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!!

Our First Trip to the Zoo

Well, on Saturday we finally made it to the zoo. The day was gorgeous and we were on the road by 9:30 headed south to Providence. The kids found out when Daddy woke up where we were going. They had been hoping we were headed to the Cape, but when they found out the zoo was on our agenda for the day, I don't think they even remembered the Cape.

So we arrived there by 10:30 and off we went. Liam in his stroller and the twins hand in hand. We were disappointed to find that the elephant's habitat was under construction, there would be no elephants for us. We did get to see a great many animals, though. Zebras, giraffes, monkeys, camels, turtles, flamingos and on and on. The kids would climb up to see the animal or look through the fence and then say "What're we gonna see next?" They really loved it.

Once we went through all the exhibits we came to the "Nature Trail" which is basically a little walking trail through some wetlands similar to any found in the New England area. They got to see some ducks, some fish (not sure what they were, but BIG) and a big turtle. Then they learned something new from Daddy. Spitting into the water attracts the fish! So, it took a little bit of time to lure them away fromt he attraction of being allowed to spit, but then we were on our way.

We made a stop at the Carousel Village and took a ride on the merry-go-round. There was a great little "Hasbro Boundless Playground" there also, but it was being repaired, sadly. So, then we headed to the car again.

The Roger Williams park is amazing. I found out when we got home that it is 427 acres!!! They have the zoo, botanical gardens, a natural history museum, tennis courts, playing fields, paddle boats and many ponds. What a great place to have so close to a city!

We stopped for a bite at The Olive Garden on the way home and the kids were so good. They ordered their "Swirly pimples" and chicken fingers and we got our yummy meals. Liam tried everything, salad, chicken, french fries, noodles, pasta fagiole soup. He was a little eating machine. We talked about what our favorite animals at the zoo were. Meghan liked the zebras and the flamingos, I liked the giraffes, Daddy liked the monkeys, and Nolan raised his hands in the air and said "All of them!"

We had such a great day! And the first question about what we were doing today..."Can we go to the zoo?"