Swearing In Ceremony

This was the first ceremony, held on the Tuesday before graduation. Thank goodness it was inside because it was very hot outside! Dave's dad and I pinned on his "butter bars", but I don't have a photo of that. The first photo I think is really descriptive of what it was like there because as soon as I stepped outside of the air conditioned hotel and whipped out the camera to take a photo, the lens fogged up from the humidity!

Photos from the Graduation Parade

Graduation!

New Beginnings

It has taken a big move to give me a big push to start up the 'ol blog again. I mainly want to keep in touch with friends and family, especially with us being so far away and on the move as well shall be.

Here are some photos from Dave's graduation from OTS. Funny how I don't have any photos of the actual trip down there! It was, hmmm... a little BUSY to say the least! I think Dave's stepmom and I kept awake by popping Starbuck's chocolate covered espresso beans (now those could convince me to be a coffee lover!). We made the trip in two days, leaving PA Thursday around 10:30 a.m. and arriving Friday in Montgomery, AL around midnight. Whew!

We stayed in a lovely hotel called the Embassy Suites. I would highly recommend that for anyone passing through there. There was an indoor pool (perfect since the humidity was killer there) and the scent of the soaps/lotions/shampoo/conditioner was heavenly. I could seriously sniff that all day.

Without further ado, here are the photos:



While in Montgomery, we took a trolley ride. Dave still had things to wrap up on base, so we thought this would be fun! The kids, however, were a little bit wary of it. Note Stephen's face!




Timothy wasn't so sure about it all, either...




I think they warmed up. Stephen actually started clapping while we were rolling along! :)





Look at the poor kid. I didn't take photos of the rest of us, but, trust me, we all looked like that by the end of the day. We were very glad to go back to the hotel and jump in the pool to cool off!

Comin' Right Up!

A few months ago, I got the much-sought after invite to Ravelry, a knitting and crocheting community. That is where I heard about "amigurumi" (ah-mee guh-roo-mee), the Japanese art of knitting or crocheting little people, animals, and objects. I admit, some of the little creatures are a bit over the top for me. What I really like are the different foods. So does Stephen. Enter in a challenge: Can I make a basketful of these things in time for his birthday, with a sojourn to MA between now and then?

I have been staying up way too late creating these things. Some are from patterns, and some are made up by me on the fly.

Here are a few pics of what I have done already:



Fried Egg pattern by Ana Paula Rimoli, bacon by me. :)




Acorn pattern by June Gilbank.


I look forward to making more of these in time for his birthday. In the works are cookies and cupcakes from Ana Paula, and possibly some veggies like corn or a tomato. The little faces on them are what make them special. A lot of amigurumi have little plastic "saftey" eyes, but since Stephen is still so fond of putting things in his mouth (aarggh!), I have to sew faces on them with yarn. It is safer in the end, no matter whose mouth they end up in-LOL!

Tasty

Rachel has now had her first bites of solid food. No, I didn't give her picante sauce! I have been waiting to use that picture for ages!

She gave the requisite squished up, confused face as I spooned rice cereal into her mouth, but now she opens her mouth like a baby bird. She has also had bites of pureed sweet potatoes and those, too, have passed muster.

This is always such an exciting time. It reminds me how quickly she is growing. The sleepers that fit her just a few weeks ago are now strained at the toes. Her belly laugh is deeper and richer. Her hair is growing a bit more. Her bright little eyes don't miss a thing. Who could get tired of this?

Quirky

Kids are funny. They all develop little quirks that last such a short time, but are so intense. Here is Timothy's latest thing:




Anytime he wears a shirt that has a hood, he MUST put this wee bunny in the pouch and carry it around all day long. The bunny even sleeps in there during nap.

Baby Cleaning

Rachel always starts out so calm, as if she is asking herself what on earth she is doing in this thing full of liquid...



She really likes baths, even though she has totally outgrown the bathroom sink!



She always goes out with a bang, though! Here is Dave, trying to stop her from kicking up a storm. All around the sink and the floor was wet after that bath! :D

Rachel is Growing Up... Too Fast!

It is hard to believe that in a few days, our little girl will be SIX months old. Where did the time go?! It seems like the more children you have, the less time you have to sit and watch their every move. Not to mention, you're busy with the rest of the kids and the house and all that comes with that! Before you know it, boom! The baby is grown and off to college! :)

I thought family might like to see "the many faces" of Rachel. :)

Painting the Day Away

The boys usually use paintbrushes to paint on their paper, so when I brought out the finger paints and suggested they use their hands, they were a bit leery at first. As you can see, it didn't take them long to like the idea, though!

Krafty Kids

To take the boredom out of the seemingly endless days inside on account of bad weather, we have been doing quite a few crafts. Since our store-bought playdough was looking quite lame and dried up, we decided to make a few new batches. We used a recipe where the dough has to cook up on the stove, and the boys thought that was pretty neat. Pity the fool that thinks playdough only comes from the store!

The Start of a New Life, The Start of a New Year

Wow, the month of December was ridiculously busy! We started out with a Christmas party that my mom threw at her house on the 22nd. Needless to say, we ate way too many rich and sugary foods and stayed up way too late. Then, Christmas and the inevitable presents and feasting at my mom and stepdad's house. The day after Christmas, my dad who lives in MA came down to visit for a few days, bearing more presents. We had a great visit with him, then he drove off on Friday with my mom and stepdad to get fitted for tuxs down in Scranton. Why, you ask??


My brother got married. There, I typed it. I thought it would never happen. Thankfully, he has settled down! :)


He and his now wife Kelly got married this past Saturday down near Scranton. Dave, the kids and I drove down there the day of and got horribly lost. We ended up circling around in some shady trailer park and meeting up with more relatives who had gotten directed by the fine Mapquest to that same shady trailer park. It is really funny now that I think of it, but wasn't so much at the time, as we were only about 1/2 an hour away from the start of the ceremony and I had to read a scripture verse!


We made it to the church fine, and it was a very nice ceremony. After that, we went with one of my aunts and her kids back to their hotel room to chat for a bit before the reception and open-what else? More presents! This is how I grew up. Christmas lasted practically a week. My poor kids will think the same, LOL!

Then, we headed to the reception area. It was quite a mixture of music as Kelly's family is part Italian and ours is part Polish. Polkas and Italian music! :D The kids did a great job, too, as it was a long time before they got to eat. They inhaled all the salads that people didn't want. I am thankful they like their veggies! The best thing of the evening, I think, was seeing Matthew get out on the dance floor. That boy LOVES to dance!!

We left the reception around 10:30 p.m. and didn't get home until midnight. Whew.


All that to say, when new year's eve came, we were not really in the festive mood! We made it a very low key day and went to bed early.



Welcome, 2008!