....

Being the youngest sometimes has its perks. Sunshine got to open presents first. But her older siblings didn't mind. They all enjoyed watching her open her gift, ever so carefully. They were happy to revel in her joy.

Just as Mike and I revel in ALL their joy! It is so fun watching the kids open their gifts.

It's amazing how the fighting and arguing amongst siblings always ceases on Christmas morning.

After that we enjoyed a quiet Christmas breakfast together before time would come to get ready for the beautiful Christmas Mass.

The kids (and mom and dad) favorite item on the menu: Monkey Bread

It was a very merry CHRISTmas!! We are so blessed.

Advent Celebrations

2011-12-30T08:15:00.000-08:00

There are many little celebrations leading up to Christmas. It can get a little overwhelming for me so I've learned to keep it simple. Things worked out really well this year!
The children love all the traditions we have started and if I forget to do something they quickly remind me! I'm glad that the little things we do each year mean so much to them.
On the first day of Advent, we get out our Advent Wreath. We place new purple and pink candles in the wreath (purple is the color of penance to remind us that Advent is a penitential season) and Mike blesses it with Holy Water. Then we gather around a say a prayer, asking God to bless us this Advent season and bring us closer to Jesus. New this year, we started learning "O Come, Emmanuel" in Latin. It's very beautiful. We'll work on learning a new verse each year. We also get out our Christmas books which have been packed away since last Christmas. I put them all in a basket and the children pick one to read together every night. But we always start Advent with Tomie DePaola's "Clown of God". Then the children talk about what gifts they can give to Jesus for his birthday. We write it down on a piece of paper and place it in a little gift box. I saved their "gifts" from last year and we enjoyed reading them. Mr. Tickle wanted to give Jesus a donkey last year and this year he asked if he could get baby Jesus a St. Michael statue. The older kids got a kick out of this. ;) Some of the gifts from the older two were to be nice to siblings, to listen to Mom, to not complain about dinner. Every once in awhile we open the gift box and read what they wrote as little reminders.
Then comes December 6th, St. Nicholas' Day, which I explained in my last post.
Gaudete (which is Latin for "Rejoice") Sunday changes each year, depending on when Advent starts. But it is the third Sunday before Christmas, the day you light the pink candle. Pink represents Joy and on this day the Church shows her excitement that the Savior's birthday is very near. This year, it happened to land on the 11th. The day before 2 other feast days! It was a busy week. ;)
But on Sunday morning I made the kids pink pancakes with whipped cream and raspberries which we ate after lighting the pink candle. The kids were so excited to see that there was only one more week before we would light the last candle! We certainly joined the Church in her joy.

Then comes December 12th. The feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The kids and I wanted to go to Mass so we drove to a church in Warrenton for their noon Mass. But after getting there, a nice old lady explained to us that the stopped having the noon Mass and moved it to 6:30AM. We were disappointed but they had a huge, beautiful painting of Our Lady of Guadalupe inside so we went in to pray. Little Miss Sunshine was being very loud and I worried about disrupting the other people who were praying in the church. So I quietly told the kids it was time to leave. Mr. Tickle did not want to go. He was kneeling down with his little hands folded together in prayer. It was so sweet. I waited a few more minutes but Sunshine was getting louder and louder. Still Tickle did not want to go. I had to literally drag him out of there and when we got to the van he was crying and kept saying, "I want Jesus!" I reminded him that he could still talk to Jesus even when we aren't inside the Church. But he wanted to be back inside with the beautiful picture. Bless his little heart.
When we got home the kids colored pictures of Our Lady of Guadalupe and we watched a cartoon about St. Juan Diego, who witnessed the apparition of Our Lady of Gaudalupe.

We had beef fajitas for dinner and Mexican Wedding Cakes and Mexican Hot Chocolate for dessert. We also read a book about the apparitions which is gorgeously illustrated. The kids always enjoy looking at the pictures in that book.

Then comes December 13th, St. Lucia's Day. St. Lucy just happens to be the patron of electricians so we feel indubitably honored to celebrate her feast day. ;) Traditionally, the oldest girl in the family prepares breakfast and serves it to the family in bed. I'm not too comfortable with bringing food into our beds so we opt for a picnic in the family room. it's also a tradtion to serve lussekatts (St. Lucy Buns) which are made with saffron. I go the easy route and just buy cinnamon rolls in a can. I was really excited to find cinnamon buns with orange flavored icing this year because saffron has an orange color to it.
The girls wear candle wreaths and boys wear star boy hats. I'm not quite sure what the meaning behind the star boy hats are. I'll have to look in to that. We do it simply because I don't want the boys to feel left out!
Little Miss Chatterbox always brings her stuffed animals to the family room to join us. It's quite the party. ;)

Lucy is always depicted wearing white, to symbolize her purity and wears a red sash, symbolizing her martyrdom.

Chatterbox has a barbie named Lucy so of course she needed a candle wreath too. And we couldn't leave Tigress out either. She is part of the family, you know. Chatterbox even made them white dresses out of tissues.

I love this picture. Doesn't she make a beautiful St. Lucia Bride?

Then things quiet down for a day or two before the O Antiphons start on December 17th which lead us into Christmas. During that week we get our Christmas Tree and start decorating for Christmas. Advent and Christmas is definitely the children's favorite time of year though I can't imagine why. ;)

St. Nicholas' Day

2011-12-30T07:01:00.000-08:00

St. Nicholas' Feast Day (Dec. 6) is a very special day in our house. My middle name is Nicole so he is one of my patron saints! St. Colette was also named after St. Nicholas. He is the patron of children and sharing (amongst many other things!!) so he fits in very well with this family. ;)
When Nicholas was a young man, his parents died and left him a big inheritance. Obeying Jesus' words to "sell what you own and give the money to the poor," Nicholas used his whole inheritance to assist the needy, the sick, and the suffering. He dedicated his life to serving God and was made Bishop of Myra while still a young man. Bishop Nicholas became known throughout the land for his generosity to the those in need, especially for children. One such story says that there was a poor man who had three daughters whom could not afford a dowry for them. The larger the dowry, the better the chance that a young woman would find a good husband. Without a dowry, a woman was unlikely to marry. This poor man's daughters, without dowries, were therefore destined to be sold into slavery. Mysteriously, on three different occasions, a bag of gold appeared in their home-providing the needed dowries. The bags of gold, tossed through an open window, are said to have landed in stockings or shoes left before the fire to dry. This led to the custom of children hanging stockings or putting out shoes, eagerly awaiting gifts from Saint Nicholas. That is why our kids get their stockings on Jolly Ol' St. Nick's feast day.

Along with their stockings, the kids always find a letter from St. Nick, praising them for good deeds they have done and also some friendly suggestions on what they could improve on. ;)

In honor of this generous giver, the stockings are hung a week in advance in case anyone in the house would like to leave something for the others to find. Little Miss Chatterbox worked very hard on writing stories and drawing pictures for her parents and siblings. This led to the boys doing the same. It was so sweet to see them drawing each others favorites things. It was even sweeter when they found each others "goodies". They were all so thankful and so excited to give. It was the highlight of my day and I'm pretty sure St. Nicholas was proud too. ;)

They were all very excited with what they found in their stockings. But Mr. Funny had the best reaction. He was overjoyed with his new G.I. Joe which Mike's mom gave me to give to the boys.

On the kitchen table the kids found chocolate St. Nick's, complete with a candy cane crosier and gold coins.

We had Catholic Schoolhouse that day so I had to wake the kids up extra early. I decided to let Little Miss Sunshine sleep in a little longer so she didn't get her stocking until after the other kids had already opened theirs.

