Life with my babies

Alex's letter to Santa Claus

2011-12-23T08:54:00.001-07:00

Dear Santa Claus,

I hope you enjoyed giving out presents last year. How do you get around the world so fast? It must be exhausting. This year, I want:

A Reyblade (or a few),
To be with my family,
More 39 clues books,
Toys,
A Kinect,
Books,
Video games,
World Peace,
Joy,
Words to Christmas Carols,
A way to fix my DSi,
and a Merry Christmas.

I hope you have a Merry Christmas and get the rest you deserve. Have a good eleven months of rest and preparation. Hope you like our treats! Do you like California? Do you like candy canes? What are your hobbies? One more thing, I'd like is a chance to be like you. What does it feel like to spread all this cheer? What games do you play at the North Pole? I don't mean to annoy you, but could you send a reply? I'd love to read your answers. I know less people believe in you now then in the past. But, I believe in you. I'll always believe in you. I hope Coco doesn't bother you either. I also hope you like our Christmas tree. There are so many things I want to tell and ask you.

Merry Christmas! Have lots of fun!

Love, Alex Devlin

Smaller mom

2011-10-12T09:49:00.003-06:00

I've lost a lot of weight on WeightWatchers. I highly recommend their program for anyone SERIOUS about getting in shape. It works.

Mom: "Andrew, what do you like best about my losing weight?"

Andrew: "Well, you take up less space."

Baby girl

2011-10-11T12:43:00.001-06:00

At church, we were given a baby bottle to collect change in for a couple of weeks. When the bottle is full, we'll return the bottle to church to help with prenatal care for poor women.

Seany loves this program! "Mom, we can fill this bottle with money. Then all your food in your belly will turn into a baby!" Squeaking, "And we'll have a cute wittle baby sister."

Alex is published at Zoobooks!

2011-10-02T13:38:00.005-06:00

AB Pattern

2011-09-26T22:03:00.002-06:00

I wore a purple and white striped sweater.

Ryan: "Mom, I love your sweater."

Ryan: "Mom, Can I color?"

Ryan: "Mom, Wook! Wook! It's an AB pattern. See purple, wipe, purple, wipe."

Seany sings the blues

2011-09-25T15:22:00.003-06:00

7 am Sunday morning...

Seany singing at the tip top of his lungs, "Daddy told us to be quiet. Daddy told us to be quiet. You will be in trrrroooooubbbbblle!"

Captain America

2011-09-20T13:13:00.003-06:00

"Mom, Captain America wants my autograph. He's my biggest fan!" -- Seany

The Hooker

2011-08-14T11:15:00.002-06:00

Seany dragged the once broken kid's coat rack in from the garage.

"Seany, Papa has to fix that. Leave it alone."

"Yea, I know. He awready did FIX IT."

"Seany, before you take it to your room, please ask Papa."

"OK."

A few minutes later Papa came downstairs. "So, I told Sean he could take the hooker to his room. (pause) What is he talking about?"

The Daily News

2011-07-20T06:50:00.002-06:00

Everyday at school, Ryan's class 'writes' the daily news on the board:

Today is Tuesday, July 12, 2011.

Today is sunny and cloudy.

The season is summer.

"I want to play with Coco, " said Ryan.

Switch

2011-07-07T14:48:00.003-06:00

"Sean, can you share that with me?" Ryan asked about Seany's dirt cup from class.

"Sure, Wyan."

"Sean, maybe I can go to your class for a wittle bit?" Ryan asked as he didn't receive a dirt cup in his class.

"Yea, sure Wyan. I know! Let's ask Mom if we can switch classes sometimes!"

And so it begins...

4th of July!

2011-07-07T14:04:00.002-06:00

Happy Independence Day!

Papa Pat leads the parade.

Ryan, Andrew, Sean, and Alex at the Fremont Parade.

The log ride

2011-07-07T13:52:00.001-06:00

The twix and the mom.

Santa Cruz Beach

2011-07-07T12:27:00.003-06:00

Ryan surfing.

Andrew, Sean, and Mark building sand castles.

Sean, Andrew, Ryan, and Alex in the ocean!

RYAN :)

2011-06-30T10:20:00.002-06:00

Ryan traces his name everyday at school.

