I Read the News Today...

Phone Pictures - Embracing the Camera

2012-02-02T10:50:00.000-05:00

I really love the idea of getting out from behind the camera (not that I'm behind it much these days) and getting into the pictures with the kids. I don't always love the pictures as they turn out but that is not the point...the point is capturing real life...as we live it. So if I'm playing with the kids and I'm a mess...well, I WAS a mess...but the kids don't care...all they care is that their parents play on the floor with them and snuggle in bed, reading before bedtime. These are moments that I want to capture for them. So as much as my brain screams "Don't share", my heart yells, "Post Away"! So here goes:

I'm embracing the camera with Emily...

Library Time!

2012-01-27T13:35:00.000-05:00

The girls and I went to the library last week for the first time and got a library card. I talked to them about it before we went and Gianna was really excited. When we got there she asked where the escalator was. "Ummm, that's at Barnes and Noble, the bookstore" and I proceeded to explain the difference between buying books and the bookstore and borrowing them at the library. As we are leaving she asked where the hot chocolate was (we usually go to B&N and read/play and then grab a drink before we leave). "Ummm, that's Starbucks, at the bookstore". Obviously I need to redirect our activities to less commercial interests!

Anyway, I think it would be fun to track what books we have out and whether or not we enjoyed them. Up first are:

Fairy Houses by Tracy Kane - Cute book but it didn't really hold Gianna's attention

I Will Never Not Ever Eat a Tomato by Lauren Child - Gianna liked it, I thought it was okay.

The Cow Loves Cookies by Karma Wilson - Very cute book - Gianna loved to read along with me.

Rapunzel by Sarah Gibb - Classic story but it was confusing b/c it's a different tale than her current favorite movie, Tangled. It was hard to explain to her why they were different.

Early Preschool

2012-01-25T09:00:00.001-05:00

I dropped my baby off in the Early Preschool room at daycare today for the first time. She visited the room last week and then yesterday. Yesterday she ended up staying all day so we decided to go for it and start her off there this morning. So now both girls are "upstairs" at daycare...which I feel is probably an equivalent feeling to both girls being in school, or in high school, or in college. It's one thing for Gianna to meet those milestones but BOTH OF THEM?! They are both big. They are both growing. They are both...well, not babies anymore! I AM really happy because Sara is more than ready for the move and they love being able to pop in on each other throughout the day (good luck to those teachers trying to keep them apart!) but MAN, where did the time go? I have had several conversations with moms of 2+ kids and most often the feeling is the same...kids #1 feels appropriately their age while kid #2 feels like they grow at warp speed. I definitely feel that Gianna has been around for 3.5 years...definitely. But Sara...2 YEARS already? Crazytown!

And because every post should have a picture - here is one from my phone awhile back...

Gianna loves to wear her dresses...but I make her pick out pants (and usually shirt/socks) to wear with them. Mean mommy cramping her style...but seriously, we keep our heat really low in the house so it's the rule even if we are staying at home. Regardless of the rule...jeans, a dress and bare feet?....she's such an adorable little hippie-child! : )

Music

2012-01-20T09:30:00.001-05:00

I'm pretty excited that our house is a musical one...and I owe that mostly to Rick. He plays guitar with the girls on a regular basis and, because of him, Gianna knows songs that I have have never heard of, Phish songs of course. The other night at bedtime she asked me to sing "Brian and Robert". The next day in the playroom we had Rick sing it for us followed by more...and more and more. Gianna just kept naming songs and Rick kept singing them, most I knew but some I didn't, and some I'm fairly sure are songs by Phish or band members in their solo projects but I can't be sure. "Contact", "Reba", "Dog Faced Boy", "Camel Walk", and "Bounce Around the Room" were tops on the list. It's adorable and I love that Rick and Gianna have their own special "thing". Sara got in the action too by pulling out some other instruments and handing them out. I got the bongo drums : )

Anyone who knows Rick knows that he listens mostly to Phish. Fewer people know that I listen mostly to Contemporary Christian music. I was introduced to this video on facebook and the girls love it (it's very catchy so beware). It warmed my heart this morning when Gianna yelled from the other room that she wanted to listen to "Jesus Loves Me Yes"...

More Christmas Photos

2012-01-14T08:08:00.002-05:00

This was the third year that I took photos for this family. I'm so lucky that they choose me to take their pictures year after year. I love being a part of their memories!

Check out the previous year HERE and HERE.

Soup

2012-01-12T17:00:00.002-05:00

I'm slowly getting more and more able to find time to cook more labor intensive meals. It feels so incredible to be in the kitchen for hours making a complex meal - I just love the process of it all - from planning the meal, shopping, prep, cooking, serving, enjoying. I love feeding people good food and, to be honest, if feels pretty darn good when people like what I make. While I enjoy spending time in the kitchen, some days we just don't have a lot of time. And on those days where time is short, healthy options tend to go by the wayside. With that in mind, I've been thinking about ways to make healthy meals regardless of the time available. One option is to cook 3 big meals a week and have leftovers for lunches and 2 dinners. If I cook Sundays, have leftovers Monday (work day), Crock pot Tuesday (work day), cook Wednesday (home day), have leftovers Thursday (work day), I think things will be less stressful on those night where time is pressed. I don't know, our schedule is so wacky that I don't know if it'll work but it's something to try for. With all that said, last week I made this soup in the crock pot (you could probably simmer this on the stove too) and it was TASTY! The leftovers were fine on their own but one night we strained to soup and used it to a topping on nachos (yeah, not exactly healthy but...), and I think it would make a great filling for tacos or burritos too. As with all my recipes, this is a rough idea on how to make it. I play around with ingredients and you should too!

Chicken Tortilla Soup - Crock pot Style

1 Jar of Medium Salsa
1 Large Carton of Chicken Broth
1 Diced Red Pepper
2 Cans Black Beans, undrained
1 Large Can of Light Red Kidney Beans, undrained

1 Can of Chick Peas, undrained

1 Can of Corn, drained
1 Rotisserie Chicken, or equivalent

Cut up the chicken and pepper, open the jars and cans and dump it all into the crock pot. I did this the night before and then in the morning (Rick, who was home from work with a sick kid) pulled it out and turned it on HIGH for 8 hours. We served it with chips, shredded cheese and sour cream. Guacamole or avocado slices are yummy too. And that is all my friends, dinner and lunch for days and days!

Last Minute Trip to Boston

2012-01-11T08:00:00.001-05:00

The past weekend Rick had to make a trip to the Boston area to pick up some tickets he had purchased off Craigslist. He was originally going to do the trip by himself, travelling down and then straight back. Friday night he asked me if I wanted to go. A quick trip like that with the girls seemed like a bad idea but it got us thinking...we called up some friends in Boston to see if they were going to be around and a quick family weekend in Boston was born! It's so great to be so mobile now that the kids are a little older! To decide at the last minute to pack up the kids for an overnight trip is a big thing for us and I think the girls (at least Gianna) loved the adventure. We told her we were going to Boston to see her friend Aliena and her baby sister Sophia. Gianna was excited and asked if we could see her "best friend Big Papi" as well. : ) Despite not seeing Big Papi, we had a great weekend. We left first thing Saturday morning and the weather was near 60 so we took the kids to Columbus Park and walked through Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall. The girls played and we caught up with our friends. We stayed over and the boys took the kids to the park while Julia and I did a little shopping (Target and Trader Joes if you care). Lunch was had and we headed back home! Perfection*!

*though I should mention that about an hour into the trip I realized I didn't pack the camera. When we got there I was really disappointed because the girls were so cute and there were many a picture taking opportunities. Oh well, next time...because there WILL BE a next time for sure!

Overheard on the Drive Home

2012-01-10T09:35:00.000-05:00

Last night on the drive home from daycare Sara tested my patience. She wanted a snack. I gave her a snack. She promptly threw the snack on the floor (a common occurrence you can easily tell if you saw the floor of my car!) I told her no more snack in the car (another common occurrence that I think I need to extend to multiple car trips and not just the remainder of the one in which the offense took place). She started in with the "Mom", "Mom", "Mom", "Mom"...the rest sounds like this:

Me: "What Sara?"
Sara: "Snack!"
Me: "No snack in the car because you threw it on the floor"
Sara: "Mom", "Mom", "Mom", "Mom"...
Me: "Sara, we're not talking about this, no snack"
Sara: "Mom", "Mom", "Mom", "Mom"...(this goes on for about 5 miles)

Gianna: "Mom?"
Me: "Yes Gianna"
Gianna: "I think Sara wants you". (Really? I hadn't realized that!)
Me: "Thanks G. I know."
Sara (mixing it up a bit): "Scu-zoo Mom", "Scu-zoo Mom" (for those of you that may not know the language of Sara, that means "Excuse me Mom".
Me: "Thanks for being polite Sara, what can I help you with?"
Sara: "Ummmm....snack!"

Painting

2012-01-06T12:02:00.001-05:00

First day back to "normal" life after the Christmas/New Year break was a good one. We made pancakes for breakfast, watched a new show on TV, cleaned the playroom, reorganized our books, played with new paints, and listened to a book on CD before nap. I even got the camera out (look at me all over achieving on day four of a new year!) : )

See that center swirl thing? That is Sara's "Ki-ki", or Kitty Kitty if you don't speak Sara...she draws it just like that every time! I love it and I'm really glad I took this picture!

