Well, Hello

Hello from Summer Living, where we're running around living life and not blogging about it!  It's late July already, and we've done so much stuff this summer already.

The boys spent a week with their grandparents in PA, enjoying the things that campground life has to offer.  Stuff like arcade games, swimming pools and riding in the golf cart.  Mom and Dad, having to work back at home for the week, did NOT enjoy going out to eat at non-kid-friendly restaurants, nor getting ice cream almost every night at a different place each time.  No, no they didn't.  :)

Then we took the kids for a week in Williamsburg, VA.  And man, we did it ALL.  If Williamsburg offered it, we took it up.  Busch Gardens (twice), Water Country, Colonial Williamsburg.....and had a lovely time.  It was a heavy-walking vacation, I logged 17,400 steps on my Fitbit one of the days.  We'd been four years ago so we knew the area and Will could relax quickly being somewhere familar.  Sean, our resident daredevil, went on every single wild ride that he was tall enough for, which this year was a lot!

After that, camp started.  And now we're in kind of a groove, routine-wise.  Enjoying the dog days of summer, doing day trips to things like the Maker's Fair in Boston, and heading to Six Flags this weekend.  School will be here again before we know it.

Happy Birthday, Joey!

This sweet boy is fourteen years old today. For his "gift,"  we gave him a snowday with all of his favorite people at home, and a whole cooked chicken breast to himself!  It was going to be his favorite salmon, but apparently I left it at the grocery store.

Happy birthday, my awesome fur-baby, first baby, sweet, funny and snuggly boy!  May your day be full of hugs and kisses, and awesome treats.

 Joey on his actual birthday.  He takes over our bed everyday after we leave the house and this is his favorite blanket.

"Oh, the Superbowl is on?  I like hockey, not football."

My Big Six-Year Old

Happy Birthday to you, Will!  I cannot believe that today you are six.  Sometimes I look at you and still see this:

But I know that you're not a baby anymore.  In fact, you are growing up to be such a smart, funny, imaginative kid and it just blows me away!

Your Dad, Sean and I love you so much, kiddo.  Happiest of Birthdays, and to many, many more.

Post-Webs Aftermath

The tent sale, if to be described in one word, incredible.

Incredible weather.
Incredible friends and family.
Incredible yarn.
Incredible food with said friends and family.
Incredible long lines.  (ah well.)

We got there about half an hour after the sale opened, and MAN was it crowded!  The store was stuffed with people, as was the tent and the warehouse area.  Wow, WOW!  Lots of friendly employees were on hand, asking if they could help you find something.  Inside the store, I spotted a familiar face:  the Webs employee from the "Sh*t Knitters Say" video!  (she's kind of hard to miss, with her gorgeous red hair)  At first I thought that she'd think that I was a huge dork if I said hello, but I went for it.  "Hey, you're the girl from that video!"  She laughed and said "You are the first person to notice!"  I said "really?  I would've thought that I'd have been the fiftieth!  I said that every time I'm buying yarn I hear her voice in my head saying "I'm on a yarn diet."  She laughed again and said "There is no such thing as too much yarn."  Yes!!  No judging from anyone in Webs yesterday....no one would ever say "isn't that kind of a lot of yarn?"  Nope.  A true judgment-free zone.  :)

While in line outside (which was about 45 minutes) a woman approached my mom, SIL and I and said that some of the people behind us had recommended us for the video that they were making to promote the store.  Turns out a couple of my friends said "no thank you" to being included but "see that woman in purple up there? She'd LOVE to be a part of it."  We were good sports, and the video is going to be on their Facebook page.  If our part is in it, I hope we don't look too silly.  :)

After all that wild shopping, we settled on Amherst Brewery for something to eat.  It was about 8 miles away, not far from the UMASS Amherst campus.  The food was soooooooooo good.  Second best nachos that I have ever had.  (The first is nachos at Brick Alley Pub in Newport RI, with my Salve girlfriends)  After that it was time to head home, and it was a  pretty ride, through bits of western MA down to the Mass Pike.  All in all, a really, really great day.

So what did I bring home?  I brought home a LOT.  I went with a very detailed list and the decision to only shop for projects that I already have queued.  This pile contains every baby gift, and ALL Christmas gifts, not to mention a sweater for Hubby and a sweater for me.  I'm pretty happy with it.