R-Y-A-N
R-Y-A-N
R-Y-A-N

The first day of school his teacher drew a smiley face after he completed the task. Tuesday, day Ryan drew his own smiley face. Wednesday, Ryan drew his whole self in stick figure.

Golden Gate Park & the Academy of Science

2011-06-29T16:47:00.003-06:00

Poor Alex has to kneel in snaps with his bros because he's just too tall. Alex, Seany, Andrew, and Ryan.

Ryan and Sean learning about sea creatures.

Me, Ryan, Sean, and Andrew on the Academy's roof deck. Very windy.

The beasts -- Andrew, Sean, and the Rylander.

Creepy skull shot of Alex.

Napa fun for mother's day

2011-06-29T16:42:00.003-06:00

We found this great park in Napa. It's tucked away by a school. The boys loved it!

Fun in the sun

2011-06-29T16:38:00.002-06:00

Ryan above and Seany below.

Andrew and his lost tooth.

Union City Children's Art Show

2011-06-29T16:33:00.002-06:00

The participants, Alex & Andrew, with their award certificates.

Alex made a save the world poster.

Andrew drew a bird.

More Easter Fun

2011-06-29T16:19:00.002-06:00

Sean, Alex, Ryan, and Andrew

Easter Buckets

2011-06-29T16:10:00.003-06:00

Seany!

Andrewski!

The Rylander (sporting skeeter syndrome)!

Alexter!

Fun stuff inside!

Baseball

2011-06-29T15:53:00.003-06:00

At the A's game, Alex and Andrew.

The missing glasses

2011-06-27T18:46:00.002-06:00

Can one mark blog post as a high priority? Perhaps an exclamation mark is in order? But these days of fb status where everything is marked with an "!", how is one to notate a critical problem?

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (I know hold the key down.)

Alex's glasses have disappeared. Oh, ya didn't know. The headaches he gets are caused by eye strain. Two months ago, we invested in a pair of spectacles for the wee lad. Upon, first sporting them, he spent half an hour admiring the world (sights he had seen, signs he couldn't read, the world was new again)!

Those blasted specks must be here somewhere. But where is somewhere?

We've checked:
-under beds, cushions, couches
-in drawers, backpacks, pockets
-on shelves, desks, mantles, counters
-shaken out shorts and pants, backpacks and luggage

Please submit your ideas for search locations PRONTO!

Much thanks, the mom going crazy.

Supermom

2011-06-26T10:31:00.004-06:00

Andrew explained "Mom, you'd be a supermom if you'd let us do a whole bunch of fun stuff whenever we want."

Mom replied, "I guess that's a title I can't aspire to then."

Best friends

2011-06-16T09:34:00.002-06:00

Seany wanted to put his crackers in a baggie to save for later. Upon filling his bag, he discovered it would not close. I said, "Seany that's a snack bag, you need a sandwich bag. Go get one out of the cupboard."

Seany replied, "OK mom!" A few minutes went by while Ryan put his own crackers in an appropriately sized baggie and put them away to save for later. Seany was having a harder time, "Ryan can you help me?"

Ryan grabbed the correct baggie from the cupboard and set it down next to Sean and then went on his way to head of toward toy land. As he walked away, Seany focused on transferring the crackers to the new baggie called out, "Thanks Ryan. I knew I could count on you."

Big boys & little boys

2011-03-26T10:45:00.003-06:00

The twix are full of insightful comments of life.

Seany: "Mommy! Mommy! I want to be a big boy."

RyGuy: "And Mom, I want to be a little boy."

Moustache

2011-03-03T10:28:00.002-07:00

Seany is very excited to grow up.

"Mom, someday I will have a moustache right here (rubs upper lip with forefinger). And I can have a beard too! But I my moustache will look really good right here (more rubbing of upper lip). I just have to wait for it."

Support crew

2011-03-03T10:26:00.001-07:00

Andrew: Mommy, why are you excerising so much?

Mommy: I have to lose this big belly.

Andrew: Mom, your belly isn't big. (Mommy starts smiling) You're big everywhere.

