Happy Half Birthday Baby Carmen!

To celebrate her 6 months on the planet, Carmen gave Mothers Goose the bestest present ever - she slept through the night 2 nights in a row! Of course, now I probably just jinxed it but whatever, I'm running on 7 straight hours of sleep... I don't know what to do with myself. Amazing what a full night of sleep can do for you really, we've had the most productive weekend ever. Which is doubly impressive considering the current heat wave. Of course, kids know exactly how to beat the heat where as moms just clean. I have pretty much cleared the master bedroom of the last vestige of babydom - - anyone in the market for a used baby glider?? Oh, speaking of kids I promised cuteness updates. First the half birthday girl: Carmen has been doing the funniest repetitive arm extension/pull toy into mouth thing that I've tried to capture on camera but keep failing. It's like a rapid motion arm curl to the head/mouth move that is occasionally painful depending on the toy she is holding. Head bonks aside, it is adorable and we love it. As for her big sister, her vocabulary continues to amaze us (she used the word "peculiar" to describe a sound the other day) as does her negotiation skills (must be the lawyer in her). For example the other day we drove by a public pool in the Boston College part of Brookline. She asked if she could go swimming there and I said no, that pool is for big kids. Now she knows that Carmen is a baby and we're always calling her a "big sister" so she said, "But I'm a big kid!" and we said, "No, that pool is for kids in college." To which she screamed, "I want to go to college! Please, mom can I go to college pleeeeeeeaaaaase??!?" Yeah, I'll remind her of this very conversation 16 years from now when she tells me she wants to take some time off to explore Europe.

Ayuh, That's a Wicked Good Vacation

Another sandy beach, another naked baby. Life *is* good. So Mothers Goose has taken a chapter out of the European lifestyle manual and decided to take the summer off. Well, not really but a two week vacation plus company mandated furlough is a pretty sweet way to spend August. As usual we packed up the contents of our entire house and headed north "upta camp" as the Mainers say. What was different this year (besides the whole kids thing) was that the weather actually cooperated. Nothing beats spending time with family and friends, by the water, drink in hand and the sound of Yahtzee rattling in the background. After a waterlogged two weeks on the lake we then spent some R&R in Portland with my folks, ate cake for Maria's something or other (don't say birthday) and ventured out to the OOB. I'll post more on that later along with some of the latest kid cuteness - i.e. Carmen's stupid human tricks and Lucia wants to matriculate. Stay tuned.

Hello Summer, Nice of You to Show...

I find it hard to believe that our first trip to the beach didn't happen until the middle of July. Furthermore, I find it REALLY hard to believe that our first trip to the beach was here. No matter, Lucia and Carmen had a great day despite the 90 degree heat. Lucia has (finally) had plenty of chances to break in her new bathing suit - from frolicking at birthday parties to visiting her BFF's summer home, the Mothers Goose summer is in full swing. Oh and in order to live up to her sister's larger than life persona, Carmen has been puuuurfecting her Jellicle cat routine. Broadway here we come!

Let the Sunshine In...

The clouds finally parted in Boston, just in time for a visit from the cousins. It was a real treat since they decided to stay in a hotel (not that we mind housing them AT ALL) but the kids had great fun splashing in the lap pool. Not sure the other patrons doing actual laps appreciated the frolicking, but we certainly did. After peeling the kids out of the pool we managed to fit in visits to the children's museum and the zoo... and not a drop of rain in sight! The past week also ushered in a new milestone for Carmen - solid(ish) food! She has shown interest in whatever we're eating, so we thought she'd like to try some of her own. Turns out, she's definitely one of us - she loves food. First step rice cereal, next step eggrolls and meatballs.

See This? It's Mine Now.

Ok, so technically she's ours now. Yesterday was Carmen's big adoption day and for any readers out there wondering why gay marriage is necessary - this is one big reason why. In order for me to become one of Carmen's "official" parents Meredith had to surrender her parental rights, process an ungodly amount of paperwork, let it work it's way through the system and then boom, 4 months later hooray I'm a mom. Please forgive my lack of elloquence here but, "NO DUH." The whole thing is ludicrous and waste of money and time for all. Seriously people, you're just delaying the inevitable. Get over it already. (Fran steps off of soap box and resumes lighthearted tone).
It was a lovely ceremony and Carmen really appreciated the attendance of her Mimi, Nonne and Papa (who woke up at the crack of dawn to drive down from Maine in the pouring rain). Lucia played a key role in the adoption, expertly wielding the judge's gavel (or hammer as she called it) and signing her name to the decree. Being the high rollers that we are, we then celebrated with breakfast at iHOP proving once again that my family of four females has just as bad taste as a family of four in any given red state.

Several Very Cute Reasons for the Delay...

Carmen of course being one of the major reasons (4 months, still not sleeping through the night - COME ON KID). We keep reminding Carmen that it's a good thing she's so cute - even in the middle of the night when she has a death grip on Mama Mer's shirt. We really do need to find her a better pacifier. Another reason for the lack of blog updates - trying to keep up with this one. And then of course our various activities and engagements not the least of which included the semi-annual Maine lobster and beerfest - a.k.a. family reunion. Despite the deluge that has been June, we have had a very fun filled month. I know I have a lot of catching up to do, but right now my battery is dying - figuratively and literally. Good night kids, good night Mer, good night bloggers everywhere...

Happy Birthday Papa Stu - Luce Went Poo!

That's almost how tonight's phone conversation went... almost. Since the girls came down with their 245th cold of the year, we did not go to Maine for the long weekend and so we missed out on BBQs and birthday cake but we made the most of our quarantine. We decided to kick Luce's diaper habit once and for all! Luce was really interested in the potty about 3 months ago, but the Mothers Goose was slightly distracted at the time. So we missed the window then, but decided to smash it back open this weekend and so far so good! Lucia was so excited about her potty usage tonight she had to call Nonne and Papa right away. In her haste to tell Papa Stu her news, she buried the headline which was supposed to be "Happy Birthday Papa Stu!" instead she just told him about her potty productivity. At least Lucia can be sure no one else wished him a happy birthday in quite the same way. Ok, enough with the scatological humor, it's beneath me (HA!)...
Despite being a little snotty, Luce and Carmen had a full calendar of activities including visits from gift bearing friends, receiving gentleman callers and taking a spin on some new wheels. It was a banner weekend to be sure.