I put a little holy card of Our Lady of Victory (one of her patron saints) in her stocking and she kissed it over and over! My little Sunshine loves to give kisses. ;)
I found this little tin full of candy canes at our local grocery store. I was so excited! I thought it was really cute but Little Miss Sunshine didn't quite understand what it was. haha

Happy Saint Nicholas Day!

A Farewell to Fall (in pictures)

2011-12-21T10:29:00.000-08:00

Farewell to the longer days.
Farewell to playing outside without a jacket.
Farewell to the beautiful colors.

Farewell to gorgeous fall sunsets.

Farewell to backyard football games.

Farewell to playing in the leaves.

Until next year... we'll miss you Fall!

Enjoying Leaves

2011-12-21T10:02:00.000-08:00

It's always so much fun to play in the leaves with the kids. Especially when it's their first time! Little Miss Sunshine was too young to play in them last year. This year she loved collecting them off the ground and showing them to me. I could tell she appreciated their beauty. ;)

Mr. Funny helped with raking this year.

Sunshine may have enjoyed collecting leaves, but didn't want anywhere near the leaf pile! Funny would pick her up and put her in them and she would start screaming.

Then Mr. Tickle put some on her head and I was afraid she'd hates leaves forever. Luckily, like most times, she saw how much fun her big sister and brothers were having and decided the leaf pile isn't so bad after all.

And if things get too rough, she knows that Mommy's lap is always a safe place to be. ;)

All Saint's Day

2011-12-21T08:15:00.000-08:00

Since St. James Electric is closed on all Holy Days of Obligation, Mike was off on All Saint's Day. After Mass, we packed a picnic (that sounds so much nicer than "Mike ran into the store and bought subs and chips", doesn't it?) and headed to Skyline Drive. After enjoying a few views, we set out to find a hiking trail. We decided on an easy one that was fairly flat and easy for the kids (and an out of shape mom).

The boys had fun chasing each other and pretending to kill "bad guys".

Little Miss Chatterbox set out to find animal tracks and pink fungus.

After the hike, we headed home. But not until we stopped to look at one more view! ;) Chatterbox was the only one still awake so she took a picture of me and Mike.

Awww. We love Skyline Drive. Next year, we're getting a year long pass so we can spend as many weekends there as possible! ;)

Pumpkin Day

2011-12-21T06:24:00.000-08:00

Pumpkin Day in our house consists of eating and carving pumpkins!
For a snack, I made Pumpkin Pie Chex Mix. It was so delicious. We ate it up in minutes! It took much longer to make than it did to eat. Cooking it in the oven made the house smell delicious too. :)
Mike and I enjoyed our favorite Samuel Adams beer. Harvest Pumpkin Ale. I had a hard time finding it though! All I could find was their Winter Collection. Between that, the Christmas stuff everywhere in the stores, and the snow storm outside, I was afraid that maybe I had missed Fall. But alas, I found the last two boxes of Samuel Adams Autumn mix at Wal-Mart.

Mike and I carve our pumpkins but the kids still paint them. I think Little Miss Chatterbox could have carved hers this year but she prefers to paint. This child lives to paint. "Plus," as she pointed out to us, "they last longer when you paint them." Very true.

This was Little Miss Sunshine's first time with paint. Usually I just give her a brush and some water. She loved it and was very particular about where the paint went. I was impressed with her concentration.
I was so eager to cut open a pumpkin and let Sunshine explore inside. All the other kids loved that at her age. But this was her reaction:I have never seen a kid scared of everything like she is! She wouldn't go near it. Her older siblings found this quite entertaining. It's tough being the youngest sometimes. ;)

Mike was drawing out his design and once in awhile would put his pencil in his mouth. We all cracked up when we saw Sunshine copying him! Monkey see, monkey do.

Mr. Funny's finished pumpkin. He painted St. Benedict, the Sacred Heart and a rainbow.
Mr. Tickle had painted a really nice picture of St. Francis! But he was having so much fun painting that he didn't want to stop and ending up painting over his St. Francis. He told me this was his abstract pumpkin. ;)

I carved the symbol that you find on the back of the Miraculous Medal.

Mike ended up carving the Immaculate Heart. It seems we had a Marian theme this year!

Chatterbox was still painting long after everyone else was done and I forgot to take a picture of her finished product! But she painted the Sacred Heart, the Immaculate Heart, the Miraculous Medal symbol, the Holy Spirit as a dove sitting on roses, a pink rose, and a blue rosary. Did I mention she likes to paint? ;)

Mr. Funny wanted to take pictures.

For dinner we had Pumpkin Chili. Mike and I liked it but we had a hard time getting the kids to eat it. For dessert we had Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars and Pumpkin Hot Chocolate.

Poor Mr. Tickle fell asleep before he could even try one bite.

Everyone loved dessert but I think Sunshine loved it best of all.

Action Shot

It was a fun autumn day and we almost forgot that it looked like this outside:

All Hallows Eve

2011-12-13T08:19:00.000-08:00

On All Hallows Eve, our parish held a party for the children. It was so cute to see all the children dressed up as saints! They had snacks, games, prizes and candy of course!

Mr. Funny had a hard time eating with that beard. ;)

My Little Miss Chatterbox looked so beautiful dressed up as St. Cecilia.

It was really difficult trying to keep Little Miss Sunshine away from the games! She wanted to play them all but has no concept of how to stand in line! ;)

When it was time for the kids to parade around the room, they all gathered in the hallway. Then someone announced that it was time for the children to enter the room but none of the children seemed to understand or maybe they were just unsure about it? I'm not quite sure. But anyway, my shy little Mr. Tickle walked right up to the front of the line and marched right in! Then the rest of the kids followed. He turned his head and smiled at me and waved. He was so proud! It was the cutest thing ever. Some mom's sang, "Oh when the saints, go marching in..."
Then we went home and prepared for our own party! We had lots of goodies to eat!

Apples and Caramel Dip

Snack Mix with pretzels, popcorn, dried cranberries and candy corn.

Candied Walnuts (super easy to make and so delicious!!)

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds (tradition from my childhood. A must have for this time of year!)

and Spiced Apple Cider (The kids didn't care for this. They prefer regular apple cider)

Someone kept getting caught sneaking onto the table and eating all the candy corn!

Mike (aka: St. Francis) and I built a little fire pit in the backyard so we could roast hot dogs and marshmallows any time we please. :) Definitely a new All Hallows Eve tradition! We loved it!
(But hopefully next year there won't be snow on the ground!)

Especially Mike, who truly felt like a Franciscan. hehe

After dinner we cleaned up and the kids got their jammies on. We lit candles and incense and prayed the Litany of the Saints.
Every year we gather up all the saint statues and put them together. I loved having them under our Sacred Heart picture this year. Especially with our lit up pumpkins. It looked so beautiful!

Time for Saint Trivia!
This year I put the questions into different categories. Whoever gets a right answer, gets a piece of candy. Chatterbox almost got all the answers right!

Chatterbox and Funny with their loot.

Funny wanted to take a picture.

Sugar kicking in... kids getting goofy.
Francis': Out for the night

It was truly a blessed day/evening!

Pumpkin Patch 2011

2011-11-08T14:50:00.001-08:00

We were able to go to our new favorite pumpkin patch this year, with the homeschooling group at our church. We got the special group rates! Yay!

This place just seems to go on and on. With new and exciting things for the kids to do at every turn. Last year was our first time there and we loved it. This year, it wasn't half as fun without Mike there, but we still had a great time!

The air pillow was a hit again.
Chatterbox loved seeing all the animals. She especially loved the peacocks because of their beautiful feathers. She wishes it was the females who were so beautiful, not the males. But added, "I understand why God made it that way though." ;)

The Emu made the boys laugh so hard! They would hold their cup of food up to the fence and the Emu would try to bend its head over and eat from it. Sometimes the boys would be fast enough to take it away but sometimes the emu was faster. The boys saw this as great entertainment!

