flying by

summer is quick. and long. amazing how days can lag, hours can creep and then you look up and summer is over, your little girl is almost 3, your oldest son is about to start going to school every day and your itty bitty baby is huge. we had such fun. we went to grand haven for the entire coast guard festival, we spent two nights in chicago. there were a lot of park playdates and water play mishaps. we loved being around family best of all.

My knight in shining armor

Dominick the knight on his horse.He quickly put this ensemble together after playing with his new knight figurines from Joah.

play all day

The kids are having a great time this summer. We hit the parks and cool off at pools. Sometimes we hang out at home and make a mess with the sprinkler, watermelon and Dom's kiddie pool lifeguard stand. We have more fun planned with a trip to Chicago and Grand Haven coming soon. Amata is getting ready for her first year at Triangle and Dom is thrilled to be starting Fumfives five mornings a week. The kid loves school. Felix and I will be playing with a couple buddies while Amata and Dom are in school. It will be a busy Fall, but full of fun.

happy birthday fe!

felix is one! he can walk and now has a little more attitude. he likes to drum on my pots and pans, knock over his sister's towers and throw food across the dining room. we are having a lot of fun!

Super Boys!

Protecting Captain Baby and his Princess Sister, these heroes alert the Queen when the gate to the stairs is left open or when a choking hazard is on the loose.
Just wondering where Dom and his friend Jonah went...

Mata Bear

Amata is getting ready to be a flower girl in Steve and Jill's wedding. Her dress came in the mail today. She had it on for one minute and managed to get it dirty. Thank you Tide pens.

Big grad!

Dom graduated from Triangle yesterday. He will go to Fum Fives Young 5s at the First United Methodist Church next year. This kid is so cool. He had a great time at graduation and went to spend a couple nights being spoiled rotten in Grand Haven.
In this picture Dom is with his wonderful teacher, Mariann. We adore her!

Some highlights I want to remember

These kids crack me up.
Felix keeps dashing up the stairs. If I follow he laughs. If I do not follow he cries at the top. He does not know how to come down yet.

Amata: "Can I get a little help here?" She often climbs to a height or squeezes into a contraption that requires some assistance. So polite in her request!
"Hey there little buddy!" Her joyous greeting for Felix. "I am on it!" When I ask for help...even if there is no way she is the person for the job...like when Dom needs help on the monkey bars.

Dominick: "That book is too funny for me!" After laughing at a book from the library. "I love you forever." How he melts my heart.

cuter every day!

Felix is getting big....and fast. He dashes up the stairs anytime I turn my back. He is also very flirtatious, saying hey and giving big hugs and sloppy kisses to his friends and family. He is into everything and the reason I must keep these posts short...

Florida Fun

We went to Florida last month for a wonderful visit with Mimi and Boppa in their Sarasota condo. It was a blast. Dom loved the pool and demanded a visit each day. Fully clad in swimmies, a floating vest, a noodle, spf and full swim attire, we took the brood down to the lovely pool. We also visited a couple beaches with flour-like sand and found some great parks. We even saw an alligator at a little shopping village.We hope to make an annual voyage.

My little theologian

With the highest of Christian holidays upon us I have been taken a bit aback by my eldest son's borderline obsession with the whole crucifixion and resurrection story. He tells all the mom's at the co-op about it, acts it out with his Diego doll and makes us read the story in his rhyming Bible over and over. Here we are now in Florida with the Bible and Holy Diego left at home, Dominick persists, much to his grandmother's delight. Last night Dom pulled a chair over to the wall and took down Mimi's crucifix. "I took him down because he is not dead anymore, Mimi. He is alive now. He is risen."

Springing Ahead

We are having a lovely Spring. We are off to Florida for some sun then hope to return to plant a garden and possibly get kickin' with some pee wee soccer. The picture here was taken right around the time of the spring forward/daylight savings thing. Sleep has never been our strong suite, but these little shifts are no help. Between the 3 kids less than ideal sleep schedules and graduate school, mama has been quite the zombie as of late. Looking forward to some sleep in Florida and hopefully as the semester ends I will get a bit more rest. Look at them though....angels. They are well worth the mayhem.

feel the love

We had a fun Valentines. Mima was here to visit so Brian and I went to dinner and a movie while the kids watched the same curious george and dora over and over and ate their own weight in m and ms. While we were out on our date I felt like we were two kids with mad crushes on each other again. I wore this pink shirt that I was wearing the day we got engaged and the morning I took that first pregnancy test. Of course now I am older and trying to be sophisticated so I layered a black cashmere cardigan on top. Never mind it had embellishments of snot from little Fe. We returned to happy little people with the joyous realization that even in the mad throws of raising 3 little people, we are so in love. Happy Valentines to you all!

February is an improvement

We are having a great winter now that everyone is healthy. Amata spent a couple nights in the hospital in January with RSV. February is treating us much, much better. Mimi and Boppa came this weekend and Dom was so excited he could not wait. He awoke on Friday shouting, "Mimi and Boppa are coming today!" He went on to tell everyone we saw this news, explaining that these were his own names for his grandma and grandpa. At last he stated, "I think they are getting close....I can smell them!"