Twix's preschool assessment

2011-02-06T09:54:00.003-07:00

The twix had a preschool assessment. A little Seany story to remember:

Sean was sorting bears of sizes small, medium, and large into like sized bowls. As he lifted one fellow and gently placed him in the small bowl, he told him, "Careful little guy, it's slippery in there."

Twix chat

2011-01-27T17:40:00.002-07:00

Sean: “Ryan, whatcha pooping for?”

Ryan: “Ah Sean, can you get me some toilet paper please?”

Sean: “Sure," speeding away.

Ryan: “MOMMMMMMMM! Can you come wipe my butt?”

Mom: “Can you take care of that yourself?”

Sean: “Ryan, I didn’t want to wipe my own butt either.”

Worst Mom Ever

2011-01-08T17:50:00.003-07:00

At dessert time one night, the twix decided they wanted Cheesecake. They loved every scrumptious bite.

Alex and Andrew asked for ice cream sandwiches. As I dished out the sandwiches, the twix started whining.

Ryan, "OHHH! I want one tooooo." Followed by a "Wah" and a "Wah."

Sean figured he might as well see if he could get a second dessert, "What about me?!!!!"

"You guys had cheesecake, Alex and Andrew wanted these instead of cheesecake," I explained.

"Ahhhhh!!!!" they started to really complain.

Alex interrupted before they could really get going with, "We know, we know, Mom's the worst mom ever."

Andrew was extremely disturbed, "HEY!!! ALEX! Don't say that about Mom...."

Fun Christmas times!

2010-12-31T09:41:00.000-07:00

A visit to Jack London Square!

A pre-Christmas present from Nona & Papa Avery -- Christmas jammies!

We built graham cracker houses

2010-12-31T09:38:00.002-07:00

Alex built a mansion.

Seany built a candy house; he found it delish! Ryan relied on Daddy to help!

Andrew went with a Christmasy theme.

Alex earned his Webelos badge & his arrow of light

2010-12-31T09:35:00.000-07:00

We celebrated understated December birthdays

2010-12-31T09:32:00.002-07:00

At the planetarium in Salt Lake City.

Twix in space.

Birthday cake! Andrew turned 7, Alex, 11, and Papa celebrated his birthday with us too! Seany and Ryan happily posed for the snap.

We made a pit stop in Vegas

2010-12-31T09:29:00.001-07:00

M&M World -- Alex, Seany, RyGuy, and Andrew. FYI, this is their favorite Vegas attraction!

We ate at the Rainforest Cafe at MGM Grand and saw the Lions! Andrew, Seany, Ryan and Alex.

Winning awards

2010-12-31T09:28:00.001-07:00

Alex won an honorable mention for the "Together we can...take care of the world."

Fall Fun

2010-12-31T09:25:00.001-07:00

Raking 3 leaves.

Harvesting chubby carrots -- yummo!

Scaring your mom, expecting Seany and seeing this guy instead.

Our Wyoming Adventure

2010-12-31T09:20:00.002-07:00

Sean, Andrew, Ryan, and Alex on the Evanston Riverwalk.

Sean, Andrew, Alex, and Ryan.

The 4 saddled up in the Mickey Ds. Alex and Andrew at table 1. Ryan and Seany at table 2.

One day, we got in the car and drove to Wyoming, just to check the state off the list.

Andrew rides a 2 wheeler!

2010-12-31T09:19:00.000-07:00

Andrew learned to ride a bike. He sort of got on and could just do it one day!

Zoo day!

2010-12-31T09:16:00.000-07:00

2010-12-07T17:07:00.001-07:00

In Walmizzle, Mom to the chicklets:

"This is not a family where we touch it each other! I don't want to see anyone in this family touch another person!"

The little reader

2010-12-04T22:18:00.001-07:00

Andrew is on the fast track toward full on reading. Last week, he brought home a new packet! "Mom! Mom! Guess what I'm on level H! (pause) HOLLA!"

Job hunt advice from the 6 years old wise one

2010-11-17T20:15:00.000-07:00

Typing on the computer, the following occurred.

Andrew: "Mom, can we have dinner yet?"

Mom: "No, I have to finish applying for this job."

Andrew: "Where is it?"

Mom: "California."

