B-Ball Mania...

Avery got the basketball bug over the summer and we found a great league run out of a local church that has kept our Saturday mornings filled with games since the holidays. Avery's group is 3rd and 4th grade girls, with ages ranging from 8-11. Funny enough Avery is one of the shortest players --- of course she's the youngest too--- and has taken to point guard and small forward.

A game is comprised of six, 6-minute sessions. Each girl gets colored wristbands to show what girl to guard on the other team. They are only allowed to play defensive past the half-court line and, in general, the referees error on the side of instruction versus nit-picking.

At the beginning of the game there is a prayer for goodsportsmanship and that everyone has a safe game. At the end, our coach hands out 'stars' for best offense, best defensive, best attitude, etc. It has been a great experience and she can't wait until it starts up again (she's got 2 games left).

Pictures and the video of the team being announced (you will have to click on the video to get it to play):


Video of Avery's MVP performance:
http://youtu.be/meCbdVbXxbk

Bobsled Bliss

Dad had purchased a bobsled in 2011 near Duluth (yes, Duluth) and was kind enough to haul it back to the farm where he and Mom spent countless hours repairing and painting it in preparation for Christmas fun.

Unfortunately, no snow for most of the holidays. We lucked out, though, and a few days after Christmas we awoke to a blanket of heavy, wet snow that afforded us a few trips on the beautiful bobsled. The kids and kids-at-heart enjoyed the trips, despite the nip in the air.

The kids stayed out make snow angels and a series of snowball fights, some targeted at the unsuspecting adults lingering too close to the danger zone!

Celebrating with Nana & Grandpa

After Christmas morning mass, we headed over to Mike's parents house for breakfast. The kids were crazed after the morning rush of Santa gifts and at the sight of seeing Aunt Nikki, whom they adore. We spent the remainder of the day playing with the new toys, visiting with Grandpa Sal, visiting Dave's extended family as well as my Aunt Peg and Uncle Chris.

The next day we ventured to Bruce & Beth's house for Carol's side of the family's Christmas. It was a beautiful day --- the lake didn't even have a hint of ice --- and we had a nice brunch complete with goodies from a NYC bakery that Sal had remembered from his childhood. The girls are all getting big and are full of personality: Grace (3), Charlotte (1.5) and Sophia (1.5)......... Boy enjoyed being surrounded by all the ladies :).
It was a nice and relaxing day.

Christmas w/ Papa & Grandma

We all gathered at Mom and Dad's house for Christmas celebrations and more to see how much the kids of grown and how they interact. My niece, Evie, is a now a year and a half. She's changed so much from when we saw her over the summer, although Cole and Avery still want to hold and carry her around as though she was a newborn. She's playful and has the cutest (at least to her Aunt) Popeye smile. Oliver is all boy and it was fun to see the kids all wrestling around, except when they got to near Mom's hutch (nervous nellie I am).

It was a great Christmas celebration and we so appreciate everyone's thoughtfulness and the ability to come home for the holidays :).

Merry Christmas!

Giving Thanks...

Carol and Dave joined us for a low-key Thanksgiving: parade watching, meal sharing and decorating for the holidays.

Pumpkin Pickin

Another wonderful fall in Florida.......complete with a visit to the Pumpkin Patch with Papa and Grandma!

NO Labor Day!

I'll admit it -- one of my favorite vacations is a weekend stay at the Disney waterparks. We ventured down over Labor Day with our friends Ed & Amy as well as their children -- twins Nathan and Hannah (6 months older than Avery) and Sarah (6 months younger than Avery). We have rented houses in Windsor Hills for years now --- this one was a real winner with 3 great kids bedrooms and 2 master suites upstairs, a game room and of course a pool. These are a great deal for a large group and they are within 5 minutes of the parks.

We spent 2 full days at the Blizzard Beach waterpark ---- sufficient time for the dads to once again build up the confidence to go down the large, wedgie-inducing slide. The kids covered nearly every aspect of the waterpark with at least one adult in tow. The lazy river continues to be a favorite of mine, for obvious reasons :).

Birthdays Galore

It is hard to believe the calendar has rolled around to August.....the last few swim days, start of school and, of course, the kid's birthdays. This was the first year (ugh) that we didn't have the celebrations together, other than a small get togehter with our friends Amy/Ed and their children (Nate, Hannah and Sarah). We enjoyed a night IN playing the Wii and enjoying cupcakes from the Crumbs store near my NYC apartment.

Cole's school friend's party was at a local kids spot with indoor inflatables, video games and pizza. His pirate theme was a hit and lots of friends, including close buddies Camille and Copeland.



Avery's 8th birthday party was an adventure in and of itself ---- a sleepover. We had 8 girls how turned the living room and deck into a disco, rockband stage, pictionary game, necklace/braclet making and a multitude of other activities that I could not keep up with on my best day. They dined on Chick-Fil-A and had a sundae making buffet to round out the sugar high. Loads of smiles.... a great gift for Mommy!

Visit with Nikki!!!

On the way back to Florida, we wanted to spend a couple days in Indianapolis with Mike’s sister, Nicole. Nikki arranged to take the kids to the world famous Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. The kids really enjoyed exploring the four floors of hands-on learning centers and the large carousel ride. Cole liked the scuba diving and DJ station; Avery liked the Barbie fashion show and

Down on the Farm!!!

We thought it would be fun to spend the night at our family farm in order to get an early start to fishing off the Bridge. Dad and Mom have spent a great deal of time and energy keeping the farm up and it really showed. The kids liked exploring Papa’s old bedroom and the toys that must have been around since I was at least their age. We had a nice breakfast thanks to Grandma’s banana bread, yogurt and some hard-boiled eggs and then headed back to the Bridge. We hardly got the bobber in the water when the fish took to them: loads of bluegill, a small bass and a large catfish gave us a fix to last another year. Cole especially enjoyed it, especially digging out the worms!

We returned back to the house just in time to welcome Mom, Dad, Ralph, Nancy as well as Max and Nancy Mason to the farm. They were taking the tour of the Farm on Dad’s specially rigged trailer and then enjoying BBQ and Nancy’s famous cherry pie for dessert. Another good day on the Farm was in the books!