Stories & Such

1st Day of School 2011

2011-08-30T08:32:00.001-05:00

Three years ago I watched Alex hop on the school bus for the very first time. Today it was Conner's turn. After waking up to an insanely early alarm, I got going and got breakfast ready and lunches packed. For the first time ever, we had to drag poor Conner out of bed.

We have no idea where that black eye came from. He didn't go to bed with it!Conner soon rallied and got excited for his first day of school.

We really need to work on our routine, because as I'm writing this, it occurs to me that the next step should have involved brushing teeth. There's always tomorrow. We got on shoes and went outside to wait for the bus.

Then the bus appeared, and my three year preschool veteran followed his big brother up onto the bus and headed off to Kindergarten with no hesitation.

And that's when the overwhelming feeling hit me that my tiny little baby boy wasn't a baby anymore, and that my two oldest had just stepped onto the bus and left our home. They have grown up so quickly and the summer break has ended. Life will never be the same again. The emotions were admittedly overwhelming.

Click here for the full photoset from our fun morning.

Allison's 4th Birthday

2011-08-17T22:32:00.000-05:00

Allison is 4! And it's about time. I am constantly asked if she and Conner are twins. Here are some pictures from her family party and her Fairy Princess party with her school friends.

Princess (and Prince) Class

2011-08-17T22:25:00.001-05:00

This past spring a new children's playspace opened up in the next town over called Jam Time. Aside from providing an excellent environment for little kids to run around and play, the place offers a set schedule of "classes" that appeal to the 2 - 6 crowd. When I saw that they had a Princess Class I just couldn't resist signing Allison up.

Now, Allison is in general a pretty grown-up little girl. She tends towards a maturity and confidence that exceeds her 4 short years. Knowing this, I assumed that Allison would enjoy herself in Princess Class while Conner played outside the little class room in the big open playspace full of other kids and a wide range of toys and climbing structures. Both kids had other plans. Allison would not stay in the classroom unless I stayed with her, and Conner would not play outside the classroom unless I stayed with him. That's how we all ended up staying for Princess Class.

For the 1st 10 or so minutes of the class, the girls were provided with a multitude of fancy costumes, fairy wings, tiaras, jewelry, shoes, wands, etc. They dressed themselves all up, then the unused costumes were put away and the class was taught some etiquette lesson in a very fun and age appropriate way. They played some games and listened to stories, then there was a craft to do and finally, a princess tea party with strawberry milk and a treat.

Conner made it a minute and a half before jumping in. He helped Allison pick out her costume, participated in the lesson, made a craft, and loved the tea party. By the end of class I was writing a second check to the owner because Conner was hooked. They graciously renamed the class Princess and Prince Class, and brought in knight and pirate costumes, but Conner has no interest beyond helping Allison with her attire.

Here are some ridiculously cute pictures I've taken of the class.

Spring time fun

2011-08-17T22:04:00.001-05:00

So many things happened this past Spring and I just had a lovely time going through the pictures. It's amazing how much the kids change, and how quickly. I notice a difference even though it's only been a few short months since most of these events happened:

Our nephew Sam had his second birthday.

My mother began the second leg of her battle against breast cancer.

I made too much popcorn.

Paul finally decided to keep me, and made it official by giving me his class ring.

Alex had his art project selected to be put on display at our public library.

Conner lost his first tooth.

And Allison got really really dirty.

Here are a few more pictures from the spring that you may enjoy.

Disney World!

2011-08-17T21:53:00.000-05:00

It took months of planning, weeks of packing, and hours of flying, but in February Paul and I managed to successfully take the kids to Florida to vacation with Grandma & Grandpa Hall, visit Great Grandma Russell, visit with my cousin Cyndie and her wonderful family, and in our free time, we all went to Disney World a whole lot.

This was no small feet and there was no small amount of camera action, so witteling the 600+ pictures of vacation perfection down to a reasonable number was...well...beyond my capabilities. I'm afraid I couldn't get it under 246. However, you can rest assured that these are 246 of the best pictures you have ever seen in your entire life of the Russells and Halls and Great Grandma in February. At Disney. In the year 2011. Pinky swear!

January 2011

2011-08-17T20:21:00.001-05:00

Okay, so I'm way way way behind in posting pictures of the kids to this blog. But, you're in luck! I have dedicated this very evening to catching up and getting you the kid pics you deserve.

So, without any further ado, I dare you to look at the following picture set without smiling.

Fabulous Fall Family Fun

2011-03-16T16:02:00.000-05:00

Here's what we did all last fall:

Pumpkin picking,
Halloween,
Conner's birthday,
Painting the living room,
Making cookies, and
A haunted gingerbread house.

And here are the pictures to prove it:

click the SUPER pic for a slideshow

Allison vs. The Tide

2011-03-16T14:48:00.001-05:00

This past summer Allison was lucky enough to spend a day at Hampton Beach with Grandma Hall and Mommy. After playing in the cold surf for a while, Allison noticed another family digging in the sand and building up a wall to try to keep the water out. She asked me to build one for her too, so I did, and in she climbed.

Here is a video of the first castle's unfortunate demise. This video gets interesting at the 1:30 minute mark.

After her first "castle" was swallowed by the surf, Allison moved a little further up the beach and asked me to build her another one. We made it a little deeper then the first, with higher walls.

It didn't take long before it met the same fate as the first.

All in all it was a great day at the beach and fun to watch on this particular cold and rainy day.

A Winter's Romance

2011-01-28T08:50:00.016-05:00

Twas just before Christmas, and the winter had been warm and mild. As if to satisfy the hearts of children and the dream of a song, the temperature dropped, and the skies eked out a dusting of snow to cover the ground and just barely satisfy the white Christmas requirement. Then, it seems, mother nature held her temper long enough for all the holiday travellers* to make their way safely home. Now, apparently, she wants us all to stay there.

The first true snowfall was wonderful! Winter had finally truly arrived. Driveways were shoveled out by hand. Snowmen were constructed with care. Children raced down the hills over the white fluffy wonderland. It was glorious and beautiful, and true New Englanders rejoiced.

Then, the snow melted. The days warmed up into the 40s. The beautiful winter wonderland disappeared. Snowmen lost their form, and the brown grass and bare trees sat stark across the landscape. But worry not, it was a temporary breath and what was to come would soon cover the bleakness in so many unexpected ways.

Soon, oh so soon, the second snow came, once again blanketing the land in sparkling white. Children rejoiced as school was cancelled before the first flake hit the ground. The morning brought piles of new snow, inspiring the serious snow enthusiast to once again break out the shovels, and the less so to break out the snow blower. Once again, snowmen were shaped and decorated with love, sleds were seen racing down hills, and snowballs filled the air wherever two children could be found together.

Hardly any time then passed, it seemed, before Jack Frost paid a visit to our land, winter truly

settled in, and temperatures plummeted into the single digits. This time, the snow did not melt, the children stayed inside longer as snow-clothes were challenged, but a toasty fire could still warm the hands and hearts. Along with the cold weather came snowfall number 3. It added to the mounds of white and then iced itself, like a frozen cupcake, with a frosty layer of freezing rain, made solid by the night winds and the negative wind chills. That day, the family snow blower truly proved its worth.

