Wednesday, September 26, 2007

It's the little blessings that count!


Today I was just thinking about how quickly time flies and how precious that time is with your family. Before you know it, Geno and Coretta will have lives of their own and will barely want to be seen with their parents.

I am so lucky to have two beautiful children that are happy and healthy. Not only that, but they get along so well with one another. This picture is one of my favorites taken in the backyard of my parents! Enjoy!

Beaver and the Bean Boys


This summer we went up to Detroit Lakes, Minnesota for the Annual Water Carnival where John, Nick, Ryan, and my dad finally decided to be brave enough to enter the infamous Chili Contest. Although they didn't win, contrary to the family's opinion, it was a good time that involved brotherhood, teamwork, and most importantly beer!

While the men were off for a day of creating their famous chili and bonding, the women were off to the Annual Children's Pet and Doll Parade! Coretta and Emilia dressed up as the rock band "the Hippie Chicks" while Jack and Geno wore their Beaver and the Bean BoysT-shirts.









This day was filled with sampling chili, taking the kids on rides, and taking time to enjoy the sun as well as the company of family. This will definitely continue to be an annual event that allows everyone to spend quality time together!!

Next year, however, the women may also create their own chili and have a little competition with the men, a Battle of the Sexes if you will. Tune in next year to see who can make the best chili!!

Monday, September 24, 2007

Geno and his beloved boxes

Geno spends time daily practicing his sitting up skills. When you weigh thirty pounds at nine months old, you need all the practice you can get. This is a short clip of Geno playing with his beloved colored boxes that house his favorite stuffed toys shaped as crayons, balls, animals, and Geno's ultimate favorite, food!

The Coretta and Geraldina Variety Show

The summer has gone by so fast!! Coretta and her puppet Geraldina are here to share with us a few highlights from Coretta's summer this year! Enjoy this short clip!

Hmmmm...Is he saying Daddy?

This week Geno has been experimenting with language. So far he can say the m sound which allows him to say"MMMMM oatmeal, and Mom. The word that is up for debate is the B sound he makes. He keeps saying Baa, Baa. Nick seems to think that this is his pet name for Daddy. What do you think?

Friday, September 21, 2007

All family members, please get out your wallets!!


As is tradition at any Catholic School, fall is a time when schools are preparing for their annual Marathon where students, parents, and teachers are involved in raising money for things that are needed at their school. Not only does this charitable donation help the students get supplies that they need for the year, but it will give Coretta a chance to win gift certificates to Best Buy, Target, and most importantly free dress on Fridays if the school makes their goal each week. If you have ever attended a school that makes students wear uniforms, you would realize that this prize is definitely the biggest of all! The Marathon is scheduled for October 13th. So...if you have not donated money to any charitable cause yet this year, the Marathon is the one for you!! Please send any donations to Coretta's address. If possible, make the check out to Nick and we will turn all of the money in one lump sum. Any donations would be greatly appreciated. I have attached a photo of Coretta proudly wearing her Marathon T-shirt.

Is that a 3 year old?


Geno Robert is officially nine months as of tomorrow. The time sure does fly when you are having fun!!

At the doctor's visit, Geno was not required to receive any shots. He was extremely happy about this, because he doesn't do too well with them poking his skin. They also measured him at a whopping 32 inches long and he weighed in at an astounding 29 pounds and 12 ounces!! If you are not up to speed on height and growth charts, the translation is that he is the size of an average 3 year old boy! I don't foresee any child bullying my giant in the future!!

With that said, the doctor said that he is perfectly healthy. He sleeps for 12 hours every night from 6:00p.m. until 6:00 a.m. As for crawling, he did not seem to be concerned with his lack of progress and his new found ability to roll to everything instead.

He proceeded to tell me that average babies his age usually start to walk around 12 months. Since Geno is not an average kid by any means, the doctor expects for him to walk on his own around summer time which means not until he is 15 to 18 months old. It is okay to have sympathy for me because that means I will need to carry him, (reminding you that he is close to thirty pounds and only going to get bigger) until summer. My back is literally killing me.

Check out this short video clip where Geno finally discovers that he can splash!!

Sunday, September 16, 2007

Coretta's Big Milestones



As you all know, Coretta is turning eight this September. This summer has been marked as being a summer of firsts for Coretta. This summer she learned how to swim being able to do numerous swimming techniques such as the back float, front float, back stroke, and doggy paddle.

She has also found the newfound freedom a bike can give you without training wheels and enjoys this independence by driving really fast and taking long bike rides on state trail as well as when we have had the luxury to go camping at both Heston's Lodge and Mille Lacs State Park. At Heston's Lodge she managed to muster up a lot of courage and determination when faced with her first big fall. We decided to go for a quick bike ride as a family down this one gravel path. I was in the lead, then Nick and Geno, and lastly Coretta. The gravel road was quite bumpy and when my bike began to gain speed, I knew that this could really be big trouble. I stopped my bike to hear Coretta screaming and crying at the top of her lungs and to my astonishment, she had lost control of her bike and fell face first over her handle bars. I regretfully must admit that she was not wearing a helmet this day, but received her first road scars on her knee, her belly, and her leg. She did not let this put a damper on her love of riding on the open road and did not hesitate to take her bike out again.

