Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Some fun over Break Week

Since Tyler and Gracie were visiting from Wisconsin, my mom wanted to take them to the Stong Museum. It was a great idea - it's just too bad that every other family with children in the Rochester area had this idea too!!!!!! I knew it was bad when I had to park SO far away.

We met up with my parents, Brian, T, Gracie, Josh, Ryan, Aidan, Erin, Sidney & Cam. Even though it was very crowded we still had a fun time. The hardest part was just trying to keep track of all the kids - especially Jo Jo - he decided it would be fun to constantly walk away from me - good thing I had my eye on him constantly.

The girls' all time favorite spot is the Wegmans store. They love shopping and cashing themselves out. Joey even got into on this visit too. We even got to meet Curious George!















Thursday, December 25, 2008

Merry Christmas!!!

Well, I guess Emily, Alli & Joey had been good kids this past year because Santa brought lots of presents.



Emily got her much desired Nintendo DS with a game. She said that would be her worst nightmare that Santa would bring the DS with no game. Ha ha!



Alli got her DS too. She was very excited and the two of them have been playing with them all the time.



And Joey got the big boy underpants he asked Santa for. They have Lightening McQueen on them which is perfect for Jo Jo. He also got a train table from Santa, but he likes to play his cars on it more than the trains.




Paul's parents and sister came over for brunch and then we headed over to my parent's house for dinner. I've just got to show this picture of my nephew Aidan. My sister had found this Santa Suit for him and he wore it on Christmas. He looked so adorable!



And these pictures are just too funny not to share. Emily asked for wig (why I don't know), but Grandma & Grandpa Farrell brought her a Hannah Montanna one. Well, everyone got trying it on and they looked hilarious.

Here's Em.


Here's Paul - He does NOT make an attractive woman lol - sorry Paul.


And, here's my brother Brian. We kept telling him he looked just like Andy Dick.


We really had a wonderful Christmas and we hope you did as well!

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Christmas Eve

I can't believe it's Christmas Eve - I just love this day - even more so than Christmas actually - all the anticipation and excitement.

Paul and I always exchange our gifts on Christmas eve - Paul is too excited to wait until Christmas. I got Paul the game Cam Jam, an amazon.com gift card for dowloading songs to his ipod, a kohls gift card, some baseball cards, a NY Yankee calendar and some candy and sunflower seeds. He got me some awesome slippers (they're so comfortable), the book Marly & Me, the David Cook cd and the Wii fit.

We went to mass at St. Paul's this afternoon. Emily sung in the cherub choir after communion. They sang one song and she did a great job! My parents, my brother and his kids, Paul's parents, sister and aunt all came to hear her sing.





After mass we headed over to Aunt Nancy & Uncle Charlies for a Christmas Eve celebration. When we got home, the girls put out rolo cookies and egg nog for Santa and some carrots for the reindeer. They also sprinkled the reindeer food on the lawn so Santa's reindeer could spot our house easier and it also gave them a little extra snack while Santa delivered his presents.






Then, the girls quickly went to bed, very excited to see what Santa would bring.

Monday, December 22, 2008

Introducing Ralphie

My dad got his Christmas present a little early. Today he got an 8 week old white terrier and he is ADORABLE!!!! Since he was a Christmas present, my dad named him Ralphie after the boy from the movie A Christmas Story.

Isnt' this the cutest little face you've ever seen?


Here's Bailey checking out her new baby brother. They have actually gotten along very well so far.



The kids LOVE him! They were so excited to tell me all about him and show him to me when I got back to my parents after work. They couldn't wait to hold him.





Saturday, December 20, 2008

Breakfast with Santa

The youth group at our church was putting on a Breakfast with Santa and since we hadn't been to see Santa yet, I signed us up. This was the first year they put it on, so I had no idea what to expect.

Well, it was wonderful!! The teens sat us down and served us pancakes and sausage and we could have coffee, orange juice or hot chocolate for dessert. While we were eating, Nora (the leader of the youth group) and some of the teens sang Christmas songs. Then Santa arrived - much to Joey's dismay. He read the kids a story and then sat with each child for a picture and to hear what they wanted. Em went right up and I was so impressed that Alli did too. Alli hasn't gone near Santa willingly since she was about 2 months old. At first, she just wanted to hand Santa her list, but then she ended up sitting on his lap for a picture - I was so excited! Joey wouldn't go near him, which I totally expected since he doesn't even want Santa to visit our house on Christmas Eve. Oh well, maybe next year I'll get a picture with all 3 kids and Santa.








