Summer is Flying By!

Well, I have now successfully made it through three weeks on the Cape with the kids! Doug's been coming down on the weekends to join us. We are having such a great time and I am soooo glad that I can do this for my kids!

We've had so much going on! And lots of WEATHER! Rain, sun, wind, you name it...we lucked out of the hailstorm, though. 4th of July weekend was fun. Lesley, Jay and the kids arrived on the 2nd and the weekend was quite a celebration. We had a visit from Jeff and Lauren on the 3rd which the kids thought was great! J&L ended up running into a lot of friends from Braintree and had a fun night out. The kids marched in another Pots and Pans parade. Then they had games and music at the beach. The night of the 4th, there was a party in the pavilion and then we watched some fireworks on the beach. Doug and Jay cooked up some breakfast for everyone on Sunday morning and then more time at the beach. Boy, was it windy on the beach that weekend!! It drove us off the beach on Sunday and the kids and Doug headed to the playground. Jay had to leave on Monday AM to head back to Texas and Doug went back to work.

We hung out with the cousins a lot their first week here. Monday was a great beach day, although somehow one of the boys lost one of my flip flops. It's either gone out to sea or is buried somewhere in the sand of the Campers Haven beach. I was not a happy mother when I had to chase Liam off the beach with a beach cart and no shoes!! That kid can run!!

Tuesday was nice because we had a visit from Grandma and Grandpa. The day dawned bright and sunny, but the clouds came in just before G&G arrived. We had lunch with them, walked around the park, and of course, took them to the Candy Store! It was a nice visit until Nolan decided to act like a 4 year old boy. He was trying to wake his brother, but was unsuccessful. When we got back to the trailer, he was sent to sit on the couch and then he fell asleep!! Meghan, of course, did not. I swear that girl just goes and goes and goes.

Wednesday, we made our visit to see Grandma Noreen. The kids hadn't seen her since their birthday, so it was a nice visit to get reacquainted. We then went out to lunch at A&W and then over to the trampolines, which was F-U-N. It was Liam's first time and boy did he enjoy it.

Thursday was just an ordinary day. The kids hung out with Jessica and Taylor for a bit while I did some shopping and then we just hung out, riding bikes, etc. Liam is now riding the kids bikes up, down and all around. He loves it!!

The Sun arrived and so did the Riellys!!

So, Wednesday morning dawned brightly here. Finally, a sunny day!!

The other thing that came with the new day, were the questions. When is Tricia coming? When are my cousins going to be here? Are they sleeping over? Where are they going to sleep? What are we going to do? and so on, and so on, and so on.

So they arrived around lunch time and the fun ensued. The boys brought their bikes with them so we pretty much spent the afternoon judging the races, letting the kids go up to the park, etc. We went mini golfing late in the afternoon. (And I really have a problem with mini golf charging $8 for a 2 year old to play!!!!!! He doesn't play!!) Anyway, the kids loved it, but Liam started to get a bit antsy after 10 holes! Then we were off to go out for pizza and the kids were great there!!

The kids headed off to the playground and we met them down there before bedtime. Back home and hanging out with Trish and Sue, having a couple of beers. A late night game of UNO with the boys and bed.

Big News of the Night: No Connollys ended up climbing into their mother's bed!!!

Thursday dawned bright again. We did some bike riding and then played at the beach for a couple of hours. What a great day. The kids had a blast playing in the sand and the waves. Thanks to our cousins for making our days so fun!!!

Cape Cod...where's the sun?

So, we started our summer adventure this past weekend. We headed down with a full van on Friday with the expectation of several weeks of beach fun. Mother Nature had a little something else in mind.

Doug and the kids did get a chance to get to the beach on Saturday for a bit. That was the day that I had to go shopping, get the kids unpacked, make sure that Liam stayed down for a nap...and so on, and so on. So I didn't make it down there at all. I think that the sun is angry with me for that! It hasn't shown itself since. On Sunday, we started the day with breakfast and wishing Daddy a Happy Father's Day. He enjoyed his gifts and Nolan proved that kids listen and repeat EVERYTHING!! We got him a Red Sox garden gnome and Nolan said "Hey you can put it out front of the trailer, once you pull those bushes out!!" Oh well! We did get to spend a lot of time outside playing, biking, etc. Until the winter wind blew in off the ocean and sent us indoors, for two days!!!

Monday dawned wet and dreary. The wind was whipping this way and that and I was sure that any moment we would be flying through the sky and would end our journey by landing on a witch and following that yellow brick road. We stayed inside most of the morning. I never knew how happy I (and therefore my kids) would be with the somewhat modern convenience of a working VCR!! The rain cleared a bit in the afternoon which allowed us a couple of hours outside. Then dinner and the boredom overtook the kids. They decided to play tiger and apparently their imaginations were not quite enough for that game. A few swipes of the marker and they had been transformed into tigers!! Nothing a little scrub-a-dub wouldn't fix! Baths and bedtime soon followed.

