Farewell Summer 2012

The end of Summer is here. Like most parents, I am a little sad it is coming to a close. I have truly enjoyed my children this summer and everything it entailed.

It started out with one child mastering her bike, one child brave enough to just take off and ride, and one child finally having long enough legs to ride the big wheel (you would have thought she won the lottery), Vacation Bible School, Family Weekend and three weeks of Camp Gabe took us through the end of July.

Camp Gabe is where the kids really thrived this summer. Kaitlynn was enrolled in the Fine Arts Camp. She came home each week with some amazing art work. Not to mentioned she loved the freedom to just create. Jackson on the other hand spent three weeks in Sports Camp. My favorite part about Jackson in Sports Camp, someone finally wore him down. He LOVED it, but he was beyond exhausted.....best he slept all summer.

Madelynn was in three weeks of "Mini" Camp. Half her pre-school class was enrolled, she loved it. My favorite part about "Mini" Camp was the first day when Madelynn crawled out of bed she pulled her Minnie Mouse T-shirt out the drawer. She looked at me and said, "I have to wear my Minnie shirt for "Mini" Camp." Never a dull moment.

The rest of the summer was spent sitting under trees as the breeze blew by, sneaking off to Brewsters's for after dinner ice cream, magic tricks and wild animals at the library and swimming as much as possible. It also included lots of tests and doctor visits. All three had their annual physicals. except for Madelynn's weight the doctor was very please with all three. We also left the pediatric cardiologist with a great report. We have to wait until next year to find out more about Madelynn's nerve damage in her diaphragm but all is well for now.

I'm not going to lie I LOVE when school is in session. It is nice to know if I leave for work and the house is clean, when I come home it will still be clean. My children are routine people. If they know the plan they depend on it. Ask those who come to visit and the plan is disrupted.

This year marks big changes for Kaitlynn. She will earn real grades instead of satisfactory or unsatisfactory. She will participate in End of Grade (EOG) testing. If she does not pass this testing she does not pass the grade. Each student Must pass both the class and the EOG. I have not talked to her about this yet, it is on the agenda for the week.

Jackson will still be on the satisfactory/unsatisfatory program but his teacher will have a challange. Lucky for us she knows all the tricks, has been teching for 25 years, and been at the school since it opened in 1998. Jackson was very excited when he heard she would be his teacher. I hope this was an answered prayer.

Madelynn starts school this week. She was very sad when we drove Kaitlynn and Jackson to school and she could not go. She cannot wait for school to start.

Enjoy the photos from the first day of school through the first day of school.

So Long Summer...




TTFN~

Fresh Perspective

Recently I have been volunteering for many things. I am not sure why but opportunities have arisen and I have a hard time saying no. With my job and the hours I work the only time I don't see my children is when they are in school.

Don't get me wrong most people would kill to have a job like mine. I take them to school I am there every day to greet them off the bus and help with homework. I am ALWAYS there. At some point in life, I hope that I see the fruit of that labor.

Some days it truly is a labor. Over the last 4-6 months I have felt just pure exhaustion. Finally one day I just looked at Phil and said I need to get out I will be back in a few hours. I had no idea where I would go or what I would do I just grabbed my purse, keys and left.

I didn't go far.....just the consignment stores.....my favorite places. One day I discovered 7 of them within a 5 mile radius from my home. Suddenly, with the help of Pinterest, the consignment shops and some creative juices I have found a new energy.

One corner of my home has been bare since I bought it 13 years ago. Everything I have tried to place there just never works. But then I found a very cool table for $18.00, made a photo display for $5.00, basket and boxes for $18.00, a wooden plaque for $9.00 and rod iron candlesticks from another part of the house and came up with this......

The store I bought the table from has quickly become my favorite place to browse for ideas. The same day I bought the table I also bought a piece of wrought iron. When the lady rang me up she asked what I would do with it. I told her I wasn't quite sure yet. She asked me to post a picture once I decided. She said sometimes it is hard to sell because people aren't sure what to do with it.

With my existing 'fantle' (faux mantle), the wrought iron I bought for $21.00, a basket from my collection, left over mason jars from canned green beans and some bulbed plants I accidentally pulled with the weeds I put this together.....

Still stewing about whether to put something in the basket but for now I was pleased with the result.

We also discovered that our roof had sustained some hail damage over the last year and was needing replaced. Once the insurance paperwork was complete, one Saturday we watched the house get a new 'do'.

