Spring!

Hope everyone is enjoying the extra sunlight in the evening and the somewhat nicer weather. I recently realized that I have been a slacker in updating the blog, with the only excuse being that things have been hectic!

The semester started back in the beginning of February. I am teaching two sections of the same course. I have finally realized that I need to start to say "no" instead of "okay". I typically teach only one 3 hour course in the spring and the extra 3 hours is keeping me alittle bit more busy than I would like...but there's only a few more week! Home health visits picked up since the last post but with the nicer weather and fewer grandmas & grandpas falling and getting sick, my visits will start to taper off.

The kids are doing well. Both have kept us busy!

Gabriella came down with pneumonia back in November. Since then, she has been getting weekly fevers and still had a wet sounding cough even though her Xrays came back negative. A few weeks ago, she had 2 fevers in the same week. Frustrated, I called the pediatrician. Good news, I know what's been going on with her. Bad news, it's asthma and time to see an allergist who specializes in asthma too. The allergist was WONDERFUL! They did allergy testing (what joy that was) with the result: slight reaction to dust. So, what's her deal? Apparently her trigger is respiratory illnesses....ahhh...the light bulb goes off...so this all started in November with the pneumonia, the fevers were present because she still had the infection which was also effecting her airways (the reason for the cough!) She's been on medication (nebulizers & inhalers) for about a month now and has a follow up with the allergist in a few weeks. We still have to explore if she has other triggers but right now we know one culprit! And of course, the school doesn't have a nebulizer machine so I had to run to the school the first 2 weeks to give her a breathing treatment before physical activity (aka: recess & gym). Stupidity! Anyway...moving on....

Thomas already had his transition meeting for speech therapy from the NEIU to Kindergarten. The director of Special Ed. is awful and unfortunately I have had to keep a close eye on him and confront him regarding timeliness in completing Thomas speech evaluation & IEP. We got his eval and his IEP in place and he is all set for the fall. The official Kindergarten registration is in April and I can't believe I'm so close to tasting freedom during the day!!! All I want is to run my errands in one morning and be done! He is excited to start kindergarten and I will probably cry the first day he steps on the bus!

Thomas also has learned how to ride a bike with no training wheels. He is VERY proud of this big accomplishment and constantly wants to go for a bike ride. The past few weekends, Tom has brought the kids on a 3 mile bike ride....

Tom has a "saab" story...his baby croaked and I made him buy a new car! Yes, the time has come for the 13 year old convertible that has over 244,000 miles to be traded in. It was a rough day for Tom, honestly, it looked like he was the mourning the loss of a loved one. We ended up buying a Toyota Prius and he seems to enjoy his new car.

Girl Scouts is also keeping Gabriella and myself busy. We just finished up with our cookie sale and are getting ready to work on the girls bridging requirements to Brownies. Gabriella & Tom attended the annual Girl Scout "My Guy & Me Dance" and had a blast.

Well, I think that brings you up to date. Our calendar is starting to book up with fun things for the next few months so check back for updates!

Goodbye 2008...Hello 2009!

Isn't it insane how we spend SO much time preparing for Christmas and New Years and before you know it, it's over?!?! We hope everyone enjoyed their holidays and are settling back into their normal routine.

Here's what we've been up to.

My parents arrived on December 23rd and I dragged my mom to a cookie exchange that evening. December 24th we waved goodbye as Tom went to work and we all headed out to breakfast, despite all the ice that covered the car and the ground that morning! The afternoon was pretty quite...finishing a few odds and ends for Christmas Eve dinner and trying to find someone to replace 2 tires on my car. Let me tell you...if you ever need new tires (or any other sort of car repair) go Christmas Eve. Within 20 minutes we were in and out! We attended the 5:30 mass and afterwards enjoyed our traditional Christmas Eve dinner. Christmas Eve dinner is one of my most favorite parts of Christmas. The kids opened their pajamas and were quick to get changed (especially Thomas who had a 103.7 fever!). Gabriella passed out and Thomas put out the cookies for Santa. Off to bed in great anticipation of Santa!

