early to bed, early to rise...

unfortunately this is not a saying that generally comes with much choice for me. no matter how hard i try i just cant seem to figure out how to make 420am come any later!!
i didnt work today but fridays are my days to schedule dr. appts or plan for any other randomness that i can get done in the morning and today was tuscan's 2 year check up. poor little guy had to get a shot today but he took it like a champ...only cried until the nurse walked out of the room, then he was fine - but he also knew that his blankie was waiting for him in the car! he sure is getting big though...a smidge over 29lbs and 34.5in. tall...he was in the 50% for height and weight but his head circumfrance is still holding strong in the 95% - what can i say, my babe has a big brain!!
then i hit the jackpot at the grocery store today...stopped in to pick up baby food, a regular occurance considering we go through a minimum of 3 jars a day. and to my surprise there was a whole shelf of organic baby food marked down - not even close to expiration dates - my guess was for new label designs... 38 cents a jar...i was filling my cart! i must have bought close to 60 or so jars because i ended up spending about $25 on baby food!! sadly though, 60 jars of baby food will only get us through about 2 and half weeks!! i may go back tomorrow and see if there is anything left beause there is no better place for it then the cabinet in my kitchen!!
but like i said, 420 comes way to early...so here it is 920 pm and i am heading to bed with a good book, which im sure will only last about 15 minutes before the words start blurring together!! have a blessed weekend!

the mystery...

i have to guess that for many months now most of you have wondered how in the world i can take care of two babies, the same age, at the same time...by myself...(frank does this pretty well to, but in his own way!)
every night both the boys get fed their bottles at the same time so that i can get them both to bed at the same time (and because they both seem to demand them that way!!) fortunately tuscan is such a good boy because this could be really tough if i had to keep an eye on him too...but he is generally watching his evening dose of sesame street and curious george by this time or if we are in the nursery he will sit down and read a book or dance to the babies bedtime music...anyway...
feeding a baby their bottle (or nursing, which is even better) is one of the most amazing and intimate ways to bond with your little one. you are providing them with something that they so desperately need and the way they gaze into your eyes as they are sucking away just shows you how much they appreciate you. so i try my best to hold both of them during their nighttime feeding so that they both get the same level of love and connection. obviously holding them both in my arms (along with two bottles) is totally impossible so i sit indian style and lay one baby in my legs and hold the other one in my arms. halfway through, after they burp, i switch them around - have to keep it fair, dont want the fighting to start to early!!



so i finally got a picture of it and i thought i would share!




bet ya never knew the real reasons behind why we were born with so many limbs!! God created all things for a purpose and never in my wildest dreams would i have imagined this would be my purpose for 2 arms and 2 legs!! i truly am more and more blessed everyday!

always in amazement...

no matter how crazy my days can be, they almost always end on such a good note. bedtime can get pretty crazy around here sometimes, its the time of day when everyone "needs" me and i try my best to be 3 mommies to 3 precious boys. sometimes it works with little stress and sometimes it doesnt. tonight wasnt too bad though. tuscan and i watched curious george while i fed the babies and vincezo (go figure - he is my curious george!) decided that bedtime was over rated tonight. matteo went to bed with little fussing, but vincenzo decided that he wanted to be a part of tuscan's bedtime story. fortunately tuscan was feeling generous tonight and was willing to let his baby brother in his bed for story time. both boys listened patiently as i read to them baby einstein shapes and colors and when the story was over tuscan tried insisting that vincenzo sleep in his bed with him tonight!! of course it was a request i had to say no to, but it was just so cute to see tuscan cover his baby brother up with his "nie" (tuscans blankie) and kiss his cheek and lay next to him with his arm drapped over his belly. if i'd felt safe to leave the two of them alone in the bed i would have grabbed the camera, but i wasnt sure how long the generosity would last...tuscan was pretty tired and being kind of silly!
but its moments like tonight that make me feel so grateful to have 3 gorgeous boys that are so rediculously close in age. watching their relationships develop over the years i think is going to be the most rewarding aspect to being their mother. i love my boys more and more everyday! i am so blessed...

a recap of our weekend...

what a busy last few days...3 of which i actually was able to spend with frank!! he had off sunday, monday and today...and monday was actually a paid holiday!! and we truly enjoyed our time...

