Peace & quiet

I feel compelled to provide evidence of the kids playing quietly because it just doesn't happen that often.
Dried beans/macaroni + spoons + empty applesauce & yogurt cups = hours of entertainment. Okay, maybe not hours but definitely a good 45 minutes while I made dinner!

Frankie's 2nd Birthday

Fun times were had by all at cousin Frankie's birthday party last weekend. Items of note: candy, watermelon and delicious cake complete with vehicles made of frosting. Yum!

Friends

We got a couple good shots of the kids with their buddies over the past few weeks...always funny trying to get 4 kids to smile in a picture!

Hanging in the hammock with Taylor and Mia, who are always nice enough to let us share their swingset.

Posing with Maya and Kyran. Thanks for taking us in for a night!! :)

No more monkeys jumping on the bed

Jumping on the beds is now outlawed in our house (at least on mom's watch) thanks to James' latest accident. Here he is in the ER, pre-stitches. Something tells me this won't be our last trip to the lovely new Children's Hospital this year.

Tim & Anne's Wedding!

We had a great weekend celebrating with Uncle Tim & Aunt Anne! What a beautiful wedding! We are glad to report that the kids made it down the aisle without issue...unless you count James trying to turn around and walk back once he reached his destination :)

Sesame Place!

We had a fun family road trip to Sesame Place this past weekend....here are some of our favorite pics from the trip.

enjoying the carousel

meeting some friends

contemplating a hostess cupcake

watching the parade with daddy

losing the battle against exhaustion

james & mommy having some fun

A baby sister

Here she is, at 19 1/2 weeks gestation.  It took some work to find out she was a girl-- she's a squirmy little one!

Playing nice

It happens.

interview with James

Q: Tell us about some of your favorite things.

A: I LOVE letters--looking at them and yelling them out loud.  Mom and Dad think I might be one of those spelling bee kids in about 10 years.  I love videos, especially They Might Be Giants and Sing Yourself Silly.   I also like to run everywhere--walking is so boring.  I like to give kisses and make really big messes with my toys.  And I love to play outside, especially on the swings and slides at the neighbors'!  My favorite foods are milk, yogurt, cheese, apple sauce, apple juice and treats (read: Oreos, cake, lollipops, Peeps).   My favorite song is MMMbop, but I also appreciate a good Beyonce dance tune.  

Q: And how about your least favorite things?

A: I don't like when Daddy yells at me or when Abby takes my toys.  I really don't like anyone touching my toes.  I don't like being told to be still and quiet, so Church really isn't my favorite place.  My least favorite thing is probably coming in from outside.  

Q: Tell us about some of your newest skills.

A: I can identify every letter of the alphabet by looking at them and I am pretty close to being able to say my ABCs.  I can spell my name (although if you ask me what my name is I will always say "Abby").  I can climb up the steps at the playground  and go down the slides all by myself, which seems to make Mommy pretty happy--I don't think she likes getting up there with me.  I know lots of animal sounds now and I don't say "baa" for everything.  Just today I figured out how to do a zerbert on Daddy's tummy--fun stuff.

Q: What has been your biggest accomplishment?

A: I figured out how to walk down the steps all by myself and I taught myself how to jump after weeks of intense training on the family room floor.  

Q: Are you excited about the new baby coming?

A: I don't really understand what is going on but I like babies and I know there is one in mommy's belly.  I kiss it every day.  Mommy and Daddy asked my opinion on baby names and my suggestions were: Daddy, Boobah, and Apple Juice.  All pretty creative, I think, but they seemed to think they were funny.  Better than Abby's lame-o suggestion of "Abby-2", anyway.

That's all for now....talk to you all later.  -James

Katie & Papa's Birthday

The annual birthday picture...this time with ice cream cake-yum!

Jimmy and the kids

We had a fun visit with Jimmy last weekend--Abby and James have been missing him!  James asks for "Mimmy" every morning :)

bbq 2009

...with extra-special guests Jimmy and the Dougherty Family!

family relaxing before all the guests arrived

Abby and her best buds Joe and Jake

Jim, Jimmy, James and Jim

The second family photo in like 6 weeks--has to be some sort of record.  Am I really that much shorter than Craig?  I feel like I have shrunk.

Funny stuff

The kids have had a few good photo-moments in the past week. Here are my favorites:

James models his new bike helmet (3yr+ size, of course) while carefully studying the house "rules". 


The kids had a pajama dance party after breakfast the other day. They are both big fans of Beyonce--she will always get them moving!

Abby hangs out with Great-Grandpa and Aunt Kim and teaches them a thing or two about painting with water colors.

Easter 09

Here are some of our favorite shots from Easter. Wish we could have gotten a better one of James with 5 chocolate eggs in his mouth!

I will figure out how to open this!

Checking out James' basket

Peeps rule

Family photo (it's been a while!)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

This is the best shot we could get this morning...and pretty much the only one in which James stayed on the chair. Have a fun day!

naptime fun

This is what Abby did while she was supposed to be resting today. (The mountain of clothes used to be a nicely folded basket of laundry. I was told she needed the basket to build a bridge so she could make it across the swamp to her bed. ) Apparently it tired her out because that's her passed out in the bed.

A Day at the Museum

We had a fun family day at the Pittsburgh Children's Museum on Friday. I think Mom & Dad had as much fun as the kids--that place is awesome..so awesome, in fact, that we bought a membership. We can't wait to go back!

Water play


Abby learns to build (she did very well for her first try!)


Getting ready to launch a parachute in the Garage


The tower at the Land of Make Believe in Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood


James goes for a walk in the Nursery