The last photos of 2009

Bring it on!

I've been trying to think of what to write on my blog during these last minutes of 2009. Much has happened this year, so there is much to write about. However, I think I'm going to sum it all up in this way: 2009 began with vomit (not mine) on my bare legs, while still in bed. 2009 is ending with a long, hot, relaxing shower (and this blog post). This past year has been full of some great times and some tough tough times for me personally. I have to say that this has been the toughest and most taxing year of my life. I am blessed and grateful for my family, whom I love more deeply than I think I can even understand. And I am ready to move forward with my family in this new year, which is only one hour away.

So here's to a clean fresh start for 2010! May it bring peace, joy, blessings, love, health and happiness to all!

God Bless ~ Colleen

Christmas Morning

Merry Christmas! We are trying to have the best Christmas possible, despite being a little "under-the-weather." Happy Birthday to Jesus, and God Bless us everyone!

Beautiful Kelly turned ONE today!

Pizza and cupcakes!



Kelly's totally awesome cupcake poster!



Kelly the day before her big day.


Kelly braving the elements!

Amazing sunset after the storm passed!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

The Ladinos were out in full force for the first big snowfall!

One Solitary Life

He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman.

He grew up in still another village, where he worked in a carpenter shop until he was 30.

Then for three years he was an itinerant preacher.

He never wrote a book.

He never held an office.

He never married or owned a home.

He didn’t go to college.

He never put his foot inside a big city.

He never traveled 200 miles from the place where he was born.

He did none of the things one usually associates with greatness.

He had no credentials by today’s standards.

He was only 33 when public opinion turned against him.

His friends ran away.

He was turned over to his enemies and went through the mockery of a trial.

He was nailed to a cross between two thieves.

While he was dying, his executioners gambled for his clothing, the only property he had on earth.

When he was dead, he was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.

Twenty centuries have come and gone, and today he is the central figure of the human race, the leader of mankind’s progress.

All the armies that ever marched,

All the navies that ever sailed,

All the parliaments that ever sat,

All the kings that ever reigned,

put together,

Have not affected the life of man upon earth as much as that…One Solitary Life

James Allen Francis

The Mind of a Child

Today Brian was "aggressively" rocking Kate in our glider rocker. I came into the living room and said, "Brian not so hard, the chair could tip forward on Kate." To which Brian replied, "and she will die." I said, "no she won't die." Brian then said, "she'll just get really thin?" Then I said, "Yes Brian, I guess she'll just get thin."

Getting in the Christmas Spirit

I packed up the kids and headed to Jordan's Furniture in Avon, MA, to see "The Enchanted Village." The village used to be at Jordan Marsh in Downtown Crossing in Boston, but Jordan's closed a few years back. The village was shown at Government Center in Boston for a few years, and now the antique Christmas village finds it's home at this massive furniture store. I met my sister-in-law Julie there with her 4 children.

To make a long story short, the village is beautiful and it was great to see Julie and the kids, but it wasn't the best place for a "challenging" baby, a weepy and clingy 2 year old girl, and an initially hesitant 4 year old boy, who didn't want to see the village but rather, wanted to walk down a dark and empty hallway...ok??. However, once we got into the exhibit Brian was happy. Kate and Kelly were not and by the time I left I was looking for something along the lines of seriously spiked eggnog. When you leave the exhibit, those crafty and super smart owners of Jordan's, make you walk all the way through their ginormous store in the hopes that you might purchase some large piece of furniture you weren't planning on buying. However, the trip through the couch section proved to be the most fun and exciting part of the trip for all three of my kids. All three of them love rolling around on couches (they like to jump too but I wouldn't let them), and so I took of their shoes and let them "go wild" for about 10 minutes.

I could have stayed home, been WAAAAY less stressed out, and my kids would have had just as much fun on our couch! Buuut, I would have missed out on a most impressive (FREE) display and I would have also missed out on the pleasure of seeing some family. Oh heck, the couches at Jordan's are bigger and more fun than ours! I guess when you weigh out the positives and negatives the positives win!

Enjoy the pictures and Merry Christmas to all!

It Just Doesn't Get Much Funnier than Snoopy!

That Silly Girl!

The littlest Piggy
"Sam I Am" from "Green Eggs and Ham"

I'm a nice mom (I guess)

Today Jeff and I were watching Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs with the kids. Right after the Evil Queen commands the head henchman to take Snow White into the woods, kill her, and bring back her heart in a box, Brian says to me, "Mom YOU'RE not THAT mean, even when you yell and get really mad." Well, thanks I guess. I'm a little afraid to watch more Disney movies with him for fear one of these days he's going to say something like, "Oh, YOU'RE mean like THAT mom (or witch, or wicked stepmother)."

I'm off to cuddle with the little guy. Maybe I'll score some "nice mom" points. :-)

Noteworthy

Did I ever mention that 2009 started with my son vomiting on my bare legs, before I even got out of bed on New Years day? It's been "that kind of year"...here's to a less stressful 2010!

You just can't make this stuff up!

Things happen in my life that could honestly be in a sitcom. What happened last week has nothing to do with funny at all, but when things just keep. on. happening. you've GOTTA laugh (or cry, or fall apart)! I have to go back to Thanksgiving in order for you to fully appreciate the circus, which is in fact, my life.

Thanksgiving: Kelly was sick and needed to sleep, so Jeff offered to stay home with her so that I could take the "older" two to my parent's for dinner. Thankfully (pun intended), our neighbors were home with their 22 pound turkey and only 3 adults and two young girls to eat it, so Jeff had a very nice (and quiet) dinner over there. He actually ended up having the "less stressful" day because Kelly slept for most of it, while I had two very active children to take care of. All in all it was a wonderful Thanksgiving had by all, thanks to my parents and our great neighbors. Oh but wait, I almost forgot to mention that while I was at my parent's house I noticed my lymph nodes were beginning to swell behind my right ear. By nighttime not only was it all swollen behind my right ear, but the side of my face was swollen and I had some pain going up the right side of my head.

