A night full of energy

There was lots of energy in our house tonight. Paul and the kids decided to do a little rough housing after dinner. Surprisingly, it went pretty well and took quite a while before anyone got hurt enough to quit. According to Paul, "They kicked my butt."

George was kept away for the most part because it was pretty intense, but after Pauly got hurt he decided to try and make him feel better and tackle him which of course did the trick.

Computer's back- thank goodness

Thankfully the computer is back. The best part was seeing how much it would have cost us if we had not bought the super deluxe service plan- I guess this is one time that worked in our favor. Here's some random picture from the last month.

One of the big hits for Epiphany this year was a ball pit. Pauly loves his ball pit at OT, and I couldn't pass this one up for the little ones. Of course the big kids like it too. We constantly have balls all over the living room now, but they're having fun with it.

The bigger kids got cd players for Epiphany. Gabriella decided to give it a try too.

Paul and I got a chance to hang out with Nora for a while before her baptism. He's a proud Godfather. She is a beautiful baby.

Daddy getting little Nora ready before church. Big sister Fiona was pretty excited for Nora.

Welcome to the church Nora Kathleen.

Godmother Laura, Daddy Jim, Mommy Wendy and Godfather Paul.

George joins Olivia for homework time- she'll use any excuse she can find to get out of homework.

Gotta love the tongue; it helps to concentrate don't you know?

My dad celebrated his 73rd birthday on the 13th. The kids sang him happy birthday which made him a little shy, but who he thought he was kidding is beyond me- he loves the attention! Happy birthday Dad. I pray that God blesses you with good health and us with your presence for many more years. We love you.

Not very often do I take out the paint stuff, but I was feeling especially nice this day and decided to let the kids have some creative fun. I gave them plenty of time since the clean up time is the same for me I figured I'd let them get it out of their system, and they were contained and content.

Pauly's painting efforts were spent on some wooden models- a truck and a helicopter.

The girls were concentrating so hard to create just the perfect shade of off white.

To her dismay I caught a glimpse of her looking at me; she's definately a defiant 2 year old.

Time for clean up

Back to reality

My mom has graciously given up use of her computer until ours is repaired. I was hoping to blog some pictures but found out I would need to upload 658 in order to do so, so you will have to wait until my computer is back.

Paul and I had a great time in Chicago last weekend visiting his brother, wife and two beautiful daughters. It was a wonderful weekend, a nice time to catch up with each other and family. It was so nice to be alone and actually talk uninterrupted. To our surprise we found lots to talk about.. We also had a blast staying up until the late hours of the night visiting with his brothers and their wives. Sweet Nora's baptism was beautiful; welcome to the church Nora. To see pictures, you can check out their blog at www.boldischar.blogspot.com. My parents and the kids all survived and greeted us with huge smiles and hugs when we returned. Good to get away but nice to come home. We are hoping to return maybe this summer with the kids for a visit and a family reunion.

Monday was back to reality for us. We have taken quite a break from school for the holidays, but it's time to get back on track. Not an easy or fun task for any of us. The week has been full of let's just say resistance, but we made it.

We had two trips to the dr. this week, but thankfully it's just your average virus. We also had 2 trips to the auto shop. Our van has been giving us some trouble the last month. I made the mistake at the last oil change to comment on how great the van has been to us. Since then we have been making almost weekly trips to the shop, and this week there was two. None of it major, but still such a hassle and very frustrating. We've put the word out that we're on the prowl for a new van- the big kind. We can't decide if we should go 12 or 15 passenger. The other exciting news is that Gabriella decided to be done with the crib. I know I should count my blessings that she stayed in it so long, but I was hoping for a little more time. Much to my chagrin, she climbed out repeatedly during nap time the other day, and we decided to take her crib down. Our very independent and determined 2 year old is now free to move about as she wishes; I can feel the grey hairs growing as I type. This came as a surprise, so we have no bed for her yet; her mattress aka "big girl bed" is now on the floor. This does not seem to bother her, but it is wreaking havoc on our backs. As my mother would say, "this too shall pass." True, but what will be next? Oh ya, potty training =(.

