Sledding

Justin, Annalise, Bayley, Graysie, and Leah have been playing in the snow for the past couple of days. We now have a sledding hill in our front yard and here they are playing on it. My favorite part is Leah at the end saying, in her perfect New England Style, "That's Wicked!"

Penn Station

If you're ever looking for a fun Sunday afternoon adventure, you should try packing up your family and sitting in Penn Station for 6.5 hours! I'm kidding...I don't recommend it.

The good news is that we were wrapping up a wonderful weekend in New York City and everybody was still in a good mood after snowball fights, Macy's, and the Rockettes. The kids were troopers and they both took in the entire afternoon as if it were an adventure. Even Papa sucked it up and made it a good time!

We got to Penn Station at 3:30 for a 5:00 train to Kingston, RI. If you know me at all, you know that arriving an HOUR AND A HALF early for a train drove me batty in the first place. John raced to the convenience store to get us sandwiches for the train (always the Boy Scout) and added 2 grocery bags to our load of 9 or 10 bags that we were guarding against the wall. We only somewhat resembled tourists, I promise. I was perfectly cheery and exhibited a positive attitude that helped everyone else feel good...oh wait...just kidding.

If you remember, there was a large blizzard on this particular Sunday and trains were delayed all up and down the East Coast. Our train originated somewhere in the D.C. area where the worst of the storm was hitting. We were delayed about 2 hours so we decided to move the 6 of us and our 10 bags to the TGI Fridays restaurant for some dinner. Along the afternoon, the train was delayed by about 10 to 15 minutes at a time so we had to stay close. After a couple of hours at TGI Fridays, we consolidated and John/Mike moved to a cocktail table to watch the Chargers game while we all took turns entertaining the kids. (Someone changed the channel with 2 minutes to go and the Chargers needing to score - this was not pretty!). Nana took Annalise shopping in the gift shop and I took Justin to the entry to run up and down the stairwells. We entertained the security staff as we raced up and down the steps and changed the patterns to make it interesting. I remember being very annoyed when Justin wanted to get up and find a place to play, (I wanted to sit and sulk) but once I was out there running up and down, annoying everyone in sight and acting like a child myself, I had a wonderful time! He and I also took a little trip to Border's and I was introduced to Justin's passion for the "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" book series.

At about 10:00, we finally heard that our train was arriving. Joyfully, and in the holiday spirit, we were inspired (forced) to be good souls and share our train with passengers from two other cancelled trains. There was some jockeying around as we all groaned and did the math (one train, three trainloads of people, one train, way too many people, not enough seats). People pushed and mobbed and tried to race to the front of the line (perfectly childish behavior) and John declared that we all needed to fend for ourselves. I grabbed Annalise and John grabbed Justin. I had a suitcase, purse, tickets, and my baby girl all being jostled around in the crowd and I too turned into a complete monster. If anyone considered parting me from her I elbowed, kicked, and shoved without an ounce of guit. Someone wearing a uniform asked me for tickets and I told him "They're in my purse and I'm holding on to my daughter. Sorry!" Luckily, the crowd pushed me forward and it wasn't a problem.

At about 10:30 that night, our train finally left the station. Annalise and I got a seat next to a crazy woman and in front of a gangster rapper. She slept on my lap and found it all perfectly fine. John, Justin, Nana, and Papa sat in the snack car next to the broken door and overused toilet. The train was racing through the freezing cold snow so you can imagine how miserable it was for them every time the door opened to let the air in and did not shut. They were troopers and made it through the ride to arrive in Kingston (and 2 feet of snow in the parking lot) at about 2:30am. We all loaded into the Suburban and drove home to arrive at the house (another foot of snow stood between us and the driveway) around 3:30am. John shoveled out the Honda for Nana and Papa to drive to the hotel while I put the kids to bed. I think the adventure ended at about 4:00am. Plenty of time for John to close his eyes and get some rest before heading to class at 8:00am!!!

I'm writing this entry on December 29th and I think I'm still wiped out from it. But it was fun and we will always remember it!

The Rockettes!

Annalise has been waiting for over a year to go see the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall. She first saw the video of the "Christmas Spectacular" last Thanksgiving and it has become one of her favorite things to watch. She is very interested in dancing and will often put in "The Nutcracker" (Barbie version) and dance to the songs at the end. When she's really working on her performance, she will pause the movie, go upstairs to put her dance clothes on, come back down to un-pause the movie and then dance with pure determination in her eyes. She wants to do the steps just right and she'll often do them over again if she feels like it didn't go well. It's a dream and passion that I've gotten to see my daughter embrace for a while and I was excited to see what her reaction would be when we got there.

