TWO Superstars

Last week both girls came home with a note from their teachers stating they had been chosen to be the class Star of the Week. I can't even describe the excitement level in our house that day!

Gia's school does a one day 'make the kid feel super special' thing. The star student has to bring in a poster about themselves, and an item for show and tell. Oh, and lest I forget, they get to be the line leader for the day. Now that's pretty darn important when you're 4!

Here she is with her poster...

She chose which pictures to use and what to write, and even wrote most of the words herself. Did I mention she's only 4?!

Tia's school makes the entire week a big deal.
On Monday she got to bring in a sharing bag full of things from home to tell the class about.
Tuesday she had to bring in her favorite book from home and the teacher read it to the class during circle time.
Wednesday the teacher read a letter from Mom to the class. I hand wrote the letter so I don't have a copy of it but will ask the teacher to send it back home so we can save it!
Thursday I got to go have lunch with her at school. She was so proud. When she was shoving her lunch in her face, I told her she could slow down and that she had plenty of time. Her response was "I have to leave time for kissing!". She's a kisser, my little 6 year old, and she doesn't care who's watching!

Here she is on day one of her week of being a star...

I'm the proud Mama of not one, but TWO superstars at school.
Great childhood memories in the making.

The Best Way to Ring in the New Year

This year we tried something a little different for New Year's Eve.
We started out the day by going to Navy Pier in Chicago for our annual trip to Winter Wonder Fest. We go every year, but usually before Christmas. Boy have we been doing it all wrong! Going after Christmas meant no lines, no crowds, no waiting! It was our best year yet. We went on ALL the rides at least once before lunch.
The best quote of the day was from Tia who said...
"My three favorite places to go are Disney World, Winter Wonder Fest, and Nonna's house". I'm pretty sure that means she had a good time!

And here's a little video clip of the kids and D.R. on the Tilt a Whirl. It was while taking this video that I realized how easily I get motion sick!

After spending the better part of the day there, and doing everything there was to do, we headed for home. We were shocked to find there was NO TRAFFIC. How can that be? We've been stuck in rush hour traffic at 2pm. on a Sunday before, so this was such a nice surprise.

Once home we started our new family tradition of having a sushi making party. The kids love to make sushi rice and help Daddy with all the preparations...

The expert

The apprentices

After eating way too much fish and sushi, we all got in our pajamas and had a camp out on the family room floor. We had done that last year and they both remembered it, so of course we had to do it again this year!

OK, I have to admit I wimped out and went up to my own bed just before midnight. I'm the only one in my family who can not sleep on the floor!

So this is how our family does New Year's Eve.
We hope you had a safe and healthy holiday.

Happy New Year!

The Voice of Reason

I've been having some pretty cool conversations with my kids lately and they remind me that they're growing up. It's cute and scary all at the same time.

Here's one of my favorites...

Tia told me that Daddy told her when she gets older, someone might try to offer her a cigarette, and how she should handle that situation.
Of course me being a crazy animated mom, I said "Oh, if someone tries to give you a cigarette you say 'Eww, gross, are you crazy?! I don't smoke, that's disgusting!'"

Tia remained calm and looked at me with her wise eyes and responded "Or, I could just say 'no thanks', and walk away".


Simple, yet effective.  She's wise beyond her years.

The Final Fling of Summer Fun!

I've been having mixed emotions about Tia heading off to kindergarten tomorrow, mostly because she won't be home with me ever again after this!  I know, I'm a drama queen but think about it.  She'll be in school full time for at least the next 13 years, and hopefully there's college after that.

Because of that realization, we started a new tradition in our family today.  I decided that since it's the last day before school starts, we should have a "fun day" to celebrate.  We started the day off with some bowling.  The kids have been asking to go all summer and we just never got around to it.  We can NOT start out the school year with regrets!  We had the best time.  SO much fun.

Ready to Roll!

Knock 'em down Tia

With Cousin Jennifer

Tia wants to know if she can buy bowling shoes to keep at home because they're so comfortable.  Can you imagine!?

Then we headed off to lunch at Famous Dave's  for some awesome BBQ.  Yumm-Oh!

Gia thinks everything is a photo op

After lunch we went shopping to pick out hats for Disney.  Well, we really went shopping to walk off our lunch, but bought hats while we were there.  Did I mention how awesome that lunch was?

