Happy Pumpkin Day!

WE took off early to Cox farm, an over-the-top pumpkin farm. They had a giant slide, a bunch ofs smaller slides, a band, a really fun hayride, animals and free apple cidar, kettle corn, apples and applesauce. Oh yeah...and pumpkins.
We ended up pushing it a little, staying over 5 hours and the kids ended up crashing pretty hard.

I guess there is a thing as too much fun. But, besides those last 15 minutes, they loved every minute of it .









After an hour power-nap...we all got busy carving those pumpkins. Not too shabby, don't you think?

Luray and Skyline Drive

So, you’ve never heard of Luray? Neither had we, but I’m so glad we decided to make the trip. Some random woman at some random park told me to visit. And because I’m such a wild and crazy girl, I thought we’d throw caution to the wind and go for it. Off we went into the freezing yonder towards the Shenandoah Mountains. They have this ancient bell tower in Luray and an equally ancient man plays once a week on an ancient instrument called a carillon, (this is a bunch, in this case 47, levers that bang on the 47 bells up above.)

Now, the freezing weather might have discouraged most good parents from making their children go outside to listen to this lovely music…but not us.

The few fingers and toes we lost to frostbite was definitely worth the gorgeous music from this very strange instrument. We never saw that old guy playing though…he locked himself in during the concert. Mysterious.

We also drove Skyline drive, which is a single road stretching from one side of the Shenandoah mountain range to the other. This was very boring for the kids, but we didn’t let that stop us from enjoying ourselves. The view was amazing and I felt like we needed some mellow soundtrack to go along with the red, gold and brown leaves that swirled around us as we drove. We did have a crazy weather experience though. On our way home the clouds really started to come in gloomy and dark. On a whim we stopped at a fruit stand/shop and I jumped out to get some apples. As I was picking the apples I felt some rain drops start coming down, so I quickly filled up my bag and walked into the store. Moments after I walked in a sudden blizzard hit. Snow and hail was blowing in sideways through the door. Everyone was stood frozen in place for a few moments out of pure shock. I quickly paid and forged my way back to the car. Even though I was only about 10 feet away, I was covered with snow when I jumped in. Within 10 minutes of driving, we were in blue skies once again. It was unbelievable. And kinda cool.

I imagined what wonderful things would await me when I got home that night. The kids would be bathed, fed and dressed for bed. The house picked up. The dishes done. Kisses and hugs followed by three lovely children dancing off to bed.

Reality hit hard when I opened the door back at home. This is what I found.



A a few minutes later...(and filmed by robert himself)



At least everyone was having fun. Except now they want to play in mama's room all the time.

Role Models

I hear the loud, obnoxious rumble first. Seconds later I catch a glimpse of the speeding biker weaving recklessly through traffic. At least his orange hunting pants make it easy to keep tabs on him. He darts through the small gaps between drivers at least 20 miles faster than the flow of traffic.
It only takes a few more moments for him to fly past, riding the line between me and the car beside me. "Idiot!" I mumble. My dark premonitions of twisted metal and blood stained roads are abruptly interrupted with Ethan's excited question, "Mama! Did you SEE that guy?!" Before I respond he excitedly continues, "That was SOOO COOOOL!!!"









Interesting. Looks like I'm doomed to have one of those kids.

Williamsburg. The drive to Colonial Williamsburg was beautiful with the trees turning their bright gold and red fall hues. The town itself is preserved to its mid-1700 heyday. With the wide streets and restored buildings, it is easy to imagine yourself living a more simplistic lifestyle. All the merchants in the town actually supply the town with authentic products that they use throughout the year. For example, the leatherworkers made all the saddles/bridals/harness for the 24 horses used in town...all made with mid-1700 tools. The kids loved all the animals kept around town and the parade of boys who played drums and fife flutes. Soon enough we owned our very own, very loud drum. Lucky us. The kids all loved them but we decided to limit ourselves to just one. As a result we've only had to deal with the noise of one drum and the relentless fighting over who gets to play it. Hmmm...should have shelled out the money to buy three.





