Happy Hurricane To You!!

I posted more below, but I will caption the pictures. Here's Dr. Lily examining Isabella--she did a very thorough exam! And Isabella was in awe of her big sister!!

Here's the bite you will read about... poor Isabella!!!

Isabella in the new jumperoo!! The twins LOVE it!
Isabella Spence--age five months
James McCabe--age five months

Here they were spontaneously holding hands--so cute!!


can I play with that??

I hope all of you Floridians are battening down the hatches!! We bought our water, batteries, candles, and other odds and ends today--I really don't think it will be a bad storm, but you never know. Anyway, much better days lately--sorry for the gloomy post the other day!! I started a new blog for all my ranting and raving--you can find it if you look on my profile--but I promise to keep this blog a little more lively and bright...so, now for the recent happenings--Isabella got bit at the church nursery yesterday!! Poor sweet baby!!! It did not break the skin, but it left a nasty mark! She only cried for a minute, they said. Ty, James, and Isabella all have colds. James has had a rash for a week now and our nurse practitioner today said that the rash was a precursor to the cold. Lily also saw the NP today for her 4 year old check-up--she's perfectly healthy! She weighed 39lbs and was 41in. tall--the 75th percentile. She has been watching Disney's Chip and Dale on DVD lately and has been pretending to be Dale. She gathers "acorns" and "nuts" (which are all teeny little toys or stuffed animals) and talks in a high-pitched voice. Today after her doctor visit we went to Publix to get our hurricane supplies and I gave her a loaf of bread to hold (she had been "Dale" the whole time we were in there). I leaned over her in the cart and she screams out, "You're squashing my NUTS!!" I couldn't contain my laughter because all those passing us in the aisles were giving us some rather odd looks! So funny! Anyway, school starts soon and I am going to try to savor the time with Lily and Ty before they leave me during the week. Enjoy the photos! Cheers!

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today is one of those days when i question my choice to stay home...i think the only thing the kids are learning from me today is how to lose your cool or how to yell...granted, their behavior has been AWFUL!!!! but i haven't reacted like i should--unfortunately i am human so their behavior is really getting to me. this all started last night when lily wouldn't go to bed for our babysitter. we got home at 9:30 and she was still up--so was ty, although he was in his crib with the light off. i went in to check on him because lily had intentionally scratched him by his eye earlier and i wanted to look at it. we put him back to bed but we had already opened pandora's box. thus began the whines, cries, and screams for us to cover him up, pull his duck toy that makes music, for us to sing, and then repeat all those in any combination. this lasted well until 11:00, but was interupted by james at 10:30 screaming. i nursed him and put him back down and i think by 11:30 all our children were asleep--mind you they normally go to bed at 7. ty woke up this morning screaming at 5-something and we let him go until about 6:30. I finally went in there and told him it wasn't time to get up yet--more screaming. i threatened spanking...more screaming...i didn't want him to wake the babies so i told him he could lay in our bed and watch cartoons...more screaming...i asked him if he wanted to stay in his crib...more screaming. i very sternly explained his options to him and he chose to lay back down. i returned to bed and shortly thereafter james was awake. todd and i fed the babies and lily and ty and ty's rotten behavior just continued and escalated. i must have put him into timeout 5 times this morning, sometimes sitting outside our front door because he was screaming so much. and lily was awful too!! i mean awful--like we had turned back the clock a year! i don't know what person in their right mind can deal with this sort of thing all day long, plus take care of two other babies, and do laundry and dishes and clean the house, all without losing their sanity or hurting themselves or others. i'm losing my mind. even when things get quiet again i am still so fired up from all the manure that i've waded through all morning that i can't even appreciate it. i can't wait for school to start and i can't wait for sonia to get back (after reading this you may not want to return, sonia... :)) and i guess i can't make up my mind how i feel philisophically about spanking--i don't want to spank, but NOTHING else seems to work. mind you, i did not spank anyone today, but i'm thinking maybe i should have since all this nonsense continues...i know that parenting is hard--ask any parent and they'll tell you that. but i guess i never realized that my particular two older children would be so difficult in conjunction with the constant physical needs of my twins. i know that like four years down the road things will be great--but i have to make it through this day right here and it's a minute to minute struggle right now...
on a positive and exciting note--isabella rolled from her back to her tummy this morning!! i almost forgot with all the other garbage i was dealing with! yeah for her!!!!!

Venice continued...

Nobody panic--LILY HAS A BOW IN HER HAIR!!!! I made 50 of them to sell at my friend Anna's store here and Lily begged for one (and she hasn't worn one of my creations in months!). I found it hard to contain my enthusiasm!!!!