And then, of COURSE, no summer day would be complete without ice cream.

LOVE those blue eyes

Ice cream faces are so kissable!

It really was a fantastic fun day, and a great start to a new tradition.  Tia's already asking what we'll do for next year.  I think that means this idea was a big hit.

Happy Back to School everybody!

The Tooth Fairy Has Arrived!

Tia has been waiting for weeks for her little front baby tooth to fall out.  She woke up very early yesterday morning and announced that she was going to 'work on this tooth for a while'.  Sure enough, she got it out!  She was so excited.
Here she is, missing the tooth...

Cheeeeeese!

The 'tooth fairy' has been prepared for this moment for a while.  The only concern was getting caught.  Luckily Tia is a very sound sleeper and slept through the exchange.  Here's what she got, along with a few coins...

Pencils and Markers

This is such a big, exciting day in our family.  Tia has informed us "I'm not a little girl anymore".

Can I go cry now?  My baby.  My first born.  *sigh*  Not a baby anymore.

All About Gia

Lately Gia has been asking for a short hair cut.  If you know anything about this child, you know she is determined, and strong willed to say the least.  We tried to gently talk her out of it, to no avail.
I figure it's only hair, it'll grow back, no big deal, and off to the hairdresser we go.

You should have seen her, my big girl, hopping up in that chair telling the hairdresser (Christi) exactly what she wanted.  Even Christi, who was a bit nervous about it, said "how about we just cut this much".  Nope, Gia wouldn't have it.  She wanted it "short!".

OK then, deep breath, here we go!

She was so proud, giggling the whole time.  She loved it, except one thing...we quickly realized that some how Gia thought her hair would be straight when it was done.  She kept saying "it needs more brushing" and "I don't like my plume".  Her plume is the big curl in the front of her hair.  Oh boy!  What do we do now?  I explained to her that there was really no way we could get rid of her curl in the front, except by putting a barrette in her hair.  Then she was fine, phew!

after

I should mention that the hubby is NOT happy about this new do.  You know how guys are about long hair, especially on their daughters.  All I can say is hey, it's only hair.  It's going to grow back fast because her hair always grows like a weed!  And, she's just as cute with short hair as she was with long hair.  She's a little princess.
Then, as if she wasn't already growing up way too fast, yesterday was her first school field trip!  I can't believe my baby is old enough to have a field trip.
Look how cute she was at the bowling alley...

I love those tiny bowling shoes!

Daddy was there to help

Just so precious.  When did my baby grow up?  Where did the time go?
These are precious moments.

Oh, The Things Tia Says!

Tia has been coming up with some real doozies lately.  Here's a sampling.

After reading a book about a naughty little boy who disobeys his parents she says to me with the most concernet look on her face...

"I want to know what's wrong with that kid!"

After a day of far too much whining and crying from baby sister, Tia says...

"Mom, I prayed last night that Gia wouldn't wake up with that grumpy face."

Upon seeing that we had some wet snow today, when it's supposed to be spring...

"Maybe God fell asleep and his weather wand went the wrong way, from spring to snow"


She's brilliant, I tell you!

Oh...The Things Gia Says!

I know I've said it before, but this kid cracks me up.  Here are a few of the things that had me laughing this week.

Gia: Mom, why was Daddy your boyfriend first?
Me: Well, that's usually how it works.  First you get a boyfriend, and then he becomes your husband.
Gia: (big smile on her face)  I think one day I'll get a boyfriend too!

**Keep in mind, she isn't 4 years old yet!**

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gia:  Mom!  You scratched me!
Me:  Oh, sorry, that was my ring.
Gia:  We better tell Daddy to get you a smaller ring.
Me:  Well, I like my ring.
Gia: But it hurts me!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gia: Daddy, you know you have to get Mom a smaller ring.  Hers scratches me.
D.R.: Oh no!  Well, when you grow up and meet a nice boy maybe he'll get you a ring like that.
Gia:  Daddy, that boy will be YOU!
Me: Hey, if you marry Daddy, what will I do?
Gia: You can be the babysitter.