Posing with the goat. Their Uncle Garry is always talking about goats so they wanted a picture with one.The actual pumpkin patch is my favorite part. The scenery is beautiful and I love to take advantage of an opportunity to enjoy the cool open air of fall. The weather was perfect that day too! It also made me wish we had our own pumpkin patch. I wish that every year. Maybe next year we will!

Little Miss Sunshine spotted a little, tiny, green, baby pumpkin and acted as if she had just spotted a long lost friend. She ran as fast as her short legs would carry her and grabbed that pumpkin right into her arms. She smiled so big and showed me her new prized possession. She was very proud. :) It took awhile for all the other kids to pick out the perfect pumpkin so Sunshine had to carry that pumpkin around while navigating through vines and lumps of dirt on the ground. She tripped quite a few times, but never let go of that little pumpkin.
You get to ride in a huge wagon hitched behind a tractor that drives you out to the patch. Another fav of the kids.

Mr. Tickle with his cousin. They're only two weeks apart, Tickle being the older of the two, but his cousin is quite a bit taller!With our homeschool group, we were able to see a presentation on apples and pumpkins with little tidbits about how they grow, etc. Then the kids all got an apple to eat. Mr. Funny's favorite snack!
It was a lovely way to spend the day!
(This was taken early in the morning when we first got there. The wind was pretty chilly. But by the afternoon, the sun had warmed us up!)

And Now She Is Eight...

2011-11-03T06:04:00.000-07:00

Dear Little Miss Chatterbox,
I'm about a month behind with posting this but wanted to make sure it got here!

*deep breath*

My first born. The one who made me a mother. The first one to call me "Mama". Could it really have been eight years ago?

I have heard the "horror" stories of your birth from those who were there. It was so bizarre to watch the video that was taken right after you were born because you can sense a bit of panic in the room. And the video looks like the scene of a crime investigation. I was so young and knew near to nothing about giving birth and how it can and should be a beautiful experience. But I think in this situation, ignorance is bliss.
I didn't know that the epidural is what made me nauseous and was the reason why I was throwing up between pushes. I had no idea that the anesthesiologist had given me way too many drugs and that it would result in a spinal headache. Or that I would be so numb that I wouldn't be able to move or push as I should have. I did not see how scary it was when they put that suction cup on your head nor did I even notice the cone shape it left your head in. I didn't know that Grammy left the room and ran into Grandpa's arms to cry. I figured the tears that Daddy cried were tears of joy, not fear. I probably should have known something wasn't right when even the nurse was crying. But she told me she was pregnant and it was just her hormones. I believed her then. Now I don't. I had no idea that your life was in the hands of an incompetent doctor who eventually would never deliver another baby again and start his own business in surgical hair removal. (Much easier, I presume) But you were born on the Feast of the Guardian Angels and I know they were looking after you. I know that your life was really in the hands of God. And I know that when you were placed in my arms, everything was perfect.

You were beautiful and you were mine.

I noticed right away that you had Dad's little ears. I had hoped and prayed that my little girl would have brown curls and I was so excited to see brown hair on your head! The look on your face made me laugh. You were so serious! Your eyes were wide open and you looked around at everything and everyone. I knew we had been given a very intelligent child. Your little fingernails were red and we joked and said it looked like you had nail polish on. And I was so glad to have a little girl.

I didn't want to take my eyes off you. My heart was so full that I wanted to scream with joy. I was so excited with the anticipation of what was to be, my future with you and Dad always by my side, that I wanted to start clapping.

I still get excited when I think of what is to come. I still watch you and applaud and wonder, "What does God have planned for her?"

I know that no matter what you do, it's going to be amazing.

You're a leader. You're a teacher. You're an artist. You have an eye for beauty.
You love to create. You're a story teller.

You have a strong will. You love Jesus and Mary.
You love your family. You can do anything.

I hope to always be an encouragement to you.

I hope I lift you up and never bring you down. I hope I can help you find your dreams and make them a reality. I can't wait.

You're more beautiful every year.
And you'll always be mine. I'm the luckiest person in the world.

Happy Eighth Birthday! I love you.
Love,
Mom

Our Cast of Saint's: 2011

2011-11-02T09:51:00.001-07:00

Little Miss Chatterbox as:
Saint Cecilia, the patroness of music

Mr. Funny as:
St. Benedict
(who was a hermit for 3 years before starting a religious order. While he was a hermit, it is said that a raven brought him bread to eat. Which is why Funny has a raven on his shoulder. St. Benedict's motto was "Ora et Labora" (Pray and Work)

Mr. Tickle as:
St. Michael
(the archangel who threw Lucifer out of heaven)

Little Miss Sunshine is an angel, but we already knew that. ;)Happy Feast of All Saints!

Beach Trip: Homeward Bound

2011-11-02T09:26:00.000-07:00

There were still a few other posts I wanted to write about our beach trip but I'm afraid it will be winter before I get them all done! So, I'm going to be at peace with letting them slide and just finish the beach trip posts with our good-bye tradition: a trip to Candy Kitchen! There are so many Candy Kitchen shops in Ocean City. The kids would point them out everytime we drove down the street. They even made up their own Candy Kitchen song. They would also talk about how they couldn't wait to go on our last day. Mr. Funny even said one time, "I can't wait to go home so we can go to Candy Kitchen!" Haha. It definitely makes it easier for the kids to say good bye to the beach. It's a tradition we've done for a few years now and it makes our trip home a little sweeter. ;)

This one's for Aunt Jan! (see bib)

Beach Trip- Nightly Fun

2011-11-02T07:39:00.000-07:00

During our past beach trips, Mike and I would send the kids in their room, put Spongebob on the TV (for some reason that show seems to ALWAYS be on) and then let them fall asleep. Since we don't have TV at home, this was an exciting privilege for the kiddos. We then used that free time to enjoy each other's company without being interrupted a hundred times. :) That was an easy routine when they were little. But they're getting bigger.
As I made my list of things to bring on our trip, Little Miss Chatterbox asked, "Are you and Dad going to make us stay in our rooms all night at the beach again?" Uh-oh.
It was time for a new plan. I decided to come up with something different to do each night, together, and then hope the kids would be so worn out that they'd happily go off to bed. It worked for the most part! They may not have been happy to go to bed, but they did anyway. Making the bedtime routine as close as possible to our routine at home really helped too.
So anyway, here's what we did each night:

Night One: Game Night!

Even Little Miss Sunshine joined in the fun. She LOVED putting the little checkers into the slots of Connect Four! And she would clap for herself each time. ;)
Night Two: Moonlight Walk on the Beach

This was by far the favorite of the whole family. It was so neat being on the beach at night. We let the kids get their feet wet. But guess who got more than just her feet wet? Little Miss Chatterbox, of course.

The kids loved playing with Dad on the beach.

Me and my girls. :) (And Chatterbox with her wet dress!)

Night Three: Movie night!
Night Four: Birthday Party for Mother Mary!

We always celebrate Mother Mary's birthday at home and when I noticed that we'd be at the beach, I thought of a great way to spend the evening. A party!

We decorated all in blue, the color associated with Mary.

We had blue cupcakes and Party Cake ice cream made by Blue Ribbon. Mike even enjoyed a Blue Moon beer. ;)

We even played games! Balloon hop race and musical chairs.

Our gift to Mary was saying the family Rosary together before sending the kids to bed. :)

Our little themed nights were a lot of fun and I think we'll do it again next year!

