Pumpkin Patch Time!

It is pumpkin patch time again! This year was not nearly as muddy and cold as the past two years. Mommy brought plenty of wipes to the lower fields (where the pumpkins were) but didn't need them. I loved searching for the perfect 'little' pumpkin for me, da baby, and daddy.
Livi and me are ready for the wagon ride.

Here I am with one of my teachers, Ms. Kerry (and Livi). I super love Ms. Kerry.

pumpkins pumpkins...where are you...

This is a perfect pumpkin for my baby brother...he'll super love it.

Mommy, Me, Ms. Misty and Livi are silly.

I really liked playing in the corn box (like a sand box but filled with dry corn kernels).

Saying our prayers before snack time.

Halloween Treats! - update

So we got a visit from the present truck today. Nana and Dziadzia sent us some Halloween treats! We got cool cards (which are currently on our nightstand), marshmallows sandwiches, gummy tarantulas, eyeball gumballs, and gummy brains. You haven't heard anything until you've heard Abby say "Mommy, I want some brains!"

Thank you Nana and Dziadzia - you always get us the coolest stuffs!


ps - Thank you Penny for my very pretty purple ribbon. Abby LOVES it and wears it all the time!

Smile!

While we were in South Carolina I decided to take the kids to the local Picture People to have some pictures taken. I haven't had very good success with our local Picture People locations in Oregon...actually had a couple down right bad experiences. This time, however, we had a great time! The girl who took the pictures was very good at relating to the kids and listening to me. We were in the front window of the store and I had many shoppers stop in to compliment me on how beautiful the kids are and how well behaved they are. Poor Michael though, in the middle of the session he became kind of listless and I discovered he had a fever. He was a trooper but we didn't get as many pictures of him as I wanted. Abby on the other hand was a total ham and LOVED posing for the camera...as you can see the camera loved her right back. So I highly recommend the Picture People at Haywood Mall, Greenville, SC.

<-This picture cracks me up! She looks so much like my sister Kristen here it's scary! (for those who don't know Kristen is adopted).

**please remember that these pictures do not belong to me, they are the property of Picture People. Please do not duplicate them.

Dishwasher...I Haz It!

So we have been without a dishwasher since March...and it has NOT been fun. Well we got our new one and Ben installed it (by himself!) today. I'm so proud of him!!

Our old (14 year old) dishwasher

and now wait for it...

...

Our brand new intigrated dishwasher!

Say it with me everybody: "Ahhhhh...Oooooooo!"

it might be the happiest day of my life!

we also have brand new flooring and hopefully a new fridge to come!

Michael's First Day of Kindergarten!

I started Kindergarten today! The kindergarten has a stagger start where half the class goes on one day and then the other half goes the second day and then the whole class meets the third day. It was kind of hard to watch all the other kids go to school and have to wait my turn but it was all worth it at the end. I've come a far way since my first day of preschool.

Got my essentials...a Notre Dame backpack!

Here I am in front of my school. Daddy drops me off everyday. This is actually the same school my mommy went to for K-5...my classroom was her 1st grade classroom...weird! I'm also very excited that my Aunt Fessy is my music teacher...although my teacher told me I have to call her Mrs. McCormick.

Hanging up my backpack.

My teacher, Mrs. Davis, showed me how to take my name (on a fish) and put it in the "Here Today" pocket.

Here I am at my table. There are three other kids who sit at my table. This is where I'll learn a lot of stuffs!

Mommy and me at my table...she didn't cry at all...but we did see some very wet eyes on some other mommy's.

Here is Abby waiting for me to get out of school.

Abby is really into shadows...she asked Mommy to take a picture of their shadows stuck together.

It was a great first day and I wasn't overwhelmed at all! :)

GO IRISH!

Ready for Notre Dame Football! GO IRISH!

...maybe next week I can get Abby to wear the mini-replica ND outfit....

Michael has issues looking at the camera...I hate it! :\

Abby's First Day of School!

On September 4th Abby started her first day (this year) of preschool. She is in the 3 year old class and actually has the same teacher as last year (which really pleased her). Thank you Nana for the pretty clothes!

Michael doesn't start school until next week so he got to stay home with Mommy...they went out for pancakes.

Here I am in front of my school with the book I brought to share that day.

This is me with my best friend Olivia (Livi). She is in my class this year. She comes over to play at our house twice a week while her mommy works. Her big brother, Landon, is in Michael's class too!

