Christmas Fun!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

It's amazing what a couple snow days allow me to get done! How about three posts, Moll? :) Here are some pics getting our Christmas tree a few weeks ago, visiting Santa at Emily's school breakfast, and making cookies with Grandma.

Growing up, one of our holiday traditions was making cutouts with my grandma's recipe. I never knew my grandma (I was 4 months old when she died) but I feel like I know so much about her from all that my mom shares with me. Thom and I always snuck some dough as we were making the cookies (nothing like a little raw cookie dough). After Thom passed away, I joked with Mom that I had to eat twice as much to meet the annual quota :). Emily and Erin have found the joy in sneaking a little dough so I guess I don't have to eat as much now! We had a wonderful time making cookies this year. Erin really participated this year so it was lots of fun for both girls.

Stay warm everyone!

Happy 3rd Birthday to My Baby Girl!

Make a Smilebox postcard

Erin turned 3 on December 9. It hardly seems possible. She seems so much older now that she is speaking more clearly. It's amazing how much she still seemed like a "baby" because of her speech delay. We are so thankful for the Early Intervention program and the opportunity to provide her with services. Erin is such a delightful little girl (even when she's being impish...which is frequently :)). Happy Birthday Sweet Baby Girl!

Winter Fun

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Just a few pics from some winter fun a few weeks ago...before all this snow! Thanks to my wonderful friend Molly for the Smilebox idea...what a fun, quick way to post multiple photos. Enjoy!

Cute Little Moment

A couple nights ago the girls and I were heading upstairs for bedtime. Emily started saying grace (not really sure why:)). She only got out "Thank you god" when Erin said "for mommy." Such a random, spontaneous moment that warmed my heart. Just like today when she ran into my arms when I picked her up at Grandma and Papa's house. Who doesn't love coming home to that!

The Ladybug and the Purple Witch

Halloween night was full of excitement! Emily insisted on being a purple witch when she saw the Party City ad. We recycled Erin's ladybug costume from Emily at the same age. We walked around with Emily's friend Abby, her sister Jadyn, their mom Jennifer, and their grandfather (who is our next door neighbor). Emily and Abby play together almost every weekend when she comes to visit her grandparents. (In fact, they played today~what's more fun than a day off from school!)

Erin was much more aware of what was going on this year. She walked around the whole time. Last year she only made it about halfway then went back to hand out candy with my parents. Our neighborhood is quite large (for trick-or-treating purposes) so we only went to about half the houses. There were lots of kids out and about with lots of cute costumes. A few houses really go the scary route with decorations. Emily was okay with those but Erin and I waited in the driveways of the scariest ones. Erin wanted to be carried to the last 10 houses or so but insisted, everytime she was asked, "I no go home."

Emily and Abby sorted their candy together on Saturday. We are still working through the big bowl of goodies and probably will be until Thanksgiving!

Brown's Berry Patch

A few weeks ago we went to Brown's Berry Patch with our friends the Lambertons. Emily and Caitlyn went to the same sitter way back when and our families have remained friends through sitter and house moves. Emily and Caity are just 3 months apart and Erin and Cory just 2 months.

It was such a wonderful day! We started out picking raspberries and apples. The kids just loved it. Erin enjoyed getting on Dave's shoulders to pick apples. After picking our treats, we had lunch and went into the barnyard. Christy and Jeff's friends met us at lunch time and joined us for the rest of the day. There were goats, sheep, and calves to see along with plenty of games and activities for the kids to do.

We ended with a wagon ride out to the pumpkin patch. We stopped in the gift shop on the way out to get pumpkin-shaped water bottles filled with cider.

If you have never been there, I highly recommend a trip to Brown's Berry Patch next fall!

Garden Factory Fun

Just a quick post to share some pics from some fall fun at the Garden Factory. They have lots of great activities for the kids. Dave was out of town a couple weeks ago so it was just the girls. We ran into Emily's friend Kaylee and her mom. We ended up walking around for awhile with them. The older girls were great about including Erin. They had so much fun.