Beach Trip- Our Sand Creations

2011-11-02T07:12:00.000-07:00

Mr. Tickles Sand Castle (with help from Mom)

Mr. Funny's Castle

Little Miss Chatterbox (experiencing with channels again)

Our Beach Experience (In a Nutshell)

2011-10-12T06:54:00.000-07:00

This is Mr. Tickle. He's not much of a water person, so the beach doesn't exactly excite him too much. To him, the beach is "too messy". He learned last year that if he stays away from the water, he can play in the sand without it sticking to him. So that's his beach activity of choice. Play in the sand and avoid the water at all cost.

He's usually on his own since Little Miss Chatterbox LOVES the water and wonders why anyone would want to spend their time doing anything other than be in the water. Mr. Funny was scared of the ocean once upon a time, but he's older now (and I think he got tired of his older sister making fun of him) and he really enjoys the water too. This doesn't bother Tickle too much because he's quite the loner.

But this year, he had a buddy.

Mr. Tickle and Little Miss Sunshine spent a great amount of time playing in the sand together. This didn't surprise me because Sunshine has become quite the little shadow of Tickle. This bothers him sometimes. But for the most part, he loves his "little princess" as he calls her. They got along great on our little beach trip. I think Tickle enjoyed having a sand buddy to play with this year.
I was happy to have help keeping Sunshine busy because she really, really would have preferred to be in the ocean. If she stopped what she was doing, she would remember that the ocean was just a few feet away from her, and she was off as fast as she could go, towards the water!

Here's Mr. Tickle, trying to bring her back.
Sometimes she'd take the bait. Sometimes, she wouldn't. And if she caught sight of daddy, fuh-get about it.Daddy's girl? For sure.

Every once in awhile, I'd grant her wish and we'd all go down by the water. Mike tried to get Mr. Tickle to join us.
But he just ran away and pouted....
very dramatically. It made me laugh, seeing him sitting in the only shaded spot around, with his head hanging as low as he could get it. This picture still makes me laugh. :)So I became his new sand buddy while Mike took over Little Miss Sunshine duty. A win-win situation for both kids. Tickle practiced making F's in the sand and Sunshine laughed and danced every time the water rushed over her feet.Then Tickle and I made sand castles together. This attracted the attention of Chatterbox and Mr. Funny. Eventually sand castle building even pulled Sunshine away from her daddy! So we all worked together. But that will have to wait for another post. :)

On the Boardwalk

2011-09-25T12:34:00.000-07:00

When we arrived in Ocean City, it was a bit early to check into our condo. So we decided to talk a walk on the boardwalk. Of course the kids couldn't keep themselves from the beach, so we didn't actually spend much time on the boardwalk.
Little Miss Sunshine wasn't sure what to think of the sand at first! She was scared to walk on it and would not let go of my skirt. Haha. So I carried her over to Mike and the kids.

Safe in daddy's arms. :)

Mr. Tickle could care less about the ocean so he spent most of his time chasing seagulls.

After seeing the big kids having so much fun, Sunshine decided she would be brave and walk on the sand. There was no stopping her after that! :)

Back on the boardwalk.

Beach Trip- Arriving

2011-09-21T12:46:00.000-07:00

As our family grows, packing for a trip gets more and more challenging. And time consuming. And tedious. As I wrote out lists of what I would need to pack for each person (minus Mike. He packs for himself) and then made lists of what we would eat and what to bring for the kids to do, I quickly became overwhelmed. I found myself thinking, "Is this trip even worth all this packing??" You must understand. I'm a very simple person who wouldn't mind staying home every. single. day. So anyway, I continued packing and with the family's help, we were all packed up and ready to go the night before. We woke up early. The house was bursting with excitement. The kids ran to the van and anxiously waited in their seats while I wrapped up the breakfast sandwiches Mike made for us. (Which I was going to make, but Mike woke up extra early and made them for me!) Then I joined them in the van and we were on our way! Everything went so smoothly. The kids were great. Little Miss Sunshine slept most the way. The kids happily worked on little activities we packed for them. (We borrowed Dry Erase cards by: Usbourne from my Mom and they were beyond doubt the favorite amongst the kids)

Before we knew it, we had arrived! When we get to the bridge that takes us across the bay and into Ocean City, we roll the windows down to get a whiff of that sweet ocean air. Little Miss Chatterbox knew it was coming and could barely contain herself. She was squealing and clapping and making all kinds of noises in the back. It made me smile so big! Then when we got there and the windows went down, the kids were beyond excited.

So, is all that packing worth it? Oooooooooh, yeah.

Let's Experiment

2011-08-25T08:55:00.000-07:00

One day, after a big rain, Little Miss Chatterbox found water draining down our gravel driveway. This gave her an idea! She asked me if she could build a dam and channels and test them out with the hose. Then her brothers had to give it a try too. :) I love it when they come up with this kind of "play".

Little Miss Chatterbox pours water into her dam.

It worked! Time to make the channel.

There goes the water!

Horse and pony, waiting to cross the river.

The boys giving it a go.

Summer Joy- Corn Husking!

2011-08-24T13:47:00.000-07:00

(Tutorial on corn husk dolls found on YouTube)

Summer Joy- Playing in the Sprinkler!

2011-08-16T06:49:00.000-07:00

As Little Miss Sunshine headed towards the sprinkler, I called to the other kids to grab her before she got wet. But it was too late.
Much to our surprise, she loved it! She loves water just as much as her big sis. She went through the sprinkler over and over again.

When I finally grabbed her to take her inside, she was completely soaked.... and grinning from ear to ear!
The big kids had an idea to put the sprinkler near the playground so they could get sprayed while they went down the slide or played on their swings.
Ah, the joys of summer!

Summer Joy - Eating Watermelon!

2011-07-18T11:03:00.000-07:00

They were so focused on this watermelon that I couldn't even get good pictures of them!

But what's summer without watermelon?

More Cupcake Pics

2011-06-28T09:30:00.000-07:00

For Mom (Grammy)

My Little Cupcake

2011-06-27T08:16:00.001-07:00

For my 200th post, I give you the cuteness of little toddler hands holding a cupcake. Gotta love it. (And a big bruise on her forehead. A sure sign that she's now a walker!)

Happy Birthday, Little Miss Sunshine!

2011-06-24T08:03:00.001-07:00

Easter Morning

2011-06-23T08:49:00.000-07:00

Ah, Easter. I love Easter. It's my favorite holiday. He is Risen! Lent is over! Spring is here! There's so much to celebrate. It's always such a beautiful day. This year was especially wonderful because our first born received her First Holy Communion!

Here are a few pictures of our morning.

We always buy family gifts that the children share and then put their individual gifts in their baskets. This was our table with the family gifts and our Sacred Heart picture adorned with lilies. The kids love this because during Holy Week our picture is veiled.

Morning prayers:
The kids were so excited about it being Little Miss Sunshine's first Easter. It was the cutest thing!

We got her one of those walking toys and she was so glad to have a walking aid.

Growing up, my mom always hid our baskets and I loved that tradition! So I have happily passed it on to my kids. Here they are, finding their baskets.

Then they noticed their calendar. At the beginning of Lent, this poster board was covered with post its. Each day we removed one, slowly revealing the picture underneath. He is Risen! Alleluia!
Sunshine was very excited with her basket!

Pretty Daisies, Pretty Nails

2011-06-22T08:29:00.000-07:00

The night before Little Miss Chatterbox received her First Holy Communion, I made sure we set some time aside, just the two of us. We said the last prayer of her 12 day novena and then painted her nails. I bought some pretty white daisy nail decals that I found at the store. They were perfect because they matched the shoes she picked out which had a pretty white daisy on the toe! My Chatterbox just loves flowers. :) It was fun to pamper her a bit before the big day!