Furthermore, we all went to ValleyFair in August and realized that Coretta would have to be measured to see if she could go on all the rides. To our astonishment she not only made that requirement, but is a whopping 4 feet and 6 inches tall!! She had a blast at ValleyFair and went on many of the scariest roller coasters such as the infamous rickety white one, the Excalibur, the Corkscrew, and Steel Venom.

Friday, September 14, 2007

...and don't forget the dog

Charlie the Cockapoo has patiently endured our newfound fascination with all things blog.

Perhaps it is because Nick drops lots of kettle corn on the floor, as he munches his way from one file conversion to the next, marveling at each demonstration of his own ingenuity. (Poor Crystal!)

More likely, it seems, Charlie has been harboring thespian tendencies...demonstrated in this film noir, entitled GO FOR A WALK?

Coretta's ExtraCurricular Activities



Coretta has started her soccer season. Soccer is on Mondays throughout October. She is on the purple team and really enjoys it! So far they are undefeated! Go purple!!!

She will also be an official girl scout at the brownie level which will begin with their first field trip to Minnehaha Falls on September 27th! Go troop 2650!

She is planning to start figure skating October 20th and will have a recital in May.

Basketball will also start up in October, and if you haven't had the chance to see Coretta's skills, she is an excellent shooter with great hustle!

Lastly, Coretta has begun to have a passion for music!! She will begin traditional piano lessons in November at Saint Joseph's School of Music.

Coretta's 8th Birthday Party

Yes that is right. My little Coretta is turning eight this month. I caught myself thinking that time really flies by. In ten years she'll already be going to college. This year her birthday is going to involve four hours of rollerskating and video games. Which brings me to my bigger point. Nick and I will have to put on twelve little girls rollerskates, keeping in mind that many of them have never rollerskated before, and proceed to the rollerink where it will be our primary responsibility to make sure that all girls make it out of there safe. I keep thinking to myself that this just might be a disaster, but then I think, what great pleasure I will get out of seeing Nick trying to maneuver in rollerskates!

Sleepless in Saint Paul

Last night was probably the worst night of sleep I have ever had. I had a record amount of thirty minutes of sleep. Geno cried nonstop all night long and nothing I could do would soothe him. Teething is my worst enemy. Geno is very sensitive to new teeth and they cause him a tremendous amount of pain. Not only does he have pain, but he gets a bad cold as a result of it which makes it hard for him to breathe. Bless his little heart. Hopefully he will start to feel better soon. I think I will need to work in a nap today.

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Geno's Latest Developmental Milestones

As of today, Geno is almost nine months old. He currently has his top two and bottom two teeth and is in the process of cutting two more. Due to this painstaking ordeal, he has been ultra fussy. If he could only realize that the faster he gets his teeth, the faster he can eat a steak, he would be elated!

He cannot really quite utter a word, but he is definitely an active music participant. Like in church, for instance, as soon as the congregation starts singing Geno starts screaming and screeching, which is fine, until everyone else stops singing. He doesn't quite understand the etiquette of singing yet.

As for crawling, I am unsure if he will ever make the leap. Currently, he still enjoys rolling around on the floor to reach anything that interests him. I guess whatever works.

His nine month check-up is coming up in the next two weeks, and I am excited to see how much he weighs. From lifting him every day, I believe he must be at least thirty pounds. He is currently wearing clothes that are made to fit 24month boys and his shoe size is 6 in a half.

One constant force in his life is his unwavering love affair with his food. He currently eats three times a day. His first feeding is at 6:00 in the morning and his last feeding is at 4:00 p.m. Some of his favorite foods are oatmeal, pears, mixed vegetables, green beans, carrots, bananas, turkey and rice, lasagna, etc. I have yet to find a food he doesn't like. He hardly will drink a bottle and most times the only formula he gets is what he gets in his oatmeal.

See for yourself!



He is quite the character and loves to smile, spend time with his sister, and stare at Charlie.

Here's a short video of "crib time!"

Deep Thoughts by Coretta

Coretta came home one day from school and stated that she was a vegetarian. When I asked her what the definition of vegetarianism was, she matter-of-factly stated "Someone who loves vegetables."

Coretta's First Day of School at Saint Luke's

Coretta woke up at 6:30 a.m. Although she thought that she might set her monkey alarm clock, she decided against the obnoxious hoo hoo haa haa that would startle her into an awakened state on her first day of second grade. She quickly ate her breakfast and put on her uniform and was out the door by 7:45 a.m. Although she was apprehensive about starting a new school, making new friends, learning new rules and being faced with unfamiliar surroundings, she was pleasantly surprised at how welcomed she felt by everyone. She came home from school with stories of at least ten new friends she had made and a great teacher she believed would finally challenge her.

Hear all about it in her own words: