Be still, my fangirl heart!

Ooh! Ooh! I wannit! I wannit!

Our Big Fat Family Vacation, part II

Hey everyone -- sorry about the delay in getting the rest of our vacation pics up, but I had to edit some of them before they were blog-worthy, and since I don't have a good image editor on Priscilla (yet) that meant I had to actually GO DOWNSTAIRS and USE THE PC to post this! How primitive! But here they finally are, the next installment chronicling the Style Wedding of the Year! The really good ones, all 3 million of them, can be found at their website (the opening movie tells a great story), but here is the Pickles version of the day:

The two professional flower girls, ready for action!

Can you imagine having this for your parish church?!? It was just gorgeous. Those poles knew how to make a church!

"Geez, is she EVER going to come?"

The parents of the groom, looking regal.

The flower girls in action. Edy smiled the whole way, but Miriam looked SO serious, until she stole a look at Edy that said, "Can you believe we're actually getting to DO this??" and then she smiled the rest of the way too. I loved their little bouquets!

The Bobbsey twins. They wanted to have everything alike -- even their hair! The first choice for updo was a french twist, but Miriam inherited her mother's heavy straight hair that violently resists anything fancy. But tucked-under french braids worked!

Here comes the bride! She was SO radiant.

The vows.

The moment of triumph!

And now, time to...

...par-tay! The girls followed Katie around the whole time, like moths to a flame. It was so cute. Katie said every once in a while she'd be talking to someone, and she would feel pressure on her hip -- Miriam had wandered over and just leaned against her, not saying anything. It was so cute. And THIS is why girls start planning their weddings when they're 4 -- who wouldn't want to be a bride like this one!

First dance. Awwwww....

I love this one of Dave with Mom B. They're both so happy!

Katie hitting the bar.

The Original Aunt Katie, putting on the moves!

This is a classic Uncle Jim look.

Joseph got passed around quite a bit -- I think I only held him twice, to feed him!

Joseph with Uncle Teddy.

Joseph with Mrs. Adams, who had left HER baby with grandma to attend the wedding -- but couldn't get out of holding a baby!

Joseph with Aunt Goey.

This wedding was hands down the MOST kid-friendly one we've ever been to -- there was a little room attached to the reception area that had two babysitters and a bunch of toys, so when kids got bored or tired they could hang out here, supervised. Uncle Dave and Aunt Katie are GENIUSES! Makes me wish we'd gotten them a bigger wedding gift... ;)


I love this shot of little Lucy! She's a bruiser, but an adorable one! :)

All worn out from too much partying!

They're having a good time!! We all did, in fact! It was such a fun, classy, well-planned wedding. The two families got along together swimmingly -- what a blessing when you know you'll get along with your in-laws! :) What a blessing to the rest of us too to KNOW that Dave and Katie will have a holy, happy marriage. They're both such good, steady, stubborn people. ;) We love you guys!

Art as an outlet

We have continued that long, essential B. Family tradition of getting donuts after Mass on Sundays. Usually Mr. Pickles will drop me off in front of the store and wait outside while I run in. The last several months I've been bringing Miriam in with me. This past Sunday I thought Katie should have a turn, since she had been so good and cooperative that day. Miriam did NOT think this was fair, and let us know it. When we got home, Miriam immediately sat down to draw, and then brought me this:

I think that is the frowniest face Miriam has ever drawn.

I also think it made her feel better to get it out of her system this way. Afterwards, even Katie said she thought Miriam should have been allowed to come in to the store too. Katie loves sharing with her big sis -- well, most of the time.... At least, she hates to see her sad. Awww.

2^5

Heh heh heh.

(from PBF Comics, which I don't recommend visiting, although I came across this really funny one)

So yesterday WAS my birthday, and thanks to everyone who remembered! I'm now 30-um... 30 something, I think. In my birthday card from Dave he says I'm 2^5, so I'll go with that. I'm officially old enough that I don't feel obligated to keep track anymore.