More Christmas Goodness

2012-01-05T20:21:00.000-05:00

Christmas was so fun with the girls this year. We went on the Polar Express, we saw the Live Nativity with friends, and we went and cut down our tree (Gianna's only requirement was that it be "so big it goes all the way to the ceiling" and that it did, exactly, with no measuring tape used!). We talked about and celebrated the birth of Jesus all through the month and at Christmas Eve Mass. We put cookies, milk, and carrots out for Santa and his reindeer and then Rick and I had a nice Christmas Eve dinner after the girls went to bed. Santa came and brought all sorts of goodies and family came and brought more goodies. The girls played and laughed and got loved! We went to Nonni's house as well as Num and Pop's and Grandma and Grandpa's. We enjoyed a family dinner out with 20 family members and the girls stayed up (and relatively well behaved) until around 10pm! We came home and threw a fantastic New Year's Eve party (if I do say so myself) in which I cooked up a storm and we resurrected the kegerator (Switchback on tab is a good thing!). The girls were up late again but we all had so much fun. We've gained re-entry into everyday living with very full bellies, hearts and souls. Now for a photo-recap (which you'll notice lacks many key areas...like I said, I need to take my camera out more in 2012):

Sara loves the Maple Cotton Candy tradition almost as much as Gianna and Mommy!

Looking for the tree...we found it! And why yes, Gianna is holding the hacksaw...doesn't every three year old?

Daddy and Gianna cutting down the tree - an annual photo at this point. Check out last years photo and the year before and the year before too - our girl is growing up!

We wrote letters to Santa...

Christmas morning was F.U.N! The girls loved their new dollhouse and played with it, ignoring all of their present for a good bit of time...

Then we started unwrapping...and unwrapping and unwrapping, for the next 4 days actually : )

New rocking chairs from Grammy - with their names on them - which they love and we love because they each have one and can't fight over whose is whose : )

And unfortunately that is where it ends. I brought my camera on our travels and didn't take it out once. I get so wrapped up in enjoying everything that I just forget...and then kick myself later...BUT I HAVE A PLAN for getting some family photos...a plan I say! : )

Let's Back Up - Merry Christmas

2012-01-04T13:34:00.000-05:00

12 in '12

2012-01-03T13:34:00.005-05:00

First off, HAPPY NEW YEAR! I'm not usually a resolution girl. They are almost always broken and it leaves me feeling worse in the end for my lack of dedication. BUT, a New Year, like it or not, sparks a certain amount of hope. I think it's a great opportunity to reflect on the past year and think about some changes that one might make to improve their lives for the future. Yes, I realize these are called resolutions but I'm going to take Jill's lead and declare 12 in '12. Without further ado, here's my list in no particular order (an abbreviated version is in the sidebar, staring me in the face throughout the year to help keep me going):

1 - Blog more: This one is so important to me. I lack the motivation to blog because of many reasons - lack of pictures, thinking that others don't care what I have to say, etc. The reality is, I blog to preserve memories for me and my family. I can't count the number of times the kids have done something so adorable that I think "I should blog that", only to brush it off...and it doesn't get blogged and I FORGET. I'm forgetting the cuteness people! So, whether I have the pictures or not, whether I think anyone cares or not, I'm going to try my best to blog more this year.

2 - Take more pictures: I have been horrible about getting my camera out and taking pictures. Items further down on this list will help with that but also I just need to keep my camera out and stop focusing on how technically correct my photos are ALL.THE.TIME. I do not need every photo to be portrait quality.

3 - Take photography classes/join a group: For Christmas Rick purchased an introductory photography class. It's likely all review for me but good to do and I really want to check out the studio that is holding the class. After this I would like to take at least one advanced/professional photography class. I would also like to look more into my local meetup group and the Clickin Moms site.

4 - Organize the office: Our office is a disaster. We need to reorganize and develop better systems for filing, storage, purging, shredding, working. We need to decide what we do and how best to organize the space. We need to get that lateral file we've thought about getting. We need to work on archiving the kids artwork and finding a storage solution for electronics. We need to create a space that will foster productivity!

5 - Complete some house projects: Rick and I have gone over our household budget for 2012 and decided on some focus areas for this year. Inside we want to finish the upstairs hallway (paint, choose a runner, and select pictures for framing), we want to finish the foyer (select a table, find a chair, get a bigger rug, find a mirror/artwork), and get some darn window treatments already (shades for the living room and kitchen, do something in the playroom and Sara's room, and get new curtains for the master bedroom). In my spare time if I could paint the kitchen that would be great but Rick is adamant that one is all mine so we'll have to see. Outside we would like to focus on a shed, a screening planting in the backyard, some bushes in front (lilacs, forsynthia, and winter berry) and filling out some of the foundation plantings. If possible I would like to paint the front porch as well and get some type of VERY small garden going.

6 - Find time for exercise: This one is always hard but it's a must. I need to find time, during naps, on the weekend, after the girls are in bed, to get on the treadmill if only for an 1/2 an hour a few times a week. Enough already! Ashley's journey over the past year has been amazing and fun to ready about. She's an inspiration to me and I hope to do her proud. I would really like to run a 5k sometime in 2012.

7 - Be a better friend/sister/wife/daughter: Sometimes we all get wrapped up in our own lives and fail to really foster friendships that matter. I want to reach out and really support those around me even when it might not be the most convenient or desirable thing for me in the moment. Take time for others.

8 - Build my faith: I am really bad about dedicating time each week to bible study. I go through phases where I will read every day and then stop for some time and then read again. To help me with this goal I have committed to my MOPS small group that we will do bible discussion either during small group time or at my house while the kiddos play. I am also going to pick up that E100 Challenge reading list again and pick my way through it. Finally, I've signed up for KLOVE's a daily bible verse email so AT.THE.VERY.LEAST I'll get a verse a day to reflect on. Get the kids involved - My friend's husband is a youth pastor and has great resources. I've heard great things about The Jesus Storybook Bible. I've also heard good things about Adventures in Odyssey (Gianna is so into books on "tape"/CD right now and I think she would enjoy something like this) and Little Angels and want to check those out. Rick and I also talk about doing a couples devotional or some sort of bible reading together so we'll see.

9 - Decrease technology: Though fun, facebook, words with friends, and TV take up way to much of my time. Time that could be spent doing any of these other things on my list. I need to turn off my phone and limit my TV time to make more space for things that are more important.

10 - Get my craft on: I am notorious for bright ideas and poor execution. Ask my husband. This year I will do more craft and follow them through to the end. I have a Pinterest board full of crafty things that I want to take on.

11 - Take time for my marriage: Rick and I have spent over three years now taking care of young children. Yes, we've gotten out from our fair share but it wasn't until this last time that we went out to dinner with friends and family that I was able to enjoy the time fully without worrying about the kids. There are a variety of reasons for that but I think that mostly the time is just right. Rick and I need to take time for ourselves to be together and focus on us...the us we were when we first met, the us we were on our wedding day, the us we fall more in love with each day. First up, a trip to Boston with old friends to catch a Pat's game in January. Look out Foxboro - here we come! Nothing says "us" more than a weekend in Boston with friends! (more one-on-one time will come too but first things first!)

12 - Parent Intentionally: Plan fun, new activities for the kids, finally check out the Shelburne playgroup and library. Stress less, play more! Read more and watch less TV. Continue to have an open diologue with Rick about how we want to parent and practice better "team parenting". Love with all my heart so there is never a doubt in my girls hearts how their mama feels about them.

New Holiday Photos - The James Family

2011-11-30T19:59:00.000-05:00

I took some photos a few weeks ago for a very special family. Stephanie is my mentor mom for MOPS and has become a dear friend over the past few years - she is such a blessing in my life. Stephanie and her husband Mike have 6 children, two of which they adopted from Ethiopia just shy of a year ago. These are their first family pictures as a family of 8. I am honored that they chose me to take their photos and that they will grace their first family Christmas cards this year. I don't know how I get so lucky having such great friends that believe in me more than I often believe in myself. Without further ramble, here are some of my favorite shots:

Random

2011-11-23T10:23:00.000-05:00

I think part of my blogging issue (lack of) is Facebook. Things that I used to post in the blog, I now post there. In an effort to bring the documentation of our lives back to the blog, I may start posting FB status-type things here. A few thoughts:

Sara had her first dentist appointment this morning and did great!

Gianna had her first dental cleaning this morning and did really really great!

Is there anything better than playing in a snowstorm and then heading inside to take a nice warm bath?

We're heading to Nonni's for a couple of days and the girls are really excited. Gianna has been talking about her plans for days - it's so fun to watch and listen to their excitement!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dinner

2011-11-22T18:20:00.000-05:00

Tonight Rick is working late and I made Kale, White Beans and Sweet Sausage for dinner. That in itself is not noteworthy. The fact that I made Kale Chips from half the bag of kale and Gianna DEVOURED them...that's noteworthy.

In other news, we got a sneak peek of the girls school pictures today and OHMYGOODNESS are they adorable. I would share them here but Rick hasn't seen them yet and well, that's just not fair is it. But did I mention that OHMYGOODNESS are they adorable!

Proof

2011-11-21T21:40:00.000-05:00

Here's a little proof of the love affair the kids have with craftiness and jammies:

The Girls

2011-11-21T21:31:00.000-05:00

Man oh man, where do I begin. The girls are changing and growing so fast!

