Last August...

Okay, so it's a little weird to be revisiting Amelia's 5th birthday and Ramona's 3rd birthday (among other things) as we begin planning for their 6th and 4th birthdays, but this is where I left off last year, so... here you go.

August is birthday month for 80% of our family, and so around here August means lots of cake, lots of special breakfasts, lots of candles, and lots of fun.  (So glad that August is just around the corner again!)  Chad is first in the birthday line-up.  We went (candlepin) bowling for his birthday, followed by a picnic at the Monument and cake at home. 

Yes, Ramona likes her carbs; yes, it is kind of difficult to bowl with a toddler on your hip; and yes, Louisa may not enjoy being called "Thing 3".

Ramona's birthday is next.  This child loves cinnamon rolls more than almost any other food, so that's what she picked for breakfast.  (The whipped cream made it fancy.)  Presents took quite a while to get through because she was so enamored with the barn set that Chad and I had gotten her (thank you, IKEA)!  The prospect of cupcakes encouraged her to move along...

Ramona is THREEEEEEEEEE!

Lest you think that I am exaggerating about her lack of desire to open more presents following the barn, here is some video proof...

I know, she's weird.

In between the girls' birthdays, we threw them at joint party at a nearby farm.  The party included a bounce house, a hayride, blueberry picking (with each kiddo taking home a pint of blueberries), and plenty of cake.  It seemed to be a hit, and I would highly recommend it if you're looking for a kids' party idea.  Such a fun theme to work with.

My birthday girls!

I was surprised how excited all of the kids were about picking blueberries... And Ramona still talks about that hayride!

Amelia's birthday followed the party.  By that point, I think we were all a little caked-out, so we celebrated her actual birthday with pancakes and mango for breakfast, and ice cream and strawberries for dessert.  Also, Amelia loves having her nails painted (and anything girly like that), so the evening before her birthday, my mom and I surprised her with a trip to a nail salon for her first real manicure.  At first, Amelia refused, saying that she wanted ME to paint them instead... (Kids!)  After watching for a while, though, she relented and ended up with glittery fuchsia fingernails. 

Five going on fifteen

My birthday finally rolls around at the end of the month.  Unsurprisingly, since I'm usually the one behind the camera, the only picture I have is this one from my phone:

Louisa and me, sharing my new scarf from Lindsey and Grant

But don't worry, Chad definitely made me a cherry pie, and it was delicious.  You'll just have to take my word for it. 

August also included a visit from my mom at the beginning of the month and a visit from my brother at the end.  Here were the highlights:

At the movies with Nonna!

No visit from Nonna would be complete without a trip to the Common

At the beach in York, ME with Uncle Grant, playing in the waves and exploring the tide pools

Sandy baby feet

Post-beach lunch.  And ice cream.  And taffy!



They love their Uncle Grant.

I'm Back!

That's right. 

After nearly nine months, I am reentering the world of blogging. 

Whyever did I leave it in the first place, you ask?  It was not really a conscious decision, but there were a number of factors contributing to my absence, including:

1. Work

You may recall that I began a new job in May of 2013.  As it goes with new jobs, I was busy getting myself established and found myself with less time to chronicle this little life of ours than I had previously.  You may recall that, when last I posted (in September of last year), I was already a couple of months behind...

2. The Absence of Work

As most if not all of you probably know already, that small pharma company that I moved to last spring ran into some difficulties with the FDA over the labeling for its only marketed product.  As a result, 40% of the company ended up getting laid off, and unfortunately, I was included in that 40%.  At first, I was hopeful that I might be reemployed by the end of the year, but as the weeks turned into months, I became more defeated and more withdrawn.  My sincerest apologies to those of you whose emails and phone calls failed to elicit a reply from me, but there were only so many times that I could cheerily issue my "nothing to report yet" message... And I very much wanted to remain upbeat about the situation, at least outwardly, especially for the girls' sake.  Little kids are so susceptible to our moods, and I wanted to minimize the impact of my unemployment on them.  Plus, I really just didn't want to come off as a whiner!  :)  In retrospect, I probably could have benefitted from the additional emotional support that I'm sure I would have received had I been more transparent about our situation, but hey.  Hindsight's 20/20.  And Chad -- and the girls -- really did a stellar job of maintaining my spirits the vast majority of the time.      