Snowfalls 4 and 5 fell softly on top of the sparkling white, adding two to four inch sprinkles on to the frozen covering.

Hurrah! Sang the children, as the snow fell yet again and school was once more closed up tight. It's possible, if you listened closely, you could hear the feathery light tones of a mother curse softly under her breath. Twelve more inches graced the landscape. The joy of shoveling, having passed three storms ago, the snow blower running low on charm and gas, it became the storm of the plowman.

The icicles that had begun at inches soon grew to feet, and their great toothy daggers could be seen on every home.

We gave up measuring the snow by inches (38.8 but who's counting) and found other, much more poetic ways to describe the scene. This is how I prefer to describe our own.

The snow...

is now...

half a school bus high.

Isn't that romantic?

*Apparently I'm British at heart. Traveller with one "l" looks funny to me.

Frosty Returns

2011-01-12T13:14:00.009-05:00

From this:

To this:

Happy Snow Day everyone!

click me

Christmas-Palooza 2010

2010-12-27T20:49:00.004-05:00

I hope you all had an amazing Christmas! We had a perfect December with visits from Memere & Pepere, Grandma & Grandpa, and Great Grandma Russell. The season was full of cookies, gingerbread houses, tree trimming, visits with Santa, family parties, snowmen, and crazy kid antics. We couldn't have asked for more!

I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as we enjoyed the events!

Click here for the crazy long slideshow.

Growing Up At Davis' Farmland

2010-11-29T20:25:00.014-05:00

Our family has been making summertime trips to Davis' Farmland since Alex was 18 months old. As I looked at the pictures from this past summer, it suddenly struck me how much things have changed.

In the beginning, there was just

,

and,

.

Then came Conner, and Davis' Farmland trips turned into

,

and,

.

Then came Allison, and Davis' Farmland trips turned into

,

and,

.

And finally, just 5 1/2 years after we first started taking Alex, we've come to

,

and,

.

Wow!

For a slideshow of some of the kids best Davis' Farmland moments, click here.

Christmas Is Starting Early This Year

2010-11-17T23:00:00.004-05:00

This summer we took a vacation with the kids to North Conway, NH and visited Storyland and, for the first time, Santa's Village. We had hyped up the trip and got the kids really excited to see the reindeer and Santa Claus. It never occurred to us that we would be there on a day when it was 50 degrees, rainy, and windy, and that the line to see Santa would be an hour long. Conner was devastated. He really wanted to wait in that line. I really didn't. So, I promised him that as soon as Santa came to the mall I would take him on a special trip to visit with Santa. Not only did that appease Conner, but he has brought it up almost weekly since that time.

Allison and Conner don't have preschool on Wednesdays, so I figured this was a good day to get to the mall and live up to my promise. Conner was thrilled. We drove to the Burlington Mall, and after a 30 second wait we were up to see the big guy. He asked the kids what they wanted for Christmas. Allison told him that she wanted a "different babydoll", and Conner said he wanted a "different Lego". That was as specific as I could get them to be. Santa showed him his special book where he keeps his nice list, and said that he would put their names in it as soon as he got home. Afterward, we captured this:

(Conner picked the shirt out himself.)

Cute Times with Emily & Sam

2010-07-26T21:32:00.000-05:00

We went over to Aunt Sara's house one day last week and the kids amped up the cute factor to unbelievable new heights.

Click picture for slideshow.

The Girls at Canobie Lake Park

2010-07-25T21:30:00.000-05:00

Here are just a few pictures of Allison and Emily enjoying themselves on our day at Canobie Lake Park.

Click picture for slideshow.

Off to Memere and Pepere's House

2010-07-24T21:28:00.000-05:00

Once again we made our annual 4th of July pilgrimage up to Memere & Pepere's in up-state New York. We had beautiful weather and every day was tons of fun. The kids loved fishing off the dock, they rocked out during the 5th annual Pond Idol karaoke competition, they stayed up late for their first fireworks display, and we finished off the trip with a fantastic day out on lake Ontario.

Click on the picture for the slideshow.

Summertime Fun

2010-07-23T21:26:00.000-05:00

Here are some great photos of the kids having some wonderful summertime moments.

Click photo for slideshow.

There and Back Again: A Trip to Grandmas House

2010-07-22T21:23:00.000-05:00

In mid-June Allison and I took a last minute trip out to Grandma and Grandpa's in Missouri. It was Allison's first flight (out of my tummy, that is), and she was a superb traveler. We had loads of fun and kept busy the whole time we were there. The only thing missing from this set are the pictures of Allison in their pool that were taken with my mom's camera (hint hint mom).

Enjoy!

Click the picture below for the slideshow.

Bubble Mania

2010-07-21T21:21:00.000-05:00

We love taking the kids to Davis' Farmland every year. Between the various playgrounds, the animals, hayride, play houses, and splash park...there's always more fun available then the kids can get to in just one visit. Even so, I was starting to worry a bit that Alex was maybe getting to old for what Davis' has to offer, especially since we've been coming several time a year for the past 5 years. However, I am no longer worried. Each year, Davis' adds one or two new things, but this year they have absolutely out-done themselves. Click on the picture below for the whole show.

Early Summer Outings

2010-07-21T15:06:00.003-05:00

Here are some pictures from some of our early summer goings-on. This is before Alex was done with school so these are all of princess Allison and prince Conner.

Click picture for slideshow.

Conner's Closing Ceremonies

2010-06-12T19:40:00.000-05:00

On Friday, Allison and I attended the closing ceremonies for Conner's 2nd year of preschool. In preparation, I got the kids all cleaned up, and Allison and I consulted on some potential hairstyles for Conner on his big day. Then the kids were dressed in their finery, pictures were snapped, and it was off to school. Conner showed off what he had learned in his weekly movement classes (kid yoga), then received a memory book from his teachers. It ended with ice-pops and smiles all around.

Click the picture to see the slideshow.

Em & Sam Come to Play

2010-06-11T18:19:00.000-05:00

Here are a few pictures I took when Em and Sam came over to play.

(Sorry Sara, I just think this picture is cute.)

Allison Van Gogh

2010-06-10T18:06:00.000-05:00

Allison is becoming quite a little painter. She especially loves exploring the transfer process from a paper medium to the more dramatic artistry of face painting. Click the pic below to see more.

Random Acts of Cuteness

2010-06-09T17:03:00.000-05:00

Allison makes an adorable flower child, and Conner...well, you'll have to see for yourself. Click on the Alex's lovely artwork below to see how our two youngest's personalities have been developing.

Karate Kids

2010-06-08T16:51:00.000-05:00

In January we started Alex and Conner in karate lessons at a local dojo. Sensei runs them hard, and every week they earn a stripe. Eventually, they had enough stripes to earn their yellow bites. Here are some pictures from their class and their yellow belt ceremony.

Click the picture.

Birthday Bowling

2010-06-08T16:05:00.004-05:00

The party may be over but today is actually Allison's birthday. I asked her what she would like to do as an activity for her birthday, and she chose to go bowling. Who was I to argue?

We went to the Acton Bowladrome and had the whole place to ourselves.