sunday franks dad came over to help frank repair our basement walls. (i wanted to get a picture but it was so dusty down there i tried to avoid it!) it was some very good father/son time for both of them. frank and i had started the day by taking the 3 boys to lowe's to get some stuff that we needed around the house, (closet doors and trim for the twins room, white picket fence for the backyard, flowers, a new hose...etc) then we had a nice visit with his brother dom and his fiance dana, two of franks aunts stopped by and then it was time to work. he and his dad we in the basement together for about 3 hours, and hopefully all they work they did will prevent the water from flowing through our walls!! when the work was done we had a tasty dinner of homemade potato salad and homemade burgers...delicious!! and then grandpa frank was able to spend some very quality time with his grandsons, two of which he had just met for the first time!! tuscan had so much fun playing with him, showing him all of his favorite things to do (like golf!) they were able to share before bed tv time together and a night time story...it was really cute to see how attached tuscan became in such a short time! we hope that it might encourage grandpa frank to visit more than once a year!!

monday was such a great day too!! i worked a few hours in the morning and planted the rest of my flowers when i got home, frank got the lawn cut and then we packed up and headed out to darien lake (our six flags for those of u who may not know) it was the first time we have ever taken tuscan anywhere like that and he really had such an amazing time. we went with our good friends from church, matt bridget, zach and chase (tuscans best friend!) the babies were so well behaved, the bigger kids had such a good time and the even bigger kids enjoyed themselves too (frank and matt!!) then we enjoyed some much needed "friend time" over pizza and wings at their house. it was a perfect addition to our weekend together.

today wasnt quite as fun, but it was a good day none the less...we picked up our new crib from our pastors house...he and his wife graciously offered us their crib when they heard about the predicament we were in and we were more than grateful to have it. ill be spending the next week getting it primed and painted, but right now the big decision is white or the darker green?? opinions are greatly appreciated!!

but we also spent the whole day cleaning the house and felt so much accomplishment when we were done. we of course didnt get done all that we wanted, but it was enough for one day. so now we are going to finish our 3 day "vacation" watching the end of a movie that we started last week tuesday!

and the boys were having a great time tonight chatting with each other in their jumparoo's!! seeing them talk to each other may be the cutest thing i have ever seen babies do!

is it for real??

so i think spring may have officially sprung...finally! just a few days ago we had a high of 50's and today it was finally much nicer, i think we can finally turn the furnace off until halloween!
the kids and i ventured out to north java...about a 45 minute ride to go to our cousin cole daniel's first birthday party. it was so nice to be out and about and on such a gorgeous day. frank of course was unable to join us, it never fails, he can never make it to his own family functions! but it was nice to get out and share my kids with other members of the family and get a little break myself. tuscan was in his glory, playing outside ALL day, running around with girls, swinging on the swing, rolling around on a big ball, playing the sandbox and playing with puppies! a little boys dream come true!
unfortunately i forgot my camera, so i dont have any pics for the day...but if i get any from anyone else i will be sure to post one!
after 4 hours of fresh air on a day that started at 423am for me, i am ready for bed. as much as i would love to scrapbook until frank gets home and cuddle on the couch with him to finish a movie we started tuesday night...the reality of it is, its saturday, there is no guarentee that he will be home anywhere near a reasonable hour and i dont think i could keep myself awake if i tried...so it might just be a good night to crawl into bed with a cup of tea and a good book and read until the words start to get blurry!!
hope everyone has an amazing memorial day weekend and remember, its because of the men and women in the US military that we have the freedom to celebrate these patriotic holidays so keep them in your prayers this weekend as you grill your hotdogs and eat your watermelon. you get to enjoy this weekend because they are out there fighting for you, we all to often take that for granted...god bless the USA!!

some days...