I had a very nice day -- well, as nice a day as one can expect for the sole entertainer and feeder of three small children. :) But they all chose to behave themselves fairly well, so that all I had to do occasionally was say something like, "Hey! Are you FIGHTING on my birthday?" and they'd snap out of their naughtiness. It was nice. I wonder if it works for unbirthdays too...

Mr. Pickles was running a little late in the morning, and ended up having to wait to catch his next bus, so he stayed and had breakfast with us -- blueberry pancakes, which he made. It was nice being able to spend some extra time with him in the morning -- usually he says goodbye and takes off while I'm barely conscious. The weather during the day cooperated too -- it was supposed to be stormy, but we only got a teensy tiny sprinkling, which we decided to take a walk in with our umbrellas and kitty rain boots. Later in the day it cleared up bee-yew-tifully, so we spent a good part of the afternoon outside. Mr. Pickles came home early to fix dinner -- he grilled these massive meaty steaks that he had started marinading the night before, so they were super awesome! We also had corn on the cob (a summer staple), finished off with a decadent chocolate cake topped with a Cinderella cake topper (I'm guessing that was Miriam's idea...). I liked all the presents I got -- Miriam made a card for me that says "Happy Birthday" and "I love you" several times over and over. Joseph gave me reasons to do another load of laundry -- but it was from his heart! :) After the girls went to bed we watched Meet the Robinsons, which we enjoyed immensely! See it if you haven't yet. All in all it was a very nice day. No pomp and splendor, but still a good day.

I found that my attitude the whole day was thankfulness -- right after I woke up I got down on my knees and thanked God for all the blessings of the past year: most notably for Joseph (whose life began just about a year ago), for our other two blessings, for our angel babies, for our lovely home, for my amazing and wonderful husband whom I really don't deserve, and for my first family. God has been so good to me this past year, even though I'm such an ungrateful, whining, undeserving wretch sometimes! I only hope and pray that I can do well with the things he's entrusted to me; that one day I will hear, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant!..."

Honorary Member of the Geek Club?

There has been an ongoing discussion at F.U. News about whether one does or does not deserve to be included in the Geek club if one hasn't fulfilled a number of basic requirements. After Mom B. outed me, I left a lengthy comment about my qualifications. (I just thought of another one while posting this: I have a nodding acquaintance with html.)
I don't know if this counts, or if I get half credit (since I didn't fork over the $10 for the full version), or if it's just a sign of love of creativity and not geekiness, but I downloaded the Spore Creature Creator and designed two creatures. And had fun doing it!

Zornky

with Zornky Jr.

Puudlish (I had tried to make a Puudlie, and this was the closest I got until my imagination took over).

There now, aren't they cute? I know that by adding various attributes one can enhance the creatures' performance in the upcoming game. Since I don't plan to get the game, I don't give a rip, and can feel free to design creatures according to my little heart's content. Maybe I'll make one that's totally pimped out with as many features as I can fit on -- I've still got over 1500 Spore bucks to use up. :)

Well, technically it IS Monday

...and therefore time for another round of introspection. :) (plus it's the middle of the night and I can't sleep anyway, so I might as well pretend to be productive, right?)

FOR TODAY, Monday July 7, 2008...

Outside My Window... it was actually quite lovely today (...er, yesterday). It was overcast, and not too warm, so we spent the afternoon gardening and washing the car. With all the rain we've been having lately my "garden" is trying to take over the world -- some weeds I neglected to pull before our vacation were taller than Miriam when we came back! I decided today that I really ought to spend more time outside with the girls, gardening. I've never had luck making things grow, mostly because when I was babysitting I didn't have the time to dedicate to it. But now I've no excuse (well, except this new laptop to play on...). :) Doing a little bit of planting at a time, starting in the fall (it's too hot now to expect anything to really take off), I hope someday to be able to have a garden to be proud of.

I am thinking... how tired I am of wearing maternity clothes. I still have 15 lbs. of baby weight to lose, which all seems to be located in my hips. I want to lose the weight sooner rather than later, but since I've never actively tried to lose weight, I'm a little intimidated by the prospect. I know what it involves -- cutting back on calories and exercising. The first is relatively easy -- since I do the shopping I can control what things come in the house. The exercising part is what stumps me. I would love to be able to do three things: brisk walking, riding my bike, and taking some kind of ballet or yoga or stretching class. But trying to figure out how to schedule these kinds of things in my day is the poser. The girls walk too slow for me to get any exercise with them, but they don't have the patience to sit in the double stroller for 30 minutes. Bike riding is out unless Mr. Pickles is home to watch the kids. And classes are expensive. Maybe I should just vacuum the whole house every day -- that would be a good 45 mins of cardio.

I am thankful for... my baby boy. All my children, really. They come up to me unprompted and give me lovings even when I'm feeling fat and ugly, because they don't really care how I look.

From the kitchen... I actually started cooking again this week! Granted, it was only 2 or 3 meals, and most were planned at about 4:58 pm, but at least I was responsible for inventing, preparing, and serving actual food to my family! My moment of triumph this past week was our Fourth of July dinner -- shish kebobs with chicken, mushrooms, green peppers, and red onions marinated in Italian dressing. They were supposed to be grilled, but due to the rain (*sniff*) we had to broil them in the oven. Not quite as good, but still indescribably delicious. Of course, Mr. Pickles did most of the work. I shopped though! That should count for something!

I am wearing... yet another maternity night shirt.

I am creating... a beautiful home for my family to live and play and work in. Tomorrow (...er, today) is cleaning day, and this house will be sparkling by the time the sun sets, by gum!

I am going... to schedule lots of playdates with friends this summer -- Miriam needs time to develop her friendships, and Katie needs to get out of her shell more often. I realized on our vacation that Katie's independence isn't necessarily 100% a good thing. I took advantage of it during periods in our life recently when I felt like I couldn't stay on top of everything, so I would tend to leave her to herself. But I don't want her to grow detached from people. During the weddings and family reunion, she tended to withdraw into herself and shy away from people -- from loving family members that she wouldn't even look at. Now, a certain amount of reservedness is fine, but I want my children to have good manners, which includes being kind to people, no matter how we feel.

I am reading... well, I'm currently in the middle of both The Reed of God and The Last Child in the Woods, both excellent books, but I haven't picked up either of them in several days. Sometimes I just get tired of looking at letters on paper and want to get up and DO something.

I am hoping... to be able to go to sleep soon! I do not function well on little sleep, and I've got a busy day planned for tomorrow.

I am hearing... the blissful sounds of total silence in the house. I only wish it could be like this more often during the day. Afternoon Quiet Time has degenerated into Mommy Telling Children Repeatedly To Go Back To Their Rooms Already All Throughout Quiet Time.

Around the house... I wish I had a better talent for organization. We have a couple hot spots around the house that tend to collect clutter, mostly because I don't have a system of organization yet for them. One recent success was conquering the kitchen paper pile -- I got a wall-mounted 3-bin rack for organizing our mail and to-do papers, which keeps everything highly visible and, more importantly, off the horizontal surfaces. Plus it can't hold too much weight or else it will pull the brackets out of the plaster, so we have an incentive to keep the stacks to a minimum. You know, it's tricky organizing a household when you have two people with two very different approaches to organizing living together. Mr. Pickles keeps track of all of our finances and other important things, and I just pray that nothing ever happens to him because I'd never be able to find anything important!