It was all fun and games right up until Conner "tossed" Allison the ball. She survived the glancing blow to her foot, but Conner was not able to recover from the firm reprimand I administered. Despite my efforts, he was out for the count.

Soon after, Allison said she was done and wanted to go home. Since we were only in the middle of the fifth frame, I opted to bribe the kids with iPhone games and peanut M&M's so I could finish up. Towards the end, I really started to show some improvement!

Check out our scores, and then click the pic for the full slideshow.

Allison's 3rd Birthday Party

2010-06-06T19:55:00.003-05:00

Allison had a wonderful birthday party on Sunday. Thank you so much to all the friends and family who were able to join in! She is now loving her new Cinderella castle and her lovely dress up clothes, among other new favorite toys. If you look closely you'll see that the day was full of more outfit changes then Whoopie Goldberg hosting the Oscars. And we didn't even get a picture of her in the pink dress!

Click the pic for the slideshow.

The Russells Go Camping!

2010-06-01T07:02:00.003-05:00

Well, sort of. You see, when I was a kid we used to camp all over the New England area. I have wonderful memories of pulling into our secluded campsite late at night in the pouring rain, matching up big metal tent poles in the dark to the light of an unsteady flashlight held by a shivering, dripping wet kid (that was actually me), climbing into a sleeping bag in the same dripping wet clothes because it was too cold to change out of them plus, ya know, in front of the whole family? And then slowly warming up to a steamy, clammy mess as our old Coleman dome top propane fueled heater filled the tent with heat and CO2 (CDC now says not to use those things inside, by the way).

But in the morning, the rain was gone, the birds were chirping, and my mom was cooking bacon and pancakes on her little camp stove. By 9AM we were in our bathing suits and ready to run down the dirt road, following the wooden signposts to a sparkling mountain lake where we would swim, dig in the sand, and relax the day away. It was heaven...with mosquitoes.

Now, every once in a while, if we were going for a long weekend or a whole week's worth of camping, we would go to a campground where upon exiting our afore-mentioned secluded, tree enclosed, private campsite, we would have the option to follow the trails and paths to a beach, or a pool, or a playground, and there would be a small covered area where a family-oriented group of musicians would play sprightly dancing music until 9PM. That was called "resort camping". And one of my favorite resort campgrounds as a kid was called Jellystone Park. It was with this memory in mind that I booked our first family camping vacation at Jellystone. My thought was that introducing the kids to sleeping in a tent and being surrounded by nature, dark dark nights and long cold walks to the bathroom by flashlight, it would be easier for them to handle if there were kid-friendly activities and a huge Yogi Bear statue for them to enjoy. I was right...ish.

The kids did love Jellystone Park. They really loved Jellystone Park. I mean, how could they not? It was never too dark, you could walk to the bathroom without a flashlight because you could see by the ambient lighting coming from the campsites of every other family within a quarter of a mile. It was never eerily quiet because the band pumped music until 10PM and then the music and voices and dog barking from the other campsites took over, free to travel through the clear-cut treeless row upon row of campers, trailers, pop-ups and the occasional tented site that were packed in one on top of another on top of another on top of another as far as the eye could see. There was an arcade full of violent shooting games, a spray park (that was actually cool), a swimming pool, a coin operated hot tub (seemed to be out of order), a mini-golf course (closed for repairs), daily crafts, hayrides with pumping music, pedal car rentals, organized games of kick ball that somehow included vats of mud, a minuscule sandy beach where one could rent kayaks and canoes...ya know, camping. The kids were ecstatic.

So, here are some pictures of our adventures at Jellystone, where the kids ate their weight in S'mores, Paul discovered the joys of meat-on-a-stick, and Allison discovered her absolute and utter joy of playing in the dirt. Hope you all had a similarly exciting Memorial Day weekend. Enjoy!

iPhone Picture Fun

2010-05-06T20:47:00.001-05:00

One of the beauties of my iPhone is the lovely camera it comes with. These are some of my most recent shots of the kids on our various outings.

And for you mobile users: click here

Out Swinging in the Sun

2010-05-05T20:11:00.001-05:00

We've had a beautiful Spring despite the rain and flooding here in New England, and on one particular day we were lucky enough to have Emily come over to play with the kids. She and Allison were so darn cute we just had to snap a couple of pictures. Enjoy!

And for you mobile users: click here

Chocolate, Strawberries, & Love

2010-05-04T20:08:00.001-05:00

As we've done before, we recently set the kids up with some melted chocolate and strawberries as a big dessert treat. This particular evening, Allison took the expected mess to a whole other level.

And for you mobile users: click here

Air Hockey

2010-05-03T20:06:00.001-05:00

The other day a neighbor of ours had an air hockey table out by their mailbox with a "free" sign on it. I couldn't resist.

And for you mobile users: click here

Easter Bunny Day

2010-05-02T19:50:00.002-05:00

The kids were very excited when they woke up Easter morning to find eggs all over the house filled with treats and very tiny Star Wars ships. The boys were also excited that the Easter Bunny knew them well enough to put some Lego kits in their baskets. He also gave them some rather amusing lollipops...

At the end of the pictures there's an amusing video of the kids on their egg hunt.

And for you mobile users: click here

Painting & Play-Doh

2010-05-01T19:32:00.001-05:00

The kids are slowly becoming more creative and less messy in their artwork these days. We're down to 10 minutes of set-up, 8 minutes of focused play/art, and 25 minutes of clean-up. That's much better than the 30 minutes of clean-up followed by 30 minutes of bathing and another 30 minutes of scraping paint or play-doh off of the hardwood floors that used to follow each session!

Here are some of their recent efforts:

And for you mobile users: click here

Happy Birthday Dr. Suess

2010-04-30T14:12:00.001-05:00

March 3rd was Dr. Suess' birthday. I made plans with the kids to take them to Barnes & Noble for a celebration, with book readings, crafts, and snacks. They were pretty excited. So was I. So excited, that 15 minutes before we would have left, I enthusiastically pushed a jar onto the shelf with the other jars thus dislodging a giant jar filled with pasta sauce which promptly jumped off of said shelf, bounced off of the counter and landed on the floor. The kitchen and I were suddenly a murder scene. There was splatter all over the counter, the backsplash, the floor, the ceiling, and you know I kept finding it everywhere else for days afterwards. There was just no way I could leave it there while we went out for three hours.

With our plans suddenly halted, Alex leapt into gear and started decorating for our own Dr. Suess party. I whipped up a special dinner (which no one ate, despite my repeated attempts to remind them to "try them, try them and you may, try them and you may, I say"). And Paul finished the night with some classic Suess readings.

And for you mobile users: click here

Conner's School

2010-04-29T13:57:00.001-05:00

Conner goes to a Cooperative School. I had no idea what that meant when I signed him up. Basically, we parents are all part owners of our school. To keep costs down, we all have to take turns going into the school and helping out. About once a month or so, Paul or I spend the day in the classroom and help the kids with art projects, facilitate free time, and bring in snacks. On this particular day, Allison came in to help as well.