Alaina was very naughty at one point and had to be punished in the appropriate 1700 manner. She wasn't pleased.

By the time we piled back in the car the kids were beat and we were exhausted. But we were so happy that we chose to visit...especially with the cold weather rolling in.

What a sight! Ethan with two socks on hands holding two spoons up high and running around the house like a mad man. "I'm SUPER! I'm SUPER!" he shouts. "I want to fly high in the sky! I'm SUPER FLY!!!!" The twins catch the spirit and quickly grab costumes of their own. Austin throws a pair of short on his head and Laina grabs a tuperware and a blanket for her transformation. All three form a marching super-hero parade shouting their own mantras. Ethan is now officially "Super FLY!" Alaina falls right behind chanting, "superfly superfly superfly. I superfly too!" Austin sticks with the simplified, "soooper soooper soooper!" Around and around and around they fly, switching costumes at random but always keeping their superhero status.

Now, days later, Alaina is on the prowl with Ethan's pajamas on her head, socks on her hands and a tuperware lid with a cracker on it. I think she is Jaba the cook. "I'm super, mama" she announces.

Ethan was equally decked out until an unfortunate brawl with his sidekick Austin landed him in time-out. That sippy cup turned out to be his kryptonite. I guess we all can't be super-heroes all the time.

Reflection Pools

A couple of days ago our house was in its natural state of craziness. The kids had created a new game of dodge ball...the rules are a little vague, but from what I can gather this is how you play. 1. Grab any ball in sight (small toys are discouraged by mama, but usable if she is looking the other way.) 2. Throw them as soon as possible. Aim doesn't matter...just pull back and let go. 3. If you get hit, shake it off and go back to number 1. Yep...I do believe that just about covers it. The results weren't pretty but the kids seemed quite pleased with their new game. Because no one had actually broken anything yet, I was content to let them run wild. Half way through the dishes a quiet but persistent sound of running water gradually broke through the surrounding chaos and peaked my interest. Where was it coming from? Why was it running? Did the plug in the toilet tank not seal? Hmmm...maybe I should check this out. I ducked quickly through the hall stepping over alaina..sprawled out and shaking off the latest dodge ball onslaught. As soon as I opened the bathroom door, I knew something was terribly wrong. It took me a couple of seconds to react to the crazy scene in front of me. Water had filled the toilet base and was gently flowing floor. Our blue bath matt was floating haphazardly on the rising pool. It would have been almost pretty had I been wanting a large fountain in my bathroom.

After a moment of quiet reflection and appreciation of modern bathroom water art I decided that the new fountain was a little too feng shui for my taste. I splashed over to the tank and tried holding up that black balloon thing to stop the water from running. That worked but I couldn't figure out how to stop the flooding long enough to fill the tank back up with water. Every time I tried let go of that balloon to get something to empty the toilet the water would rise up again to resume the flooding process. I called in Ethan who gleefully stomped his way to my side. After sending him off to get a cup he and I started a strange partnership. I would scoop up cups of water and he would throw it into the tub. (I think I could have handled it myself once I had the cup but Ethan was permanently entrenched in the process by that time). the twins started feeling left out and decided to crowd in to add to the commotion. With a little dramatic choreography I was able to keep them at bay with my leg. After enough water was drained we were able have the tank fill up and start the de-flooding process. Ethan was having the time of his life. I've had better days. fortunately we had caught the flood right before it spilled over into the carpet. shew. At least the bathroom floor got a really good cleaning.

Later that night we found a previously full package of diaper wipes...missing all of its wipes.

Wonder what plugged the toilet.