Friday: Took Kelly to the doctor to find she had an ear infection. Off to get antibiotics. I also asked her pediatrician if there are lymph nodes on the face. He gave me a funny look and said no. I said I would get my swollen cheek looked at by my own doctor. I think he thought that was a great idea. On Friday night I noticed that my scalp was hurting, but I just thought I had a zit or something.

Saturday: I was in quite a bit of pain Saturday night and so Jeff and I were looking up a 24 hour nurse that I could call to ask about my pain and swelling problems. While we were waiting to talk to the nurse Jeff asked (this is NOT a joke), "if one of the kids were to get seriously hurt what ER would we take them to?"

Sunday: We take my little munchkin to the ER and I'm feeling horrible because while all this is going on with her, the pain on my scalp is getting worse.

Tuesday: Off to my own doctor and find out I have SHINGLES! But wait, there's more! The doctor notices that my right eye is red and wants me to see the eye doctor that day. I go see the eye doctor. Thankfully the shingles are not in my eye, but I have some form of conjunctivitis! About $130 later in co-pays and prescriptions for ME, I'm off to Mass General to be with my little Kate Kate again.

Wednesday: Kate comes home...YIPEE!

Saturday: Kelly wakes up with red bumps all over her body. When I call the pediatrician and tell them, they're not sure if it's anything serious, but then I tell them I have shingles, and they tell me they want to see her because they're afraid she might have......CHICKEN POX!!! To make me feel more like a leper, they want me to go in the side door - the Quasimodo door - so that nobody else gets contaminated by us. Fear relieved when the doctor tells me it's just a heat rash. However, at this point I don't know if my nerves can take anymore.

Sunday (today): Out for a walk with Kelly, who FALLS ON HER FACE! I pick her up and there is so much blood pooling in her mouth she's gurgling it! Then it gets to the front of her mouth and while she's crying she's blowing raspberries with it! Don't worry...there's more! I get in the house with her to try and see where the blood is coming from but I can't see because my glasses keep fogging up. I take my glasses off so I can "see" (funny). However, a few minutes later I move Kelly to her high chair to eat frozen blueberries (she's fine at this point), and go looking for my glasses, and I STEP ON THEM! I hear a crunch and pop out a lense but Jeff is able to get in back in. Thank the LORD! About an hour later I'm doing dishes and I pull out the faucet nozzle to spray some spinach and the entire nozzle comes off and water starts spraying me right in the eyes.

That's it. That's the end. You better not be sad because you wanted to read more. This is my life we're talking about! I'm off to bed. Tomorrow is a new day. :-)

A Great Christmas Song

I love this version of "What child is this?" by Mercy Me.

Blessings, Gifts, Prayers, Friends and Family

I thought that writing down the events of the past several days would be a good way for me to put everything that has just happened to Kate and our family into perspective. I also wanted to share our story with everyone who has been praying so hard for us. Here it goes:

Sunday morning started out very normal for Kate. She was happy, was jumping around in her crib, and she told me she wanted to give me a hug and a kiss. We all got up around 6 (NOT by my choosing) and so I decided to go to the 7 am mass. (Jeff and I have been splitting up masses and not taking the kids, until Kelly gets older). After mass I went to a few stores and headed home. Jeff and the kids were watching cartoons and Jeff went into the kitchen to heat up some breakfast. When he came back into the room, after being out for no more than 5 minutes, he found Kate face down on the xylophone toy she had been playing with. Within the next half hour poor Jeff went from thinking Kate was playing a game or being stubborn, to realizing something was really wrong (during the entire time he was trying to help Kate, Kelly was hanging on his leg screaming and Brian was complaining that Curious George wasn't on because of some telethon). Jeff shined a flashlight in Kate's eyes to see if her pupils would dilate (they did but only slightly), and he put ice on her, at which time she opened her eyes and made a very uncoordinated attempt to get it off. When I got home at 8:25 Jeff hollered for me to come in the room. Upon entering I saw that Kate was lying on the floor on her side with her eyes open. When I said her name she looked at me briefly but didn't speak and didn't move. I picked her up and sat her on my lap, at which time she began swallowing repeatedly , her hands started shaking and she began grabbing/clawing at my shirt. It was at this time that we had our neighbor come over to watch Brian and Kelly and we headed off the the ER at Newton Wellesley Hospital.

On the ride to the hospital Kate looked to the left only, and seemed to be fighting to stay awake/conscious. She didn't respond to her name and didn't respond to my pinching her leg. Kate was taken in right away at the ER, and the nurses and doctors began working on her. Kate never spoke, and never cried when the IV was put into her arm (that was tough to watch), but rather moved around a little and appeared quite agitated. For about an hour and 15 minutes Kate just lay there moving her tongue around or swallowing, while blankly looking around. There were a few times she said something completely appropriate i.e., "That's MY bear!" when the nurse took her bear away, and she made some purposeful movements i.e., wiping her nose with her hand, and smiling at the nurse. However, at around 10:30 or so something began to change and for the next 15 minutes Jeff and I witnessed Kate have a grand mal seizure. It was horrible. She was chewing on her mouth (the doctor wiped some pink saliva from her), her eyebrows were going up and down, her body was shaking, and she was making this very "guttural" type noise. After 5 doses of various seizure medications, the seizures stopped and we were told Kate would be transferred to the pediatric ICU at Mass General in Boston. In all, Kate had been seizing for approximately 3 hours. During our time at the ER all blood work, toxin reports and the CT Scan all came back normal.

I went with Kate by ambulance to Mass General and Jeff followed. While in the ICU and during our entire time at Mass General all tests came back negative with the exception of the EEG, which showed abnormal brain activity in the left temporal lobe. This lobe was most likely the focal point of the seizure and was working at a slower rate than the rest of the brain, as it was trying to recover from the seizure, per neurology report. At one point there was a question that there was a viral infection in the spinal fluid, but that turned out to be false. Kate was put on a seizure medication in the hospital that we are continuing to give her now at home. At this time the neurologists believe that Kate had a "complex febrile seizure" but are not completely sure of the cause. Kate did not have a temp at the time of the initial seizure but upon continued checks it was found that her temp continued rising throughout the day. Kate is on a seizure med because of the length of time the seizure lasted, and the abnormal EEG reading. We have a follow-up appointment with neurology in Feb.