Finally, here are (some of) the Hook and Needlers, and Friends!

Easter Sunday

Photos from Our Easter...

Little Boy Bed!

As you can see, someone was VERY excited for his "little boy bed!"  Last night was Sean's first night both in a toddler bed and sharing a room with his Bubby.  Will even made a "Welcome Sean!" sign so that Sean would feel at home in his new bed.  (Never mind he can't read....he did enjoy kicking it like crazy.)  

So, how did he sleep?  Eh.....it could have been better.  For one thing, he's not used to having so much freedom.  He must've jumped out of bed and ran around the kitchen about fifty times!  Will came out a few times too, to let us know that Sean had climbed into bed with him.  Both boys didn't go to sleep til about midnight last night, so I see naps in the day today.  I'm really glad that we decided to try this on a weekend.  

Happy Second Birthday, Sean!

Happy Birthday, Seanie!  Mommy, Daddy and Bubby love you so very much.

Will's Five!

I simply cannot believe my older boy is FIVE YEARS OLD today. Really, I blink and this is what I see.  

Everyone tells you that it goes by fast, and it does!  You don't think it does until it happens to you.  Because before you know it, their first birthday is here.

And then they start developing their own traits, and fashion sense too.  And they love to model things that you've knitted.

Will, you're a terrific kid.  Your Dad and I love you so much, for so many reasons.  You're sweet and caring, and you are a wonderful big brother.

You're silly, you love to laugh and your sense of humor is impeccable.  And you've already perfected the art of a drive-by mugging for the camera.

You are happy-go-lucky, and are happy to show Sean the ropes.

You love to cook, and spend time with your Dad.  And you're a good sport too, with putting on stuff that Mom makes you put on.  Even though you just don't want to.

You have a wild side, and a wild imagination!  You have lots of ideas, and are quite creative.

And most of all, you have so much love inside you.  You love your whole family, and even though you are a big ol' five year old that "shouldn't have to go to school because you already know everything, you still want Mom and Dad to "snuggle you" and enjoy things like lullabies.

Happy Birthday, my darling.  We love you so, very very much.

Thank a Veteran

Today, on Veteran's Day, thank a Veteran for their service!



Thank you to my favorite Veteran.  :)  I went looking for a more polished picture, but they're buried in my basement.  Here's my Hubby in his dress whites at a wedding.

A special thanks to all Veterans out there today!

Our Halloween!

 Daddy and Mr. Bumblebee

Will as Woody, posing with Nana

Another Halloween come and gone!  We really enjoyed it, Nana and Papa came for a visit and we had a nice dinner, and then my dad offered to hand out candy while we took out our little Woody and his brother the Bumblebee.  Will made out like a bandit, and would have happily kept going, but Sean was getting a bit sleepy/cranky and it was SO COLD out last night!  We really missed the balmy sixty-degree weather from last year.    At one point, Will tripped going down someone's driveway and fell, scraping his knee.  "OWWWW!!"  was followed with "I'm Okay!!  Did any candy fall out of my pumpkin?   Did Daddy get it?"  A kid has his priorities on Halloween, right?

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Will's Fourth Birthday!

Happy Fourth Birthday to our Boy!

We love you more than words can say, Pal.

Love always,

Mommy, Daddy and Sean

Ten Years of Wedded Bliss

A College Chick and a Navy Guy, a chance meeting in a seedy dance club one Thursday night in downtown Providence, RI. 

That fated night has led to many things.  Deployments and joyful reunions. A dropped transmission while searching for an engagement ring.  A "surprise" proposal Graduation weekend.  Our own personal game of "Survivor" while stationed in New Hampshire.  Settling down and purchasing our first home.  Later on, being blessed with two beautiful boys.  Combining our strengths and weaknesses and making a good team.  Lots of Laughter, Lots of Memories, Lots of Love.

I can't believe it's been ten years.  Happy Anniversary, My Love, My Best Friend. 

Happy Birthday to You, Mom

This past Sunday was a special birthday for my mother.  We celebrated it kind of low-key, because she wanted it that way.  We had a fantastic dinner at Chateau, which is a funny French name for an Italian restaurant.  Then we were off to my house for gifts and chocolate caramel cannoli cake!

