Let the Summer Begin!!!!!

The girls had finished preschool in the middle of May, but we were waiting to really celebrate the beginning of summer for when everyone was finished with school.  So, Sam finished the First Grade (can't even believe it, the first grade is over and done with!) on June 6th and we took the traditional last day of school pictures, just as I had with the girls a couple weeks before and headed off to school for the last time as a first grader.  And next year Anna will join him at the "Big School" too!  Sam was disappointed that I could not pick him up from school on the last day.  It was a half day and I had just taken off two days before to help with Sam's first grade picnic.  I was disappointed that I couldn't be there too, and boy does that boy know how to make hsi mommy feel guilty.  I had arranged for his good friend, Cole's mom to pick him up and take him home where the nanny and his siblings were because I thought it would be fun for him.  I also made a huge sign that said, "Welcome to Summer" for the nanny to hang on the front porch to welcome Sam home to officially start summer.  All morning I felt so bad that I couldn't be there.  I couldn't concentrate.  I was really going to regret not being there.  So I left work early and headed over to the dollar store to buy fun little "welcome to summer" trinkets for all the kids.  Of course I took a little longer picking out some special gifts and was running late to pick Sam up.  I rushed over to Ella Street, parked the car, took off my shoes and started sprinting in the rain to the school.  Luckily, I made it before Sam came out of the building and was able to surprise him.  He looked so happy that I was there, and I was so happy that I had went.  Afterall, these precious moments you don't get back and way more important than anything I would have done at work that afternoon.  The kids were thrilled with their summer gifts and were excited to learn of what special treat Greg and I had prepared for them to celebrate.  We attempted to go out to dinner, to Max and Erma's.  They had a difficult time staying in their seats.  Sam did awesome but the girsl and Andrew were just not there just yet.  When we went home we unveiled the "candy cake."  The kids deem this cake the best cake ever.  It was a chocolate cake with chocolate icing, kit kat bars the whole way around it with M&Ms and crushed up peanut butter cups on top.  They LOVED it!  Most importantly, we celebrated them and all that they had accomplished thsi school year and how much they have all grown.  We are just so proud of their accomplishments and can't wait to see what the next school year brings!  Welcome to Summer!!!!

Andrew's very first Birthday

Like I said, I was not very happy about having a baby around Christmas time when I found out that Andrew was due January 2nd, but having Andrew right after Christmas made the Christmas season even more special and magical to all of us.  Just like all the other kids, Andrew took his first steps a couple days before his birthday, maybe even Christmas Eve to be exact, but this child refuses to walk all the time by himself!  He will take 5-6 steps and then sit down and crawl.  Now he is an excellent crawler, he has been crawling since he was 5 months old, he should be!  But baby boy, it is time to start taking those steps.  He surely has not wasted anytime figuring out how to climb.  The boy is definitely a climber if I ever did see one!  His newest trick is to stand on the handle to the bottom oven and do pull ups with the other handle to the top oven!  Very dangerous.  I'm pretty sure I have also seen him trying to put his leg over his crib also.  Anyway, Andrew's first birthday.  Greg was also off so we took everyone to Lilliput Town to play.  Not really for Andrew but we were to toys 2 try the month before for Thanksgiving break and Sam had been asking to go to Lilliput for awhile now.  Andrew enjoyed it too.  That evening we sang happy birthday and let him have a little smash cake.  The kid grabbed on to the cake with both hands on the sides and put his face in it and tried to eat it like a dog!  It was so cute and very typical of his personality.  The next day we had an Arctic polar bear themed first birthday party for Andrew.  I was really disappointed that a lot of people could not come with traveling for Christmas, but the family was mostly there and that made it very intimate and special.  The kids loved the hot chocolate bar, I'm pretty sure the adults did too!  Andrew loved his cake, again, poor thing is going to get a belly ache with all this cake!  He opened all his presents like a pro.  I guess there are advantages to being a Christmas baby!  And now we have a one year old, again! 

The BEST Christmas EVER!

So, I know it has been nearly a year since I have written, but really being a mommy to four young children and working full time, not to mention I need to be a wife at sometime also, throw in there trying to get back to being myself by going to the gym and it really does not leave much time left!  But, I really would love for my children to have a wonderful story to look back on their childhood memories all collected in one place for them, so I am going to try do my very best to write more often.  Christmas 2012, truly was the BEST Christmas EVER!!!!  The whole month of December seemed to have a magic about it.  Getting ready for Christmas, doing all the fun things that we do as a family and with friends to prepare for and celebrate Christmas and also preparing for Andrew's first birthday made it such a magically time.  Having a baby at Christmas time was something that I never would have planned, but I must say there is something about it that just adds to the season and now it is such an even more special time of year for us, for all of us as a family!

