They Do Love Each Other

It's pictures like this one that makes me love the fact that they are so close in age. They will be best friends for ever. Now sometimes they act as though they want to kill each other but most of the time, they're just buddies.

A Busy Weekend

We had a pretty busy weekend this past weekend. Tim and I had the hairbrained idea to take the boys to a PBS Arthur's Picnic in the Park at Forest Park Saturday. We were so excited for the boys to meet Clifford the Dog, Arthur, Curious George and the Sesame Street Characters! We piled in the car and headed out. We got there, parked the car and made the trek up to Central Field where all the fun was located. Only to find that every other parent w/ children in St. Louis City AND St. Louis County decided that they'd go to!

Oh My God! It was wall to wall people and the lines to meet the characters had to have been 2 hours long!!! You couldn't do ANYTHING without waiting in line! The bounce houses, the character meet & greets, EVERYTHING had lines! Tim and I shook our heads and said "Nope!" There was just no way the boys would stand for waiting in lines that long. So, we bought our hotdogs for lunch ($13 lunch for 4 dogs and 2 chips), sat at a picnic table, had our picnic lunch and headed back to the car. Oh well....better luck next time.

Once we FINALLY made it out of Forest Park (due to all the traffic) the boys didn't want to go home so we decided that we'd go to Longview Farm Park (aka "Horse Park)to play for a bit. One of our favorite parks, the boys played on the climber, hit the swings for awhile and then became fascinated by the "balls" on the ground that had fallen off of a nearby tree. They spent the next 15 minutes collecting all of the "balls" that they could find and made a giant pile, like two little squirrels preparing for the winter.

Sunday was forecasted to be another beautiful day so Tim and decided that an "adventure" was in order for our morning activity. Once we coaxed the boys into getting dressed we herded ourselves out of the house, piled into the car and headed to the WF&P Railroad for a ride on the train. The whole way there we heard "Mommy, Daddy where are we going?", "Are we there yet?", "When will we be there?", "What are we going to do?". And our response was "We don't know. We'll just have to wait and see! It's a surprise!".

We arrived at the train, Tim paid our fee/donation, and we hopped on to the train for our ride along the tracks. The boys weren't too sure about it at first but then I think the memory of last years ride came back and they enjoyed themselves. So much to the point that Mason didn't want to get off when we were finished. It was a great ride!!! We'll definately be back next year!





So that's it! Our weekend in a nutshell. Tim and I are trying to take advantage of the nice Fall weather that we're beginning to have here in St. Louis while we can. Pretty soon we'll be looking for things that we can do indoors because the weather will be colder. But until then, we've got lots of things to do on the weekends. The Zoo, visit to the pumpking patch, LOTS of playing at the park and just good old fun! What more can we ask for?

Balloon Glow

Every Fall in St. Louis we have The Great Forest Park Balloon Race. The night before the race they hold the "Balloon Glow" where all of the balloons are inflated as dusk approaches. Once it is dark, the pilots will pull their burners on simultaneously to create a "glow" in the balloons. People come with picnic dinners, blankets, chairs and radios and set up their spot to watch as the event unfolds.

Tim and I had never been to a balloon glow, so it was a first for all four of us AND it was a beautiful night so we couldn't help but be outside. Mason and Jack were a bit intimidated by the size of the balloons and especially the one that was directly in front of us but once they understood that it wasn't going to come down on us, they relaxed a bit and enjoyed themselves.

The balloon that was in front of us, the one that says "St. Louis" on it is the same balloon that Tim and I took a ride in in 2003 as a present from his Mom and Stepfather. I knew I recognized it as it was inflating but we weren't 100% sure. I had to come home and look at my pictures from our balloon ride to be sure that it was.

Makes You Appreciate It All....Doesn't It?

Seeing things like THIS makes you appreciate what you have and how quickly it can be taken away from you! Doesn't it??

YIKES! It's Ike!

Being born and raised in the confines of the midwest, I have never had to experience a hurricane other than the "remnants" like we are having this morning. Tropical storm Ike made his arrival late last night and we woke up to severe weather this morning that was amazing! I can't even imagine what it would be like to have been in Galveston or Houston when this thing came ashore! The wind and rain that we've had was incredible! Thankfully, it's a short lived storm as he'll be gone by lunchtime (or so they are saying).