**I so fondly remember when Tia went through this phase.  Little girls are so sweet**

Happy St. Patrick's Day

We're not at all Irish and have never celebrated St. Patrick's Day.  However, the girls are learning about it in school so I figured we had to do something!  I was ill prepared, but a little food coloring goes a long way.  The girls started the day with a nice bowl of green apple sauce.
















They insisted that it tasted like lime or mint.  Try explaining to two preschoolers that food coloring doesn't have a flavor!
Then of course I had to make green pancakes, because I'm crazy like that.  Ahh, nothing like a little  food coloring for breakfast.  I wonder if there have been any studies on the lasting side effects of food dyes.  Nah.

Both girls wore the only green shirts they have.  They are girls after all so most of their clothes are pink and puple!  I never got a pic of Tia in hers, but here is Gia...

She was so proud of her giant green head band for "safe patriss day".

That's the extent of our celebration.  We hope you had a great St. Patrick's Day!

Gia's Wise Words

My husband and I joke that living with Gia is like living with a grown up in a kid sized body. She talks like a much older and wiser person, not a 3 year old. Here are some of the things she has said lately that have sort of freaked me out a little...

On our way home from Michigan Gia was asking what each of the water towers say. Each town has their own water tower and she likes to know what the names printed on them are. When we told her that the tower said "Schaumburg" her response was "Oh yeah, that's where I used to live when I was older". D.R. explained that she has never lived anywhere but the house we live in now. She adamantly said "NO, I mean when I was a grown up lady. I lived in Schaumburg. I had a cat and a dog. Then I went to heaven. That was before I came to live with you!". D.R. and I just looked at each other in a bit of shock, not sure what to say to that. I never really thought much about past lives, but this kid sure has me thinking about it now!

Gia has recently informed us that when she grows up she will have a husband and two babies. She says she will have a boy and a girl. She's been such a tom boy up to this point that it's so cute to hear her talk about life as a mommy. Then the other day she came to me with such a serious look on her face and said "Mommy, will you come live with me at my house when I get older?". I asked "Why do you want Mommy to come live with you?". Her response was a sincere "Well, when I have my two babies, I think you should come stay with me at my house and help me take care of them". I told her that nothing would make me happier than to help her with her babies, then I had to hold back about a million giggles because SHE IS ONLY THREE! What the heck is going on in this kids head? I just had to document that conversation because in 25 years I may be looking back at this and saying "Wow, she was right".

The other day I was vacuuming the upstairs. Like a cat upon hearing the can opener, Gia runs when she hears the vacuum. She likes to 'help'. It's not easy to vacuum when you have a tiny person holding onto the handle. In my head I'm thinking these thoughts..."I am just like my mother..I remember her not wanting me to help when I was little because it was too time consuming...now here I am going through the same thing with my daughter...now I know how my mom felt when I wanted to help...". When we were finished, I turned off the vacuum and Gia looked at me and said "You're just like your mother". Then she walked away leaving me standing there, stunned for a moment. Now she has me wondering if she can read my mind. I better be careful of what I think around her!

Gia Says the Darndest Things!

In recent weeks, Gia has been pretty much obsessed by Jim Croce. Keep in mind that this is a folk singer who died when I was younger than she is now! I put the CD on a while ago and she has been stuck on Jim ever since. She just turned 3 but she knows the words to most of the songs and sings along joyfully. However, as most people do, she sometimes gets a word or two wrong. When the words are "living in L.A.", Gia sings "swimmin' in a lake"! I have to crack up every time.

Sometimes it's really neat to get a glimpse of what's going on in a kids' head. I never knew until the other day that Gia has been thinking my sister had a baby. My sister has a grandson, who we see whenever we're in town. I never imagined that Gia thought the baby belonged to my sister. She was talking about "Baby Angelo" the other day and D.R. asked her "Whose baby is he?". Sure enough, she answered "Aunt Kimmie". The best part of the story is when he asked her "Who is the baby's father?" and she answered, very confidently "Thomas!". Um, that's my sister's oldest son, so that's not really possible. We cracked up and then of course explained to her that she had it all wrong. I just think it's cute that all this time she had the whole thing figured out in her head, and we had no idea!


Here they are with their cousin Angelo, and his REAL mother!