Special Times with Special People

In addition to the Making Strides Walk and my godson Jacob's 2nd birthday party, we also had our cousin Jill and her husband, Stan, visit from Maryland for the weekend. Jill is my mom's first cousin and they have remained close since they were little. Jill, her brother Jack, and her mom, my great-aunt Kay, traveled here for our wedding and all of three of them drove up when my brother Thom passed away. It's been 3 years since we've seen any of Jill's family. In 2005, Jill and her daughter Tricia, Jill's sister Gail and her daughter Katie, and Aunt Kay flew up for a long weekend just a few weeks before Erin was born (on Tricia's birthday~she knew Tricia would be a great person to share a b-day with:-)). Many years ago while visiting DC with friends, I was able to spend time with Jill and Aunt Kay. After visiting Uncle Jay in the hospital, we had dinner with Tricia and headed over to Gail's house. I joked that you would have thought that Queen Elizabeth was visiting the way they "made" over me being there. They feel so strongly about family...and made me feel right at home.

It is always such a wonderful time with our "Maryland Cousins." I met Stan for the first time. He is a genuinely nice, down-to-earth guy. He fits in perfectly with our family. We had dinner at our house for Jill, Stan, my parents, my aunt Sharon, cousin Lisa and her family, and my uncle Dan and his friend Karen. We had a great visit! It was so nice to have everyone together. The girls loved all the action...and attention. These are pics of Jill & Stan, Lisa's son Luke in the shoo-fly, Luke with his big brother Jacob (I love that one), and Luke with his daddy (John). The shoo-fly is about 70 years old~my mom, aunt, and uncle all rode in it when they were little. This was Luke's first ride!Jill had a great time with all the kids. She got right on the floor to play and gave them her undivided attention. I love the pic of Emily reading to Jill. Of course, Emily loves a captive audience!
Because of our busy weekend, we were only able to spend Saturday night with Jill and Stan but we enjoyed every minute of it!

Walking for Lisa

In August, my friend Lisa discovered she had breast cancer. Lisa and I met in college and have been friends for over 15 years. She has lived in Seattle since we finished college but we have remained great friends. Much of her family still lives in this area so she is back here every year and we always get together, sometimes with her friends Claire and Linda, as we did last Christmas. We call each other on our birthdays. I am so fortunate to have her as one of my closest friends.

I contacted Claire and Linda about walking in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk on October 5. All three of us are struggling with being so far away and this was a great way for us to support Lisa in her fight. We also had a dress down day at my school to raise money for the walk. Our school family has been touched by this disease in many ways so they were happy to help. My school is so generous about helping like this.

It came time for the walk...we were ready to go! Then, Claire's daughter came home from school sick that Friday before the race and was sick through the weekend. Claire's husband was out of town on Sunday so she couldn't walk. Then Linda got sick. So, at about 11:30 Saturday night, Dave said that he and the girls would walk with me.

Sunday morning we got everyone dressed in pink, stopped for bagels, and headed to Frontier Field. Claire and Linda were there in spirit. There wouldn't have been a "Team Lisa" without them! Erin rode in the wagon. Emily walked most of the way. That cute pic of her is when she and I were walking hand-in-hand. (It's a little grainy and light because it was from Dave's phone.) We walked the whole 2 1/2 miles! What troopers my girls are! Toward the end of the walk, Emily finally asked for an explanation of why we were walking (I had been waiting~she is a big "why" girl.) I tried to explain it to her in 6-year-old terms. At the end of the walk, Dave and I made a big deal about how we had finished the entire walk~we wanted the girls to know how important what we accomplished really was~we high-fived and cheered. I was quite emotional (okay, I was crying). Dave was tearing up, too (his mom died from breast cancer so this was important to him). Just then, Emily says, "Yay! We saved Lisa!" Out of the mouths of babes as they say. In her 6-year-old mind that is exactly what we did!

The most important part of that day was showing Lisa how important she is to us and that she is not alone in her fight. Love you Lis!

First Day of First Grade!

Emily loved her first day of first grade! My mom made her dress. Isn't it adorable? She got on the bus at the babysitter's house with Daddy, Grandma, Papa, and Hinty there to cheer her on. I had to be at school :-( but I did talk to her for a few minutes before the bus picked her up (see the pic of her on the phone). Emily's bus is #155. When the bus pulled up, she saw the number on the bus was #105 and insisted it was not her bus because it was the wrong number. It took just a little convincing and checking of her bus tag by the driver then she was on her way. (Our sitter, Debby, told me it is not unusual for that to happen). When I picked her up and asked her how her first day of first grade was, she said, "It was fun, Mommy!" A little boy that Debby watches is in her class as is our neighbor down the street so that has been nice for her with starting at a new school.