We were very pleased with the result. Still waiting for a nice clear day similar to the day it was installed to get a completed picture. But it looks a hundred times better.

Sometimes we get into such a rut of the daily grind we need a fresh perspective to continue the drive. I have about three more projects in the works. I will post once they are completed and placed.

Every year about this time we find something about the house that needs a new beginning. It's funny how it always happens around Easter. Good Luck finding a fresh perspective.

TTFN~

Cleaning out my closet.....

Since the first of the year, I have been de-cluttering my house life. Recently I decided to go through my closet. I don't think I have done this since before Madelynn was born. It was in desperate need.

Since the weather has been warmer, I decided to pack up my winter clothes. You know that alarm you hear when the reactor is about to blow and the lights are suddenly flashing faster........"total annihilation in 10...9....8....." Yeah I cleaned it out just in time.

At the bottom of the sweatshirt pile I found the following.....

There are only a handful of people who know where this sweatshirt came from (that is until now). When I was in the 8th grade about to graduate to a high school where I knew no one, I was given this gift. Most people don't even remember their friends from 8th grade. I remember all of them. Some of them I was with since pre-school and still talk to today. Lots of fond memories....

Then I came across this one........

One of the traditions in my high school is the senior sweatshirt. One of our classmates designed it. High school was not what I always hoped it would be but I walked away with treasured friends. When I think of those times, the memories with those friends that made me both laugh and cry were worth their weight in gold.

Finally I found this one........

Upon finishing high school I headed off to college. Not just any college but the school that both my father and brother graduated from. Talk about an eye opening experience. My best friend and I were college roommates our sophomore year we picked up one more roomie. The three of us are still friends.

When I scan through my friends list on facebook I can tell you something significant about every person in, including how I met them. They fall into one of five categories family, elementary school friends, high school friends, college friends and after college. Besides family some of them I have known for 35 years.

Thanks for the memories.....Do any of you still have these sweatshirts???

TTFN~

Success....

Everyone grades success with a different scale. With all the roller coaster rides this family has been on the last 24 hours has been a good smooth ride. We were due for a BIG grocery run. I mean big. You name it we were out of it. In the last 24 hours I have been to 5 different stores to get all the necessary items to keep this household running. Crazy I know but we like particular foods and they are only sold in certain stores.

Since returning from the last store earlier this afternoon I have gotten it all put away, cleaned up the kitchen after making homemade dish washing soap found here, and Homemade Granola found here. I have run the dishwasher hoping my homemade dish washing soap would work. I was AMAZINGLY very surprised. It works GREAT. It cost me less than $15.00 and will probably last me 6 months or more.

While I was anxiously awaiting the dishwasher to get done I was surfing Pinterest. I discovered a new way to cook hard boiled eggs. This was sooooo stinkin' simple I would have NEVER believed it had I not tried it for myself. Ready for this.....take an egg out of the refrigerator (or as many as you want to cook), place each egg in your muffin pan (open per hole), preheat your oven to 325 degrees (yes your oven), place the muffin pan in the oven for 30 minutes. When you pull the pan back out of the oven, spoon each egg out and place it in cold water for about a minute, then peel.

When I cut the peeled egg open I was speechless. I found a perfectly cooked bright yellow centered egg. Katie was so excited it was gone before I could take a picture. In 40 years I have never figured out how to not overcook a hard boiled egg until TODAY!!

Right now I am finishing a glass of wine and my whole house smells of the homemade granola. I can't wait try it out in the morning. Between meals, stopping home between stores and the things I made today I think I cleaned my kitchen 6 times today. But it was well worth the success of today.

TTFN~

Savannah, GA

When I opened the gift I truly had no idea, complete surprise. For the first time in 9 years Phil and I were going on a trip WITHOUT kids. Phil, my family and Nana Patti were able to work out the logistics so we could be gone for 4 glorious days.

Friday March 16th we were off to Savannah, GA. Over the years, Phil and I had been there for our 1st Wedding Anniversary which was FABULOUS. Last November on our way to Florida we stopped there over night with the kids and they loved it. But together Phil and I had never experienced St. Paddy's Day down there. I was VERY excited.

We arrived about 4pm Friday afternoon parked the car and the rest of our travelling would be on foot. We walked most of Bay Street every day. Saturday morning we were up very early walked to mass at the Cathedral, watched the parade, went to eat, watched more parade. One of the things we tried to do was support only local restaurants and not the big franchises. We found terrific food. I tried so many new foods in those four days than I did in 40 years.

