The Cullinan Family

He's Home!!!

2012-02-06T21:21:00.005-05:00

I'm sorry that I'm so late in posting these - there have been extenuating circumstances. New camera, new computer, new file format and one very tired me. So at last here are the pictures from Brendan's homecoming!

The day he returned was a nice warm sunny day and we had to wait ALL DAY LONG for the ceremony. It was going to be at 10:45 pm and we were supposed to be there an hour and a half or so early so I actually put the girls to bed and then got them up at 9 to leave. They were so tired that I actually got Aoife changed into her dress without even waking her up!! We got to the hangar around 9:30 and sat with some friends who had saved us seats. Aoife promptly slipped and smashed her lip open on the bleachers - thankfully we were surrounded by moms so I had more than enough tissues to mop up the blood and somehow I managed not to get any on my dress or Aoife's dress! The plane was a little early and we headed outside to watch it land and to see if we could see Brendan get off the plane. It was dark and rainy but not that cold. The kids barely even complained - they were so excited to see Brendan! After the plane landed it took a few minutes for the stairs to be rolled over and for everyone to start deplaning. Brendan was one of the first ones to march by and we barely got to see him. We went back inside and waited at our seats for the soldiers to march in. The hangar doors opened and Brendan was in front! Aidan and Emmy saw him right off the bat and started jumping up and down and screaming but Aoife had a hard time finding him in all that camouflage! Once she did see him, she wanted to run down to him in the middle of the ceremony! After they marched in a few people spoke - honestly I couldn't tell you who spoke or what they said - and then they released the soldiers for 15 minutes of family time. After we got to see each other for a bit they had to get on buses and go turn in their weapons and get their bags. This took 1 1/2 hours and by the time we got home it was almost 2 am. The kids went right to bed and slept in a bit in the morning. Thankfully Brendan didn't have to go to reintegration since he had gotten in so late so we kept the kids home from school and spent a whole day together!!! It was perfect!

Waiting out in the rain for the plane:
There it is!!Brendan's right in the middle:Opening the hangar doors!
There they are!!!Together again!!

Have I Told You How Amazing My Husband Is?

2012-01-26T22:02:00.003-05:00

It's been a long month or so since Brendan left after R&R. I'm not quite sure WHY the time has gone so slowly but MAN are we looking forward to having him back very soon! This FABULOUS camera showed up for me today. My husband is just THE BEST!! I must have been very good in a previous life to deserve him! I love you Brendan!!

Rain, Rain Go AWAY!

2012-01-26T21:57:00.004-05:00

It's been a really mild winter here - I guess everywhere! So instead of snow we have gotten RAIN. So much rain. Everyone has been up to their ears in playing princesses. Poor Aidan - he's such a good sport but gets roped into playing with the girls and it usually ends up being house or princesses or something equally girly. He usually ends up bailing out and playing Plants vs. Zombies on the iPad. Poor kiddo - he'll be so happy when Brendan is home! Not long now!!!

LONG Weekend

2012-01-16T00:33:00.001-05:00

This weekend is a holiday weekend but it got turned into a 4 day because of the snow day that we had on Friday. It has seemed LONG. We were housebound on Friday and then we went to the Customs House Museum in downtown Clarksville today. We met up with my friend, Steph, and her daughter. The kids all started out having a good time but we only lasted an hour - not quite sure what went wrong but when everyone is crying at once there is only one thing to do (OK 2 things) - laugh - and then leave.
Here are a few pictures - I feel like I have been VERY bad about keeping the blog up although there really isn't much going on!!
Starting off at the museum - happy in the beginning:Aoife carrying around her "muffins" (golf balls) - this was the source of tears when other children decided they wanted some of the golf balls.Trains:Emmy at the end - watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on my phone - not asleep - just sulking.

Aidan LOVES Legos

2012-01-15T00:16:00.003-05:00

Aidan's LEGO skills have developed so much this year! He got a few big sets for Christmas and has really enjoyed putting them together! This was the last one to do from his Christmas gifts and he spent an entire afternoon showing Emmy how to follow the directions and put the castle together. He has used up all of the horizontal surfaces in his room so I moved in an old coffee table. It's great to get it out of MY room and give him some more room to play!

Charlee's Birthday

2012-01-08T22:32:00.005-05:00

Emmy's friend, Charlee, from last year's preschool class had her birthday party today and turned 5!! She had it at a local salon and the girls got their nails painted, played games and ate lots of sugar!
Here's Emmy with the birthday girlI made the cake - pink sparkly ruffles:decor:They've grown up so much since last year!

January??

2012-01-08T22:25:00.003-05:00

It was so warm yesterday that we went to the park without jackets - OK maybe we should have brought them but it's JANUARY! Who would think that it would be in the 60's on January 7th? It was great to get out of the house and get some fresh air and exercise!! Aoife has conquered her fear of slides!Superman!Playing Power Rangers - Aoife is just about to get kicked in the face...and there it is - I didn't even realize I had caught it on film until I downloaded the camera! Plenty of hugs and kisses followed.More Power Rangers - after the drama died down

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-26T20:03:00.001-05:00

We were so lucky to have Brendan here for Christmas! It felt - well - normal. Which was good because very little about 2011 has been normal! The kids had a blast and Santa seemed to get everything right! Aidan got an electric scooter and the girls got Barbie ATV's. Emmy LOVES hers - Aoife isn't quite ready but I'm sure she'll be zooming around with Emmy in no time! Aidan is quite excited that the label on the scooter says for ages 13 and up. I guess Santa forgot to read that part! We continued the tradition of opening up family presents on Christmas Eve - everyone gets one present from the others and then left everything else for Christmas morning. It works really well for us to spread it out a little! After presents and lunch we took the new outside toys out to play. One of the great things about living in the South is that it can be warm on Christmas - and it was this year! We had a nice turkey dinner in the evening since Brendan had missed a home cooked Thanksgiving! We had a full day after Christmas to enjoy as a family and then Brendan went back on the 27th. It won't be long now and he'll be home for good!

Opening presents on Christmas Eve:Santa came!JOY!
Dollhouse for Emmy from her godparents:All Aidan wanted was LEGOs and more LEGOs!Happy chaos!This is the only way Aoife would ride her ATV:Christmas dinner - not sure what Emmy has against the timer but she did a similar thing last year!

Downtown Disney Again

2011-12-22T01:18:00.000-05:00

On our last evening we went to Downtown Disney again to pick up a toy for each of the kids. They had been so good about not begging for things when they saw them!! Aoife chose a Minnie Mouse, Emmy chose the girl kitten from Aristocats and Aidan chose Stitch. We also picked up a couple of things for Christmas!! We made it a quick trip and headed back to the hotel. It was an early morning the next day. It was a long day the next day since we got stuck in Atlanta for about 6 hours. We finally made it home around midnight on the 21st. What a fantastic trip!!!

With Winnie the Pooh and Friends!
notice the DO NOT CLIMB sign on the bottom left!

Day 5 - Disney's Animal Kingdom

2011-12-19T00:51:00.000-05:00

On our last day we visited Disney's Animal Kingdom. It's always so much fun to go on the Safari ride and we really lucked out this time. The kids and I were waiting for Brendan to go run and get fast passes for the Kali River Rapids and Aidan started talking to a girl who was working security. We chatted for a while and told her that Brendan was on R&R and she surprised us by letting us right through to the front when he met us! It was so nice!! After we went on the Safari ride we walked through the zoo portion of the park that is a long walk through the woods - it was awesome!! We grabbed a quick lunch at Yak and Yeti Restaurant in the Asia section of the park. Again - the food was incredible!! By this point I am getting positively chubby from eating delicious 3 course meals twice a day!!! After lunch, Brendan and Aidan went on Expedition Everest - the roller coaster! I took the girls to the dinosaur playground and the boys met us there after the coaster. Brendan took Aidan and Emmy on the Kali River Rapids ride after that and Emmy was so brave and everyone got soaked! Aoife and I waited on a bridge over the end of the ride and watched them come down the river! So much fun!!