Andrew (exasperated): "No, I meant what place is it, like now you work at Pinnacle?"

Mom: "Google."

Andrew (thrilled): "Make sure you tell them you're a girl. If it's a man that hires for it. He'll like you because you're a girl."

Employment in California!

2010-11-06T10:11:00.002-06:00

Mark received a job offer for a 2 year contract at Google! This means we get to move back home! I am really thrilled and proud of him -- he's such a great employee and he is always well liked by his subordinates, I hope this is great fit for him. And it's exciting to see him go to work for a company that we know so much about!

We will be apart for a time while we find out if in this economy we can sell our house or if we will rent it out for a bit. Then we'll get ready to move -- moving with 4 chicklets is going to be an adventure. Before we even start I have list:

Find out about the UCSF non-official spina bifida program.
Transfer everyone's medical records over.
Find a doctor that will be a good fit for Alex and Ryan.
Hope the same the doctor is a good fit for the other guys.
Look into schools, early intervention programs, afterschool activities, etc.
Find out if I will be able to work remotely or find new employment.
Find a buyer/renter.
Based on that outcome find a place in Cali. :)
Then the moving list will start!

I am awed that we will live close to our families again. Over the last 7 years, there have been very difficult times that Mark and I have always managed through. We have always been in this life together. This will be a new challenge for us, another moment of our marriage that we can say we never want to go through again. This is first time we will ever spend more than a week apart and this will be the first time the chicklets will not live everyday in a two parent household. My prayers include as brief a time as possible before we are all together again, the chicklets handle this with minimal pain and with good behavior, and we manage to see one another regularly throughout the time apart.

I know that both sets of grandparents will really enjoy having the chicklets close again. And Mark and I are happy to be close to our families again.

So the unspecificed time line begins!

Alex & Andrew's school pictures

2010-11-06T10:09:00.001-06:00

Soccer Stars!

2010-11-06T10:07:00.003-06:00

Seany's snap is above and he is in the last boy in the first row in the team picture.

RyGuy's snap is below and he is the first boy in the first row in the team picture.

Scarecrow by Andrew

2010-10-20T08:31:00.000-06:00

The Big Red Barn

2010-10-09T18:02:00.002-06:00

On the wagon ride with Grandma - Ryan, Grandma, Sean, Alex, and Andrew.

Seany ghost.

Ryan and Andrew in front, Sean and Alex in back.

Alex, Seany, Andrew, and Ryan -- each with their chosen pumpkin!

10 long years

2010-10-07T07:58:00.000-06:00

Alex: That song is 20 years old. That's old. I'm 10 years old and it's been a LONG 10 years.

Happy 5th Birthday Seany and RyGuy

2010-09-29T18:25:00.002-06:00

The loot!

The birthday twix -- Seany in gray, Ry in red.

The knights: Seany left, Ryan right.

The zoo -- Andrew, Seany (sitting), Ry (standing), and Alex.

Preschool: Day 1

2010-09-29T18:22:00.001-06:00

Seany waiting for the bus and posing for the camera.

Ryan on the way to his classroom.

More bests

2010-09-15T19:35:00.002-06:00

I spoke to some of the chicklets on the phone this afternoon. I asked how each chicklet was and the best thing that happened.

Seany: "I made a tiger and a mfoashgnwtroawetiajkgaslfd!"

Mommy: "Great! What did you make with the tiger?"

Seany: "I said I makde a mfoashgnwtroawetiajkgaslfd, Mom."

I could hear, "Sheesh, listen when I speak to you" coursing through his brain.

Break to RyGuy....

Ryan: "I took a nap! (pause) And I went potty!"

Papa to Grandpa

2010-09-15T19:33:00.003-06:00

Andrew: "Dad, I forgot how to spell PAPA, so I wrote GRANDPA instead."

Best thing

2010-08-31T07:02:00.002-06:00

Every night at dinner, we go around the table highlighting the "best" thing that happened that day. Seany usually creates an adventure with sound effects and a super hero -- Seany. Ryan will either say something he did -- took a nap, ate lunch -- or go the Seany route. Alex and Andrew try to home in on one stellar moment.

Last night, Alex enjoyed soccer practice because he got to play with the rest of his team.

