Teaching Lil' Sis about the Pool!

Here is Natalie's first experience with a pool! She loved it although she did try to keep climbing out to get onto the grass.....this lil' one cannot sit still for a second! She has her two wonderful sisters and a fabulous older brother to help teach her about everything. I think it's wonderful that she tries to follow them and interact with them the way she does.....sometimes it may be hard balancing four children under the age of 9, but honestly, I love to watch them play together. It makes me realize that no matter what happens in their lives, they will always have each other. It's a thought I love to treasure!

Kiddie Yoga?

Well the Summer has finally hit New England (lord only knows for how long)and not only have the kids been enjoying being outside, but I have enjoyed it as well. Something about fresh "summer" air that makes everyone pretty content. Maybe it's the pond, maybe it's the warmth, maybe it's the pool! Who knows, but bathing suits are here and the pools are out and the kids are happier than they have been in a while.

So here are a few photos I took last week of the girls practicing "pool yoga".....

My what is broken?

Oh boy. It has happened. Right when I need it the most. My digital camera is broken! I just got it at Christmas and as you all know, it is my baby! I carry that thing everywhere, ready at a seconds notice to snap, snap, snap away. I had Brian take it to the camera shop where they told me my LCD screen was broken and would cost....G-U-L-P.....$250 to fix! WHHHHHHHHHAT? I could buy a brand new one for that price. So it is still under warranty so we have to send it out to the company which means I should have it back by sometime in the next millenium! What am I going to do with no camera? I can not catch all the "firsts" for ?
Natalie......all the happy Summer faces of my kids? Oh Lordy what are we going to do now????

These little piggies........

Belong to Lil. Ms. Natalie Paige. Now that her surgery was over and the summer seems to have poked its head through the clouds, I decided now was the time to paint her little piggie toes! She was definitely a head turner at the beach today and we had soooooo much fun watching her put her toes into the water and laugh. It has been a great week with beautiful weather and I have so many photos to post. I am just amazed at how big she is getting and just how sweet she is despite all of her health issues. Although sometimes it is a tad bit overwhelming, it is nice to have yet another little girl to put bows into her hair (and hair she does have) and frilly dresses, cute sandals and pedicures! The things to look forward to :)

A Sad and Tearful Goodbye

Although I have many funny photos that have taken today, many "firsts" that I have taken of Natalie, and many zoo photos I would love to share, I want to take this spot tonight and give it to someone who has touched my heart deeply. Chloe Maria DeJesus has been Samantha's best friend since earlier this year. Together, they are inseparable, and although they fight like sisters, they also loved each other like sisters. I cannot begin to say how close I was to this little girl; it was honestly like having another daughter. Chloe will be leaving tomorrow morning to go to Florida.......Samantha's best friend will be leaving her and she did not know how to deal with it. After a brief goodbye, we left full of tears with Samantha wailing in the back "if you were my best friend you wouldn't do this to me- best friends don't leave" and Chloe yelling back "I am too your best friend.......and I'm moving to Florida." So you see, they are like sisters more than I can begin to say. They hugged only briefly, but you can see in their eyes how sad the two of them were to leave each other today. At one point, it was all about consoling Samantha. Chloe was sad, but Samma was so heartbroken. I don't know how "frick" will do without "frack" but I'm hoping they both realize how lucky they were to have each other in their lives. Although we will visit Florida at some point, I think Samma just realized today how far away Florida truly is.....and it broke my heart to watch her heart break for the first time.......I wish we could protect them from this pain. Samma did well though and when we left we discussed long distance friendships as I myself have a best friend who lives in New York....and how distance in mileage doesn't always mean distance in friendships.........I love you Chloe.....and I hope you and your family are happy in Florida....We will miss you honey!

The joys of having a sibling.....

Ok maybe I'm just re-living my childhood or maybe I'm really mean. I'm not sure which. I guess I just think that sometimes a life lesson must be learned. So I watched as if it were in slow motion, knowing what was going to happen, and doing nothing about it except laugh hysterically when it did happen.