Here we are!!
The Safari Ride:A sleeping hippo!!Walking through the woods!Aoife is NOT happy with the wobbly bridge!! I had to carry her over.Drumming:Eating lunch at the Yak and Yeti:American ingenuity:Aoife loved the chopsticks!Emmy's all smiles!Playing in the dinosaur playground:The Kali River Rapids:

Day 4 - Epcot again!

2011-12-19T00:32:00.000-05:00

We slept in the morning after we went to the Christmas party and then headed to Epcot for lunch in Norway with the Princesses! I have to say - if you want to eat with the Princesses, it's a better choice to do it in Norway than at Cinderella's Castle. The meal was half the price and the food was AMAZING! The Princesses were a little more relaxed and spent more time with the kids. After lunch we toured through the countries and endured grumpy kids - boy were they tired! It was also a little more crowded than we were used to since it was the afternoon but we still had fun. We ate dinner in Mexico and they were super accommodating and let us move our reservation from 6:30 to 5pm. They were probably happy to open up a table at 6:30!! The dinner was, again, fantastic!! Disney has really stepped up their food quality and I was really impressed and I'm not easily impressed by restaurants!

Here we are with France in the background:
Norway, right before lunch:With Belle - the hostess for the lunch in Norway:Since when is Mary Poppins a Princess? The kids still loved her!Snow White told us that she has traveled many times to the Kingdom of Boston:Sleeping Beauty:
In Canada - Aoife refused to be in the picture:In Morocco - this was my favorite Disney country as a kid - I love how the streets circle back on each other and it smells like incense! ENGLAND!! We sat and listened to a band for a little while - relaxing!

Mickey's Christmas Party

2011-12-18T14:26:00.000-05:00

On Sunday night we went to Mickey's Christmas Party at the Magic Kingdom. The park is open from 6-midnight and there are parades, fireworks, and lots of fun and activities! It was really fun, although it was a little cold! We had dinner at the Italian restaurant and then went on a bunch of rides. The kids were great even though we stayed up really late. Here are a bunch of pictures that came with our Disney Photo Pass. I tried to take pictures of the parade but they didn't turn out too well - these are great!!

Eating dinner:In front of the HUGE Christmas Tree!!
Cinderella's Castle:
Waiting for the parade:

Day 3 - Epcot

2011-12-18T14:14:00.000-05:00

On Sunday we went to Epcot in the morning. We met some characters and went on Soarin' which is an IMAX ride. It makes you feel like you are flying over various landscapes in California. It's really amazing and they actually lift your seat up in the air so it's pretty cool! Emmy and Aidan loved it - Aoife was too little to go on it so Brendan and I each took one kid and switched off watching Aoife. After that we went to the Nemo ride and to Turtle Talk with Crush where Emmy and Aidan both got to talk to Crush. Then we went to lunch at the Under the Sea restaurant. Disney has really stepped up it's fine dining. Everywhere that we had a sit down meal - and there were A LOT of them - the food was excellent. I think Brendan and I each gained 10 lbs - even with all of the walking around the parks!! After lunch we headed back to the hotel for a rest since we went to the Christmas Party at the Magic Kingdom that night.

Waiting to get into the park:
Meeting Daisy:
Stitch again - Aidan wanted to meet him this time:At the Nemo ride - the sun was a bit bright:Aoife was really scared to go inside the shark's mouth - poor thing!Everyone being super happy and not at all grumpy before lunch!Mmmmmm - sea food!!

Day 2 - Disney Studios

2011-12-16T19:18:00.000-05:00

On Friday we went to Disney Studios - which used to be called MGM Studios. We ate breakfast with the Playhouse Disney characters and then the boys went on the Tower of Terror while I took the girls to meet some Disney characters. After that we went to see the Beauty and the Beast show and then we had lunch at the Drive in Diner. I am so happy that Brendan made most of our meal reservations ahead of time. It's nearly impossible to get into any of the theme restaurants without a reservation and they are so much fun! After lunch I took Aoife back to the hotel for a nap and Brendan, Aidan and Emmy stayed for a little longer to go on Star Tours!Meeting Jake from Jake and the Neverland Pirates:Handy Manny!June from Little Einsteins:Aidan and Brendan after the Tower of Terror - Aidan did great!!Aoife and Emmy with Minnie:Donald:Stitch:Eating at the Drive In - you actually eat in a car!!

Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique

2011-12-16T17:38:00.000-05:00

The girls both had appointments at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique on our first day in the Magic Kingdom. It's a kids salon that gives the little girls princess makeovers. They LOVED it although I think that the result is a cross between Snooki and Joe Dirt. But I guess it doesn't matter what I think - as long as they were happy!!

Here's Aoife - waiting for her turn!
Princess assembly line:What happens when you tell Aoife to close her eyes:The result - she chose the blond extensions:Aoife on the left and Emmy on the right:Emmy - pre makeover:The result - a little too Toddlers & Tiaras for my taste!But they loved it!!

Breakfast at Cinderella's Castle

2011-12-16T05:25:00.000-05:00

Brendan has been planning this vacation for ages and he was thinking ahead enough to get us reservations for breakfast at Cinderella's castle with all of the princesses. It was really fun. Cinderella greeted us as we came into the castle and we got to take pictures with her. During the meal, the rest of the princesses visited the kids at the tables and chatted and took pictures. The girls - and even Aidan - thought it was really cool!!
With Cinderella:Sleeping BeautyBelle - Aoife was NOT happy that she wasn't wearing the yellow dress!The winner of the day - Snow White!Ariel:

Magic Kingdom

2011-12-16T04:31:00.000-05:00

Day 1 of Disney is The Magic Kingdom! We had breakfast with the princesses, the girls went to the Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique to be turned into princesses, we enjoyed lots of rides with little to NO wait time - woohoo!!- and we met up with Brendan's parents for some family fun!!

Waiting for the Winnie the Pooh ride - there is a play area alongside the line!!Waiting for the Tiki Room - Aoife's favorite ride!Still happy after a long day!

Downtown Disney

2011-12-15T17:20:00.000-05:00

We got to Disney World this morning - after a 3 am start! Brendan's parents surprised us at the hotel when we arrived. After we caught up with them for a little bit they went back to their hotel and we rested. We all went to Downtown Disney that night to eat dinner at T-Rex and walk around the boardwalk area. Fun!

Eating at T-Rex:
Playing at the LEGO store:Horsing around:
Visiting Santa!
Aoife surrounded by princesses!!

Bike Riding

2011-12-13T17:17:00.000-05:00

Brendan and Emmy went out for a little bike ride today! Emmy does really well on her bike with the training wheels but Brendan thought she could use a little practice without them. I'm sure she'll do great once she gets a little more confidence!

R & R - finally!!

2011-12-11T22:26:00.005-05:00

Brendan got home for his 2 weeks R&R today! Holy #$&!, I can't believe we made it 301 days. Since we didn't really know when the flight was going to come in - it would depend on which connecting flight he'd be able to catch from Atlanta - we went to Nashville early in the day. I didn't want to be rushing to the airport since it's an hour and a half from our house. We went to the mall and then went to the airport at noon but he didn't make the connecting flight so we left and went to get something to eat and then came back about 2 hours later. We were able to get a pass to go through security and meet him right at the gate as he came off of the plane. It was fantastic - just what you'd imagine. So now we have 2 weeks together and then he has to go back but it won't be for long and then we get him back for good!!

I asked some random woman to take pictures of us - she was crying so they aren't super straight or in focus!!

The kids waiting for the plane!
Waiting for the plane to unload:Here come the soldiers:Daddy!! Aoife made it to him first:So thankful and happy!The middle of a pig pile and a similar picture to ones on this post - I promise we do more than watch TV. And yes, Brendan has lost a ton of weight!

Emmy's First Loose Tooth!!!

2011-12-09T23:27:00.001-05:00

Emmy lost her first tooth today! It seems so early! I think Aidan was 5 when he lost his first tooth! She was super brave about it and was really excited for the tooth fairy to come. The one next to it is loose too so she should have a big gaping hole in her mouth in a few days!
Before:After:

Ornaments

2011-12-09T00:02:00.004-05:00

We are trying to push through these last few days before Brendan comes home for R&R but BOY are the days moving slowly!! I'm sure he feels the same way and we just can't wait to have him home!!
We haven't been doing much - school and work. The house is decorated for Christmas and we are counting down the days until our trip to Disney before Christmas. Woohoo!!!