Sara is a firecracker through and through. Afraid of nothing and tough as anything. She is talking more and more these days just runs runs runs. She's a relatively picky eater but still sleeps like a champ. She has her first dentist appointment this week and I'm anxious to see how she does. She is doing better at school in terms of biting and pulling hair - we're down to one incident report every few weeks. She is SUPER independent and loves to put her own coat and shoes on and is trying to master getting dressed by herself. She toys with the potty from time to time. She loves to read and will bring us book after book. She's not really into TV but does like to watch a bit of football when it's on. She LOVES her big sister and copies everything that Gianna does.

Gianna is as spicy as always. Intensely stubborn and full of silly. She amazes us every day with the things she says and does. She is doing well in school although they say she is really shy and quiet and has a hard time talking out her feelings. We've been working on that and tonight at dinner she was mad at Sara for taking her napkin and said, "Mom, I am very upset!". Haa haa! Much better than the scream we would normally get. She is really getting into all things crafty and will sit for a good bit of time (up to an hour) doing some sort of project. This past weekend I gave her a bag full of foam letter stickers and a piece of paper. She proceeded to use the letters to spell "Mom" (MOMO) and "Stop" (STP). She then proceeded to make a great collage out of the rest of the letters. She loves all things "project"...whether it's beading a necklace, coloring, "writing" a letter, stacking things, anything productive really. She loves to watch her shows on TV - right now we're big into Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Jake and the Neverland Pirates. Yo ho! She loves "stay home days" and spending the whole day in her jammies...girlfriend loves her jammies! She also really likes to play soccer around the house and Rick taught her to kick the ball properly and she's all about that. I'd say she's a well rounded kid.

We're excited to get into the holidays with the girls and have lots planned. We got tickets to the Polar Express, have a couple of party invites already, and of course there is decorating the tree and baking to do!

That catches us up (almost). I have to download pictures off our point and shoot and share some hiking I did with the girls and some other random things. I have two family portrait sessions to post as well. Stay tuned!

Cheeeese!

2011-11-21T21:09:00.000-05:00

Happy Anniversary Grandma and Grandpa Guidice!

2011-11-21T21:00:00.000-05:00

Back in the beginning of October we took a quick trip to New Jersey to celebrate Rick's grandparents 60th wedding anniversary. It was a travel weekend on the tail end of a crazy several month run full of travel and the girls did great considering the amount of time we were in the car over two days. We had a great time at the party and really loved seeing the whole family....and what an inspiration! 60 YEARS! Amazing!

Joshlynn's Senior Pictures

2011-11-09T13:46:00.000-05:00

Finally getting around to posting some pictures! Here are some of my favorites of my niece Joshlynn.

Kristine's Senior Pictures

2011-10-21T16:35:00.000-04:00

One batch of senior pictures complete (one to go plus potentially 3 sessions of family portraits coming up this weekend)...Here are some of my favorites of my niece Kristine:

I'd love to hear which ones are your favorites...

Rainbows and Rain

2011-10-20T19:59:00.000-04:00

Tonight after work the light was just right outside so we played for a bit before cooking dinner. It started to rain and a really bright rainbow came out. The girls loved it and also loved playing in the rain. Probably the last time it'll be warm enough for such an activity this year so I grabbed my camera and had some fun!

Fights* on the Playground...

2011-10-17T19:47:00.000-04:00

Today when I picked up the girls from school they both ran to me and gave me big hugs. Then Sara pointed to her head and said "Bonk", which means she either bumped her head or someone hit her. Gianna then told me the full story.

"Mommy, I saved Sara". Upon further questioning she said "Johnnie's little brother James hit Sara on the head two times and I told him 'NO'!. Then he pushed me and I said 'You can't hit my little sister'! and I saved her."

Mommy may or may not have given her best little 3 year old girl a high five right then and there on the playground.

*Okay, so not really FIGHT per se but still...
**Names have been changed to protect the maybe not, but probably innocent.

Well Visits

2011-10-17T08:00:00.000-04:00

In September the girls both had well visits with the doctor. Gianna had her 3 year visit and Sara her 18 month visit. Both girls are very heathly and developmentally right on track - not that we needed a doctor to tell us that but it's nice to hear! While we weren't really concerned about Sara's speech, it did seem to be behind Gianna's at the same age so we talked about that. The doc said that it's normal as Sara has 3 people to talk for her and Sara was able to understand and communicate just fine. The doctor did think that Sara is a little too slim (aka tall and skinny!) and wants her back for a weight check in a few months...

Now for the stats:

Gianna
Height: 35 inches (5th%)
Weight: 27 lbs (10%)
G had her first eye exam and passed. She did really well following the instructions! She's a silly, funny girl with a sensitive soul who has a strong will about her. She still throws some fits from time to time but seems to be getting better. Lately if I don't let her do something or have something she wants she says "Mom, now let's talk about this", and proposes some grand scheme to get what she wants. She's staying in her bed through the night most of the time, which is great and in the mornings she gets herself up, into the potty, and sometimes even dressed! We've thought about starting her on some activity, gymnastics or dance (her friend Lena started dance and loves it) but decided to wait another year before starting that madness. We're hoping to get her into some winter swimming lessons though to get her all geared up for the beach next summer!

Sara
Height: 32 inches (51st%)
Weight: 20lb 12oz (5%) (see, tall and skinny!)
Head: 47.5 cm (72%)
Sara is a firecracker! Learning new words every day and communicating any way she knows how - she definitely gets her point across and her needs met. She's a powerhouse of a kid and tends to be a bit too physical with her friends. Thankfully she stopped biting and pulling hair about as suddenly as she started. She's hilarious and sweet and kind. She sleeps like it's her JOB, 7pm-630am consistently and loves to cuddle when she wakes up from her naps. She eats next to nothing, typical of a kiddo her age and is a little picky - not a fan of veggies...or meat...or starches like rice and potatoes. She does love fruit, oatmeal, waffles, and Special K... : )

As a reference, Sara is an inch and a half taller than G was at 18 months and 10 ounces heavier. It's an amazing time for us with Sara being this age. Gianna was 19 months old when Sara was born so it's crazy to see Sara at this age and think back in time. We didn't get to savor G as much as we do Sara at this age as we had a newborn and a new house to deal with at the same time. I love going back to the old videos of Gianna though and checking her out. She was so little/young but seemed so big/old next to her new baby sister! I can't even imagine having a newborn and Sara right now. Crazy!

OK, Where Were We?

2011-10-16T14:51:00.000-04:00

Back in August I had caught up on my blogging and was quite proud of that...and then, well, then life just got crazy and here we are, taking a step back and wondering where we left off. It makes me sad to thing about things "unblogged" so rather than try to recap the past couple of months in one post, I'm going to try to catch us up as if I had been blogging all along. Possible...yes. Easy...not really. Worth it...DEFINITELY!

So, our anniversary. We had a great dinner and then brought the girls to Stowe to try to recreate some wedding pictures and hike around a bit. Rick's original intent was to hike the Toll Rd but it was closed for the "Race to the Top of VT" race. So we drove on by and did some hiking around the Sterling Pond trail. It was fun and the girls loved it. Here are some pictures:

Remember this from five years ago?

Here we are now:

Cute picture but it's a good thing we hired a photographer for the wedding and didn't decide to use a tripod and self timer!! : )

"Hiking" with the girls was fun though it was more rather climbing around than hiking. As you could have predicted, Sara had very little interest in staying in the backpack and we were nervous that the Sterling Pond trail was a bit too much for our first family hike. We had fun though and the kids really liked it. Hopefully we'll be about to do some actual trails soon enough!

Getting Stuff Done!

2011-10-16T14:15:00.000-04:00

It's amazing how much stuff you can get accomplished when you stay home for an entire weekend and limit plans. We've been on the go so much lately that chores have slipped around the house and things have gotten hectic. Rick and I each had goals for this weekend, his were to (1) watch the soccer game yesterday morning and (2) the football game today. Mine were to (1) haul out all the girls toys and books, sort, organize, and redistribute between storage, the playroom, and their bedrooms, and (2) clean out and organize the two pantries. I am happy to report that our list is just about complete but Rick is at the store now getting snacks for the game - Nacho Night!! : ) We were supposed to get our family pictures taken this weekend but the weather is not on our side so we had to put it off again...makes me sad but no pictures are better than rain-drenched, windblown miserable pictures! At this point I'm not sure we'll get the professional pictures done until spring but will try to trade photography with a friend to get something to capture our family at this stage - which is AMAZING! I'm loving where the girls are right now and how they play together, all the new things they are learning and doing, the new things we can do because they are both a older (obviously) - it's just a really great time in our lives that we want to capture. Other than that, it's been a low-key weekend at home. We had friends over for dinner last night - as always we had a blast with Jess, Kenny and Lena and just spent time together in our home. Feels so good!

I hope to do some catch-up blogging this week but for now I'll just leave you with these pictures I took of the monkeys today...

Busy...

2011-09-28T08:35:00.000-04:00

We've been busy. I have yet to blog about some anniversary "hiking", overnight trips to RI, Boston, and Buffalo, my return to work, a neighborhood dinner, new words, well check visits, and much more. Hopefully I'll get some time to do all that but in the meantime I leave you with this. What a ham!

The Current State of Things...

