Favorite Family Games

Games bring people together. I love the belly laughter that I hear coming from Emma and Henry when John gets competitive or just plain silly as we play Pit or Duck Duck Bruce. John started to teach them how to play Black Jack with pennies and it is so interesting to see their different strategies. Emma spends all of her money and takes risks and Henry is much more conservative.

Celia and I all grown up.

Cousins (Wick and Chip) up at Schroon Lake

I grew up in a family that loved to play games. Up at our camp on Friends Lake in the Adirondacks my cousins, sister and I would play games for hours on rainy summer days because there absolutely nothing else to do. There was no TV, no Wii and no video games so we were forced to play board games or make up some imaginary game like "plane." The "plane" game was when we converted the attic into our own private plane with beds. Someone would be the captain and their job was to scream orders into a large fan that distorted their voice in a creepy kind of way which we all loved. When that got boring we resorted to board games that were stored under the couch in the living room. We would have marathon Monopoly sessions, fast past games of war, or strategic games of Mille Bourne. We had so many laughs and good times playing games together. As we got older- we were able to compete with our mothers in Scrabble. It was always a blast. Whenever my grandmother came up for a visit she would play card games with us all day. She had the patience of a saint.....I realize that now more than ever. I miss you Grammy!

First completed picture from photoshop!

Harper Mae St. Amant

I couldn't resist posting this short video of my niece Harper. She is such a love!

Simplicity = Happiness

I am getting so excited for our upcoming vacation to Europe. When I think back to last year at this time and remember our vacation I have so many happy memories. I think it's funny when you are just traveling with your clothes and some other items (a few favorite toys, I Pod, and a good book) your life is just simpler and I must say happier. Vacation time is my favorite part of any year because we are together as a family and there are no distractions. It is a time for us to really reconnect and enjoy each others company. I love my family more than anything else in this world and spending time with them brings me the most happiness.

Walking in Paris...check out Henry's tooth!

Listening to the history of the art work at La Louvre. I love this picture of Henry!

Emma loved having all of the information right at her fingertips while walking around.

Hiking in Tegernsee, Germany.

I also feel this way when we go hiking. It is incredibly refreshing to be out in nature and taking in all of the beauty that our land has to offer.

Boy, I am excited to leave in 3 weeks for vacation!!!

Sailing Away.....

I know that this is a very odd picture.

Henry told John that he decided to place this boat in his toilet so that it could sail around. He then got a pencil to push the toy boat around and told John that he remembered doing this in Paris in the Jardin de Tuileries. We have been so blessed to be able to travel as much as we do and I love whenever Emma or Henry see something and they relate it back to a trip that we have taken. I never would have thought of putting a boat in a toilet and remembering Paris but that's what makes life beautiful. Seeing the world is one of the greatest gifts that John and I can give our children. If it means less gifts at Christmas and birthdays so that we can see the Eiffel Tower or the Mona Lisa in person it is all worth it in the end.

The pictures below were taken in Paris on a perfect Spring day last year. This activity was one of their favorites...they did it for hours.

Tounge out means he is concentrating very hard....just like his dad.

Emma learning the ropes.

Always smiling for the camera....

Toothless....and very cute!

On a side note- John and I watched this amazing movie this weekend. It was beautiful. Check out the trailer here.

Lost Camera.....

Today, I had one of the biggest scares in my life (most of my scares are attributed to losing Henry). I took the kids to a party at a roller rink and left my new camera and all of the lenses. When I realized that I had left them there I immediately called up the rink and they told me that they didn't have it......my stomach was in my throat. After I composed myself a tad, I called the mom that organized the party to see if she had picked it up or if someone had given my camera bag to her. Thank goodness- she picked up the bag b/c it was with all of the party items even though she didn't know who it belonged to.....no identification. My beloved camera is back in my possession and identification is in the bag!!!

A Fort to a Vet Clinic....priceless

We had a new grill delivered earlier this week and the box has been sitting in the garage. Henry has asked each day if he could make into a fort and we just haven't had time until the weekend. Emma and Henry spent a lot of time decorating their fort and then decided that it was too cold to play outside so it made it's way into our family room.

It has now been turned into a vet's office. Webkinz are their patients, an old keyboard and the mouse is their computer and old doctor's kits are their supplies. They have been playing for hours. I swear they play with things that aren't toys more than they play with toys. The grill was an expense but playing all day with the box has been priceless.

Dr. Edwards and Dr. Edwards

I just had to take a picture of the pizza we made Friday night!!! It was delicious.