This little guy was taking shelter on the chaise on our front porch. He was the smart one but looked scared to death!

The water RUSHING down the incline in our backyard. Affectionately named "The River Riley"; this is what happens whenever we have a bad rainstorm as the neighbors yard can't handle the anount of water that comes through it and it ends up in our yard.

The cover from our skylight that got blown off the roof and broke. Thankfully the skylight itself is still intact and it it's place - we're replacing it anyway during our remodel project.

The water rushing down our driveway and also out of the drain pipe from our neighbors yard - it looks like a water-main break when it's raining this hard

We Will Always Remember.....

Today we remember all of those who lost their lives in the attacks on 9/11 in New York City, Washington D.C. and Shanksville, PA.. You will forever be in our hearts and your families in our prayers.

A Work In Progress......

I have kept videos of Jack since he was an infant on my camcorder but once I realized that my old camera could take video, I started taking them there so I could send them to out of town family so they could see the boys in action. Watching the videos (or "Pictures" as Mason calls them) have become a favorite thing for the boys to do. To see themselves when they were younger just fascinates them. In order to preserve these memories for all of us, I have transfered them to a DVD format that we will have forever and can watch on our TV instead of being crammed around our computer monitor. So here it is so far....it's a work in progress as I'll still add to the collection a little bit more but it's 90% done. Enjoy!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

6 Years Ago Today

6 years ago today, I married my best friend and became his wife. We had been together for 10 years (we could almost say we had a common law marriage) and after a looooong engagement, we decided to make it official.

Our wedding was perfect! Just the way WE wanted it. We planned it in 6 short weeks and we couldn't have asked for anything to have been different. Small, intimate and simple. 40 of our immediate family and closest friends were there to witness our vows and help us celebrate our special day!



Other than the days that our children were born, it was the BEST day of my life.

Happy Anniversary, Tim! I love you more than words can say!!!

A New Look!

Please make note of my new blog header. Thanks to my wonderful, online Mom's Group friend, Amanda, I have a new header! Amanda is so creative and has actually created a site called BLOG SAVY , you can check out all of her "handy work" there and also check out her own personal blog called Hot Dogs For Dinner in the list of Bloggers that I like to follow.

Thanks so much, Amanda! You are the best!

Once In A Blue Moon

This past weekend we celebrated my Grandmother's 90th birthday. Affectionately called Mimi, she claims rights to 2 daughters, 7 grandchildren, and 8 great-grandchildren. Family from New Jersey, Illinois, Colorado, New York and South Carolina joined together in St. Louis for a big bash to mark the ocassion.

My cousin Shaw put together a slideshow on her laptop of photos since Mimi was born (and some before) thanks to the great geneology research by my Mom! Tons of great photos, showing Mimi's past 90 years and all of her family and friends. A special moment near the end of the slideshow was a picture of Sophie (the newest member of our family) who will be joining us from Vietnam before the end of the year!

Here's an online version of the slideshow if you'd like to see it:

The last time that we ALL were together as a family was 10 years ago in New Jersey, so this was one of those ONCE IN A BLUE MOON occasions. Below are a couple of photos from the weekend. We all had a great time and it was great to have everyone in town for the weekend - even though it was way to short!

Mimi and her whole family together to celebrate

A RARE family photo of my Mom AND Pop with my sister, brother and I with ALL of our children (including Sophie).

Gearing Up

We've got a pretty big weekend ahead of us full of all sorts of "Family Fun". My Grandmother turns 90 on 8/25, so to celebrate, we're throwing her a birthday party this weekend. My sister, her husband and 4 children are coming in from New Jersey and my Mom and her husband are headed to St. Louis from South Carolina.

Saturday morning we have a "Family Photo Op" with Renee McMahon to catch all of us in the same zip code at the same time (should be interesting) and then Saturday evening is the MAIN EVENT!

We'll be headed over to my Aunt Sallie's for the birthday bash with her 4 girls who are all coming in town from their respective places of residence throughout the country along with a few other close family and friends of my Grandmother. Nothing too fancy planned from what I understand, just a party to help the Matriarch of our family ring in a new decade (you only turn 90 once right). Again, it will be a "Family Photo Op" as she will have her 2 Daughers, 7 Grandchildren and 7 Great-Grandchildren all togehter at the same time. The last time we were able to do this was when my Grandfather was alive and we all congregated at my sister's in New Jersey for his 80th birthday.