Andrew announced, "OH! I want to go. The best thing about my day was school. You wanna know why? Lunch. Mini-corndogs."

So glad the school district aspires to improve the palettes of such young charges.

Little Man

2010-08-25T20:46:00.002-06:00

Welcome to the world, little man. You are loved.

First day of school 2010, baby!

2010-08-24T17:37:00.003-06:00

The buds -- Andrew heading into 1st and Alex cruising into 5th!

In they're school gear, ready to go.

And they're off!

The Grotto

2010-08-24T17:35:00.002-06:00

Ryan playing in the dam.

Ryan and Seany in one of the Grotto 'caves.'

Commotion

2010-08-22T08:25:00.001-06:00

One morning, we woke at 6 am to lots of banging and crashing. A disgruntled Mark got out of the bed to investigate. Suddenly there was silence. Mark came back to the bed, "Gladiators with blasters" he whispered as he went back to sleep.

Girls

2010-08-22T08:03:00.003-06:00

At my work bbq at the park. Seany and the little 3 year old blondie spend time strolling to and fro hand in hand. Break to Ryan catching sight of this sweetness. He ran full blast over there and tackled blondie.

Golden Gate Playground

2010-08-22T07:59:00.002-06:00

Alex climbing the ropes.

Seany hanging from the zip line.

Ryan (above) and Andrew (below) headed down the hill slide.

Choose your favorite 4 pack

2010-08-20T07:54:00.002-06:00

Ryan in red, Seany in blue, Andrew in blue, and Alex in grey.

Haircuts for summer

2010-08-20T07:51:00.001-06:00

Ryan pre-cut

Twix post buzz buzz

Andrew's Kindergarten Graduation

2010-08-20T07:49:00.000-06:00

How much does your RyGuy love you?

2010-07-01T10:01:00.002-06:00

My RyGuy loves me so much he looks at me instead of camera.

Wave Pool

2010-06-24T06:47:00.002-06:00

The first time in a wave pool, we got about half out, when Andrew thought about the name. "Mom, maybe we should get out of here before the wave hits."

"What, know it's not like a tidal wave crashing over us."

"I think I'll just get out, take me to that ladder."

Muffins

2010-06-09T21:09:00.002-06:00

Alex said, "Relma made us some muffins but they never rose, so they were more like miniature pancakes."

"Oh, right! Relma mentioned that she tried to a new recipe. The first batch never managed to rise and she gave them to you older boys. But when she made the second batch she modified the recipe and they turned out much better."

Alex in a state of disbelief, "What happened to those?!"

Confidence

2010-06-06T18:57:00.001-06:00

While at dinner, Mark said to Andrew, "Alex is wise."

Alex interjected, "Well, yes I am in fourth grade going into fifth."

Wise indeed. So much experience.

Andrew's Kindergarten Graduation Portrait

2010-05-20T06:14:00.002-06:00

The world holds such hope and promise for the future. You can see the future in Andrew's eyes.

Poem inclued with kindergarten grad pictures:

ON MY WAY

I will climb the highest peaks
and find a way through the
deepest valleys as I follow
my heart in pursuing its dreams.

I will hold the sunlight and
welcome the rain as my garden
of knowledge prospers in its
quest to benefit the world.

I will learn from the defeats
as well as the triumphs on my
journey because from this day
forward there are no limits to
what I can achieve.

If we taking this kindergarten graduation any more seriously, what is left for college graduation?

Chicklets

2010-05-13T19:36:00.001-06:00

We were all out of the car, some of us slower than others:

Ryan, furiously indicating foward with his arms, "Come on chick-witts let's go! Chick-witts come on!"

Dinosaur World

2010-05-05T20:08:00.002-06:00

Andrew: "Mommy? Do you know that there's a Dinosaur World?"

Mommy: "There is? Where is it?"

Andrew: "MOM... It's in space. You know where ALL the WORLDS are."

I felt the 'duh' he kindly left unsaid.

The people that matter

2010-05-05T20:00:00.003-06:00

There comes a point in your life when you realize:

Who matters,
Who never did,
Who won't anymore...
And who always will.

This quote's come around twice and it means something more to me than just an email forward. Those that have sent it to me, thank you.