Christmas morning came, and so did Santa! I guess my kids were on the "good list" again this year. We had a relaxing morning opening presents and playing with all our new "toys" (both young and old!) My parents headed home the morning of the 26th and we got our act together to head down to Tom's parents for the weekend. We left mid morning on Saturday and spent the afternoon with Tom's parents, siblings & their families. It was nice to have everyone together. Unfortunately, the stomach bug got hold of me and I spent most of Sunday sick. We made it home and to bed I went. In the middle of the night I was joined by Gabriella who also caught the stomach bug. We were doing great! Monday morning I found myself at the pediatrician with Thomas who still was running a fever (on and off) from Christmas. Since Thomas LOVES to sniffle and keep his boogies (instead of using a tissue) he developed a sinus infection. Tuesday came and Gabriella developed a 102 fever in the evening. I immediately called the pediatrician (as directed by the nurse since her repeat chest Xray came back that her alveoli were still closed from the pneumonia) and she was put on an antibiotic. Knock on wood...all's been quite since and I think our pediatrician is wondering where we disappeared to!

My Aunt Liz & Uncle Chuck and cousins, Whitney & Ryan from Oklahoma arrived Tuesday evening. Wednesday was a relaxing day. Thomas & Ryan played with the Wii and other toys/games while Gabriella & Whitney spent most of the morning crafting. With the little snow that fell overnight....all the kids (Uncle Chuck included) went outside and played for alittle bit. Liz and I opted to stay in as the wind was wicked and it was brutally cold. We ate an early dinner and headed down to Scranton for "First Night 2009". For those of you not from this area, different buildings in downtown Scranton host different events for New Years Eve. The evening starts at 6:00 pm and goes until midnight. There were tons of stuff and we had a blast. We enjoyed a puppet show, face painting, participated in Native American dancing, caught the end of an awesome magic show, attended storytime, played Guitar Hero and Dance Dance Revolution. There was so much more but before we knew it, it was almost midnight. There was a bandstand with a band counting us down to midnight. Once 12:00 struck there was a 15 minute firework show. It was an awesome way to ring in the new year and was great to spend it with family that we don't get to see that often.

Thursday we found ourselves taking a self guided tour of Scranton (as I try to persuade my cousin it is the best school on the east coast!) followed by a game of bowling. Then the best part...I had 2 babysitters and you can bet I took full advantage of them! For those of you I have given directions to my house before, you know the landmark "Starlight Lounge". Well back in November I called my father's bluff about going there. At 9:00 or so, he got out of his pajamas and off we went to the bar. I know the owner and they never stop talking about how good their wings are. So, we gave them a try...and they are good. My mother, Aunt Kris and Uncle Rich were also in attendance. Well, my Aunt Kris and father have told their sister, my Aunt Liz, about this place and it was my duty to provide the same opportunity to my Aunt Liz...so at 9:00...Tom, myself, Aunt Liz & Uncle Chuck headed to the bar. The owner was curious as to how much family I have!?!?!? After a round of beer and a few wings...we headed home.

We said our goodbyes Friday morning as Aunt Liz & Co. headed back to OK. We had a rather lazy Friday playing games and crafting all day in our jammies. We took down our Christmas tree & decorations this past Sunday and are getting back into the school routine.
That's all for now...

Haul out the holly....

....put up the tree before my spirit falls again, fill up the stocking, I may be rushing things but...deck the halls again now...for we need alittle Christmas...right this very minute.......

Ah...the sweet words I remember singing in the chorus at St. Anthony's....one of my all time favorite Christmas songs...

The semester ended on the 12th with a final that many of my students are trying to forget about right now....and the preparation for Christmas began...