2011-09-08T09:49:00.000-04:00

This article was passed on to our department and I thought it good to share. It starts, "Vermonters have been transfixed – and transformed – by the devastation tropical storm Irene wrought on the state’s roads, bridges, buildings and facilities, upending innumerable lives in the process. But the damage inflicted goes beyond the realm of bricks and clapboards, asphalt and concrete, to major parts of state government. Nowhere is the impact being felt more than in Vermont’s mental health system. It is no exaggeration to say that Irene tore through that system as suddenly and damagingly as it wiped out covered bridges and Vermont villages. Ten days after Irene hit, state officials confront a gaping hole in mental health care and a debris field of vexing questions."

See Entire Article Here

Though an relatively insignificant piece of the puzzle, I'm finishing up week two of no work. Though I am getting paid (Thankfully!) I do not have a work location. While in the beginning I thought this situation wouldn't be too bad, the uncertainty and idleness of it all is wearing me down. Not knowing when I will return to work or where I will return is a bit unnerving. My heart and prayers goes out to the workers and patients of the hospital.

Our Fifth Anniversary

2011-09-01T09:51:00.000-04:00

This year we didn't do extravagant gifts. We didn't get a sitter and go out to a fancy dinner. We stayed home. And it was great! The year we were engaged we went to Italy and bought a bottle of wine that was best if aged 5-7 years. So we held onto it, traveled back across the Atlantic with it, moved twice with it, and let it age. We planned to open it on our fifth anniversary...and that we did...

After the kids were in bed I cooked the usual anniversary dinner, which happened to be what we had at our wedding...Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Sauteed Spinach, Beef Tenderloin topped with Gorgonzola. I ~~forgot~~ skipped the Red Wine Reduction though...but we did break out and use a place setting from our wedding china - FIRST TIME EVER! It was awesome!

The next day we went to Stowe to recreate some wedding memories with the kids in tow...stay tuned...

Preppy Baby

2011-09-01T09:37:00.000-04:00

Sara ready for school...take a look at that hair! We've started doing piggies because it's getting so long and wild! I can't wait to see how it grows out...

We're okay...

2011-08-29T13:38:00.000-04:00

...but many around us are not. In our little section of Vermont, today is one of the most beautiful days of the summer. Nice and sunny and warm with just a bit of a cool breeze. I got an unexpected day off work as State Offices are closed and the girls are home with me as daycare was closed as well. I haven't had time to watch TV or check the web until now and OH, MAN, is our little state in some serious trouble. A Google search and our local newspaper (link here) can tell the story much more accurately than I can. I'm praying for all of those affected by the storm and subsequent flooding and counting my blessings that we're okay.

Trash Day!

2011-08-29T08:37:00.000-04:00

Gianna and Sara love waiting on the front porch for Rick to come home from work. We usually beat him home by an half an hour or so and usually calls on his way home so we can usually head on out and catch him as he's pulling up the road and into the drive. On this particular day he pulled into the garage and ran tot he end of the drive to get the trash cans. The girls went WILD and ran after him, wanting to help. See that silly face on Sara, that's her saying CHEEEEEESE while helping Rick...the girl has serious multitasking skills!

Tanglewood and Saratoga

2011-08-28T19:37:00.001-04:00

A couple weekend ago we had a great weekend full of fun new things for the girls. We drove to Nonni's house Friday night for a weekend of fun, family, music, and food. Saturday evening we went to Tanglewood to bask in the delight of all things John Williams and the Boston Pops Orchestra for Film Night. It was my second time going to Film Night, the girls first, and Rick's hundredth (not really but I know he's gone a lot). We got there when the gates opened at 5pm to stake out a spot, set up our blankets and feasted on fabulous food and wine. The girls were GREAT! The show started at 8:30 (an hour and a half past Sara's bedtime and a half an hour past Gianna's). The girls were quiet and into the music and movies. I'm not sure what time they fell asleep but I think it was close to 9:30. The show ended at 10:30 or so and we got home at 11:30. Phew! But the girls did great and it was nice to introduce them to another amazing Guidice family tradition.

Saturday was Rick's birthday and the girls started it off right by sleeping in a bit. After breakfast we packed up and headed to Saratoga to the horse races. The girls slept on the way there (which we thought would help delay naptime a bit but in hindsight really helped them catch up on their sleep from the night before). We got in and set up our canopy, table and chairs just in time for a downpour of rain, thunder and lightening. It was an amazing amount of water and mud that resulted but we did the best we could with the situation, getting them food and taking them for walks but it was tough because we couldn't let them wander too far and it was wet and dirty. All went well until Rick, the girls, and I walked to the track to watch a race. Gianna melted down at the track (the hitting and kicking kind of meltdown) so I brought her back to her seat. The deal was if she stopped misbehaving we could stay but if not we were leaving. Needless to say, she proceeded to kick and hit me all the way back to our seats so when Rick and Sara got back we packed up and headed home. Rick and I both knew that our time would be up before the end of the day but were disappointed that it ended with Gianna melting so quickly. The girls were both asleep within minutes of getting into the car and slept most of the way home. We got home, had dinner, did baths and all went to bed early. Lesson learned, don't try scheduling two sleep depriving events in one weekend. It was a great weekend though so I'm glad we did it all and I'm glad that Rick and I had a game plan going into it on how we were going to deal with certain situations that may arise from all the new excitement/schedules.

*I have pictures but will have to add them later as I can't find the camera case that contains the battery to the camera that contains those pictures...and I can't download the pictures because the current battery is dead...check back later if you want to check them out.

Five Years!

2011-08-26T13:29:00.003-04:00

Two People. One Wedding.

One Condo Sold. One House Built.

Two Beautiful Babies.

A Few Disagreements. Many Laughs.

A Million Memories.

Five Years. One Love.

Happy Anniversary Rick!

I love you more today than the day we were married.

You make me happier than I have ever imagined I could be.

Wildwood, Part 2

2011-08-24T11:25:00.008-04:00

Another beach day and our first family trip to the boardwalk...so fun!

Nothing like covering Daddy with sand at the beach!

So much room to run!

Jeff and Fiona at the Wildwood sign....

Gianna's first solo ride...almost...this little girl jumped in at the last minute. G wasn't quite sure what to do at first but she managed to rally and had a fun ride!

Rides, rides, rides...

The girls with Jeff and Fiona.

Nonni was with us too - and Steve and Kira but I sadly don't have pictures of the girls with them : ( Will someone please remind me next time to take more group pictures...PLEASE!! : )

Wildwood

2011-08-23T09:30:00.001-04:00

Before we went on vacation, I read a blog post about cameras (read it here if you want) and how bringing a big camera if you aren't going carry it around a use it makes no sense (like I should have needed a blog post to tell me that!). So, as we were packing, I left my DSLR at home and brought my old trusty point and shoot. And I used it. And I have a MILLION pictures to prove it. Here we go...

Day one on the beach...

.
Going to look for dolphins!

...more to come...

End of Summer Sunset

2011-08-22T21:10:00.000-04:00

I love all things fall. While we did have a great summer, I'm ready for it to be over and for fall to settle in for the next month or so. Tonight we had a taste of the colors yet to come....no, not the leaves yet - but the sunset - simply awesome...

Ahh, can you smell the beef stew, chili, and apple crisp? Can you feel the crisp air and the fuzzy socks? Can you hear the crunching leaves? LOVE....

Photo Issues

2011-08-22T20:58:00.000-04:00

My pictures on the blog are suddenly not looking so great. They seem blurry and just plain bad. I did a little research and I think I fixed it but in order to do that I had to make them quite big. You'll see what I mean in future posts - do me a favor and drop me a comment to let me know what you think. Is the quality worth the space they take up? Thanks!

Smoothies

2011-08-22T10:50:00.000-04:00

On hot days dinner is just not in the cards for us. One particular day it was too hot to MOVE, say nothing about actually cooking. Rick was golfiing (can you say crazy?!) so the girls and I had some easy snack and smoothies for dinner. They loved them and I was amazed at how good Sara did with an open cup - she's getting so big!

Camp

2011-08-21T10:41:00.003-04:00

A couple of weekends ago we went to my sister Tracie's camp on Lake Seymour. We had a blast swimming, going on the paddle boat, grilling, game playing, and s'mores-ing. We brought our friends Jess, Kenny and Lena and had a great time! To top it off, Sunday we stopped at Tracie's house and spent the day with her family, swam in the pool, had a great BBQ lunch and went for a drive through a local game reserve (think big ol' elk, moose, and deer...actually the home of Pete the Moose). We had a blast and here are a few pictures:

2011-08-20T09:19:00.000-04:00

Have you heard about Pinterest? It's an online pinboard of sorts and it is simply amazing...and addicting...and awesome. You basically install this shortcut/bookmark and then, wherever you are on the web, if you see something you like, you "Pin It" and add it to your own personal archive area. In the archive area you can organize your "pins" however you like and the original source is saved with the photo for later retrieval. You can "repin" other peoples pins and you can follow other peoples boards to see what they are pinning. I just love it.

Here is a sample of what you will find...

Check it out - but consider yourself warned that it is a slippery slope of inspiration goodness.

Mama's Birthday

2011-08-19T09:11:00.000-04:00

My birthday was perfect. It started with a little sleeping in, moved on to breakfast in bed with my girls, a day home with the girls, picking blueberries with friends, playing, napping, and then dinner home with the family. Rick bought and cooked up a fantastic lobster dinner. Sara loved touching the lobster and Gianna loved eating it. YUM!