some day are definitely better than others...i had a great day with the kids today, no major drama. cenzo cried for a while before bed but once everyone else was where they needed to be, he and i had some one on one time on the couch and he fell sound asleep in my arms. it was such an amazing feeling, having two babies at the same time, i havent really had many moments like that this time around and i definitely miss it! i try my best to spend at least 20 minutes everyday devoted to just one precious baby at a time, but it doesnt always work out. so when i have an opportunity like the one i had tonight i feel extra blessed!
but today was just one of those days...you know, we all have them..the kind of day when you start questioning the choices you have made in your life...my question this week has been whether or not we moved home from colorado for the right reasons. i dont know if i am just feeling "colorado homesick" because i know kellie is there this week and i so terribly miss her as it is...but i do know that frank and i decided to come home because we wanted to have a baby and we wanted to be able to share that time in our lives with our family. but over the last 3 years home we have realized that sometimes family isnt all its cracked up to be. everyone we left behind when we ventured out into the great unknown has obviously since moved on with their own lives and here we are, sometimes trying to figure out where we fit in. holidays are great because we get to see everyone, but other than that...lives are just to busy - and yes, we fall into that busy category too but in a different way. frank and i never get much time together, which in many ways makes us feel busy. we are both always trying to maintain life with our three kids, sort of as single parents...its not very often that we get to spend family time together so when we do its even harder to try and decide how to spend that time!!
but i think what has made me miss colorado so much lately is not only the time of year (spring in colorado was amazing) but the fact that our friends out there are all in the same place in life as we are, starting and raising their families. having three kids im sure most of u can imagine how it is just easier for us to spend time with other people that have kids...people with their own kids tend to have more patients spending time with someone elses and we feel like less of an inconvenience that way.
i guess what im getting at is that i just feel so lonely lately. its truly impossible for me to get out and do stuff with the boys all by myself at this point and being at home with them nearly 6 days a week and trying to keep up with the housework and trying to create dinners that tuscan not only likes but also fall into the category of being nutricious....it definitely catches up with me some days...and that turns into days like today, days when i get sad to hear about all the fun stuff people around me are doing, things i used to be able to do too...days when i feel so left out of my own life. dont get me wrong, i love being a mother more than anything in this whole world and i wouldnt trade it for anything...i just wish there were more people in my life that i could share the experience with.
i think i can honestly say that if colorado was half the distance away...we never would have left! they way i miss my "colorado family" is so comparable to the way i still miss my real family. does life ever slow down?? will anyone ever have time for a visit or to lend a helping hand, some true and quality time to just be? my prayer for everyone who reads this is that you find the time for "family" the way that a family should be...
god speed to all and many blessings for this memorial day weekend!
ps-thanks for letting me vent, i just need that sometimes!!

he is his fathers son...

and a complete clown just like him too!! i have recently discovered the best way to get all three kids bathed and ready for bed in half an hour...i fill up the infant tub in the big bath tub for the babies, i fill up the big bath tub for tuscan...this gives him a chance to play longer in the bath and to actually take a bath with his brothers, one at a time of course!! (im not that good yet!) and it just gives me a great opportunity to multitask and enjoy some down time with the kids. so on nights that everyone needs a bath thats what we do!! ( ill try to get a pic of that sometime soon, its too cute!)

so anyway, after bathtime tonight, i was getting everyone diapered and dressed and i asked tuscan to get me some bibs for the babies, my attempt at keeping their jammies dry for the half hour duration until they were going to bed!! so tuscan, being the clown that he is, walks over to the basket of bibs and grabs one out, hands it to me saying "me, me..." and pointing to himself, indicating that he wanted to wear the bib...now keep in mind he did not yet have his jammies on, just his diaper...so i put the bib on him and he knew he looked silly but he actually let me grab the camera to take a picture of him...so here it is!

anywho - tomorrow starts another weekend of garage sales...there is a few things going on this weekend but i hope to sneak out in the morning to at least do a few drivebys in search for a crib! wish me luck...and say a few extra prayers that this weather warms up a little bit, it is memorial day weekend for crying out loud!! time to pack away the winter coats!

milestones by:matteo

when we went to the pediatrician the other day we were told that at this point it is never to soon to introduce the sippy cup...so i thought what the heck, why not!! i bought a new cup for the boys to try out, i wasnt sure how tuscan would react if he saw them drinking out of one of his cups...hes kind of possesive about his belongings unless he is sharing them on his terms...but i put some watered down juice in the new cup on monday and matteo thought it was the coolest thing ever...vincenzo looked at me like i was crazy!! but here we are just two days later and matteo really seems to have a hang of this new idea...literally!! so i just thought i would share the most recent milestone with everyone, its so amazing how fast babies turn into little kids...one of the many "bittersweetnesses" in life! (kellie add that one to our dictionary! - right before caniptical!!)

how much do i love tuscan...?

i love tuscan more than words could ever describe...he honestly is the best little boy i have ever known in my whole life!! he also is quite the little stinker too though...
i've spent the last hour or so of my morning cleaning up the kitchen and getting some random odds and ends done around the house, meanwhile he has been sitting nicely in the living room watching shark tale, playing with his toys...but being a totally perfect little boy, i havent had to say "please stop" yet today! so i thought i would reward him with a piece of taffy (he had asked for a piece earlier and i said not right now) so i get it unwrapped, take a bite (so its not as big and chewy) and walk into the living room ... and there he is with taffy in his hand, a pile of them on the couch and another pile of chewed up wrappers!! he must not have realized u have to unwrap it before u eat it and started spitting them out!! what a stinker...so i cleaned up his mess and loved him just the same!

beat....

i know i know, i havent posted in a few days, but truth be told...i am just exhausted these last few days and i havent had much time to organize my thoughts into something worth writing and i dont really have anything to write tonight. but i just wanted to let everyone know that we are still alive...frank and i are very much so looking forward to having a day together tomorrow!! we plan to take the kids to lunch at red robin! so if something eventful happens i will be sure to post about it!