We got our Christmas tree, decorated the house, finished shopping, wrapped all the presents, spent the the past few days making Christmas cookies, pierogi and fruitcake (thanks to a nice snow day on Friday), had a visit from Santa & Mrs. Claus...and I believe we are just about ready for Christmas. The kids have thoroughly enjoyed playing in the snow the past three days. Maybe it will be a White Christmas???
Enjoy the pics.....and have a blessed Christmas...hope Santa is good to everyone!

Yes, that is a pierogi in each hand...

What an exciting month!

Since November has come and gone, we figured we'd post an update!
The weekend of November 15-16 we celebrated Gabriella and Thomas' birthday with the family. We barely got cleaned up from that party before we had Gabriella and Thomas' birthday party with friends. They made it VERY easy on me this year....they both agreed to a gymnastics party and the facility (where they both take gymnastics class) did EVERYTHING! I believe all the kids had a blast! After the party Nana and Papa stopped by and thought Christmas happened!

The kids spent the next few days playing with their new toys before we headed out to Long Island for Thanksgiving. We actually headed to NYC (Roosevelt Island) Wednesday night and crashed with my cousin. The kids went to sleep around midnight (my party animals!) and were woken up around 6:00 a.m. in order to catch the subway for a "good spot" to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Both of my children and my husband had their first ever subway ride (and no, the threat of the subway being blown up did not deter us...well it scared the crap out of me but my cousin blew it off so I figured it was "safe") We left Jen's around 7:00 and by 7:30 we found a good spot on the corner of 39th & Broadway and proceeded to wait for 2 1/2 hours for the parade to "start" at our location. Both kids for the most part were good...once the parade started, the wiggled their way up to the baracade and had front row spots! I think they high-fived EVERY clown that walked by. Besides being awed by the size of the balloons, Gabriella was beyond excited that Miley Cyrus was on a float (yes there is a picture below) I personally was excited to see Trace Adkins and David Archuleta! Once the parade ended we hopped the subway back to Jen's to get changed and head out to Long Island for Thanksgiving dinner. The time we spent at Grandma and Grandpa's was fun filled with playing Wii, trip to the playground and a dinner out for Gabriella's 7th birthday (Friday was her actual birth date). We headed home on Saturday so that I could prepare my second to last lecture and my last lab for the semester (woohoo...the end is in sight!)

Sunday (11-30) we welcomed a new member of our family....for those that don't know....Miss Heather's mother and father have kittens that need a home. I was sold immediately and after some time to "think" about it...Tom agreed to get a kitten. It was an early Christmas present to both kids from mommy and daddy. So around 1:00 on Sunday, Miss Heather and her parents arrived with their "present". I think they both were in disbelief....but have enjoyed the kitten thoroughly. She is a cute kitten and likes to cuddle with people. She also provides us with entertainment as we play with her because she will jump rather high to catch her toys. We still need a name for her so any suggestions are welcomed! Thomas' list is Licorice, Stripes, Wrinkles, Dragon and Tree. Gabriella's list is Sweetie-Pie, Cuddles, Cutie and Whiskers. Apparently we are having a hard time coming up with a "goood" name that both kids can agree on.

We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy the next few weeks as we all prepare for Christmas. Check back soon for updates!

Fun Times

We have been keeping busy but having lots of fun!

This past Sunday, I took my girl scout troop to Great Wolf Lodge. Five girls went and we had a blast! We arrived there at 12:00 and departed at 6:00. A buffet dinner was included and was absolutely delicious! Below are some pictures of Gabriella.

By now, everyone should know who Miss. Heather is. If you don't, you obviously don't keep up to date on the blogs...

Anyway, Miss Heather's parents got tickets to the Martha Stewart Show and invited me. Once I made arrangements for pick up for both children, I happily agreed! We departed at 4:30 this morning and arrived in NYC just about 7:00. We found a Starbucks, relaxed for a few minutes before lining up for the show. We were let into the building at 8:30 or so and the fun began! We tapped one show from 10:00-11:00 and then were asked to stay to record the first segment that will be aired at a later date. Below are some pictures of my trip to see Martha Stewart...and my dad even watched it since I was there! Enjoy the pics!