New York….New York

What a whirlwind of a weekend! In a moment of insanity, we decided to conquer the big apple in a three-day weekend. Friday night we drove to Philadelphia. The next morning we visited the Franklin Institute Science Museum. I have to say, that this is the absolute best children’s museum we’ve ever been to. Everything is high quality, hands on and fascinating for everyone. While it’s geared towards elementary-middle school kids, the little ones were hooked from the moment we walked in.


It has the largest steam engine that I’ve ever seen that actually moves back and forth. There is a small plane bolted to the ceiling that the kids can sit in. A planetarium. And a million hand on experiments. Above is a pictures of Ethan making paper. Next time you’re in Philly…go! The Philly Cheese-steak, however, had a lot to be desired.

The next day in New York we walked by ground zero of the world trade center. They are building two huge memorial pools where the trade center buildings used to stand. The construction site is enormous. It is really inspiring to know that they are building something that will be so beautiful out of the ashes of such a tragedy. It was very moving to be there. Right across the road from ground zero is Fire Station 10…the first firemen to respond. They have a plaque for the 6 men who died trying to save the lives of them men and women in the towers. I hope we’ll be able to make it back after the site is completed.

We also saw Times Square…the kids were looking everywhere at once…with all the lights, commotion, people, traffic etc. It was something to see…but not for long. We did a quick walk around the block and moved on to Grand Central Station. That was also amazing. The building itself is enormous and houses at least 114 trains. The whole bottom floor is dedicated to food stalls…but the air is stagnant and so hot that we couldn’t stay down there long enough to eat. Across the street they were having an Italian market and right outside of the station they were filming a Will Smith movie. Unfortunately we didn’t see any famous faces.







Monday we spent the day at the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. The weather all weekend was warm and beautiful. The kids loved the ferry ride and playing on the lawns surrounding Ms. Liberty. By late afternoon we were on our way back home. And I’m tired just writing about it. This was definitely a trip to remember.

I looked over the counter into the kitchen this morning to find Ethan pulling out about 6 pieces of bread out of the bread bag. This has been Ethan’s new thing…getting food out when I’m not looking. This morning he’d already pulled out a huge box of fish crackers and managed to pour them all out onto the kitchen floor to the glee of the twins. During the 30 seconds it had taken me to understand what he had done and cross over to the kitchen, all three kids had managed to create a national disaster area. Crackers were crushed under their stampeding feet as they had raced around stuffing their little cheeks full of fish. Their grubby hands were full of crackers and already in reloading position when I started gently discussing the consequences of gorging oneself in a calm and collected manner. Yeah right… I didn’t totally lose it, but they did started picking that mess up pretty quick.

Anyways, knowing what a dressing down the kids had already gotten, I knew that Ethan really wouldn’t want to be caught being naughty again. So I stood back into the hallway and called out, “Ethan. What are you doing?” A split second later two little feet came sprinting around the corner. Ethan looked up and immediately blurted out, “I wasn’t getting any bread!” I was struggling to compose myself being more than slightly amused at his obviously guilt when he looked up quite innocently and whispered, “I love you so much, mama.” What a pill.

Little Alaina is definitely a daddy's girl. In fact, she has somehow managed to hook every boy in our family. Everyday I see the boys tripping over themselves to make her happy. Ethan will take toys away from Austin just to hand them over to her. Austin copies her every move. I don't think he would have learned how to walk if it wasn't for her pushing him along. He lights up every time she pays him attention. And of course Robert can't help himself from spoiling his little princess. He acts all tough with the boys and then melts like butter with Alaina. Time-outs seem to be a little shorter and scrapes and bruises are a little more tragic.

I think I have her figured out though. She always seems to be paying those boys attention when they don't expect it. This morning she was rubbing Ethan's head while he was lounging on the ground. Every time she did it he would look back at her and both of them would laugh. And yesterday I caught her with her arm around Austin's shoulder while they watched a cartoon. (Unfortunately I didn't think to take a picture). She is very nurturing to the boys...a little mama.