John was laughing at me as the show started because I couldn't contain myself. We were sitting down in the front so we could see the orchestra and the organ players. When the singers came out to start the show...well...it's hard to describe. She was bouncing around like kids do, but when she saw them, she froze and her eyes got as big as saucers. She was trying to take it all in when while a smile started from her eyes and made it's way down to her mouth. She took a big breath, got a determined look on her face, and started singing the song word for word with the singers. Yes, I was crying. It was so amazing to me to see her dreaming that big dream of hers. She knew right then that if she worked hard, she could be a Rockette someday too.

I can't remember which dream I had when I was her age (probably a singer or a dancer) but I know that I forgot it somewhere along the way. It was wonderful to see that she believed with every piece of her heart at that moment that she could do anything she wanted to. It was also a moment for me when I realized that she's becoming her own person. It's always been true that I knew what she wanted or needed and could fix anything that went wrong. Now she's feeling emotions in her heart that I can't just take care of and I felt the importance of making sure that I listen to her when she tells me things. I know it will be important to make sure I am giving her the tools she needs to accomplish her dreams. It's hard. I don't want to be a Rockette, and I know her dreams will change through the years, but for now it's her dream and I don't want her to think for a moment that she can't do it.

Christmas with Gran and Grandad

We started Christmas very early this year with our trip to collect Gran and Grandad in Philadelphia at the Army/Navy game. They made the drive home with us and spent the week at our house here in Portsmouth. The week was a quiet week where the kids were able to play with their grandparents. Justin took them to see his basketball practice at the high school and Annalise talked them into taking her shopping for Christmas Tree Ornaments in Newport. (Gran was a tough sell on that one).

I remember doing lots of quiet things with my grandparents when I was little and I think that's what my kids got a good dose of this time around. I remember washing the dishes and making brownies with my grandmothers and doing crossword puzzles or listening to the radio with my grandfathers. Annalise spent quite a while learning Sudoku and writing her numbers with Grandad and bringing wrapped presents up to put under the tree with Gran. We also had crespelle for Christmas Dinner and, although the kids were less than enthusiastic with the meal itself (presents were much more exciting), I just tested them and they do remember "this thing wrapped in pancakes" and they remember that we had it based on tradition. I'd say that's a success!

Justin got a magic set from Gran and Grandad this year and he's been working hard on learning some of his tricks. The biggest lesson from this project has been concentration and working hard so that he could present his tricks without giving away any secrets. Annalise got "Mona" for Christmas and Mona has been everywhere since she arrived! (She even traveled to New York for the Rockettes show). Her other favorite was the jewelry set they got her. She has used it to make many necklaces for herself and me. This craft is particularly enjoyable because she can take one necklace apart, start over again, and have a whole new "look" for herself. If I can manage to get her to keep them in her jewelry box it will be a complete success!

My favorite memory of the trip was when Gran and Grandad tried to take us to dinner. Life got in the way, as it usually does, and we ended up playing with kids in the nieghborhood so long that we lost our opportunity to go out. We would up with delivery here at home and it was delicious! Thanks Gran!

My Models

I was playing with my new camera and I liked these two of the kids. They were both very patient as I snapped about 75 pictures of each of them in a row while trying out the different settings. Justin was very happy eating ice cream in his picture and Annalise was patiently explaining that she did not agree with something I had just said in hers - she is in the process of saying "N...O...Mom...". I caught her on the transition to the "O".

Independence Hall

Explanation: This is the three of us working on our Monkey Walk.

Since we were in Philadelphia, we did some sightseeing on our way out of town on Sunday. We chose to go to Independence Hall and see the Liberty Bell. As usual when I travel with the kids, I had a hard time listening to the tour guide because I was "refereeing" the entire time, but I did feel the power of being in Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence, as well as the Constitution, was signed. I reflected on the fact that we too live in a time of war as well as challenging economic times, and I was intrigued by the stories of how our Founding Fathers debated and disagreed to the point of losing their families as they established our country. I can appreciate how they fought for what they believed in rather than what they had any reason to know what would be right. We are always evolving and I can only imagine the fear they must have felt as they took such a bold stance for our freedom.

As for our family, we had a rough day due to two exhausted children and the downpour we endured. However, even with these circumstances, we found a great way to spend the day together. My favorite story was that Justin had as much fun taking photos with my new camera as I did. He seems to enjoy working with composition and he really likes clicking the button and seeing his work. He asked for a camera (like mine) and I let him know that it would probably be a while but that I was very impressed by his patience and diligence in learning about the camera and the science of photography.