Friday, December 19, 2008

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

Friday morning I woke up to no snow, but several of the school districts had canceled school due to the forecast of a big storm (I was shocked - they rarely cancel school around here when there's snow on the ground). Unfortuantely, Webster wasn't one of them. So, I got the girls on the bus and about an hour later, the snow did start and it just kept snowing and snowing and snowing. I couldn't believe how hard it was coming down. I was just thankful I didn't have anywhere to go.

They ended up canceling afternoon kindergarten in Webster (which didn't affect us at all) and they dismissed school about 15 minutes early. We got over a foot of snow by the time it stopped and they're predicting more for Sunday. At least we should have a white Christmas.












Tuesday, December 16, 2008

25 Things We Love About Christmas

Here are 25 Things We Love About Christmas:

1. Cutting down our Christmas Tree

2. Baking Christmas cookies

3. Eating Christmas cookies

4. Extra time off from work

5. 24 hours a day of Christmas music on warm 101.3

6. Freezing our tushies off at the Webster Christmas parade

7. Frosty the Snowman and other Christmas specials

8. Santa Claus

9. Christmas parties

10. Driving around and seeing everyone's Christmas lights

11. Hot chocolate

12. Getting Christmas cards from friends and family

13. The smell of evergreen

14. Hanging the stockings by the fireplace

15. Getting together with family

16. Advent calendars

17. Decorating our tree

18. Eggnog

19. Decorating the house

20. Putting up the Christmas lights outside

21. Celebrating the birth of Jesus

22. Getting and giving presents

23. Candy canes

24. Coming downstairs on Christmas morning and seeing what Santa brought

25. Leaving out cookies and milk for Santa

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Paul's Company Christmas party

Tonight was Paul's company Christmas party at Shadow Lake. It ended up being a really fun time. They had a casino night after dinner and we each got $1,000 to play with. Gambling is so much more fun when you're not playing with real money (at least for me). Paul and I learned a new game - 3 card poker. The dealers were so nice and took the time to teach you the game and help you along the way. Paul had a lot of luck, me not so much. I moved over to Rhoulette with one of the other wives. I ended up losing all my money, but it was fun.



Paul was recognized for 15 years at Erdman Anthony. I don't know how he does it staying at one company for so long - he used to tell me I got the two year itch. I think the only reason I've been at Bosch for so long is because I'm part-time.



Here's a picture of us before heading out for the night.



Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Fieldtrip to WROC channel 8

Ok, so I'll share a little secret about me (you may or may not already know) - I think of our local news people as celebreties and get excited when I see one of them around town. Paul totally makes fun of me for this, but thankfully I have my mom and my cousin Erin on my side.

So I was very excited (to put it mildly) when one of the mom's in my Daisy troop set up a tour of Channel 8 news for the troop. We were going to be able to watch the 6pm broadcast and meet Scott Hetsko the chief meteorologist.

Watching the broadcast was so interesting - it was amazing to see how many times they fix themselves up during commercial breaks. The girls, unfortunately, didn't find it as interesting. They had to sit still and quiet for over a half hour, which isn't easy for 5 and 6 year olds. They did a good job though. Scott mentioned us on air (except he called us brownies instead of daisys). Afterwards, we the girls got to go up on the set and get a picture with Scott, Maureen & Kevin.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Journal your Christmas - Christmas Cards

I saw this idea on another blog I visit and thought it would be a great way to remember all the little details of the Christmas holiday. She has lots of different prompts for each day of the month and I thought I'd start with Christmas cards since I'm in the midst of that right now.


Sunday, we had our annual photo shoot for the perfect Christmas picture. I gave Em "a talking to" earlier in the morning because lately she's been making grouchy faces in pictures. Thankfully, all 3 of them cooperated and it went pretty smoothly and quickly - it did take a bit of bribing for Joey to sit and smile - lollipops always do the trick.