Raising a Strong Woman

Because of Tia's shy personality, I've been concerned for some time now that she would end up being a 'follower'. In addition to being shy, she allows her baby sister to boss her around and she really looks up to older kids. I've discussed these things with my husband many times. We've talked about how we can raise strong girls who won't fall into the wrong crowd and just try to fit in. I know it seems strange to be thinking of this at such a young age, but personality is set very early on in life.

Well, yesterday this shy girl set me straight and made me very proud! She was playing with a couple of new (much older) friends we just met from down the street. All of a sudden I hear Tia raise her voice and say, with finger pointed "That's a naughty word. My Mom told me not to say that because it's naughty!". D.R. and I were beaming! She stood up for herself and wasn't afraid to express what she knew to be right. Victory! Later, when we all came inside, I asked Tia what the naughty word was. She said "Stupid! My friend said stupid and I told her it wasn't nice to say that!". Of course I told her I was so very proud of her and that she showed me she is a strong girl. She said "Yup, check out my muscles!". That's my girl.

Happy Mother's Day

There they are, my sweet Mother's Day gifts, the only ones I will ever need. Of course, I got some material gifts...flowers, a new coffee machine, etc. But I'm a firm believer that the best things in life are free. That was confirmed for me today.

We went out to lunch and the girls each got a balloon. Tia carefully picked the pink one that matched her dress perfectly. She was so proud of that balloon. When we got home she ran up to the porch and then suddenly turned around, looked at me, and said "Mom, I think I want to let my balloon go up to heaven, then Mema can have it". Whoa! She didn't say up in the sky, she actually said she wanted to let it go to heaven. I started to tear up.
I had actually been thinking about my Mom today, and how this is our first Mother's day without her, but I kept it to myself. I'm glad Tia was thinking about her too and had the wisdom not to keep it inside.
So, we stood in the yard and let the balloon go. Tia yelled at the top of her lungs "Here you go Mema! Happy Mother's Day!!". We watched it float up until we couldn't see it anymore. I told Tia that I thought Mema was saying 'thank you for the balloon'. She looked up to the sky and yelled "You're welcome Mema!".
That moment was the best Mother's Day gift I could ever receive. The wisdom of children is a wondrous thing.

Happy Mother's Day to all the great Moms out there.

Great conversations with Tia

I think it's ridiculous that at my age I still get acne, but sadly, it happens occasionally. Yesterday Tia wanted to know what the bump on my face was...

Tia: Mom, you have a boo boo on your face? What's that bump?
Me: That's called a pimple. Hopefully it will go away soon.
Tia: Is it a boo boo, do you need medicine and a Band Aid?
Me: No, it's just a pimple, that happens sometimes.
You know, you'll get pimples on your face some day too.
Tia: Mom, we REALLY need to talk about this!

She had such a look of concern on her face, it was priceless! I think acne may interfere with her career as a super model.

Tia is a chronic breath holder. She inhales, holds it for several seconds, then lets out a gasp. It seems to bother me more than it bothers her. Yesterday she put me in my place...

Me: Tia, please stop holding your breath.
Tia: Mom, I'm fine. I like holding my breath.
Me: It's not good for your body.
Tia: MOM! I have all the air I need!

She cracks me up and the older she gets, the better the conversations are.

My Fashion Consultant

There she is, my new fashion consultant and adviser. At the age of 4, Tia has recently become very interested in fashion. I let her watch one episode of "What Not To Wear" and since then, she's been talking a lot about things like "putting things together" and "matching". She was so proud of this outfit because of all the pieces of hot pink (boots, shirt, sweater, head band).

The other day I went shopping and bought two new sweaters for myself. When I got home Tia immediately wanted to see what I bought. She laid the sweaters out on the couch so she could take a good look at them. A few days later, while getting ready to go to a play group she said "Mom, I think you should wear your new orange sweater with those black pants". Once I was all dressed and ready to go, she touched my face and said "Mom, you look so beautiful. I'm so proud of you". Yep, that's my 4 year old fashion adviser. She's not going to let me be one of those mom's who let themselves go. Not my kid!

A Quick Laugh

The other day Tia and I watched an episode of "What Not To Wear". She must have really been listening because today she said "Fashion is about putting things together that match". Then, she picked out this outfit!

Everything she put on is purple. However, Im not sure the fashion experts would agree that it matches!