The people the matter, the people you think about while doing the dishes, working, and gardening. For me those people are my family, a few beautiful friends, and some loved ones gone from the world but never forgotten.

My family: parents, sister, hubs, chicklets, extended family, and in-laws.
My friends: y'all know exactly who you are.
Those I know I'll meet again.

I don't always say how much they mean to me. But Mark can tell you how often, I "accidentally" call him. Somehow hearing his voice makes the world a wee bit better for me.

To those I love, thank you for being part of my life, for helping me try to be better everyday.

Favorite stops with the Averys

2010-04-29T14:19:00.002-06:00

The construction worker -- RyGuy and those boots are his very own.

The LifeFlight pilot Seany.

The rhino was attacked!

And the red panda, he really is that darling.

Easter Fun

2010-04-29T14:12:00.003-06:00

A delighted Seany with his Easter Egg Hunt loot!

4 bunnies -- Seany, Alex, Andrew, and RyGuy.

Their Easter loot!

Back row: Alex, Papa, Carolyn, Andrew, and Nona
Front row: RyGuy and Seany

Webelos

2010-04-29T14:08:00.003-06:00

Alex got his colors!

Guess what I am, by Alex

2010-04-22T19:01:00.002-06:00

Have you got it yet?

A Blue Bird, by Andrew

2010-04-22T18:46:00.001-06:00

The greatest kinder-painting ever. Andrew's artwork tends to make me happy.

Utahnizing the chicklets

2010-04-14T22:23:00.002-06:00

After 7 blessed years living among the Utahns, we made the decision to Utahnize the chicklets. We want them to feel that they truly fit in amongst those with the most unusual names in the land.

Alex: 10 years old, christened Alexander David.
Utahnized: Alixter

Andrew: 6 years old, christened: Andrew James.
Utahnized: Andrewski. Andrewski finds he more acceptable version highly problematic. Actually preferring having a quote-unquote 'real' name.

Sean: 4 years old, member of 'the twix's should be enough to be unique as part of twix and nicknamed "Seany." Alas no, see Utahnized name for further clarification.
Utahnized: Seanathon. Curious coincidence, name father calls Seany in moments of tease.

Ryan: 4 years old, member 2 of 'the twix's thanks to benefit of birth.
Utahnized: Rylander. Actually, a far more appro-pro name than simple Ry (dash) an. Rylander imagines a more passionate, disgruntled, stubborn type person. A person more apt to say fill a soda can with hot cocoa in place of doing coloring the tiger preschool homework.

Five

2010-04-03T07:41:00.001-06:00

Seany announced showing all his fingers, "Mom, I want to be 5! Not 4."

"Well, I've got good news for ya. Someday, you'll be 5."

"Yeah, Mom. Someday."

Chairs

2010-03-30T06:59:00.002-06:00

RyGuy knew he was headed for trouble. He made a decision to stop the naughtiness in its tracks and find something else to do.

"MOMMY! Wook at me. I'm cleaning your chairs."

I replied, "Thanks, bud, that's awesome."

"Yeah, Mom I real awesome."

Seany jumped to attention, "MOMMY! I want to clean chairs too."

RyGuy, "Ah. Ok. Sean first you wipe off all the crumbs. Then you rub the towel. (pause) Hmmm. No Sean, first you wipe off the crumbs with your HAND not the towel!" (giggles commenced.)

Kindness

2010-03-29T18:47:00.003-06:00

An incident has had my mind churning with thoughts of kindness. It is so easy for people to be unkind, to laugh at others, to create an environment of spite.

Sometimes, it is hard be kind, to be brave, to be respectful. Sometimes being kind feels akin to not being popular. But if cruelty equals popularly, I for one chose being picked last or perhaps not at all. The biggest bully is not popular, that person is not well liked, that person just has weak followers who don't want to be the next target.

I try to not feed into that gossip, that malice, and I hope, I think I usually avoid getting sucked into that vortex. The woman that I want to be and the mother I want the chicklets to see me as is kind, loving, well mannered and though not perfect (despite my best efforts :D) always tries to be a better version of myself.

