Bunk Beds!

We decided it was time for Cameron to leave his toddler bed and and get a big boy bed, seeing as their room isn't huge and Brady's bed was part of a bunk set we decided to bite the bullet and put them together. (the beds were Brian and Jasons when they were little)

The first night Brady slept in the bottom bunk with Cameron because Cameron asked him to, but since then they have been sleeping in their own beds!  I can't believe how fast time is going!

Christmas 2010

Christmas started off on Deceber 24th for us, our tradition is to go to Brian's Grandmothers house and celebrate vigilia (Polish Chritmas eve)

Brady and Cameron with Babcia and Dziadziu

 There is a polish tradition in which everyone gets a wafer that has been blessed by a priest and we take a piece off of each others wafer eat it and wish each other a Merry Christmas.  The boys really got into it this year.

The boys exchanging their wafer

Then giving each other a hug!

After a fun night we headed home and.....

put out the reindeer food we made!

and of course put out our cookies and milk for santa

The next morning we all opened our presents

and even posed for some pictures.


in the afternoon my parents and shanna, Dave and Mackenzie came over for lunch and more presents

The next day we had Christmas #2 at Babcia and Dziadziu's house.

We had a wonderful Christmas!  Thanks to everyone who made it special!

Count down to Christmas

The kids were so excited for the first snow fall



Cameron loves the snow this year!



My boys so excited for Christmas

One infront of the tree!

Decorating cookies for santa

We may have a future baker on our hands

Brady's cookie for Santa

Cameron's cookie for santa

Our reindeer food to put out on Christmas eve

As you can tell it has been a very busy week!  Tomorow night we will celebrate vigilia with Brian's family and my family is coming over here for Christmas day.  I can't wait to see the boy's eyes light up Christmas morning when they see what santa has left for them.  Watching Christmas through your childrens eyes is MAGICAL!

Clarke Family Christmas

For as long as I can remember we have had a christmas party with my dad's side of the family. So today in true Clarke fashion we all gathered at my aunt's house for a day filled with laughter and fun.  I can remember being a kids and taking my younger cousins and reading them Christmas stories, and now it is those cousins who take my children and entertain them.  I looked around the room today and realized there were 4 generations sitting in that one room. 

My cousin Gino who has recently joined the Army was on leave and was able to come home and attend our family party, which was wonderful seeing as he got married not that long ago and then had to leave for boot camp.

My aunt always brings wonderful activities for the kids to do and they are still talking about how much fun they had!

Happy 7 months Liam!

7 months old!

Tomorow Liam will officially be 7 months old.  We had a follow up appointment with the GI specialist at Mass General on Friday.  Liam weighs 16.9 lbs and is 28.5 inches.  While he is still considered small he is following the growth curve so they are very happy with that.  We will continue to keep him milk, soy, egg and peanut free.  this will prove a little difficult as if you look at baby feed alot of the dinners have either milk or soy in it so we have to go very plain for now.  We are hoping that this is something he will grow out of and we will go back in 2 months to talk about when he will do his challenge test to see if he is still allergic.  Other thatn his allergies he is very healthy.  he has started sitting up for a few seconds on his own, he LOVES to "talk" and loves to watch his brothers play.  He also still loves his Jumperoo!  He could jump in that thing all day!!!

My 4 boys!

so proud

Over the past few days I've notice Liam trying and succeeding at pulling himslef up about halfway when I change his diaper.  I've been trying to get him to sit up on his own but he usually just fell forward or backward, but tonight for the first time........

He did it all by himself!!!

Frosty The Snow Man

The other night the boys discovered we have a snow man kit, We've had for 2 or 3 years and I had actually never looked in it, until the boys decided to pull everything out and reenact Frosty the snow man.  They are so cute sometimes!

Cameron as frosty

Brady striking a pose

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

It's only the 2nd of December and we have already had so much going on. On Saturday we went to the Salem Santa Parade, which goes righ infront of my dad's shop so we were able to park in his parking lot and see everything, when Brady got too cold he went in with Grammy and Pappa and watched the parade standingin their front window. It was a nice way to kick off the holiday season.