And for you mobile users: click here

Dinner and a Movie

2010-04-28T13:49:00.001-05:00

Every once in a while we let the kids stay up a little late and watch a movie. We usually lay out sleeping bags and I make a big pot of popcorn. (I learned to make it in a kettle, just like my mom, and it's the best!) On this particular movie night, I believe we were planning to watch Return of the Jedi. Oh, and I may have put a few too many kernels in the pot...

And for you mobile users: click here

Taco Tuesday

2010-04-27T13:34:00.006-05:00

In trying to simplify the weekly menu planning, I decided that we would have Taco Tuesdays, every Tuesday. Now the kids love it, and will not let me deviate. This does, on occasion, leave me with three kids in the grocery store at 5:00 picking up sour cream (pretty much my worst nightmare), but at least I know everyone will eat dinner! Here are only a few pictures from a January Taco Tuesday dinner.

or for you mobile viewers: click here

What We Did Today Instead of Cleaning The House

2010-01-19T13:11:00.012-05:00

There's a long list of things I'm supposed to do around the house today. Clean the kitchen, put away laundry, dig out the "pit of despair" (office...and thanks to Mark and April for the excellent idea to name our problem places appropriately). This is what we've been doing instead:

The kids got a snowman making kit for Christmas and we put it to good use on our second Frosty of the year!

After we finished with Frosty we moved on to sledding in the backyard

and some snow eating.

You can take a look at the whole collection of photos by clicking on the link below, but these next two were my favorites.

We had a great time. Now on to that laundry...

See all the pictures here.

Our Little Jedi Princess

2009-11-05T14:52:00.002-05:00

Allison and I were sitting on the chair "taking a nap".

"Lay down mommy."
"Close your eyes mommy."
"Go to sleep mommy."

"Good night Allison."

"Ah, look out there's an alligator!"
"Quick, get my light saber!"

"Your light saber?"

"Yeah, so I can chop its head off!"

"My little princess."

Our Little Scientist

2008-10-05T14:07:00.005-05:00

"Mommy, yellow and blue make green," Alex told me the other day.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, the toilet had bubbles and blue water in it," he said excitedly.

"And you put something yellow in it?"

"Yup," he nodded happily.

"Where did you get something yellow?"

Alex grinned proudly and pointed, "From my penis!"

School: Alex's 1st Day!

2008-09-03T09:17:00.009-05:00

Well, it's finally here. The day upon which so many parents across the country breathe an enormous sigh of relief as they watch their lovely, adorable, patient, respectful, quiet, well-behaved treasures leave the house, hop on the school bus, and become someone else's concern for a few short but priceless hours. Don't get me wrong, I love time with all of my children; I just don't love all the time with all of my children. For the last few weeks of summer I've been trapped indoors with my three expert chaos theorists because, let's face it, if I have to face one more hour sneaking up on each of my children, smearing gobs of sunscreen across them, chasing them to finish gooping up their legs, arms, and faces as they desperately struggle to avoid the process that has occurred practically every day for the last three months just so we can go out and swing for 15 minutes before getting bored with that and asking to go back inside for a snack, I'm going to go out of my mind.

Many of you know that Alex is a fairly agreeable child. However, some of you are also aware that Alex doesn't always take a shine to change. He may talk excitedly about going to get his haircut right up until the moment it's his turn at the haircutter's, and then fight tooth and nail against getting up in the chair. With this in mind I worked fervently to get Alex as excited as possible about getting on the bus. We repeated again and again the process of getting on the bus, finding a seat on the left so he could look out the window and wave to me, then looking for any kids who were nervous so he could have the important job of "distracting them" by telling them about dinosaurs and sea creatures (Alex's favorite subjects). Now, I've tried this method of preparation many times before to no avail, so my hopes for this morning were restrained at best.

So, how bad was it you may wonder? Well, let me show you.

CLICK HERE

Now, after we shot this video it was time to head out to wait for the bus. Alex was standing excitedly at the end of the driveway and I was waiting with camera ready. My thought was to take a couple of pictures of Alex with the bus behind him, then put the camera down while I extracted Alex from my leg and convinced him to follow through on the plan and actually climb on the bus. Here are some pictures of the big event...

That's it. That's all I have. Before I could snap another picture he was gone. Instead of having to extract Alex from my leg, I watched him run up the bus stairs, hop in his seat, and wave goodbye. I shrugged to the bus driver, waved back, and away he went! I have to say I am awful proud.

Stay tuned for part two of this very exciting September, "School: Conner's 1st Day!" (He starts next Tuesday and I am soo excited...I mean I'm really going to miss him. Really. Seriously. Inside I'm crying.)

The Last Lecture

2008-07-25T12:19:00.003-05:00

It's a very sad day in my heart. Randy Pausch, the man who gave an amazing lecture at Carnegie Melon University after being diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer, has passed away. Although the end to his life is a sad one to be mourned, I feel that everyone could benefit from taking the time to listen to his lecture on Achieving Your Childhood Dreams. It's never too late to start living and a little inspiration goes a long way.

The Last Lecture

.

2AM

2008-07-09T02:44:00.000-05:00

Why don't kids ever throw up at 2 in the afternoon?

A What Kind Of Open Sleigh?

2008-06-27T13:26:00.004-05:00

Lately Alex has taken to saying, "Mommy, want to hear a song I never sang before?" He then launches into a loud, repetitive rendition of his interpretation of Jingle Bells. I was finally able to catch the show with our camera.

I must preface this by saying that it had been a long day, we had ran around at Davis' Farmland for 4 hours and everyone was pretty worn out. Usually Alex is pretty energetic but, as you'll see, this is a little more subdued than normal.

Mommy's Little Helper

2008-06-18T15:04:00.003-05:00

As the kids grow I tend to give them certain age appropriate tasks to help mom around the house. One of my most successful has been to give Conner a measuring cup and have him fill up the cats' food dispenser.

He loves the scooping and pouring, and it takes him a good fifteen minutes, priceless time in my day that I can spend:

relaxing; or
doing yesterday's dishes;
maybe throw in a load of laundry, nope scratch that, rewash the laundry that's been in the washing machine since, um, I forget;
clean up that congealed milk that leaked out of that non-spill cup onto the hardwood floor;
change the baby...again.

What I'm getting at here is that having the kids help out with chores is really helpful. Unless the phone rings right after you ask him to do it.

Who New A Pinwheel Could Be So Much Fun

2008-06-07T20:45:00.003-05:00

Here's a little laughter to add a smile to your day.

Ice Cream Sunday

2008-04-24T19:41:00.006-05:00

So last Sunday Alex and I were out running errands and I said that right near our last stop was a Friendly's. I expected an excited response, but got nothing but puzzlement.

"Do you know what they have at Friendly's?" I asked him.
"No, what?" he asked.
"Ice cream sundaes," I replied.
Alex's eyes got real wide, his voice was full of awe mixed with excitement as he asked, "Is today Sunday?!"

Normally I would end a good story there. However, today is Thursday. Once again, Alex and I were out running errands in the vicinity of Friendly's; Paul had taken the day off and was home on nap-monitor-duty with Conner and Allison. (Yes, I know I said it.) So Alex and I stopped off for a quick afternoon treat.

