Las Vegas

It is Saturday evening. Our convention here in Las Vegas has wound down. We have a 6am flight back east tomorrow morning so are getting ready to hit the hay. (Yes, we are giant nerds who are going to BED by 8pm on a Saturday night in Las Vegas! - I don't even recognize myself anymore! haha)

The kids seemed to have survived at Gramma Lou's. I hope they didn't tire her out too much!! I know cousins Leah and Frank were a giant help, and I know how much Emma loves to play with them.

At about noon today my heart started to ache. I saw a Mom with her kids and I just all of the sudden missed my little rugrats so much. I can't wait to see them tomorrow evening and smother them with kisses and hugs.

This convention was mind boggling. Tony Dungy was our key-note speaker and he blew my mind with his delivery of what a champion is to him. The man just oozes integrity. I can't wait to borrow from his ideas in parenting our amazing children. We were blessed with a few one on one mentoring sessions with various Chairmen of the company, too. We are desperate to not only return to the East Coast to see our kids and family, but also to start implementing the things we learned. I gave a speech in front of a thousand associates on Friday night talking about why our business means so much to me and our kids and how much we have grown in the 4 short years we have been involved. Apparently I struck a cord with a good amount of people because I had lots of compliments today. But I was truly just speaking from my heart. I love that I can be home with my babies. I love that I can take them to work with me. I love that they are surrounded by amazing positive champions who want nothing more than to fill my children's heads and heart with encouragement, praise and recognition. I love my husband and how hard he works. He inspires me to want to be a better person. I love how much he loves our children. And I know just how much they love him...

Life is good, people. I am all in.

the Question Zone

Where did the weekend go? What did we even do? Time continues to fly by us here. We have officially been out of LA for 2 months now. Emma still asks for her LA friends, albeit less and less as the days pass. We received a card in the mail today with her bff Evie's picture in it. Emma was so excited, "That's Evie!!" she said. "And this is baby Emry. She is such a cutie baby!" as her past friendships came rushing back to her.

We all rolled out of bed around 7am this morning. As we have been waking up to evil humidity on a daily basis, we simply keep the doors and windows shut and let the central AC do it's job. Daddy took the dogs out for their morning stroll and came back in hooting, "QUICK! Open the doors and windows! It's beautiful outside!" We scrambled to open the windows and the sliding glass door to our balcony and let the FRESH morning air inside. The kids were so excited to get out on the balcony and utilize their fancy cottage for play instead of just staring at it forlornly through the glass door knowing they will melt if they step outside. We were out the door by 8:55am and hung out at the rocketship park for a good 2 hours before Benny started slowing down. We came home for lunch, popped Benny in for his nap, Daddy came home for the afternoon, and Emma and I snuck out for a girl's afternoon in the marina. We had heaps of fun at the library, the bank, and the Gap window shopping. We watched the ferry unload, threw stones in the water, climbed the decorative giant rocks that are all around the marina. We played on the concrete turtles and dolphins, walked out on the pier and looked at more boats and a few fisherman, climbed some more rocks and generally had a blast enjoying the non-humid heat of a summer day.

We were gone about 90 minutes and I probably said about 25 words. Emma on the other hand, was a MOTORMOUTH. She is officially in the "question" phase. "Is that the ferry, Mom?" (She now pretty much just calls me MOM, no Mama, no Mommy. I am MOM.) Yes, Emma. "Can I climb this rock, Mom?" "What do dolphins eat, Mom?" "Does this rock look like a mountain, Mom?" "Can we get some ice cream, Mom?" etc etc etc. She knew the answer to ALL the questions she was asking, she was just looking for that reassurance. I love the way she sees things, too. At one point she was climbing these rocks that looked about the size of a bale of hay (see pic). They were nicely rectangular and spaced evenly apart. She would climb one, try to jump to the next one, not quite make it, climb up the next one, and repeat the process. But when she asked me, "Can I climb those rocks that look like a bale of hay, Mom?" I was once again reminded at how intelligent this little girl is, how perceptive she is and how creative she is becoming. It is such a pleasure to watch her grow! (Until she comes home and tries to smoosh her little brother by wrestling him to the ground and laying on top of him until he is crying uncontrollably, then I want to toss her in the closet and lock the door...)

My favorite question of the day was when she saw some fishermen. "Are they fishing, Mom? Are they gonna catch some fish? Are they gonna take the fish home and eat, 'em, Mom?" I said, "Yep, they are going to take them home and cook them up for dinner." To which she replied, "No, Mom, they are gonna throw them back in the water."