We got a bunch of good shots. I'm not going to show you the one we chose, don't want to ruin the surprise. :) I ordered the cards through winkflash and just got an email today that they shipped, so I should have them by the end of the week. Then I can start to adress all of them. I have to finish up our annual letter too. I always send one out to the friends/relatives that we don't see often, plus I keep one for our family scrapbook so we can have a little reminder of what we did each year.

I love getting all the cards and letters from friends and family this time of year too. So much more fun than bills and junk mail. I love seeing how big the kids have gotten and what everyone's families are doing.


Saturday, December 6, 2008

Parade of Lights

The Webster Parade of Lights has become an annual tradition for us. It started about 4 or 5 years ago and has gotten bigger every year. Local fire departments will decorate their trucks with Christmas lights and decorations and Santa & Mrs. Claus even make an appearance. Even though we're usually freezing our butts off, we always have fun. It's a great way to start the holiday season and get us in the Christmas mood.

We used to always bump into our old neighbors, the Ramseys while we were there. This year we decided to go together. They invited us over for dinner and then we bundled up and headed into the village. Em & Alli love playing with Elizabeth and Makenzie and Joey has taken quite the liking to Katie.








Sunday, November 30, 2008

November Highlights

Paul's been giving me a hard time that I haven't updated the blog (it has been a while), so I thought I'd do a quick month in review. Nothing too much exciting happened - the kids kept us busy with girl scouts, dance, playdates, etc, but here are some of the highlights:

Paul was able to golf at Oak Hill Country club on the 2nd. He had a great time and loved the course.

On the 8th, Paul and I celebrated our 11th anniversary. It's hard to believe we've been married so long already - that is until I look at wedding pictures and see how young we look. (I'm going to try and remember to post a picture tomorrow).

The 23rd brought us all to a screeching halt when Paul, Alli, Joey and I all got hit with the stomach bug at the same time. That has never happened before, and let me say, I hope it never happens again. Not that it's great when it's dragged out over a week as one person gets it at a time, but Paul and I both being down and out at the same time and having to care for two sick kids was no fun at all! Thank goodness Emily was a wonderful nurse - she took great care of us.

The 23rd was also the first time Emily sang in the cherub choir at church. I was so disappointed to miss it (I was already puking when it was time for church). Paul was feeling lousy, but was able to get her there - we hated for her to miss it. She did an awesome job Paul said. I'm still so sad that I couldn't be there.

Thanksgiving was a family, fun filled day. We had an early dinner at Paul's aunt's and then headed over to my aunt & uncle's for dessert - we got their just as they were eating though, so we ended up eating again and then having dessert. Boy was I stuffed. I joined Weight Watchers at work and I'm guessing next week's weigh in won't be pretty lol.

Friday the 27th, Paul and I went out to dinner with two of my close friends from college - Pete & Michelle. It was great to see them and catch up. We haven't been able to get together in over a year (maybe even longer).

On Saturday the 28th, we cut down our Christmas tree. I love this tradition. This year we went to Bauman Farms and got a beautiful tree. It was a great day for it - chilly, but not freezing. Afterwards we had everyone back to our house for a late lunch - of course, we had the traditional one pot dinner. Mom & Dad Presutti, Katie, Mom & Dad Farrell, Kris, Aidan and Brian all joined us this year. Later in the evening, Paul, the kids and I had fun decorating the tree, listening to Christmas music and drinking egg nog. I just love this time of year.

Friday, October 31, 2008

Happy Halloween

What a great night for trick or treating - the weather was absolutely beautiful - especially after having snow earlier this week.

We carved our pumpkins this afternoon, since we didn't have a chance to do it all week. We usually will carve them at least the night before Halloween, but I swear we had something going on every night this week. The timing was actually perfect though - it gave the kids something to concentrate on while they waited to go trick or treating. Here are our masterpieces :)



Poor Alli was sick today - she even stayed home from school. She has this nasty cough and has been running a slight fever. We gave her some medicine so she could at least do a little trick or treating.
This year, Emily dressed up as a devil, Alli as a black cat and Joey as Elmo (the girls wanted this). They all looked so cute. I guess Joey had quite a bit of sugar even before trick or treating - that boy was on a sugar high and was just running around in circles whenever I tried to get his picture. It was actually pretty funny.





The kids made out pretty well with the candy. It was so cute, Em & Alli dumped it out and went through it when they got home - I totally remember doing that as a kid.
Hope everyone had a Happy & safe Halloween.