Samma and Della were playing out in the yard when Samma told Della to hold a purple bowl. She then went over and even fixed the bowl so that she was holding it sideways. Samma then proceeded to pick up the hose....and whammo! Poor Della never expected it, but I'll be any amount of money if Samma asked her to hold a bowl tomorrow the kid just wouldn't even think about it. Trust. Lesson learned: Never trust a sibling.........LOL.

yeah that's right...stand right there.....hold the bowl up....a little higher.....

Splash.....like we could not have seen that one coming right????? Poor Della.....
She looks like a true drenched rat.....

Now we are getting somewhere

We pretty much have Natalie's allergies under control at this point so we know what we can and cannot give her most of the time....she is losing interest in baby food and is really quickly realizing that she wants what we are eating. So as her big sisters were eating apples and handed her one, I couldn't help but sit back, snap a few photos and laugh. Of course, I made sure she was not choking on the skin.....she loved it! Now, if there was only some potion in it that would make her sleep! Hmmmmm. Wonder if Snow White has any ideas! LOL

Finally some real food!

Here are a few photos of Natalie eating some real stuff! Peaches....I fed her a real peach.......of course, the peaches are in the almond family but she didn't break out! Green beans, chicken and white potatoes (organic of course). She was loving it and I cannot believe how much she loves to eat. She is of course only 15 lbs. 2 ounces still, but she'll hopefully start to gain weight now that she can eat a bit more. Yay for Chicken, potatoes and green beans! She also loves whole apples (that will be in my next photo setup!)- We also fed her a french fry yesterday (from a restaurant) but that didn't work out too well. Welts everywhere. So we Benadryled her up and she was good to go!

Look Mom, I'm cruising!

A month and a half ago I called early intervention because I never thought my kid would sit up by herself. Now here she is 8 months old, crawling, standing and letting go and cruising! I cannot believe my eyes. Next she'll be running down the hallway after her sisters. It looks so funny to see her standing in an upright position! *sniff sniff* My baby girl is getting so big!

Hey, hey, look at me!

First Natalie and Samma decided to hang out and "dance".....They truly have so much fun together. As Natalie was drooling all over the place she was also learning how to keep her balance holding onto her sister. She then decided to try it on her own this afternoon. My kids are just full of new tricks lately!

The Talented #6, Team Allen Dental

Ok, she has mastered blowing bubbles, and now she has mastered hanging upside down on a swing.....this girl is crazy. She is however, getting better at running bases and hitting. The things a girl can do........

Fun at the Field

Both kids had baseball games yesterday! We packed em up, went to the field and kept swapping off so we could watch both games. The first of many laughs came when Samma wasn't paying attention on third base. So we kept yelling to her. Finally, she turns (right as I aim the camera at her) points to her mouth and yells "guys stop....I'm learning to blow bubbles!") PRIORITIES. Sorry........LOL.

Brendan was very serious and was up at bat for the last time when I ran over to "swap" yet again. He ended up striking out and was so mad because I was standing there watching. This was the before photo....I don't dare show his face afterwards!

Then there was Della who decided that she was going to stick her tongue out and "boo" the pitcher when Brendan struck out....how dare anyone mess with her big brother right?

Grandma getting some kiddie lovin'

I know she will not be happy about me posting her yet again, but here she is getting some lovin from the grandbabies! The girls just cannot kiss their "nonnie" enough....every day I have to laugh because Della wakes up, gets dressed, and asks to go to see her nonnie. Today she told me that I have to tell grandma to get gas in her car so she can come over today (last night my mom told her that she couldn't go for a ride in her car because she had no gas!!!!)....we call Della grandma's little magnet and boy is she ever attached to her. I know grandma enjoys the kisses as much as the babies do!

The forgotten mother's day photo.....

Here is a Mother's Day photo that I forgot to post........a photo of my fam-damily with my dear darling husband who figured out how to work the timer on my digital camera.......isn't it sooooooooo sweet?

Mother's Day Lovin....