Did I mention Ben's 18 month well visit yet? We LOVE the new pediatrician office. The staff is very nice and the doctor's (all female) are sweet and very thorough. She wasn't concerned much about Ben's digestion as he wasn't breaking out into hives or showing other signs of allergies. She called it a food intolerance that he should grow out of. For now just keep reintroducing it until he can digest it properly... And find new things to introduce, too. Easier said than done. He was surprisingly only in the 75% for height and weight. I was thinking he was so much more of a bruiser than that - weight 27 lbs 8 ounces, and height 32 inches. As he still isn't speaking much more than babble, she gave me the phone number of an Early Intervention group that could run some tests on him. I am not so sure I am ready to expose him to that just yet. My Mama's intuition tells me that his big sister simply doesn't let him get a word in edgewise, and when I try and work with him solo, she is always butting in for attention. I am going to make a concerted effort to work with him in the next few months and if he still isn't speaking by 21 months, I will call the number. I know he is comprehending everything these days as he follows orders - go into your room so we can change your diaper, come here and get your milk, get in your highchair for dinner, you don't need no stinkin' binky... etc. Time will tell.

We are headed to Las Vegas for our convention and the kids are staying with Gramma Lou in PA so I probably won't be blogging for about a week. I wish you all an awesome ending to your July and we will see you in August! xoxo

Friday Happy Hour, 4-6

Those big carts at the warehouse stores with the doubles seats up top used to be my best friend. USED TO BE. Now they are just a new way for Emma to bother Ben when he is just trying to chill and people watch. I take my bunch with me practically everywhere. I like them. I like their company. But as they age, I am find it more and more challenging to be out and about without them torturing each other in public. But, it does provide for a few fabulous laughs - at one point Emma was torturing Ben beyond his limits so I snatched him out of the seat and carried him while Daddy pushed the cart. I had to put him down to toss a giant case of juice boxes into the cart and the kid took off running (remember, Ben has 2 speeds, sitting and running). Daddy chased after him with the cart and I completely lost all sight of them all while carrying the heavy case of juice. I found them three aisles over, Daddy looking pleasantly exasperated with Ben slung over one shoulder pushing Emma in the cart. Good times, people.

Speaking of good times. I used to be a Bartender. I loved Friday Happy Hour because I could pull in over $100 in a 2 hour period. Life is a bit different these days. We have our own version of Friday Happy Hour. There is no alcohol involved, but there is a giant beach ball that makes our children laugh and laugh as we bat it back and forth over their heads "monkey in the middle" style. I couldn't help but think how much more fun my current version of Happy Hour is.

Tonight at dinner Emma was "eating challenged". She topped the meal off with my pet peeve, pushing her plate across the table and spilling the food all over the floor. Daddy could see my blood boiling and stepped in with a solid swat to the behind and a chat on her bed. As her tears subsided, she decided that the "spanking was going away" (i.e. the sting of the swat was fading) and she could return to the table and finish her dinner and receive the ultimate prize, a popsicle. (Daddy is a softy, I was anti-popsicle after the spill.)

Another of my pet peeves is spilled milk droplets all over my comfy new sofa. Mostly it is Emma to blame, but tonight Benny was shaking his milk and spilling drops with Emma there to witness it all. I had to "discipline" him like I do her, so I plucked him off the couch and dropped him in the time out spot (on the rug in our hallway). I was shaking my finger at him for Emma's benefit really, saying, "No, Benjamin. You do not play with your milk. You drink your milk. Spilling your milk on Mommy's couch is BAD." You know what the little turkey did? (How do I explain this?) His pouched his lips out like a fish that wanted to suck on my disciplining waggling finger. It was so freakin' funny that I burst into laughter. Daddy was yelling at me across the room, "Be strong, Mommy, fight it. Swallow it!" but I just couldn't!! Little turkey...

Finally this evening, Emma received 2 more birthday gifts in the mail today, first a new pair of sparkle glitter sneakers from Abuelita that she wore the ENTIRE day, and second a pair of cute hair bows from Uncle Eric and Aunt Lizi in LA. She immediately needed one bow in her hair and put the other in my hair. When I suggested she put the bow in Daddy's hair instead, she said, "Daddy's a BOY! We gotta buy him Spiderman bows."

Random thoughts

If you are ever feeling sad, please feel free to borrow Ben. This kid, even in sickness, smiles that goofy David Letterman gappy toothed grin and lifts your spirits. We spent the day in the car (total of 3.5 hours) and at the Bronx Zoo (total 2.5 hours) and this kid - who is snot nosed sick, won't eat, and either has diarrhea or is constipated - didn't cry once, ran around the zoo like a madman (once again, Ben has two speeds, sitting and running), and made at least 50 people comment on what a sweet happy baby he is (okay, not so much a baby now at 18 months, but you get the point).