He was several bites into his Monster Sundae when he turned to me with a furrowed brow and asked, "Is today Sunday?"
"No," I responded. "It's Thursday."
"Then how come they have ice cream here today?"
I will be a little sad when he learns the difference between a sundae and a Sunday. So all I could think to say was: "Alex, at Friendly's, every day is Sundae."

Here's a Video Only a 3rd Time Mom Would Make

2008-02-06T11:10:00.001-05:00

Click the Pic.

A Little Buy-Us'd

2008-01-23T17:03:00.001-05:00

Paul: "I may be biased, but I think our kids are pretty cute."

Alex: "What are you going to buy us, Daddy?"

The Newly Updated Russell Babies By The Month

2008-01-09T22:14:00.001-05:00

Click on the picture to have it open larger.

Our Three Christmas Babies

2008-01-08T22:04:00.000-05:00

Some of you have suggested that my babies have so many outfits I'd be lucky to get them in each outfit once. Well, check this out.

Can't deny this one got at least three wears!

My Confession

2008-01-04T18:02:00.000-05:00

I have a confession to make: I'm cheating on you with another blog.

http://localforfive.blogspot.com/

My Toy Story Moment

2008-01-03T17:05:00.000-05:00

Santa brought the boys matching stuffed puppy dogs for Christmas this year. Santa has brought a lot of stuffed animals over the years, and Alex has been firmly attached to the little brown puppy he received two years ago. He slept with it, carried it around in various boxes, bins, and bags. He's asked to take it to school several times and often it comes along for the ride and waits patiently for Alex to return. The other night, however, when I tucked Alex into bed with both "puppy" and the new guy, Alex pushed puppy off and said, "I just want to sleep with this one". I mildly reached down and retrieved his well-washed, slightly worn, well-loved puppy and placed him on the night stand. "Puppy can watch over you from here," I said. But I have to admit that inside I was crying for poor little puppy's broken stuffed doggy heart. I don't think Santa will be bringing any new stuffed animals this way for many years to come.

When Stars Align

2008-01-03T08:51:00.000-05:00

It's 8:47 AM. The house is quiet. Allison is sleeping and the boys just left with Pop. I haven't eaten breakfast or finished my cup of coffee. I could just pretend that I haven't been up since 6 and go back to sleep. Would that be a waste of the quiet? Probably. I'd most likely lie in bed trying to fall asleep but really be thinking about the 5 piles of laundry in my front hall waiting to be washed, the three stacks waiting to be put away, the dishes on the counter above the full dishwasher waiting to be emptied. Then I'd just waste twenty minutes trying to push all that out of my head until I gave up and came down to tackle the mess. At least I can tackle it quietly!

A Whole New Year

2007-12-31T20:24:00.000-05:00

I am thankful that:

Alex threw up at 9 PM last night instead of 1 AM
Our wonderful friends, the Chiodos, had a New Years Eve party that started at 3 PM and included 8 kids all under the age of 4
My husband knows me better than anyone else, and still loves me
Conner is starting to use the potty
Allison is not trying to stand up yet (just lay on the floor and be stationary lovey!)
The kids have three great-grandmas
Emily did not throw up despite the fact that she was at our house three hours before Alex did
My sister-in-law is a wonderful friend
Reza & Teresa are constantly being dragged back East for family functions thus giving us the opportunity to see them
I have such wonderful parents (all six of them now)
My sister is moving back East!
I got a Hippopotamus for Christmas
My children are happy and healthy
I slept for 6 hours in a row last night
I forgot to turn the monitor back on after the midnight feeding
Allison smiled at me this morning even though I forgot to turn the monitor back on after the midnight feeding
We didn't overcook the prime rib for Christmas Dinner
My husband loves to cuddle
It's a whole new year and Alex will turn 5, but he's still my baby, and Conner will turn 3, but he's still my baby, and Allison will turn 1, but she's still my baby, and I will never have to wear maternity clothes again because my family is perfect.

Mama's Boy

2007-11-07T20:58:00.000-05:00

Those Russell genes run strong, but take a look at the smile on Conner compared to the one on the cute little girl in this picture...oh, and the nose looks familiar as well!

Conversations With My 4 Year Old (2)

2007-10-08T17:33:00.000-05:00

"Mommy, I need you to come outside and play with me."

"You do, huh?"

"Yeah, cuz the clouds are getting dark and a chilling wind is whipping across our street."

(Verbatim, I swear.)

More Thoughts on Sleep Deprivation

2007-10-02T13:16:00.000-05:00

So this morning I locked myself and all three kids out of the house. Oh yes, I did. No really, I did, I swear. Everyone was securely buckled into their carseats and ready to head off to school. The house was locked up tight. I had remembered to grab my purse, my cell phone, the diaper bag, Alex's snack, Alex's coat, my cup of coffee, return items for the mall, a cosleeper I was giving back to the friend who lent it to me, all three of my children...just no keys.

Pop to the rescue! Paul's dad drove over and picked us all up, then headed over to Paul's work to pick up the keys for me. Our hero!

I have to say, this was way easier to clean up then that can of Sprite!

Alex Ander Russell

2007-09-15T17:11:00.001-05:00

So, for a couple of years now we've been trying to convince Alex that his full name is Alexander Russell. But every time we say that he says, "I'm not Alexander, I'm Alex."

Today, Alex got his Go, Diego Go Halloween costume. He put it on and started running around the house shouting, "I'm Diego Ander Russell!"

Paul and I almost wet ourselves laughing. Now we have to figure out how we're going to break it to him that his middle name is actually John. Wish us luck!

Christine

Conversations With My 4 Year Old

2007-09-08T18:54:00.001-05:00

"Mommy, how long until we're home?"

"17 minutes"

"How long is that?"

Open Letter To Peapod and Stop & Shop

2007-09-08T18:25:00.000-05:00

I'm not as ecocentric as my husband but...I did send this letter off to Peapod Customer Care (Peapod is Stop & Shops home grocery delivery program)

Dear Peapod Customer Care:

I just received my most recent Peapod order and I am astounded at how many bags it came in. The 48 items I received came in no less than 29 bags.

I would say at least half of my bags came with only 1 item in them. Doesn't this overuse of bags cost you money? I know it costs the environment. Plus, my food is lonely. The 2 dozen eggs I ordered really would have liked to ride together, instead of being not only separately bagged, but double bagged. (Structurally speaking putting the two together would have been safer for the eggs than putting them in two separate bags.) My container of Skippy is not so important that it cannot ride along with my parmesan cheese; it may even have enjoyed being accompanied by my two small containers of grape jelly, seeing as they'll be spending so much time together in the future. While my Pringles definitely would not appreciate riding along with my chicken breasts, I bet it could have been convinced to slip into the bag containing my Smartfood popcorn; generally speaking I believe the snack foods tend to get along.

Anyway, all I'm trying to say is, fill the bag. Please. I don't have to carry it from the store to my car and from my car to the house. My delivery guys is pretty strong looking, and I'm thinking he can handle the extra weight per bag ratio I'm suggesting. You can ask him, I bet he won't mind.