The first thing we do at school is wash our hands. I'm not scowling here, Mommy just caught me as I turned around and before I could smile. I super like school!

Joshman!

This is our friend Josh (his daddy and our daddy were roommates at Notre Dame). Josh hasn't been feeling very well and the doctors found that Josh has a Wilms' Tumor in his kidney that has spread to his lungs. He is having surgery today to take out his kidney and the big mean tumor and install a port for chemo (to treat the lung tumors). Josh is a very strong, brave boy! We are praying lots that his surgery is successful and that he'll be back to distroying things very soon!

"Cool people only need one kidney!" - Josh

You can get further updates here.

Cousins!

This is my cousin Jack (Uncle Paul and Aunt Susan's boy - he's 3). I like Jack - he is a lot of fun. He came down to visit because Grandma and Grandpa had a BIG party for Uncle Jim. Uncle Jim was leaving to spend the next 5 years studying Theology in Rome (like Uncle John did WAY before I was born). We won't see Uncle Jim for 2 years...we will miss him a lot...especially Jack...it is no secret that Jack LOVES Uncle Jim.

Climbing Abby

This is from May but Mommy thought you'd like it anyways. This is the climbing gym at Grandma and Grandpa's house. I like it a lot...except when there are bugs...I super don't like bugs.

Warners or bust!

At the end of July we loaded up the minivan at 3am and started heading south...to Warner's Hot Springs, California for our annual family reunion. We took two days to get there. The kids did great...we had a portable DVD player but never needed to use it. The kids kept themselves entertained and were model passengers. We did learn that Michael gets carsick - at the end of the Sisqu's he said his mouth felt funny and then threw up on himself. He only got himself and his car seat so we got him cleaned up and laid towels all over his booster and continued on our way. Fortunately our hotel had a laundry room where I could wash everything that night. We had the same cabin at Warners that we had last year and this year cousin Rachel stayed with us. Great Uncle Bob has all the pool pictures...for some reason I didn't take any. He does have a very funny one of all the nieces and nephew playing tug o' war with Ben in the pool - if I can get a hold of it I'll post it. The kids did great in the pool and loved playing with their cousins. I did not get into the pool. My eczema was flaring up and I can't take my medicine when I'm pregnant so it was too painful for me to get in the water. The kids got to go on pony rides...they LOVED that. There was also a barn cat that would chase pine cones...that was actually more fun for the kids than the pony rides. My cousin, Julie and her family came as well and she brought a bunch of craft stuff for the kids to do. We LOVE our time at Warners and look forward to going back next year.

and ZaBaby is...

We are very excited to announce that we are going to have another boy!

Michael is beside himself that he is going to have a little brother...Abby is just excited to have a baby to take care of. The baby looked wonderful and I'll post a couple ultrasound pictures this week (the tech was REALLY stingy with what she'd take a picture of).

I'm feeling much better and can really feel the baby move now. That is my favorite part of pregnancy - I love feeling the all movement and kicks!

VOTE FOR ZaBABY!

So the BIG ultrasound (3D baby!) is scheduled for July 28 (next Monday). If ZaBaby cooperates we will find out if he is a boy or she is a girl...then Ben and I can argue all the way to Southern California over names...it could be a blood bath....I'm just saying.

So if you are so inclined you may vote on if you think it is a boy or a girl. Look to the right of the page...under my twitters.

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For those of you who don't see me day to day and haven't had the pleasure of talking to my despondent self on the phone...I still feel crappy. I'm not throwing up anymore but GOOD LORD! You'd think by the 3rd pregnancy my body would say "Oh yeah...I know what this is all about...I won't make Mary a tired, cranky, pukey mess this time." *sigh*



ps - I'm behind - I know this and it is on my 20 item 'To Do' list - right after 'Find flooring for kitchen so we can get the new dishwasher installed...and oh yeah...order said dishwasher!'
I have last day of school pictures...Misc summer pictures...South Carolina pictures (where we learned that Abby is a water baby)...Michael's 5th birthday party pictures...and I'm sure others that are on the camera that I've forgotten I took. I also have some video to post...if I could find the power cable that goes to that camera. Don't ask my husband...he's made his feelings on that matter known.

What do you want from me!!! I'm incubating over here and I haven't had a dishwasher in 4 months!

Baby Clare

When we got home from Nana and Dziadzia's Aunt Amanda brought baby Clare out to Oregon for a visit. We super love baby Clare!

I was very interested in playing with baby Clare - I am ready to be a big brother again. I'm very good with babies!