Deeeeelicious!

First Fruits of Summer

Spring Cleaning Part 5: Living Room, closets and stairs

Kids room and dining room completed and I think my motivation to finish this Spring Cleaning 2009 challenge is coming back!

This week I will tackle the living room, downstairs hall closet, linen closet and stairs. And then by golly....I will be DONE!!!

Living Room:

Dust all shelves, knick knacks and pictures
Organize tv cabinet
Organize desk
clean mirror and windows
wash base boards
vaccum couch and chair
vacuum carpet
sweep hardwood floors
wash hardwood floors
clean fire place
tidy toys

Hall closet:
organize
remove all seasonal items and place in storage

Stairs:
Sweep
Wash base boards
wash windows

Linen Closet:
Organize
wash down shelves

We proudly welcome Tommy to the Pee Pee on the Potty Club!!

Yes, you heard me right! We had our very first pee pee on the potty!
Way to go big guy!

Stolen moment

Reading

A quiet stolen moment
Two brothers reading before bed time
Older brother showing little brother all the different kinds of trains in the "train magazine"
Mommy sneaking downstairs to grab camera
Precious moment captured forever
Love you guys!

Never say goodbye!

Goodbye? How about we just say, "See ya later alligator"!

For when one door closes, more open!

Love you guys!!

Precious Moments

Never knew a little fish could make my heart swell with love!
Fruit snacks are a treat in our house. When at the lake I let the boys pick out a yummy and Nemo gummies was their treat of choice!
Who knew that orange little Nemos would build their brotherly bond even stronger?
Tommy began to grumble from the backseat, "Mo, Mo Mama". Without even having to glance in the rearview mirror I KNEW that Tommy had just engulfed the entire contents of his Nemo gummies and now was pleading for "Mo".
No "Mo" was to be had, we were plume out. The grumbling grew louder and louder, my explanation for "No Mo" was not going over lightly!
Then another little voice pipped in, "Tommy, I have two gummies left, you can have them"
Yes, sweet Charlie handed over his last two gummies into the delighted pudgy fingers of his little brother.
I am thankful that in that split second when the boys picked out the Nemo gummies for their treat that I said yes. My first instinct was to say no and that they should pick out something with more nutritional value. That precious moment would have been lost, never happened. But it was meant to be and I am grateful that I witnessed it!

Preschool....Check!

Charlie's first day of preschool
September 2008

It is incredibly difficult to believe that our little Charlie has just completed his first year of school. He had a great first year. He made some new friends, had his first kiss (and I happened to be parent helping that day and caught it!) that stinker!, learned how to write his name, polished his sharing skills ;), went on his first field trip to a grocery store, and was taught by two incredible teachers, Mrs. B and Mrs. S. Mrs. B stole his heart within the first week...SO cute!!

He has learned SO much!!
I still can not believe how much he has grown and changed in the last year! I am SO excited to have him home for the summer but can't wait to see what is waiting for him next year in Pre-K!

Charlie, we are SO proud of you! You are a wonderful little boy who is kind, loving, smart and funny! You are silly and quick to give us love! You make friends easily and you are eager to play with others and have fun. We can not believe how fast you are growing, how quickly the time is going by! We will ALWAYS support you in whatever you want to do, we will ALWAYS love you unconditionally because you will ALWAYS be our baby!
We love you buddy!
Love,
Daddy and Mommy

Day Out With Thomas the Tank Engine

It has been a long year, waiting to see our beloved Thomas the Tank Engine. This is quickly becoming a yearly tradition, one we just LOVE!

This was our third Day Out With Thomas and it was great! We did things a little different this year. We did not actually ride Thomas but enjoyed all the festivities, bought a new engine of course and had a picnic lunch with our friends!

I told Charlie yesturday that we would see Thomas in the morning. It was the ONLY time that he said "Mama, I want to go to sleep RIGHT now" as I put him to bed last night. He so longed to close his eyes and then to open them to the morning and his day with Thomas! Call it an obsession, an interest, a hobby, call it what you will but I call it LOVE! We were surprised that he was fine with not actually riding the train, never complained about it once. We told him that it wasn't our turn this year and that other kids needed a turn and he was ok with that...phew!