Thank you,

Christine Russell

P.S. A bag recycling program wouldn't be a bad idea either. I'd be happy to give you all 29 bags back if you wanted to refill them again. You're coming to my house anyway. It saves me from dealing with them. It saves you the money. And it saves the environment. What more could you ask for?

Russell Babies By The Month

2007-09-06T21:55:00.001-05:00

Interesting Facts Learned Through Sleep Deprivation

2007-07-05T09:44:00.000-05:00

Did you know that if you open your fridge door and drop a can of Sprite, you can not only douse yourself from head to toe in sugary liquid, you can also spray the entire contents of your fridge (how did it get inside the drawers?), half of your kitchen floor, the trash can (how did it get behind the fridge door?), and across the adjoining play room all the way to the windows including every lego block in its path. Did you know that? It's true. I'm a very reliable source. No need to see for yourself.

Much Ado About Something Quite Wonderful

2007-06-26T17:53:00.000-05:00

Well, it started with a test. Then at 10 weeks there was a threatened miscarriage, and a diagnoses of a Subchorionic Hematomae. At 18 weeks there was a Choroid Plexus Cyst. At 35 weeks there was low fluid levels. Finally, at 38 weeks and 6 days, there was an angel.

Allison Rose Russell was born 5 lbs 11.5 oz and 19". She was worth all the wait and all the aforementioned "Ado". The boys love her. Alex asks to hold her all the time. Conner sounds the alarm every time she makes the slightest noise, and he loves to find her nose and pat her gently. They are very caring big brothers, and she is so lucky to have them.

There is a rare moment just now, where Alex is in a car with grandma and grandpa on the way home from the beach, Conner is in bed asleep, and Paul and I are alone with our new addition. Things are momentarily calm and it is a lovely evening.

So many of you helped us out while I was on and off of bed rest, light duty, etc. Some drove from hours away, others hopped a plane to help while Paul was travelling, some sent way too much fudge which I ate all by myself in a very short amount of time. (Is it okay to get all of your extra nursing calories from one source?) Still others just chatted with me online or in emails or over dinner, and constantly assured me that this baby was going to be okay. Look at us now!

I can't thank you all enough.

Christine

The Big Day

2007-06-07T11:48:00.000-05:00

Okay everyone, tomorrow's the big day. Baby Girl Russell will be "evicted" tomorrow and we will finally get to meet our favorite little trouble-maker in person. We're very excited and we will send an email with news, name, and pictures just as soon as we have all that. - Christine

36 Week Ultrasound

2007-05-23T09:11:00.000-05:00

Okay, so here's the deal. My fluid levels are still on the low side of normal...but normal nonetheless. I still go for bi-weekly fetal non-stress tests, which baby has been passing with flying colors. I have another ultrasound scheduled for Wednesday the 30th. I have been told that I will not be going past my due date. So, if this one, like the rest, refuses to leave on her own we will take matters into our own hands on or near June 16th. Woo hoo!

Bet you're all dying to know her name. We leave nothing else up to the imagination, so thank you for indulging us (and by us I mean me) in our little name secret drama surprise thingy.

35 Week Ultrasound

2007-05-16T11:57:00.001-05:00

Just when you get lulled into a false sense of security...

Okay, so baby girl is causing unnecessary drama once again. She is measuring a bit on the small side, but still healthy at 5 lbs 2 oz. However, my fluid levels are a bit on the low side of normal. They measure a "7" which is within reason but if they get any lower it would be concerning. So, I had to go for a fetal stress test, where they hook you up to the monitors and watch the baby's movements and heartbeat. The test is supposed to take 30 minutes to an hour, but this baby girl is so active that they kicked me out after 20 minutes. Needless to say she's fine.

So, bottom line is, I have another stress test this Saturday and a follow-up ultrasound on Wednesday followed by yet another stress test. I'm also supposed to "take it easy". Yeah, right, me, Alex and Conner will just "take it easy" together.

Anyway...seems like more much ado about nothing. I have no doubt she will make her entrance late, just like the boys, and a healthy 7 lbs. Time will tell.

As of May 16: 35 wks 4 days
Official due date: June 16th.

Paul's Birthday Poem

2007-04-09T20:09:00.001-05:00

Paul,

I gave it some serious thought;
what to get you for your day?
You've got every gizmo or gadget
with which you like to play.

I know you prefer that I don't
spend too much on your birthday.
You'd much prefer to sock
your hard earned pay away.

I try to find a balance
between saving for retirement
and making sure our household
has the things that are requirements.

For instance...

I think I'm doing a good job of
meeting all your wishes;
I even recently bought you
those pretty pink flower dishes.

And don't worry about having
enough baby clothes in time;
I've taken care of that too
and I didn't spare a dime.

Those shoes I bought were on clearance
and they were just my size.
I know that snapping up that bargain
was truly good and wise.

When I go into Borders
I try to just walk and look,
but really can we spare any expense
on our children's books?

I have to say I've come so far
it's really rather funny.
I've learned to hit the biggest sales
it saves us so much money!

I've tried to make you a good wife
I do all for you I can think.
Though sometimes I get the feeling
I might be driving you to drink.

So for those occasional moments
When you're asking why, why, why?
Here's one more thing I've done for you
So you're throat won't get dry.

I'm not entirely certain
if you'll like it better then a backrub;
But I've added one more year on
to your beer of the month club.

So think of me while you're drinking;
give toasts and cheers and such.
Cuz you've got a wonderful wifey
who never spends too much!

Baby Russell Ultrasound #9

2007-03-11T08:04:00.000-05:00

Well, we hadn't seen our peanut in a couple of months so we were curious how things were going in there. My OB agreed to let us take a peak, and on Thursday we did just that. Great news, the SCH is completely healed and the Choroid Plexus Cyst is gone. The baby is growing on schedule and everything looked fantastic. The baby was even moving her diaphragm, taking some practice breaths. No more ultrasounds for me until 35 weeks. Yay!

Amnio Results

2007-02-01T12:18:00.000-05:00

The official results are in. We have a perfectly healthy baby girl. There are no chromosomal anomalies. The cyst is completely benign. It may disappear in the next couple months, or she may be born with it, but it will never cause problems in any way.

19 weeks and 2 days to go and counting!

Christine

Baby Russell Ultrasound #8

2007-01-22T23:34:00.000-05:00

Let me begin by saying that the baby looks to be completely healthy.

On Monday, January 22nd, we went in for a "level 2" ultrasound. This is apparently no different then a level 1, except it is read and interpreted immediately by a perinatologist and they are looking for anomalies that would suggest a specific problem with the baby. In our case they were looking for any markers of Trisomy 18 or 21 (ugly chromosomal problems).

Per my previous post, in our last ultrasound the radiologist found a Choroid Plexus Cyst in the baby's brain. The Choroid Plexus is a section of the brain that does not have any bearing on the child's development, and a cyst in that section is not at all harmful to the growth or development of the baby what-so-ever. People are born with them and live with them all the time, and most often never know it. The only thing going on in that part of the brain is the development of spinal fluid. The cyst does not hinder that, and very often it disappears before the 3rd trimester anyway.