Will was kind of bummed that he didn't have a present for his Nana.  He insisted on picking out one of his toys and wrapping it up for her.  I talked him out of wrapping up his buddy Buzz Lightyear, so he chose a purple stegasaurus instead.

Speaking of purple, that appeared to be the theme.  Above, she's wearing a silk and bamboo lace scarf that I knitted.  The yarn is so soft, and reminds me of a grape jolly rancher.

Happy Birthday and Many More, Mom! 

Busy Autumn Already

It's coming to a close...another week gone.  Fall is the busiest season in our house, with (almost) all of the family birthdays, plus other stuff that we all like to do.    Will had his two days of school this week and so far he really likes it.  He came home with an art project today, a little "Will" that he made out of paper.  He was a tad chagrined though, that the paper "Will" had green eyes and he doesn't.  He's already learning new things and I'm pretty proud.  For example, tonight when I picked him up he was attempting to drink a glass of water.  No, not a sippy cup.  A plastic cup!  Sure, he was wearing some of it but he was getting some!  Yeah yeah....my kid's almost four and we're working on cups.  We've been a little lax in that department, opting to concentrate on potty-training instead. 

This weekend is shaping up to be an exciting one.  First, we're shopping for Halloween costumes because we're going to a friend's house next weekend for an autumn get-together.  She's a photography enthusiast (and takes GORGEOUS pictures) and has invited friends to come over for pictures, pumpkins and autumn snacks.  What a neat idea!  Depending on weather on Saturday, we may go apple picking.  And on Sunday, my mom is celebrating a special birthday, so we're all going to a great Italian place to celebrate. 

So busy...but loving it.  But right now, home with the boys and hubby in school, the house is very quiet.  So that means it's time to log off this thing and go enjoy it!

Happy Birthday!

My husband is a bit of a "shy" guy who barely notices his birthday.  However, with me being ME, I couldn't let it go by without a blog post dedicated to my wonderful, silly, sweet, Brian, who is such a wonderful husband and father.  And with that....I'll just let the pictures illustrate what I've said.  Happy Birthday, Darling.  :)

With love from Ginny, Will and Sean.

Days Like These

I've got a headache that's about a week old..  Sean's decided that sleeping in three hour clips instead of four-hour ones is the way to go, and it takes me a while to fall asleep because I anticipate him crying ten minutes or so after we lay him down, even if it's not my turn to go to him.  Brian and I both hear "phantom cries" at night too, when we think he's crying and go in there and he's peacefully snoozing.  Sleep deprivation does strange things to one's mind! 

But life goes on, despite being tired.  Right now I'm working on invitations for Sean's christening in April.  I'm kicking myself a bit, for not getting the ones that you print on your computer.  But these pale yellow ones were really cute, and they have little charms at the top.  Well, the charms seemed cute, until I opened up the package to discover that the first one is a model and you have to assemble the rest!  I should have guessed.

Knitting Olympics deadline is the Closing Ceremonies of the Olympics this Sunday.  I think I'm going to make it!  I had a massive setback last week when someone showed me at knitting that when my sister-in-law taught me how to purl, she showed me it backwards.  No wonder why my stitches look twisted.  I have two projects on needles right now and I'm far enough into both that frogging is just NOT an option.  One is the Olympic Scarf and the other is a project bag for a group swap in April.  The bag is the only one really affected, and it just looks "artsy" with the twisted stitches.  At least, that's what I'm telling myself to make myself feel better.  :)  After these two projects are done, I'm hauling out my copy of Stitch n Bitch for some learning sessions. 

Be My Valentine

 Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentines aren't really a big deal in our house. A few cards, but no lavish gifts, flashy proclamations of love, etc.  Really, I've never been a big fan of the holiday.  You should tell people you love them every day of the year! 

Still, I like to do something....so we do a little gift for the Big Kid, and this year we decided to bake something together.  So I picked out a Warm Chocolate Pudding Cake out of the new Cake Doctor cookbook that I had gotten for Christmas.  Now it's torture, waiting for it too cool just enough to be warm instead of molten!

Will and I had a lot of fun making Valentines for friends and family.

 

  

Sean, however, slept through the festivities.

 

In other news...knitting Olympics progress!  I started this scarf on Friday night during the opening ceremonies.  Here's the first 9 1/2 inches....only about 50 more to go!  Going for the gold!  :)