I hope this is the lesson that the chicklets learn and that in time, their own Alex, describes them as complimentary as Alex did me when said, "My mom is always kind, even when it doesn't matter."

Quote I'd like to remember

2010-03-26T17:46:00.004-06:00

I read a lot of books. I'll get back to blogging on the other blog about them v. soon.

This is an excellent quote that I thinks illustrates how I feel about our life. It's from the Ember series by Jeanne DuPrau, in the fourth book of Ember, The Diamond of Darkhold. The Ember books by the way, I highly recommend to the preteen crowd, they are excellent stories.

"You know, son, I don't think there's such a thing as an easy life. There's always misfortunes we can't control lurking out at the edges -- storms, sickness, wolves. But there is such a thing as a good life, and I think we have one here."

Visiting

2010-03-20T19:29:00.001-06:00

Can't wait for Easter! My mom, dad, and sister will all be here. The entire Avery family under one roof!

Store

2010-03-19T20:20:00.002-06:00

RyGuy:

"Mommy. My butt has a STORE on it. It is so STORE, I am going to go put my butt medicine on it."

(full minute pause while he disappeared)

"Wow Mommy! My butt isn't STORE at all, anymore!

Monster

2010-03-19T20:06:00.002-06:00

After 3 hours spent correcting behavior, I had it.

RyGuy: "MOMMY! I WANNA BE A MONSTER!"

Mommy said under her breath, "Ry. You already are a monster."

RyGuy's Primary Children's Day

2010-03-08T18:13:00.002-07:00

His morning started out with a train ride. Quickly followed by his sedative, he spent the rest of the morning being messed with or in his hospital wagon.

At one point in the afternoon, someone had the BRILLIANT idea of letting the little guys make masks to wear for the messing-withs. Above Ry appears to be creating his mask, when he actually decided he'd over stickered it. Below Ry is modeling the mask he wore for the remaining specialists visits.

Seany's surgery day

2010-03-08T18:11:00.003-07:00

A toy room to himself for 10 minutes. And walk down the hall before heading in the wagon to his doom...

Mommy love

2010-03-07T20:24:00.003-07:00

A snapshot of Ry's life to remember, the week he wanted to be just like me:

At Costco, I said to the store in general, "Oh, cute. Look at the little pink dress." (Easter has arrived.)

RyGuy, " Mommy, I want a pink dress. I want to be just like you."

At Kohl's, shopping for a new purse, "Mommy! Mommy! Look at me! I have a purse just like yours." (He even swung it across himself the way I wear mine.)

After we got home from shopping, I changed into jammies. Comfort first. Ry disappeared and reappeared with a set of jammies and pronounced, "Mom, I got my jammies too!"

(It happened last year too. Right after the ordeal that is his clinic day.)

Coyotes

2010-02-28T17:58:00.003-07:00

"Mommy. I have to tell you something. I don't wanna move to Suttern California."

"Why, it's lovely, beaches, mountains, Disneyland?"

"I don't care about that. There are coyotes there that are looking at more than small pets for their dinner," Andrew confided.

"What? Where did you hear this?"

"Animal Planet. Children, Mommy. The guy who does the scary animals stories meant children."

Reading

2010-02-26T18:58:00.002-07:00

Last night, Alex needed to read for 25 minutes. After several minutes of listening to him play with Andrew, hide under a blanket, and generally not read.

I made the request, "Alex, how about you take out the garbages?"

"I thought I was supposed to be reading?" came his reply.

Half

2010-02-24T17:40:00.002-07:00

Mark brought home 4 designer cupcakes for my pleasure. He's got a source. I've got no complaints.

2, cream cheese frosted carrot cake
2, cherry frosted chocolate

Say it with me, "Yumm! O!"

He told the chicklets these were a no touchie item, they got otter pops and were happy about it.

This morning, Andrew, Seany, and RyGuy were staring at my last cream cheese covered carrot cupcake deliciousness.

Andrew suggested, "Mommy you could just let us have it for snack after dinner."

Ry threw in his two cents, "Mommy! Mommy! (with hands of much flourish) I know! You can cut. it. in. half."

Valentine's Card

2010-02-14T15:34:00.002-07:00

While shopping for Uncle Steve's Valentine card last week, Alex and I had it down to a couple real winners. Andrew had the deciding vote.