Helping in Aidan's Class

2011-12-03T00:38:00.002-05:00

Today I went in and helped out in Aidan's classroom. I've been in a few times but this is the first time that I've remembered to bring my camera! It was nice to be back - it's been a while because I've been working a lot on the days when Aoife is in school as well. It was a very exciting 2 hours - they had a fire drill AND we had to walk everyone down to the conference room to get their vision and hearing tested by the soldiers who came down from the hospital for the day. I also got to do some projects for Aidan's teacher which is nice because I like to feel like I'm helping her out and not just being another body in the classroom!!

Here they are correcting their morning work:

Getting Ready for December

2011-11-26T19:50:00.003-05:00

We started decorating the house for Christmas today! Since we have a fake tree after last year's infested tree debacle, we put it up nice and early so we can enjoy it for as long as possible. The kids had a great time hanging all of the ornaments and putting all of the other decorations around the house. As a weird bonus it was almost 75 degrees today. It did feel a little weird putting up decorations when it was so warm! I really should have decorated the outside of the house today too but we didn't get around to it!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T23:00:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Thanksgiving today and it was just the four of us - hopefully the last one without Brendan for a long time! As much as I love hosting Thanksgiving at my house, it was really nice to have a very relaxed day - no pressure to clean or have the meal ready at a certain time! We had time to make Indian headdresses while the turkey was cooking and the kids had a great time decorating them. We ate around 4:30 when everything was finally done. We had turkey, potatoes and gravy, stuffing, cranberry bread and cranberry relish. I didn't make a green vegetable because, really, who wants to eat it? After dinner I finished cleaning up although there really wasn't much to do. We had some pumpkin pie then the kids had baths. After that we watched Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer to start our Christmas season off right! Bring on December!!!

Happy Turkey Day!

2011-11-24T03:06:00.001-05:00

Birthday Present

2011-11-23T23:04:00.005-05:00

Woohoo!!! My birthday present from Brendan came in the mail today - I am so happy that they are finally here!! Can you tell I'm excited? They are Frye Carson Pull On Boots in Smoke and I am in LOVE! The color of the boot is more true in the second picture. They are a really nice neutral brown/gray and the leather is like butter!! Sorry these aren't the best pictures but it's nighttime - artificial light just isn't the best!

Jeff and Maggie

2011-11-23T15:03:00.003-05:00

On Sunday my brother and his girlfriend, Maggie, stopped by for a visit on their way from Texas to Chicago. The kids were super excited to see Jeff and to meet Maggie - and so was I! The visit was short because they had to get on the road but we had a nice lunch of Thai Chicken Curry and we sent them on their way with full bellies. Poor Aoife has a special affinity for my brother and is still talking about the visit!

Thanksgiving at Barsanti Elementary School

2011-11-19T22:05:00.002-05:00

On Thursday we went over to Emmy and Aidan's school for their Thanksgiving Feast. It was fun to be able to share this with them and my mom. It was very well organized and we barely even had to wait in line! We picked up Emmy early from class and went over to Aidan's classroom. We all walked together to the cafeteria - I thought Emmy was going to burst with excitement!!

Playground Fun!

2011-11-14T22:15:00.000-05:00

We went to the playground a whole bunch to try to take advantage of the last of the warm weather before winter really sets in. The kids burned off lots of energy and the dogs were happy to be out of the house as well!

My Birthday

2011-11-13T22:09:00.000-05:00

I turned 34 last weekend. I guess it's better than NOT turning 34! We had a really good day. We started out with breakfast at Cracker Barrel and dinner at The Black Horse Brewery. Chocolate cake of course - to finish up the day!
Me and my mom: Checkers:Chocolate Cake!

Painting with the Girls

2011-11-12T22:02:00.000-05:00

The girls love to paint - here's a few pictures of them. Aoife also decided that painting on her face would be a good idea!

Veteran's Day at the Park

2011-11-11T21:54:00.000-05:00

My parents visited this past week and it was so nice to have them here! They came up for my birthday and then my mom was able to stay for the whole rest of the week. It was fantastic to have help. This single mom stuff is getting old!!
The kids didn't have school on Veteran's day so we went to the big park on post and had a great time!

Barsanti Elementary School Fall Festival

2011-11-10T21:49:00.000-05:00

Earlier in the month the kids' school had a Fall Festival to raise money for the PTO. I knew it was going to be crazy but I figured it would be better than last year since the kids were a year older and we didn't have to bring a stroller. The kids had a great time - especially since they got to have colored hair and fake tattoos!

Why I Don't Serve Spaghetti to Company

2011-11-09T10:53:00.002-05:00

Aoife has a passion for spaghetti and meat sauce. She will eat at least 3 platefuls when we have it for dinner. Eating with a fork is just too slow for her so she just shovels it in with her hands. I swear that my children use utensils during most meals - spaghetti is just too difficult to wrangle!

Moves Like Jagger

2011-11-08T22:50:00.002-05:00

Emmy LOVES to dance and she loves this song by Maroon 5. We were waiting for Aidan to get out of CCD and she put on a show for Aoife and me!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T12:55:00.004-04:00

We went Trick or Treating tonight and is was fantastic! We had a really great time and the kids we so well behaved it was unbelievable! No one cried, whined or fell down. It was a total success! We really missed Brendan and this was the first Halloween that he has missed since Aidan's first Halloween. I was able to manage on my own and we only lost Emmy twice - but she didn't care that she was lost. I just sent Aidan ahead and he found her - chatting it up with a friend from school. She was in heaven in her costume and loved that I straightened her hair. Aoife was a fabulous Snow White and so cute with her dress and little read headband! Aidan was happy that he was the only Tron guy out there. Last year he was Ironman - with half of the neighborhood! Here is a picture of them from last Halloween - they've gotten so big over the past year!
We took this yesterday - I was trying to get one where everyone was looking at the camera - at least they're all smiling even if Emmy's eyes are closed!This is what you get when you wait to take a picture before they leave to go Trick or Treating!In the neighbors' yard:Aidan and Emmy setting off - Aoife stuck to my side the whole time.Aoife had it down - she got double the candy because she was so cute!The haul!!

Aoife's School

2011-10-27T23:00:00.005-04:00

On Wednesday I got to spend the entire morning in Aoife's class helping out and enjoying their fall festival. It wasn't much of a festival but the parents were all invited in for an hour and the kids got more sweets than they could even imagine!
It was really fun seeing her in school and she was really excited to share it with me. She knows that I've been to Aidan and Emmy's classrooms and she was happy to get in on the Mommy time too! I think they were short one teacher in the classroom and asked if I could be there the whole morning. It was fun - but I was exhausted afterwards. It takes a special person to be a preschool teacher!

G&T

2011-10-25T14:37:00.005-04:00

Aidan is in the gifted and talented program at his school. I really dislike the name of this program - it sounds all snooty and elitist - so I prefer to call it G&T. Makes me think of my most favorite adult beverage!
Anyway - the G&T program went on a field trip today to our local Ft. Campbell museum. They've been studying flight so going to look at a bunch of airplanes and helicopters was perfect. I really wanted to chaperone but they weren't going to be back in time for me to pick Emmy up so Aoife and I crashed the fieldtrip and showed up for a half and hour while they were running around outside. The kids got to actually go inside of some of the aircraft and Aoife and I joined them in a Chinook. It was pretty cool!!
If you're wondering - there are a lot of kids wearing camouflage in the pictures because it is spirit day and that's what they were supposed to wear. It's not that Army kids just dig wearing camo.
Aoife crashing the party:Aidan getting smarter:The 11th Chinook produced:Aidan getting in the Chinook:Inside the Chinook:He was BEYOND excited to be able to actually go IN the aircraft!