So, why is it a concern? While cysts are common in completely healthy babies, they are prevalent in babies with chromosomal abnormalities like Edwards Syndrome and Downs Syndrome. So while a cyst is not an issue at all, the level 2 ultrasound is performed to make sure that there are no markers for these other conditions. In our case, after two very thorough ultrasounds, we were assured that there was nothing on any of the ultrasounds that would give any indication that our baby has any abnormalities at all.

This is, of course, a great relief. Regardless, because this pregnancy has been a bit stressful (just a bit), Paul and I did decide that we would like 100% confirmation, so we made the choice to have an amniocentesis which will verify 100% that there is nothing at all wrong with the baby. The procedure was performed today and we will have our final results in 10 - 14 days. Of course we will keep you all posted.

The people who read this blog our are family and friends. Please feel free at any time to call us or email us if you have any questions or concerns about what we've told you so far. We do not mind talking about it.

So, look for my next blog entry by the end of next week, and breath easy because we've already been told to expect the exact results that we are looking for.

Baby Russell Ultrasound #7

2007-01-19T15:04:00.000-05:00

On Friday, January 19th, we had our detailed 19 week ultrasound. This ultrasound showed a small mass in the baby's brain called a Choroid Plexus Cyst. This kind of cyst shows up in 1 in 40 of normal pregnancies in the second trimester, and disappears completely by the third trimester. With no other indicators (genetic testing which we have passed, age of mother, which is not at issue) the cyst is not anything that will cause harm to the baby. Here is a passage from Wikipedia on these Cysts:

Choroid plexus cyst

The brain contains pockets or spaces called ventricles with a spongy layer of cells and blood vessels called the choroid plexus. This is in the middle of the fetal brain. The choroid plexus has an important function of producing a fluid called cerebrospinal fluid. The fluid produced by the cells of the choroid plexus fills the ventricles and then flows around the brain and the spinal cord to provide a cushion of fluid around these structures.

Choroid plexus cysts (CPCs) occur within this structure and come from fluid trapped within this spongy layer of cells, much like a soap bubble or a blister. CPCs are often called "soft signs" or fetal ultrasound "markers" because some studies have found a weak association between CPCs and fetal chromosome abnormalities.

It is believed that many adults have one or more tiny CPCs. CPCs have no impact on an individual's health or development or learning. The fetal brain may create these cysts as a normal part of development. They are temporary and usually are gone by the 32nd week of pregnancy.

I have already been given and passed the genetic tests that, if associated with the CPC, might indicate a chromosomal problem with the baby. I am scheduled on Monday, January 22nd, for a Level 2 ultrasound with a perinatoligist to confirm that this is a typical CPC.

In the mean time here is a picture of the baby.

Baby Russell Ultrasound #6

2007-01-08T14:25:00.000-05:00

Just an update here. My last ultrasound was on Thursday, January 4th. The SCH was still measuring 4.5 x 1.8, but it had moved upward away from the cervix which means less uncomfortable symptoms for me, but no change in prognosis. There are no pictures from this week. The tech was able to confirm that we are having a girl, but she was all scrunched up and they were unable to get any good pictures or measurements. So, I'm going back for a full ultrasound (the one you normally get at 18 weeks) on January 19th at 9:40AM. I will surely have pictures from this one and will post them as soon as I can.

17 weeks, 2 days and counting

Baby Russell Ultrasound #5

2006-12-21T13:00:00.000-05:00

Some good news came with this ultrasound. First, the baby is looking healthy and growing well. The SCH has shrunk from 6x1 to 4.5x2. The next ultrasound will be on January 4th.

Also, although the ultrasound tech would not say conclusively, she was fairly sure that we are having a baby girl. Start thinking pink.

Baby Russell Ultrasound #4

2006-12-14T10:50:00.000-05:00

I just returned from the latest ultrasound. The baby is doing fine, growing well, moving around, etc. The SCH (subchorionic hematoma) is measuring 6 x 1.5 x 6. Here is the latest picture:

Baby Russell Ultrasound #3

2006-12-07T20:08:00.000-05:00

At my last OB appointment, on December 5th, the baby had a strong heartbeat and everything seemed to be progressing normally. They decided to schedule me for weekly ultrasounds to monitor the baby and the hematoma. I went back for an ultrasound on the 6th. The hematoma had decreased slightly from 3.5 x 7 to 3.5 x 5.5. This is good news. If the hematoma heals completely we're in the clear. Cross your fingers!

Here are the pictures from this week's ultrasound.

Baby Russell Ultrasound #2

2006-12-07T20:01:00.000-05:00

The Monday after Thanksgiving I went to see my OB and had another ultrasound. She said that it's difficult to predict the outcome of these situations. My hematoma is rather large, but there are a great deal of women with large hematomas who heal up and go on to deliver full term, and others with very small ones who have complications or negative outcomes. They gave us a 25% chance of miscarriage.

Here are pictures from the second ultrasound. The hematoma had not changed.

Baby Russell Ultrasound #1

2006-12-07T19:45:00.000-05:00

On October the 8th Paul and I found out that we were expecting. This being baby number 3, life was moving by pretty quickly and we'd barely had time to get used to the idea when things started to get complicated.

In honour of Paul's upcoming Masters graduation from Harvard, and our upcoming 5th wedding anniversary, I planned a trip to Bermuda. We took off as planned on November 18th, and when the normally 2 hour flight turned into 8 hours it was only the first of many events over the next few days that made us wish we were back home with the kids. When we did finally make it to the airport on Wednesday the 22rd we were exhausted and so ready to be home it was all we could think of. However, we had just barely made it through check-in, security, and customs when I started to have some bleeding.

We were taken to the King Edwards hospital in Bermuda, where an ultrasound found that the baby was doing fine, but that I had experienced a subchorionic hematoma. This is not an uncommon occurrence in pregnancy, and the outcome, I was later to learn, is very difficult to predict. Mine measured 3.5 x 7 cm. Here is a picture of the ultrasound from Bermuda.

Absurdity

2006-11-16T11:29:00.000-05:00

So, I called Boston Limousine to get a car to pick my parents up from the airport; they're arriving at 5:00 on Friday. They took my order and they needed me to fill out a credit card authorization form and fax it to them. Here's the conversation that ensued:

Me: "Can I email it to you?"
Them: "No, you have to fax it."
Me: "Okay, I'm going to fill it out, scan it in, email it to my husband at his office, and have him fax it to you. Are you sure I can't just email it to you."
Them: "No, we have to have it faxed."
Me: "Even though you're getting faxed to you a scanned emailed copy."
Them: "That's fine."
Me: ".....okay!"

Because Teresa Asked For A Poem About Pork

2006-11-16T11:24:00.000-05:00

I like to eat pork
I eat it with my fork
Today it looks like rain
So I'll order Pork Lo Mein

A little crab rangoon
I know we will consume
It's great when someone else is making
The dumplings a la Peking

The chicken with grean beans are spicey
I like to eat them over white ricey
I'll order chicken pan fried noodles
Cuz Conner will eat oodles

I'd love to rhyme some more
But Alex is walking out the door

A Work In Progress

2006-06-13T19:33:00.000-05:00

Once Upon A Time...

