Triumph

There might be no sweeter reward for hours and hours of reading lessons than this: stumbling upon your hoops, scooter, bike and baseball-obsessed son doing this:




Yes, it was raining outside, but don't rain on my parade... This is hard-won!

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The End of an Era

The peach bathtub, tile, toilet and sink had quite the run in our kids' bath - 56 years! - but at long last, the time had come to say goodbye. The kids had a last hurrah in the bath, making sure to douse every inch of the bathroom in water, per their usual antics, and the next day, thanks to the magic of demolition, it was all gone... along with the master bath next door!

It's been a crazy week and a half, the house milling with the chaos of a plumber, an electrician, and three drywallers, and we're living in the guest bedroom until the back half of the house is less of a construction zone.

In the meantime, making decisions about colors, fixtures and tile has never been easier, thanks to my newest obsession, Pinterest! We're going with a happy yellow and white color scheme in the kids' bath, and these are on their way...

We hope to show off some pretty new bathrooms soon, maybe as soon as Easter! Stay tuned!

A Taste of Summer in Scottsdale

There's nothing quite like leaving home in the midst of week-long rainstorms, and landing in Scottsdale, Arizona only to be welcomed by an 80-degree streak of perfect weather. We felt like snowbirds leaving Jersey and touching down in Florida.

We lived in swimsuits, started working on our summer tan, took the rust off our swimming skills, and oh yeah, took in one baseball game!

We spent most of our time watching our water babies play in the baby pool -- doing cartwheels and playing with water squirters -- and supervising while they braved the water slide, over and over and over again.

The life of luxury comes way too easy for these kids!

Luckily, we made them exercise their brains a little, with the help of a giant outdoor chess board that Joey was drawn to like a magnet. Is it possible to have outdoor chess board envy? If so, then both Tim and Joey do!

Until next year, Arizona!

St. Patrick's Day Outtakes

The luck of the Irish was not with us this year when attempting to capture three little half-Irish people in their green. Here's the painful outtakes!

Unexpected Mini-Me

On her most recent trip up north, "Mop" brought along a handful of snapshots and school photos from my own toddlerhood and early school years. Since the phrase I hear uttered most often about the kids is, "Clara looks so much like you!" I was expecting to see proof that we looked alike even at that age, but the picture that stood out from the stack was startling... I had no idea that I looked so much like Molly as a baby!

My favorite part? I'm standing in the master bedroom of our current house in this photo, in "Ma" and "Pa's" old bedroom. It's overlapping moments of time like these that make living in a home rich with family history so special!

The Folly of the Irish

Does there come a moment in every young Irishman's life when he makes the mistake of breaking into a jig, while wearing baseball cleats and pants, at the very same moment that his mother is armed with a video camera?

This one is definitely being labeled for the archives as "blackmail." Its uses have yet to be determined, but at this point we're examing all options, including a pre-prom viewing, a reveal at a 2025 baseball banquet, and even a wedding rehearsal dinner showing.

For now, though, it's fodder for the best Molly laughs of all time.

March Madness

The month of March so far has been a whirlwind of playdates with friends, sleepovers and get-togethers with cousins, soccer and basketball games, haircuts, and the day-to-day routine of school and play. Without further ado (and because I'm frankly out of time to do much more!), here's our month in pictures!

Joey and one of his best friends, Andy, enjoying basketball and popsicles during an after-school playdate

Clara and "the other Molly," younger sister of one of Joey's best friends, Michael

Joey making himself comfy on the kitchen floor while doing homework

Our newest "100 Easy Reading Lessons" student has been plugging away at her hot pink chart!

Pretty spring girls after a soccer game (don't mind Clara's newest face)!

Molly makes a pretty patient cheerleader and sideline supporter -- and green is definitely her color these days!

She loves her soccer socks!

Molly is usually my buddy at the gym, and she loves her "beginning balance beam" on the steps up to the gym

She thinks she's a very big girl!

Mop came for a visit in February and dealt Molly a hand

Uncle Kyle and his mini-me

Joey had a sleepover with cousin Tommy at Grandpa and Grandma's house at the beginning of the month, and the duo did lots and lots of hiking and playing.

Two weeks ago, the Stecher girls came for an all-day visit -- a much-anticipated event that led to all-around giddiness, craziness, and excitment. We decided to sweeten the day even more by keeping Megan and Bridget overnight that night, and taking them to the kids' soccer games the next day.

Joey taught Megan all about hoops... and she loved it!

Bridget loved being a spectator

The "triplets" in action... they're looking more and more alike these days!

  

Clara and Bridget the next morning after soccer, best buddies!

That same weekend, Grandpa and Grandma came out to see our little hoopster in action at his last basketball game

Grandpa ended up helping keep Clara very entertained!

The team let loose with post-game silliness...

...and Joey and buddies Rylan and Andy devoured their end-of-season treat

Finally, this week we wrapped up another visit from Mop with a cousin get-together on the other side of the Bay, with a stop at Uncle Matt's baseball game, and then dinner. With eight little ones to feed and keep from behaving like wild monkeys, this is becoming a more and more crazy feat all the time! But it's worth it to see their special cousin relationships get sweeter and stronger. Too bad we couldn't wrangle in two extra cousins - Lucy and Tommy - who showed up for the cousin-fest, too! Here's the Cecchin and Stecher group, except for Mary, at the baseball game.

Megan, Joey, Annie, Clara, Tessa, Bridget and Molly

Big six year-olds!

And that's a wrap!