Notes from Aoife's Teacher

2011-10-24T15:27:00.002-04:00

Aoife is in preschool on Fort Campbell three mornings a week. Since I'm working most of the days that she's in school I don't get to volunteer in the classroom as much as I would like. The school has set up a message board type program so the teachers can privately post notes on the children and we can respond. I thought I would share a few of Aoife's notes!

September 7, 2011

Aoife and peers were at the table doing a pom pom activity. Aoife looked on the cup and pulled out a pink pom pom and said, "pink." I said, "You're right that is pink." She pulled out a purple pom pom and said, "Purple." I said, "Right." She placed both poms in between the tweezer legs at the same time. After a few minutes she decided to dump out the pom poms and said, "I dump it out." As she dumped it, she picked up a yellow pom pom and said, "Yellow." I said, "That is yellow." She put the pom poms back in one cup and grabbed another cup. She put the pom poms back in one cup and grabbed another cup. She then proceeded to pour the pom poms from the cup to cup. She participated in this activity for twenty five minutes.

September 16, 2011

Aoife sat at the table with peers drawing with a purple crayon. She drew for a while then decided she was finished drawing and took her paper to her cubby. I asked, "Aoife do you have my crayon?" She shook her head no and came to the table. She looked for the crayon under the table and found it. She handed it to me and I said, "Thank you Aoife, for finding my crayons."

September 26, 2011

Aoife, her peers, and I were outside on the playground. We were doing a hula hoop activity. I said “Come on friends let’s jump!” Aoife and peers came over and we laid the hoops on the ground and hopped in them. Aoife jumped in six hoops with both feet. She went through the hoops then went to the end of the line and waited for her turn to jump again. She continued this activity several times before it was time to clean up the hoops. Aoife helped clean up the hoops and put them in one pile.

September 30, 2011

During circle time a caregiver asked Aoife, "Do you have a brother or a sister Aoife?" Aoife replied, "I have a sister."

October 12, 2011

Aoife was at the table counting lids with peers. She took a large plastic container and opened the lid. She put her doll inside the container and closed it. She tried to open it again but couldn't. She looked at me and said, "Help please." I opened it for her. She took her doll out and tried to put it inside a smaller container. The doll was too big for the container so she took her doll and walked away from the table.

Honeysuckle Hill Farm

2011-10-21T22:09:00.004-04:00

Last weekend when Laurie was here we went with our FRG to Honeysuckle Hill Farm. It's one of those places that uses the fall to make a little extra money by putting out fun things for the kids and making corn mazes in their fields. I was a little hesitant because I thought it was a little expensive but the kids had a great time and the weather and the company was great!
Emmy thought this calf was great - until she saw the flies!Feeding the adorable baby goats:Aoife and I share a love of chickens:Aoife spent about 20 minutes choosing her pumpkin from the field of IDENTICAL pumpkins:Jumping!!Tire swing - the hardest part was keeping Aoife out of its path!

Mr. and Miss Ironman

2011-10-17T09:48:00.001-04:00

Emmy and Aidan both like to dress up. We got a size 3 Ironman costume by accident last year but it fits Emmy and she loves playing with Aidan!!

Cheekwood in the Fall

2011-10-16T21:36:00.005-04:00

My sister, Laurie, came to visit us this weekend. It was so nice to see her and have an extra pair of hands around the house! She came in on the redeye on Friday morning and since we were already in Nashville we went over to Cheekwood to see what was going on there. We went last May for Mother's Day and hadn't been back since. I wasn't hoping for much since I figured the spring and summer flowers were gone but it was gorgeous and I had a way better time this visit than last. It wasn't hot and we didn't need the stroller - having another adult around didn't hurt either!! The model trains were running and they are fantastic. There is also a display of scarecrows around the gardens which are all really unique! If you are in the Nashville area I would strongly recommend visiting before we get a frost - it was beautiful!!Laurie with the kids:
Watching the model trains:
Edgar Allen Crow scarecrow:Kid scarecrows:Aoife in the Japanese Garden:
There were tons of butterflies around!
See all the beautiful color?!
Enjoying the Japanese Garden:

Nashville Zoo... again

2011-10-09T21:22:00.005-04:00

On Friday we went to the Nashville Zoo. We hadn't been since the spring and since it has kind of cooled off I thought it would be a great outing. We didn't have school because it was a teacher work day so I thought the zoo would be empty. I was wrong - it was packed - with school field trips. Ugh - the entire zoo was overrun with screaming children. We lasted until the heat and crowds got to us but we had a really good time. The only hiccup was that Emmy really really wanted to see the lemurs but then when we got there she screamed and refused to believe that they were lemurs since they didn't look like her bobble head stuffed lemur. *sigh*
We have taken a picture on this same rock a few times that we have been to the zoo. Here's what the kids looked like last fall and here is what they looked like this spring. They have gotten so big so quickly!!
There are now 4 elephants at the Nashville Zoo instead of just 2!Hoping that the crocodiles decide to go for a swim - I think they were waiting for the water to warm up.
Aoife looking sweet:
And not so sweet:
The "lemurs" - at least they thought they were.
Giraffe showing us her purple tongue!
The flamingos were awake and making a ruckus!
The porcupines - we've never seen them awake before this!Aidan loving the carousel!Emmy loving the carousel:Aoife hating the carousel!Aoife refused to look at the camera - she was still mad at me for making her go on the carousel!Emmy feeding the lorikeets - she wasn't scared of them this time!Aidan feeding the lorikeets:

Happy Columbus Day!

2011-10-05T21:50:00.002-04:00

Today was the last day of school before a week and a half off for Fall Break. Emmy's class learned about Christopher Columbus and made these hysterical hats! I wish I had video taped the entire class walking out of the door wearing these hats - they looked like a bunch of pint sized bishops! BUT... she loves it and wore it all afternoon! Aidan learned about fire safety today from the Fort Campbell Fire Department. That boy loves himself a fire hat. We had 2 children wearing crazy hats all afternoon!

Crazy Hair Day

2011-09-30T10:31:00.003-04:00

Every few weeks or so at Aidan and Emmy's school they have "popcorn Friday". Usually it's accompanied by some fun dressing up event and today was "crazy hair day"! The kids were really excited and have been looking forward to it all week. I actually managed to get myself to Walmart sometime this week and buy colored hair spray. I got a few cans since there always seems to be some need for it during the year and it's really only readily available around Halloween.
So this morning they got to wear colored hair to school - Aoife got sparkles since I didn't think preschool would appreciate her showing up with pink hair! I should also mention that Aidan and Emmy got themselves dressed today. We were in such a rush this morning that I failed to notice that they look like they are color blind and have no idea what season it is. I think we'll start laying clothes out the night before from now on.

7-17 CAV Appreciation Reception

2011-09-30T10:21:00.003-04:00

On Tuesday night, the Squadron Commander, LTC Reilly, and his wife, Michelle, had a very nice reception for all of the volunteers in 7-17 CAV. The food was great and it was really nice to get together with so many fantastic ladies! The door prizes were goldfish and I actually won a bag of them. The kids were super excited when they woke up in the morning to find 5 goldfish swimming happily around in their bowl. *sigh* I hope I can keep these guys alive a little longer than poor little Mario.
The Reillys with me:All of the ladies who attended:HHT Ladies:The new mini-Cullinans:

FRG Party

2011-09-25T17:04:00.001-04:00

We had a get together for our FRG today and Steph got a bouncy castle for the kids. They had a ball and it totally wore then out!! It was nice to get out of the house for an afternoon and have some adult interaction!!

Walking to School

2011-09-24T23:58:00.002-04:00

On the days that Aoife doesn't have school, we all walk/ride bikes to school. Emmy insists that Aoife and I wait at the bike racks while Aidan walks her into the school. They hold hands and it is so adorable. He walks her to the door, gives her a hug and watches until she sits in the PreK line and then he goes to the 1st grade door. Such a good big brother!!

Aidan's Tumbling Class

2011-09-20T14:50:00.002-04:00

Aidan is taking a boys' tumbling class at the same time as Emmy's dance class. It's not quite as active as he would like but it's something fun to do until basketball starts next month!

Emmy's Dance Class

2011-09-20T14:47:00.003-04:00

Emmy started back up with dancing last month. It's a combination ballet and tap class and she LOVES it! The classes moved into a new building where we can actually see what they are doing in class - it's so much fun to see them!!

A Hodgepodge

2011-09-11T21:48:00.003-04:00

Things are moving along here. We are up to 30 weeks that Brendan has been gone and only 3 more months until we see him for R&R!! The weather is getting cooler here - finally - and showing signs that fall may actually be on its way. I am so ready for it!! I managed to keep one tomato plant alive through the horrible heat that we had this summer and it is VERY happy these days. It is practically falling over from all the tomatoes all over it. I hope that these ripen before our first frost - although that won't be for a while. We got a curious visitor the other day. He just stood there and watched the kids play for about 10 minutes. So cute with his little antlers!!Here is Aidan riding home by himself from school on Friday! I know - I'm sure you're thinking that he's only in 1st grade and I'm a terrible mother BUT we live less than 1/4 mile from school and we've been walking/riding the route together for a year. He's already been in school for 5 weeks and he and I both thought it would be OK to try it and see how it went. He made it home just fine and when I asked how he liked it he said that he felt very grown up but he didn't want to do it alone everyday. That's just fine with me and we agreed that he would get himself home on Tuesdays (which is an hour shorter and dismissal is RIGHT in the middle of the girls' naps) and that the girls and I would pick him up the other days. This will make everything easier!! Our pretty neighborhood. I love that everyone flies flags!

Manicure

2011-09-08T17:16:00.000-04:00

This is what I walked in on this afternoon. Seriously?? At least she got a papertowel!!

Emmy's Class

2011-09-07T22:09:00.001-04:00

Today I went in to Emmy's PreK class to help out. It's so nice to be back in a classroom that welcomes parents! Aidan was at a fantastic coop preschool in Virginia and I was really involved in his schooling. It's been a while since then and I am really excited about being able to help out in their classes since I have a few hours a week where everyone is in school!
Here's Emmy making a tree with pieces of green and brown paper:Emmy playing with her friends. Do you see that smile? She's so happy here!!They practiced counting to 30 and sorting with gummy bears, marshmallows and mini cookies!

RAIN!!!!

2011-09-05T00:37:00.004-04:00

The rain from the latest tropical storm is stalled out over us right now. We haven't had rain in such a long time that it is very welcome - too late to save the crops this year but welcome none the less. The kids and I went out to buy raincoats for them this morning. Aidan's coat from last year is too small - even last year it was a little small but I was determined to get one more year out of it. Emmy's rain jacket was getting too small and was a good size for Aoife so Emmy got a new one and they all got fleeces since they were on sale. We didn't find a rain coat for Aidan so we had to order one when we got home but that doesn't help so much with the rain for the next few days.
It was pouring about an hour after we got home and Emmy wanted to go out in her new jacket and use her umbrella. It was raining so hard that you can't even see the trees above the fence!

Playing after dinner

2011-09-05T00:33:00.002-04:00

It's been so hot here for the past few weeks - OK months! - that the only time we really get to go outside and play is after supper. Last night we brought the chalk out and drew on the driveway until we got too sweaty and had to go inside since it was still 96F. All Aoife wanted us to do was trace her body over and over and over again on the pavement. It looked like a crime scene from munchkinland!
Here is Aoife begging me to trace her again - I'd already done it twice.Aidan being such a good big brother and giving in:

Emmy reading to Aoife

2011-09-04T11:17:00.001-04:00

Here is a video I took the other evening of Emmy reading a Spot book to Aoife. I think her "reading" is a combination of word recognition and memorization but it is super cute!!!

Anniversary Gifts

2011-09-03T11:07:00.002-04:00

Brendan continued the tradition of getting me an anniversary present even after I asked him not to. I really am a lucky girl! These beautiful flowers showed up and them later on this bracelet from LovelinksAmerica. They are made by veterans and are a fundraiser for wounded soldiers and their families. The bracelet is made of knotted parachute cord and each knot represents a fallen hero. They are an adaptation of survival bracelets made and exchanged by soldiers in theater as they can be unraveled and the cord and be used for many purposes in an emergency - this may come in handy if I ever have to lasso my children.

4 Day Weekend

2011-09-02T22:59:00.002-04:00

Today was the first day of the LONG 4 day weekend. Aoife actually did have school this morning but both Aidan and Emmy didn't. It was HOT too - actually got to 100F here so going outside was really out of the question until about 6:30 pm. Check out the mess behind Aoife in this picture - we've got everything on the floor from socks to cups, books and toys. There are even my oven mitts on the couch - I was wondering where those had gotten off to!
Aoife loves these shoes that Emmy was so nice to pass along to her. Aoife can even run and ride her scooter in these heels!

Happy Anniversary!!

2011-09-01T05:54:00.003-04:00

Today is our 11th anniversary! Again, we are spending it apart. I can't remember how many we've been together for but this is at least the 7th if not more that we've been geographically separated. *sigh* I miss my fantastic, loving, thoughtful, caring husband. xoxo

Tell Me A Story

2011-08-28T22:06:00.001-04:00

Phew! Our Tell Me A Story event went off without a hitch today!! Now for a few days of rest!

Steph's Cake

2011-08-28T13:31:00.004-04:00

My friend Stephanie had her farewell from Alpha Troop yesterday afternoon. Her husband changed out of command and so she as well gives up command of the FRG. The families were so sad to let her go and her farewell was the most heartfelt that I have been to. I made this cake for the event. Usually I'll do a military theme but for her I wanted to show how much they will miss her. It's still in CAV red and white but with a more feminine twist.Luckily for me, her husband is taking command of the headquarters troop so she will be MY FRG leader. A sort of student becoming the teacher as I was her FRG leader 5 years ago in Colorado.
I was so happy to do the cake for her but yesterday was one day that I'm glad to have behind me! Today our Parent to Parent team is having a very large event called "Tell Me A Story". The Garrison commander is reading a story to over 60 families and then we will break into groups for a discussion and craft. The logistics of planning for this many people is not difficult but takes some planning. We tested out equipment and had a planning meeting on Friday afternoon and I had to bring the kids with me since school was out. NIGHTMARE - they were hungry and tired after a week of school and after being good for an hour or so they really started to lose it. On Saturday I had planned to bring them with me to help set up for our event on Sunday and then to go to Steph's farewell. I realized as I was driving home that my plan was not going to work. On Saturday morning I called to the Super Saturday (free childcare 2 times a month for deployed families) and begged for them to call me if spaces opened up. Sure enough - there were spaces for all of them!! So at 11:30 I dropped the kids off and had some time to get things in order. 1:45 drop off cake and set it up - then work from 2-3:00 taking down chairs and tables in the room for Sunday. At 3:00 back to the farewell - abandoning my team to get the rest of the room set up. 4:30 - leave to go get the kids at Super Saturday. 5:00 back to the farewell to feed the kids and help finish setting up for Sunday - luckily the farewell and the set up were in the same building! Get home at 6:15 and collapse for 5 minutes - start bedtime routine.
I will be very happy when today is over - event starts at 3 - need to drop the kids off at a friend's house at 2 so I can go set up and she will bring them over at 2:45. Hoping that we'll be home by 5:30 pm. I will sleep well tonight!

Popcorn Friday

2011-08-26T19:51:00.002-04:00

Emmy had her first Popcorn Friday this week. The PTA uses Popcorn Fridays as a fundraiser and it used to be a bigger deal last year since the kids could also be out of uniform. Now that they've gotten rid of the uniforms it's not as big of a deal. Emmy still thought it was awesome that she got to do something that the big kids do! Since she only goes in the mornings, she brought her popcorn home in her backpack and she and Aoife had some after lunch. OK - I had some too. She wanted me to take a picture of her smelling the popcorn - it DID smell good!!

Boys vs. Girls

2011-08-24T21:51:00.004-04:00

Occasionally Aidan shows me a window into his thought processes - today was one of those lucky days.
"Purple means different things to boys and girls. To boys it's poison and gas and to girls it's unicorns."
- Aidan 8/24/2011

VS

Smores!!