To top off our great day, we stopped by for a Philly Cheese Steak sandwich on our way out! I didn't know how to order so I just delegated that job to John...I'm not sure what I had but it sure tasted great!

Army/Navy Game

Wow! I remember going to the Army/Navy game once upon a time...

... and I realized this weekend that I am a MOM. We tailgated with coffee, cheese, fruit and crackers. We took pictures of the kids playing. We went in to the stadium two hours early so that we wouldn't miss the "March On". I caught up with Susan Wilson and we talked about babies and insurance. I watched the first half of the game with my daughter sleeping peacefully in my arms. It's a different life and it made me very happy to look back and see all the things that I have gained in my life since the last time I was at an Army/Navy Game. I'm a blessed kid with a wonderful family!

The story of the year is that John accidentally got us tickets in the Army section, and we had a great time anyway! There were several Navy fans around us and the Army fans were having fun messing with Justin. Justin would yell "Go Navy, Navy, Navy" expecting the response of "Beat Army, Army, Army". The guy in front of us would switch it around on him and yell "Go Army, Army, Army" and Justin would get confused and yell "Beat Navy, Navy, Navy" before he caught himself. Once he realized what he said, he would giggle and try again. Annalise started a new cheer that some of our section appreciated. It goes like this: "Let's Go Navy...Cha Cha Cha!!!" with a little hip wiggling and dance step involved. She's worth a million bucks if you ask me! Justin got a stuffed goat and we now have a debate running through the family because I mentioned that the goat is "sorry looking" and Justin swears that he's old and gnarly.

I was glad to get to go to the game with John because it's so much fun to see him and experience his alma mater. Since I went to a school without a football team, I had a great time being part of the school spirit and feeling such great pride for a group of kids who had accomplished something so amazing. Go Navy!

My "3?" Birthday

My "3?" birthday has come and gone.

The Story: We went to Todd and Julie's house for a "grown up dinner" (no kids) on Saturday night. As we were talking, I said something about being 32 when John reminded me that I was really 33. Julie tried to help me out by confirming that we were both still 32 and turning 33. After a little bit of debate, we decided to do the math. Yes, we were both 33 and now I am 34. From now on, I will be "thirty something" and not worry about the specifics. Does it really matter anyway???

The best part of birthdays is, undoubtedly, PRESENTS!!! Guess what...I got a new camera! I got to open my presents just before we left for dinner so I didn't have time to learn how to use it, but here are some pictures as we all tried out different buttons just to get some snapshots. We went to Spark in Newport for dinner with Charlie/Polly, Matt/Katina, and Bryan (who drove down for the night from Boston). It was a great BYOB restaurant and we tried all kinds of good food. Charlie about fainted when John, Bryan and I tried the Frog's Legs!!! =) They tasted like chicken...but very dry chicken.

Justin made me a birthday hat that he wanted me to wear during dinner, and the kids got me a sweatshirt from the Brick Alley Pub. John says that when he went to buy it, he told the girl at the front that he was trying to buy a birthday present for his wife when she looked right at him and said, "There's a jewelry store across the street." =)

First Snow!

We have our first snow here in Portsmouth today. The kids woke up to see lots of the white stuff swirling around and Annalise woke up saying "Mommy! Daddy! Look! There's SNOW on the ground!" Justin got to wear his boots (and wanted to wear his snow pants too but we weren't quite there yet) and Jasmine was not pleased with the situation. John let her out to go to the bathroom and she wandered about 3 feet from the bottom of the stairs to take care of business as quickly as she could. I, being the good mother I am, did not have clean pants for Justin to wear to school so John unearthed a pair from about 2 years ago, properly air conditioned in the knee, for this fine blustery day. Perfect!

Safety First

Yesterday I managed to cut the HECK out of my fingers with the serated knife while trying to slice a sandwich roll that I was holding. Yes, a very dumb move. I sliced right through the knuckle section on the inside of my pointer and middle fingers therefore making it very difficult to move either of them. Both fingers are bandaged and both kids are fully aware of the situation. In fact, out of pure coincidence, Annalise made a Doctor's Kit in school that came home with her yesterday so when she saw me she opened up her construction paper kit and got out her cotton ball to clean my hand and then applied the band-aid she had taped to the inside of the kit. While I admit that I allowed her to work on the right hand (my left one has the cuts), she was so gentle and sweet while she helped me. It was ALMOST worth the injury to see her that way.

