Caught Red-handed!

Mommy patrol caught a little chip thief in the early hours of the morning. The thief didn't make it very far before settling in to a nearby Elmo chair to watch a Sesame Street re-run. When brought in for questioning, it became evident that the little chip thief learned such behavior from her father. She was released on bail when she agreed to a healthier alternative.

New Year's Lentil Bash

Please forgive me for yet another late post. Our friends Fran and Grace Mastropietro hosted another New Year's lentil bash this year. Eating lentils between Christmas and New Year's Day is supposed to ensure good luck for the coming year. So, I hope everyone ate their lentils - we sue did (including Isabella who loves lentils) and they were indeed delicious. I personally love going to Fran and Grace's for a meal because I get my fill of artichokes, roasted peppers, and mushrooms - all items which my dear husband doesn't enjoy. Needless to say, we never have them at home. But I guess that makes me appreciate them more on the rare occasions that I do get to enjoy them - like at Fran and Grace's!

Happy Birthday, Papa!

Happy Birthday! Wishing you many more years of health and happiness.

Happy New Year

We celebrated the New Year by going to our new favorite Mexican Restaurant in High Bridge, NJ with our good friends, The Graff's and The Kraus'. We arrived at the venue just in time for "kiddie hour" which is the term Dave coined to describe the time just before the regular meal crowd arrives. In other words, not only did we beat the rush, but we didn't have to worry about disturbing other patrons who may not be so accommodating of toddlers. I do have to say, though, that Isabella, Ryan, and Katie were on their best behavior, enjoying each other and the ambiance. Wishing everyone a blessed New Year. One of my resolution was to improve the timeliness of the blog posts - ha ha - as you can see it is January 18th and I am just getting to New Year's Eve! There always seems to be some other matter vying for my attention ;)

Happy Birthday, Dave!

Dave celebrated a very special birthday in December. With the help of his family and friends, I was able to pull off a surprise party for him during our trip to Maryland. Truth be told, if you know my husband, then you know he is the perfect candidate for a surprise party. It's not that he's aloof, he's just super flexible. Anyway, Dave loves Mexican food and so we celebrated the occasion with a Mexican fiesta. Some family and friends traveled a far distance to be part of the celebration and for that we are very grateful. Isabella enjoyed playing with her cousins and friends. Her stomach was miraculously cured that day as evidenced by her guacamole and birthday cake intake.

Visit to Maryland

We traveled to see Dave's family in Maryland and Isabella enjoyed her time with Mom Mom and Pop Pop. Dave took her for walks on the farm as it was a mild 60 degrees down there. Certainly Isabella will have even more fun exploring Mom Mom and Pop Pops 20 acre farm during our Spring and Summer visits. Maybe Pop Pop will even let her pick some blueberries and eggplant this year. Having been at the tail end of her stomach bug, Isabella wasn't up for enjoying most foods. However, Mom Mom was nice enough to send us home with her own jarred applesauce, peaches, and pickles. We always enjoy our visits to Maryland because they are very relaxing and indeed like a vacation. Dave's mom makes a hearty breakfast every morning - she makes the most delicious scrambled eggs. What's her secret? Let's just say that it's all in the butter!

Christmas 2008

These are some pictures from Christmas Eve at Grandma and Grandpa's house this year. We enjoyed seeing our extended family and Isabella got to spend time with her cousin Kayla (2 y/o). Aunt Pat gave Isabella and Kayla the same dress this year to wear for the holiday and they really looked like twins. We kept having to do double takes to figure out who was who. Isabella and Kayla had fun running amok and dancing and singing karaoke. Unfortunately for them, Dave monopolized the microphone like he does every year, thinking that he was Johnny Cash. The rest of us new better, except for Nana, who is truly Dave's biggest fan. Dave was simply gearing up for Mass as he was happy to play trumpet at all of the Christmas Masses for our local parish this year.

Regretfully, we had to cancel our company for Christmas day as we were all pretty sick with a stomach flu. Thankfully, we are healthy now and look forward to hosting Fran and Grace sometime soon.

We hope that everyone had a joyous and peaceful Christmas this year.

Message of December 25, 2008

"Dear children! You are running, working, gathering – but without
blessing. You are not praying! Today I call you to stop in front of
the manger and to meditate on Jesus, Whom I give to you today also, to
bless you and to help you to comprehend that, without Him, you have no
future. Therefore, little children, surrender your lives into the
hands of Jesus, for Him to lead you and protect you from every evil.
Thank you for having responded to my call."