When Kate FINALLY spoke late on Sunday night, after waking up from her drug induced sleep, she said to me, "Mom, I can talk again." I have to tell you that all I wanted all day long was to hear my daughter speak and cry again, and hearing her speak was the most beautiful thing in the whole world. I had these terrible visions of "losing" Kate to this catatonic state she had been in all day, and I can't even begin to tell you what kind of state I would be in right now if Kate was still not talking. After she spoke the first time she said, "I want to go home and I want to see Daddy." I told Kate we had to stay and that Daddy would be back tomorrow, to which she replied, "Well, I've had a very yucky day." That's my Kate! As Kate began getting more happy and even more herself over the next few days she continued saying amazing things. When she woke up the first morning out of the ICU she said to Jeff, "Thank you for my crib. It's incredible." And when Jeff picked us up to take us home on Wed night Kate said to him, "I'm very excited!"

In the midst of this "nightmare" of sorts, I found many things to be thankful for and so many things to appreciate. This experience allowed Jeff and I to spend some very special time with both Brian and Kate, individually. Our life is so crazy busy (well really, just crazy most of the time), that we don't get to take the two older children out alone. With the help of family and friends (God Bless our parents and neighbors) I was able to take Brian out for a doughnut and chocolate milk on Tuesday, and then Jeff took him to McDonald's on Wednesday. And Jeff and I both got to spend so much time just holding and loving and appreciating our little Kate. I don't mean to "diss" Kelly in all this, but she gets A LOT of attention! We also, got to meet some of the most wonderfully caring people I've ever met, at both Newton Wellsely and Mass General. The view from Kate's room at Mass General was incredible, it looked over the Charles and you could see for miles. On Tuesday night I woke up to see the moon right in the middle of the clear black sky, and the water of the Charles sparkling down below. However, I am most grateful and blessed to have had all of you praying for us, and telling other people to pray for our family. Of course I would rather this had never happened at all, but had it not, I (we) would never have had the gift of all your love and prayers.

Jeff and I believe that life is a gift, and that Kate and Brian and Kelly are all gifts that God has given to us. Thank you all so much for looking to God and asking Him to take good care of this little life that he created.

Kate is peacefully sleeping right now with her roommate, best buddy, and brother, Brian, and she's holding her bear and blanket that went with her everywhere throughout her whole ordeal.

Please know that you are all in our prayers and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

God Bless,

Colleen, Jeff, Brian, Kelly and most importantly Kate Kate :-)

A Sing Along

Let's all sing, shall we? "Happy holidaaays (I just forgot a bag of toys at Target), Happy Holidaaays (the baby has a fever of 102 :-( ), Happy Holidaaays (the 2 year old is in her bed coughing), Happy Holidaaays (I just ate about a pound of chocolate chip cookie dough and had to put sweatpants on), Happy Holidaaays........" It's not too late for everyone to join in!

I had posted this on facebook last night but the song can continue this morning...

"Happy holidaaays (baby was up screaming at 4:30 am), Happy holidaaaays (I was woken up again by 2 year old screaming), Happy Holidaaays (already eaten two cookies - stress relief)...."

No Need for Metamucil in this House!

Brian had 4 "Nonni" muffins yesterday (a.k.a. - mini bran muffins with raisins and nuts) and Kelly had one prune at breakfast with me, and then two more with her father (he didn't know I had already given her one).

I think that's enough info for everyone to have :-)

I'm Not Ashamed to Admit It!

You are obviously reading my blog right now if you are reading this :-) I enjoy writing this blog for you as much as for myself. If you know me at all you know I love telling stories, and since my kids don't appreciate my sense of humor, the blog is a great outlet :-). HOWEVER, when I tell stories in person, to people (live human beings), I usually get some type of reaction i.e., a smile, a laugh, a look of confusion, a very very rare blank stare. So here comes what I'm not ashamed to admit. I totally crave interaction with others. I need for people to let me know that I'm not just typing this into cyberspace and all that's coming back is my echo (or I guess when writing, it would be called my "typo" hahaha..not funny? ok...). SO, can whoever reads my blog shoot me a comment, or an email, or a note on facebook sometime, just to let me know you are enjoying my posts (or just reading them because you have nothing else to do)? You don't have to do it every time. You don't have to say you like them. You can tell me you don't like them. You can even tell me your own story. But you have to say something SOME OF THE TIME! Yes, I'm a little bit needy right now. I spend the better part of each day with three very small people and I really enjoy hearing from others who are old enough to read! :-)
Ok, that's all. Thanks for reading.

Silly Exercise Magazines

I went to the gym early this morning in an attempt to work off the ice cream I had last night (however, I just finished another bowl so now I have to go again tomorrow to work of tonight's bowl). I guess if I'm going to lose weight, as opposed to staying the same weight, I'm going to have to exercise AND stop eating desserts daily. Ho hum.
Anyway, while at the gym I picked up one of those fitness, or shape, or prevention etc. etc. magazines to peruse while riding the recumbent bike. One of the featured articles was one I've seen about a million times before, and it read something like, "5 Simple Moves that will decrease your waist, butt and thigh size in just 2 weeks!" Well of course we ALL want THAT, so I opened right up to that article! Part of me was hoping that the lady would be doing something that looked so bloody easy that even my Nana could do the moves (love you Nana but you're almost 90, so you're a good comparison :-). However, she was doing a series of moves that looked like only Jillian Michaels (trainer on the Biggest Loser) could do. I then started to really think about what type of pictures would have pleased me, and would have made me want to take the magazine home to try out the moves. I started laughing when I realized the first move would simply show a woman lying on the floor doing nothing. I don't know, maybe the second move would show a woman sitting straight up in a chair (as opposed to slouching, which is what I tend to do..like right now). Maybe something a bit more strenuous could have been push-ups, but I'm talking - standing up push-ups against a wall.
I ended up looking at the lady with the washboard stomach for about 10 seconds and then continued through the cookbook..I mean magazine tee hee - looking at recipes (healthy ones), along with Alicia Silverstone's very own homemade vegan peanut butter cups (because she finally started losing weight when she became a vegan 10 years ago...whatever)...they looked pretty good...I'll have to try making those...and then I'll eat them....and then you'll find me at the gym...again. :-)