And where there is a yin there is a yang:

Today was my day to help out in Justin's classroom so he wanted me to bring his big nutcracker for show and tell (I only let him bring the small one on the bus) and when I didn't, he decided that maybe a little bit of revenge would be appropriate. He talked about his nutcracker for a minute and then transitioned to the story of my injuries and talked about how important it is to follow safety rules when you're using knives. I got to talk to the class for about 5 minutes about safety rules and how important it is to be smart when you're working in the kitchen. After that, they took turns telling me about the smart things they could teach me so that I wouldn't get hurt again.

Wouldn't you know it - my task for the day involved helping Mrs. Dufour with a project involving the cutting board. I sat down to work on the project and heard Justin tell me from across the class, "Don't cut your finger off, Mom!"

Holiday Hullabaloo

This town never stops amazing me! Justin's school had a "Holiday Hulabaloo" where the kids could go into the gym with volunteers and shop for presents to give their families. The presents are all either donations from local business owners or from parents. Justin impressed me! We gave him $20 and he came back with $16 in change ... to be spent on the raffle (things for him) or the delicious spread of cupcakes/cookies/doughnuts waiting for him in the cafeteria. That's my little budget minder!

In the cafeteria, there were several crafts set up for the kids to do. Santa was waiting on the stage waiting to say Hello to all of the kids. Annalise (still) wants nothing to do with Santa and prefers to watch him from a very far distance. I went up at her request to let him know that she would really like the Swan Palace. Justin felt fine walking up and introducing himself.

After saying Hello to Santa, we made ornaments for the tree and the kids sat very patiently as they called raffle ticket numbers for the 50 thousand (I'm not kidding...it was endless!) prizes that had been donated. The kids were sad that they didn't win anything but they both seemed to understand why.

I must admit..I had just come back from a work trip to San Diego and was complaining because I wanted to take a nap instead of going to the hullabaloo...I'm so happy we went! Justin was tough to keep up with but Annalise was happy to hang out with me. I had a great time doing crafts with her, snuggling her, sitting patiently with her, eating cupcakes with her, talking with her, and generally being around her. I don't look forward to the attitude that I'm sure the teenage years will bring but if I can always remember the days like this one I'm sure I can get through it. She is such a sweet girl and I wonder if she will always be so happy doing artwork/craftwork. (Our other theory is that she will become a lawyer. She can argue both sides of any story you give her!).

Leftover Day

Leftover Day!!! Exactly what it sounds like...friends and leftovers zapped in the microwave.

As is my normal style of organization, this day was a little "unplanned" and I'm lucky to have forgiving friends who will help me pull it all together. Polly and Zane arrived and Zane started playing with our kids while we enjoyed more appetizers and wine. Eventually, I started to wonder where Matt and Katina were so I gave them a call. If you know me, you'll laugh when you hear where they were. When Katina picked up the phone, she says "Oh, we're sitting here in our pajamas shopping on line." Hmm... Well, it seems that since I never got around to returning her messages, she didn't realize that we still had plans.

OK, OK...I'll work on that for my 2010 Resolutions. It's now written in a public forum!

Once the Chesters arrived, we had enough children in the house for pure mayhem! We had Justin, Annalise, Leah, Zane, Brody, and Demetra all running free. Justin was playing so nicely and being a good "big kid" with the kids that we thought everything was fine...until we heard some screaming from downstairs. Thinking it was a little kid getting hurt, John went downstairs to check on things. He found Justin with scratches all over him and what looked like the beginning of a black eye! The kids (led by his angelic little sister) had decided to "wrestle" with him. Toys got thrown at him and they climbed on top of him...He eventually got pushed over the side of the guest bed and crashed his head against the band saw. Yes, you read that right. When I saw the bruise I asked what he hit his head on and he told me "The saw that Dad was using to cut the pieces for the firewood rack!" Oh boy.

In summary: Justin wound up getting pushed over the side of the bed and cracked his head on the saw that was being stored along the wall on his way down. His back was swolen because someone had thrown the "Tech Deck" skate board ramp against his back leaving a nice scratch. Honestly, he was so good about it - he asked if he could go upstairs and watch a movie away from the little kids and he never tried once to retaliate. What a kid...

After that, the rest of the kids played nicely together and the parents chatted, napped, policed, and ate a whole lot more food! Excellent day...