*Please disregard Gianna's nakey-ness. She's become a fan of prancing around in her "unnerwears" and so she does. I'm sure that'll change over the next month or so when the temps dip and we refuse to turn on the heat... : )

Summer Fruit

2011-08-18T08:48:00.000-04:00

The girls are loving all of the summer fruit that is available right now. They eat blueberries by the quart (we actually need to pick more because they went through 3 pounds last week and we didn't even get the chance to freeze any) and they love the juicy peaches that are out at the farm stands. We still love to head out onto the front porch after dinner at night and have a snack...it's welcome downtime at the end of the day and makes for great pictures!

Facebook Dump

2011-08-17T08:30:00.001-04:00

It's so much easier to take pictures on my phone and then upload directly to Facebook, or share pictures with friends on Facebook than it is to take them on camera and then download/upload/email them around to get them onto blogger. Here are a few recent pictures that were shared on Facebook that I LOVE...

This was taken at our friend's wedding this past weekend...we had an amazing time!

Gianna LOVES to help water the plants. She also loves to sweep the floor and she does a great job...both skills that we are more then happy to foster!

Our little opposites. I want to remember their hair right now because I'm sure it will change over time. Sara's is a silky soft, almost white fluff. It's getting long in part and it's so shiny! Gianna's hair is a million different colors. Mostly brown of course but it's streaked with dark brown, light brown, red, honey, and some blond. I'm sure I have some of her hiar from her first hair cut but I might have to keep this too just to remember... : )

Blast from the Past (June 2010)

2011-08-16T11:59:00.000-04:00

Since I finally figured out how to download pictures from my old point and shoot camera, here is a goodie from June 2010...See those jammies Gianna is wearing? Sara wears them now. If fact, Sara is now just a few weeks away from being Gianna's age when Sara was born. Did we really have another baby when G was that small? I don't remember her being that small at the time but I guess we did!

As I said on Facebook, "I wasn't concerned about my kids growing up too fast until I just started downloading pictures from my old camera and now....my kids are growing too fast!"

Gianna's Birthday

2011-08-16T08:27:00.000-04:00

Wow, am I really over a month behind on posting? Insane but not surprising since we've been on the go so much this summer. Gianna's birthday was a BLAST! Enjoy!

Gianna the three year old!

Bennington Battle Day

2011-08-16T07:58:00.001-04:00

Today is a holiday for me, for all State employees really. One can argue the merits of the day, what was the Bennington Battle and did it take place in Vermont, should State employees actually have it off, should I put in extra hours or stay home with my kids an extra day, I could go on. The bottom line is, I'm taking the day off to get caught up on projects and life and I feel good about that. I sit here now with my coffee, bagel, and a quiet house and think about my day's activities. I have a list (of course) and it's WAY too long (of course) but I'm going to share it to keep me accountable.

1) ~~Update Blog~~
2) ~~Return ACMoore~~
3) ~~Drop off Dry Cleaning~~
4) Wash ~~Downstairs~~ Upstairs Windows (it's raining so inside only today)
5) ~~Move Cleaners and Organize Laundry Room~~
6) Organize Pantry, Pull Out Art Caddy and Fill
7) Sort and Rotate Kids Toys and Books
8) Finish Guest Bed
9) Prepare to Move Desk Out of Guest Room and Move Table in
10) Organize Office
11) Get Organizer for Play Kitchen Area
12) ~~Get Hooks for Hanging Lanterns in Gs Room~~ Hang Lanterns in Gs Room

13) Yard Work (it's raining so this one will wait)
14) Order Bathroom Cabinet (out of stock online so this will wait)
15) Get Potting Soil and Report Button Fern
16) Get Ladder for Living Room
17) Take Down Gs Mirror and Find Shelves
18 ) Find Jewelry Storage Option for Closet.
19) Finds and Hang Low Rod in Gs Closet

It's easy to see that I'm not going to get this list done but hopefully by sharing it'll hold me more accountable. I'll let y'all know how it goes!

*post edited to show progress

All Done Nursing!

2011-08-01T10:20:00.002-04:00

This post is all about breastfeeding so if you are of the father, grandfather, uncle, anti-nursing variety, feel free to stop reading now. You will not miss out on any pictures as there are none.

So, we're officially done breastfeeding. A little over a week ago, at 17.5 months old, Sara stopped nursing and it feels right. I really feel strongly about the idea of the child "self-weaning" and waiting until they are ready. I know that you can do it earlier and there are "only a few days of crying" involved but I didn't feel as though Sara (or I really) was ready until last week. She had been reducing her nursing "requirements" for a few weeks so we decided to go for it. Sunday night I mentioned to Rick that Sara hadn't nursed that day and in fact I believe it had been since Saturday morning but I wasn't sure. I hated the fact that I didn't remember the last time she nursed...I didn't remember the action it, the moment of it...and that is when I decided to do one more session just for memory-sake. Sara was still asking for it at bedtime and probably could have easily said no but I knew it was our last and I wanted to remember it. So we sat and snuggled and "chatted". I nursed her and burned the memory into my mind - how she looked me in the eyes, how she played with my shirt, now she leaned in for the snuggle. Then, when we were all done, I said "All done, no more nursing". She came off and gave me shy little smile that I will remember forever! Since then she has only asked to nurse a couple of times and it was early last week. Only once did she give up any sort of fight when I said no. Now she doesn't even ask - it's like she never nursed at all. I have to say, after 3.75 YEARS of either being pregnant or nursing, it feels good to be just be me again. A different me but me nonetheless.

Paint!

2011-07-31T15:47:00.004-04:00

All it took was a blog post about my lack of painting ambition to get my rear in gear. Last night after dinner I was motivated to paint the living room. Here are the results:

For those of you not inclined to follow links, here is the before shot:

I LOVE!

My goodness she's beautiful!

2011-07-30T14:44:00.002-04:00

Our sweet Sara...

"Cheeeeeese!"

Before and After

2011-07-30T14:39:00.002-04:00

Back at the beginning of July I bought the paint and supplies needed to paint my living room. So excited! Wanna see the before and afters?

Before:

And after:

Yeah, I haven't gotten very far. I have the paint though and that's a start right?

New Play set!

2011-07-30T14:31:00.003-04:00

Back in June our new play set was delivered and Rick's parents, Steve and Kira came up for a weekend to help put the play set together. It took Rick, Frank, and Steve the better part of the weekend to get it all put together but that thing paid for itself in the first weekend. I thought it would get old sitting out there pushing the kids on the swings and spotting them while they climb the various climbing parts but it doesn't. And they love it!

Here it is!

"Hey! I love this thing!"

Kids of ALL ages love the play set!

So.Far.Behind

2011-07-30T14:24:00.002-04:00

I'm so far behind on this blog it's not funny. I feel like I have a few options.

1) Scrap the whole thing
2) Write more and forget about the pictures (that's the real delay, processing the pictures!)
3) Write one quick catch-up post
4) Spend hours and hours going through pictures from the last month and write posts.

Lucky for you (I think) I'm going to try option #4. I'm not really to let go completely. I know people really just come for the pictures. I don't want a huge hole in this written history of our lives. So, bear with me and stay tuned. Crossing your fingers and praying might not hurt either! OH NO, is that Sara I hear waking up from nap? Eek!

Gianna-isms

2011-07-27T09:10:00.002-04:00

These are things that I want to remember. Things I need to burn into the recesses of my brain and take with me through the rest of forever. These are some funny little things that Gianna says:

"Mommy, when I get taller and have another birthday I want it to be white and blue because that is my favorite"

I love how she mixes up "Easy Peasy" and "Teeny Tiny". She says something like "It's an easy peasy tiny bug". She uses the phrase easy peasy several times a day.

She has a temporary tattoo on her arm right now and calls it a "too-tat". No matter how many times I tell her "Tattoo" she smiles and says "too-tat".

"Sara is my sister and you are my mother. Daddy is my father".

"Snuggle!"

She grabs my face and whispers "I love you" in my ear and then blows in it. : )

30-minute Eggplant Parmi-"Gianna"

2011-07-26T12:40:00.002-04:00

Last night I wanted to do something a little different for dinner...we've been stuck in a rut. It needed to be quick and it had to use what we had...enter eggplant parmigiana (or Eggplant Parmi-Gianna as G calls it). I cubed up an eggplant and tossed it into a pan with some olive oil to brown up. I included a sliced onion and some garlic. Add to that a can of tomatoes and some spices. Boil water for frozen tortellini, cook. Mix it all together in a baking dish, top with provolone cheese and broil. Done.

Candyland and Vacation

2011-07-18T20:44:00.002-04:00

We just got back from our annual family vacation to Wildwood, NJ and it was FABULOUS! Quick (maybe not so quick) recap: Arrive Wednesday evening and order take-out from a place called Little Italy. We rented a condo this year so dinner in was perfect! Thursday = BEACH DAY - the girls had a blast. Thursday night we went to the house that Rick's grandparents had rented and had dinner. It was great to see everyone even if it was a short visit. Friday we took the girls on a 2-hour dolphin watching boat ride. Awesome! Well, the first 1.5 hours was awesome but it got old on the way back. We saw a ton of dolphins though and Gianna loved it. Friday night = The Lobster House - two pounds of delicious lobster eatin' goodness! Gianna got fixated on snails and HAD to have escargot for dinner. We order it. She ate it. Like a CHAMP. Atta girl G! Saturday = BEACH DAY! Saturday night was sushi take-out and the some time doing the boardwalk thing - rides, games, Kohl Brother's Frozen Custard - Fun! Sunday we checked out and went to the zoo. Come naptime we loaded up the girls and drove the 9 hours home. The girls did great - a few screaming episodes here and there but overall the trip home wasn't too bad. We're adjusting to being home and loving the memories!