...And They Lived Happily Ever After

Baby's Bedtime

2006-06-03T19:16:00.000-05:00

Hush now my sweet baby boy
It's time to cease your cries.
We've had so much fun today
Now sleep love, close your eyes.
We changed your little diaper
Don't worry about a thing;
That little stream that hit my eye
It didn't really sting.
I know you aren't still hungry
Your tummy's full of milk.
Don't think about that spit-up
That shirt was only silk.
Drool marks stain my pants now
There're smashed peas in my hair.
I've changed your outfit 8 times
But really, I don't care.
One little glass of red wine
A warm and soothing shower,
I know that I will soon forget
You cried for 3 straight hours.
My stretch marks seem much lighter
I'm sure my tummy's flatter.
My breasts aren't quite where they belong
Here's why it doesn't matter:
This morning when you woke me
I moaned and sighed a while,
Then dragged myself out to your bed
And saw your great big gummy smile.

Just Not Dirty Enough

2006-05-31T09:27:00.000-05:00

The other day I was the first mom on the scene of a two year old with smashed fingers. I scooped her up without a thought and let her press her crying, drooling face into my shoulder. When I handed her back to her mother I glanced at the quickly cooling blotch on my shirt and thought to myself, at least it will dry clear. Back home a couple of hours later I finished nursing my three month old, then set him on my lap and gently patted his back until a big hearty burp erupted from his cherubic little mouth. I turned him towards me and he smiled his great big sweet grin; then he projectile spit-up all over my chest and lap. I grabbed a cloth and wiped us both clean. Not too bad, I thought. If I changed my shirt every time I was spit up on I'd be doing laundry all day every day or walking around my house shirtless (my husband suggested that might not be a bad idea).

I settled my contented infant into the swing-of-happiness, and moved on to my 2 ½ year old. His new favorite phrase was “I don't want to change my diaper”. I always considered myself fortunate that as a baby he had never cried over a wet diaper; whenever I got to it was fine with him. I never imagined it would continue on into toddler-hood. His diaper could be around his ankles and smelling like an outhouse and he would still insist that it wasn't full. Scooping him up I explained that we had to get him changed before his nap so his diaper wouldn't leak pee-pee onto his favorite blanket. The cool moist spot that appeared on my abdomen after laying him on the changing table revealed that I had once again allowed the diaper to go over the 27 lbs the box proclaims it can hold. I changed him, read to him, and tucked him in.

By this point I truly had meant to change my shirt. I mean, drool and spit-up are one thing, but urine? I walked out of his room only to see the heaping pile of laundry on my bedroom floor, and upon getting one tenth of that into the washer it occurred to me I hadn't gotten the mail in a couple of days. Getting the mail led to paying some bills, followed by a late afternoon snack in front of Oprah with my newest edition of Parents magazine. Around 5:30 my husband called to say he was on his way home. At this point I looked down, as I often did, to see if there were any obvious marks of my day on my wardrobe. I was a stay-at-home mom, but I tried not to look like one. It was then that I noticed I had forgotten to change my shirt. I looked at it closely. It was dry. There were no tell-tale circles from dried body fluids. I was pretty sure I didn't smell any worse than normal. I could go get another shirt, but heck, the day was almost over at this point and it was very likely some portion of dinner or another round of spit-up was in my immediate future. That's when I made the decision that the shirt just wasn't dirty enough to change.

Once There Was A Little Boy...

2006-05-31T09:26:00.002-05:00

Once there was a little boy who would not go to bed

He'd had such fun throughout the day

All he did was play play play

He didn't want his mom to say

That it was time for him to lay

upon his bed without delay

and much to his complete dismay

It was time to rest his head, and go to bed.

Mommy Daddy Tell Me Why

2006-05-31T09:26:00.001-05:00

Mommy daddy tell me why

there's a plane up in the sky?

Mommy daddy tell me why

does that tiny blue bird fly?

Mommy daddy tell me why

I can't have a little more pie?

Mommy daddy tell me why

all that baby does is cry?

Mommy daddy tell me why

the moon and stars are way up high?

Mommy daddy tell me why

it's not nice to tell a lie?

Mommy daddy tell me why

I can do it if I try?

Mommy daddy tell me why

I can't have one more french fry?

Mommy daddy tell me why

I can't stick this in my eye?

Mommy daddy tell me why

you just gave a great big sigh?

Mommy daddy tell me why

it is time to say goodbye?

Teapot

2006-05-31T09:26:00.000-05:00

Teapot teapot diddly-dee

hop and steam and whistle for me

Teapot teapot diddly-dee

Nanna wants a cup of tea

Buggy Bug

2006-03-04T16:14:00.000-05:00

Once there was a buggy bug

who liked to sleep upon a rug

he'd give his pillow a great big hug

stretch and give a shoulder shrug

then off to sleep for buggy bug

upon his little rug.

Stories & Such

1st Day of School 2011

Allison's 4th Birthday

Princess (and Prince) Class

Spring time fun

Disney World!

January 2011

Fabulous Fall Family Fun

Allison vs. The Tide

A Winter's Romance

Frosty Returns

Christmas-Palooza 2010

Growing Up At Davis' Farmland

Christmas Is Starting Early This Year

Cute Times with Emily & Sam

The Girls at Canobie Lake Park

Off to Memere and Pepere's House

Summertime Fun

There and Back Again: A Trip to Grandmas House

Bubble Mania

Early Summer Outings

Conner's Closing Ceremonies

Em & Sam Come to Play

Allison Van Gogh

Random Acts of Cuteness

Karate Kids

Birthday Bowling

Allison's 3rd Birthday Party

The Russells Go Camping!

iPhone Picture Fun

Out Swinging in the Sun

Chocolate, Strawberries, & Love

Air Hockey

Easter Bunny Day

Painting & Play-Doh

Happy Birthday Dr. Suess

Conner's School

Dinner and a Movie

Taco Tuesday

What We Did Today Instead of Cleaning The House

Our Little Jedi Princess

Our Little Scientist

School: Alex's 1st Day!

The Last Lecture

2AM

A What Kind Of Open Sleigh?

Mommy's Little Helper

Who New A Pinwheel Could Be So Much Fun

Ice Cream Sunday

Here's a Video Only a 3rd Time Mom Would Make

A Little Buy-Us'd

The Newly Updated Russell Babies By The Month

Our Three Christmas Babies

My Confession

My Toy Story Moment

When Stars Align

A Whole New Year

Mama's Boy

Conversations With My 4 Year Old (2)

More Thoughts on Sleep Deprivation

More Questions From Alex That I Just Can't Answer

Alex Ander Russell

Conversations With My 4 Year Old

Open Letter To Peapod and Stop & Shop

Russell Babies By The Month

Interesting Facts Learned Through Sleep Deprivation

Much Ado About Something Quite Wonderful

The Big Day

36 Week Ultrasound

35 Week Ultrasound

Paul's Birthday Poem

Baby Russell Ultrasound #9

Amnio Results

Baby Russell Ultrasound #8

Baby Russell Ultrasound #7

Baby Russell Ultrasound #6

Baby Russell Ultrasound #5

Baby Russell Ultrasound #4

Baby Russell Ultrasound #3

Baby Russell Ultrasound #2