Henry has decided to wear jeans again after a 3 year boycott because they didn't feel "right." He looks so grown up.

Sick Day Number 2

Emma is home from school for the second day. She went for about 2 hours and then I got the call from the nurse to come and pick her up. She is back in bed... drinking Vitamin Water and eating star shaped pasta.

I remember being home sick from school when I was Emma's age. My mom was a school teacher so my grandmother (grammy) would come over to watch me. I would lie in my parents bed and watch The Price is Right, $20,000 Pyramid and Family Feud. If I was home because of a cold, I always got a new box of tissues. My mother would also bring me home a treat - cough drops, vicks, lifesavers, etc...... I am shocked that I wasn't sick more often with that kind of treatment.

Our first flower has bloomed in the yard....Spring is on it's way!!!

Sick Bay....Ode to the Purple Bucket

Emma is home sick today after throwing up 8 times last night. She is missing the second part of her MCAS test which she will be able to make up at the end of the week.

Clean sheets.... still waiting on the comforter!!! Oh- how we love our "purple throw up bucket." It has been with us for the past 9 years and has been through many illnesses. I can't tell you how many times that bucket has saved my carpets, couches and bedspreads. When the "purple bucket" comes out you are officially sick in the Edward's household.

Having a child with the throw up bug is not a pleasant experience especially if you are a sympathetic vomiter like myself. She's throwing up and I am gagging over the "purple bucket".....nice visual don't you think!

Hope you feel better soon my little Bean!!!

Smeared booger......

Well, today started off with pancakes for Emma as she headed out the door to take her MCAS for the first time. She was very nervous. As Henry was eating his pancakes he told me that he is sitting next to "Kate" and that he doesn't like her. I had to ask why and his response was "because she smeared a booger on my desk." I couldn't stop laughing at how he said this statement and it immediately brought me back to elementary school and seeing smeared boogers on desks, in bathrooms, etc..... Gross!!!

I have to send out a big hello to Jurgen and Tristan! They started following my blog yesterday. Thanks for your comments guys!!! We can't wait to see you in two weeks.

Emma, Max, Henry, Tristan and Jurgen last summer.

Jurgen, Emma, Tristan and Henry at Thanksgiving.

Yesterday, I watched Jamie Oliver's new show Food Revolution on television. Check out the trailer here. It is absolutely frightening what we feed our children in this country. School districts and the USDA should be ashamed of themselves for serving our children such unhealthy over processed foods. We wouldn't have to be so focused on healthcare if we started from the bottom and gave our kids the healthy diets that they need and deserve. I know that everyone says that feeding kids healthy foods is so expensive. Well, we either pay now or we pay later. I chose to pay now!!!

Spring Weekend

The temperatures reached 70 degrees here this weekend so the kids were able to plant some seeds. We will see how they grow over the next few weeks. Henry just loves his new Phineas and Ferb t-shirt. I am sure that we will see a lot of it over the next few months.

Omi and Grandpa came for a visit so Emma opened up her spa for anyone that wanted treatments. Omi and Grandpa both opted for manicures! The money that she made went right into her bucket for the Bay Path Humane Society. Nice work Emma!!!

Max's favorite chef in the house!!! Boy, she sure serves the kibble up in style!!!

Omi and Grandpa putting Emma and Henry on the bus......the weekend went by way to quickly. Thank goodness we have Easter to look forward to in a few weeks. We can't wait for everyone to come to Massachusetts to spend it with us.

Spring has sprung......

Henry's homemade hat to celebrate Spring at Center School.

You really know it's Spring in Hopkinton when all the marathon runners do their long run before the actual Marathon. We were so excited to see Shelly before she took off on her 22 mile run to Boston College. You look great Shell!!!!

Henry told us that he thought that Shelly would get first place or maybe second. What are your thoughts on this Shelly??

Happy Spring!!!

PS- Sold the 24 boxes of extra Girl Scout cookies that I ordered. Set up a stand at the end of the driveway......poof...they were gone.

Happy St. Patty's Day

Fifteen years ago today, John and I moved into our first apartment in Marblehead, MA. It was a very rainy day but we were so excited to be started our lives together. The apartment was fantastic...it over looked the bay where all the yachts are kept. It was so nice waking up and going to sleep listening to the ocean and the sounds of the boats on the water. We both managed to put on about 15 pounds when we live in Marblehead. It might have been all of the baking that I was doing or maybe it was having lobster twice every weekend drench in butter that we picked up from a man on the beach. Little did we know then where we would be now. It has been a wonderful fifteen years of living together!!! I love you John!