And what's this about Candyland? We played it for the first time with Gianna tonight. Slightly frustrating for a girls that has some control issues (me) but amazing to sit with Daddy and G and play a game...so fun!

Sorry, no pictures yet...I'm spent. : )

No one else...

2011-07-01T21:22:00.003-04:00

There is a blog that I follow, you can find it on the sidebar over there on the right, that I LOVE! She just posted a quote that goes like this:

"No one else will ever know the strength of my LOVE for you. After all, you're the only one that knows what my heart sounds like from the inside."

Seriously, there are no words for how beautiful I find that quote. Anyway, the post is all about how she's having a hard time being a mom these days (she's a mom of three girls three and under so the hard time is completely understandable). Anyway, she writes:

"i just bought the book 'how we love our kids' and in the first chapter read "Kids have a natural knack for revealing the things we like least about ourselves. Even shortcomings we’re completely unaware of, things we deny, things we’ve successfully hidden for years. All of them suddenly begin to parade around your neat little life when you have children.""

Feel free to check out her blog for the whole post.

Strawberries

2011-07-01T11:03:00.002-04:00

My mom and I brought the girls strawberry picking last week. We found an organic farm about a half an hour away and they had a kids field that was great because we didn't have to worry too much about where the kids went or what they picked. As I mentioned on Facebook though, Sara probably took this a little far when she sat on her bum and scooted over several rows of plants! Not too much damage was done and they let us stick around so we're good. We picked almost 10 pounds of berries and had a great time!

Sara was COVERED in strawberry juice. She loved it!

Sara

2011-07-01T10:52:00.004-04:00

I love this picture of Sara - so sweet and full of life. It's likely that she leaned over and took a chunk out of Gianna's arm immediately following this shot but in this moment, Perfection!

Here are some others from the set. In looking through these I don't think I took them, which means SOMEONE else took them and that SOMEONE else shouldn't be using my camera since a certain lens cap came up missing. Does ANYONE want to fess up? Just wondering...great pictures though! : )

These last two pictures reminds me...the last time we were at church, a woman came up to us to see the girls and asked me if they were both mine. Yep, they may not look like they came from the same gene pool but I'm pretty sure they are both mine.

Chimp-Munk

2011-07-01T10:45:00.002-04:00

Gianna found this little guy while we were at the garden taking pictures awhile back. She calls them Chimp-munks. Isn't he sweet!?

Aquarium

2011-07-01T10:32:00.004-04:00

I know it's been awhile but I really have been trying to blog. Each time I get on and try to upload some pictures, blogger has failed, which is frustrating. So, let's try this again shall we?

Awhile ago we went to Boston for an overnight. We met up with Rick's parents (Nonni) and they stayed with the girls while Rick and I went to a Soccer game (USA v Spain). It was fun! The next morning we headed to the aquarium and had a good time there with the girls. here are some highlights:

Forgive the quality of these photos. Do you know how hard it is to take pictures without flash in an aquarium?

Family Portraits, Take 2

2011-06-20T21:41:00.006-04:00

Remember these guys?

Tara and Steve were a family of four back when I first took some family portraits for them in May 2009. Now a family of 5 with the addition of sweet little Sebastian. A couple of weeks ago Tara brought the kids to a nearby garden to get some more pictures taken. These kids are precious and so fun! Here are a few of my favorites from my time with them:

Potty Time!

2011-06-15T20:16:00.002-04:00

I got a call from daycare this afternoon. It was Sara's primary teacher and she was sure to start the conversation with her usual "Don't worry, everything is fine, Sara is FINE". She then proceeded to tell me an amazing little story about an amazing little 16 month old girlie who went both pee and poo on the potty at school today - SERIOUSLY PEOPLE, Sara went on the potty - with INTENTION! She has asked to sit on the potty before, both at home and school. She has tinkled a little at home but I think it was more of a lucky break. But today, at school, she asked to sit on the potty. She sat for a minute and when her teacher went to take her off, Sara put up a fuss. Miss Teacher looked and noticed that Sara had peed so she put her back on - and Sara finished the deed and went poo (she is so going to love this post in 10 years!). THEN, no folks, I'm not done, THEN she signed and said "All Done" and clapped her hands in celebration. Go Sara (literally and figuratively)! : )

Photo Mistake

2011-06-10T21:20:00.005-04:00

I went to check out a new photo spot with the girls today. The first picture I took was a disaster because I had my camera on Manual and all of my settings were from when we went to the aquarium in Boston last week, so basically a very dark indoor room with no natural light. Obviously wrong for an outdoor garden. Anyway, I played around with the picture a bit and actually came up with something that I kinda love.

*Rick thought it would be helpful to see the original photo:

Haircut!

2011-06-10T13:58:00.002-04:00

I finally got the guts to cut Gianna's bangs. I was hoping she would let me start putting her hair up again so I could grow the bangs out but that's not happening. I had to do something or she was going to start looking like Cousin It. They aren't perfect but I think they look cute. And she can see now so that's a plus! : )

Note that while the bangs are doing some strange comb-over thing in these pictures...I assure you that we do not normally style our daughter's hair like Justin Beiber...or whatever that kids name is...
: )

Signs and Snuggles

2011-06-06T21:56:00.003-04:00

Sara learned how to sign "please" today. So now she knows More, All Done, and Please. Love!

Also, and I wish I could video this but can't...but I do want to burn it into my memory so I'll describe it here. At bedtime I nurse Sara and then bring her to her crib. If she is ready for bed, she will reach out (or basically dive) into her bed. She lays on her belly with her legs all tucked up under her and her bum up in the air and I cover her with a blanket. Usually she will reach her arms out and grab the edges of the blanket to snuggle them in under her, wrapping herself in nice and tight. Tonight I put her down and had to reach for the blanket. When I came back with it, she lifted her arm back to grab the corner to tuck it in, not even waiting for me to get it on her...so cute. I do realize that story means little to anyone in the world other than myself but I know that someday I will look back on this post and smile. : )

Landscaping

2011-05-30T19:35:00.004-04:00

Bree this one's for you!!

We finished up the foundation plantings that we started last weekend. I don't have complete pictures, and we didn't do as much as original intended but we're pretty happy with the result. Here are some before and afters:

Words

2011-05-28T17:53:00.004-04:00

Sara is still teething and not feeling well at all but that's not stopping her from amazing us with the speed at which she is picking up new words. Just this weekend she has said "Sara", "Banana"("Nana"), and "Cheese". She said Sara so clear from the other room that we thought Gianna had gotten up from nap and snuck down to the playroom...not the case! She says "Gentle" (which she says A LOT because she's having some issues with hair pulling at school...more on that later). She is communicating a lot more these days and understanding most of what we say. I really need to start keeping track of her words so I can post them at 18 months like I did with Gianna...the explosion of words between now and then is just so amazing!

More archives...

2011-05-26T09:00:00.002-04:00

Okay, this is the last one I promise...once I get going I can't shut up!

http://guidicevt.blogspot.com/2009_11_01_archive.html

I cannot believe that when G was Sara's age I was ~6 months pregnant and we were building a house!

Speaking of archives

2011-05-26T08:53:00.002-04:00

One thing that I love to do is go back and find my posts from when Gianna was the age that Sara is now. Not to compare the two but to see what "was" and what "is". I know that sounds like comparing but...anyway...here are the archives for when G was 15 1/2 months old.

http://guidicevt.blogspot.com/2009_10_01_archive.html

Blogging

2011-05-26T08:36:00.002-04:00

I'm frustrated that I'm not blogging enough these days. I have a whole stack of things in my head that I want to blog about I just can't find the time...and when I do find some time, there are other things that are taking priority. The other day I wanted to reference a post from the past and went back to find it only to find that I never blogged about the topic in the first place and that made me sad. I keep this blog mostly for our family so we can look back into our lives to see what was going on at a certain point in time and when I find gaps (and boy are there gaps!), I get even more frustrated. Maybe I need to find an online storage solution for my photos so I can blog from anywhere - though that won't really help my productivity at work now will it? Maybe I need to set aside time more in the evenings to get some posting done? Maybe I need a laptop so I can blog from the living room while Rick and I are watching shows (I know, why waste time watching TV? I ask myself this very question often but still do it...) I really don't like treating blogging as a chore, something that I grumble about needing to do but never getting done. Maybe I need to look into the archives more to see what's missing in order to avoid missing more. Not sure...