A Sticky Situation

Brian got my coconut flavored chapstick out of my purse and had put a layer about a half an inch thick on his lips. When I told him, "that's enough!", he said, "can't I just glue my lips one more time?" Ok, so he thought he had a glue stick the whole time, yet continued slathering it on?! The next day he asked for it again but I told him he could only put in on once. Well, I lost track of time because Kelly was crying or Kate needed a diaper change or something, and he eventually came to me with it, and it was in his mouth! Before I could say anything he said, "I like it in my mouth too." Does this mean he's going to be the kid in school that eats glue?

The Roller Coaster that is Motherhood

Motherhood is like going on a roller coaster ride for the first time. Standing in line is like pregnancy. You're filled with excitement, or you're nervous, you might be afraid and/or feel like you might yak (heck, you just might!), and your feet and legs might start to ache. Giving birth is like going up the first hill - once that car moves there is NO turning back! Yell, curse, scream, "I don't want to do this", but once it's started, YOU'RE ON IT BABY! Then the REAL stuff happens! You go down, up, around, you may even go upside down. You get jostled and rattled, your stomach is in your throat (or in knots), you may cry. It slows down, it speeds up, it is so unfamiliar. There is thrill, there is panic, there is joy, there is fear, there is worry, there is love, (there may be more vomit), there may be dizziness or confusion, (you may pass-out), you may scream, you may put your arms up and yell "woohoo!" But after it's all done - the good, the bad and the ugly - you want to get back on and do it all over again.

Kate Kate

There once was a baby Kate, but now she's become Kate Kate.
She is cute as a button with a personality to boot, and we often times say, "that Kate Kate's a hoot!"
She sleeps in her crib with her blanket and bear, and when she is sleepy she twists on her hair.
She loves orange juice, cheese and pb and J, and I love to sit back and just watch her play.
She plays with trains, cars, baby dolls and blocks, and she is constantly taking off her shoes and her socks.
She sits in front of the heater to get "comfortable and warm", and likes to pretend she is stuck in big storms.
She has the biggest most beautiful brown eyes to SEE, and she's a gift and a joy for her daddy and me.

Kelly Kelly Kelly Kelly Kelly Kelly Kelly

Kelly Belly thinks that sheee can do the things one does when three!
She walks, she talks, she stomps her feet...heck, she's even eating meatball meat!
Kelly is as cute as they come, from bald head, to feet, to pudgy thumb.
But she can scream and screech with all her might, and it makes us want to duck out of sight!
When Kelly is sweet and babbling along, it makes you want to hug and kiss her all day long.
But Kelly we ask you be MORE sweet and kind, before your dear poor mother loses her mind!

Just Wondering

We took the kids to TGIFriday's tonight and I was wondering this: Do they just run across the street to Stop and Shop and head to the freezer section when they run out of stuff? I mean, half their menu is at the grocery store. Hmmm.......

RUN, RUN, RUN!

No More

No more complaining and no more explaining (which means I can't explain this post to any of you)!

Quotes from Dr. Wayne Dyer

"Don't underestimate your ability to change yourself, and don't overestimate your ability to change others."

"Don't believe everything you think."

A Baby or a Toddler?

When a 10 month old starts to "toddle" are they still a baby or are they now a toddler? What if said little person still has no hair. Is that person a baby until they grow hair, regardless of toddling? These are questions that need answers!

Oobleck soup

I decided to throw caution to the wind (it's actually very windy AND rainy out) and let the kids get wet and dirty in the kitchen this morning. I put down a towel (however, no towel is ever truly big enough) to shield the floor from the bowls of water, cornstarch and food coloring that were being put down for Brian and Kate to "go wild" with. Soon enough more water was being added to the now greenish oobleck and I said that it looked like soup. We got out serving spoons, ladles and extra bowls and began making an even BIGGER mess! We added bingo chips, dill, hot pepper, regular pepper, bay leaves and some very very old "Pastina", that had been left open in the cupboard forever, and began mixing our pretend soup. I kept stressing over and over that it was just pretend and that we don't EAT the soup! We made pea soup, chip soup, pancake chip soup, pancake salad chip soup....the list is truly endless. After a while Brian's pjs started getting wet so he took them off. Brian then said, "I'm a chef! Chef's get up in the morning, get naked and then go to bed." This made me burst out laughing, which seemed to puzzle and trouble Brian. Brian wanted to know why I was laughing and I said, "because you said something funny that made me laugh." Brian then said, "I filled you with joy?!" I said, "Yes you did!" and he gave me a hug, did a happy skip wiggle, and then went back to his cooking.
It's been a fun morning so far!

Five Years!

At this time five years ago I was at "Personal Best" salon in Pembroke getting my hair and makeup done for my wedding day. Today at the same time I just finished making breakfast (frozen waffles) for my three beautiful children, and got a bowl out for my husband's cereal. I'm on my way to mother and wife of the year with a breakfast like that!

On a serious note, I can't believe it's been 5 years. MUCH has changed in five years...a husband, a move, another move, a career change, 3 children...I could go on. I am blessed. I am loved and I love. I am also hoping that the next five years are a bit more "stable" (for lack of a better word), than the past 5.

Five years ago today marks the birth of my family and I wouldn't have wanted to start it with anyone other than Jeff. I love you Honry!

Another quote...and it's a good one!