Tonight after dinner I had to run to the store to grab some diapers. Daddy stayed home and bathed the kiddies. I was only gone for 20 minutes or so, but when Benny heard me open the door, he came tearing down the hall smile from ear to ear, buried his face in my legs like I was his long lost Mama. I was exhausted from the day but was immediately uplifted and energized from our favorite little man.

Ben = energy drink. We love this kid. We want to bottle this kid. We are very lucky parents.

Mother Nature visits

When my husband first proposed the idea we leave my beloved California and head East for our own reverse gold rush, I was like, "Really? But I really like it here. I like my life. I love my LA family. I love the weather." He said, "That's just it. The weather. It's too perfect. I want our children to experience SEASONS."

Well, it all paid off tonight in the fee of a massive thunder and lightening, wild and crazy windy rainstorm. Our daughter was glued to the window. She was not even one iota afraid - even at those cracks that sounded like your roof was about to open up. Half way through the storm it was her bedtime and she didn't fight it. She came out 10 minutes later asking for juice. When I went back into her room to give it to her, she had climbed up onto her headboard and was peaking through the horizontal blinds to get a better look at Mother Nature's wrath outside. I gave her the juice and she asked, "Will you please raise up the blinds so I can see it better?" I opened them up and let her enjoy the show while she snuggled into her giant bed.

Whatever are we going to do when it starts to snow?

Zombietown

No sleep. That is what we got around here last night.

Ben has caught himself a case of the night terrors. He will scream uncontrollably and scamper up into our arms, yet still be sleeping. When we try to lay him back into bed, the screams begin again. We tried soothing him, we tried rocking him, we tried letting him watch some Baby Einstein, milk, apple juice, you name it, the kid just screamed. We finally set up the pack and play in the living room and had to let him cry it out. It worked until 60 minutes later when he started screaming again. Repeat this process 5 times last night. He woke up Emma around midnight and she didn't fall back to sleep until 1:00. Needless to say, we are all dogging it this morning.

And that after the most amazing family dinner last night. We all piled into Vinnieman, stopped and grabbed cheap Chinese, headed to the beach and picnicked on the floor in the back of the van (3rd row of seats folded makes for tons of space!) with the tailgate popped and the ocean providing the sound and sites for our dining pleasure. Afterward, we splashed in the water, skipped stones, and played while the sun started it's descent.

I think I will try and remember the dinner and forget the lack of sleep portion of the night.

Ben's digestion has not improved at all. I have completely cut out all suspect foods and he still has gas and bad poops. Can one suddenly become lactose intolerant? He is going for his 18 month well visit on Friday. Hopefully our new pediatrician can provide some insight...

Another day in paradise

We had a fun filled family weekend that included a BBQ with 2nd or 3rd cousins of Brian's who, it turns out, live right down the road, are our age and are very cool. Hooray! Throw in a trip to the NY Aquarium, a walk down Coney Island pier, and a hot dog with sauerkraut from the Original Nathan's on the boardwalk and you have one tired and happy family.

Ben's eating is still mystifying us. He hardly wants to eat and then doesn't yet seem to be able to digest vegetables and now his favorite fruits are throwing his intestines for a loop. I haven't found a pediatrician - it is my goal for this week, as he needs his 18 month well visit and shots and we need to figure out if the poor little guy has turned into the kid who is allergic to everything. (But he can eat and eat and eat PBJ on wheat so all is good. Protein, carbs and fruit, right?) He poo poos everything, then pooh poohs what he does eat right out. (I am so clever I can't get enough of myself right now... I just may use this line on the pediatrician to see if he/she has a sense of humor - very important in a doctor.)

We did have a blast playing in the marina near our casa the other morning. It was the perfect blue sky day, hot and humid, but as you can see from the pics, we found a great way to cool off. Ben LOVES to play in water and was soaked in minutes.


We enjoyed wandering around the piers looking at the boats and watching the ferry come into port, too!


I am enjoying our little village (population 7500 or so) more and more every day and look forward to showing it off to all of you when you come to visit.

Sing it! "Can you guess what thing doesn't belong?"

I am CONSTANTLY reminding Emma that if she doesn't clean up her princess doll's slippers that Ben may put them in his mouth and swallow them and get very sick. The other day, for the 150th time, I asked her to put the slippers away because Ben was waking up from his nap. About an hour later, I went over to the door to put on my shoes so I could run down and grab the mail and this is what I found (click on the pic to see it in full blown glory):


This, my faithful readers, is just another reason why we love our daughter.

