Today in the dryer, I found the following items:
~an outlet cover (slightly bent out of shape)
~a water bottle cap
~my watch! (I was looking for that! It still works, but the leather band is destroyed)
~the remote to the Bose speakers (oops!)

Note to self - check pockets before doing laundry. I should have learned this lesson last year when I washed (and dried) a roller ball pen.

5 years

Dear Bobby,
Today we celebrate five years of marriage. Five years ago, we had no idea what life had in store for us. I wouldn't have wanted it to turn out any other way.
Thank you for loving me and thanks for all you do. I hope the next five years are just as fun and the first five.

ilu,
me

Growing Tree

Every year in May,Ava and Alex have their picture taken under the tree that their Godparents, Aunt Germaine and Uncle Rob gave to them for their Christening in May 2007.
We call this the Growing Tree.



Here they are last May:

popsicle season

I recently got an email with 100 uses for coffee filters. It mentioned using a coffee filter to prevent drips when eating a Popsicle.
We decided to give it a try. It worked - But I still consider popsicles to be an outside treat!

Have Stroller, Will Sleep

comments, please.

I changed the settings on our blog. Now anyone can comment. You do not need to have a gmail account or be a registered user.

Now, go on and leave us some love!

Robert the Artist

Below you will see Robert's interpretation of BroBee from Yo Gabba Gabba on Nick. I'm wondering where he got these skills.




And while we're on the subject... have you ever really watched Yo Gabba Gabba? I used to think it was crazy and just plain stupid. But over the last year or so, I have grown to like it. I especially like the music that is incorporated into the program. My favorite episode is when Jack Black makes a special appearance. As if Jack isn't funny enough on his own, when he is put with the Yo Gabba Gabba creatures, he is even more hysterical!

Bon Apetite

So, I have been meaning to blog this for a very long time. Too long, in fact. Ava and Alex are different eaters. No matter what I put in front of them, Ava eats one thing, Alex eats the other. These breakfast bowls are an example. This was not staged, people!
Alex drank the milk and left the cereal while Ava ate the cereal and left the milk. When given a banana, only one or the other will eat it - never both. strange.

And it doesn't stop at breakfast. At lunch, Alex will scarf down his pb&j while Ava will pull it apart, often take a lick and leave it on her plate. Alex loves peaches and pineapple while Ava prefers pears and kiwi. She drinks milk, and he wants water.

At dinner, Ava always digs right into the meat and Alex much prefers carbs. More often then not, I find myself switching their plates mid meal so everyone can have a fair share of seconds and nothing goes to waste.
Alex loves his sweets... chocolate pudding, ice cream, lollipops and candy. Ava can take it or leave it.

And there is one thing they both agree to love. You'd won't believe it: Broccoli. No lie.

Mom Mom

This is me with my Mom Mom. She is 92 years old. She can't tell you what day of the week it is or what she ate for breakfast, but she is full of stories from her childhood and she'll tell you the same story 3-5 times in one hour. We laugh, but it's sad. She has her health, but not her mind. She calls me "Mishy". We love her very much.
She traveled all the way to my house for Mother's Day. It meant so much to me. And she told me twice about when she was 9 and knew a girl who came from Bethlehem - she thought the girl was from where Jesus was born. She was in awe that I had twins and within minutes forgot and asked about them again.
I am so blessed to still have Mom Mom in my life. Even if she thought I was my sister for the first 2 hours she was visiting.

Vroom your Room

I was recently given the opportunity to try and review a new HP Vacuum product which is now on the market.

Vroom has saved my life. I can vacuum crumbs from my kitchen floor with ease. I can suck crumbs from the drawer under my oven and from inside my microwave. I was even able to clean up the spilled salt in my cabinet that had been there - well, lets just say, way too long. And when this happened last week (Thank you, Alex):

I didn't even fret - I knew Vroom would help me out.
Vroom's retractable hose extends 24 feet and can reach most areas of my kitchen.

It sits quietly under my kitchen sink when not in use - unlike my upright vacuum, which usually resides in the upstairs hallway since I don't feel like lugging it down the steps. (honestly, I swear I'll bring it down during one of my 50 trips up and down each day but I usually have 2 arms full of toddlers instead!)

Not only does Vroom do an awesome job, but I was able to install it myself! Okay, I didn't even attempt the part where drilling was involved (putting up the brackets to hold it in place) I left that for my hubby. But, ME a stay at home mom with a degree in journalism was able to hook up Vroom myself! Go me! (Go Vroom, for making it so easy!)

If you want to see Vroom in action, check out www.vroomyourroom.com. And be sure to enter in the monthly giveaway!

Vroom is available where other HP and Dirt Devil products are sold. It retails for about $300. Enter your zip code on the site to find a retailer near you.

Wordless Wednesday

Diaper bag, be gone.

Tonight when I put the trash at the curb, I will also be disposing of an item that has been part of our family for 4 years.

Our diaper bag has worn out it's welcome.

I never had a fancy or trendy diaper bag. I was quite content with the cheap plastic one that I received from the formula company at the hospital when Robert was born. It served it's purpose and worked for us. And when A&A were born, I got two more!

I kept one bag fully stocked in the car mini-van and somehow managed to fill up the other with a bunch of crap. Then, of course, the last was a back-up. A few months ago, a sippy cup of OJ leaked in one of the bag and it smelled so bad we had to toss it. Enter the back up bag.

As the months and years went by, we needed fewer belongings whenever we left the house and now a short trip to the store or the gym requires nothing. How nice.

Thank you Enfamil for my free diaper bags, and Thank you, diaper bags, for your years of service. But don't think for a minute that you'll be missed.

husbands...

Yesterday, I attended a Mother's Day celebration at Robert's school. He made me a paper flower corsage and finger print poem. We painted a flower pot together and he sang "We Love Mothers" to me. It brought tears to my eyes. It was a fun day.

While I was at preschool, my darling husband cleaned the house. He dusted the shelves and vacuumed the floors. I was very happy. However, I will never let him dust again, and this is why...



...the same reason I don't let him fold and put away laundry - esp towels.
*note the picture on the right (top photo)... it's not even orientated properly* Not to mention the addition of his laptop on the shelf.

This is what it looked like before:


Alas, he tried, But still something tells me he does these things on purpose so he won't even have to do them again.
And I am suddenly reminded of Bobby's favorite advice to give when a friend is getting married: "Just screw up whatever she {the bride} asks you to do and she won't ask you to do anything else related to the wedding."

I always knew I married a smart guy. Thank you for trying, honey. I love you!

more on socks...

Note the holes:

Like Father...


Like son...

No more onesies, No more socks...

Now that Ava is (almost) potty trained, and Alex is not far behind, they will no longer wear onesies as they tend to get in the way. They have graduated to undershirts. Tear.

For me this is a God-send. I have been waiting for this day for 2 years. Do you remember this post? Or also related: This one. Without onesies, my laundry folding time will be cut in half! This is almost as exciting as the day I washed my last bottle. With warmer weather ahead, Croc season is in and sock season is out! Hooray!