Funny things my kids said this summer....August 2011

Chloe......Being pregnant this past year, Chloe observed my body changing as the baby was growing inside me. She noticed my stomach and breasts becoming larger. While at Justice one day, Chloe noticed some bras and asked me when she would need a bra. I told her we would go shopping for bras when she became a teenager. She looked at me, then said, "I guess I don't need a bra yet since I don't have boobies, only nibbles.". Too funny. I love seeing the world through the eyes of a child. These are precious memories.

Isabel....While at the beach this summer and enjoying a family dinner with Andy's parents and both of his sisters' families, Isabel had a funny moment. After dinner, everyone was sitting around the table telling stories and giving Nick advice for college. He was getting ready for his first year at Providence. I advised Nick not to register for courses just because the teacher might have a reputation of being an easy grader, but rather choose professors that have reputations of being awesome even if more difficult. However, be sure not to flunk the course! With this said, Isabel blurts out, "Well, my mom is a total failure. She can't even get Brayden to poop on the potty!". I turned bright red in the face. I have to admit there is some truth to this statement. I do have a failing grade when it comes to toilet training....33% to be exact. Isabel was day and night trained at 2 years 4 months. Chloe, while day trained is still not completely night trained, at six years old. Brayden, while dry at night was still pooping in his pants in August at the time of Isabel's statement. Miraculously, he finally figured it out by the time September came around. Thank goodness! I guess all kids eventually figure it out, it just takes time. I did not know how I was going to handle this with the new baby coming in mid-September. Needless to say we all had a good laugh that night.

New York City....Pinkalicious!! July 2011

The girls and I spent a day in NYC with my mom in July. We saw the off-broadway production Pinkalicious. It was a cute show and perfect for the girls. I have always enjoyed reading these books to the girls. We then headed to Times Square to have lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe. My mom bought the girls t-shirts. Chloe and Isabel loved the huge touch screen in the restaurant...you could tap, move, enlarge, and rotate images on the screen. It was very cool. I loved watching the girls play and giggle as they manipulated the images. We ended the day at the Lego store. We all had fun! It is always nice to spend time with my mom....Nana.

Summer Days...June and July

The kids and I had a great summer. We spent much of our time split between St. Alban's swim club and Episcopal Summer Session. I taught Creative lWriting and Storybook Writing this past summer. It was a great experience for me and the kids. The girls really enjoyed the course offerings and being with their buds Maura and Maggie. They took Kindergarten Fun, First Grade Fun, Science Explorers, Tae Kwon Do, Art Exploration, and Drama. It was really funny...the week Isabel took Tae Won Do, she would come home and shout, "Aiiee-Aiiee-Aiiee!".

Niagara Falls - June 2011

We kicked off our summer with a trip to Niagara Falls. We stayed at the Hilton Fallsview hotel on the canadian side of the falls. The first thing we did after checking into our hotel was eat lunch at the Rainforest Cafe. Wow! The kids loved eating here and are still talking about it 4 months later. We then purchased an Adventure Pass to explore the falls. The first thing we did was ride the Maid of the Mist which is a boat that takes you up close and personal with the falls. It is a wet ride, but thrilling to get so close to the powerful and magnificent falls. Brayden seemed terrified for most of the ride and was actually clinging to Andy and I. Remember he is just 3 years old. After the boat ride, we walked back to our hotel along the falls. We saw several rainbows, even a double rainbow. The views were breathtaking! That night we took the kids to the pool and ate dinner at the Macaroni Grill in the hotel. The pool had a waterfall and a big waterside.....it was awesome!

The next day, we explored behind the falls, saw a 4D movie about the falls, viewed the white water rapids up close, and finally, visited the butterfly conservatory. The butterflies were another highlight. The kids loved this part of the trip. It was incredible....there were thousands of butterflies everywhere. The butterflies were landing on all of us, although they really seemed to love Chloe. She had several butterflies on her clothes most of our visit at the conservatory. Later that night, we watched the fireworks from our hotel room. It was so cool. We all put on our pjs and snuggled on the couch to view the fireworks over the American and Horseshoe Falls. Truly a neat experience for all of us.

On our last day, the weather was awful, the torrential rain forced us to modify our plans. Instead of going to an amusement park, we went to the dare devil museum and saw another 4D movie. Then we began our trip home. We decided to take a more scenic route and stop at Letchwork state park along the Genesee River. It was beautiful. We drove through the park stopping at several scenic outlooks and viewing the falls. I will never forget when we crossed the border and left Canada, Isabel burst into tears. She is a very emotional little girl. She was hysterically crying telling Andy and I how much she loved Niagara Falls. It was a fantastic trip for all of us!!