Baby Day

A couple weeks ago, the IrishKids went to work with Mommy. You see in 2006, my employer experienced quite the baby boom. I think there were something like 30 babies born to employees. So to celebrate, we were invited to Baby Day! It was great to see my colleagues with their little ones. So many cute babies, but that's no surprise, we're a good looking group!


Anyway, I brought both the children to Baby Day. Fionn loved it! He had no problem flirting with the girls and the camera. Kit, on the other hand, wasn't so sure at first. She thought it would be in her best interest to stick to Mommy. No joke, she was like stuck to me for the first 15-20 minutes.
Eventually, she warmed up a bit. That's when she decided to flex her two year old muscles, and by muscles, I mean vocal chords! Ahhhh, the joys of parenting a two year old. At the time, I must admit, I was a bit flustered...what would my colleagues think??? But when I look back...she did pretty darn good, considering she hadn't had lunch or her afternoon nap (I swear, that is not the norm). And in about a year's time...my colleagues will be living it too! I guess we're lucky, we'll all be able to put ourselves in the other persons shoes.
Anyway, it was a fun event to be a part of...but I was exhausted when I left! The sad part, I was only there for an hour. I swear, I should be alot thinner from all the exercise these two make sure I get! I'm glad I was able to see the other mommies in action. They're all doing a helluva job! Congrats.

Bike Rides and Bears Games

Last Sunday was Family Day for the IrishKids. This was due to the fact that the Kids loving parents knew that they'd be working hellish hours in the week ahead. So,to ease our guilty conscious, we decided that we needed to have a little fun as a family. Lucky for us, the Kids grandparents had decided that Sunday would be the perfect day for a bike ride for family and friends! We packed up the bikes, bike trailer and the Kids and headed over to Grandma's.

That sounds ALOT smoother than it actually was. For the 45 minutes prior to leaving our house, we were subjected to the ranting and raving of our eldest IrishKid. Apparently she decided that was the best time to have a MAJOR MELTDOWN. This is largely attributed to the fact that she stubbornly refused to take a nap AND she's 2 (enough said)! But we weren't going to let one meltdown deter us from family fun...and so we pressed on!

And this is what happens to two IrishKids within the first 15 minutes of their bike adventure!

And believe it or not...they stayed like this for about an hour! Giving their parents the opportunity to enjoy a cold, frosty beverage in peace with their Uncle Jack & Grandparents upon arrival of our destination! Cute, huh?
The bike ride was a pre-cursor to the main event of the night...the Bears game at Aunt Carol's on the big screen (projected onto the garage door)! Talk about Bears fans in their glory. Aunt Carol knows how to throw a party!
Really, it was another oppotunity for the IrishKids to hang with family and run around with their cousin, Evan. Evan and Kit are the same age (actually, Evan is about 6 weeks older than Kit) and the two of them had a great time together.
I was thrilled to see these two getting along so well, especially since Kit has been know to push Evan around in the past (I mean literally PUSH). I think he's realized that she's a runt compared to him. They seemed happy to just hang out. Always a bonus to have another little one to occupy the Kitzer.
Unfortunately, the Bears were not victorious on Sunday. No matter...we all had a good time! And Alan and I had a happy little memory to help us get through the long days at the beginning of the week.

Handsome Lil' Devil

I thought it would be nice to have at least one post dedicated to my "little man". As I look through past blog posts, I feel a bit guilty about the lack of camera time #2 has received. That is directly attributed to how bad his mom is with a camera and NOT his looks. Because I've got to say...this guy is CUTE (I may be a bit biased...but I also think it's true).
As Fionn gets older, I've noticed that he really does look like his Dad. No wonder the little man is so handsome, right?
You can't help but love this little guy. He has the delightful habit of looking at you with a big, wet grin (can't be helped...he's teething something fierce) and his twinkly "irish eyes". I look at him and think "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling..." on a regular basis! It can't be helped.
Before long, this little man is going to be one. Hard to believe at this time last year, I was still the mother of one!? He changes on a daily basis...babbling, cruising, trying his damndest to walk. I'm sure that by his first birthday he'll have accomplished much more and be ten times more handsome!

A Quiet Home

Alan's sisters and cousin, Fiona, have gone back home to Ireland after a whirlwind visit to the States. My children are sleeping and Alan is out, so I should be enjoying the quiet of our little house, right. But I can't help feel a little sad that our visitors have gone home. I only hope that they enjoyed this trip as much as we enjoyed having them here.

The girls definitely started their trip with a bang. No sooner did their plane land in Chicago, did they turn around for a four day adventure to Las Vegas. And from the pictures, I'd say they had a great time.
They enjoyed the Vegas sites, did a bit of shopping and visited the Grand Canyon (something that I, the real "Yank", have never done). Their trip to the Grand Canyon involved a small plane, helicopter, boat and bus. When these ladies sightsee, they mean business.

Naturally, my sister-in-law, Kathleen had her camera with her and got some amazing shots. Apparently, it was 105 degrees in the shade and the other visitors thought the 3 Irish gals were crazy standing out front of the shade hut. Their response: It's lovely to see the sun after 60 consecutive days of rain!
Imagine how they must have felt returning to rain soaked Chicago and experiencing their first tornado warning, the very next day? They made the best of it...helping us get ready for Kit's 2nd birthday bash, shopping, and spending quality time with the IrishKids (at least that's how I hope they feel). Yes, it's nice to have a quiet house...but honestly, I prefer the hustle and bustle of family, and a busy house. As I said to Alan last night, I'm lucky to have a great relationship with his family. I look foward to having them here and miss them when their gone.

Girls, thanks for everything! You're truly amazing and we appreciate you sooo much. Love you lots and miss you all ready (the children especially)!

Long Weekends and Early Mornings...

Long weekends are the greatest, aren't they? I love them, but could someone please explain to my children that these weekends are for having fun and, more importantly, sleeping in????? I've tried to have this conversation multiple times this weekend...they don't seem to be listening. The bitter irony of it all is that on the weekday's, they'd have no problem sleeping until 8:30 am (go ahead, laugh at me...8:30 is sleeping in????). The trick I'd desperately like to teach them is how to get up, get cereal, turn on Shrek, and let their parents (who foolishly consumed a bottle and a half of red wine the night before) sleep until their headache goes away...oops, I mean until nine.

When are they ready to learn that trick?