2011-08-23T02:18:00.001-04:00

On Saturday night before Mimi left on Sunday, we had a fire in the firepit. The kids LOVED it - it was totally the highlight of their week. We toasted marshmallows and made smores - and got chocolate everywhere!! Emmy and Aoife preferred to just eat the marshmallows directly off of the sticks without roasting them but Aidan got into the cooking portion of the evening. It was so hot when we started the fire - maybe 90F - and we couldn't even sit near it but as the evening wore on we were able to enjoy it a little more.

Everyone enjoying the fire:
Aidan toasting a marshmallow - through the grate:Emmy enjoying her "smashmellow" right off the stick:Aoife - post chocolate:

A Visit From Mimi

2011-08-22T14:14:00.003-04:00

Brendan's mom came to visit us last week and it was so nice to have another pair of hands around the house! Work was a little busy and Emmy was starting school so it was great to have some help! We went to visit Ft. Defiance on Saturday morning. Whew - it got hot quickly so we didn't spend too much time there but it was great for the kids to run around and get some energy out!!

Everyone on the canon:
Monkey see...monkey do!

Emmy's First Day of PreK

2011-08-22T00:05:00.002-04:00

Emmy's first day of PreK was Friday. She was so excited to finally be going to school! Mimi was here to accompany her to the first day and that was doubly exciting! She chose to wear her butterfly dress and her new backpack of course. We drove over and all walked in together. Aoife thought that she was going to stay with Emmy and when that became evident, poor Aoife had the most enormous meltdown that I've ever seen. She screamed all the way out of the school and cried all the way to her school. Then she realized where we were and she cheered right up at the prospect of being able to show Mimi her classroom! Aidan also disappeared in the chaos - he decided that he needed to go to his classroom but he forgot to say goodbye. I hope he didn't feel left out.
At pick up Emmy was all smiles! She had a fantastic day and can't wait to go back to school on Monday!!

Walking in to school:Emmy waiting in the line for her class and Aoife trying to blend in.

Aoife's Picnic Basket

2011-08-13T23:20:00.002-04:00

Brendan got presents for the kids for having a great first week at school - Aoife got this talking picnic basket. It's super cute and she loves it - Emmy loves it too!

In this video she's trying to tell me that the picnic basket is a potty - when she finally believes me that it's not a potty she runs off to find the actual bathroom.

Heart Cookies

2011-08-09T13:24:00.000-04:00

Valentine's Day in August! I hadn't made any sugar cookies in a while and a meeting at my house was the perfect excuse!!

Last Cake for a While

2011-08-07T15:02:00.002-04:00

I made this cake for a party yesterday to match the invitations and it's going to be the last one for a while. The amount of time it takes for me to make one of these is more than you'd think - although this one wasn't that bad since it was so simple. I'm going to take a bit of a break for a while to get the swing of my new job and ferrying everyone here, there and everywhere for school and activities. I'm sure I'll be able to go back to making a few cakes but for now I'm not going to overload myself.

Aoife's First Day of Preschool

2011-08-06T09:42:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was Aoife's first day of Preschool. She has been looking forward to this day for ages and was all smiles the whole morning. I can't believe that she's big enough to go to school. Where has the time gone? It seems crazy that she is as old as Aidan and Emmy were was they started school. Here's a link to a post about helping in Aidan's classroom - I hadn't started the blog when he started school. Here's a link to the first day of school 2 years ago when Emmy started preschool and Aidan started Kindergarten - for the first time.
For her first day, Aoife wore a new dress that she picked out at the store and the backpack that Daddy bought for her. She was excited to pose for a picture all by herself on the front porch and practically ran into school once we got there! When Emmy and I picked her up at 11:30, the teacher said that Aoife had done really well! She was independent - VERY independent and talked almost nonstop. The teachers were also very impressed that she was potty trained and didn't have any accidents! Yeah Aoife!!
Emmy and Aoife holding hands on the way into school:Investigating all the new toys:

Aidan's First Day of School

2011-08-05T11:46:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was Aidan's first day of school. He enjoyed being there but for the first time EVER was a little hesitant when I was about to leave the classroom. He seems to have gotten over that and was fine going into school this morning. I just dropped him off at the curb and he walked in with all the other kids. *sigh*
As is evident in this picture - Emmy is sad that her school doesn't start for another 2 weeks but it'll be nice to have special Mommy-Emmy time!!

School Orientation

2011-08-03T22:34:00.003-04:00

Today we went to Aidan and Emmy's school orientation. They will both be at Barsanti Elementary School which is right down the street from us. Aidan is in first grade and Emmy will be in PreK. We are so lucky that they have part day PreK at the elementary school!!! Unfortunately Aidan's teacher wasn't there and won't be in school for a week or so due to a family emergency but he still enjoyed seeing his classroom and meeting some of his classmates. Emmy loved her class. She and the teacher hit it off right away and we stayed for almost an hour so she and Aidan could play. She really didn't want to leave because she doesn't start school until the 19th and it's going to be really hard for her to wait - especially since Aidan starts tomorrow and Aoife starts on Friday!Aidan and Emmy in Aidan's classroom:Emmy in front of her class list:Emmy and her teacher, Miss Nancy:PreK is awesome!!

School Supplies

2011-08-03T13:49:00.007-04:00

OK - I hate to complain but I have to get this off my chest. I can't stand that I have to buy school supplies. I don't mind spending the money - really - I just loathe dragging 3 kids around the aisles of Walmart and Target 2, maybe 3 times, before school starts to get all of this stuff. You KNOW you can't get it all in one trip either because someone melts down in the middle of the store or they are out of something like pencils or glue sticks. Here are the lists of items that I have to buy for my kids this year.

First Grade
Scissors - 1 pair Fiskars blunts tip
Crayons - 3 boxes, 24 pack regular size
Pencils - 2 pkgs, 20-24 count, #2
Glue Sticks - 5 Elmers, tall and fat
Pencil box
Hand Sanitizer - 1 bottle, 8 oz pump top (non alcohol)
Soap - 1 bottle, anti bacterial
Facial Tissue - 2 boxes, large
Wet Wipes - 1 pkg or container, antiseptic
Backpack - no wheels
Glue - 2 Elmers 8 oz bottles, washable
Vinyl Folders - 2 solid colors with pockets and prongs - blue and yellow
Spiral Notebooks - 2, wide ruled, 80 page count
Pencil Top Erasers - 2 pkgs, chisel point
Dry Erase Markers - 2 pkgs of 4 colors, wide chisel point, low odor
Zip Lock Bags - 1 box gallon size and 1 box sandwich size
Index cards - 1 pkg white
Markers - 2 pkgs, 1 large, 1 narrow classic 8

Pre Kindergarten
Facial Tissue - 2 boxes large
Hand Sanitizer - 1 bottle, 8 oz pump top (non alcohol)
Soap - 1 bottle, anti bacterial
Wet Wipes - 1 pkg or container, antiseptic
Backpack - no wheels
Crayons - 8 count or 24 count regular crayons
Glue Sticks - 2 tall and fat
Glue - Elmer's white, washable, 1 bottle
Markers - Crayola Jumbo 8 pack, washable
Zip Lock Bags - 1 box gallon, 1 box quart, 1 box snack
Vinyl Folders - 2 with pockets
Watercolor Paint - 1 set, tray, 8 colors, washable
Paper Towels - 1 roll
Dry Erase Markers - 1 pkg of 4 colors, wide chisel point, low odor
Dixie Cups - 3 and 5 ounce

So, even after 3 trips to the store I still couldn't find 5 ounce Dixie cups and we forgot to get one bottle of glue and the hand sanitizer that I bought has alcohol in it. The glue sticks that I bought are regular - not tall and fat - but hopefully I made up for it by buying way more than I needed to. Crayons were $0.40 at Walmart for 24 so we bought 10 pkgs for Aidan's class and 10 for Emmy's. Hopefully their teachers will forgive me for my failings.

Another tooth!