But sweet as she is, she is also a mastermind of mischief. And like any successful mastermind she is in constant need of willing accomplices. Those little monsters march around the house like a parade of trouble…with Alaina at the head. Together they raid the fridge, hide in the cupboards and turn the rooms upside down.

She was definitely the ringleader in the whole Austin-in-a-box experiment…
(Amazingly enough, Austin seemed to be having a good time as well.)

Just a note about Austin. This boy can be as precocious as his sister. I was busy reprimanding him for some naughty behavior today and just when I was in the middle of my serious, lengthy discourse Austin looked up at me with a exasperated face, pointed his little finger at my nose and emphatically stated, "The End!" I was so surprised it actually worked.

Conversation ended.

Little Alaina is definitely a daddy's girl. In fact, she has somehow managed to hook every boy in our family. Everyday I see the boys tripping over themselves to make her happy. Ethan will take toys away from Austin just to hand them over to her. Austin copies her every move. I don't think he would have learned how to walk if it wasn't for her pushing him along. He lights up every time she pays him attention. And of course Robert can't help himself from spoiling his little princess. He acts all tough with the boys and then melts like butter with Alaina. Time-outs seem to be a little shorter and scrapes and bruises are a little more tragic.

I think I have her figured out though. She always seems to be paying those boys attention when they don't expect it. This morning she was rubbing Ethan's head while he was lounging on the ground. Every time she did it he would look back at her and both of them would laugh. And yesterday I caught her with her arm around Austin's shoulder while they watched a cartoon. (Unfortunately I didn't think to take a picture). She is very nurturing to the boys...a little mama.

But sweet as she is, she is also a mastermind of mischief. And like any successful mastermind she is in constant need of willing accomplices. Those little monsters march around the house like a parade of trouble…with Alaina at the head. Together they raid the fridge, hide in the cupboards and turn the rooms upside down.

She was definitely the ringleader in the whole Austin-in-a-box experiment…
(Amazingly enough, Austin seemed to be having a good time as well.)

Just a note about Austin. This boy can be as precocious as his sister. I was busy reprimanding him for some naughty behavior today and just when I was in the middle of my serious, lengthy discourse Austin looked up at me with a exasperated face, pointed his little finger at my nose and emphatically stated, "The End!" I was so surprised it actually worked.

Conversation ended.

Finally we had our first company in our small little apt. It seems like Gina is the only one brave enough to hang out in our craig's list (free stuff) furnished 2 bedroom apt, sleep on blow up mattresses, eat off of plastic dishes and frolic with the three resident toddler monsters that can be found underfoot. That was a pretty wordy sentence. Ah well,despite the craziness, we managed to have a fun filled long-weekend seeing the sights and letting the little cousins get to know each other. Baby Chey was all smiles the whole weekend even when we tried to screw up any normal sleeping habits he might of developed in his little lifetime. And Robert put up with all the girl talk and sister humor. What a saint.






Isn't this little guy a cutie?

Gina's not too shabby herself! :)





We spent the day in Baltimore going to the aquarium and hanging out on the wharf. The aquarium is really not that great. From the out side it looks awesome with cool architecture and lots of glass, but inside it is all dark with small little corridors and with sporadic alcoves holding small fish tanks. It was a human traffic jam. The only saving grace was the dolphin show.






Ethan LOVED being in the splash zone...can you tell?

Life in general has been full of parks and little outings with me and the kids while Robert has been at work. It is so nice for him to love his job...what a difference! And we have loved the weather here so far. We missed the hot muggy summer and haven't experienced winter yet, so I may have a different take on the weather in a few months.

The kids are growing like weeds...or more accurately and seasonally prevalent...like pumpkins :) Nice and round.

Here is a picture of the boys that I really like. They do have their moments. It's times like this and when they are sleeping that remind me just how sweet they can be.

Since I've been so lazy about getting our website up and running, I thought this would be a fun way to keep ya'll up to date.