In any event, the girls are doing well. Gianna comes up with the funniest things. We are getting a playset and it's all she talks about. We past by the "dealer" yesterday and she saw the playsets and proclaimed "We're getting a playset. Yep, you ordered it Mommy". Now that I write that it doesn't really translate as funny on "paper" but it was cute how she said "you ORDERED it"...like she knows what that means... : )

Sara is a firecracker. While Gianna tends to be more reserved, Sara is WILD. She is SO CUTE and SO CURIOUS. The past couple of mornings she has gotten up early, really early (like 445-500) and, rather than cry, she just starts yelling/singing "Allll dooooone. Daaaaaddddy. Allll doooone!" She will do that for 30-45 minutes until we finally give in and pull her out of bed...where she promptly asks for a snack! : )

The girls are doing okay at daycare. Drop off is still touch and go with Gianna and I think Sara is starting to have a rough time too. Sara's main teacher is on vacation this week though so drop off has been a little rough. Hopefully next week goes back to normal. Sara is getting into "trouble" at school and has actually had 3 incident reports written up and put in her chart. She's pulling hair (big clumps of hair). It's perfectly normal and a passing phase but it is frustrating! Gianna has a good time once she is at school but every morning she asks if it's a school day or a stay home day. When I tell her we are staying home she is SO HAPPY. School days, not so much. : ( I should be happy that she loves staying home with her mama but I'm actually a bit sad that she isn't excited to go to school. It might be time to move on to another center...I loathe the idea of it.

So stay tuned...I hope to do some catch-up posts soon. I have photos of our house "one year later" as well as the landscaping we did last weekend. I need to get some new pictures of the girls up too. In the meantime, check out the archives...there are some goodies in there!

Ramblings

2011-05-19T13:03:00.002-04:00

We are busy busy busy lately but isn't everyone?! Rick and I are tackling a pretty major (for us) landscaping effort this weekend and putting in all of our foundation beds around the house. It's about 300 sq ft of garden space that we need to prep and then begin to plant. We also have 10+ trees that need re-mulching. Saturday AM we have a truck coming to dump 2cy of compost and 5cy of mulch into our driveway so we'll be out there Saturday, rain or shine! With that said, if anyone has perennials that they would like to share as they are thinning out their gardens this year, keep us in mind... : )

Sara has been a cranky pants lately and this morning I discovered why...she has two molars just breaking through the gums on the top of her mouth, two molars just below the skin on the bottom and one front(ish) tooth that just popped through on the bottom as well...that's a whole lotta teeth at once and now that I look back, I don't think she's been cranky ENOUGH considering...don't tell her I said that though, she would run with that into next week!

Gianna is amazing! She's still testing boundaries but she's almost 3 so you would expect that. She is such a good girl and a fantastic big sister.

I took some "one year later" pictures of the house awhile ago and need to post them...we still need blinds and curtains but we're getting there - we have so many plans it's hard to focus on just one! We have a play set coming for the girls and need to get that set up in the backyard...SO FUN! I can't wait to see Gianna's face - she knows we're getting it and sees it in the catalog but I don't think she REALLY gets that it will be in her backyard to play with whenever she wants.

Aunt Kira

2011-05-14T08:00:00.000-04:00

Steve and Kira came for a visit a few weeks ago and we had a great weekend with them. As usual more often times than not these days, the camera didn't make it out much but we did get this shot of Sara and her Godmother...

G and B

2011-05-13T08:00:00.001-04:00

This is Gianna and the 5 year old that now lives next door...does anyone else smell trouble?

Luckily, the neighbors have 2 daughters as well so we think they'll understand when Rick chases B off our property at some point in the future...

Embrace the Camera - Daddy's Turn

2011-05-12T08:00:00.001-04:00

I love playtime...a time when we put the cell phones, work, chores, stress, EVERYTHING aside and just BE in the moment with our kiddos.

Well hello there handsome. : )

Summertime, Ice Cream, and Sisters?

2011-05-11T08:00:00.001-04:00

Our friends Jess and Lena came over for dinner last week. Side story, they were also at a recent graduation party for a mutual friend and Gianna called Lena her sister. Jess laughed because earlier that day she was telling Lena that she would see Gianna later and Lena called Gianna her sister. So cute! Anyway, after dinner the girls enjoyed ice cream cones on the deck...

Lena and Gianna:

Sara definitely enjoyed her first ice cream cone!

DIY Gate

2011-05-10T08:00:00.002-04:00

After looking around for outdoor gate options, and having more than one heart attack as Sara attempts to launch herself off the deck, I decided that we should make our own gate for the deck. Rick was skeptical but, when I requested we do the project on Mother's Day, how could he refuse. Other than painting this was the most "DIY" (Do It Yourself) project we have attempted...and I have to say I am quite impressed with the outcome.

As for the "how-to", we don't really have instructions. I looked online and then tailored some instructions that I found to my taste and to the existing structure of the deck. We still need to do a little sanding, install a "cap" (I have no idea what this is really called but basically a piece of wood across the top of the gate to finish the edge) and a caster to the bottom so the door swings open with support.

Not bad for newbies right? I told Rick that we're well on our way to making our own furniture and finishing our own basement. He's not sold but I'm going to keep trying! : )

Sara

2011-05-09T08:00:00.000-04:00

The other day Sara was lying on the kitchen floor being silly and I was tickling her with my foot. Oh how I adore this child...her bright blue eyes, her crinkly nose, her giggle...

Mother's Day Weekend

2011-05-08T21:31:00.002-04:00

We had a great weekend. Lots of family time, lots of sun, lots of friends, lots of fun. G and Rick went shopping yesterday while Sara and I spent some time together shopping and meeting a friend for coffee. We had a graduation party to attend last night and we had a great time! We started today sleeping in, eating waffles, drinking coffee, and enjoying playtime. The girls got me really cute cards. Gianna apparently picked hers out herself and it says "Happy Mother's Day from the Dog...you know, the short, hairy kid with a tail". Cracks me up! The girls also got me a new bowl to replace the one I fell with and broke awhile back...Gianna was sure to recount the event in detail when giving me the replacement.

When Rick asked me what I wanted to do for Mother's Day, I think he was a bit surprised when I answered "Go to Home Depot"...but, he obliged and off we went to get materials to build a gate for our deck (will post pictures later this week). We also stopped at a local garden store to check out some plants and let the girls play a bit on the Rainbow play sets they have there as we're thinking about getting one and we wanted to check it out (still undecided between Rainbow and Cedar Works...)

Girls napped while Rick and I built the gate. We had a nice grilled steak dinner on the deck and then went to the neighbors for cake and wine. Fantastic end to a fantastic day.

I am so blessed to have a great husband and great kids.
Thank you Rick, Gianna, and Sara for making me a Mom so we can celebrate days like today!

Embrace...

2011-04-28T08:00:00.001-04:00

Me and my littlest little...

Grandma's Lasagna

2011-04-26T08:00:00.001-04:00

We came home from Nonni's house a couple of weeks ago with some of Rick's grandmother's tasty treats. We had the lasagna the very next night and the girls ate like they had never eaten before...it must be the love that was cooked into it. Thanks Grandma - these are for you!

Hugs

2011-04-25T08:00:00.002-04:00

I love it when the girls love on each other. It warms my heart and makes me believe that we must be doing something right!

And Missy Miss, pre-hug, sitting all pretty for the camera...a rare occasion these days so one that must be shared!

Easter Weekend Recap

2011-04-24T20:19:00.013-04:00

I can't really decide how to share the stories and pictures from the weekend so I'll sort of do a brain dump and let you sort through it as you like. We had a great weekend full of fun, friends, and family! We had a neighborhood play date Friday that resulted in three families meeting up for dinner out on the town - 6 adults and 7 kids - so fun! Mandi and two of her boys came for dinner on Saturday night and Gianna really let loose running around after her youngest Aidan (5). Adam was here as well and he is becoming such a young man! It was great to visit with all of them.

This morning we got up and Rick and Gianna made muffins for breakfast. We all got dressed in our Easter best and went to church. While gone, the Easter bunny visited our house and we talked it up on the way home from church. Gianna was excited until we got into the house and she saw the trail of eggs and completely FREAKED out (and not in a good way) that there was "really" an Easter Bunny in our house. After we explained that he wasn't here anymore (he brought eggs and then left to visit other friends houses), the girls followed the trail of eggs to find their baskets. Really special baskets because their Aunt Tracie made them for the girls! The Easter Bunny filled them with all sorts of toys, books, stickers, socks, and a few treats. Tonight as we were putting G to bed we talked about the day and she said that she "LUFFED (loved) all of the Easter toys and the eggs and the TREATS mom...the M&M TREATS!". She's such a love.

The girls took rock star naps and my family came over for dinner. We finished up early and got outside to enjoy some amazing weather and the girls tired themselves out completely entertaining their aunts, uncles, cousins, and Grammy and Chris. They now sleep soundly and hopefully will remain that way until the sun comes up...

Now for some pictures!

Pre-church snapshot:

My pretty girls:
The baskets:

G loves her new harmonica!

Bunny ears!!!

Gs first chocolate bunny...

More to come...

Parents Don't Dress Your Girls Like Tramps

2011-04-21T08:14:00.002-04:00

This article is swirling around the web right now and it's so disturbing to me:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/OPINION/04/19/granderson.children.dress/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

I can't even put into words the rage and disgust that I feel as I read this article. At the end of the article, the author says "A line needs to be drawn, but not by Abercrombie. Not by Britney Spears. And not by these little girls who don't know better and desperately need their parents to be parents and not 40-year-old BFFs." I do really feel that parents shouldn't buy the clothes they do, or allow their daughters to wear them but I also feel that it's horribly irresponsible for companies to produce, market, and sell these items. A push up bra for 8 year olds? Come ON! If this company is driven by money and marketing, how in the world is there even a market for such an item?!