Thanksgiving Day

After all of the years of traveling all over the place for Thanksgiving, we stayed put this year. It was really fun! I tried a few new recipes and John (if you can imagine this) cooked up a storm. He got a fresh turkey from Simmons Farm in Middletown and it was absolutely delicious! My Dad and Brother drove all the way from Michigan just to spend the day with us (that's about 30 hours of driving for 24 hours here). Polly brought Zane over and we had a great meal with family and "family-like friends". Justin remembered the game we used to play when we were camping with the cousins and he decided to lead that this year. He had Polly help him make small pieces of paper for everyone to write on and passed around a basket. We were all supposed to write something we were thankful for on the paper and put it back in the basket. The basket went around again once it was full and everyone read one of the pieces of paper. After each note was read, Justin was in charge of throwing it in the "campfire". It was a great game and we were even allowed a small degree of poetic license as we tried to determine what Annalise and Zane had written on their papers.

Before we were bound to the "Being Thankful" Game, Justin got an awful lot of pleasure out of touring ALL OVER the beach with Uncle Seth and Max. It's a good thing that God gave Seth plenty of patience because he was probably called upon to use it. The pictures came out great though! Seth was even brave enough to take our dog along with him for a while. Come on back any time, Little Brother!!! The house was very peaceful for a few minutes. We also had some friends over - Bayley and Leah came to hang out with us for quite a while before dinner was ready.

Stacking Firewood

Another one of the things we don't ever have the chance to do in San Diego...

We ordered a half cord of firewood and had it delivered last weekend. (Yup, this is how we do it in Rhode Island!) The dump truck dropped the load right in the driveway. John and Justin were in charge of stacking the wood in the back of the house. Annalise was in charge of telling them what to do. I was in charge of ... the usual ... nothing.

After they were done with chores, John and Justin found time to play out front. And how does every day in Rhode Island end? Of course…with a gorgeous sunset that we can enjoy from every window in the house. We are a fortunate crew!

Boston Science Museum

I took Justin, Bayley, and Annalise to the Boston Science Museum last weekend to see the Harry Potter Exhibit. When we got there, we couldn't get a ticket into Harry Potter for another 2 hours so we wandered around the Science Museum. First we saw some exhibits about light and shadows, and then we moved on to the rocket ship. Justin and Bayley got to play on the space capsule and there was a video screen that was showing them what it would be like if they were to go into space.

After they were done at the space capsule, we happened upon a "Build your own Boat!" exhibit. The kids could decide if they wanted to build a boat for speed or for capacity. Annalise decided to build her boat so that it could carry as much treasure as possible. She got her hull and went to the sail tables and attached a sail to the two hulls. She loaded the thing down with treasure and went to the test bin to see if it would float. Nope. It sank. She went back to the sail table and added some sails and she allowed me to take out just a couple pieces of treasure. She tried again, and it floated in the test bin. She took it to the test course and tried it out. It made the trip without sinking!!!! We took the boat out of the race course and counted the treasure. Her boat made it across while carrying 21 gems. The old record was 16 so they put her name up on the record board!!! She named her boat "The Jasmine".

This did not make the boys happy at all. They went back to the drawing board and added some sails to the boat they were working on. They thought they had it figured out, but they must have made it a little heavy in the front because when they put it in the test bin, it tipped over it's own nose. Back to the drawing board!!! Justin says they constructed the boat by using 2 short masts, with two square sails (one on the front and one on the back) so that it could catch more air. They decided not to carry any treasure because they did not want extra weight to slow it down. To the test bin they went - it floated. Then they went to the racetrack - Success!!! Their boat made it all the way across with a time of 6.2 seconds. The old record was 6.3 seconds! They got to put their name on the record board with Annalise! They named their boat "The Criminal".

After that we went down to see Harry Potter and wouldn't you know it...Justin got picked to try the Sorting Hat! When they asked for a volunteer, his hand flew up so fast that they couldn't help but pick him. He was all smiles as he hopped up onto the stool. The man asked what Justin's favorite house was and he answered Gryffindor. Luckily, the Sorting Hat chose correctly and Justin was placed in the Gryffindor House!!! The exhibit was absolutely amazing. It was filled with costumes and set pieces from all of the movies. Justin got to play quidditch with Bayley, he got to try on the "real" Sorting Hat, see Hagrid's Hut, see the dragon egg, and sign the journal that says he was there.

On our way home, they got to eat Fudge Flies and play with Justin's Snitch. (Which broke on the first throw in the parking lot). My other favorite story of the day was when I could hear Justin telling Bayley stories in the backseat from when he went on the Duck Tour. He could remember the details and got almost everything right. He even remembered what inoculation was and he told Bayley about when the Mayor tried to convince Boston that the Charles River was clean enough to swim in by jumping in with his tuxedo on. The funniest part was that Justin even remembered the driver's jokes and delivered them with the exact same deadpan voice. Amazing.

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P.S. I'm not sure why I don't have pictures of Annalise's sailboat but I think it's because I was busy playing with her instead of taking pictures.