We stopped by the Mercer House (Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil), the first Girl Scouts House in the US, St. John the Baptist Cathedral (twice: once for Mass and and the other for pictures), admired the simple beauty of the squares, walked River St multiple times, a dueling piano bar and Savannah's Vietnam Memorial was really cool. One afternoon we walked through the Colonial Park Cemetery. There was something about this cemetery that just draws you in. The last time someone was buried there was 1853.......Yes I said 1853. One of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence was buried there.

There was one thing I saw that took my breath away and just stopped me in my tracks. There was a family plot that had a headstone that was five feet by five feet. I had never seen a burial stone so big. If I remember correctly there were eleven names carved out on this GINORMOUS stone. That was a big family. After taking a closer read, Phil and I discovered they had 6 children buried in the plot. Not one of these children lived to their 3rd birthday. It was very sobering to think of the heartache that mother must have carried. I felt so fortunate to have such a beautiful family.

One afternoon we decide to take the car to Tybee Island. I heard about what a beautiful place it was but had never been. It would be fun to take the kids and stay there a few days. We also discovered a Civil War Fort. I never knew one was there. So we walked all of Fort Pulaski. This is a must see if you are ever in Savannah.

I posted several of my pictures on my pinterest page for viewing here's the link: http://pinterest.com/addler99/my-photographs/ I will be posting more. I think I took close to 300 pictures if not more.

This trip would have not been possible without so many of you. Thank you to Phil and my family for scheming to put it all together. Thank you to Patti for taking the time out of her schedule to fly in and take care of the kids (that was a gift in itself). Thank you to Ray and Linda (Kaitlynn's god-parents) for taking care of the kid logistics and getting Patti at the airport so Phil and I could get the heck out of dodge. Quite possibly this was the best birthday present ever.

Thank You.

TTFN~

Valentine's Day!!

Before there was Madelynn, Jackson or even Kaitlynn, it was just Phil and I. For six years it was always Phil and I. As much as I love my children, I would walk through fire for them. Sometimes I miss when it was just Phil and I.
Today is a special day for so many reasons. For starters, it is Grandmother Caroline's birthday. Even when I was a little girl I always thought it was "cool" my grandmother was born on Valentine's Day. In my entire life I have only had one really SPECTACULAR Valentine's Day. I'm not sure Phil will ever be able to top it. Seeing as it was my FIRST Valentine's Day with Phil and he proposed. To most I am sure it all sounds very cliche but it was one of the few times in my life I was REALLY excited.

Since Madelynn's diagnosis and surgery Valentine's Day has taken on a WHOLE new meaning. Instead of just buying traditional valentine's and sugar filled candy, this year the kids created their valentine's. I cut out close to 60 hearts, we painted and the kids addressed each one. Since Madelynn couldn't write I used her's to spread Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) Awareness.

One side of the heart says, "One out of every 100 babies is born with a CHD every year".

On the other side it reads, "I AM 1 in 100. Happy Valentine's Day! Love, Madelynn."

It is strange to me to observe this permutation in my life. To reminisce about days of independence from children always makes me smile. But when I stop and admire my life today including the tremendous hurdles we have jumped or some days crawled under, we wouldn't be complete without ALL of it.

Life is just not how I ever thought it would be. I have learned to be grateful for the journey set before me. I am completely indebted to Phil for never throwing in the towel. Very glad he will always be my Valentine.

Wishing everyone a Wonderful Valentine's Day!!

TTFN~

40 things I have learned....in the last 40 years...

Well Today is my 40th Birthday. Throughout my life I have learned things about myself and things that are just facts of life. Just thought I would share them.