I had so much fun hanging out with my kids and my mom on Mother's Day but I have to say the true "funny" highlight of our day was when we pulled up from our dinner and we saw my Samma dressed as Santa Claus in a purple nightgown.........her sense of style cracks me up and she never fails to amaze me and make me laugh with her imagination! So here is a group photo, and one of Samantha with her best friend, Chloe, being a Summer Santa (and Chloe was the elf by the way!).....

Feeling the sweetness of motherhood

There is nothing better to me than in impromptu "I love you mom", a quick stop and kiss in the middle of the day for no apparent reason other than you are within their reach, a soft cuddle, and of course, my absolute favorite, the smell of the kids hair when they are next to me. I love to smell the sweet smell of each of them, feel their soft skin, and just take a deep breath and realize that I am the most important person on their planet. I keep them organized, healthy, clean, I feed them and teach them right from wrong. Yes, I am finally a ruler of a planet!!!! Of course, it comes with a price almost every day. THe chants of "hold me", "put Natalie Paige down", "but you always spend so much time with the girls" and "help me with my homework". I also get to play referee to their fights and get the chants of "I'm hungry, I have to pee, and I don't want to go to bed" just to name a few. All in all, motherhood is precious. And I don't know what I'd do without my precious hugs and kisses!

A wonderful mother's day

Yesterday probably had to be the best mother's day I had in a long time, if not the absolute best one ever. Funny thing is, I did nothing spectacular really. I sent Brian to visit his mom in the morning (after he let me sleep until 9 a.m.) and then I dressed all the girls and took them to the park for a few hours and enjoyed my ice coffee. I even took Samma's best friend Chloe who is like a daughter to me as well.
We had so much fun on the swings and running around enjoying the sunshine. Of course, I was smiling watching them laughing and playing, drinking my hazelnut iced coffee.

I then went home and Brian came home. I finished my day by getting ready for my mom to come by and get me and we went to Nana Yola's house for dinner (chinese....mmmm) and to just hang out. It was very nice and my mom got me this great mother/daughter mug filled with m&m's and I so drank my coffee out of it this morning, smiling of course.
Here are a couple of photos from the park.

Recovery is going well

At first when Natalie came home things were a little bit rough. The surgeon almost kept her for the afternoon at least because her oxygen levels kept dropping very low when they removed her from the oxygen. She was also very congested from the anesthesia as well and her lungs had a bit of fluid. She was very restless and in pain so they gave her some baby Morphine (can you believe they make that for babies???). Anyway, they couldn't get her to wake up from the anesthesia and were a bit worried (I think it was from the Morphine....hmmmm)but when she finally came to she was laughing and trying to be herself and once she was up and moving the congestion broke up (which is usually the case) and then her oxygen level went back up to 98% so they were comfortable with sending her home. She has been doing fine so far and was groggy all day and pretty much slept for most of it. She'd wake up in spirts, play for a few moments, and then drift back off. For the most part, she seems to be recovering very well. Here are a few photos of her when she came home from Mass. Eye & Ear, and one from last night when she was sleeping in her favorite spot.....Daddy's arms........

Thanks so much for all your prayers and for thinking of her. Here's hoping to a speedy recovery and a brand new happier, less sickly baby. (A girl can pray right?)....Much love to everyone.

Out of surgery

Brian just called and said she is out of surgery and that everything went well. She did have tons of fluid behind both ear drums so he put tube into her ears as expected. He removed her adenoids and clipped her frenulum as well and she is in recovery now. I will update more later, but for now, she is past the anesthetic part and working toward coming home this afternoon! Yay for small miracles.

My nerves, my nerves.......