Today I was watching "Thomas and Friends" with my children. Often times I'm making them lunch while this cartoon type show about trains is on, but today lunches were made, so I sat and watched. The trains were gearing up for a big day on the Island of Sodor, as the circus was coming to town. Thomas had been selected as THE train to haul all of the circus equipment from the docks to it's final destination. It was a very "big and important job for this very useful engine" (yes, that's the way they talk on this show). The narrator at this point said, and I quote, "Thomas was so excited that his AXLES were TINGLING." Tingling? Really? Does anyone else find the choice of words mildly disturbing? I'm not really up on trains (I used the word "up" on purpose..it just seemed to go with the whole "tingling" theme), but I'm pretty sure that "axles" don't "tingle". However, I'm also pretty sure that trains don't have faces, talk or have feelings either...but on the magical Island of Sodor they do.

I think I'll be "tuning in" a bit more frequently from now on! Maybe you should too (kids or no kids :-)

Quotes

Yesterday I was finishing off some crumbs at the bottom of a bag of chips. I had put the crumbs in my hand and then (pick an adjective - "dumped, shoveled, poured", etc.) them into my mouth. Brian watched and said, "Wow Mom, I didn't know your mouth could get that big!"

Today Kate was standing next to me watching a show and said, "Mom, I'm just hanging up." (I think she meant "around" :-).

Brian is 4!

Brian's actual birthday was spent at his Nonni and B's house with special guests, Uncle Mike, Auntie Elena and brand new cousin, baby Michael. We were also very fortunate to see several members of the Rafferty and Glass family throughout the day. Brian (being the lucky and very much loved boy that he is) had two parties, and saw his Nana and Grampa, friends, neighbors and some more family at our house the day after his b-day. Brian had a Curious George cake one day and a blue "candy" cake the next. What more could a little boy want?!

I'm ah walkin, yes indeed, and ah talkin.....

She's 10 months old, she's walking and there's no turning back (and no more bending over to hold hands for mommy and daddy)! Look at her, she looks like she's been doing this her whole life!

Time is Flying!

On a Sunday four years ago my water broke on my birthday and the next day I welcomed my beautiful baby boy, Brian. Brian turned 4 yesterday and I need to know where the last four years have gone. I love him more than life itself. He was a baby such a short time ago and now he can spell and write his name and he knows some simple math!!! I find myself staring at his baby sister a lot because I know she's going to be 4 just as fast. I keep trying to take mental snapshots of her, so that when I see pictures of her as a baby on her fourth birthday I can say, "I remember when she looked like that, and I appreciated every minute of it." I also do the same thing with Kate, who is almost 3. I find myself looking at her and saying, "she is only two, she's two, remember how she looks right now and cherish it." I don't want to live with regrets and I'm glad I'm realizing that now when the kids are young. I'm trying so hard to live in every moment with them (the good and the bad) and to soak it all in, so that I'm drenched in their littleness and their pureness, and their innocence. They are my little loves, my gifts from God.

Summer is just around the corner

It seems like Summer just ended. However, in the dieting world it's just around the corner. Summer will be here in just 7 short months. If I wait until after the "holidays" to start "eating healthy", there will only be 5 months until bathing suit season. With the way things have been going, I really need to start thinking about "Deluxbury Beach" now!

A Poem

I wrote this for Jeff as a gift for our first Valentine's Day together. He in turn gave me a diamond ring and asked me to marry him :-)

The love of another is food for the soul, it nourishes, fills us and makes us feel whole.

It helps us to see life with dreamy bright eyes. It's bigger and bolder than the heavens and skies.

Our glorious God is the source of this love, it saturates the earth like spring rain from His kingdom above.

It satisfies a thirst in the depths of the heart. It's what holds people together when close or apart.

It's like the swirl of the smoke when a candle's burnt out, as it penetrates the air and spreads all about.

It's something that can be seen, felt, tasted and breathed in, yet it can also disappear and touch us in places within.

It helps us to be strong, confident, joyful and kind, and like a needle it injects peace, hope and patience in the heart, soul and mind.

It's because of a love that I write this today, for if it weren't for this love I'd have few words I could say.

This love has opened my eyes to see in a new light, and to notice God's goodness from morning till night.

My love was chosen for me like a ripe grape from the vine, that is essential for the creation of an extraordinary wine.

God put us together to learn and to grow, to be beautiful and pure, like a fresh fallen snow.

May we continue to see all the beauty and grace that God has so brilliantly put into place. Like the sound of the water as it trickles downstream or the foliage in autumn colored red, gold and green.

Let our life be a tapestry beautifully sewn and guided by God's love that's so selflessly shown.


To note: It snowed on our wedding day :-)

Happy Birthday to me, happy birthday to me

I am going to be 36 tomorrow. Thirty six. I'm not sad or upset or depressed. However, I'm certainly not as excited as my son, who turns 4 on Saturday. I just can't believe the number. I love my life, and I really have no regrets. I often ask God how it is that I have been so blessed, when other people have so many struggles and hardships. I thank God for my life every day (however, I will admit that there are days I wish I could run away and go somewhere else... a place where there is no screaming, crying and fighting...those days are tougher to "love" my life).

Anyway, back to being 36. At the age of 36 you have a "past." Does that make sense? I have gone through enough experiences in my life, and grown so much through them and from them that I'm not even the same person I was 20 years ago. There was high school Colleen, college Colleen, Grad school Colleen, speech therapist Colleen, living on my own Colleen, girlfriend Colleen (first time ever at the age of 29), engaged Colleen, married Colleen, pregnant Colleen, mother Colleen, mother pregnant with baby Colleen, mother pregnant with baby again Colleen, mother and wife Colleen, face book Colleen and blogger Colleen....that's a lot of Colleens!

I am now also old enough to be turning ages that I remember my mom turning! I was too little to remember my mom turning 27 or maybe even 30, but I remember her turning 36. I don't even know what this means, or what the heck my point is. I just think that's strange.

So Happy Birthday to me! May I eat chocolate to my hearts delight. May I remember that my life is a gift from God and that I should be good to myself and all those around me. And may the next 36 years be even better than the first. (and also Happy Birthday to my cousin Tim (the 5th), for my mom and my Aunt Kathy, who I share a b-day with, and to my beautiful son (the 7th).