One of my favorite things... Joseph's sleepy head-bobble when we pick him after he's just woken up and he's trying to figure out what he's supposed to do next -- oh yeah, that's right, eat of course -- now, where is it? (bobble bobble bobble)

What made me laugh today... the sheer ridiculousness of trying to go out to restaurant as a family. We ate out tonight (coupon night! yey!), and for the most part it went as well as could be expected. It's a very kid-friendly restaurant, by which I mean they have kid menus that you can color on BOTH sides. Katie wanted to spend the whole time coloring, but managed to sneak in a few fries here and there. She wouldn't eat her chicken because of the black flecks (and all the fries and lemonade she had consumed while waiting for the 475 degree chicken to cool off). Miriam wanted me to "help" her solve her kid-sized Sudoku puzzle (only nos. 1-6 -- it was perfect!) by which I mean she wanted me to tell her where all the numbers went. Joseph was tired and cranky b/c his last couple naps hadn't been long enough, so Daddy had to walk with him to get him to sleep. Then while Mr. Pickles was off walking Joseph, Katie said she had to go potty RIGHT NOW so I had to leave Miriam alone at the table, but when we got to the little girls' room Katie changed her mind, grrrrrrrrrr. But then finally Joseph fell asleep, so we did actually get to sit and eat together as a family, even though there was little to no actual adult conversation involved. Thank goodness Joseph didn't choose to have a diaper blowout while we were there. And now we've got some great leftovers for lunch!

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: shopping for some fabric, celebrating a Very Important Extra-Special Birthday, and finally restocking our Mother Hubbard cupboards. Oh, and getting some gerbils!

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Go Bruins!

(for those 2 readers who aren't members of the family, Nativity was our parochial school before we started homeschooling)

Daybook idea from The Simple Woman

Our Big Fat Family Vacation

Alrighty, prepare yourselves for a marathon of pictures! These are all from our recent vacation to Chicago and California for two weddings and a family reunion.

We started off by driving to Steubenville, Ohio, to stay the night with family.

Miriam and Edy were joyfully reunited. They actually had a sleepover -- Miriam wanted to sleep not with Mommy and Daddy, but in Edy's room. *sniff!* Our baby's growing up!

Katie and Max got along well, too -- although they're from very different planets. Well, Katie's always in her own universe anyway. :)

There's a playground right across the road from Edy's house. On the way home that afternoon Katie said, out of the blue, "Look, there's a deer!" A little fawn somehow got caught in Aunt Rachel's garden, bleating for its mother. Awww. :( While we were trying to herd it out the gate, it found a loose board in the fence and amazingly squeezed through and went bounding away.

The next day we caravaned to South Bend, Indiana (home of Notre Dame) for the next overnight stay.

While we were getting ready to leave in the morning, at Joseph's nap time, Mr. Pickles put Joseph down for a second to start packing up the car. Poor neglected kid fell asleep spread-eagle on the floor!

All the kids did a lot of this on the way. They were all troopers! That was a long day. We had originally planned to barrel all the way through to Chicago that day, but decided that would have been insane, with kids who needed to stop every 2 hours. By stopping in South Bend we got to meet up with even more extended family before continuing the trip to Chicago. We stayed at a hotel that -- hooray! -- had a pool, so the kids were in heaven. Katie had a bit of a mishap, though. For some idiotic reason I dressed her in the swimsuit withOUT floaties, which was fine when Mr. Pickles was there to swim with her. It was a pretty shallow pool -- Miriam could stand on tiptoes and be fine. But at one point Mr. Pickles had to take Miriam to the bathroom, so Katie had to get out of the pool (I was -- what else -- nursing Joseph at the time). While I was trapped Katie had snuck next to the pool and was sitting on the edge -- the room was really echo-y so she didn't hear me yelling at her to get away from the side. Just then a bunch of people came in and obscured my view -- next thing I knew, Katie was IN the water, clinging to the side of the pool and bawling her eyes out. I managed to get someone's attention to haul her out of the water. Thank God my wonderful niece Edy was there -- she was in the water at the time and saw Katie fall in and came to her rescue. If Edy hadn't been there, I don't like to think what would have happened. Needless to say Katie has a little more respect for Mommy's rules about swimming pools now.

Grandma B. gave all the girls matching dresses, so the next morning we all dressed them alike. It's great that they're at an age where they still think it's fun to look alike. :)

We finally arrived in Chicago Thursday afternoon. That evening was the rehearsal. I have to say it was one of the smoothest rehearsals I've ever been to. This whole wedding was definitely extremely well-planned! Just the sheer number of area maps and directions provided to the guests was impressive. Kudos to our new Aunt Katie for her amazing organizational skills!

