Memorial Weekend....

I love holiday weekends.  Mostly because my Mom and Dad are usually here to help celebrate.  This weekend was no different and it was wonderful.  There is NOTHING better than having my parents around.  We make good eats, laugh, play, and shop....the best things in life!!! 

 I love seeing my babes with them...GaGa and PapPap are the best and we are so lucky to have them!

The weekend started off slow because Garyn was stricken with the flu bug...but once he recovered, we ALL had a blast!  We played outside, went boating for the first time this year, cooked-out, caught more frogs, enjoyed homemade ice cream sundaes, and movies....

We are all very blessed to live in a FREE country; a country with so many blessings.

"The greatest glory of a free-born people is to transmit that freedom to their children."

- William Havard

Ballerina Girl....

it doesn't get much cuter than this...

You know it's summer when...

You know it's summer when the butter and salt cover the cob...

My little helpers husked the corn....

and then used the corn on the cob in the most appropriate way...

as microphones, of course!

Summer has begun....

It was a very busy school year,

TOO much running everyday,

It has finally arrived....

SUMMER!!!

We fell into the swing of summer break TOO easily....

our first week:

antique shopping,

soda shop,

The Wild (our favorite local SMALL bookstore)

water balloons,

frog catching,

pet store adventure,

water sprinkler fun,

I love having NO schedule, NO rules....

I love having ALL FUN!!!!!

Last Day of Preschool.....forever

May 20, 2011

marked the last day of preschool for Garyn....

the last day of preschool forever!

Oh my....where does the time go?

It seems like just yesterday he started with Mrs. Arnold (2008)
(Kids of the Kingdom)

Then Mrs. Griffin for 3's...
(Kids of the Kingdom)

And finally....Mrs. Wantuck and Mrs. Bruel for 4's....
(St. Elizabeth Ann Seton)

Look how much I have grown over the years...
I am taller,
I weigh more,
my language and vocabulary is bigger and better (thanks to Miss. Tara)
and now look at me....
I am ALL finished with my preschool years....

I am prepared,
I am ready.....
Here I come Grace...
See you in a few months!
Until then,
IT'S SUMMER TIME!!!!!

Blue Stripe....

Yes, he had done it again....

It is getting hard to earn,

It took many tries and lots of practice

But with no further waiting,

Ladies and Gentlemen....

Garyn is now a Blue Stripe...

the round house kick was delivered (along with more Koren terms, his sequence, and a strong face block),

and with that....

he earned his belt...

 Congratulations Garyn.....you are one step closer to your YELLOW belt!!!

Happy Anniversary....

May 21, 2005

is the day I married my best friend....

little did I really know him...

I mean, yes, we dated for a year, were engaged for a year....

but,

we put so much trust into one anther that day...

I am so blessed and happy that our commitment to each other is stronger now than ever before...

It is beautiful how we have grown together....

If I had to do it all over again...

I would marry him in a HEARTBEAT.

As we were talking last night,

I asked him if this is what he thought his life would be like after 6 years...

He said yes, and more....

And those are my thoughts EXACTLY!!!

We have grown so much as individuals, yet, have grown so much as a couple...

I am so proud to say that our marriage is stronger than ever...

So....in 6 years we have accomplished so much...

moved to Indy,

bought a house,

Ryan started a new job,

had TWO wickedly difficult pregnancies,

I put my professional career on hold,

built a house,

watched our little boy struggle with Kawasaki's Disease,

completed an international Dossier (and if anything could come between two people it could be the stress of this...)

and are now awaiting a beautiful Ethiopian child...

This is a pretty BLESSED life...

I can not wait to dance through the next 6 years with you Ryan!

I love you!

10 years ago today....

10 years ago today,

I graduated from Saint Mary's College....

I LOVED my time there,

my dorm,

my friends,

football,

professors,

yep....even the dining hall....

The 4 years went fast,

too fast...

so fast, in fact, I wasn't able to really appreciate the years.

I thought the lack of appreciation was because the years went too fast,

but when I really started to think about it....

The years passed by... just about right....not too fast, not too slow....

I was just too YOUNG to appreciate all of the goodness!!!

So now, 10 years later, WOW.....

as I look back on my college years, I wish I would have done so much more with my time,

I wish I would have taken advantage of the different opportunities that were at my feet and fingertips.

But, I didn't....How sad....it makes me so very sad..

But when I look at it differently.....

I say to myself, "you were young and stupid, you were suppose to be....

It is NOW when you can make it really count.

It is NOW that you old enough, wise enough, experienced enough, to really appreciate the ground work that was placed so many short years ago...."

So today I thank my Mom and Dad for all of their hard work, time, and money....

if it wasn't for them and their approval of SMC, I TRULY would not be who I am today....

Congratulations to all of my SMC ladies... looking forward to the reunion in June.

It's all about love....

Just two small stories I don't want to forget...

1) On Friday, Garyn gets in the car after school.  He is looking excited...excited it's Friday and the weekend was ready to begin....With his Roger hat on, he was ever so handsome!!!

He jumps in the car and slams his hat upside down on my center console in the car....hiding inside his hat was a flower he picked for me from the playground.  He handed it to me and said "just for you Mom.  i love you."

How awesome!!!!!!  I love this little boy!

2) Gigi is my snuggle bug...she loves for me to hold her ALL the time!  She gives good hugs and lots of kisses....the other day I was hugging her and I told her I loved her and she looked up and said," you are my favorite best friend Mommy."

She makes my heart smile.....

These are two stories that made my body swell with love, joy, and happiness....

My life is full of love and laughter....all because of these two precious little ones!

Belly Laughs...