3. Instagram

I love Instagram.  I really do.  It's by far my favorite, most frequently used app.  However... Instagram has allowed me to become very lazy with my "real" photos.  In fact, just yesterday I uploaded pictures from my camera for the first time since September.  And it's hard to post a blog entry without any photos.  (I think) I'm a decent writer, but I don't even try to pretend that anyone visits this blog for my wit or my word choice.  I know you're all here to see pictures of the girls!  So wish me luck as I resolve to get up to date on our family photos.  I'm pretty good about deleting outtakes as I snap, but there still are nearly 2000 new photos on our computer now, ready for reviewing and editing.  Yikes.      

4. Inertia

Once I got out of the habit of blogging, it was just easier not to blog, you know?  And after a few months, the thought of trying to catch up was so intimidating that I actually considered removing Blogger from my browser's home pages.  (I never did actually remove it.  Instead, I would just quickly navigate to something else or close the window.)  :)  I was stressed enough; I didn't want to add the pressure of charmingly catching up all (half a dozen?) of my loyal readers on our goings-on. 


So why am I back on here, then?

Well, as the girls wrap up their school years, I am ashamed that I have not attempted to document them better.  One of the reasons that I started this blog in the first place was so they would have something to look back on someday, for a glimpse into life as it was happening instead of as it has been remembered.  I really want to make more of an effort to keep track of who they are as they grow... because it's happening so quickly!  

I also -- FINALLY -- have happy news on the work front.  On Monday, I reentered the ranks of the employed!  I got an amazing job with a great pharma company just a mile and a half away from our house.  And, knock on wood, I think it will be a really good fit for me. 

So I am expecting a very busy summer, between a new job for me and no school for the girls, but I am going to do my best to catch up on the last nine months, posting pictures if not narrative, and to keep this (relatively) up to date after that.

Seriously.

Wish me luck.  :)

Oh, and because I know what you really want are pictures of the girls... Here are a few from the last nine months, some more recent than others!

See you soon.

July

A quick, very belated summary of July:

We spent the Fourth like we normally do -- taking in some of our rich local history!  This year we watched the Constitution turn around and spent some time at the ship's museum in the Navy Yard. 

We managed to catch her sailing out into the harbor and back in!  Love the 13-star flag and the fireboats.  And the girls are covering their ears in the bottom left shot because the 21 gun/cannon salute was too loud!  :)

Caulking boards for the deck of a ship, getting tattooed, and posing by the model of ol' Ironsides

Some friends with a roofdeck invited us over to watch the fireworks, and so we headed over there are it began to get dark.  We had a great time: beer, cupcakes, a great view, and wonderful company (for us and the girls). 

Best shots I could manage of the fireworks

Kiddos watching the fireworks!

 

Want a project that is relatively cheap and keeps your kids (and cats) entertained for HOURS on end?  Order some butterflies!  We did this last year, and it was such a hit that we tried it again this summer.  They arrive as caterpillars in jars, which our girls can sit and watch for unbelievable lengths of time.  After about a week, they spin themselves into chrysalises, which an adult must then pin into a mesh cage.  After about another week, they emerge as butterflies and are good for about another week of entertainment before they have to be set free.  Really a pretty neat science experiment for kids. 

Butterfly release!

I didn't catch the butterfly in this shot, but you can tell I just missed it from Amelia's body language and Chad's face...

In mid-July, Amelia and Ramona went on vacation with my mom -- but without the rest of us!  They spent about 10 days in Lyons, visiting with my extended family, swimming, crafting, and basically having a great time.  And Chad and I spent a week and a half parenting only one of our girls -- and wondering how on earth we ever thought that life was complicated with one!  The house was entirely too quiet. 

On the second Friday after my mom took the girls, Chad and Louisa picked me up and work and we drove over to Lyons ourselves for a long weekend of catching up with my grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.

No summer weekend in Lyons is complete without some fried dough at the Farmers Market on Saturday morning!

Amish buggy

We spent Saturday at my grandparents' house with my dad's side of the family, swimming and eating and relaxing and basically reliving many a summer afternoon from my childhood.  Two of my cousins have kids of their own -- Mason is two and a half and Coleton is two and a quarter -- and the girls are old enough to remember them now, if not quite old enough to be interested in playing with them... Maybe next time.  :)

Kiddos each doing their own thing at Great Gram and Great Pa's house

Pool time!

We had to take advantage of the opportunity to get a photo of all five of the second cousins by the corn, so reminiscent of photos of my cousins, my brother, and me 25+ years ago... But getting a decent shot of five kids under age five (in the afternoon when no one has really napped)?  Good luck to us!    

Outtakes.

Best photo we could get!  Coleton, Mason, Louisa, Ramona, and Amelia



This was my favorite, even though Louisa chose not to appear.