Chatterbox's First Holy Communion Cake

2011-06-20T06:11:00.000-07:00

Little Miss Chatterbox had big plans for her First Communion cake. She drew them up on paper (which was actually quite impressive!) right down to how many layers, what colors, type of frosting, and cake flavors. It was to be three tiered, each tier with fondant roses around the outside. The top would have Chatterbox kneeling in her dress, receiving communion from Jesus-all made out of fondant. There would be a plaque on the middle tier with her name and the date and lilies to represent Easter. The bottom tier would have a seashell, to represent her baptism. (She received her First Holy Communion on Easter which was also her baptismal anniversary) It sounded wonderful but not quite realistic. I reminded her that making things from fondant take a long time and that we would be busy getting ready for the big day plus Easter. So I looked on-line and found a cake topper of Jesus giving communionto a little girl. I was so excited to find it! It took a bit of effort to persuade Chatterbox to pass up her fondant idea but she finally did.

As the day came closer and closer and the to-do list grew longer and longer, I wondered how I was going to get everything done. Then Chatterbox offered to decorate the cake herself. What a great idea! So I baked the cake (lemon cake with raspberry mousse filling) and frosted it. Then we made the fondant. It was made from marshmallows and came from a recipe that I found on-line. It was not sturdy and every rose we made started melted back into a ball of fondant goo. "It needs more powdered sugar!" suggested Chatterbox. So she kneaded in more and more. It was getting a little better, but still not good enough for roses. I was ready to give up. It was already late in the day on Holy Saturday and we had so much to do to get ready for Easter! But Chatterbox was determined to make this work. She played around with it and made a little rosette. "Look at this, Mom! A little rose! We can just put these around the tiers!" It was a great idea and I was so relieved. We started working together on making the rosettes when she decided that she didn't want the roses to be only pink and white (which was my suggestion). She wanted dark pink, light pink, yellow and purple. "Easter colors! Spring colors! My favorite colors!" I gave her an undiscerning look. "It is my cake, after all." Okay, okay.

We colored more fondant. The kitchen was a huge mess which attracted the boys, naturally. To them, big mess equals big fun. Chatterbox told them they were too small to make rosettes but gave them a little bit of fondant to play with. This made Mr. Tickle very happy. But to Mr. Funny, it was a challenge. He tried to make a rosette but it was huge. "See? I told you that you are too small to help with the roses. Just play with Mr. Tickle." Mr. Funny didn't seem to hear Chatterbox's remark. He made one rose after another, learning from the last and making improvements on the next, until finally he made the perfect little rosette.

He was so proud of himself and we were proud of him too! Chatterbox hugged him and apologized for not having more faith in his abilities (her words, not mine). Then she put him in charge of the purple. It was great to get help! With the three of us making the roses, it moved along pretty quickly. Chatterbox carefully placed them in a pattern along the cake. I truly loved the colors and was so glad that Chatterbox decided on them. We placed the cake topper on top and put on the chocolate chalice. The finished cake looked beautiful.

This ranked pretty high on my Mom-o-Meter of proud moments. Here's what I was proud of:

1. Chatterbox coming up with her own design

2. Chatterbox going with the flow and not getting angry about the fondant not working.

3. Chatterbox dealing with a cranky, exasperated mother and helping me keep my cool by finding a solution to our rose problem.

4. Chatterbox being nice to her brothers when they asked to help.

5. Mr. Funny's determination on figuring out how to make a fondant rosette.

6. How nicely and quietly Mr. Tickle played with his fondant and left us to finish our job.

And last but certainly not least,

7. The cake! She did it! Chatterbox decorated her cake and it turned out just lovely.

Big Sis is here!

2011-06-17T06:31:00.001-07:00

(The kids giving Aunt Jan the cards they made for her)

Classic Spaghetti Shot

2011-06-16T08:30:00.000-07:00

Where Are the Pics?

2011-06-15T08:30:00.000-07:00

It appears that I'm just terrible at keeping up with this blog. I'm not going to have time to write about all the things that have happened in the past few months. Which makes me really sad because this is where I'm suppose to be putting everything down so that my kids will be able to look back on their childhood through their mother's eyes and words.

We had Easter. Little Miss Chatterbox had her First Holy Communion! Mr. Funny played t-ball this year! Mr. Tickle is potty trained! Little Miss Sunshine will be one next week! The kids are growing and changing everyday. The days go so fast. Oh, how I wish I could document it all. This beautiful life God has given me. My amazing husband. My wonderful children. Our loving extended family. It's a crazy, busy life. But I am oh, so grateful.

Since I don't have time to catch up with long, individual posts, how about some pictures? I promised you some pictures and you have been so patient. Thank you.

I will start with the most recent picture I have of the Fantastic Four. ;) And I will try, REALLY HARD, to come back and post at least one pic a day. But life happens so I'm not making any more promises. And my big sis is in town so I plan to spend lots of time with her! See you around. God bless you all.

Holy Thursday 2011

2011-06-03T16:31:00.000-07:00

Holy Thursday

Alice Gunther from Cottage Blessings is quite infamous for her Teatimes. Two years ago the kids and I had a version of Alice's Holy Thursday and Good Friday Teas. Little Miss Chatterbox loved them and requested them this year and last. But preparing for two teas back to back is more than I can handle right now so we had an extremely simplified version for Holy Thursday. We always have sparkling grape juice to represent the wine that Jesus and the Apostles drank at the Last Supper. And we ate pita bread as the unleavened bread. We had a "mount of olives" on the side ("And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives." Mk. 14: 26.) and "Fig" Newtons because figs grew in Gethsemane. We talked about why Jesus is the Lamb of God and read about the Last Supper from the Bible. I knew this "meal" wouldn't fill them up so we also had pizza for the only reason of it being very easy! After our meal, the kids take turn washing eachothers feet just as Jesus washed the apostles feet.

Daybook #6- The "Gone Too Long" Edition

2011-05-26T08:06:00.000-07:00

I didn't mean to be gone so long. I really didn't. I apologize to those of you who check in on a regular basis. I have a lot to share and hope to get back on track soon. I figured I'd make a Daybook post to help ease my way back in. :)

Outside my window... hot, sweet sunshine accompanied by a nice breeze. Awww.... I love this time of year.
I am thinking... about summer plans.

I am thankful for...

-a hard-working husband who picks up my slack.

-a grandmother who just turned 82. ( I love my Nana!)

- my self-giving Mother and Aunt and their awesome husbands who take care of that grandmother.

-ear surgery that went very well and a little girl who can finally hear clearly!

From the learning room... wrapping up the school year and then I'll have to gather up work from Little Miss Chatterbox to send to the County. I'm a little nervous about that...

From the kitchen... strawberries! If only I could find the time to take the children strawberry picking. Until then, grocery store ones will have to do. I've been wanting to make strawberry jam. I better hurry before strawberry season is over!

I am creating...

-a portfolio of LMC's school work.

-next years school plans

-an organized house

-fathers day gifts

-birthday plans for Little Miss Sunshine!

-summer camps for kids and cousins

I am reading... The Well-trained Mind:A guide to Classical Education at Home By Jessie Wise & Susan Wise Bauer (Excellent!!! Has left me totally inspired for next school year!)

I am hoping... that I can get more organized. I'm so, so good at making plans and so, so bad at actually going through with them. Would really like to work on that...

I am praying... for Teresa. And many pregnant friends. :) And that my parents have a safe trip to Texas.

I am hearing... LMS breathing as I nurse her to sleep.

Around the house... clothes. I need to pack up the winter clothes and buy new summer clothes for everyone but Mr. Tickle. He'll get hand me downs from Mr. Funny. Yay for hand me downs! Don't feel bad for Mr. Tickle. They are NEW to him and he doesnt know the difference between clothes that come out of the attic or clothes that arrive in the mail. (I buy clothes from E-bay) I need to buy clothes for myself too. I HATE shopping for myself. Trying to find casual, modest summer clothes for my big chested figure is not an easy task. I need a bathing suit too... oh boy.

