What We Fill Our Days With

 picture him spinning in circles doughnut style

Olivia

We decided to pursue testing through the public school to see if Olivia qualifies for extra help. At this point we have no idea where the outcome of the testing will lead us, but we want to explore all the options to help her achieve to her maximum potential.

Yesterday was our first session of in home observation. They are coming to our home to see how she does during her school day and to get a sample of her school work; we will have two more next week. Tomorrow she starts the testing part. She will be testing both tomorrow and Friday. They will be looking at a whole host of areas to see where her strengths and weaknesses lie. She is a little nervous about it all as you can imagine, so we would appreciate any prayers you could lift up for her.

A Dinner Out

My Dad was finally well enough, and we took him out to dinner last night to celebrate his birthday. We really had a nice time. Our night started by realizing that most of us were waiting for my sister Michelle and her husband Don to show up; little did they know they were seated on the other side of the restaurant waiting for us. When I asked where they were, my sister Melanie said they weren't there yet; I told her that was strange because I had just spoken to her on the phone, and she said they were sitting at a table already. Sure enough, they were all seated and waiting for us while we sat and waited for them. The night started off with a lot of laughs and set the tone for a very nice evening together. It was very nice to be together.

The birthday boy and his bride

 Michelle (aka Auntie Shelley) and Don

 Melanie and Tom

 Paul and I

 Such a good dad, he shared his birthday dessert with us all; so yummy! 

Of course,  he got to dig in first; warm apple crisp with ice cream.

A Time to Dance

Saturday was Elizabeth and Olivia's winter dance recital. They were so excited and have been working so hard learning the new moves of jazz instead of tap. We were so  proud of them; they were beautiful as they danced for Jesus. Their song was "I am Free,"and free they were. We had a wonderful time watching them and the other children; they are our future, and the future looks bright! Great job girls. We love you and can see your love for Jesus.

 The girls with their good friend.

 My heart melted a little when I realized they were holding hands. I pray they are always each other's best friend.

Happy Birthday to My Dad

I have given up the idea of trying to catch you all up on the happenings since my last post, and am back to post a happy birthday wish to my dad. He is 75 today. We were supposed to celebrate tonight, but he has come down with a "bug."

My dad is very special to me. As a kid, I was his ride along buddy wherever he went. I learned how to change oil, spark plugs, and most importantly how to be a "bulldog" and work a  good deal. As he ages, my very real fear of losing him becomes more and more of a potential reality. For now, I cherish every moment that I have with him. I lavish him with my children's hugs, and I pray for his continued health. I also remind him that he promised each one of my girls that he would live to see them become ladies. Now you know the real reason I keep having children.

Please join me in praying a special birthday prayer for my Dad. I love you Dad.

Getting down to crunch time...

I should really be wrapping presents, but there is time right? Paul and I look at each other and wonder not only how we have accomplished what we have but how we are going to seal the deal. By the time we get everyone to sleep, we are usually asleep ourselves; yes, we have the bad habit of laying with our little ones to get them to sleep, and we end up falling asleep right along with them. While I love the cuddle time, especially with my Georgie, it renders me useless to complete projects like wrapping presents.

Do you have any idea what it is like shopping for 6 kids? I mean trying to keep things looking fair and all is a task itself. Last night, I finally laid everything out. Each kid had a pile, and then I scanned to see who looked a little heavy and who might look a little jipped. I have to say I did pretty well, and I will add that I did almost all of it in one night. I was a woman on a mission. I had done some research online and had a list of people and ideas and then headed to my favorite stores. It was way overwhelming to shop that long, and things were falling off the pile in my cart. I must have looked nuts, but hey, I hear I'm crazy. I think I actually spent less money doing it this way because I didn't have a chance to forget what I had already gotten for them. All in all, I am pretty pleased with myself. I think I picked out some neat stuff, and I don't think we went overboard.

I am totally excited to be bringing Santa back. For those of you who may not know, we have tried out some new traditions over the last few years. We would do our stockings on the Feast of St. Nicholas and would celebrate our Christmas with just us on Epiphany. Essentially, we took Santa out of the picture; I guess I was fighting commercialization and had some trouble connecting Santa to Jesus. I can admit it, I was too serious for the fantasy, but I really wanted our kids to know the true meaning of Christmas. Please refrain from judging.