"Ok Andrew, this one has a dog and he's saying what word sound it out, M-E-O-W!" Alex prompted.

Andrew starting giggling. He quickly chose that card, walked over to the cosmetics counter to share the joke. "You have to see this card. This is a funny card, because it's a dog and look what he's saying, 'Meow!' Haaaa haaaa Haaaa...." Tinkling giggles followed.

Andrew loves being able to read.

Student of the Month

2010-02-13T19:40:00.002-07:00

Andrew has had a disappoint every month. At every student of the month assembly, his name was not called.

That all changed for him two weeks ago. "Tell me how it happened."

"Well, Mrs Reynolds, our principal, said Andrew Devlin for beginning to read. And I heard Alex and my friends cheer for me. Now, I have to wear my student of the month barcelet in the hallways and if I get caught being good than I might get a prize or something!"

RyGuy

2010-02-11T17:17:00.001-07:00

While reading my friend's blog, Ryan commented pointed at the hot blond 3 year old, "Hey, Mom! That's my girlfriend." (and at her little sister) "And my baby girl. Ahh, she's so cute."

Hope & Perseverance

2010-01-28T18:20:00.003-07:00

Alex lost a tooth in October. That night, I was exhausted and fell asleep before he did. The tooth fairy didn't come. We repeated the sequence the next night.

This morning, as I woke him for the day, he pulled a pouch out from under his pillow, glanced at it and set it on his headboard.

"What's that?"

"My tooth that I lost before Halloween. I'm sure the tooth fairy will find it one of these days."

Book Shopping

2010-01-23T19:10:00.003-07:00

At Borders, the older chicklets took off for the kiddie sections while Mark and Sean took a nap in an awesome reading chair. Ryan hung out with me in Literature until he realized there were toys in the kid's corner.

After I found my 3 new books, I headed over to pick them up. "Alex. Andrew. Ryan. We've been here for an hour it's time to go."

Andrew indigently whined, "MOMMMMMMMMMY! I haven't had a chance to look at a single book yet!"

Square

2010-01-20T19:27:00.001-07:00

Andrew is a square. His doctor told him so.

45 pounds x 45 inches

That'd be a square.

Peanuts

2010-01-19T07:17:00.001-07:00

MOMMY! MOMMY! Seany has a PEANUT! -- RyGuy, while the twix were getting dressed this morning.

Misheard

2010-01-16T08:44:00.003-07:00

Seany lives in a world of hearing under water. Imagine floating under water and hearing people shout about above you. That is Seany's life right now.

My favorite misheard word: BUTTON

"MOM! Mommy, please help me put my butts on." (buttoning his shirt)

"Mommy, I can't turn the butt off." (referring to the remote control's power button)

And just 20 minutes ago, "Mommy, I want to put my butt up, I want do it myself."

SEP Night

2010-01-14T19:56:00.003-07:00

First we visited Andrew's beloved Mrs Thomas. The nuggets to remember:

"Andrew is a pleasure to have in class."
"You are so lucky to be married to such an involved man -- so few husbands are such a part of their children's schooling."
"Andrew is very analytical. The work he does is always well done. He is one of the few who won't have to redo assignments in first grade."
"Andrew is very empathic. It is so rare to see a child so concerned about all his classmates and their comfort..."

Next, we headed to Sean & Ryan's class where we had exciting news! They are both on the 3 to 5 year old chart having finally been promoted from the birth to 3 year old chart! Excellent progress.

Last, we visited Mrs Tomadakis who said how intelligent and quick Alex is -- actually she may have used the term walking encyclopedia. She has found ways to help him avoid stuttering -- things like giving him warning his turn will be up after someone else, waiting for him to think his answer through... She helps him build self confidence by asking him trivial facts when discussing topics. And she is the kind of teacher all parents hope their children hope have in their lives at one point. Her expectations aren't dimensioned by the challenges a child faces instead she helps him find a way around his weaknesses and has taught him that by overcoming those things that are hard he is doing his very best.

Early Christmas with the Averys

2010-01-02T17:49:00.002-07:00

Alex and Andrew

Ryan and Seany.