One of my favorite things.... reading to the kids.

Living the Liturgical Year... May is dedicated to Mary. I've been wanting to have a May Crowning but May is going to be over after this weekend! When did that happen? Maybe I can squeeze it in on Memorial Day.

Little Miss Sunshine this week... She's walking!!! And talking! And growing teeth! (2 on the bottom and one coming in the top!) My baby is turning into a toddler. She'll be one next month. Can you believe it?

Netflix Movie Review... We watched "For Whom the Bell Tolls" but didn't make it through the whole thing. It was slow and boring and Mike said if we had to finish watching it I could go ahead and shoot him in the head. Hahaha. Haven't had much luck with movies lately. Oh, we saw Salt and enjoyed that.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing...

I have so many pictures to share with you! Many posts to come!!

Fun on a Windy Day

2011-04-16T07:04:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the kite, Uncle Ju! The kids had so much fun with it!

Spring

2011-03-31T08:37:00.000-07:00

Since it's only been in the 30's these past few days (and rainy and snowy and sleeting) and we have pretty much forgotten that it's actually springtime, I'm looking at some pictures I took a few weeks back when it wasn't quite yet spring, but in the high 60's. Crazy weather we're having here in Virginia. I hope it warms up in time for Easter. Actually, I'd like it to warm up quicker than that because we have garden work to do! :)

Anyway, in case you have forgotten it's spring too, I'd like to share my pictures with you!

Little Miss Sunshine was sitting on a blanket when she decided she wanted to crawl over to me. As soon as her hand touched the grass, she forgot all about me! She thought this was really cool stuff!

She started pulling handfuls of grass off the ground and throwing it into the air.

She was quite entertained with this new discovery.

(note to self: the next time its absolutely gorgeous outside and you rush through lunch because you are just dying to get out there, and you notice that your child got food all over her little sweater but you decide you don't mind because you have to get outside RIGHT. THAT. SECOND. don't forget that you will probably end up taking pictures and will later wish you had taken a few minutes to change her sweater. C'mon, Jodi.)

First time on the swing!

In case you can't tell from the picture, she absolutely loved it. Squishy nose galore!

Squishy nose with her mouth wide open.

The kids LOVE their swing set. It's their favorite place to play outside.

Second Place: the crab apple tree in our front yard. Mr. Tickle is excited because he's big enough to climb it this year. My rule is, if you can't get up there on your own, you can't get up there.

Signs of spring: the bulbs are blooming!

New growth on the crab apple tree.

Our hydrangea that Mike bought me for Mother's Day last year. We were afraid it was dead! But no! Still alive. :)

This was another gift from mike on Mother's Day. Best rose ever. The deer really feasted on this thing last year. But look at all that new growth! We'll try harder to protect you this year, little rose bush. Don't worry.

Sunshine has been hanging out in here while I do yard work. Just until the ground dries out a bit and every thing's not so muddy. Tickle went in there because he thinks it's fun!

Little Miss Chatterbox made a "house" on the front deck. She loves to make little "homes" wherever she can.

When the sun started going down, it got a little too chilly for Sunshine. So she watched her best friends through the storm door window. It was so cute. So naturally, I grabbed my camera and went outside to get a picture of her.

After posing for a picture, she realized she was now the only one inside and started banging on the window.

Then she noticed her fingers and decided to check them out a minute.

Then back to her pleas. She even whipped out the squishy nose in hopes that her cuteness would get her outside.

When that didn't work, she got angry. This is her "I'm not messin' around" look. Hahaha. Oh, Little Miss Sunshine. What a cutie pie.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my pictures! Happy spring, everyone!

Asking St. Anthony for help

2011-03-24T10:05:00.000-07:00

*UPDATE: She's been found! Thank you for your prayers!

Little Miss Chatterbox has a very dear friend named Tigress. She's a stuffed animal tiger, but she's much more to Chatterbox. Look at any picture of Chatterbox on this blog, and you will see Tigress tucked under her arm. She doesn't go ANYWHERE without her. To Chatterbox, she's a member of the family. She even made her a Valentine on St. Valentine's feast day. She wanted me to take pictures of Tigress when I took the kids school pictures. She made sure I set up a spot at the table for Tigress at our St. Patrick's day feast. She can't sleep without her.

And she's been missing for two days.

The last time Chatterbox remembers having her was outside. We looked everywhere but couldn't find her. I hope she's not outside because it's been raining the past two days. Tigress was already falling apart from being so loved. I don't think she would make it through two days in the rain. My heart breaks for my little girl as she adjusts to life without Tigress. She's doing surprisingly well. I thought bedtime would be a problem but it hasn't been. Every so often, I notice Chatterbox reach under her arm and then remember that Tigress is not there.

Would you please ask St. Anthony of Padua to pray for us and help us find her?

"St. Anthony, St. Anthony, please come around. Something's been lost and cannot be found."

Thanks!

Feast of St. Patrick Part Four: A Gift for Mr. Tickle

2011-03-24T09:09:00.000-07:00

I love how even though my sister lives on the opposite side of the States, she still finds a way to pop up during our celebrations! In this case, her birthday gifts for Mr. Tickle arrived on St. Patrick's day. He liked the little giraffe on the front of his card and thought he was cute.

Chatterbox read the card out loud to Mr. Tickle.

Tickle studied the wrapping paper. One of the monkeys had a banana peel on its head and Tickle found it to be hilarious! Aunt Jan had a feeling that Mr. Tickle and Sock monkey would be a perfect match! She was right!

ABC Flash cards! Perfect for school!

Mr. Tickle being very meticulous about opening his gift.

New, fun stickers! Yipee!

Tickle wanted one on his shirt.

And then came the big gift: A Sock Monkey! My talented sister MADE him! It was love at first sight. ;) Tickle named him "Mr. Sockey" otherwise known as just "Sockey".

"Look! He has a tail!"

She also made a matching Sock Monkey blanket. Chatterbox wrapped Sockey up for Tickle.

He was very pleased and snuggled with his new friend.

Pose for a picture to show Aunt Jan!

"Mom, he has big, red lips!"

"And there's a monkey button on his hat!"

The kids went to introduce Sockey to the Monkey family. The Monkey family just so happened to be in the need of a dad. Here's the happy family. Baby George, Sockey and Maria Monkey.

Here's a nice view of the blanket. On Funny's head. Funny was being funny.

Here are the boys with Tickles' new stickers. Guess who's idea it was to put them on their face? And guess who copied his big brother? ;) Silly boys.

Thank you so much, Aunt Jan!! We love you and miss you!

Feast of St. Patrick Part Three: A Puppet Show!

2011-03-24T08:46:00.001-07:00

Lacy from Catholic Icing came up with these adorable St. Patrick puppets. I cut out all the pieces for Mr. Funny and he glued them on and drew a nose all by himself. He was so proud! I thought he did a great job and he really enjoyed it. I need to do more crafts with him!He looks so much like his daddy in this picture.

Mr. Funny didn't want to make one so I made his for him. He's not that into crafts and we had already made a bunch of other things. So by this point, he was done!

After teaching to the kids Lacy's cute St. Patrick Trinity song, Little Miss Chatterbox decided to have a puppet show. She performed it for us when Mike got home. It was about St. Patrick's life story. She made her stage out of a box. And brought out every last stuffed animal she owns to join the production.
She was so cute! I couldn't stop giggling because I loved it so much. She would stop and ask, "Why are you laughing?" And I would say, "Because you're so cute!"
At the end, she called in her brothers and they all sang the St. Patrick Trinity song.

