Halloween pics!

4th birthday party!

I cannot believe I just celebrated my babies' 4th birthday. (We had the party early on 10/16....their actual bday is not till 11/3....but I wanted to do it before Halloween, so we could pick pumpkins and such)

We had a beautiful Fall Day at the farm.....apple picking, pumpkin picking, corn maze, food, and pinata...... :-) The kids had a blast!

Some Mommy and Me pics....

I am trying to take more pics of the kids and me.....Here are my tries..... :)

Travel soccer!

Boys loving on Nanny and Poppy

FIRST day of Preschool

Wow, the time has come.....my little miracle "babies" started pre-school! How could this even be possible???? They were all anxious to go....and all did amazingly well. Well, except for Emma....lately she has been so attached to me. Emma cried and cried....I felt so bad. BUT, I placed her in Ms. Gail's care and Emma held on to her soo hard.....I felt bad, but I KNOW this is good for them AND for me! :) I am so proud of my babies....SO PROUD!

Pool time!

We spent many HOT afternoons in our backyard above ground pool this summer.....Here are some snapshots....

Philadelphia Zoo

My sister, Patti, and our friend, Debbie, took the kids to the Zoo. We had a bit of a late start, so when we ended up getting really far parking, we were thrilled to find a trolley that took us right to the Zoo!

In any event, kids had a great time, we had a great time.....More memories for the kiddos. LOVE being able to do these things with them....AND this is the FIRST time ALL the kids got a pony ride and was NOT scared!

Angelia's Birthday Party!

We had so much fun celebrating Angelia's birthday with her at Pump It Up. My kids jumped, jumped, and jumped! LOL

They had a blast with our friends, the Zerilli's, as always!

Thank you for inviting us! Happy Birthday to Angelia!!!

Nicky's 8th birthday

Wow...time really has flown by. My Bubba is 8 years old already. I remember like it was yesterday, the way he first turned his face to my voice soon after he was born. I was smitten in that moment.....My Nicholas has turned into such an amazing young man. He is thoughtful, caring, and the best big brother I could have asked for the little ones. He has never been jealous of the attention they get and has never been jealous of them. They are "his babies" as he calls them. Nicholas has become quite the athlete over the years. I really enjoy watching him play. He is amazing to watch.

Nicholas, Bubba.....Mommy is so very proud of you. You are an amazing son and brother. I adore each and every minute we spend together, and especially love our night time "cuddles" before you go to sleep. Happy 8th Birthday, my handsome boy. Love, Mommy x0x0x0

Poppy's 64th birthday

Tonight we celebrated Poppy's birthday. Nicholas insisted on wearing his Communion suit for the "party".....The kids had a great time singing to Poppy and celebrating with him! We love our Poppy!!! He is the BEST!

Summer 2010 Update

I am so sorry it has been so long since I last posted. I have just been busy.....obviously! LOL I promise to update some pics soon....

My children are THRIVING. Absolutely THRIVING. I am so proud of each of them and would love to talk a bit about each of them. They continue to amaze me everyday. I am so proud to be called their Mommy.

I'll start with my older kids.
Marc will be 18 in October. He has had a rough few years. He currently does not live with me. I continue to pray for him that he makes better decisions for himself and that he remains safe and healthy. I love him dearly.
Lexi turned 15 this May 8th. She's enjoying her summer by reading and writing A LOT! She is always writing another story, or finishing up an old one. She is an amazing helper to me with the little ones....and my life wouldn't be as easy if I didn't have her to help me. She is the babies' second Mommy for sure. She has decided to continue with dance this coming year, and will be taking a Ballet-Pointe class, Tap, and Jazz.
And my Nicholas. He is such a good boy. He will turn 8 years old soon, on August 7th. I can't believe my little Bubba will be 8. Time sure does fly. He is a good kid. He has done well in school this year, and does amazingly with athletics. He played basketball this past winter, played baseball this spring, and even made the All Star baseball team this summer! He is an AMAZING athlete and I just love watching him play. He also made the Travel Soccer team for this coming year. It will be much more competitive for him this year compared to Rec soccer in previous years. He is a great big brother to the babies......and still favors Austin! :-) They have such a bond.....
And onto the "babies".....or "toddlers".....or "kids", lol:
Matthew is still a Mama's boy. He loves to be cuddled and hugged and kissed. His communication skills have really come a LONG way. He "stammers" at times, but I am not worried....I think he will be just fine. He is FINALLY on the growth charts, which makes this Mama very proud! He is still smaller than the others, but I think that is just how he will be. Not a big deal. He loves to dance with his sisters, and play trucks with Austin. He still has quite the "whine" when he wants something, tho! LOL
Emma is a bit of a tomboy. She loves to keep up with the boys and play all types of sports. She also loves to play dress up and dance around the house a lot, too. Her language has really taken off, but she does have a bit of a lisp these days....but I think she'll be just fine. She is my "tattletale" for sure....always the FIRST one to tell Mama who is doing what wrong! LOL
Katie.....well Katie has definitely become a feisty and stubborn girl. lol. She goes after exactly what she wants and will NOT stop until she gets it. Again, I say, "Go for it, Katie"....only b/c this attitude is what got her through all her hospital stays when she was so young. She had to be feisty to survive. :) Katie also loves playing sports, but is also very nurturing with her dolls and bears. She has named all her bears/dolls "Katie" and rocks them to sleep daily......Medically speaking, she is doing well. I am in the process of trying to find out exactly what is going on with her airway. We had a Cardiac MRI done recently, and i am still awaiting the results on that. Some talk of surgery has been mentioned, but IDK anything for sure. Apparently, her trachea is "collapsing"....Scary words to hear about your baby girl.
And Austin.....He is still my thinker. He loves to figure things out. And he is SOOOOO CURIOUS. So inquisitive at times that it gets him into trouble. He wants to figure out how things work, why they work, etc. He's a smart boy. He rides a two wheeler with training wheels.....and definitely thinks he is NOT part of the Quad Squad....Since he is so much bigger, I think he thinks he is older, and takes the role of big brother to the other three! LOL But my big guy is still attached to his crocheted "blankie"-and anytime he is upset, tired, or cranky, he NEEDS his beloved blankie. :)
All four are potty training. They are all doing well. Matty has had more accidents lately, but we are working on it and hopefully all will be good soon. All four start pre-school this Fall! Woohoo! Five hours/wk.....Two 2.5 hour days....I CAN'T WAIT! :) I think it will be soooooo good for them. I am just so excited for them to have the opportunity to be around other kids, socialize, and learn in a structured setting. And I am excited to have a few hours to myself!!!! Such an exiting thought !!!
Anyway, I will update soon with pics......

Philadelphia Zoo 5/1/10

My sister and I took Nicholas and the little ones to the Zoo.....by ourselves....without a stroller.....BUT WITH leashes!!! :) It worked out really well, too. I was so impressed that all the little ones really listened well. The girls and boys shared ice cream....we stopped for frequent drink breaks (as it was a 90 degree day!).....and had dinner after we left the Zoo. The little ones didn't want to leave the Zoo....they kept yelling "more animals!"