They said "heaven!"

 After a whale of a day with Michael and Nicholas, we headed a half an hour away from home to the groomer's to pick up Duncan.  That's always quite the ordeal for some reason: picking up the dog.  I can never seem to make it out the door in time to pick him up, it must be my subconscious working or something.  (Just kidding, of course!)  We managed to get to Duncan with ten minutes to spare.  

On the way home, I played a Christmas CD with the song "Silent Night".  Michael was listening intently and said, "MOM!  They just said HEAVEN, MOM! Baby Jesus lives in heaven, MOM!"  I got a little teary and answered back with a," Yes, he does, Michael!"  We talked a bit more about baby Jesus and why we celebrate Christmas, which was just so incredibly sweet.  

He then thought a bit more about the conversation and in an excited voice said, "

MOM!!  What do you think they do there?!  Who's with baby Jesus, MOM?!"  

The past few weeks have been really interesting with Michael and all this Christmas business.  He is completely intrigued by God and Jesus, and not so much by Santa.  The other night while saying a goodnight prayer, we asked God to help Michael B feel better since he has been so sick.  I explained to Michael that when we are sick, God can help make us better.  He really thought about what I was saying and asked, "Will He come see me tonight, Mom?"  I told him that God is with us all the time, when we are awake AND when we are sleeping.  Totally intrigued again

, he stated, "But, I can't see Him, Mom."  

I'm bracing myself for the Christmas Eve getting dressed in fancy clothes fight that will likely ensue.  So, we are going to explain to Michael over and over in the time being that we are dressing up for Jesus and his birthday party.  If it's for Jesus, I think he'll comply.  

Check out Mr. Nick--he's quite a flirt, isn't he???  : ) He is now ELEVEN weeks!!  And, the little rascal is sleeping through the night, which translates to uninterrupted sleep from 10:45pm to 6:00 am.  He refuses to sleep in his crib, so I'm giving him just a few more weeks in the bouncy seat.  Then it's to the crib he goes!!  Nicholas also rubs his eyes when he is tired,  those chubby wrists melt my heart.  

Falling Behind

Well, Christmas is how many days away?  I don't even know.  Christmas Eve is like next Wednesday, right? Most days I don't know the date, and sometimes I even lose track of the day of the week.  That's what an infant and a toddler will do to you, as well as a lack of sleep.  It goes without saying that lots of days we're barely keeping our heads above the water. So, to think about sending and signing 100 + Christmas cards, and shopping for family members, and baking; I begin to feel a tad bit overwhelmed!  It would help if I made a shopping list and made a list of goals to accomplish each day, but most days I'm lucky if I eat lunch.  Next year may not be easier, but we'll probably have this two kid thing down and we'll likely (hopefully!) be a bit more organized.  Maybe...

Even though we've been going a hundred miles a minute over the weekend, we've been doing a number of fun things with the babies.  On Saturday we took the boys Christmas shopping at the outlets and out to lunch with my parents.  Michael got his first pair of running shoes!  They are so incredibly cute, they even have laces.  : ) Saturday night Josh and I went to a very fun adult only Christmas party!  It felt great to get dressed up in pants that were waaaaay too tight and could have spilt at any moment.  Think of sausage all wrapped up in a pretty green jacket because that would describe my outfit for the party.  We had a wonderful time, thank you Cary and Melissa!  Michael and Nicholas spent the evening with Michael and Mary Jane.  Nicholas had his first bottle, which he sucked down quickly.  Three cheers for no nipple confusion!  Hip, Hip, Hooray!  

And now it's time to clean these floors before the boys wake up, so that I can sign Christmas cards until the wee hours of the morning.  Complaining aside, I do love the holidays! 