It reminded me of something I would have done as a kid. I was always looking for opportunities to perform for the family. Like mother, like daughter!

Feast of St. Patrick Part Two: The Crafts

2011-03-24T08:23:00.000-07:00

All craft ideas came from Lacy at Catholic Icing and the crafty moms who added their links.

St. Patrick coloring pages (By: Chatterbox, Funny and Tickle)

One Decade Shamrock Rosary

Little Miss Sunshine's Fighting Irish look

St. Patrick's Breastplate (I forgot to get a picture of their finished products)

and St. Patrick puppets which I will share in the next post!

Feast of St. Patrick Part One: The Food

2011-03-18T11:08:00.001-07:00

Little Miss Sunshine in her pretty green dress, ready to celebrate her first St. Patrick's Day!

The Shaffer kids, all in green.

My collection of cookie cutters didn't have a shamrock, so I had to think outside the box. Hearts!

Turned out pretty well, right? And our green, orange and "white" veggie chips.

Pistachio Cupcakes from the Cupcake Mix Doctor cookbook and mint Oreos.

St. Patrick centerpiece

Veggie Tray Irish Flag

Melon Jell-O with whipped cream and sprinkles

Ready to Feast!

Cool Shamrock straws and Green Milk!

Sunshine gumming a carrot. This girl STILL has no teeth!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

3!

2011-03-18T04:34:00.000-07:00

Mr. Tickles turned three this week. My baby boy, a big three year old. This is when they really start to "mature" (if you can use that word to describe a three year old!) and go from dependent to independent. I'll miss that baby. But look with anticipation to the boy he is becoming.

(baby Tickles with his beloved pillow)

He has a heart of gold and loves to help out in any way his three year old self can. He's proud to be a "big boy" but still loves to snuggle up with Mama and his silky pillow. Oh, that pillow. How he loves his "red and yellow" pillow. He has slept with it since he was a baby.

When he looks at me, I can see in his smiling eyes how much he loves me.

He doesn't use a lot of words.

He knows a lot of words, just chooses not to use them.

So if you go out of your way todo something special for him, he might not have a lot to say about it, but he'll give you that beautiful smile. In fact, it doesn't have to be something special. He appreciates little things. Like, covering him up with a blanket or saving the last strawberry for him.

Yesterday morning he woke up from a bad dream so I carried him into my bed. I ran and got his pillow for him and when I brought it to him, he looked deep into my eyes and had the most genuine smile I have ever seen. It was as if he could see my soul. I've never had anyone look at me like that except for Mike. I asked him what he was thinking, but he just smiled and then turned over to snuggle into his pillow. I will never forget the pure joy I felt from that look. I hope I will always know how to make him that happy. I hope I never forget how much he appreciates little things.

It takes him awhile to warm up to people. But if you stick around long enough, and are able to win his heart, lucky you. Cause this boy knows how to love. Truly and deeply love. Not a day goes by that he doesn't quietly walk up to me, put his little arms around me and whisper, "Mommy, I love you."

It's tough being the younger, big kid. Especially when the older two have so very much to say! I can't tell you how many times Mr. Tickles gets interrupted. If I didn't intervene, he wouldn't be able to finish a sentence the entire day. And when he does get the chance to speak and all gets quiet and the spotlight is on him, he begins to stutter and then covers his eyes. He doesn't like the spotlight. He very much likes to share it with his big sister and bigbrother.

I feel so bad as the day gets busy, and Mr. Tickles will ask for something. I have every intention of helping him but will get so easily side tracked. He doesn't get angry or lose patience. He will just politely remind me that he needed something. Sometimes even two or three times. "Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Tickles!" And he'll just smile at me. He has taught me a thing or two about patience. What a sweetheart he is.

I love to watch him play with his older siblings. He copies EVERYTHING that Mr. Funny does or says. It's adorable. Mr. Funny takes pride in being his little brothers role model and told me he's going to be a good example to him so he can help Mr. Tickles get to heaven. Best buddies, those two. And he loves it when Little Miss Chatterbox teaches him during school. She's been helping him write his letters. It's very sweet to watch. Both Little Miss Chatterbox and Mr. Funny are wonderful older siblings. They reallylook after Mr. Tickles. The bond between brothers and sisters amazes me.

And speaking of older siblings, Mr. Tickles has really taken to his role of Big Brother! He's very protective of Little Miss Sunshine. He'll see her with something she shouldn't have and say, "Mom! That's choke size!" and then he'll get a toy that he finds more appropriate, and swap it out for the one she had. He lovingly gazes at her when she's sleeping and will gently stroke her cheek or her hand. He calls her "cutie". And when he thinks no one is around, he sings to her. And no one can make her laugh the way that he does. All he has to do is look at her and a big belly laugh comes out. They have the same laugh and cry. Lately, I will hear a cry or a laugh and think it's Mr. Tickles. But then to my surprise, it will be Little Miss Sunshine. Funny how siblings share things like that.

Happy birthday, my dear Mr. Tickles! You are one of a kind and I love you so very much!

(pictures from his Batman Bowling party, sharing the celebration with his favorite Uncle who's birthday is March 6. Pancake pictures from his actual birthday, March 15th)

First Confession

2011-03-15T08:21:00.001-07:00

Little miss Chatterbox received her first confession on March 12, 2011! (The 11th Anniversary of when Mike first asked me out!) She did her examination of conscience the night before and had everything written down "in case I forget!" and practiced saying her Act of Contrition. We said a prayer and went over the Bible lessons we've been working on such as the Prodigal Son, the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin and the Vine and the Branches. We both felt really good and prepared. When she woke up in the morning she was really nervous but we went to Mass, and she prayed the Rosary at her Junior Legion of Mary meeting and Father Fasano talked to all the children before confessions began. I think this all helped to calm her nerves because when the time came she was more excited than nervous. (But she did whisper to me that she wanted to be last in line!) Her cousin, L, was there too andI'm sure that helped as well. L also went first. ;) Chatterbox walked in, looking confident. I felt like she had been in there longer than the others but I'm sure it was just my nerves that made the minutes seem to go by so slow. When she finally came out, she had the biggest, happy-go-lucky smile I had ever seen and she had a hop in her step as she walked up to the altar to say her prayer for penance (which was an Our Father). It was the sweetest thing! Doph and I were sitting together and we both looked at each other and laughed. Mike went up there too and prayed with her. L went back up too to say some more prayers. First Confession was success!

Afterwards, Doph, L, and V came over for Ice Cream Sundaes to celebrate and then the girls made remembrance banners. It was a beautiful, bright, sunny day too so they got to play outside to their bright, sunny hearts content!

First Communion Dress!

2011-03-11T13:04:00.000-08:00

Little Miss Chatterbox is going to receive her first Holy Communion this year on Easter!!! We are beyond excited and it has been so much fun preparing her for this huge event. She is so smart and so deep. She understands concepts quickly and is growing more in love with our Lord everyday. She is also very excited and marks off each day on her calendar as we get closer and closer. She just picked out her dress. It's beautiful, just like she is. It's not the one I wanted to get (did I really think she would want the one Mom wanted?) and was actually going to pick the one I liked because she was afraid of hurting my feelings. :) I thought that was very sweet but told her this is HER big day and which dress did she want to wear when she receives Jesus for the first time. And it was this one:

I really do love it and I can't wait to see her in it. What got me really excited was that after I bought it, I realized it reminded me of her baptismal dress. So I looked through my pictures and sure enough! Look!

Did I mention that Easter is on her Baptismal Anniversary this year? She will be getting her first Holy Communion on her Baptismal day, in a dress that looks like the dress she was baptized in. It's just too much joy! I can't wait!