1. You can never say I love you enough.....
2. A child's smile will cure any bad day....
3. You are never too old for a nap....
4. Best Friends CAN be forever....
5. Waiting in long lines are not the worst thing in the world.....
6. Breakfast for dinner is sometimes required.....
7. It is OK to spend a day doing absolutely nothing....
8. Thank God for the rain.....
9. You MUST do your homework......
10. Some days shoes are optional.....
11. Just because it rings doesn't mean you have to answer the phone....
12. I love night time thunderstorms.......
13. You are never too old to swing or play on the teeter totter......
14. Don't feel guilty for spending the day without your children.....
15. Learn to use power tools......
16. It is truly amazing to witness a miracle...
17. There are days when the house will be completely a mess.....
18. You can cry in front of your kids......
19. Even with Today's technology you should write and mail your grandmother a letter....
20. Don't take your parents for granted.....
21. If you must punish or spank your children, when it's over look them in the eye and tell them you love them........
22. Find something to make you Laugh Out Loud EVERYDAY.....
23. Learn from your mistakes.......
24. It's ok to cry when pets die.....
25. "What if's" don't matter because they aren't "What is"..........
26. Always be Happy with what you have.....
27. Take LOTS of Pictures....your children with thank you later....
28. Don't squander gifts.....No matter who gave them to you......
29. Family is Forever.....
30. Volunteer, Volunteer, Volunteer.......
31. Do what you love and the money will come....
32. Pray for those that hurt or anger you.....
33. Adopt a rescued animal............
34. Clean your room and make your bed........
35. Make time for Date Night.........
36. Read a book......or 5.........
37. Walking or Running at least one 5K a year won't kill you.........
38. Helping a perfect stranger is very rewarding....
39. Do it yourself projects will teach you something about yourself.....
40. Life is never what we expected it to be, but learn from the changes.....

TTFN~

Catching Up.......

As I type this I realize I am really behind in my posts. When I looked back I hadn't left a post since Christmas. It seems like since Christmas I was dropped in a whirlwind and I just recently found the door to get out. So I am going to post a few Christmas pictures and then move on into the new year.

Reindeer noses compliments of Nana Patti.

The kids were so excited for Christmas I truly thought my house would explode. It was all we could do to settle the kids down. Jack had such difficulty calming down at school I had to threaten to keep his Christmas presents and that Santa would not any for him. He finally got the picture and put the brakes on. On the last day of school before break he brought me home this....

 

I thought he did a great job. I was bummed we couldn't keep it, but you get the idea from the pictures.

Christmas Eve was spent with Grandma and Grandpa Bacho with Christmas dinner (Grandma Bacho did a FABULOUS job!!), church and presents and yes in that order. We went to the Mass with the Handbell Choir and Children's Choir it was really nice. It was such a crazy day, I was too busy being with family and didn't take any pictures. I couldn't believe it either.

Christmas Day, when in town, we always go to Kaitlynn's god-parents house. The house looks like you walked into the North Pole. Think of everyone of your favorite Christmas treats or favorite food it is on the buffet to eat. I do not eat anything before or after this visit because I think I eat all three meals for the day during the visit to their house. Talk about YUMMY!!!

The rest of Christmas Break for the kids was uneventful, we just tried to spend as much time together as possible since the kids had to go back to school on the 2nd.

We really hope everyone really did have a Wonderful Christmas.

Ok on to 2012!!!!

TTFN~

One Sunday Morning....

Getting ready to head off to church one day and I had Phil and Katie take a few pictures.

Mommy and Jack

The Girls

Mommy and her munchkins

TTFN~

Aw Shucks!!

Well I had to rework my schedule to make all of the last few days happen but, Thursday despite the on and off rain I was able to go on Jackson's field trip. It was really stressful to map out all of the logistics for all three kids but in the end I was really glad I went. Not to mention it was a great way to celebrate Fall.

Sometimes I feel like Jack always gets the shaft. I could go on about things I don't have a memory of for Jack but I do for the girls. I feel like I will always be making things up to Jack. Today I believe made up for some of it.

It looked to be a miserable rainy day. I prayed on the way to the farm that we have a great day together. Seconds after the prayer the sky opened up and fell. My first thought was .... Seriously!!! But, I just kept driving to the farm in hopes of a great visit.

When I arrived I started to see blue sky and sunshine. We were able to get most of the visit in and the rain came again. We took cover and had lunch. We took a nature trail walk. Right  at the end of the trail the rain came again. By that time we waited for it to stop again and the kids headed off to the bus and I drove home.

The one on one time with Jack was well worth all the stress of logistically making it happen. It is a day he will forever have in his memory and if I didn't go I would never be able to get back.

TTFN~

October has been very busy.............

October has been really crazy and we are barely half way through it. Jack is really enjoying soccer and doing quite well. His game last Saturday was against his best friend's team. He did really well with a goal and a couple of assists.

He can run.

Jack and Sam

After the game there was a fall festival in a community near our neighborhood. Old cars, games and fun for the kids, something for everyone.

I loved the blue color.

Phil checking out the old cars.

Daddy teaching Maddie how to check out an old car.

Get Ready!!

Away we go.

When things don't go quite as planned.

We walked the festival, did a little face painting it was time to go.