Today, the day dawned wet and wild again. I found Liam's little bike across the street next to a swim tube and the American flag was not doing well either!! We spent the morning inside, watching movies and playing. After lunch, we headed out to Christmas Tree Shop, which the twins found to be a fascinating store. A couple more errands and it was back to the campground for the Connolly family. We decided to take a drive around the park, just on the chance that some people had decided to brave the weather and arrive today. We found Sue and the girls and decided to tag along on their bowling trip. The kids had a blast, even though they don't quite get that everybody gets a turn. They'll learn eventually, right? We ended the night with dinner and a visit to Sue and company.

We are expecting visitors tomorrow! Trish and the boys should be arriving sometime in the afternoon.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

So, last Wednesday the sun came out. Really, it did. Which made it a great day for a trip into Fenway. Nolan had been before and was happy to let Meghan and I know that he would show us around. It was very cute. So, around 4 PM, the kids and I got into the van to head in to meet Daddy. Meghan was upset because we weren't taking the train, she had been looking forward to a train ride. As we were driving in, she asked if we were playing the "Hankees" that night. So cute!

So, we picked up Daddy at the train station and headed over to the park. We found a spot not far away and started the trek over to Yawkey Way. The kids were skipping, running, anything they could think of to just get there faster. What an adventure they had ahead of them. As we approached the gate, I handed them each their ticket. They passed them to the gentleman manning the gate, each with a shy smile on their face. We walked up the ramp to and entered Fenway in all it's glory. We stood by the Marlins bullpen and watched the pitchers warming up. Then we moved over to the Red Sox bullpen. We saw some warm-ups and watched one of the relief pitchers putting out his good luck charm, a stuffed bird holding a baseball. Then we headed on up to our seats. The kids were so excited and looking around everywhere. They had so many questions and we had almost as many answers for them. The big treat of the night was daddy buying them a soda and some candy. Watching Meghan go along with the "Let's Go Red Sox!" cheer, seeing Nolan curious about "The Wave" are things to store away in my memories. They made it through eight innings before we decided we should head out to beat the crowd. As we were leaving, the staff was handing out commemorative baseballs to celebrate the 500th consecutive sellout at Fenway. I think that was the best surprise they had that evening.

Nolan and Meghan have plans to attend another game at Fenway, they don't know when. And they would like to enjoy the experience with their little brother at some point in the future.

Wow, the months go by too fast!!

I can't believe it's been this long since I posted!! We've gone through Christmas, New Year's, and Birthdays and I haven't done a thing!!! Well, I gotta start somewhere right?

The kid are getting so, so big. We've been trying to enjoy ourselves now that school is out and summer is approaching. Last week we went to Katherine M's house for her birthday play date. We went for a picnic in the park at the library. We went to a story time at Ginger Betty's and had some wonderful cookies!! And we met our friends Katherine and Michael at Ward's Berry Farm for some fun and a picnic.

The weekend brought some nice weather and some good times, too.

Mom and Dad renewed their vows at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston. It was so nice and what a beautiful church. We then went over Michael's house to celebrate that and also Mom's birthday. The kids had fun playing with their cousins as usual!

This week has been a bit less exciting as we are getting ready for a five week stay at the Cape. We went shopping and played outside on Monday. Took Grandma to the store on Tuesday and today has been a stay at home day. We did get to go out to eat at Bugaboo last night. The kids loved it as we sat right under the talking Buffalo!!

Where did my babies go?

I seriously wonder this about 3 dozen times every day. They are growing and changing every day, all three of them.

Liam has become a parrot, he repeats EVERYTHING! Today, I said that someone was bugging me...next I hear "stop bugging me". Last night he was shaking his finger at me and saying "Don't Touch! Don't Touch!" when I was trying to change him. So funny!

Meghan is the mother hen of my brood. Each day she decides what the boys want and/or need. Usually it is that they need a snack, a drink, a cup of water, which she can partake in as well. She will get her little hands into the child proofed cup cabinet, get a cup, a cover and a valve, put the cup together, fill it up and hand it off to the thirsty boy. Yesterday, she decided she wanted some lemonade. She got out a cup, got the lemonade pitcher from the fridge and poured herself a glass...without spilling! Wow, what a big girl she is becoming.

Nolan is the rock star. He has "new moves" daily and likes to show them off in the living room, his bedroom, wherever. It is just so funny to listen to him and watch him perform. He loves to sing and will sing any songs that come into his head. I really can't wait for their Thanksgiving show to see if he takes to the real stage like he has to the stage in the living room.

Where does the time go?

I can't believe we are halfway into November. YIKES!

The kids had a wonderful Halloween. Nolan was Spiderman, Meghan was a Fairy princess and Liam was a big ol' bug. They were so adorable. The twins had a party at school on the 30th and wore their costumes. They did a haunted house, some fun songs, food, etc. They really enjoyed it. Then Trick or Treat!!! We were chomping at the bit for Daddy to get home from work so he could take them out. They were off after it got dark (6 ish) with the wagon just in case. How cute they were running down the street, and it was a warm night again so jackets were not necessary. I saw Liam wobbling down the sidewalk to the neighbor's and it was just the most precious thing. I stayed back at the house handing out the treats. When I saw them coming back, I was just tickled to see them. The older two were heading up the pack, running up to the doors and shouting out "Trick or Treat"...then the little guy, was bringing up the rear...carrying ALL the candy and I could hear the cutest little "Tickoteet" coming from his mouth. So sweet! And to hear them say Thank You to everyone was even sweeter!!