It has been an adjustment for me, not having Emily at my school. It makes sense to have her in our local district but I miss her...especially when so many people have been asking me how she's doing and telling me how much THEY are going to miss her. But, I am so pleased she is settling into her new school. And, she loves going to Debby's before and after school everyday. Another thing that has been a change for me is not seeing my parents everyday. Em got on and off the bus there so I had the chance to see them a lot (and pick up my morning java). I enjoyed that. Erin still goes to their house on Thursdays but it's strange not to go there each day. I have rejoined our 3rd floor coffee club at school. Can't live without that morning jolt of caffeine!

I am settling in to the school routine once again (hence, the delay in getting the first day pics posted). I have a sweet class. Lots of push-in and pull-out this year so scheduling has been a new challenge for me. Fortunately, I teach with lots of fantastic people who have been very helpful and accommodating.

I posted a couple pics of Erin on Emily's first day. Dave said she seemed to be trying to figure out what was going on. She has done well with the new routine. She actually has a first of her own coming up this week. Erin will be receiving early intervention speech services twice a week at Debby's house. She is difficult to understand and has a fairly limited vocabulary so her therapist will be working on articulation and increasing her word bank. We can't wait until we can better understand her. And, we know she can't wait either...she can get very frustrated when we can't figure out what she's trying to tell us.

Well, it's a school night (and I have to watch Entourage before heading off to dreamland).

Have the Time of Your Life...at Seabreeze!

Ok, anyone who grew up around here remembers the old tagline for our local amusement park. And have the time of our lives, we did! Dave was able to get passes from work for the park so we took the girls during his week off. They had a blast!

Erin loved all the kiddie rides. The looks on her face were priceless. She was thrilled. Erin spotted the kiddie roller coaster and wanted to ride. Dave and I were a little hesitant but she is a bit of a daredevil so we gave it a try. I rode with Erin and Emily rode by herself. When we went down the first hill, I looked at Erin and she was smiling from ear to ear! We went on it two more times.

Emily had spotted the Jack Rabbit (the historic wooden roller coaster) and said she wanted to ride it. We went on the kiddie version first and she didn't like it so Dave and I thought the Jack Rabbit was out. Well, she still wanted to try the Jack Rabbit...and loved it! She rode with Dave the first time and me two more times after that. When we were wrapping up our day, we told Emily she could pick two more rides and the Jack Rabbit was one of them. Emily and Daddy finished up the day on the log flume...Emily ducked and Daddy got soaked. Erin and I went to the kiddie rides to end the day where she practiced her driving skills (her favorite ride)...look out Grandma! We spent some time in the water park, too. Emily and Dave rode the big tube slides while Erin and I went to the wave pool and rode the lazy river ride (we got drenched on that one).

What a fun day! The girls slept well that night!!

Bowling Babes

Last Sunday (8/10), the weather was a little unpredictable (nothing new around here this summer!) which made any outdoor activities difficult to plan so we took the girls bowling. Emily has been a few times and loves it. This was Erin's first experience. She had fun pushing the ball down the alley. Erin won by two pins...of course she had some help from Daddy! Don't you just love Erin's little bowling shoes? Thanks to Jul (and Shabby Miss Jenn) for the blog frame idea!

Soccer Summer

Emily played soccer this summer with the Spencerport Youth Soccer League. She had participated in a couple clinic-type programs and attended Brighton Soccer Camp but this was her first foray into "competitive" play. The girls practice drills for a half hour then play a 5-on-5 game with no goalies. They played two games each week for 6 weeks. The first game was on her birthday. She was so excited about the game that it didn't even phase her that she wouldn't be having a party that night. Emily scored three goals this "season." She worked hard and had a great time!

Dancing Queens

Tonight, the girls, my mom, and I went to a children's concert in LeRoy. Bart & Kevin, local and well-respected musicians, performed at a park right in the village. We have seen them several times and they are always great. Aunt Molly, Uncle Mike, Jacob, and Elijah came, too. We were glad they brought Lexi along! Emily and Erin make friends easily and were quickly dancing with their new friends. One of the duo's well-known songs is "I Wish I Was a Dinosaur" and I got some great pics of my mom "roaring" at Erin during the song. This was my favorite. What a fun way to spend a Friday evening!

