Tribute

To Finn.

The reason we could not leave food unattended.

The reason we had to store food in the microwave.

The reason we needed to put the trashcan up whenever we left the house.

The reason we kept a water bottle nearby for incessant barking when he spied a squirrel.

The reason for my tears.

Goodbye.

Yup, they're my kids all right

Aidan: Asks me at least three times a week if we can "order something and have it brought to our house".

Ciara: Every time I pick her up at preschool she asks me "Can we go out to lunch?"

Gavin: Well, he just loves to eat.

On this historic day...

I am not a political person at all. But today, even I can feel the excitement, hope and patriotism that every American is surely feeling.

And also, the pride.

Something I rarely do

I never wax poetic on how cute my kids are. It is not that I don't think they are cute, of course I do. But I am always reminded of a quote I once saw. Something like, "There is only one beautiful child in the world and every mother has it". So I hardly ever go on about my kids to other people because of course no other adult will think my kids are as cute as I do. But I had to make an exception for these pictures of Gavin. Not Aidan, mind you. These are really not flattering pictures of him. So just focus on Gavin in the red shirt.

Gavin usually does not take great pictures unless I get him in a completely candid moment. He usually does this goofy thing with his mouth where he has a forced, lopsided smile. Or he doesn't look at the camera. Or he closes his eyes on purpose. When I saw how these came out, I was taken aback by how absolutely adorable Gavin looked in them.

People always ask me how I tell them apart. Really?

This is my favorite. Look at that little face. I just want to squeeze him.

Incidentally, this is how it usually goes with picture taking at my house. Whenever one looks great, the other looks goofy. This time it was Aidan's turn.

I will now never be able to use the computer

Heaven help me. Ciara began using the computer full force this weekend. She has been messing around, trying to figure things out, watching her brothers play their games. Then on Saturday, something clicked (haha, "clicked" -- get it??) and she just was clickin' and draggin' all over the place. I set her up on PBS kids and away she went.
What amazes me with Ciara is how much more advanced she seems at this age(3.5) than Aidan and Gavin were. I know that is usually how it goes with younger siblings. They absorb all the things their older siblings do and say. The boys got an alphapbet Go Fish game for Christmas and we played game after game for the duration of winter break. Ciara, not one to be left out of the fun, insisted on playing even though I didn't think she knew her letters. Well, it turns out she did know a few letters but the amazing thing is that by the end of winter break, she knew all her letters. Just from that Go Fish game. Of course we played 175 games of Go Fish but still...I think that was pretty neat.
And now. Now she can use the computer. Gone are the days where I can come home from dropping the boys off at school, put on Backyardigans for Ciara, grab a cup of coffee and sit and check my blogs and emails. Right now she is behind me saying "Are you done, Mom?"....."NOW are you done?"........"Did you check your emails?"...."NOW???"......

Waiting

I like this picture. My boys and my nephew had been playing hard on Christmas Eve at my parents' house. The house was packed and warmer than usual with all the body heat so they all asked to take off their sweaters because they were "soooo sweaty!".

Then it was time for the present! opening! and while we tried to corral all the kids near the tree and open presents with some semblance of calmness and order (yeah, right), I snapped this picture of the three boys. I love the look of anticipation on their faces.

About three seconds after this picture was taken, the frenzy of bows, ribbon, and wrapping paper flying into the air began. So much for calmness and order.

The year of the cookbook

I am not one for making resolutions but this year I decided to try one. I am going to try to actually cook recipes from the multitude of cookbooks sitting in my cabinet shelves.

I love to cook and I am an avid cookbook collector. It all started years ago when Sean and I lived in Ireland. The Naked Chef (aka Jamie Oliver) had a cooking show on television there at the time and he was being touted as the freshest thing to come into the kitchen in recent years. The next time Sean and I went into Dublin, I bought his book at Waterstones and I was hooked. Each recipe had a full page color photo and also a paragraph or two about the dish. How it came to be, why he chose to make it this way,etc. I love history behind recipes.

So now, I have at least 30 cookbooks (not to mention cooking magazines and recipes I have printed off the internet) that I read like novels when I get them. Then I ooh and ahh over several recipes, make a mental note to come back to them and then put them on my bedside night table. There they sit until the stack gets too unbearable to look at and in the cabinet they go. My problem is that lately life has just been too hectic to sit and plan a menu, make a grocery list and then execute the dish on the designated night. I tend to buy the same pieces of meat and staples each week and just cook. No book, no recipe, just whatever I feel like making that night.

Well, all that's about to change! Not today. And maybe not tomorrow. But hopefully this weekend I can sit and look through some books and make a plan.

...Dr. Ciara...paging Dr. Ciara...