Sorry, Daddy

A while ago Daddy came with us to the supermarket and was about to grab one of those shopping carts with the cars on the front. I quickly grabbed a normal one, told him those were a bad idea. Daddy, knowing I am always right, popped Benny in the child seat and off we went. Well, today, the kids and I went to the market in the pouring down rain and the only dry cart was one of those car carts. Emma hopped in the front, Benny in the child seat and we shopped away. Guess what? Those car carts are a GREAT idea and I am a giant jackass. Emma had a blast, wasn't bothering me or Benny the entire time, and I actually left the store with not only everything I set out to purchase, but my sanity as well.

Earlier today Emma was trying to get my attention but I was in the middle of something and asked her to please wait. She was not satisfied with that and whacked me on the hand with the plastic toy hammer she was holding. I stopped what I was doing and looked at her with rage in my eyes, "Did you just hit me?" Knowing she was in deep doggy doo doo, she replied with perfect timing, "No, Mom, I was just fixing you."

Happy 3rd Birthday, Emma!

Dear Emma,

You turned 3 this weekend. 3! How did that happen?

Daddy and I want you to know how much we love you. You are our sunshine - and the friendliest kid on the block. You are getting better at sharing your toys and you are madly in love with your little brother, Ben. You light up his days, too. He gets so happy and does the "she's awake!" dance when you wake up in the morning.

Your language skills are beyond your years and you are so very smart. You NEVER forget anything and have wicked good comedic timing when you are being naughty. It is so hard to stay angry with you because you make us laugh so much.

We are so happy you are in our lives and can't wait to watch you grow and blossom into the champion you are. But, do us a favor and take your time, okay? Because we are having the best time being your parents...

Happy weekend

We put Vinnie-Man to the REAL test and packed up the family and the dogs and headed west for our 3 1/2 hour journey to Gramma Lou's house in PA for Emma's 3rd Birthday extravaganza. VM is a true superhero. Not a peep from either kid (and 3 1/2 turned into 5 because of a pit stop at UPS and traffic through Manhatten). The dvd player is the true hero - if the kids get the chance to watch movies non-stop, they aren't going to complain! Both kids peed through their diaper/pullup, but they didn't even complain about it they were so happy watching TV!

Our weekend was awesome. We passed the time swimming at Grandpa's pool and then partying it up at Aunt Lisa's. Emma raked in some awesome Princess booty, a scooter, and some roller skates. She is still trying to figure out the scooter, but was an immediate Olympic skater - believe it or not - I truly expected her to go kerplunk immediately. It helped that she was practicing on Aunt Lisa's wooden deck. It limited movement and taught her good standing / shuffling balance skills. (If you are a facebook friend, see the complete set of pics I posted there.)

We made it back to LI in just over 3 1/2 hours - again no fussing and hearty pee pee diapers (I got smart and put a size 6 on Ben to soak up more!). Emma did a pretty good job while we were away. She had a few accidents, but is already back on track. We spent a very sweaty morning at the rocketship park then over to BJs for groceries. I actually got out of there for $30. It's a miracle!

Ben is now napping and Emma is chilling in her new Princess lounge chair. I am not sure how long this chair will last (air filled - almost like a floaty toy for the pool) as the kids LOVE to jump on it. I'm not sure why it looks like she has a black eye in the pic - weird lighting, I guess.

Getting schooled

For some reason I feel compelled to tell you all once again how much I LOVE my new sectional sofa. I love sinking into it with a book. I love sinking into it with a kid and a book. I love snuggling a kid drinking a bottle (or a sippy cup) while watching Thomas (or whatever the flavor of the week is...). I love stretching out on it at the end of a long day with my husband on the other side and we don't even touch! I love that we can touch if we want to. And my favorite is seeing Benny walk from end to end of it - well, dance from end to end of it, with that awesome toothy smile as he navigates the giant cushions then falls plunge style backwards giggling his infectious giggle...

Yesterday while on the potty, Emma announced that she and Mommy had rectangles and Daddy and Ben had circles. What? I asked confused. "Daddy and Ben are boys, they have circles. You and me are girls, we have rectangles." Who knew! Anatomy and Geometry combined into one!

When the kids are playing well together and giggling and being silly, I will often walk into their room with my obviously fake mad Mama voice and say, "What's going on in here?" It makes them cackle even louder! The other day Daddy and Benny were wrestling and Ben was cackling like crazy and Emma assumed the voice and said, "What's going on over here?" I almost snorted my water it was so darn funny.

