Hey I Made It, I'm the World's Greatest...

Right. So here we are. One school year down and our girls made it through in one piece, their unique personalities firmly intact. June was a very busy month for these gifted performers. Luce had another star turn in her drama/art class production of Fandango Stew and Carmen was blinded by the glare of the stage lights and was a bit "sheepish" in her Driving my Tractor role. She was much more animated at the reunion of her American Girl doll (thanks again for sending Nonne!). This month also brought an Ellen's House sleepover for BOTH girls. Luce took along the iTouch to capture important memories... like this and this. Lucia also honored a special man in her life for Father's Day with this homemade card to Papa Stu. All in all, June was pretty great for the Mothers Goose clan. You know, except when I OPENLY WEPT during Luce's class performance of this R. Kelly song (I_know). I have the full version, but couldn't make it through the entire post without waterworks.

Next up, Fourth of July and CAMPAPALOOZA 2013... stay tuned!

Come what, May?!

Right, so after April came May and May, quite frankly, was a big flippin' blur. BUT I did manage to snap a few pics of our Mega Mother's Day festivities. After Mer's "Trial of the Century" wrapped up at the end of April, she high-tailed it to Chicago for some R&RT (rest and retail therapy) with her sister, which was exactly what she needed. However, she forgot that weekend fell on Mother's Day... which was too bad for her because she missed out on a rollicking good time. Auntie Mia swooped in for some make-over magic and Mimi and Nonne came down for some Mother's Day dinner and brunch goodness. Laughs were had, hair was did, and food was eaten. Pretty perfect.

And what May would be complete without a Memorial Day Trip to Pland to celebrate Papa's birthday? Oh, and Lucia dressed like a biker chick and read a book to Aunt Ashlee's hand.

Fin.

So Long April, Good Riddance...

April was not the easiest month for the Mothers Goose (and the human race in general). Mama Mer was busy preparing for trial, working 7 days a week and spending entirely too much time in central Pennsylvania... and I was, well, trying to keep my sh*t together. Then the week of the Boston Marathon happened and we were all rattled to say the least. Luckily, it was school vacation week and the kids and I were up in Maine on Marathon Monday far away from the chaos unfolding in Boston. We had plenty of fun distractions in the form of cousins, rodents, and of course great food. Then we returned mid-week and were forced to "shelter in place" on a 74 degree Friday. Oy. The next day, Luce got busy helping out where she could though not fully understanding what took place, just that "a bad man did a bad thing and hurt some people." She set up a "mini farmer's market" with entertainment, snacks and a donation basket. I swear I had nothing to do with any of this. I'm just here to document the awesomeness.

Yeahhhhhh Easter!

Yes it happened, like, a month ago... but still. I have evidence that the event took place, and my children seemed to enjoy it. Speaking of pictures, I have no idea why the Google powers that be felt the need to mess up our perfectly nice Picasa web album/blog interface but they did, big time. So if you can't view the pictures anymore I think there's a "request" button you can push or something and then I magically grant you access. All 4 of you that read this blog have at one point in time expressed interest in either myself or my family so chances are, you'll be allowed behind the curtain... just ask me :-)

Speaking of magic, get a load of the inner workings of my 6 year old's brain when asked to occupy herself for a period of time. This is what she comes up with (my room may never be the same). In keeping with her creative streak, she was recently cast in the kindergarten production of Carnival of the Animals as a cuckoo bird... the directors swore there was no typecasting involved. With five, yes FIVE kindergartens at the school, this production rivaled that of Broadway's The Lion King with perhaps a little more screeching involved. Perhaps. Oh and the second child was around too and did stuff and generally looked cute. I'll get her at the next update...

So long Loon, see you next year!

As we put another ski season in the books, now is the time to reflect on all the wonders the winter brought us this year. Such as Lucia skiing down the mountain like a champ (even tackling some blue trails at the end) and Carmen refusing to use the wedge stop technique, barreling down the slopes full speed and right into the safety netting over the side of the trail. That was the last time Carmen got to ski with Mamas... right back to ski school for that kid. Luckily, Carmen excelled at some of the tamer winter sports, such as snowman building and general cuteness.

The end of the season also brought a birthday celebration for Mama Mer complete with a trip to our favorite pink diner... where Lucia proudly announced Mama's age to the waitress, who of course brought out a birthday Sunday and serenaded Mer with "Happy Birthday" along with the rest of the waitstaff. Awesome.

And last but certainly not least, the end of March brought Lucia's first starring stage role - as Peter in the production of Gumption! based on this book. She learned all of her lines and nailed the role (IMHO) and fulfilled my dream of becoming a stage mother.... see for yourself, a star is born.

Random notes from the cheap seats...

As Mer likes to say, "If it doesn't go on the blog, it is lost forever!" So with that in mind, here are some recent gems from the mouths of my family:

Carmen, "Lucia, we're probably gonna get a trophy... for being such good girls."

Carmen, "I love you mucher than pancakes."

When discussing the dangers of playing with fire, I was explaining that you never burn matches and Luce chimed in, "or chipmunks. You never burn chipmunks."

6:30am, Carmen: "Mama, I'm sorry"

Mer: "Why, honey, you just woke up?"Carmen: "I'm sorry because you smell like beer." (said with Carmen's Boston accent)Mer: "Beer? Do you mean coffee?"Carmen: "It might be coffee."

And you know how I know I'm a grown up? Because I say things like, "Luce, we never stick anything in anyone ever!" (she was trying to put a toy in her sister's bellybutton).

Sooooo this happened...

Yeah, yeah, yeah... so I missed the last half of January and all of February. In my defense, it was a short month anyway. Here's the thing, I blame Steve Jobs (RIP)... or more specifically the iPhone. Since that device came along I have gotten out of the habit of taking actual PHOTOGRAPHS with my real CAMERA and as a result we all suffer. The blog suffers, you dear patient reader suffer and lord knows I suffer (hearing it from Mer). I will try and stay more on top of things, because moments like these are too precious not share. Yes, our baby turned 4 in February and she is full_of_it. She loves to laugh, and be goofy and make up nonsensical songs... like this jaunty little ditty called "There's a Drink in My Drawer." She sings it often, with many variations and no two are ever alike. Classic.

We've spent a fair amount of time up at Loon (appropriate, no?) this winter and the weather has been most cooperative, providing ample opportunities for outdoor refrigeration when necessary. Lucia has really taken to skiing and Carmen, well, she much prefers this sport.

Along we Carmen's birthday, we also celebrated Mimi's Birthday and Dr. Martin Luther King's as well. When asked about Dr. King, Carmen will tell you, "He had a great idea! That people who like broccoli and people who don't like broccoli can still be friends." Yep, that sounds about right.  Errata, this was included in the LAST update. The editor regrets this error.