Off to London

Pete and I are off to London tomorrow afternoon. After much preparation for the kids , we are finally ready. I have 3 days of work, and then we get to have fun. It has been way too long since we took a trip together, and we are so excited. We have never been to London, so it is totally new to us. My parents are taking care of the kids, and as my mom said, "we raised 6 kids so I think I can handle your 3." So true, so true. I have more notes that she won't even need, but that's me - just like my dad - covering every possible base - just in case! I hope to post some pictures while I'm over there. More later.....

Elizabeth's Baptism

Elizabeth was baptized today, and she is so sweet! What a wonderful day for her. The whole family was there, and then we went over to Joanie & Tim's house for a delicious brunch. Yummy as we were all starving. This picture is my sister Mary holding Elizabeth - Mary is lucky enough to be her godmother! I'm not jealous or anything - I hope you read this Joanie!! Just joking - have to give her trouble since she still gives me trouble about Jo!! We still have sibling rivalry even at our age!

Brentwood Days Parade

The annual Brentwood Days was on Friday and Saturday. The Junior Girl Scouts walked in the parade, and you can see that Rosie & Gabriella were having a blast. It was a beautiful day for the parade & the festivities. Pete took Rosie to the festivities (rides, etc), but I took Jo home for a nap. Anna went to her knitting class (yes, she is learning to knit, my little arts & crafts daughter), and then Grandma brought her straight over to the rides. Fun day for the kids!

Hailey, Caroline, Anna & Jo waiting for the parade to begin (& making silly faces for me). These two girls are Anna's best buddies! They played soccer in the morning & had another successful winning game. More pics soon once my hubby lets me onto his computer. He took some great pics of Anna today.

Blues Hockey Game

Pete had tickets to the Blues hockey pre-season game on Friday night, and Anna was able to go with her daddy. She was so happy since she did not attend the home opener last year when we sat in front row seats! Pete asked Andy Graning and his daughter, Taylor, to go as well. Pete and Andy said the girls were so well-behaved & were the perfect dates. Anna loved it & can't wait to go again.

Rosie, Jo & I stayed home & had a wonderful night together too. We had popcorn & watched a movie & snuggled on the couch!

I crack up every time I see Anna smile - she needs some teeth to grow in!

Our first soccer games

A hot Saturday for soccer but a successful one! Rosie's team lost 3-1, but they hustled & played well with only 2 subs. They had the ball in their half practically the whole game, but we just couldn't score. Rosie did every throw in & the corner kick, and she did great! I could tell she was tired on her last corner kick - not as much power as the first one but she hung in there. My parents came to the game, and my dad is usually the lucky charm, but it didn't work this time. We came back to our house & ate a very late lunch together & it was so good. There is nothing better than sandwiches on good bread from the Breadsmith. Thanks Mom & Dad! After a strong throw in - again down in our end!

Waiting to find an open person.

Anna is just about ready to score! She scored three times on Saturday.

We were partying on Friday night!

Super fun was all I heard! Yeah! It was a success & we threw it together in a few days. We had 9 friends over from 5:30-7:30 on Friday night for pizza, a scavenger hunt, art project, & then water balloons & of course, ice cream cake! The kids were really good & had a blast. Most did not leave until 8pm - we had to force them to leave! Good times for everyone!

The pennant decoration - the girls took slightly longer than the boys!!

Jo eating pizza with the big kids! They all wanted to sit with her.

All the kids being so silly & cute!

Anna with her present from us: a new North Face jacket! Very big smile! Rosie & Jo gave her a watch, Grandma Carollo gave her a $50 gift card to Hobby Lobby (here come the art projects!), Grandma Wilson is giving her art lessons & we have to wait for the cousin's gifts for a few more weeks. Anna, you are one lucky girl!

Happy 7th Birthday Anna!!