To our suprise, it was our little Tommy that REALLY wanted to ride the train! He would of spent the whole day watching the train go back and forth down the track. Everytime that the train disappeared down the track Tommy would beat his little chest signing "please" and saying "More, more!!!". Next year I think we will have to ride!

Thanks Thomas for another great day, we will see you next year!! We love you!!

Spring Cleaning Part 4: The Kids Bedroom TAKE TWO

Yes folks, you heard me, Spring Cleaning Part 4: The Kids Room TAKE TWO! I did not complete my last task of Spring Cleaning of the boys rooms. My challenge to complete BOTH the boys room in 24 hours was completely, utterly, UNREALISTIC!! Considering that I had a speech to write, a meeting to attend, grocery shopping to do and a trip to pack for. Now, I could of done all of that AND finished my challenge however, our children did need to sleep in their rooms that evening and that did not allowing for midnight madness cleaning!

I will NOT let this small set back put a wrench in my Spring Cleaning, and I WILL finish by June!!

So there is my confession....clean on!

Oh and not only am I going to clean the boys room this week but I am also going to clean the dining room! Ambitious I am!!

Dining Room:
Clean: ceiling fan, pictures and mirror, china cabinet and contents, window, table and chairs buffet, organize buffet and floor.

The Lake, Mother's Day 2009

One of our favorite places to visit as a family is Lake Chautauqua, Ny. Trent grew up on the lake and is now having a great time sharing all of its treasures with the boys and I!

It is also a HUGE bonus that one of our favorite ladies lives within minutes of our watering spot, Grams. Grams is Trent's 94 year old Grandmother, turning 95 this September! She is a wonderful lady and we are all truly blessed to be part of her life! She has had such a positive effect on Trent, on his upbringing, on the man he is today! She will forever hold a dear spot in his heart!


We made our voyage to the lake to spend Mother's Day weekend with Trent's family and to help Gram out on some house projects. Trent, his mom and his brother Jason fixed up the front porch on Grams' house, they did a GREAT job and in a very short period of time!! Of course, the wee Lydic men HAD to help out and even brought their own tools for the job!!

We had a great time and were so happy to spend time with family that we don't get to see often!

And Trent and I had a great time together too! I just love that man!He made Mother's Day very special for me! It wasn't the gift he purchased for me, the card he picked out (even though it was beautiful) but rather the kind thoughfulness he exhibited
.
And as I reflect back on Mother's Day 2009 what stands out in my thoughts is not going to the lake or even spending it with family, even though I had a wonderful time. What stands out is that Mother's Day is not so much a day to "honor" me as the mother of my children but more so to remind myself of how "honored" I am to have BE the mother of these little men..............
Charlie and Tommy, for whatever reason, God choose me to be your mother and HOW grateful I am!! I thank Him everyday for the gifts that He has bestowed upon me, for your health, your life, your hugs! My sweet boys you will forever be imprinted on my soul and in my heart! You make each day sweeter and push me to be better in ALL that I do. I love you Little Kitty and Mr. Monkey! Your Mommy loves you!

Thank you Lord for ALL of your Gifts! Thank you for our children!

Spring Cleaning Part 4 Kids Bedrooms

Ok, so last assignment was the basement and it went pretty well! I purged a TON of stuff and even made some money off of it...yeah for spring cleaning!! There is something about having an orderly and clean (as clean as a basement laundry room can get!) laundry room! Ah...refreshing! Yes people, the small things in life please me!!

This weeks challenge is certainly going to be a challenge!! I have ONE day to complete this...yikes! It shouldn't be that bad as all I need to do is clean the boy's rooms, clean out closets and switch seasonal clothes out.

Plan of attack:

1)clean out closet, pitch and sort items
2) switch out seasonal clothes
3)change bedding (I do change their sheets more then once a year...I promise!) :)
4)wash comforters, mattress pads etc
5)dust ceiling fans
6)wash curtains
7)wash walls, base boards, windows
8)empty out Charlie's dresser and prepare to paint it, put clothes in bins
9)dust knickknacks etc
10)organize toys and books
11) vacuum
12) make beds