Tomorrow is her first time going to the Sacrament of Penance (confession). Could you say a prayer for her, please? That it all goes smoothly? Thank you!

*Update: This is the dress I had picked out:

Daybook #5

2011-02-22T09:34:00.000-08:00

Outside my window... snow! I can't believe it. Last week the kids were playing outside in short sleeves because it was 70 degrees outside. Even my bulbs thought it was spring! Our crocus' bloomed and the hyacinths are on their way up. I know I said I wanted more snow, but after having a taste of warm weather, I think I'll stay inside and pretend the snow isn't there...
I am thinking... about how busy March is going to be. Wait, isn't that the case with every month? ;)

I am thankful for...

*Sundays. No matter how busy the weeks get, I can always count on a relaxing Sunday.

*Mike being home in the evenings. No more OT!!!

From the learning room... All About Spelling is a fantastic program! I have so much fun using it with the kids and they enjoy it too. It's so much more than just a spelling program. Mr. Funny is learning his phonics with it too which is also teaching him to read. Love it! I highly recommend it to all parents!

From the kitchen... finally able to get groceries and follow a menu plan again! Not knowing what you're going to feed your family for dinner can be so stressful!

I am creating...

-thank you cards for all the wonderful gifts Mr. Funny received for his birthday

-First Holy Communion plans

-Lent plans

-Easter plans

-Birthday plans for Mr. Tickle
I am reading... The Hidden Power of Kindness by Lawrence G. Lovasik

I am hoping... that the stomach flu has left the building for good! It went from LM Sunshine, to Mr. Tickle, me and then to LM Chatterbox. We were fine Saturday and Sunday and I figured Mike and Mr. Funny were going to be spared. But then after driving all the way to work yesterday morning, Mike had to turn around and come up because he too got sick. Here's hoping it won't get to Mr. Funny!

I am praying... for Teresa. And many pregnant friends. :)

I am hearing... Mozart. The kids and I are learning about him in school.

Around the house... way too much STUFF. Didn't finish the girl's room. Decided to work in my room instead. Even went out and bought paint for our room this weekend! I get so excited about painting. I have been staring at these white walls for 4 1/2 years now. It's time for some color! Pictures to come when it gets done.

One of my favorite things.... sunshine and warm days.

Living the Liturgical Year...it is currently Ordinary Time. A little bit of quiet before Lent comes- the hardest but most rewarding time of the year.

Little Miss Sunshine this week... is becoming quite the little Daddy's Girl. When Mike gets home from work she flashes him her biggest smile to draw him in so he'll hold her. And at other times, if I am holding her and Mike comes into sight, she reaches for him. Sweetest thing ever.

Netflix Movie Review... We watched "Emma" starring Gwyneth Paltrow. Mike was reluctant to watch it and then fell asleep within the first five minutes. Haha. I thought the character, Emma, was annoying. And since she was the main character, well, I just didn't enjoy it that much.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing...

Silly Goose

St. Valentine's Day

2011-02-22T07:00:00.000-08:00

A first for Little Miss Sunshine. This bib was bought by Aunt Jan when Little Miss Chatterbox was celebrating her first St. Valentine's Day. Glad I've saved it all these years!

We started the day off with Valentine's from Grammy and Grandpa. Thank you, Gram and Grandpa!

The kids were so excited to find McDonald's gift certificates inside! And they got little boxes of SweeTart hearts. These kids sure are loved!

Little Miss Chatterbox read Little Miss Sunshines card to her.

School went on as usual but with yummy treats an pretty pencils with hearts on them.

After school, the kids played outside while I set up the table for our St. Valentine's Day Tea Party. Ever since I had a tea party with my sister on Valentine's Day when I was little, I've always associate tea parties with Valentine's Day. :) It was a big deal because I got to use her tea set and we ate conversation hearts; but mostly because I got to hang out with my big sis. (Love you, Jan!)

My kids were so excited with this. I think it will be a new tradition.

They were so thrilled when they came in and saw everything!

The happy bunch. (I didn't have a vase for the roses so I used a tea pot. And since my kids don't care for tea, we drank soda which is a BIG treat in our house. So that tea pot was really the only "tea" element of this "tea" party. hehe)

Aunt Jan sent goodie bags to all of us! The kids got boxes of chocolate, new socks, and stickers inside the cutest little bags.

Little Miss Chatterbox also got a beautiful pink bow for her hair.

I got a gorgeous rose note card set, foot lotion with socks and flower seed packets! Aunt Jan is the sweetest and most thoughtful sis/aunt there is!!

Cheers!

And Aunt Jan got Sunshine this adorable outfit!

Little Miss Chatterbox didn't want the tea party to end so she continued it in the living room while she used her new stickers to make "sticker scenes" as she calls them. ;)

It was a lovely day!!

That time of year...

2011-02-15T12:21:00.000-08:00

We've received a visit from a stomach bug so I won't be able to post our St. Valentine's Day pictures. But I hope you all had a lovely day!!

I'll be back when my duty of cuddling little sick ones is complete. (Started with Sunshine. Now Mr. Tickle.)

Until then, Happy St. Valentine's Day!!

Happy Birthday, Mr. Funny!

2011-02-10T07:23:00.000-08:00

My oldest boy turned five yesterday. It was a good day. Simple yet special. And full of love.

We started the day off with a special breakfast. Blue pancakes with whipped cream, sprinkles and a cherry. Then the kids got the day off of school (mainly because Mom needed to finish making the cake) and played all morning.

Uncle Ju was off work this week so he got to spend the day with us!What a special treat!

He and Ang took Mr. Funny to Wal-Mart to pick out a toy for his birthday. But first, Mom took him to McDonald's for lunch to get a happy meal!

After our fun afternoon, we met Dad at Chuck-E-Cheese fordinner. Dad was able to get off from over time to spend the evening with the birthday boy.

The pizza was very yummy!

Since Ang wasn't there to eat our crust (we missed you, Ang!), we gave it to Little Miss Sunshine. She loved it!

They even had a Star Wars game there. Cool!

Mr. Funny was very good at Skee Ball.

He got lots of tickets and even won a toy.

The kids had a great time playing. Even Sunshine joined in the fun!

Then we went home for cake and presents. Funny got a lot of nice things! A St. John Vianney statue from Dad and Mom (patron of parish priests), a handmade tool belt and a toolbox full of tools from Aunt Jan and Uncle Adam, a light saber from Ang (he hasn't put that thing down since. He even slept with it!), hot wheel set and cars from Uncle Ju, a St. Vincent de Paul book from the Osbourns and THREE cards came in the mail, each containing $5 from Grammy & Grandpa, Nana and the Kyles. This boy sure is loved!

The cake was Star Wars, of course. One of my sloppier ones, but that's what you get when you have four kids to take care of. ;) But the good thing is, kids don't notice the mistakes and Funny loved his cake.

And that was the end to our lovely day.

My dear boy,

God gave you a heart full of love. You've been smiling since before you were even born. ( I even have a sonogram pic. to prove it.) You look after all of us, making sure we're happy. And if we're not, you'll make us laugh. You're the first one to offer a helping hand and have been a great role model for your little brother. You put up with a lot from your big sis but you never hold a grudge. And boy does it drive her crazy when she's angry and starts yelling at you and you just smile at her and tell her you love her. :) I can't imagine life without that great big smile. You talk of being a priest some day. I wouldn't be surprised. You have the perfect heart for the job. Thank you for gifting us with your love. You are a blessing. I love you. (oh, and do me a favor. Have mercy on your mother and stop doing dangerous things like flips off of Dad's dresser. I could do without the daily scares.)

Happy birthday to my smart, handsome, athletic, compassionate, tender hearted boy!

Love,

Mom