2011-08-02T23:46:00.002-04:00

Aidan lost another tooth today - OK - maybe I pulled it out but either way, he's down another tooth. This one has been loose for a long time and has been bothering him for a few weeks now so he was really happy to have it out tonight. If you haven't tried it, spraying the tooth and surrounding gum with Chloraseptic numbing spray - and then waiting a few minutes to do anything - really works wonders because they truly can't feel a thing when the tooth comes out! Emmy was so proud of Aidan and she wanted to show Aoife. I don't think Aoife remembered Aidan losing a tooth before this because she had this horrified look on her face and kept saying, "Aidan - tooth", over and over in a whisper. She started pulling on her own teeth half expecting them to just fall out into her hand. Poor little thing!! At least she's old enough to understand when I explained what had happened and she looked relieved that even Emmy hasn't lost any teeth yet. Oh the horror of having older siblings!

Dance and Tumbling

2011-08-02T00:15:00.003-04:00

School starts on Thursday (!) and dance and tumbling started today. Emmy is in a combination ballet/tap class because it was at the same time as the boys tumbling/trampoline class!! Emmy really likes ballet but she LOVES tap! She is a totally different person when she puts on those tap shoes. She just can't stop grinning and turns on the star power! I wish I had been able to take pictures of her during the tap portion of the class - I got yelled at for even taking these pictures. I guess you're not supposed to take pictures with any other kids in the frame - oops! Aidan loves his class too but was disappointed that they didn't learn how to do flips - in the first class! :)
Emmy is in the black leotard - second from the left.Aidan's all the way to the right - it was the best picture I could get!

New Job!

2011-07-30T23:57:00.005-04:00

I'm sure that you're realized that something is going on here! Nothing bad though!! I've been away in Killeen, TX just outside Fort Hood on a training trip for my new job with Military Child Education Coalition! I'm now part of Fort Cambell's Parent to Parent team. Our team of three military wives will be giving workshops in the Fort Campbell community to educate parents on how to become their child's best advocate in their educational career.
While I was in training, my mom and sister came and stayed with the kids. I am so thankful that I have such loving support. This is a fantastic opportunity for me since I will only be working 10 hours a week and it is something that I really think that will make a difference in our community.
The kids had a great time with my mom and sister and everyone was pretty sad at dinner tonight. Here are a few pictures that Laurie took while I was away. It was so nice to come home. I thought it would be nice and relaxing to be in a hotel room by myself but the truth is that I missed the kids and the chaos so much. I'm glad that the training was so good - it balanced out the guilt of being away and the pain of missing my babies.

A LITTLE Rain

2011-07-23T14:53:00.002-04:00

It's hot everywhere but it has been just unbearable here. Thursday evening we got a tiny bit of relief in the form of a rain shower that lasted all of 5 minutes. It got a little cooler and the rain cooled the pavement off enough that the kids could run around without shoes. We were playing in the backyard and waiting for the "storm" to arrive. It seemed like we were going to get an actual thunderstorm but it went south of us and we just got sprinkles. The kids thought it was just OUTRAGEOUS to be outside while it was raining but let me tell you - it felt so good!

New Shoes

2011-07-19T15:39:00.003-04:00

Brendan has this affection for VANS - must be something from his childhood or perhaps a deep desire to be a professional skateboarder. These arrived in the mail for the kids a few days ago and boy are they adorable!! The kids love them and they are easy to get on and off so I love them even more!

Cold Stone Creamery

2011-07-17T23:17:00.003-04:00

As a reward for doing awesome at swimming lessons for 2 whole weeks, we went to Cold Stone for ice cream on Friday night after supper. The kids had been really looking forward to it and Emmy had been planning what she was going to get mixed into her ice cream since I explained the process to her. Her original plan was to get gummy bears, gummy worms and m&m's all mixed in. Once we got there they all chose cotton candy ice cream (it is blue after all). Aidan and Aoife chose gummy bears but Emmy went a different route and got white chocolate chips mixed in. They all enjoyed the outing and came home VERY sticky!! And - yes - the people at Cold Stone thought I was totally weird for taking pictures inside the store!

A visit from Kate

2011-07-17T21:41:00.003-04:00

Aidan's godmother, Kate Clarke, came to see us on Friday. It was so great to see her - if only for a few hours. She visited us last October and it was so nice to spend a little time together again before her next big adventure! Kate gave Aidan the hat he is wearing in the picture and he literally has only taken it off for baths - he even sleeps in it. Please stay safe Kate! We love you and miss you!
Here's a link to her book.

Swimming Lessons

2011-07-14T07:33:00.001-04:00

So Thursday is the last day of swimming lessons for the kids. Aoife has made good progress - from screaming every minute of the 30 minute class to only kicking and screaming when she knows it's time to go underwater. I can't get any pictures of Aoife in her class because I am in the water with her - can't figure out the logistics on that one. Emmy has stayed in the level 2 class with Aidan and has made good progress as well. She can kick with a kickboard all the way across the pool and back and can glide on her front and back and float on her back. Pretty good I think for a 4 year old. Aidan can swim freestyle and backstroke - although not very far on his own. He really likes using the kickboard and jumping off of the diving board. Here are a few pictures I managed to get today:

A visitor

2011-07-12T11:32:00.001-04:00

The heat here has been incredible but the flowers seem to like it - as long as I keep them watered at night! Butterflies are regular visitors but I managed to actually photograph this one the other afternoon. Usually they fly away before I can get the camera but this one was really enjoying the purple flowers and stuck around for a while!

Aidan's Legos

2011-07-11T07:30:00.001-04:00

Brendan sent Aidan this little Lego set with the challenge to follow the instructions and build it all by himself. It took him all of 20 minutes to come back downstairs with it all completed - I think he's ready to move on to slightly bigger sets!

Baking Cookies

2011-07-10T07:13:00.001-04:00

The kids have been asking forever to make M&M cookies - probably because they know that they are my favorite! Baking with 3 kids has lots more challenges than baking with just one but we made it through and the cookies turned out great!

Pool Now?

2011-07-09T23:12:00.002-04:00

This is how Aoife told me that she wanted to go to the pool this morning. She came around the corner like this and asked, "Pool now??".

Baby Hawks

2011-07-08T07:03:00.001-04:00

This morning there were 4 baby hawks on our front lawn! It was so weird to see 4 hawks all together and on the ground no less! I didn't want to open the door to take a picture because it would have scared them away and by the time I went to get the camera they had hopped onto the street. They were so fluffy looking and they were hopping around on the street looking around for their mother I'd guess. I didn't see them fly they just hopped around. It was really cool!

Aidan jumps!

2011-07-07T14:54:00.005-04:00

Aidan jumped off of the diving board for the first time yesterday. He was so excited and did an awesome job. He didn't hesitate at all! I made sure that I brought both the camera and the flip video recorder today. They jumped off twice today so I was able to catch it in still and video format! The first time the instructor caught them - like yesterday - and the second time he didn't. It seemed to me that it took forever for Aidan to come up from underwater although it probably didn't! He wants to go back this afternoon but I told him that I can't catch him during free swim so he has to learn to do it on his own AND swim back to the side on his own. I think that will light a fire under him for sure!

First Tomato Harvest

2011-07-06T21:27:00.003-04:00

The gardens have been doing great! The snap peas came in first and everyone in the neighborhood enjoyed coming over and picking them - delicious! Green beans came in next but we were away and the plants were destroyed by Japanese Beetles - YUCK! I hated to do it but I had to rip up all the beans plants and get rid of them. The tomatoes are just starting to turn and everyone is very excited - everyone BUT Aidan that is. The girls helped me pick these grape tomatoes before lunch today and they were sooo yummy! There really isn't much better than tomatoes that are still warm from the sun! We're still waiting for the carrots, onions and garlic. They shouldn't be too far off!

Just one of those days...

2011-07-05T21:33:00.002-04:00

Today was one of those days. OK - I planned too much AND didn't really think about the fact that last night was the 4th. It was late - really late - by the time we got home. I don't know if the kids had ever been up until 10:30 before but they have now! We sat in line at Gate 4 waiting to get onto post for about 20 minutes. No one was happy about that.