Okay so maybe I can put it into words a little bit but I'll stop here...I could go on for hours...

Friends

2011-04-16T14:28:00.007-04:00

Back in the beginning, there were three little playgroup buddies that all shared the same birthday. Gianna, Lily and Alex:

A few months later, little Eli (top) came into the mix:

About a year later, babies came and went and Victor joined the foursome (I don't have any early pictures of him with the group - which really bums me out!).

Now, 2.5 years later, here we all are! The original "triplets" all have little siblings, Eli has a brother, and Victor will have a brother in just a couple of months. Playgroups just got a little crazier!

Pictured above: Gianna and Sara, Lily and Baby Alice, Victor, Alex (Baby Clare was sleeping), Eli and Baby Will. I just adore this picture! Here's to many more years of insane group shots and moms making fools of themselves in order to get them! Thanks Amy for sharing the picture - would you believe I forgot my camera?! : )

Milestones

2011-04-15T19:51:00.003-04:00

Over the past few days we've reached some fun milestones. For Sara, she is now signing "More" without prompting (she already signs All Done) and her understanding language is CA-RAZY. We can give her instructions, like "Go and get your coat in the mudroom" and she'll do it or "let's go take a bath" and she'll head for the stairs. I LOVE this age! For Gianna, she is growing FAST and showed me that she can now reach the light switches without a stool, "like a big durl".

Flooding

2011-04-12T09:20:00.003-04:00

This morning I was later than usual for work because the road to my daycare was closed due to flooding. I was SO COMPLETELY annoyed that I had to travel 5 miles out of my way to drop off the girls and then I remembered Japan and, well, enough said. After a mental smackdown, I counted my blessings, moved along and continued the roundabout trip. The whole way Gianna kept pointing out the water (most of the fields are flooded around here) and saying "Look Mommy - more water! Isn't it beautiful?"...Ah, from the mouths of babes!

Gianna Says...

2011-04-08T13:07:00.002-04:00

"Mommy, can I wear that shirt when I get married?"
"Mommy, when I get big I'm going to drink beer".
"Mommy, I'm a July" (when asked when her birthday is...)
"Hey Lena, do you want to go to the Park-ing Lot?" (when told we're going to the park)
"Sara is my sister and I'm Sara's sister"
"Mommy, you're my lover" Awwwwww......

I love the stuff that comes our of this kids mouth (most of the time!) I wish I could record her 24 hours a day to remember it all!

New Mudroom

2011-04-05T20:25:00.003-04:00

We finally got our built-ins installed in our mudroom. We definitely did not do any of this work ourselves. We found the design in a Built-Ins book from Lowes and hired a finish carpenter to do the work. We did pick out the hardware though but that's as DIY as we got. We LOVE LOVE LOVE the new space! Enjoy!

Before:

After:

Shoes

2011-04-04T20:28:00.003-04:00

All girls love shoes right? Our two are no exception. Sara loves her new puddle boots...

...and Gianna loves the new croc-type sandals that Grammie brought over for her last week...

...they seem to be especially good for jumping!

The Farm aka The Post with Lots o' Pictures

2011-03-28T08:00:00.000-04:00

As I mentioned in a previous post, Rick was out of town last week so I tried to keep my sanity/really busy with the girls. On Sunday I brought the girls to the farm for their Maple Open House event. It was lambing season too so seeing all those furry little cuties sweetened the deal a bit more...and then the fact that Kristine went with us and we met up with G's best friend Lena, well, needless to say we had a great time!

Some sheep and lambs...

A tolerant mama!

Love....

Gianna and Lena on their "hike" to the sugar house...

Gianna loves Lena's mama Jess!

Trying the syrup...

The "horsies" with their winter coats...

Gianna and Mommy

2011-03-27T17:12:00.003-04:00

Gianna and I had a "G and Mommy Day" yesterday and it was a lot of fun! We went to get Gianna's haircut (yes, we did it and cut off about 5 inches!!), and then went downtown to meet Jess and Lena for lunch. After lunch we went to watch the UVM dance group perform. We will definitely be doing this again soon and G and Daddy have already talked about their date too - bowling! Here are a couple of pictures...

A new haircut and a lollipop...
A little hot chocolate anyone?

A very serious Lena in her tutu, all ready to watch the dancers...

Here are a couple of pictures from today that show off the new do a bit more...

Recipe

2011-03-27T16:49:00.002-04:00

I saw this recipe on one of my favorite blogs and made it last night along with some roasted potatoes and broccoli.

(Cheesy Chicken Roll-Ups
4 chicken breasts (pounded to 1/4")
4 slices thin ham
crumbled feta cheese
1/3 c. milk
1/2 c. seasoned bread crumbs
10 T. garlic and herb (or veggie) cream cheese
1/2 c. light cream or half-n-half

Preheat oven to 350. Place 1 ham slice on each piece of pounded chicken, top with feta cheese. Roll chicken to enclose filling. Fold ends under and secure with toothpicks. Dip chicken rolls into milk, then breadcrumbs to coat. Place rolls seam side down on greased baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes. Bring cream to simmer in saucepan over medium heat. Add cream cheese; blend well. Pour sauce over cooked chicken rolls.

I used a chive and herb (or something like that) cream cheese and though to sauce was VERY tasty, we decided that it wasn't really necessary to the dish and will probably leave it out next time. Enjoy!

Splash Time!

2011-03-26T08:00:00.000-04:00

Sara loves to climb up to the sink and splash in the water. If we leave the bathroom door open she KNOWS it and makes a run for it so her can climb up the stool and TURN ON THE WATER HERSELF to play in it. The other day I needed to cook dinner and she wasn't cooperating. The light bulb went off and I set up up at the kitchen sink. She loved it!

Remind you of someone else?

Pigtails

2011-03-25T08:00:00.000-04:00

I've mentioned that it's getting harder and harder to convince Gianna to do her hair. This was my latest trick...

This...

Led to this...
Haa haa haa - I love it!

Me and My Girls

2011-03-24T08:00:00.000-04:00

Rick went away last week for six days and in an effort to keep myself sane, I filled up our days with all sorts of activities. It was Maple Open House weekend so we went to the farm to check out the new lambs and taste some maple syrup. I'll detail the trip in another post but for now, here are some pictures of the three of us...

...and just a reminder for all you moms out there - Get out from behind that camera and get in some pictures with your kids! You will be happy you did!

Speaking of Ears...

2011-03-23T08:00:00.000-04:00

I'm having a hard time naming this post. "Speaking of Ears" won out over "The Alarminst", "The Freakout", and "AAAHHhhhhh!".

I preface this story to say only that I KNOW that there are people in this world with worse troubles and I KNOW that Sara is perfect and I KNOW that I'm overreacting but I cannot help myself and frankly, I think it's my right as a mother to get a little worked up over such things. Onto the story...

Sara has had a few ear infections this winter. Two were diagnosed during well visits (we've discussed this before where Rick and I swear that the one specific doctor we see may be a little bit of an "over-diagnoser") and one was a recheck of one of those well visit diagnosis (different doctor so that one was validated). Anyway, we went in last week for another recheck and had yet another doctor. He took a peek and saw clear fluid and then asked about Sara's history with ear infections (dude, it's RIGHT THERE in her medical history on that there laptop you have with you)...anyway, I told him the story and that she never had fevers or symptoms that made us come in for a diagnosis. He thought that she could potential have "chronic ear fluid" that could lead to an increased number of ear infections. This COULD lead to hearing problems and COULD lead to delayed speech. He wants to recheck her in four weeks and if he's not satisfied, will send her to a specialist to get checked out and MIGHT be a candidate for tubes in her ears. Ugh.

Yes I know that this is common - I had tubes when I was little. I have friends whose kids have had tubes.

Yes I know there are worse things in the world.

Yes I KNOW there is nothing wrong with Sara's speech development (for crying out loud the girl is 13 months old and already says a handful of words, reacts appropriately when we talk to her, can follow simple commands, and is an all around AWESOME child.

It still freaks me out. It still makes me over-analyze when she gives me a strange look or doesn't answer me when I speak to her (as if all children listen 100% of the time...yeah right?!) It still has me worried until that four week rechecks comes and we hear for sure that Sara is just fine, something we already know.

There, I said it, it's down on "paper" so years from now I can look back and smack my years ago self and say "chill out mama"!

Gianna's Towers

2011-03-22T08:00:00.000-04:00

Gianna loves to make towers. Sometimes they go up and sometimes they are horizontal (figure that one out) but they are always "towers" and they are always amazing...

I love how she color coordinated each tower...she gets that from her Dad... :)

Puddles Rock!

2011-03-21T12:43:00.003-04:00

I love mud puddles. Gianna LOVES mud puddles. We just went out and bought a couple pairs of puddle boots to be prepared for puddle-jumping. It's going to be fun watching the girls get all muddy. It's going to be even more fun watching Rick cringe when the girls are getting all muddy.

Hee hee...

(Yes, I am aware that these are not puddle boots...these pictures were taken pre-puddle boot purchase.)

Sara and the Headband

2011-03-21T12:20:00.003-04:00

Sara loves her headband...loves! She will put it on or ask me to put it on and then walk around and play, regardless where it may shift...

...and tell me those striped fleece pants aren't the cutest things in the world...I dare ya! : )