We had fun down at the fountain park the other day with our friends Kaley, Karsyn, and Kinley (and their respective mommies and grandmas :)) I leave Monday to return home--and Todd gets back tomorrow night from cousin Billy's wedding in MD. I am really going to miss my parents and my vacation from laundry and bottle-washing (thanks a million, mom!!!). I do miss my husband though, so it is time to return to my life...lots of good things brewing for the fall... I will post more pix when I get home. Cheers to you all!

catching up...

So here's my big birthday girl, getting ready to bake her cake using her new chef's outfit. Lily helped me bake, frost, and decorate her cake, which she LOVED!!! and, it was YUMMY!!!

This was during Lily's small little party--just a few friends and family...
"Auntie Amy" at the kids' table...

Ty's best friend, Jonathan...
Lily's best friend, Adrian...
One of Lily and Ty's best buddies, Travis...
"Uncle Jeff" and myself...
Daddy in the kitchen...

Lily at the pool at my mom and dad's house...
Ty Ty and Daddy...
Isabella and James, 4 and a half months...
Mr. Pudding-face...
Adrian helping Lily blow out her candle...

Lily and Ty with her birthday flowers from Daddy...
Lily and I painted pottery on her actual birthday in Venice at my friend Anna's store, Glazy Days

This moth was right outside the door at my parents' house and was atleast 2 inches across!
Lily chowing down on some corn at Gold Rush BBQ...
Ignore James in the pink bib--he had spit up on all my boy ones for the day! They are a few days shy of five months here...
Lily, age four going on twenty...

James with Poppy...
Today was silly hat and glasses day at Mimi's school for Lily's class...

Nanny holding Isabella....

We have had a great trip and I can't believe I've been here for over a week now! A few thoughts: Ty has LOVED the pool! He jumps to me and says, "one, two, free!!!" He has a little trouble pronouncing some sounds, but he sounds so cute when he says things like that!

Lily made a friend at school--Megan--and it was precious to see them hug good-bye and then hear all about her! Lily also went on her first field trip--the fountain park and then to Dairy Queen for lunch! I drove by in my mom's car to spy on her and she was so cute. I loved imagining her riding the church bus in her little seat belt...can she really be that old???

I have two specific prayer requests of all of you lovely readers of my blog-- 1) our family friend, Jan, who was diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer, began chemo this week and it is making her VERY sick. I want to pray for her comfort and for healing. and 2) my friend M who is pregnant with the twins got news this week that the gap in their sizes is increasing--they are hoping to keep her pregnant until the smaller baby is 1 pound so they can deliver!!! ONE POUND!!! can you imagine??? So please say a prayer for her and her babies--their whole family, actually--those babies need to grow and be healthy!!! Blessings to all of you!!! Cheers--Kelly

milestones...

just a quick jot...we're in venice for a week and james blew his first raspberry today! he did it over and over again, admiring the sound of it...so cute. and, the twins have really dicovered each other this afternoon. they are in one pack-n-play right now and looking at each other's eyes. this is the first time i have really seen them connect in that way. they are smiling and cooing at one another and touching each other's faces and clothes--very cool to watch. i know that they will have a special connection, being twins, and it's neat watching them discovering each other. lily and ty have been going to school last week and this week at my mom's preschool and are loving it! lily has never been so excited about school--ever. tomorrow is pajama day in her class and she can't wait--and for those of you who know her well, this is the kids who NEVER wears pajamas! ty has been a daredevil in the pool--not waiting until i was ready to catch him before he jumps. we took the kids to dinner at sharkey's (ty called it "sarky's") last night and let them play ong the beach afterwards and they had a ball. isabella--who is now blowing raspberries too to copy her brother--blew out her diaper and we had mistakenly left the diaper bag at home...just imagine...no wipes, no diapers, no bottles, no changes of clothes...i mean nightmarish really. we managed by laying her down on the bathroom floor covered with 8 layers of paper towels, wiped her and the car seat with wet paper towels, and we found one of ty's diapers in the car so that's what she wore. unbelieveable. on another note, todd sent lily flowers for her birthday, which she adored. she proceeded to pull out the different roses and carry them around and play with them--which i guess is the way we should enjoy flowers--wholeheartedly and fully-involved. todd sent me flowers too, but i think i'll keep mine in the vase. i've been thinking of taking a ballet class when i get back to g-ville--i miss dance class and i've been dreaming about it lately so i know it's time. tim g got into usf and got the call while driving to u of m--so no boca for him! tampa will be great. i will post pix later--cheers