The next day, Friday, was a fun day! We started off with a giant family picture at a park nearby Dave & Katie's new apartment. At first we thought it was going to rain, but fortunately it didn't -- and the diffused light actually made for a nicer picture without the harsh shadows one usually has in bright sunlight.

Joseph, as the newest member of the family, got passed around quite a bit. :)

Aunt Emily is the WORST baby stealer.

Joseph with Joseph

We have oodles of family pics on a CD which I haven't uploaded yet -- after I do I'll post some.

The picture session went really smoothly and was actually lots of fun. We have a great family, if I do say so myself! Afterwards we all walked the few blocks (well, some of us parked a little closer) to Dave's apartment for The Big Birthday Bash -- Dave's 30th and Nana's (belated) 80th!

the birthday buddies!

Katie found a secret hiding place, which Peter (her second cousin) thought was intriguing.

The Bobbsey twins spent most of the time outside on the balcony. Miriam's face was fairly pink that evening! Dave and Katie found a GREAT place -- it runs the length of the building with balconies facing both sunrise and sunset.

Of course, everyone insisted on a concert by Dave, and we were treated to some of his amazing repertoire! As much as I love hearing Dave play, I sort of pity his neighbors -- maybe he should get a rug... :)


Everyone got a kick out of this MANLY gift in MANLY gift wrap -- i.e. a tool kit wrapped in plywood and duct tape. Excellent.


After the Big Birthday Bash we headed back to the hotel to crash -- next day was going to be a big day! Naturally, since the hotel had a pool AND a jacuzzi (which all the ladies made good use of after the children were in bed!), we all relaxed there in the evening.

all the lovely ladies! Little Lucy looked adorable in her swimsuit.

Katie and Daddy soaking their feet in the "hot pool"

Aunt Tine getting some Baby Joey time. She was amazing -- in the midst of her own wedding planning, she managed to fly halfway across the country to come to Dave's! But we've known her family for ages and ages -- not to mention that her sister is married to our brother, so they really are part of our family. Of course, Dave and Katie returned the favor by taking time off from their honeymoon to attend her wedding.

After swim time was girlie time -- manicures and pedicures! New Aunt Katie gave the flower girls some great presents -- adorable fluffy doggie purses filled with girlie swag: flower post-its, glitter pens, nail polish, and about million different flavors of lip smackers. So the girls chose pink and silver nail polishes for the morrow.



Katie isn't patient enough to sit still long enough to let the polish dry -- so she played with pine cones and grass instead, and was perfectly content. :)

Next: the Big Day!

Happy Fourth!

To celebrate our nation's birthday, we made the traditional flag cake. Miriam helped mix the cake, and both girls helped decorate it.

For Katie, putting blueberries on was more like "one for the cake, one for me, one for the cake, one for me..."

The forecast was for lots of rain, so Miriam was practically in hysterics that we wouldn't get to see fireworks. It turned out that it only stormed in the afternoon -- just long enough for Mr. Pickles not to be able to grill dinner. :( It was a sad sight, seeing the red-hot coals speckled with rain drops. But it did stop in time for the fireworks, and actually served to cool things off quite nicely.

Getting ready for the trek to the park!

Yes, we're all red, white and blue. Next year I want to make shirts like these with the kids for an Independence Day project.

Eating watermelon at the park -- pure summer goodness. The park wasn't as crowded as we remember -- I guess the rain scared off the usual hordes.

"Daddy, would you cover my ears?"

Joseph didn't even blink when the fireworks started -- for one thing he was tired (it was WAY past his bedtime), and for another, I kept him Busy. :) (when he's eating, nothing else in the world matters)

In case you didn't get to watch any fireworks this year, here's a sample of ours, minus the earth-shattering booms:



(the grand finale's always a crowd-pleaser!)

Happy Birthday, U.S.A.!