Tonight we went to the Atkinson Country Club. We got to go on a hay ride and see the ice sculptures. The best part of the night was seeing Santa. While everyone was outside watching the tree be lit, we decided to get in line to see santa, and the boys got to have cookies and hot cocoa. Cameron stood in line but as he got closer decided he didn't want to go up. Brady was all about it and Liam didn't really care either way. They had a fun time. I love that we live in a small community that does things like this. These are traditions in the making!

 



And in other news, Brady and Cameron now like sleeping in the same bed, mostly due to the fact that we lost power last Saturday and Brady is petrified that it will happen again, however he has convinced Cameron that it is fun to sleep in the same bed. I remember doing this with my sister when we were little. some of my best memories are those talks that we had when we shared a room. I hope that Brady and Cameron continue to have the wonderful relationship they have!

the stats are in...

Liam had his 6 month appointment today. He is 28 inches tall (90th percentile) and 16.6lbs (25th percentile). He is doing very well. he is rollingboth ways, has found his feet and loves to suck on his toes, he LOVES his jumperoo and "talks" all the time. The doctor decided to forgo the flu shot seeing as he had to be put on the new formula it means he could possibly have an egg allergy so she decided it wasn't worth the potential risk of giving him a flu shot and having a bad reaction. Liam did have to get 2 shots and the roto virus drink, he wasn't very happy tonight, he has a fever of 102 and was very uncomfortable so I gave him some tylenol before bed and hope he feels better in the morning.

I know I say this all the time but I'm really having a hard time believing he is 6 months old. It seems like just yesterday I was in the hospital watching the season finale of Greys Anatomy scared out of my mind with Liam snuggled up next to me. I don't think anyone but a mother knows the love of a mother for their child. I didn't know that this much love was possible but it is and I am truely blessed!

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving 2010 started out very different for us this year. Brian and I ran (well brian ran, I walked briskly) the Turkey Trot at Maudslay State park. The course was more difficult than anticipated but we did it! After finishing the race we came home, showered and went over Brian's parents house where the boys had spent the morning. We had a wonderful Dinner and got to see some family members that we don't see very often. After dinner we surprised Brian's grandmother with a cake for her 80th birthday. It was a wonderful day!

Happy 6 months Liam!

I know I say this every month but I really can't believe that Liam turned 6 months old. Liam is doing better now that we have switched his formula again. He is on a prescription formula now that has no milk protiens in it at all. Liam can roll both ways and now. He has finally shown this, He used to just do it in his crib but we finally saw him do it the other night while we were playin gon the floor. He also LOVES the jumperoo. He jumps in there like no ones buisness! He is eating a little more baby food, pears and sweetpotatos are his favorite. He is starting to show signs that he he may start sitting up soon. Last time we were at the doctors he weighed 15.2lbs we go for his 6 month appt the week after Thanksgiving and we'll see what he's up to then. He is definatley growing and getting taller. We have pulled out the 6-9 month clothing and he is fitting into them more for the length, but he is starting to fill them out. We are so blessed to have 3 wonderful boys!!

My New Camera

For my 30th Birthday, Brian bought me a beautiful new camera. I've used it a couple times and LOVE it! I still have a lot to learn and need to really sit down and read the manual but for now I have it on the automatic setting and it's working. Eventually I would like to find a photography class to take, for now I'll just point and shoot.

Happy Birthday to Me

So this year I turned the big 3 0. Brian was nice and planned a family party for me and then planned a night out in Boston. We went to the Hard Rock Cafe for the Boston Comedy show. It was a wonderful night. A special thank you to all who helped us celebrate.

I have to say that 30 feels no different than 29. Except that I feel like the 30's are going to be my decade. I have lost 15lbs in the last 12 weeks and I'm going to be walking/running my first 5k on Thanksgiving. If a year ago you told me I was going to be doing that I wouldhave laughed at you! I plan on continuing with this healthy lifestyle and passing it on to my boys!