bittersweet symphony

easter recap

He Lives! He has Risen!

and we have survived the easter weekend. (okay a bit dramatic - but this was the busiest weekend on record this year)

+++warning boring detailed recap ahead. Mostly to use for journaling in the future - please feel free to jump ahead for the pictures+++album at left.

Friday - Good Friday. I took a day of vacation to be with the boys while eddie played volleyball with the boys.  I took the boys for haircuts. We got subway for lunch and stopped by Grammie & Papa's to drop off the easter ham. Aunt Becky & Uncle David just arrived also. So we chatted over lunch. Grammie and her tales of making chocolate candy for Easter. Uncle David didn't get much time to visit before RIley convinced him to go play downstairs with him. Thank you Uncle David for playing trains, cars and thomas the train. You are so patient and a good player!   Eddie got home from volleyball, sore and a little sick, but had fun and got some wings afterwards.  I left for scrapbooking at Archivers with Jaime (the assistant band director at Highland).

Saturday : Missy picked me up on the way to Kara's baby shower in the morning. A cool restaruant in Hudson -totally aunt annie from the gourmet mac & cheese to the cupcakes.  Lots of babies and their mamas. It was kinda weird not to have my boys with me - but I got a little baby fix from youngest niece miss laney.  Home for like 1.5 hours to get ready for the next round of scrapbooking at Archivers. This time with missy, shelly, erin, marie & stephanie.  Lots of laughs & bad food was shared. Ohdeedo, good times, good times. Oh wait - but there is more. We met up with nancy & elizabeth at Starbucks after scrapping. Some of us went home (since there was no food) or to look for dora products, or put off more errands to continue the night. Starbucks closes at 10PM - what?  So it was off to Nancy's for more laughs and stories. Then it was 11:00 and really time to go home.  Did some easter bunny chores and laundry before crashing.

Sunday: Eddie wakes up sick, sick and more sick. Boys dig through their easter baskets.  Brady just wants the chocolate. Eddie has to go serve communion at first service but will probably go to the ER after that. Talk about dedication. So I call our 24 hour nurse hotline, call our family doctor on call. Most likely diagnosis: Strep.  A $ 9.40 prescription of anti-biotics called in and ready for pick up by 9:30 am Sunday morning, no $ 50.00 3-hour ER trip. Talk about a tender mercy. Took the boys to Sunday school while eddie got his drugs and went to bed for the day. Poor guy missed the days festivities! After sunday school - ran home to change, pick up some food and camera, send textes about green bean casseroles.  1:00 dinner at Grammie & Papa's. Everyone in their Easter Best. Good food, homemade chocolates and desserts.  The annual marquette cousin easter shoot. 233 pictures later - we should get a few good ones. A fun easter egg hunt. 3:00 Drop off food to eddie ,check on him, give him a kiss on the cheek. 3:15 arrive at my sister chris' easter party.  Another easter egg hunt with capatosto cousins and extended capatosto family. visit with my mom for a bit. 4:00 Mom leaves 5:00 Dad shows up. Visit and have more ham. 6:30 pack up the boys to go home. Riley usually crys as we leave because he can't bear to be away from Katie for so long. But this day - I found him playing Legos with Kody and Luke (kody's cousin) and told him Riley  - it's time to go.  I heard him say - Okay bye guys - I have to go home now.  Wow! I was so proud.  Just as proud when he prayed to Jesus earlier in the day to make daddy's throat better. He told Brady how & why to pray.  My sweet boy. Home again, more laundry. Eddie feeling better. Riley and Eddie worked on the lego dumptruck (complete with lego boulders) from the easter bunny. Brady chilled with Queen (the movie cars). We missed naptime today and it showed.  Bedtime went okay until about 8:30. Brady woke up crying his heart out. daddy rocked him but he kept asking for mama. So I rocked him until he feel asleep and held him for an hour or so. Such pure bliss to hold that sleeping baby boy.

this day 4 years ago...

This baby boy was born! He came into the world  a couple days early because the doctors were concerned he wasn't growing. Weighing in at 5lbs and perfect.   And now he can eat 3 slices of pizza and still ask for more.

On 9-3-04 at  4:29 pm he entered our world and it is forever changed. He made us parents. He made us a family. He gave our life new meaning. He paved the way for his baby brother.

Today at 12:15pm he started pre-school.  He never looked back. He has been so ready to go to school.  As he should be as we have been talking about if for a year now. He was all business - standing there in his new green backpack, his cool new shoes waiting for the door open. And when it did - he lined up and ran in.  Just like that.  So thankful for all the new things he will get to experience, kinda sad that I can't be there to experience it too, but that's okay.  This is how it works.  But it's still a little bittersweet.

Happy Birthday to you,

happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Riley

happy birthday to you.

Oh how much your daddy & I love you, don't forget. And have a wonderful day! I will be there to pick you up at Grammy's later and we will get a special birthday dinner and then have some cake (brown & green with sprinkles and your name on top) and open presents.

(pictures to come)

for deena

 It is really hard to be away from dear friends - such as our friends the Gerbers in Colorado. Thank goodness for the Internet so that we can share joyous moments in our lives!! Pictures of Joanie & JD - any day waiting to bring their 1st baby into this world. Maybe my lunch date with Joanie tomorrow gets canceled because she is labor  - if not - then it's something spicy for lunch then!  She is so ready to have this baby! But how cute is her sleeveless maternity top! Dave is such a good sport - he has done a belly pose with me, Deena & Joanie. And maybe someday soon he will do that belly pose with his sweet wife. Updated pics of Dave & Tara. I was trying to get pictures of everyone at our little July 5th picnic - everyone obliged. We are truly blessed with wonderful friends near and far!

 

 

  

riley

It seems the last couple posts have been about Brady - well I do have another son - Riley.  This picture is from Brady's actual first birthday -we went to the park. And lately whatever Brady does Riley wants to do - kinda backwards.  Well of course he wanted to swing in the baby swing.  I think he just likes to be close to Brady and keeps an eye on him. He gets a little squirrely when people try to hold Brady at church or if we leave Brady in the nursery.  He just wants his family to be together. He's a pretty sweet little dude.  Yesterday we were at a baby shower for Jim & Joanie with no daddy - just me and my boys. Eddie had a meeting in PA.  Riley was talking to the other guests and getting them to blow bubbles and playing with kids he has never met before. When Brady got fussy  - he pushed him around in the stroller for a bit - "because Brady likes to go fast mama!"  It was sweet - even though he walked away when he was done and left Brady in the middle of the driveway. Thank goodness for Uncle Dave to the rescue. Even though they aren't blood relatives - they are family just the same. And I love that Riley feels comfortable enough to go sit in Uncle Jim's lap during the present opening or play cornhole with uncle D or go get some snacks with Aunt Tara.  My boys are truly blessed to have so many people in their lives that love and care about them.  Even Brady is getting comfortable - he and Uncle D hung out while I took some pictures of the parents to be. Well this started out as a post about Riley - but got a bit sidetracked.  I am sitting here at the kitchen table while Riley is right beside me coloring, we are waiting for Daddy & Brady to wake up from their naps so we can go about our day. A graduation party, a little lunch and maybe washing the cars. Soaking up the silence and feeling grateful. So proud of Riley  and his emerging personality. Now we still have time outs here and there for not sharing toys or hitting each other with train tracks - but I hope he always remains sweet and keeps an eye out for his baby brother.