We spent most of Sunday at my aunt and uncle's house with my mom's side of the family.  Kid activities for the day included bug catching, golf cart rides, sidewalk chalk, playing with toys retrieved from storage, and even a bounce house!  Adult activities included drinking beer, eating, playing basketball, shooting pool, and lounging in the hammock.  

 

Not bad, right?

 

Weekends like that make me glad that we live close enough to Lyons that we can drive over for a long weekend, but also make me wish that we could make the trip more often.

 

Who doesn't love a bounce house?

Just a summer Sunday...

 

Drawing dresses (with long skirts and poufy sleeves) and writing her name

14 months old at the end of July

Fascinated by the katydid

 

On Monday, we took the girls out to lunch with my mom and Grandma Anne, and then to the movies (Despicable Me 2 -- hilarious).  All three girls fell asleep on the way back to Grandma Anne's and since they hadn't taken naps all weekend, we decided to take a drive... Perfect excuse to take some photos of upstate NY barns.  And to detour past the farm where Grandma Anne used to live, where my mom and her siblings grew up, where we spent countless hours catching frogs and running around the yard as kids.  (I still miss it.)

 

Barns, silos, clouds, corn, and Queen Anne's Lace

 

Love it.

The farm

On Tuesday, we headed back to Boston...  So long, Lyons!

 

Take Five

As I begin to type this, it's 9:57 PM, on August 23rd.

Amelia was born at this very minute, exactly five years ago.  Her arrival into this world was not what one would call "smooth"...

After nearly 30 hours of labor, I was exhausted, had a fever and a high white blood cell count, and was stuck at 8 cm, despite having my Pitocin cranked way up.  As a result, around 9:30, I was wheeled back into the OR for a C-section. 

I'm pretty fuzzy on the events immediately preceding Amelia's birth.  I don't really remember getting back to the OR or all of the prep work that, after two subsequent C-sections, I know took place.  Like I said, I was tired and sick.  I do remember the odd sensation of her being pulled out, though -- lots of pressure and tugging but no pain.  And I remember throwing up afterwards...  I definitely remember Chad bringing my baby girl over for me to see (FINALLY) while I was being stitched up, and marveling at her tiny fingers and perfect nose while we (okay, I) named her -- Amelia Anne.  And I will never forget holding her for the first time, her solid warmth and her sweet baby smell, after getting back to my labor and delivery room. 

Just two days old...

 Has it really been five years?

Amelia assures me that, yes, she really IS five years old.  In some ways, it's hard to believe that it's been that long.  And yet, it's often hard to remember what our life was like before our oldest arrived! 

...And about two weeks before her fifth birthday!

So happy FIFTH birthday to Amelia, our independent, helpful, talkative, very tall, skinny, brave, clever, sometimes shy, giggly, occasionally sassy, (almost) always sweet, big/little girl. 

Here's hoping that this year brings fewer surprise challenges than last year... like, maybe no surgeries?  :) 

No matter what, we love you so much, Amelia!

One, two... THREE!

I promise to get back to our summer soon, but before I backtrack through July, allow me to jump ahead to the present momentarily... Because tomorrow (which actually arrives in half an hour) Ramona will be three years old!  That's right, my middle child, my mini me, is turning THREE.

Ramona at three DAYS old...

Having been through age three with one kiddo already, I am somewhat wary of what this year will bring... Terrible twos?  Nah, three is so much worse!  Precocious child that she is, Ramona seems to have hit this difficult phase a couple of months early: more fit-throwing, more defiance, more just plain disagreeable-ness (if that's a word).  On the other hand, age three is also bringing more independence, more reasoning, and more active imagining.

And Ramona really is such a fun little girl.  She's goofy and generous and loving and creative, and I can't wait to see how she grows and changes over the next year.

...and at about a week shy of three YEARS old.  How time flies!

 

Happy birthday, Ramona Florence!  We love you oh so very much.  (Even when you're sobbing that you don't want to go to bed because you're just NOT tired...) 

How Did It Get So Late So Soon? (The Rest of June)

The above poem by the good doctor captures exactly how I feel about this summer so far.  I can't believe that it's already August!  That means birthdays are around the corner, the days are getting shorter, and Amelia and Ramona will be back in school in just over a month...  I really wish time would slow down just a little bit.  I also wish that I could catch this poor blog back up to the present!  In order to do so, I am going to have to include a couple of miscellany posts.

So here's the rest of our June!

A couple of weeks after school let out for the summer, the girls' swim classes ended, as well.  (The Y actually runs a summer session now, which it didn't in previous years, but we find it better not to commit to -- and pay for -- things like that on summer weekends.)  I got quite a few pictures of our little fish during one of the last classes.

