End of Summer Fun

Labor day weekend was a fun and relaxing weekend capped off with a trip to the zoo. We haven't been since last year and Connor was fascinated by the animals. Connor wanted the lion to wake up and kept screaming through the glass "1, 2, 3 Wake Up" and could you believe the lion actually got up walked over to a shady spot and laid down again. Where is Garrett?.....
Peek-A- Boo

A HUGE UNDERSTATEMENT...I couldn't believe this sign as this leopard paced back and forth in front of the fence and another leopard kept growling everytime it came to close to its territory. The only thought that popped into my head was how stong can this fence really be...
So how cute are they.

Now that is the cutest cow I have ever seen.

It was a perfect ending to the summer - it was a gorgeous breezy 80 degree day and the boys had a phenominal day watching the animals.

Girls, Girls, Girls

The girls came to Boston - how excited was I to find out that the Jens and their families were coming to visit. This is a big deal considering they each have a little one, Jen is pregnant and the kids don't have a lot of experience sleeping away from home. Needless to say I was thrilled when Jen, Chris, Alexandra, Jen, Tom and Olivia showed up on Friday for a weekend visit.

I know my boys had a phenomenal time. I am going to let the pictures speak for themselves.

After a long day, the kids relaxing on the couch.

Four kids and my family room = tornado. All weekend I believe it looked something like this...I am surprised no one got hurt.

Birthday celebration for Olivia, Alexandra and Tom.

Blowing out the candles. I think that is Garrett's head peaking in because he wanted to be in the action.

Davis Farmland here we come.

Tom the "Goat Herder" and family. Tom's first job was to try to catch a young goat which escaped from one of the pens. His moves were lightning fast and even Jen managed to box in the goat. My favorite was Olivia feeding the animals and when they would come back to her, she would say "He likes me, he likes me."
Alexandra showed no fear and didn't seem fazed by the animals at all.

A family moment.
Feeding the animals.

The older kids in the wagon. Olivia was arranging all the feed cups.
This sheep took a liking to the boys.
Connor feeding the animals from his hand. After this moment, he went over to a cow to feed her. When her big tongue came out to take the feed, he was totally grossed out. He didn't expect such a big slimy tongue.
The little ones enjoying the spray park.
Alexandra showing Garrett how it is done.

I hope all the kids and parents had fun because I know we had a great time. Sadly, everyone went home on Sunday and then my boys took some very long naps. I think the girls wore them out. Come back and visit soon.

Pop Goes the Wiggles

Okay, so I have a lot of catching up to do. Let's start back on the weekend of the 16th. From the moment we found out the Wiggles were coming to Nassau Coliseum in Long Island, Brian and I knew we would be there. There was nothing that could keep us away. Including a huge storm which delayed all the planes in and out of LGA but Brian stuck it out for several hours in the airport and did manage to make it to Locust Valley just a little before midnight on Friday.

As a parent one of the few lessons I have had to learn is that when you are excited about something for your kids, sometimes they don't have the reaction you expect. So Brian and I were very excited for this concert and only hoped Connor would love it. Connor didn't let us down one bit. We got to the Coliseum 30 minutes early and once we found our seats (Front Row thanks to the help of Kristen at work) Connor wouldn't let us leave to walk around. He just didn't want to miss anything.

While Daddy went off to get us some snacks and souvenirs, Connor got up on Papa's lap. Let's just say from that point on Connor didn't move a muscle. During the entire show his eyes were glued to the stage, he didn't want anyone talking to him or any other possible distraction. He loved it!!!! He didn't miss a trick and could tell you every aspect of what happened during the performance. The show was a hit.

The position Connor sat in for over an hour and a half.

Garrett decided to take a little nap.

But woke up ready to party.

Connor still focused.

The family ready to leave after the show.

I thought I would throw this picture in to prove we were actually at the Wiggles concert.

4 Days in Ireland

As most of you know, Brian and I took a quick trip to Ireland for Blathnaid and Brian's wedding. To say it was a whirlwind trip is an understatement. You haven't been to a wedding until you go to an Irish wedding. They know how to do it right and to say the party continues into the early morning is an understatement. I think the lesson learned from our trip is that we are really getting old.

Donal took us on Friday for a drive to Dingle. Our first stop was on Conor's Pass and Peddlers Lake.

A shot of the landscape just a little bit further up the path.
Peddlers Lake and the hungry climbers. Poor Kevin rallied even though his heel isn't 100%.
On the way back down - they were all just happy I turned around.
Time for a pose.
Blathnaid looking beautiful on the big day.
The wedding party...it is only fitting that Patricia is in the front of this picture. I am not sure how it happened but in all of my pictures Patricia manages to be taking the same picture in front of me. It is quite funny when you look through all the pictures in the church.
The Happy Couple and parents
Unfortunately I wasn't a great photographer at the reception so I don't have photos of Irish step dancing, the music or the party that ensued. In a way, that is a good thing. This is us departing early Monday morning.

A Saturday Afternoon in Downtown Boston

Last Saturday, the Fishkill crew arrived to go to the Red Sox vs. Yankee game. While they were at the game, I thought it might be fun to bring Heather and the boys to the Children's Museum and then explore our old neighborhood. Since nap time was pretty late, we didn't arrive to the musuem until 3:30 so we only had an hour and a half to explore and have fun. You are about to see we made the most of it. Our first stop was the playspace for children three and under.

Garrett climbed up these steps and claimed his status of King of the Mountain (with just a little assistance from Heather)
Garrett was having a blast with the little obstacle course
Connor loved that he could just fall backwards and make a loud thud
It quickly turned into a family game.

With so little time we had to pick and choose what rooms we went into...The bubble room was a huge hit since Connor is obsessed with bubbled right now. I believe Heather found this just a fasinating since she was a huge help trying to help Connor with all the different experiments and stations. My favorite part is that Connor loved when Heather was trying to surround herself with a bubble. He thought it was really cool so when she got out he tried to step in...only problem was you had to step over a moat of liquid bubble soap to get to the platform. I don't think Connor realized this and came out with quite a soggy foot. You live You learn.

There is a huge climbing maze in the middle of the museum and I just couldn't get a picture of the whole thing. Connor and Heather managed to complete the maze.
The passage ways are very small.
Garrett wanted to get in to the act too.
I climbed the stairs and found these two up near the second floor of the museum.

We grabbed a quick bite to eat and I learned a very valuable lesson. Never take your eye off your glass at the table. Garrett managed to get it and seconds later there were a thousand pieces of glass of the floor. Lesson learned and since it was a pub restaurant I don't think they were too upset. Although I was probably more embarressed than anyone. I decided to take Heather for a walk through Quincy Market and she loved the performers. Since it was really busy, we decided to go to a little park to check out the fountains. Connor and Heather were soon wet but had a blast.

Heather showed Connor the way to run in between all the spouts of water. He quickly followed.
Garrett trying to take pictures of the action with Heather's camera

Somehow we managed to pick up Daddy and the Fishkill crew after our downtown adventure. Sunday was a miserable rainy day so we kept it low key but Connor kept Heather busy painting with his many requests...He wanted a rainbow, sun, moon, grass, rain etc. Heather managed to fulfill his entire wish list.