Along with pictures and a party, we'll be visiting the Zoo and just trying to cram in as much family togetherness as we can in 2 short days. Should be an interesting weekend to say the least.

Someday I'm Going To Miss This......

This past weekend was just a weekend of STUFF. Tim had to work due to a tight deadline at his current client site so it was up to me to keep the boys occupied. Because of the beautiful August weather that we are being blessed with, the boys and I decided to venture out to the St. Louis Zoo to see what was new.
We've been by ourselves enough that we have it down to a science now. Important stops for the boys are the elephants, the hippos, the anteaters (not sure why....but we stop to see them), the bears, the penguins, the chimpanzees, the giraffes, the zebras, the sea lions and then a few other random animals along the way. We can to the whole lot and eat lunch in 3 hours - which is PLENTY of Zoo time for all three of us.
We didn't ride the train though. Jack's waiting for his cousin, Jack Hogan, to come into town and then he said he'll ride it (I think he's not keen on the tunnels but I wasn't as a kid either).

Saturday night we headed to Kirkwood Park to play on the new playground. Tim had a double header softball game, so we took the boys to dinner and then played at the park until it was game time. The boys and I headed home for bed while Tim played ball. Slides, swings, and sand! What more would a little boy need?

Nothing fancy, nothing too special....just a fun day with my boys! Special time with just the two of them and me. One day I'll miss being able to do that with them so for now, I get it in as much as I can and soak in every minute of it.

A Night With "Northern Chaos"

This past Saturday night we had a get together with friends Betsy and Kevin, their daughter Schuyler and Kerry and Storm and their boys Nick, Alex and Max ( Northern Chaos in my favorite blogs links). Kerry and Storm have been in town for the past week from Eagle River, AK for family reunions and the what not and we were able to snag them for a night to catch up!

We had a blast! The kids (5 boys and one girl, ranging in age from 7 to 2) had such a great time playing together, jumping on the trampoline and toasting marshmallows on the firepit and Betsy, Kerry and I spent time catching up while the guys talked about god knows what.

A little shy at first but it didn't take them long to come off the steps and blend into the fun!

Poor Max! Bumped his head on a table but didn't let it phase him ONE BIT! He told Storm that he didn't cry and just said "Ouch!"

Roasting marshmallows in August (who would think that was possible in St. Louis?)

L to R - Max (3), Alex (5), Nick (7), Schuyler (6), Mason (2) & Jack (3 1/2)

Good friends, Imo's Pizza, a little wine and beer, and awesome weather equated to a WONDERFUL time for all of us. Kerry & Storm, thanks for making time for us in your busy schedule so that we could see you guys and Bets & Kevin, thanks for letting us invade your house, it was fun!

"I'm Going To Be An Honorable Fireman!"

Well, he's almost right! Jack is being made an honorary fireman by his Uncle Chris and the rest of the Volunteer Firefighter/Paramedics at Atlantic Ambulance in Chatham Township, NJ. Chris left Jack the message below on my "Who is YOUR Hero?" post and we were all was SOOOO excited when we read it (what 3 1/2 year old wouldn't be?).

Jack Henry,

I have a question...do you think it's ok for a hero to cry? The reason I ask you this is because when Aunt Diehnee told me what you said in class I was so proud that it brought tears to my eyes. I talked to the guys in my firehouse and told them what you said, they all decided to make you an honorary Fireman.

I can’t wait to see you, Mason, your mom and dad in a few weeks. Thank you again for making me so proud

Your Uncle Chris


The other night we were sitting at dinner and out of no where, Jack says "I'm going to be an HONORABLE fireman! Uncle Chris is going to teach me how to be a fireman! I hope when Mason's 3 1/2 Uncle Chris makes HIM an honorable fireman too!". We were so surprised that he was able to get out that whole thought in one breath - it was amazing and very touching for Tim and I to hear the excitement in his voice.

We're anxiously awaiting August 22nd when my sister Diehnee, Uncle Chris and the rest of their crew arrives in St. Louis for a celebration weekend. Jack will get to see his HERO - Uncle Chris!