We have been reconnecting with all of Daddy's high school and college friends who still live in the area and Wednesday we went to a bbq at his friend Jen's house. She has a 3 year old girl and a 16 month old boy (sound familiar?) so we had a blast. When we pulled up to their house, her husband had just turned on an oscillating sprinkler in their front yard and - yep, you guessed it, Benjamin went right for it. As it was about 136˚ with 99% humidity I didn't stop him, and we all laughed and laughed watching him navigate the spray (or should I say purposely go where the spray was so he would get SOAKING wet). I couldn't get him away from it he was having so much fun. They are only about $10 so I just may have to go get one for the kids to fool around in on our side yard. Our downstairs buddy already has a hose we could probably borrow and I think it may be more summer memory making fun for them in addition to the kiddie pool.

Clever Mrs. Cleaver?

We had to put a few rubbermaid storage bins out on our giant balcony because we had no where to store them in the apartment. In an attempt to make them a bit more attractive, I bought an old school red and white checker plastic tablecloth to cover them up, trying to make them look at bit summery and festive. Much to my dismay, when I got home I realized that I had purchased the one for a round table, not a rectangle table. I immediately turned that frown upside down with the idea to put it under my dining room table as a foldout "carpet" / protective barrier for the real carpet underneath. Every night before dinner I unfold it from it's hiding spot wrapped around the legs of the table and lay it under the chairs. It takes about 10 seconds - and I must tell you - I have saved myself a good half bottle of carpet cleaner so far. The plastic is easy to clean up, but to be honest - as you can see from the pictures, I don't even need to wipe it up! The dogs do all the work!! Can you guess which seat is Benjamin's??



Our house should be all put together, and it really is, I now just need to do a good de-cluttering, which is challenging when you have toys that the kids play with that you really just want to toss but don't have the heart to do so. We gave the kids the master bedroom so the bulk of the toys are in there, which is nice! - but as you can see from the pic in the living room, there are still a good chunk left over for the toy bin next to our luxurious couch.

Here are some pics of the kid's room. We had to give Emma our bed frame because it wouldn't fit in our tiny room. Luckily it matches the crib and the dressers so it looks as if it belongs there! The room is quite sizable, and one half of the closet holds my clothes and Emma's Sunday dresses, the other half is hiding 10 Costco diaper boxes full of crap, mostly books that Daddy will not let us donate. When we get our dream house in 5 years it is going to have a library bigger than the one Beast gave Belle. I'm serious. That is why Daddy is such a book hoarder - he wants to fill up that library!





Funny of the day:

Ben has become a TERRIBLE eater. Seriously, the kid just wants to eat eggs. Sometimes, like tonight, I can get some peanut butter and jelly toast in him. Emma, who is still an amazing eater, requested a piece of his toast after she ate all her dinner, so as a treat, I gave her a square. She licked off all the PBJ and asked for more of the topping on the same square. With my sternest of voices and faces, I asked, "Are you just going to lick off the topping again, or are you going to eat the whole piece?" To which she replied, "I am just going to lick off the topping again." I said to her trying to hide my smirk, "That wasn't the answer I was looking for, but I appreciate your honesty." and gave her a heaping topping. YUM. A girl after my own heart.

Happy Independence day

We've been partying like rock stars all weekend to celebrate the birthday of our great nation.

Saturday afternoon we bbq'd the afternoon away over at the church with some new friends. Emma was in little kid heaven running around like a madwoman, barely stopping to eat. I really really need to make an effort to find her a preschool come fall. She LOVES being around other children and it is impossible to tear her away from them without great big TEARS. Especially if Henry is amongst the group. Yep, Emma has a new beau - our downstairs neighbor, who also happens to be in her Sunday nursery group. Look at her being all coy in this pic - actress - she runs the show!

We ate a ton of food on Saturday and attempted to wear off the calories playing basketball with some of the older kids in the gym, but mostly from chasing Ben around - that kid can RUN. One Mom brought a salad that consisted of chopped Granny Smith apples, chopped up snickers bar, whipped cream and vanilla pudding. HEAVENLY.



Sunday afternoon we piled into 'old Vinnie-man and headed west to the town of Huntington joining up with an old college buddy of Brian's and her family. They have a 2 year old boy, Liam, and a 3 month old, Avery, and a salt water swimming pool - what more could my kids ask for? We played the afternoon away, then chowed the early evening away. We must have done something right, because both kids slept through the night. Woohoo!