Out of commission

The computer is in the shop not to return to me for 2-3 weeks. It's amazing how lost you become when you're computer is gone. It's not like I use it that much, but it really has become such a way for me to stay connected to the outside world. My mother brought over her computer tonight, and we managed to figure out the new wireless system Paul bought me for my birthday, so that I could check a few things before we head out for the weekend and respond to a few emails. That was not fun; we had to try to remember our password which of course we didn't write down. We tried everything and finally called the customer service guy only to find out that we had the correct password but it needed no caps- ugh! It's a little sad, but I'm hoping my mom will leave her computer, so I can still get my fix. If not, I'll be doing and early Lenten sacrifice.

My mom will be staying with the kids while Paul and I actually get away alone for a few days to attend Paul's goddaughters baptism. Mind you this has not happened in 2 1/2 years, and even then I was 31 weeks pregnant, so there wasn't a lot of hoopla going on. We're looking forward to it.

Monday, Paul and I had the meeting with the special ed team at school. We left pretty dissatisfied with what they had to offer which was basically nothing. It was like they hadn't looked at or discussed his case since our last meeting over 3 weeks ago. They came with no suggestions. I'm not sure how it will all turn out but I know I need to make some calls. If my week wouldn't have been so hectic I would've already.

Tuesday, we celebrated Epiphany- our Christmas together. I have some cute pictures of the kids, but since I'm using my mom's computer I'll have to pass on them. We had a great day. We got up and did the whole presents thing, and then just hung out together all day watching movies and playing, and then we took down the trees and got ready to host play group the next day.

So just in case you don't hear from us for a while, please know that we are fine but technologically out of commission for a while.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas to you all. No, I did not get cards out this year, and I never did decorate the tree, but the kids did put a few of their new ornaments up. No matter how much you streamline your "to do" list, there is always the last minute rush to get things done. Paul and I enjoyed our traditional race to the finish line baking, candy making and gift/fruit basket arranging. His great-grandfather was a candy maker, and Paul seems to have gotten that gene because he makes great caramels and toffee. The late nights are not so good for our bodies but very good for our relationship; we love the time together. Below Paul is making one of his fruit baskets while I was in the other room wrapping some presents. The kids were watching him arrange fruit and then shrink the plastic around the basket when I hear him say, "kids- this is what you call produce magic." His produce magic will only be cool so long, but I let him have his moment.





Christmas Eve we went to Mass with Paul's parents and sister, and then we headed to his other sister's for the evening festivities. It was a fun night of good food and good fellowship. No event seems complete these days without at least one pouting sessions from our little Gabriella. Here her Uncle Mike tried to coax her into opening one of her presents, but she wasn't having it.



One of Grandma's gifts to all 13 grandchildren this year was a homemade fleece blanket. We tried to get them all in a picture, but again my sweet 2 year old would have nothing to do with it.



Christmas morning started out slow since we didn't get home until almost midnight. Pauly didn't waste anytime and got to playing right away with his new legos. Paul hates to be blogged,but I couldn't pass up a picture of their morning hair- like father like son. Paul and I got baking and wrapping again, yes we baked Christmas morning- a pecan pie for my mom and a birthday cake for Jesus. Then we headed to my parents for the day.








I just love this man!





Me and my boys; handsome like their daddy.



The girls are growing into such beautiful little ladies.

It's getting tougher and tougher to get everyone looking "pretty" so we settle for what we can get, still a pretty good looking bunch if I do say so myself. It's fun to look back at the pictures from year to year and see how our family changes; time passes quickly.







Gabriella and Yai Yai enjoy some tea together away from the hubbub.


Thankfully, both little ones took a nap. Merry Christmas to me!

Happy New Year to you all as well. No pictures, but we celebrated in our traditional way. Elizabeth and I went to Mass in the evening because our heat went out in the van, and we needed to split up for Mass. Then we headed home, and my parents came over. They have been coming over every since New Year's Eve since we were married I think. We eat to much food, but we enjoy the company and enjoy bringing in the new year together and celebrating my birthday. I'm a New Year's baby which is kind of fun.

Paul and the girls started out the new year with Mass and birthday shopping. The kids decorated the paper around my present. I don't know if it comes out clear, but it was very sweet to see all their creativity and love. I was so excited when I opened up my new vacuum cleaner. I'm a simple girl, and I need a new one so badly, so this was perfect. I also go some statues to go with my Willow Tree collection. We had family and friends over, and had a great day

May you all be blessed in this new year.