Crayola Factory

Okay, this should be the last of the vacay pics. On our way home, we went to the Crayola Factory. What fun! It is filled with all sorts of art activities...using Crayola products, of course. We made hats, windsocks, clay creations, and colored our own t-shirts. We didn't even get to all of it. They had this cool, curved hallway made from plexiglass that kids could draw on. Mom had the idea to take the girls' picture from the other side to get their faces. Erin was so intent as she was "writing." Emily started writing a letter, "Dear Crla Ftry," which you can see in reverse next to Erin (in the black marker). The gift shop was the best...every Crayola product you can imagine. Just Mom and I went in there. As fun as it would have been for the girls, it did give us a chance to case out the store and find the best souvenirs. The best part was "building" my own tin of crayons...well, it was for the girls but it's okay for mom to have a little fun, too :-). They had a round display with bins and tubes of crayons, from "regular" colors to metallics to neons to kids' choice selections. We had heard how fun Crayola Factory is and it didn't disappoint. We can't wait to go back!

More Sesame Pics

Here are a few more pics. My dad rented a scooter and Bert decided to check it out! One image is of Erin watching Bert with some trepidation. The characters interact with the kids during the parade. Mr. Noodle stopped by to see Em.

Sunny Day...

We visited Sesame Place just before the 4th and had a great time. This was our third trip. We took Emily when I was pregnant with Erin. The next summer we stopped on our way to Long Beach Island in NJ with my parents. Erin was 8 months old and Emily was 4. This year, Erin was able to participate in more park activities but she was scared of all the characters. We were a little disappointed at this because at 8 months she loved them and we were looking forward to some fun pics of both the girls with their favorite Sesame friends! It is such a great place. Sesame does everything so well. The park has fabulous activities for all family members from infants to tweens to adults. The characters wander the park and there's a big parade in the afternoon and evening. Of course, they have a couple large, hard-to-resist souvenir/gift shops! This year, I splurged and finally bought the 12x12 scrapbook album. I figured after three trips I should have a Sesame Street book to put my pages in. I have the pages done from our first visit and I have already transferred them to my new book!

No That's Not Paint or Marker...

This is what can happen when you are helping one of your children and the other one heard you mention painting toenails. Yes, that's right, Erin is covered in nail polish. When she uses markers, she tends to color herself so it's not surprising that once she "finished" painting her toenails she decided to move onto other parts. She got various shades of red all over the carpet and it of course will not come out. Erin also managed to figure out how to pop the "childproof" door knob covers off. She can unbuckle the bottom part of her carseat too. Britax, the carseat manufacturer, in anticipation of your child accomplishing this feat, distributes clips to cover the buckle. I was so excited when I remembered I had a clip in the kitchen "junk" drawer. And who can pop that off, too? You guessed it...Erin!! Emily was never this impish (or ingenious~depending on if you have a half full/half empty outlook) so this has been a new adventure for us.

Cooling Off

Friday after school it was soooo hot and sticky in my classroom that I tossed all my work into my school bag and headed out the door. The third floor is not a good place to be on a 90 degree day! I called ahead to Mom and Dad's to ask Emily if she wanted to go on a Walmart shopping spree for bathing suits then off to pick Erin up, home for dinner, and some water fun. She was game of course! After dinner, I hooked up the Elmo sprinkler (our little red monster friend still sprays and spins after several years). Em's friend, our neighbors' granddaughter, came over as we were changing to see if she wanted to slip and slide. The girls had a great time with Abby. Erin wasn't too keen on the shark but she enjoyed the small pool of water that formed at the end of the slide. Both Emily and Erin enjoyed Elmo, too, especially taking a refreshing drink. We stayed out until 8 PM...it was still over 80 degrees!

Lost Tooth

Emily lost one of her top teeth last Monday. I think I'm enjoying this one as much as the first because she finally has that "lost tooth" look. The other one is loose too so I bet we'll have a big hole this summer. Perfect for putting a straw through as Grandma says!

Sleepy Finds

We have found Erin in the most interesting sleeping positions. We never know what we'll find when we open the door each night. Emily rarely ventured out of her bed so this has been a new experience for us. Last night, when I went in to check on her, Erin was curled up in the glider rocker. Reading Dora must have proved too much for her. I have included a couple other pics so you can see her other great locations! What a cutie!

Welcome

Well, we have finally created our first ever family home page on the web. The main focus of our family page will be our precious little girls Emily and Erin. Emily is almost 6 years old, loves to read, and enjoys being a kindergarten student. Yes, Mommy walked the same halls many years ago and is still walking them today~Mommy is now a 3rd grade teacher. And many of you also know, Grandma walked the same school halls as both a student and teacher. WSS was very lucky to have her teach 1st grade to many little minds that are today thriving in the bigger world of life. That's 3 generations! Very special!! Erin is now 2 going on 20. She's busy trying to keep up with her big sister. She loves Ariel and Elmo and has a great singing voice.