I stayed up last night until 11:45 just so I could feed Natalie so she wouldn't be starving all night long. That proved to be very effective and she slept straight through until we woke her up at 4:30 for some water (she could only have water until 4:45). She was a champ about it all and it was a pretty calm night relatively speaking. Now it's 6:30 and I'm wide awake with my nerves shaking away over here with worry. Brian left at 6:10 a.m. to take her into Mass Eye and Ear and of course, I'm sitting here wishing I took her to be the one to monitor her during her recovery. Of course, Brian is a good old OR pro at this point as he has taken all the kids in for their surgeries (seems every time a surgery was scheduled I was pregnant- and no, I'm not this time........LOL). I know she is in good hands. She has the best pediatric ENT in the country (He has been recommended to be a Harvard Professor as well) and according to my usual ENT Dr. Reardon, Dr. Cunningham is the best of the best in pediatrics....so I should feel good. But I want to hold her, cuddle her, and tell her all will be well. I kissed her forehead when she left. She was sooooo sleepy. Well, I will update as soon as I hear ANYTHING which should be within a few hours I hope. My nerves are all in a tizzy!

The Calm before the storm........

Little does Natalie know that she will be going into surgery tomorrow morning. The sad part is, we know it, and it hurts me to put her through it. However, she has to get better now doesn't she? Tomorrow at 8:15 a.m., Natalie will be having her adenoids removed, tubes put into both ears, and her frenulum (the thin muscle under her tongue) will be "clipped" so she will not have speech problems later. It is a pretty quick procedure, but she will still have to be anesthesized and I think that is what bothers me the most at this point. Brian will be bringing her into the OR as I cannot stand to watch the monitors (especially seeing where I know what all the signs/symptoms are if something is going wrong) and I don't want to be that "crazy nursing student mommy"......so I will be home with Della, waiting for the news that my youngest baby girl has come out of the anesthesia and is doing well.

Here are a few photos of her this afternoon when the weather hit 90! She seems so content to be hanging out in the yard and playing on the grass. At one point she ever stood up! I couldn't believe my eyes.....

I will continue to update you all through the blog as soon as I hear anything on Natalie. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers and please pray for mommy and daddy as their nerves will be frayed...not only from worrying about her physically, but because we cannot give her anything to eat or drink (except water) after midnight. And even the water bottle has to get "nixed" at 4:45 a.m. We are in for a long, crazy night.

We went from Winter to Summer?

I couldn't believe the weather was 90 degrees today! Della and Samma played all day in the hot sun and Natalie joined in on the fun.

So this is how you get your kids to brush......

The best invention EVER for all you mommies out there! It's called "Tooth Tunes" and the toothbrush literally plays music so you can hear it in your head while you are brushing. My kids love it and are currently listening to High School Musical and Black Eyed Peas.....I have NEVER EVER seen my kids brush so much. It is almost comical.

Sunny and in the 80's..............

Here are a few photos of the girls having fun in the sun yesterday. The weather has changed so dramatically here and I cannot believe it is this hot already....I like the 70's and dry, but I guess we're skipping right over the spring again this year.......So the girls were in the yard, hanging out, and before grandma rolls her eyes and asks where Brendan is yet again, he is in SCHOOL......So there.

Ding, Dong, the Toddler is.....Sleeping????

I went into Della's room today while she was sleeping to get a diaper for Natalie. Of course I couldn't stop laughing because all I could see from my point of view was her two beautiful feet in those black boots.....and I could only think of the Wizard of Oz.....Ding dong the witch is dead..........and I was hysterical. So now I'm thinking, Ding dong the toddler sleeps............How can I resist these things?

Help Grandma and Papa!

Della, Samma & my goddaughter, Jamie, decided they were going to put themselves into Apollo & Jolie's crates and shut the door! thank goodness I had a camera to capture such funny shots (I think I sleep with my camera!)......looks like Grandma & Papa better be sending some ransom for their babies really soon! LOL

Getting some puppy love!

This weekend Christy called and invited the kids and I over to visit my step-doggie daughter Jolie and her adopted brother doggie, Apollo. We couldn't wait to get there as we miss Jolie so much since she left us and I needed a bit of doggie lovin........so here are Brendan, Samma and Della (and my goddaughter, Jamie) getting some lovin from our puppyfaces! We love you Jolie & Apollo!