I do believe we need to start charging admission for the Gianna Comedy Hour.  Where she comes up with the things she says and the looks that follow.....I have NO idea.  What I do know is that she has the capabilities of making me and the people around her laugh, you know, the belly laughs.  The laughs that make you feel really good...yep, those kind of laughs.  She is something special....

So, if you want to laugh....

read on....

"Seriously Dad, can't you get it? Can't you get it? Ugh, just go and sit over there."

Gigi's conversation with Daddy he was trying very hard to play princesses.

While standing in line at the post office reviewing colors, I said to her, "Gigi how did you get so smart?"  Her response, "Oh Mom, you know... from PapPap."

Gigi what do you want for breakfast today?  She replies, "noodles, hotdog, circus peanuts, and chips."  I look at her and say, "how about raisin bran?"  OH Mom she says...."okay, raisin bran with raisin's okay?"

She has such a bubbly spirit!  She brightens my day, everyday!!

OH MY......

This post is for all the LADIES out there.....

go ahead.....

take a look....

he is one cute little man.....

I KNOW.....

He's mine!

Locker Clean-Out for NuAfrica 2011

Will you listen?

People did last year.....

Locker Clean-Out 2011

Water....

DID YOU KNOW THAT ONE BILLION PEOPLE LACK ACCESS TO CLEAN, SAFE WATER...

Making Pizza through the years....

One of our favorite things to do is make our own pizza's....

The kids love to make their own food, and I love it too....

It's a great activity for them and they love to eat their own product...

So I thought...

let's see how they have grown...

here they are through the years of pizza making....

Bon Appetite!!

Garyn's First Field Trip

Garyn enjoyed his first field trip on April 29th.

He and his preschool class traveled to Trader's Point Creamery.

I was fortunate to be a chaperone....

It was so much fun.

Trader's Point Creamery is an Organic Dairy Farm.

The kids were guided through the entire farm.

They were able to see where the cows are milked (which is a really awesome thing to see- they give the cows molasses to keep them happy while milking, the cows get milked twice a day, and the milk is used immediately....)

They were all amazed at all of the cow's large utters, they learned of the disaster in the chicken coup (a skunk snuck into the coup one evening and had a feast....Gary LOVED this story) and lastly, they learned all about the poop pond.

It was a great and very educational field trip.  

I loved watching Garyn with his friends and eating lunch with him.

Trader's Point Creamery is a very fun place...it was even cooler to Garyn when a few days later we were grocery shopping and saw the milk and yogurt from the farm being stocked on the shelves....We of course had to buy some......

It was the best chocolate milk I have ever had....

http://www.traderspointcreamery.com/

Gigi has completed her first year of preschool!!

Hard to believe the school year is already coming to an end....

I am SO SO very excited for the kids to be home for the summer.

Unfortunately, I am a bad momma because I did not take any pictures of Gigi on her last day of school.  It was a kinda hectic day.  Ryan had nose surgery the same day....so while I was patiently waiting for Ryan to recover, Gigi was collecting all of her last bits of belongings and enjoying a breakfast gathering with her teachers, Mrs. Ogawa and Mrs. Sachs.  Ryan's mom was able to help throughout the day, so my mommy responsiblities were replaced with nursing responsiblities for a short while... 

Gigi has grown so much over the year....and I am so proud of her!  In one year she has grown 3 inches and gained 1lb.  Kinda always amazes me that this happens right in front of my eyes and I do not even realize it...She is now 37 1/2 tall and 27lbs.  My petite little peanut....oh how I love to snuggle with her!!

She is such an awesome and bright little girl.

Next year she will be away from me 3 days a week....OY, I already miss her.  

But, until then, I can't wait to play ALL summer long!!!

Way to go Gigi!  

We love you!

just a little picture of Gigi at a school party.....

Today's Quote....

So, you may wonder......Why all the quotes??

Well,(on non-gym days) I typically start my day off about 30-40 mins before anyone in my household is awake...I make tea and sit in quiet.  It is this time where I try to give myself peace before the always hectic days begin. 

I will catch up on emails, facebook(of course) and my favorite Morning Java blogs...but I also love to research inspiring quotes...

 I have a lot of quotes written down and thought....well, what good are they if I keep them to myself...So I am gonna start sharing them with you.... 

I hope today's quote moves you as much as it did me...

Quote by Monhandas Gandhi:

"A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course in history."

Come on....be an Ordinary Hero!!!

Want to be an Ordinary Hero...

This is how:

Check out this story about a very average, young American who decided to let help the children of Ethiopia...

Now it's your turn to help if you can....( who knows....your help could be helping my baby!)

http://ordinaryheroblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/immediate-need-in-ethiopia.html

Just a few of my favorite quotes

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."

-Eleanor Rooservelt

" A child miseducated is a child lost."

- JFK

"Forgive your enemies, but never forget their names."

-JFK

"Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other."

-JFK

"I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver."

-Maya Angelou

"If you don't like something, change it.  If you can't change it, change your attitude."

-Maya Angelou

"It is time for parents to teach their young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength."

-Maya Angelou

"Love recognizes no barriers.  It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope."

-Maya Angelou

"My big hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done and try to love somebody, and have the courage to accept the love in return."

-Maya Angelou

"One person can make a difference and everyone should try."

-JFK

"Nothing will work unless you do."

-Maya Angelou

"While I know myself as a creation of God, I am also obligated to realize and remember that everyone else and everything else are also God's creation."

-Maya Angelou

"God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well."
-Voltaire

Photostory of our EASTER!

2011

Of course.....we were rushing around getting ready for Easter Mass, so NO pictures were taken, but they were dressed ready to impress!!

Garyn in his navy sports coat and tan pants,

Gigi was beautiful in a yellow, full spring dress!

Easter 

Be joyful, be amazed

He is Risen!!!

He is Risen!!