On a side note- Emma is famous! She was featured on her teacher's blog. Check it out here. I really hope that this is a success for her because she is just so darn excited!!! I went out and bought her first donation...a box of milkbones. She was thrilled.

I made this dish last night for my family.....again one of our favorites and so simple to make.

A Good Cause

Emma told her class that she is looking for donations for our local animal shelter. She has been working on earning money at home for the past two weeks so that she has enough money to buy a few toys for the dogs at the shelter. Once Mrs. Oldach heard about this she decided to let Emma present this to her class and now they are all on board.

She came home from school yesterday and spent and hour and a half making the signs for her display. She kept telling me that she had butterflies in her stomach because she was just so excited about helping out other dogs. She really hopes that the other kids will bring some donations in over the next few days.

Emma copied the shelter's wish list off of their website and this is the sign that she made.

I love seeing the kids being interested in something else other than themselves. I hope that this is a success for her! I will keep you posted. I am off to take some photos for my photography class now that the sun is out!!!

Spring Cleaning is in the air.....

"I'm one of seven children, and growing up we never had a lot. But my parents taught us to take care of the things we did have-to respect our possessions. I was always an organized kid, but I think respect is the basis for the work I do."

Peter Walsh

I just recently read this quote and thought how true it is. Our kids have so many "things" that it is incredibly hard to appreciate anything because where ever you turn there is more "stuff." As I head into the Spring, I am on a mission to de-clutter my house from top to bottom. I feel less stressed when I am not looking at "stuff" everywhere. We began cleaning as a family this weekend. We started in the solarium and removed three garbage bags full of old documents, coloring books, and random items. I love being in this room now because it's peaceful not being surrounded by items that I continually move around but do nothing with. We also spent a few hours in the basement organizing and getting a pile ready to donate to others. It is all so FREEING!!!

This is just the beginning of the project. My plan is tackle a room or area a day for the next week. I should be ready for Spring if it ever decides to start. The rain needs to come to an end and the sun needs to shine.

And the winner is.......

This past Thursday was a big day for Henry. He was chosen from his class to win a book of his choice for participating in the independent reading program outside of school. This is one of the sweetest books that I have read in a long time and should be a part of anyone's personal library.

On a different note, John and I went out last night for dinner in Boston with our friends to this fantastic restaurant. The food was amazing and it felt very New Yorkish. The Liberty Hotel where this restaurant is housed is a converted jail and just to see the architecture is worth a trip.

I am also very excited for this product (I Pad) to hit the market. I am not exactly sure how it will enhance my life but I love the concept.

Happy Sunday!!

Fun Friday- Trip to Wellesley

Yesterday, the kids had the day off from school so we decided to make a trip to Wellesley.  We visited The Cheese Shop, a bagel shop and Wellesley College.  It was such a treat having the Stedt family with us as we toured around.

The kids loved all of the "secret" staircases that were in the buildings.

Funny kids making funny faces!

Emma at 9 1/2.......Snapshot

Some important facts about Emma.

*She loves playing soccer and plays it all during the school year on various teams.

*She is very good at math even though she says that she doesn't like it.

*She gets the "challenge" spelling list every week.

*She loves to help me with anything that I am doing- cooking, cleaning, stationery and yard work.

*She is very thorough when doing her school work.

*She takes piano and she is better than she thinks she is. She also cracks up her piano teacher...he doesn't have another student like her. She always speaks her mind to him while I am either cracking up or cringing in the back of the room.

*She loves to watch Platinum Weddings and It's Me or the Dog.

*She loves to make Max's food- and he eats every last piece of kibble when Emma is the chef.

*She can make a mean omlette.

*She loves to swim in the pool.

*Her best friend is Lizzie.

*She puts together all of our Christmas cards and invitations to all of my stationery parties.

*She laughs the hardest at John's funny stories.

*Her favorite color is blue.

*She is willing to try any new food that is put in front of her.

*Her favorite foods are- sushi, bean burritos, any soup and all vegetables.

*She hates to eat breakfast.

*She loves to cuddle with me and play the "stop means go" game of tickle.

*She loves being with all of her cousins.

*She is very confident.

*She loves to play school with Henry.

*She has begun writing in a diary which I think will be very helpful for her.

*She is very particular about the clothes that she wears.

*She wants to grow out her hair.

*She writes beautifully about any topic. She recently wrote about our visit with my sister- it was very well thought out.

We love our little Bean.