Thanksgiving Part II

On Friday and Saturday of last week we celebrated Thanksgiving with Josh's side of the family.  Genevieve, Joe, Laura, and Harvey made the long trek to visit with us and to enjoy Mary Jane's delicious meals.  (I think she should open a restaurant!)  Michael and Harvey bonded over Thomas the Train, even though their mothers didn't approve of all the television time. : ) We did manage to get them outside, though, so that we could take advantage of a beautiful afternoon at Granddad's park.  Michael really enjoyed this big swing in the picture above.  (I can't stand pushing him in it because it is so heavy.  He always wants to go HIGHER! and FASTER!)  Thankfully, his Granddad stepped up to the challenge.  Josh was just as thankful as me, it seems.  On Saturday morning there was a lovely article about Josh's mother, which was a wonderful surprise for Genevieve and Joe.  Check out the "Star" if you get a chance.  Josh is the cute baby, sitting on his beautiful mother's lap.  

Catching up is hard to do!

Happy Thanksgiving, Readers!  

We were so thankful for so much this year:

~The new life that God graced us with in October.

~The opportunity to spend all of Thanksgiving Day with ALL three of my brothers.  We laughed and laughed and laughed at the dinner table...

~Michael B and his contagious laughter and the pure joy that he felt in being with his family.      He honestly enjoyed every single minute of the Thanksgiving holiday.  

~To spend the day with my three living Grandparents and to watch them smother our babies with hugs and kisses.  

~My aunt and uncle and cousins came all the way from Ohio to hug and kiss on Mr. Nicholas.  Chris and Nicholas entertained Michael with the Leggo's and with a game of pool.  (Michael calls them "The Leggo Boys!" 

~For the love and laughter that filled my parents' home on Thursday.  

It could not have been a better Thanksgiving Day....

FYI:  There will be a Thanksgiving Part II post sometime soon to commemorate our holiday spent with the K-H side of the family. We've been busy running around!!

What a difference a week makes.

Yippeee!! The kiddos are finished with school and now there are only TWO days left of work until my Leave of Absence begins!! I'm not sure who is more excited: me or Josh. He says that now his mornings won't be so stressful because he won't have to participate in the morning rush activities. And, I agree completely. The mornings have got to be the most stressful part of the day. Josh frequently complains that I am the only person who can wake at five, and still manage to be on the cusp of arriving late to work everyday. (Michael and I have to be OUT the door at 7:10, or I'm definitely late.)

Father's Day was fabulous, absolutely fabulous. Michael did a complete 180 from last week, thank goodness. Mass was delightfully relaxing and peaceful. Josh joined us, which was the perfect Sunday for him to go to mass because Michael was so well behaved. We went on a shopping spree for Michael B. the rest of the day. According to Josh, Michael is in desperate need of new PJ's, clothes, and shoes. We headed to the outlets and found some suitable shoes and clothes for the little guy. I personally can't stand the shoes- I think they're ugly, but Michael fell in love as soon as he put them on his little feet. He proudly whispered to me, "They're grown up shoes, Mommy." Josh seems to like the shoes, too. (Oh well.) The Gymboree outlet had a great sale on tops and shorts: $4.99 / top or bottom, which was a decent deal. Not as good as my favorites, Target or Walmart, but the clothes are very cute and met Josh's high standards of dress. Josh's standards include: mesh shorts (with pockets) AND white t-shirts with sport themes. The best part of the day was the fact that Michael did not have one accident in his underwear! I'm always reluctant to take him out places without a pull-up, but he's made tremendous progress in the potty training department.

After shopping, we met my parents and grandparents at a restaurant to celebrate Father's Day and Grandma's birthday. Grandma Frances proudly turned 83 yesterday. Our dinner was delicious and Michael was very well behaved, considering all that we accomplished yesterday morning and afternoon.

This evening we celebrated Father's Day with Granddad Michael. Mary Jane prepared a delicious seafood meal, with the seafood that they brought back from the beach. Michael B really enjoyed the shrimp and cantaloupe. The rest of the evening was spent in the yard, enjoying the "fall-like" weather that the storms brought in this afternoon. We had a delightful evening and Michael nodded off quickly this even

ing, thanks to all of the time spend outside.

