Happy Halloween!

I know I am two days late with this wish! Halloween has come and gone. Guess what I am doing right now. I am listening to Christmas Music. Yup... CHRISTMAS MUSIC!

Travis's soccer season came to an end this weekend (and not too soon, by the way!). He really did learn a lot this season. He is a natural on defense. When I played field hockey I remember feeling so much more comfortable in a defensive position. I think Travis is too.

On Saturday we met up with some neighbors and friends and walked the neighborhood. Travis was Buzz Lightyear. Chelsea was a "Ballerina Princess". They were so cute! One of my neighbors knows that I dread Halloween because Travis has the peanut and nut allergy and we can't have any nuts or nut products in the house. We end up giving up half of the kids candy. So my neighbor, who also happens to be an old family friend, bought two bags of Skittles especially for Travis and Chelsea! I thought that was so kind of her. Chelsea really got into it this year. She was so excited. She would get so angry when she wasn't given candy. Being so small, she was often overlooked by the homeowners. A few times she threw an all-out tantrum on their doorsteps.
Here is Travis as Buzz!
Chelsea was very pleased that she got to use the body glitter and lip gloss that she got from Tita and Uncle Scott and Caroline and Isabel for her birthday.
Here they are getting ready to leave.
Chelsea admires herself in the reflection of Dad's car.
The trick-or-treating gang!
Chelsea continues to enjoy dance class (although sometimes I find the teacher a bit harsh). She has a big smile on her face every time she is asked to do anything. This week she was asked to demonstrate how to point her toes. She was so proud. I am glad she likes it so much.

The house plugs along. The closet in our bedroom has been finished. There are still some electrical projects to do and the kitchen and mudroom floor needs to be laid. All in all there is light at the end of the tunnel, although sometimes I feel I have to look especially hard to find it.

On to the holidays!

The Blog Slacker

It has been a long time since I posted last! Life is busy and getting busier all the time. Two kids...two schedules! Two adults.... opposite schedules! You can see where this is going, right?

We have been working on the kitchen and it is coming along great. We have painted and finished the back splash and counter top. Actually Malcolm and Grandpa Ernie did the whole thing. We just painted. I plan on finishing the paint up in the kitchen this weekend. We love it so far! The butcher block before we oiled it.
After the oil.
The backsplash project in progress.
The new look around the stove.


We took a field trip to New Jersey for my niece's christening. It was so nice to see Sweet Caroline and meet Baby Isabel. My brother Scott and SIL Christine are adjusting to life with two kids. My mother and my grandmother were surrounded by grandchildren. I got my baby-fix.












Chelsea is still in ballerina mode! Here she is posing in the tutu that she got from Uncle Scott, Tita, Sweet Caroline and Isabel.
Actually I have been thinking about giving up the blog. I just don't have the time right now. I don't want to close the blog. I just want to not feel stressed out if I don't get to posting every week. It ends up being another thing that I feel guilty about. It started off as fun, but I guess it has become a little bit of a chore now.

I am very close to hitting my 100th entry, though! So I may hang in there for another two posts. We shall see!

A Celebration in the Middle of Chaos

What a crazy couple of weeks it has been. I will give a rundown in no particular order:

The kids have been crazy busy lately. Chelsea started dance and gymnastics. She loves it. I think she is the youngest one in the class. My cousin Erica is helping to teach the class, which makes Chelsea a little more comfortable, I think. She was definitely surprised to learn that she was not in charge!
Chelsea is ready to go to her first dance class.
Erica helps Chelsea get ready for a roll.
Chelsea and Erica
Chelsea got some new outfits for her birthday, so she wore them to her second class.

This is how she left the house on Saturday. I guess she wasn't ready to stop partying.
Travis started soccer for his 4th season. He seems to be getting better with his foot work all the time! We were supposed to have double duty games this weekend, but it is pouring today so I think we will be washed out.
Travis prepares to kick the ball.

John and his coworkers had another charity sporting event. They donated money to Autism research. This time it was softball and John's team (The Bonecrushers) won by a landslide.
The Girls' Team
The Boys' Team
John celebrates the victory
I love this picture of John. You can really see how happy he is to be a part of this event. He loves softball and it is nice to see him do something fun. He works so hard all the time.
The Bonecrushers: They got their names because they were playing the Orthopedic Staff.
John at the Bat

What did the kids do during this event? Well Chelsea found a friend who had brought some cosmetics with her. Here they are covering themselves in body glitter.

Chelsea took a break from beautifying herself to tackle her brother.
Travis hung out with John. He wanted his shirt to be just like dad's shirt.
Our friend Will had a birthday party at a local gymnastics place. The kids had a blast!




The house is coming along. The bulk of the new spaces have been sheetrocked and we are almost ready to paint. Our new counter tops are in, but have yet to be installed. The wall in the kitchen is down and a half wall has been added. It definitely makes the space seem a lot bigger. John is slowly painting the trim. He finished the hallway and is working his way into the living room. Malcolm and Ernie are working hard and I think they are teaching John some new skills.


We had to take a break from all of that this Friday to have our family here to celebrate Chelsea's third birthday. My baby is THREE! I can't believe it. She had been talking about her birthday for a few weeks. In fact, each time we left the house, she asked, "Are we going to my birthday now?" She was so happy when it finally arrived. Her eyes lit up like Christmas when she saw the presents. She got some baby dolls and a ballerina doll, some puzzles, and lots of clothes for the cold weather. The theme seemed to be "ballerinas" this year. She went with me to pick out her cake and we found a cake with Zoe from Sesame Street dressed up as a ballerina. She loved it.
We kept the party small this year. It was so cramped in this house with the construction. I think I am going to let her have a "Ballerina Party" when this project is done. That way she can invite all of her little friends. She has been talking about having her friends come to her party for a while now. I was so sad that we couldn't do it.
We let her open our presents the night before. Chelsea poses with her two facotiet guys.


Chelsea and her doll dressed up for her party. They sell these dresses with the matching doll dress at TJ Maxx. So cute.



Being 3 is very tiring!
John and I took a night off from our responsibilites and went to the U2 concert. We very rarely do stuff like this. My mom babysat and we didn't get home until 1:00 AM. We had a terrific time until Tuesday came and it was back to business as usual. We went with our friends Michele and Jay. We met up with my Aunt Michelle and Uncle Stephen and their friends. We did a little tailgating and headed in to the concert right before they went on. It was an awesome show. They even sang "Ultraviolet" which is my favorite song of theirs. I have been to a U2 show that was really preachy and depressing and full of political agenda. This one was not like that. It was fun and upbeat with only a little of the social conscience stuff. It was a good balance really.

The sad news is that my friend Jennifer's mom died a few weeks ago after a seven year battle with ovarian cancer. It was so sad. Jennifer and her brother did the readings and a family friend did a beautiful job with the eulogy. My hearts go out to her and her family!

Well that is a quick update in a nutshell. Travis's soccer game was just cancelled. Am I a bad mom for being happy in this fact? I have been given the gift of time! It will be a quiet but productive (hopefully) day. I have a long list to keep me busy! I am actually looking forward to a day at home. I can't remember the last one we had!