Yesterday, the girls got a package from Nonna and PaPa in NY. The box was sitting on the kitchen floor and this is how we found Gia just before bath time. We thought maybe we could stamp 'Return to Sender' on the box and she could go to NY for a visit!

Gia the Talker

Almost daily someone asks me how old Gia is. She will be 3 in April. She talks like an 8 year old. There isn't a thing she can't say, and she's not afraid to say it all! Some days I think she never stops. Even when she's supposed to be napping, I hear her on the monitor talking to her teddy bear. In fact, last week Tia came to me and whispered that she was going to play in her room. She told Gia she was going to lay down. I'm pretty sure she just needed a break from the constant chatter of her sister. I later checked on her and sure enough, she was playing quietly in her room with Barbie's, surely enjoying the quiet.
Gia started a class this week for 2 year olds (Shame on me, no pictures!). She really enjoys it, and the other parents enjoy listening to her (I hope). They have all asked me to clarify how old she is. I quickly realized that none of the other kids in the class can talk like Gia. I'm not bragging, I'm wondering what the heck I'm in for!

Here are some of the things she says that have had me cracking up over the past few days:

We were walking down the hall at school where there was a poster with Elmo and Zoe from Sesame Street. I said "Look Gia, those are your friends". Her quick response was "No, they're not my friends at all Mom. You're my best friend, forever!".

On the first day of class, Gia noticed cubbies and hooks in the hall and asked "Mom, can I hang my coat on the hooker?". I thought I'd fall off my seat at that one!

At play group she sat next to another Mom, not caring where I was, and proceeded to tell this stranger "When I turn 3, my birthday is in April, I'm gonna' have a party with all my friends and Mommy will get me a Strawberry Shortcake cake. It's gonna' be a party". Naturally the mom came over to tell me how delightful Gia is, and ask how old she is!

This morning Gia woke up, came to me for a big hug and said "Mommy, I'm going to be your baby all the time, every day, forever". Now that's music to my ears!

Later in the morning I asked her if she'd like to watch a movie on the big TV upstairs while I took a shower. Her answer was "Is it Blu-Ray?". Seriously?

I promise to get pictures of her at "school" next week.

More funny stuff

My kids are still cracking me up every day. These are so funny, I just had to write them down!

* Gia tells me she doesn't want to take a nap. I explain that everyone takes a nap, even Mommy, Daddy, and Santa. She gets a look of disgust on her face and says "NO! He's not sleeping, he's at the MALL!". I guess she told me.

* Yesterday I'm trying to tell D.R. a story..."There's a lady in my playgroup whose name is Gia...". Gia comes running into the room and yells "Hey, I am NOT a lady!". Good to know. Also good to keep in mind that she is listening, even when we think she's not.

* I was making up a song and singing to the girls before bed..."I love my family, we live in harmony...". Tia says "Mom, we live in Huntley". Glad she knows that important piece of information!

That's all for now. I'm sure there will be more very soon!

The Magic of Sesame Street

The other day, out of the blue, Tia counted to 10 in Spanish. Sadly, I was not the one who taught her this! I believe she learned it from Sesame Street videos. Regardless of where she picked it up, I'm so proud of her accomplishment. What a great skill to have!
Now that I see how well she grasps language, I'll do my best to continue to teach her more.
Hooray for Sesame Street!

Angels Watchin' Over Me

Today I was out in the yard pulling weeds, and the kids were playing on the swings. Quite literally out of the blue, Gia said "Angels Mom, Angels!". I just said "oh, what are you talking about angels for?". Her response sent shivers up my spine and almost brought me to tears. She said "Mema sent them Mom, Angels!". (Wow).
I very calmy said "oh, Mema sent angels? What did she send them for?". And her response was "she sent them for ME. Next to me Mom". (Whoa).

I've always believed that small children can see things that we can't. They have innocent eyes, unclouded by public opinion. Everyone has their own thoughts on this subject but I believe she saw angels, and that her Mema sent them for her. If my 2 year old tells me that an angel is next to her, I have no choice but to believe her. I take comfort in knowing that my Mom is still watching over our family, and even pulled in some reinforcements by sending some of her angel friends.

Today my Mom was with us in our garden. She is always with us in our hearts.