A few more FB posts

The final round of past face book posts for now. I wasn't able to retrieve these from fb but they were some of my favorites so I tried my best to recreate them from memory. Here they are:

If a gray minivan passes by your house within the next 15 minutes with a baby screaming in such a way that it seems as though bamboo shoots are being shoved up her fingernails and the man driving is going gray before your eyes...I have no idea who that is.

Sunscreen $10, sandwiches $15, bathing suits $30. Getting ready for the beach with 2 small children and an infant?...A BIG pain in the ASS!

Colleen just finished making a homemade - from scratch - pizza on the grill, while taking care of two small children and a baby. I just can't seem to get the song from "Wonder Woman" out of my head...."In your satin tights, fighting for your rights, and the old red, white and blue...wonder woman! (come on sing it!), wonder woman!

Face Book entries..Round 2

Here are a few more of my face book posts that I copied and posted to my blog...enjoy!


Colleen Rafferty Ladino is getting a grip.

is drinking chai spice tea, burning a pumpkin pie candle and making creamy butternut squash soup....I. LOVE. FALL.!

My two year old daughter quietly took her shoes and socks off under the lunch table and then presented them up in the air and said (very politely), "Would you like to smell my feet?" To which I replied, "Well, no thank you. Please put your feet down now."

conversation with 3 year old son (he likes numbers these days): Me: "a one with a zero is 10 and a one with two zeros is a hundred" 3 year old son: "Mom it's ONE hundred not A hundred, you are mistaken." Me: "yes I am, you are correct," 3 year old son: "that's okay mom, I make mistakes too."

had 1/2 a glass of red wine tonight because 1. it's better for me than sweets 2. it has antioxidants 3. I'm an adult and 4. I wanted a pleasant little buzz..... Well, I just finished a massive hot flash (I feel like I'm 55), I was sick to my stomach for a while, and now I have a headache. Why can't I catch a break?

just took a sledgehammer to the rotting fence that goes around our house. Man that felt good!!!!!!!!

There is this strange breed of people that actually say things like, "I don't really like chocolate" and "sweets don't really do it for me." I must find these people and live with them to see how it is they are able to live without desserts. And then I must try to become one of them. Are any of you this type of person and if so, may I come to your home and study you?

my son just drew a picture of me complete with all my bones: my brain bone, my belly bone, my arm bone, my bum bone, my little feet bones (he didn't give me a leg bone), and my penis bone...I guess we're going to have to have a talk :-)

is AMAZED that they let men be on search and rescue missions since they ARE SO BAD at finding things! (ps, this post has nothing to do with the fact that both my husband and son can't find ANYTHING :-)

Good morning world from the land of the crying children and crying baby. We could really sound like a beautiful chorus if mommy starts crying too. :-)

first of all let me say that I could stare at my little baby girl ALL day because I think she is so beautiful. Let me also say that she has two teeth on the bottom and barely one on top and she is gggggrrrrrrinding them....shoot me now!

the baby was screaming and crying until the refrigerator door was opened. She speed crawled over and stood there inside of it doing happy babbling. I pray she isn't like her mother, finding true bliss raiding the fridge and freezer! (ps, I haven't had any junkfood ALL day).

had to take off the spanx between dinner and dessert tonight at my dad's 60th birthday party. I feared the tightness of the spanx was going to restrict the amount of cake and ice cream I would be able to jam into my stomach. Thank goodness I removed them. I think I was able to stuff in about double!

....bought a scale today...diet starts tomorrow...again!!!!

Is so tired of waking up with headaches that have nothing to do with any kind of fun the night before. It's not right and it's not fair. Unless cheesecake can cause a hangover? Maybe I should just start drinking..I mean really, if my heads going to hurt anyway!

After my last post I ate a piece of cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory. The whole thing. :-) Hey, I never said that I didn't like my black sweat suit.

was a pediatric speech therapist for 8 years before becoming a stay-at-home mom for the past 4. When I tell you that I have NO cool clothes, know that I am speaking the truth. And when I tell you that I just sported the "black sweat suit because I'm too "nourished" to wear any of my regular clothes" to the mall, and... then tried to pretend like I fit in with all the other women, know that this is also true.Read More

says, "Screw the American Pediatric Association's recommendation of no more than 2 hours of t.v. per day for kids...today we're going for 10, possibly 12 hours!" Why? It's cold, it's dark and rainy, my allergies are HORRIFIC and it's Friday!

As a mother I choose the "short straw" almost everyday, but you know what? That is more than okay with me because I got the "long straw" for most of my life. I don't mind giving up some of my life because I can't even begin to explain the love that has developed within me since having them. They say that "love grows... love" and it's true. I can EVEN say this at 6:30 in the morning, before coffee (& chocolate).

just shared a touching moment with the baby. I gave her a bottle and quietly sang "Hail Mary Gentle Woman" to her, while she gazed up at me and picked my nose. It could have been a picture on a Hallmark card. Beautiful, just beautiful.

In case you haven't heard Elmo's mom lost her job (it appears the recession has hit Sesamee Street). I didn't know Elmo had a mom (he also has a dad). Do all the puppets have parents? This leads me to another question, Does Elmo have a gender? Do any of them? They all seem to be boys...Oh, and where are Baby Bears... parents? He has a speech disorder that needs attention..at least nobody is making fun of him.

Sooo, the baby just went dumpster diving (well okay, she fell in the trash) and she apparently thinks that mulch and dead leaves are more appetizing than avocados. I guess it's better than the day we had to wrestle a turd out of her older sister's hands when she was around 10 months old. She screamed bloody murder when we took that bad boy away!

So there is a relatively new show on a NEWS station here called, "The Secret Lives of Animals" (I didin't know they HAD secret lives). What's next? "Desperate Housecats," "THe Big Cow Theory," "How I met your Mare," "Goats Gone Wild," "P.I.G.S."....I came up with a few more..."Sex in the Barn", "Grey Elephant's Anatomy...", "Hannah the Horse Montana," "Big Baboon Brothers"....I better go, I need to get a life.

