My Secret Garden

Maria getting a ride from Mark and Daddy.

Mommy, Help!! Daddy's a c-r-a-z-y driver!

Maria has learned to "pretend" eat her food. It's adorable to hear her go "num, num, num" as she gently kisses the plastic food.

What's up Doc?

Can I come in? Nope.

Never mind, I found a way.

Success!

There's always time to smell the flowers.

Got Milk?

Here's what happens when Mommy leaves the room for less than one minute. She is a DEVIL.

PEEK-A-BOO! I love when he peeks through his fingers.

No more BaBas

Well, I knew the day would come at some point but I didn't realize how much it would hurt. From what I read, the kids should have stopped using bottles at 12 months. I ignored it b/c they are technically 2 months behind and Maria also needed to keep her weight up. Now, at almost 16 months, I know that it's best to do the switch. Tonight I told Mark (oh gosh, here comes that lump in my throat again), that if I really gave it some thought Friday when we decided to go cold turkey that it was there last bottles Thursday night, I would have savored every moment of snuggling with them while they drank at night. They are very loving kids and still want their snuggles, but there is something special about the bottle. I know I'm probably blowing it out of proportion, but I think there are some mother's out there that probably understand.

Introducing...

Miss Liberty, oh how she shines.

These 2 are especially for

Pop-Pop.

We took a trip to Keansburg on Sunday. They have a small boardwalk. Unfortunately, the kids were sick (just colds) but we thought they could use the sunshine and would have a good time.

Here's some pics from the day. Mike and his kids, Mike Jr and Matthew are up from FL for a visit. Look at these handsome men!

Happy Birthday Tommy

It was my nephew's 4th birthday today. I missed the cake pics b/c I was holding Mark, but he was so very excited to have Gary play the guitar while we sang Happy Birthday at least 3 times. Chrissie made him a pirate cake. Everything was chocolate from the cake, frosting, twix that were the ropes of the side of the boat, malt balls for canon balls, a hershey's bar peice for the plank. It was a chocolate dream. Anyway, here are a few pics. Tommy was excited to see his penguin card I made him. 

I also included Mark, being Mr. Cool with the sunglasses. 

AND, look how beautiful those 2 girls look holding my kids. Gosh, it seems like just yesterday I held them in my arms like that. I can't believe how fast the time has flown. It makes me want the world to slow down a bit.

Just a quickie

These 2 pics were taken about 1 week ago. Maria recently learned how to kiss. Boy does she know how to pucker up or what? 

And the other picture is of Mark. This is how I found him one morning. Honestly, I never touched his hair. Can you believe how floofy it is? The expression on his face is priceless. It's like a cross between, "Are you looking at me?" to "Ehhh, good lookin', whatcha got cookin'?" OK, I know I need some sleep.

Father's Day

Father's Day went great. We had a BBQ and sat outside for the first time since we've lived here. It was so nice for a change. The kids had plenty of space to run around and play in the pool, etc. It was a little hot, but no one really seemed to mind.

Just look at these 2 beauties. Maria looks like a little pixie in this dress and my neice, Elizabeth proudly displays her toothless smile.

Here's a pic of my nephew, Tommy acting silly. He and Mark Jr had a great time together.

Can life get any better than this?