My sweet 7-year old daughter! I can't believe it, but she is 7 years old. Even Rick Beard at work remembered because of the significance of today. I have pictures from the morning celebration but will need to post them later. She wore "out of uniform" and has her new short jeans on, but her new top is long-sleeved & too hot for today. She looks adorable with her pigtails & big smile with no teeth!

Her 1st grade class was on TV last night too, so I'm going to try & download it & post it as well. So many fun things for her. Tonight is her party with 8 of her friends. When she was going to bed last night, she was so excited for today! She told me it was extra special because she could have her birthday party on her actual birthday. That's so true - most of the time you have to wait until the weekend if your birthday is on a weekday.

We love you Anna & couldn't be more proud of you. Happy Birthday!

Update on the kids

I just have to write this down, so I can read it one day & laugh out loud! Pete just picked up Josephine from daycare, and the teachers told him that Jo hauled off & hit her best friend, Bryce. They said their mouths dropped open & couldn't believe it. She is the littlest kid in the class but the toughest. We were laughing on the phone, and I know it's not funny, but she is so little but sometimes so mean. She is a tough cookie & does the same thing with her sisters when they are bugging her. She recently starting biting again - I know we need to tell her to "use her words." When she reaches her breaking point & has tried her words, she tends to use her fists or her teeth! Pete made her go over & say sorry & then she gave Bryce a big hug.

Yesterday, both girls came in first in their running race during gym class. Rosie beat all the girls in her class & said, "I really wanted to win." I typically don't hear that from her, but she said she felt like winning. I told her that I know how she feels - sometimes you just want to be first & there's nothing wrong with that attitude! Anna said she beat all the girls & boys in her class during the race. That girl will not let anyone beat her or she gets really mad.

I'm really working on my attitude at home too. If I'm stressed because of work, I can tell I get short with the kids & then the night is blown. Anna has my short fuse too, so it is important that I set a better example. That's been the main thing for Rosie too - set a good example for both Anna & Jo - it's a big responsibility but I know she is up for it.

I'll keep praying each week for additional patience. Father Stark, our visiting priest, always says the following. Pray for someone you love, pray for someone you find difficult to love, and then pray for something you need this week (patience, a moment of peace, good outcome to a difficult task ahead of you). I'm really starting to get to know our new priests & am enjoying their homilies. Change is good.

Labor Day Weekend

Rain, rain go away was the mantra this weekend. It rained most of Saturday & Sunday, so we did not have too many activities outside. No soccer practices for us! We did go to Uncle Denny & Aunt Judy's for Amanda's 30th Birthday party/Family Get-Together. It is so nice to see everyone versus only at Thanksgiving, Christmas & Easter! It stopped raining (just overcast) & we sat outside & ate great food & visited with everyone. Amanda & Jason & their two beautiful kids live in Orlando now, so I'm sure we will be visiting them next year - if Pete has any say in our vacation next year!! Ha Ha!

Jo, Charlet & Amelia eating their lunch. Charlet & Amelia are exactly one year older than Jo. The kids rode their bikes & played together pretty well. Anna & I had a good game of Checkers in between her riding her bike up & down their street about 50 times. Jo loved her scooter & Rosie gave us a little attitude since she did not have someone her age to play with. She had a spendover the night before, and it showed that afternoon!

All in all, a nice time with family. Can't wait to start reading my book from Denny. We love mysteries, and I have a new author to try out - pretty excited!

Work Adventures

Last week, we had an all-employee meeting & we also did a scavenger hunt in University City. I was on a great team with Melissa, Adam, & Laura. We had a lot of fun & it was a good team-building exercise (in more ways than one - lots of running as we are all very competitive people & wanted to win!)

One of my clients, Rich Anderson, came into town & we went to the baseball game on Thursday. Diane is the investment accountant for Healthcare Services Group. His wife, Kathy, took our picture, but it was a nice game & afternoon with Rich, Diane & Kathy. The Cards lost though!!!

This week I MUST get lots done as I lost 3 days of work last week due to the employee meeting, members meeting & then the Cards game. Back to reality for me....