Sooo, the baby just blew a snot bubble out of her nose and my husband affectionately said, reminds me of you. It actually IS kind of sweet in a weird, gross kind of way. I guess in a perfect world he would have said her blue eyes remind him of me, but I'll take what i can get

.has NO, I repeat NO dirty clothes in the hamper OR on the laundry room floor right now! For at least a few minutes today all dirty clothes are WASHED!!!!

I went to the dr b/c I've been feeling lightheaded/woozy for a while..she wrote out a script and I picked it up...warning label: may cause dizziness. Ok? Is this supposed to be a step up?

Just came in the kitchen to find the baby chewing gum! Apparently a piece had fallen from the counter and she was chewing the wrapper and everything. She was LESS than pleased when I swiped it out of her mouth... you may have heard her at your house (distance is no factor for that type of screaming!)

My 3 year old son is in the upstairs bathroom doing his "business." I just yelled up, "Are you done?" My son: "Not yet! Can you get me a newspaper?!" He's a guy alright!

First round of face book entries

For those of you who know fb you'll understand what "posts" are. However, if you're a "non-face booker" I'll explain. On fb you can write anything that is on your mind, your name is first and then you write what's happening/what you're thinking etc. Posts always start with a persons name and are usually followed by "is", "was", "can't believe" etc.

Enjoy my posts if you are new to them and have fun re-reading if you're a fb friend :-)

Here they are:


I'm deactivating my account for a few months. Sorry if you are someone who I have just friended recently. I just have to get off fb for a while and I can't do it if I'm still on here. I'll keep it up and running until tomorrow so I can make sure to have phone numbers/ contact info for various people. I just have to make some changes in my life :-)


It's kind of hard to know how to treat my 3 year old son who is putting yogurt all over his body one minute, and then telling me a story with the words "mysterious" and "impatient," the next. Somewhere in between the ages of 3 and 15 I guess!

My son just said, "Mommy you have a big (then there was a pause and I held my breath bracing for the worst) brain." Phew! There are many parts of my body that are much bigger than my brain right now. I'll take it as a compliment, I mean at this point I AM the smartest woman he knows!

dreamed that I was helping Dan Rather find his car keys at his gym. WOW! An exciting dream like that is going to make this "stuck in the house rainy day" a bit more bearable. (Are you catching the sarcasm, because I'm laying it on pretty thick.)

walked into the kitchen to find that my son (almost FOUR) had taken off his shirt and lathered his upper torso and arms in blueberry yogurt. Really? Really?! Feel free to read my other posts today to see how the day has been going :-)

While typing my last post the baby got into the bathroom and was drinking water from the toilet. Hence, just another reason for writing my last post.

insane in the membrane. Insane in the brain!

was laughing this morning and almost SAID "LOL" while laughing.

I don't know which is worse, my sugar addiction or my fb addiction!

carrot sticks or halloween candy, carrot sticks or halloween candy, carrot sticks or halloween candy............

Hello, my name is Colleen and I am a dessertoholic. It has been almost 24 hours since my last sweet. I spent a good part of the day obsessing on why I should have just one more dessert (I've been succesfully agruing in favor of the dessert for the past 10 months), and the other part of the day telling myself NO!!!! This left about 5 minutes of my mental time for my husband and children. They feel loved :-)

Thinks it's funny that right now on my side wall it says, "Jeff Ladino - reconnect with him - post something on his wall." Thank YOU fb for helping me out with my marriage. Wow, fb really does bring people closer together.

just tried having a heart to heart with my 3 year old son after a lot of frustration, yelling, and eventually a time-out for him. Me: "I'm sorry Mommy got so upset and wasn't smiling for a while. Sometimes it's hard for Mommy to smile after I get really upset. My son looked at me and said, "When I do peepee and poopoo that means I'm getting bigger." Good talk son, good talk."

Before you critize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way when they get angry, they'll be a mile away....and barefoot." From a bumper sticker I saw today :-)

The water coming out of our bathroom sink smells like the sewer. I'm thinking we should brush our teeth in the kitchen sink till this situation is resolved (maybe that's why my son said my teeth look dirty....I know...totally gross, but totally funny). PS, Julie...it's all for the laughs

has the cutest kids on earth. Sure they eat paper products & lick water from dirty puddles, and they tell me I'm squishy & make me crazy & ignore me & tell me my teeth are dirty (whatever) & they spill things all over the house, and at times make me daydream about when I was single. But they are sweet, and innocent,... and beautiful, and kind, and loving, and I wouldn't trade them in for anything.

is so glad I don't have to deal with the morning commute anymore. One of the many perks of being a stay-at-home mom!

got into bed last night and found a dinosaur under my pillow. Bet none of you had a t-rex in your bed!

My 3 year old son looked at me at dinner tonight and said, "Hey, your teeth are dirty." I said, "Oh, do I have food stuck in them?" and he said, "no." I said, "well, what color are they?" He said, "white" (that's good) "with brown on the bottom." Awesome. Almost immediately after that my 2 year old daughter asked... if she could squish my belly. I need to start hanging out with people who aren't so blunt.

gave her two year old 2 prunes at breakfast (she LOVES them, but I made her stop at two). Her father didn't know this and let her have FIVE dried apricots at church. This post is just a warning to all of you so you don't freak out if you feel a minor earthquake or hear a small explosion, it's nothing serious...just a weeks worth of fiber packed into a 2 year old in one day!

thinks there is nothing sweeter than my 9 month old baby patting me on the back while I'm holding her, my 2 year old looking up at me and saying, "will you play with me?" and my 3 year old son saying he wants to marry me. :-) Oh come on, that's not gross...he's 3!