Our Christmas season started with Light up night in uptown Mt. Lebanon.  We took a horse and carriage ride and watched the dancers as they lite the tree.  Then it was time to sit on Santa's lap.  This year all three of the older kids, Sam, Anna, and Sydney all sat on Santa's lap and gladly told him their requests for Christmas.  We tried to have Mrs. Claus hold Andrew, but he was not excited about that and cried, so I quickly took him and yet again I was holding a child in the Santa picture.  That is okay, one day I know it will just be the kids :) 

We have created some really wonderful Christmas family traditions that truly make Christmas special to us.  The first Saturday of December we always take a ride to Hozak Farms to ride the tractor out to the Christmas tree farm to pick the perfect Christmas tree to cut down.  We actually were in line in front of Dr. Peske, the doctor that delivered Andrew almost one year prior to that!  It was such a fun memory to add to Andrew's first Christmas tree cutting experience at Hozak's!  We always go back to the barn and get hot chocolate and cookies and also maybe a hot dog or two.  Of course I have to take each kids picture with the growing up at Hozak's growth chart too!  Once we get home, it is decorating day!  All day long we are putting up lights, moving furniture, hanging stockings, putting up and decorating the kids tree, etc.  That evening we have pizza night and bake chocolate chip cookies to eat as we decorate the big family tree in the living room.  It truly is a LONG but very fun and exciting day for all of us!  Sadly, Greg's train makes it out but always needs to be put up since the kids are not quit old enough to refrain from wanting to play with it.  Again, some day we will be able to keep it out and running, but that would mean that they are older, so I am just fine with the train being put up for now!

Another very fun family tradition is going on the Polar Express train to the north pole to visit Santa!  We have tried various train stations to get to the north pole over the years starting when Sam turned 2.  This year we traveled to Medina NY, and of course there was no snow!  When does Buffalo never have any snow in December?!?!  But we had such a wonderful time even if there was no snow on the ground.  Seeing the amazement in the kids eyes makes it all worthwhile.  I have some wonderful pictures of Andrew standing on the train seat looking at Santa who is squatting down beside him looking at him.  Of course Andrew stared for a couple seconds and got down on the seat and tried to quickly crawl away.  It was a very sweet memorable moment from Andrew's first Polar Express ride!  Our family is now so big that we cannot all sit together, but can sit across from each other, ha ha!  The kids loved having hot chocolate and cookies and signing carols while waiting to reach the north pole.  It is always so great to see their little faces pressed against the train windows peering out at the north pole as Santa waves to them.  Such a magical feel.  Sam really listened to the story as it was read and the kids were all very excited to see and talk to Santa again, although the sugar from the hot chocolate and cookies were starting to set in!

We all went to Cookies with Santa at the girls preschool.  The kids of course love eating cookies and milk, doing crafts, and seeing Santa (again!)  Hey you have to get those last minute requests in!  Sam was excited to see some of his old Southminster friends that have younger siblings.

I think what made this Christmas so special was the amount of time I was able to spend with my family without having to think about work.  My company is closed from the Friday before Christmas until Jan. 2nd every year!  So for the first time I was not working form home during the holidays and was able to really focus and provide the kids with my undivided attention and love without work interfering.  I was able to help with Anna's holiday party at school this year.  And I also helped with Sam's holiday party at school.  Both kids were so excited to have mom help with their parties and just be there.  The weekend before Christmas we baked and baked and backed with the kids!  Sometimes it is a little stressful trying to back with 3 kids up on the counter, because they love to not sit on chairs, but I have to remind myself that these are the memorable moments that won't last forever. 

Christmas eve we went to Southminster's children's service at 5pm.  We just happened to sit in front of Pastor Dan's family.  Heather is one of Anna's church school teachers and also pastor Dan's daughter.  Heather took both girls, of course all dressed in their puffy, sparkly Christmas dresses to sit with her.  Sam sat like an angel next to me the entire time while Andrew had a little difficulty being held the whole time since he is such a mover and shaker these days.  The girls went to sit upfront while the pageant was going on, and of course they moved back and forth from Ms. Heather to mommy and daddy quit a bit.  But overall church was SUCH an enjoyable experience and we so blessed to have found such an amazing community and family to be a part of within Southminster.  It takes a village, is all I kept thinking that whole night!
After church we had out traditional dinner of rigatoni, sausage, and peppers and onions.  Everyone drank out of fancy glasses and we even allowed the kids to have Sprite for the first time.  Everyone was just SO happy, a genuine feel of happiness was felt from everyone that evening.  It made me so proud and thankful for my family and so happy that Greg and I have made and built such a wonderful life not for ourselves but also for our children.  Everyone was "cheers, cheers" each other with our special glasses!  Very fun night!
After dinner we allowed the kids to open gifts from mommy and daddy and each other and it was quickly time to pick out cookies for Santa and put the reindeer food outside!  Sam was so excited this year that he had difficulty going to and staying asleep.  He was up at 12, 3 and up for good by 6am!  How do you tell the kid you have to wait until your siblings wake up?!?! so we did the right thing and allowed him to wake them all up to see if Santa came!!!  The kids riped through their presents with excitement in record time!  There was wrapping paper covering the entire floor as Andrew crawled over all the paper.  Andrew was trying to open every one's gifts!  And so was Brady!  I had to take several gifts away from Brady because he was trying to open them and they weren't his!  After the kids opened their gifts, we made out cinnamon buns and had them with orange juice for breakfast.  The kids just played and played and played allllllllll day, such a great Christmas!  That evening we all piled into the car and drove around to look at Christmas lights as we listened to Christmas music, and probably Anna talking.  It is such a great way to get them out after being inside all day but also a great way to calm everyone down before bedtime.  And to think I still had another week of being home with the kids!!!!!