I am not sure who was more exhausted the kids or myself. Monday was a teacher work day so Katie and Jack were out of school. I promised we would paint pumpkins.

It makes me laugh when the tongue has to come out to get the job done just right.

She begged me for that little side ponytail.

His concentration kills me.

She loves to paint.

Those last few days have been busy and it just continues. I have a few more photos to post of Jack and I, maybe tomorrow.

TTFN~

10....12....16....14....

You are correct they are not in numeric order and no there is no reason to correct the order. Added together they equal 52.

Lately I have been asked the same question over and over and I have been giving the same answer over and over.

When are you going to cut your hair? Will you be donating it?

I will probably wait until April, which will be 3 years since my last cut, and MOST DEFINITELY I will be donating it.

Or should I say donated it AGAIN. It was just time.

BEFORE

AFTER

In the last 13 years I have only had 4 haircuts that resulted in donating 52 inches of hair and today was my last donation. For all my Family, Friends and Children of Friends who have had their bodies ravaged by cancer this was my silent fight. I couldn't fight your fight, take your pain away, make you miraculously healed or stop you from dying.

What I could do is grow my hair, take care of it to get the best possible result, cut it when the length was enough and start all over again. My hair helped someone feel normal again. I don't know who that was but I pray for that silent victim often.

The kids loved my hair cut, Phil won't lie he really dislikes my short hair but he appreciates the cause. Hope everyone has a GREAT WEEKEND!!!

Happy Birthday Aunt Joy!!!

Happy Birthday Aunt Joy!!!

We wanted you to know that we are thinking of you today and are sorry we aren't there to help you celebrate. Kaitlynn, Jackson and Madelynn drew pictures for you and we have mailed them to you but we thought we would share them with everyone.

This one is from Kaitlynn.

She wanted to make sure you knew all the words in yellow on the right were supposed to fit in the thought bubble. This is what she thought you would say about your presents.

This one is from Jackson

What you should know about this picture...... Jackson wanted to know your eye color before he started drawing. Whenever he draws a picture eye color is VERY important!! He was very excited you and he had blue eyes.

This one is from Madelynn

She was very proud of this picture and brought it to me with the biggest smile on her face. However, I must share the best part about this picture. The whole time she was drawing it I could hear her singing the WHOLE Happy Birthday song including inserting Aunt Joy when she got to that part. It was really cute!!

All that to say we truly hope you have a Fantabulous 18th Birthday and we will see you soon!!

Sending lots of Hugs.....

Phil, Chelsea, Kaitlynn, Jackson and Madelynn

TTFN~

A Family Tidbit..............

A few hours after Kaitlynn was born we were talking about how our pets would respond to the new little person in our home; especially the cats we had at the time. One of the nurses suggested Phil take home the hat they put on Kaitlynn's head at birth. This article of clothing would have Kaitlynn's strongest scent on it. Phil said the dogs and cats were completely enthralled with it and wouldn't stop smelling it.

The purpose of this exercise was to help with the day Kaitlynn came home. All of the pets would recognize the scent of something familiar. It work!

This hat (Kaitlynn).

And this hat (Jackson)

And this hat (Madelynn).

Well a few weeks ago Phil came home from my parents house with some photos. There was some discussion as to which baby was in the photo. The picture in question was this one......

Which one was this???

During the discussion of who it was there was mention of the hat and that not all three kids had the same hat at birth. Phil was very confident that all three of the kids wore the same hat at birth. My parents were a little skeptical and wanted to know why Phil was so confident........

Because Phil pulled this out of his pocket.......

From left to right Kaitlynn's, Jackson's and Madelynn's hats.

My parents were a little surprised. By the way, the child in the photo was Madelynn.

October 3, 2008 I took this picture because I loved the fact that Phil does not start his day without first putting the hats in his pocket. I knew one day I would have a reason to use it. I loved the contrast of the cleanliness of the hats as to how many days they travelled in Phil's pocket. Until today there were only about 10 people that knew this family tidbit.

There have been some mornings where Phil has startled me by coming back in the house at 6am because he did not have them. There was even one morning I came downstairs to the kitchen and found them on the counter.

He forgot them.

I have to admit it stopped me in my tracks. The kids even asked me why Daddy forgot them because they know Daddy carries them.

I assured them it was an accident and just to make sure Daddy did not have a bad day we called him to wish him a good day. Everyday he comes home from work and I see him pull the hats out of his pocket. It always makes me smile.

TTFN~