Tomorrow I have a doctor's appointment. I pray that I haven't gained eight pounds this month. Seriously. Last month was seven, the month before was six! I'm cringing thinking about that part. I can't wait to find out what the heart rate is this month and to find out how the baby is measuring. The baby and I are celebrating 24 weeks together today.

Totally Tired!

I think that I forgot how incredibly tiring pregnancy can be! Yesterday I met a good friend for a run, and as soon as I walked in the door I fell asleep on the couch. Michael and Mary Jane then (awesomely) showed up and whisked Michael B away to the park for a bit, and they even snuck in an ice cream trip. Meanwhile, Josh and I worked on organizing our closet, I packed more clothes away and did some rearranging. After we finished up with the closet, Michael came home with his grandparents and we visited outside for a bit. And, then it was time for lunch and a good, long nap for both Michael and me.

Josh has been complaining that me being tired is making him tired. He must be experiencing pregnancy symptoms, as well. Though, his waist line isn't getting much thicker! Maybe it's the lack of cooking that his wife does? Or, the chasing after the near three year old that he does in the evenings? Josh was so wonderful yesterday that he made sure the house stayed completely quiet just so that I could finish my nap. I'm so grateful for him, and for the time that he is spending with Michael right now. Thank goodness tax season is behind us for awhile, it sure is great to have him home all the time.

Our weekend was great: lots of naps, lots of strawberries (Michael and I picked a bunch on Friday afternoon at a local farm), and lots of time outside!

The pictures are of my Mother's Day gift from Josh and Michael. Ever since we bought this house, I have wanted to hang ferns from our front porch. Josh installed the necessary hooks on Mother's Day, while I ....SLEPT! (No wonder he's tired, he does all the work around here right now.) Anyway. In the short two/three weeks that the ferns have been hanging from the front porch, I have managed to kill three of the five. I should have just bought artificial ferns from Michael's. Today, in a valiant attempt to keep them alive, I put them on chains so that I could water them more easily than climbing up a stool every evening. I don't think you're supposed to climb while pregnant, right?

Enjoy the photos of the live ferns! Maybe dead fern pictures to come soon?

GRAND: It Is!!

Spring break is coming to an end, but what an end it has been!!

Here's a re-cap of the past three days:

Thursday was a great day. Josh, Michael, and I all had separate dinner/evening plans. Josh is playing in an "over 30" basketball league. All of his games are on Tues/Thurs evenings. His team won on Thursday night and he was even able to get out of bed without too much pain on Friday morning. Michael went with my parents and his Aunt Patty to dinner. From what I hear, he was well behaved and enjoyed the night away from his mom and dad. I had the best deal of all--dinner with my girlfriends. Carrie, Nikki, Amy, and I went out to one of our favorite restaurants. The meal was delicious, but just being able to spend some time with my dear friends was wonderful. They love me so much that they stood around with me to watch the end of the WVU/Xavier bball game.

Friday, Michael and I packed up and headed to Grandma Rose's house for the night. We got to her house just in time for lunch. We had a yummy meal with my Aunt Doris. After lunch, we went back to Grandma's house for a visit. My parents were along for the trip, as well, so I was able to take an incredibly long afternoon nap. Michael worked outside with my dad. He did not nap. : )

This morning, Michael and I played with the Lego's and cars at Grandma's house. We went out to lunch with Grandma. The meal was delicious and very fattening. : ( (I had a few too many fries, I'm afraid!!) Michael and I then headed home so that we could get to the park in time for the grand opening of the new playground!! Josh left work for a little bit so that he could be there for the grand opening, too. We enjoyed playing together for an hour or more as a family. (Michael is really missing his dad these days.)

Tomorrow will be a low-key-nap day, as we are back to school on Monday. Too bad. : )