Well, we have done some rethinking, and are happy to report that cookies and milk will be waiting for jolly old St. Nick this year. It is very exciting to have the magic of Christmas in our home. The kids know the true meaning, and they also know that God can in fact make reindeer fly. The kids can't wait to see what kind of presents Santa brings to celebrate Jesus' birthday. Isn't that just like Jesus to give us presents on His birthday?

Not sure what the plan will be for tomorrow, but it will probably involve some type of baking and maybe some frosting. Happy crunch time!

 

Dear family and friends,

We hope this update finds you all well, and hopefully cozy warm; we are currently getting more snow. This is such an extra busy time of year. It can be so hard to keep the stress level down and keep our eyes on the true meaning of the season, Jesus our Savior. We hope and pray that you are all feeling the calm and loving presence of Jesus in your life, and we pray that the new year brings you even more love, peace, and joy. We hope you enjoy a little update from our family to yours.

Paul continues to work for County Market grocery store. He actually just celebrated 10 years with them and over 18 years in the grocery industry; that must mean he is getting old. The gray hairs don’t help, and are most likely a result of his wife and kids; what a handful. He reports he is extremely content and happy with his life which spells success.

Meredith has taken on a new title of home management engineer; it just sounds so much better than homemaker, and of course there is her other jobs of child educator and dutiful wife. Life is busier than you could imagine and more than she thinks about all in one sitting-might make your head spin. Thankfully, she too is content and happy and knows God will provide all she needs for the undertaking He has entrusted to her.

Elizabeth is in the 6th grade now and seems to be changing more and more into a young lady everyday, complete with mood swings and all. She is an amazing big sister and very devoted to her family and her faith. She was just trained in as an altar server and is anxiously awaiting her first Mass. She is really enjoying going to Youth Group events at church. She is in dance and continues to enjoy playing the piano as well as teaching herself to play the guitar. She also learned how to knit and is trying to peddle her wares for extra spending money; she would have more to sell if she could get her nose out of her books.

Olivia is in the 5th grade. Life has brought her some changes and challenges this year. She was diagnosed with ADHD and depression early spring and got partial braces this Nov. We have found some amazing resources for her, and we are looking at half days at the public school for her to hopefully build her skills and self-esteem academically. She enjoys regular outings with her mentor, and she is still taking dance and piano lessons. Livy continues to amaze us with her fashion sense and creativity with colors and patterns- maybe she will be a fashion designer someday!

Pauly is in the 2nd grade and he is considered a “shared” student and goes to the public school for half a day to get special services and gets his core curriculum at home in the afternoon. He is really blossoming; it seems like so many things are clicking for him, and his confidence and abilities are really soaring. He has an in-home therapist come twice a week, and he too has a mentor that he goes out with weekly; he loves baseball and bowling now that it is cold. Today, he said, “I think I’m going to be like R*** when I grow up.”

Gabriella is 4 ½ and loves to “do” school just like the big kids; when they take out their crates, she takes hers’ out too. It’s the best when the older kids start teaching her. She got glasses a couple months ago after she failed the eye exam at her check up. We found out she has a lazy eye which will hopefully correct itself. She’s totally about her glasses now, but we endured 2 ½ hours of tantrum the first day home with them. She’s a whole new kind of stubborn, and we know stubborn. Thankfully, she’s cute and we love her.

George is 3. He is our little man; he is like and old man squished into a little body. He is just funny and oh what a flirt; he takes after his Papa George and is quite a hit with the ladies. George is fully embracing being 3 and has intense and mischievous energy all the time. His favorite past time is pushing chairs around the kitchen so he can “help” with whatever you are doing, especially cooking.

Cecilia just turned one. Unfortunately, the big snow storm of 2010 got in the way of her party. Someday she will say it is because she is the sixth child; and we didn’t have time to do anything special for her. For now, she is a source of pure joy and delight. She is always smiling and is extremely silly. We love her personality; she has brought back a playful energy to our home.

We wish you all a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year!