Taking extreme exhaustion into consideration this was our day today. I had to get them up early (for them) at 6:50 this morning - after going to bed at 10:30 instead of 7:30 - in order for everyone to be clean (finger and toe nails clipped as well - see below), fed, dressed and walking out the door at 7:50 am. We had to take Aoife to hourly childcare (it opens at 8 am) and then go to the kids' physical appointments (hence the nail clipping) at the hospital at 8:20. Why on EARTH would I have made an appointment at 8:20 AM you ask? When I called 5 weeks ago it was the ONLY appointment available during the first 2 weeks of July - and they hadn't opened up appointments for the second half of the month. FAN.TAS.TIC. Oh - and did I mention that the hospital has a new policy that extra children are not allowed at appointments so that means that if I brought Aoife to Emmy and Aidan's appointment then I would get turned away AND charged for a missed appointment. 3 of those in 1 year and you get kicked off post for your medical care. Again - fan-freaking-tastic.

The appointments themselves were fine - 25 minutes late - but fine. Aidan is 57lbs (87%) and 4 feet 1 inch tall (89%). Emmy is 35 lbs (49%) and 3 feet 6inches tall (89%). No abnormalities and Aidan spent the entire time quizzing the doctor on the various instruments/posters/supplies in the office. Then came time for the shots. Emmy had been telling me that she was going to be brave and take a deep breath. She tried - she really tried but it proved too much. She took one look at the 4 needles sitting on the bed waiting to impale her and she started screaming. Aidan said he needed to stand outside the room because he didn't want to see Emmy cry. She didn't resist being put up on the bed and she didn't even need to be held down, which kind of made it worse for me. She just looked at me and cried and cried like I was betraying her in some horrible manner. I dosed her right after with Tylenol and we headed out the door. She may only be in the 49th percentile but 35 lbs is a lot to carry all the way to the car.

Back to the hourly care to pick up Aoife and then home for a quick snack. Change into bathing suits, slather on sunscreen and back in the car. It's the first day of swimming lessons because what is better after shots than physical exertion in freezing cold water? We show up to the pool - Aoife's in Mommy and Me, Emmy's in level 1 and Aidan's in level 2. Great - except they've canceled the level 1 class because there weren't enough kids and they've forgotten to tell me. What do I do now? I convince Aidan's teacher to take Emmy in the class promising him that it won't stay that way if it's too much work for him - knowing full well that's a total lie. This is the only time slot where Aoife can take lessons so Emmy's staying right where she is - a foot in the door so to speak. Emmy's totally freaking out because level 2 is in the deep end and she can't swim. The teacher said he'll do level 1 stuff with her and she can sit on the side until it's her turn. Surprisingly, everything actually turns out fine. Aidan said that swimming lessons were "the best hour of my life" and Emmy told me that she thought she was going to cry but she took a deep breath and didn't. Not too bad for a late night, 4 shots and now a fever.

Oh - and Aoife barfed on the way home.

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-04T23:38:00.000-04:00

Happy 4th of July!! Instead of braving the Fort Campbell festivities we went to Steph's house for a BBQ. It was nice to hang out, relax and eat good food! We brought the water slide with us and the kids had a blast. It wasn't as hot as it has been and it was really nice to be able to enjoy being outside. After dinner the kids did sparklers - although both Emmy and her friend Bella got little burns. Aidan managed to not burn himself and use all the sparklers after the girls decided that one burn was enough. We also watched the fireworks in the neighborhood and all of the kids seemed to have fun. We didn't get home until really late and we have to get up early for doctor's appointments and swim lessons tomorrow. Ugh - we'll see how it goes!Emmy and Bella with sparklers.Aoife eating dinner - for maybe the 3rd time. She loves a good cookout!Aidan and Emmy watching fireworks:

Fort Pickens, Pensacola Beach, FL

2011-07-04T10:07:00.001-04:00

One evening we drove down to Fort Pickens in Pensacola Beach. It was really fun and satisfied my craving for ruins! The kids had a fun time running around and going down tiny tunnels inside the fort - until I decided it was time to turn around. Thanks to my Dad for some of these pictures! It's always nice to be in a few!!

Peg Leg Pete's

2011-07-03T17:02:00.001-04:00

We found a great restaurant called Peg Leg Pete's in Pensacola Beach. It was about 30 minutes from our condo but it was so good that we ended up going back to have more fried shrimp and oysters. There was also a climbing gym on the bottom floor that was great for the kids!Everyone at dinner - it was great to have my brother Jeff with us. I hadn't seen him since I was pregnant with Aoife!Aoife the pirate!On the climbing gym:Emmy giving Aoife a hand up - they really are sweet to each other as long as they think I'm not watching!Aidan up in his element!

At the pool

2011-07-03T09:58:00.002-04:00

In addition to the beautiful beach, there was also a nice pool at the condo complex. When we first got there the kids were all pretty fearful of the water. They stayed close to the edge and were very cautious. By the end of the two weeks this had all changed. Aidan was swimming on his own and the girls were doing great in their floaties in the water. Swimming lessons starts next week and I can't wait to see how they do!This is how Aidan spent the last week of vacation:My mom with Aoife:Emmy swimming on her own with her lifejacket:

National Seashore

2011-06-30T17:41:00.002-04:00

We drove down the island a bit to a National Seashore beach. It was just beautiful! The sand is so white that Aidan said that it looked like snow! The water is blue and green and makes you feel like you are in the Caribbean! My sister, Laurie, brother, Jeff and my Mom and Dad were all there. We had a great time alternating adults in the water and making sandcastles with the kids!

An evening walk on the beach

2011-06-30T05:27:00.002-04:00

Laurie and my Dad came down halfway through our 2 weeks to join us. Dad stayed the rest of the time but Laurie could only stay for a day and a half. We made the most of the time we had but it wasn't enough. The kids loved having her around and were constantly pestering her to play. They were heartbroken when she had to leave so quickly - hopefully we'll see her again soon! The evening that they arrived we went for a walk on the beach. It was a lot of fun and the kids got totally soaked and sandy!!

Navarre Beach Fishing Pier

2011-06-29T22:18:00.002-04:00

One evening we went to the Fishing Pier to walk and burn off some energy. The kids had a great time running around and looking over the edge - it was a long way down! We didn't see anyone catching any fish that time but the next time we went back we saw a few fish which the kids thought was AWESOME - except then Aidan realized that fish lived in the ocean and refused to swim in the sea after that.

the view from the pierAoife and Emmy heading down to the end of the pier - 1500 feet away!All the fishermen - it was really windy so they were all on the downwind side!

Navarre Beach

2011-06-28T03:41:00.001-04:00

We spent a lot of time on the beach. Everyday we got up, had breakfast and then went down to the beach. Most days we would follow the beach with the pool and then go in for lunch. I didn't bring my camera with me most days because most beach pictures look pretty much the same. Here are a few I took over the first few days:

Emmy's 4th Birthday

2011-06-27T17:18:00.001-04:00

Emmy turned 4 while we were in Florida. We had celebrated the day of her party and she had opened a lot of her presents but I packed a few of the smaller ones to bring in the car with us so she could open them on her actual birthday. I also brought all the ingredients to make a birthday cake for her. The oven cooperated and it turned out well - so well, in fact, that I made another one at the end of the week so my dad, Laurie and Jeff could also have some when they arrived. Aoife was upset that it was not HER birthday!Opening presents is always a team event in our house:Emmy and her cake in the adorable fish dress that Mimi bought her:

First Day in Florida

2011-06-27T10:52:00.004-04:00

We drove down to Florida in two days even though it was only a 9 hour drive. We picked my mom up at the airport on Friday afternoon and drove down to Birmingham, AL the first day. We got up in the morning and drove the rest of the way down to Navarre Beach, FL. After a quick dinner we got the kids into their bathing suits and went for a walk on the beach. It was beautiful and so nice to be out of the stifling heat of Tennessee.
The kids ran down to the beach and Emmy and Aidan ran over the sand to the water. As soon as Aoife's toes touched the sand she started crying and wouldn't even take a step. The sand was kind of soft and I think she was scared that she sank in a little bit. She kept saying the the ocean was noisy and she wouldn't go near it - just kept giving the waves dirty looks every time one crashed on the beach. It's funny because by the end of the vacation she was completely in love with the ocean - it just wasn't love at first sight!