Loving swim class at the Y!

Amelia hit a major milestone during this session: She can REALLY swim!  All on her own, without any flotation devices.  SO proud of her. 

Louisa's first session of swim lessons started out a little on the shaky side, but ended in success! 

Another fun thing we did in June was spend a day at Six Flags New England, courtesy of my office.  You'd think that we would have been theme-parked-out after four days at Disney and one at Universal just a week earlier, but we were game for one more day of long lines and kiddie rides.  Turns out, we didn't really have to contend with the former!  Lines were extremely short to non-existent, which was a welcome change.  The girls had a blast.

Amelia and Ramona rode on the skyway, in a "hot air balloon," in cars, in teacups, in a boat... and Louisa rode in the stroller!

In addition to the rides, we also got to meet a few characters.  That part was a little anti-climactic for the girls, especially compared to Disney, since they had NO idea who the Looney Tunes characters were.  But they wanted to see them, anyway!  No fear of people in mascot-type costumes for our kids.

Meeting Tweety, Sylvester, and Bugs (after I explained who they were... )

The middle of the month brought one of my favorite days of the year: Bunker Hill Day.

Not every town gets to celebrate its own personal holiday, but Charlestown does!  To commemorate the Battle of Bunker Hill (which, yes, actually took place on Breed's Hill), the town runs a road race in the morning of the Sunday following June 17 (which is actual Bunker Hill Day), and then holds a parade in afternoon. 

We typically watch the parade down on Bunker Hill Street, and then walk a block up and watch the whole thing again as it turns onto Bartlett.  When you live a stone's throw away, why not, right?  My favorites are always the fife and drum corps and the bagpipers.  So very Boston/Charlestown!

Does YOUR hometown have its own holiday and parade?  So grateful that ours does!

June also included a couple of birthday parties for Amelia's buddies: One at a local park with a soccer class and another at Jump On In, a nearby "inflatable playground."  The girls had a great time at both!


Birthday party fun was had by all!

Chad took the girls strawberry-picking at the end of the month.  I was sad to miss it this year, but we just couldn't squeeze it in on the weekend, so it was either have Chad and the girls go without me or skip strawberry season altogether!  I still got to enjoy multiple servings of strawberry shortcake, so I'd say it was the right decision.  

Did they eat more than they brought home?  Maybe...

 Throw in a rainbow and a bathtub photo shoot, and that was our June!

Gorgeous rainbow over the Monument and a cute little belly

Next up: July!

Preschool Graduation!

At the beginning of June, Amelia "graduated" from preschool. 

Is it really necessary to have a ceremony to celebrate moving from preschool to kindergarten, complete with caps and gowns?  Probably not...  But it certainly was darn cute!  Each of the four classes at the girls' school performed a song (which they had been practicing for months), and the kids were all so proud of themselves.  Really, super cute. 

See for yourself!

Amelia's class getting ready

Ramona and the rest of the Manatee Class

Ramona's class sang "This is the Day."  She's a bit difficult to find in the video, as she was standing a little bit behind a friend of hers.  She's the one holding Mandy, the (stuffed) class mascot! 

There!  She finally saw us!  :)

Our little neighbor wasn't terribly impressed with one of the songs... I won't tell you which one.

After the other classes were finished with their songs, Amelia's got to "march" up to their seats on the stage.  Just a little pomp and circumstance

We have NO idea what possessed Amelia to cross her legs in such a ladylike manner!  Very uncharacteristic of her...

Amelia's class singing

Seriously, how cute are they?!

Amelia's class sang "Seasons of Love."  (Because what Catholic preschool doesn't want to include a song from the musical Rent in its graduation ceremony?)  Seriously, though, they did a great job.  I was very impressed that they learned multiple verses of a song with a lot of words, and just about died when they put their arms around each other toward the end... So sweet!

The Sea Turtle class with Miss Sarah and Miss Jessica

Our little preschool graduate!

Just a few of Amelia's buddies.  Preschoolers are so funny!

After the ceremony, the school threw a celebratory lunch party for all of the kiddos.  One last chance to run around with their friends and thank their teachers before the beginning of summer vacation! 

Hugs for Miss Nicole and Miss Jessica

From Amelia's classroom.  The best answers to the favorite part of school question are definitely Emma's and Colin's.

 

Amelia just loved Miss Sarah and Miss Jessica, and will miss them so much next year when she's in KINDERGARTEN!

 

We're so glad that Ramona will be back at Good Shepherd for preschool again next year, and hope that we're in the neighborhood long enough for Louisa to attend this wonderful school, too!