told my husband I had fried "dickles" last night (I was trying to say fried dill pickles :-)....fried dickles just doesn't leave a pretty picture in my mind :-o

is feeling a few sandwiches short of a picnic, sharp as a bowling ball, a few fries short of a happy meal today. Get the point? If you don't then you can join me in the shed, while we eat our happy meals and throw bowling balls at lawn furniture :-)

has this strange feeling. I haven't felt it in a while. I believe it's called hunger, which means I might be on the right track to losing some weight. Somehow I don't think feeling full all the time is getting me to where I want to be :-)

is glad that "wheat" is listed as an allergin on the box of "Shredded Wheat" I just bought. If it didn't have that allergin listed, people who have a wheat allergy might buy shredded wheat. WOW!

was up at 5:30...at 6:30 was in the car with my husband and my children heading to Logan...get to Logan and my husband and I realized we FORGOT MY LUGGAGE!!!!!! Guess where I am now? I don't know if I should cry, laugh or scream!

remember the episode of "FRIENDS" when Ross gets stuck in his leather pants and uses powder and lotion to try and get out? Ya, well I had a similar experience in a fitting room today - minus the powder and lotion..and celebrity status...and computerized audience laughter. Anyone else ever try on something too small and get stuck?

is wondering if it's a bag thing that the BABY was touching some dvds in the dvd case and then looking up at the tv...I'm also wondering if it's worse that she started clapping when the video was put in the tv was turned on!

had ANOTHER epiphany! Soooo, I've basically been pregnant for the past 3 1/2 - 4 years, which means I'm used to eating like I'm pregnant (whatever the bleep bleep and bleep that I want). I think my mind thinks that I should be pregnant right about now (I'M NOT!!!) and so it's telling my mouth to pack it in! Now to ...remember how I ate before I was ever pregnant...THAT should do the trick :-)

"Potty Talk"- Me to my 3yr old: "Wow, that is QUITE a poo poo" Son: "It's a log. Logs are circles with no branches." Me: "Has a branch ever come out of your bum?" Son: "ha ha, you are kidding me. You are making a joke." He's finally starting to get my humor! Sorry if you didn't want to read about poop tonight. Oh ...and he won't be scarred by this either, he'll think it's funny I posted it on fb..in 30 years or so.

Your search is over! If you've been looking for a place to sit, stand or lie down and have a good cry, have I got the place for you! We just had three small people crying in unison, but my feeling is - the more, the merrier! So come on over to my house if you feel some tears brewing. Heck, I maaay just join you!

just had an epiphany! When I used to babysit at night I would raid the pantry and fridge after the kids went to bed (Sarah, no telling your parents, like I'm sure they didn't know). NOW that I'm a stay at home mom I think it's like babysitting, FOR LIFE, and I raid the kitchen ALL DAY....WOW! Now I know why I'm eating so much. Hmmm, now how do I stop? (maybe I shouldn't write all my thoughts on fb)

is trying to teach a 9 month old baby that there are acceptable times to scream/cry like she's having shots, being stepped on or having her hair ripped out (if she had hair)...having her diaper changed is NOT one of these times.

At dinner tonight my husband said to my son, "What do you like about Mommy?" My son (very seriously) said, "Her belly. It's squishy." I told him I was pregnant with a cookie baby and he said, "I love cookies." (so does mommy)

Anyone ever been to an allergist? Okay, so AFTER she pricked my arms 24 times she says, "Some of these are going to puff up and itch really bad. Scream, yell, meditate, do whatever it takes - but DON'T itch them. I'll be back in 10 minutes to check them." WHAAAT?! About 3 minutes later I had about 8 massive mosquito bite looking welts that itched like a mutha #@#%$#@!!! Awesome

Happy Monday everyone! Let's see...I woke up to a screaming baby, I have a muscle spasm in my neck and I can't move my head, and I have NO chocolate! BUT, I AM a superhero so I will use my superpowers to MAKE this day good (and no, I haven't lost my mind).

although nobody said anything, they knew the were in the presence of a modern day miracle, as my fellow shoppers watched me walk up and down the isles of the grocery store resisting all types of sugary, chocalatey, salty, & creamy goodness. At the checkout the cashier looked at my health food filled cart and bowed to me. I think I heard Wonder Woman being played off in the distance somewhere......

I love my baby so much, but you could record her scream, put in on repeat and use it as a torture device.

Life After FB

I am taking break from fb but realize now that I need to write. I continue to think of funny things to say and need some type of outlet. For starters, I've gained 15 pounds since July. I've been eating food like it's my job. Too bad it's not because I would be making some serious money for the family. However, I joined a gym this weekend and am pumped to be getting sweaty and burning some calories.
I've also been getting reacquainted with my children since stopping fb. When did Kelly start walking anyway?? Just kidding, she actually took her first steps today. Ok, she is currently clinging to the bottom of my leg crying so I'll have to cut this post short.
Off to make her a bottle and get some dinner going. :-)

Relapse

Okay, since writing about my epiphany I have fallen off the wagon. It's not that I'm thinking that there will never be enough, I just don't care. I've been eating like I'm trying to get fat. Whatever. I'll get back on the path to good health soon...I hope!

Recovering Sweets Addict

So it has finally happened. The epiphany I have been waiting for most of my adult life. The "ah ha" moment needed to finally stop the madness, the binging without the purging, the mindless shoveling of desserts into my mouth as if they were all going to vanish from planet earth in the next hour. I have finally realized this - THERE WILL NEVER BE ENOUGH - there will never be enough desserts that I can fill into my pie hole (pun intended), to satisfy me. And do you know what? That gives me the peace I have been craving to know that I CAN have one piece of cake and stop. I now know that eating half a pan of brownies, a chocolate bar, an ice cream sundae, chocolate chip cookies (I could go on) in one weekend does not MAX me out. There are not enough desserts in the world that will ever make me say, "No no, I couldn't possible eat that slab of chocolate cake because I'm sick of dessert. I now know this! Whatever hole I'm trying fill will never be filled, so now I can stop trying to fill it! I can stop after one piece of cake! I can stop after one sundae! I can stop after 6 chocolate chip cookies :-)~
So now as I log off, I'm off to go eat my ONE bowl of ice cream.
I hope!

My new blog

At the suggestion of an old friend I have started my own blog...enjoy!