Spelling Bee Victory

As many of you know, Princess Abigail is an avid sign language user. When Daddy asked her tonight so spell some words, she broke out her sign language alphabet and in perfect order, spelled a variety of words for her father--including TURKEY--videotaped below for reference. We thinks she's a genius! :)

Abby's Hershey Birthday...

Happy Birthday Abby! This weekend, Princess Abigail turned 3 years old! It really is amazing how quickly those years flew by and to know that our little girl begins pre-K in less than two weeks!! For her birthday, she received a lovely artist easel (complete with chalkboard, dry-erase board and painting paper for all future pictures...) and a variety of precious goodies from her family, Godparents and friends. Abby Cadabby is now 3!! :)

Traditionally, we ask Abby to choose a theme for her birthday--and this year, she chose HERSHEY chocolate. Abby loves HERSHEY chocolate bars, so it wasn't too surprising that she chose this idea. Last year, she was amid an OREO cookie binge, so of course, she received an Oreo cookie cake. This year, the cake was much easier to bake since HERSHEY provides a fantastic, make-from-scratch recipe and frosting on their site, so the result was the cake above. A few letters dropped off since my foil-letter cutting skills have decreased with age...so HERSHEY became HERSHE' :) I don't think she minded, or even noticed, for that matter. :)
Abby stares down the #3 candle and prepares to make her wish and a big blow!!

After successfully extinguishing the flame, our princess dives in to her birthday cake with a very special pink fork and takes the first bite..
Meanwhile, the twin princes watch from the sidelines and wait patiently for their slice... Ahhh....chocolate bliss! There's nothing like a HERSHEY bar, or cake, or frosting for that matter! The perfect way to cap off a third birthday! Yummy!!

Exhausted....

Not to worry, our children are absolutely safe! The photos below were taken by our au pair, who while playing with the children, exhausted them so much that they ended up head in picnic basket and napping on the floor! We swear, NO child was harmed to achieve these photos, nor was any alcohol present. The twin princes are just go-go-go until then stop, and where they stop is anyone's guess--it changes daily! While we were visiting Deerfield, the boys were taken here, there and everywhere. To picnics, out for ice cream, around Deerfield's campus, etc. and in the end, they were just too tired to hold up their heads any longer.

I guess 'when yer tired, yer really tired!' :)

A Private Poo...

Similar to other parents who have gone before us, we are now aware of the unique methods our children use to conceal the moments when they need to use the facilities, but would rather use their diaper instead! You know, those hide in the corner very quietly, sneak under the table so no one can find you moments? Well, our Princess Abby has found a new way to 'hide' when the urge overcomes her and we are without her potty. This past weekend, while in Deerfield for Tony's 20th high school reunion, Miss Abigail found a new place to 'hide' since her usual place (her bathroom potty) wasn't to be found in our hotel room. As parents, we were kicking ourselves for leaving behind her potty, but given how many other items we had to cart with us, just had no other choice! Alas, Abby found a private spot in a room where there was little privacy. You just have to hand it to the girl as she's very strategic and knows exactly how to make use of all available private locales. And yes, we're well aware of how angry she'll be with us when she gets older and realizes how we've embarrassed her-- but actually--we're very proud parents. Abby showed incredible resourcefulness and problem-solving skills given her missing potty. And, we learned a valuable lesson resulting in our trip to Babies R Us this afternoon to purchase a 'child ring' for use on any standard commode so that future away trips will be more potty-training productive and less embarrassing for Abby :)

Size matters!....

Whoever said size didn't matter, didn't understand the true definition of size, in my opinion. Just this weekend, we realized just how much size matters when we looked at photos of the twin princes when they were one month old, and today, at only eight months old. Photos taken while being bottle fed in their infant seats then and now provides a good sense of just how quickly little humans grow. A little more evidence that we have evolved from cro-magnon!

THEN: Aramis and Alec at one month--enjoying a little boobie juice!

NOW: At eight months, the twin princes require much more care and feeding and have all but outgrown their infant seats.

Tipping the scales at more than 22 lbs. each, these boys are on the path to becoming some big time sluggers (if King Tony gets his wish).

Storyland - Part Deux

Ah, the joy of swirling in a tea cup. Just something the men would enjoy, no?

Mommy and Abby get their turn to swirl on the Tilt-A-Whirl Turtles. What happened to the days when you could ride these rides for hours, love every minute, and not get motion sickness??? Ugh..!

Tony and Regis go round and round on the flume. No lines and no waiting, so the boys stayed in their logs for several trips up...and down...and ultimately, into a very big SPLASH! Towels anyone?

Storyland.....conquered!

The rain couldn't stop us. We loaded up two cars (since we now travel with three kids, an au pair, two parents, two pack-and-plays, three strollers, three pieces of luggage, two diaper bags, cooler and a partridge in a pear tree), and headed North to the White Mountains of New Hampshire within which rests an adventureland for the young. Nestled in the foothills is a gorgeous little theme park called Storyland where the adults can be kids and kids can have fun! While we visited Storyland on a weekend that was cool and wet, the result was NO LINES on any rides, way fewer families to dodge inside the park, a food court nearly to ourselves, and the ability to stay on the rides we enjoyed until we either got sick or had to go pee! Abby, Alec and Aramis were joined by their very good friend RJ (and Alec's godparents Regis and Laurie) for a weekend of fun. Below are some photos from our adventures -- start to finish.

"Woo-hoo, we're finally here! What's up with the rain, man?"

"I absolutely hate this wet weather. When are we moving to the Carolinas?"
"Peekaboo!" Laurie and RJ enjoy some cherry pie....
"Wheeeeeeeee!"
"Hey down there...do you like our tree house? Kind of a gingerbread theme..."

Hello from the land of the shoes! Abby and Wendy enjoy riding in a flying shoe....

Ah, a castle fit for our Princess Abigail. King Tony brings her inside for a closer look...Oh no, the teacups!!! Abby and RJ wonder how they ended up in this predicament. Thanks DADS!

Wendy and Abby trial the water flume. We figured, we were already wet already thanks to the rain, so what's a few more splashes????
Abby shows Daddy exactly how to drive. "Now Daddy, when you are going to turn, prepare others behind you by putting on your blinker like this!...."Oh NO, it's a TRACTOR! Abby is taking after her mother after all and may end up on Grandpa's farm doing some lawn mowing or gardening.....


A sweet family portrait of the Dubes. Regis and Laurie are Alec's Godparents and RJ is preparing for Star Search. Just ask him to sing "We Belong Together" by Mariah Carey and you'll vote for him!

Oh, the end of the trip. The twins were too pooped to even smile for the camera and fell asleep on site. Abby was fighting the bugs that seemed to grow in numbers every minute we were outside. UGH! Pass the bug spray!!

More videos to come.....

A Father and His Sons...

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly men bond. It seems a secret society within which any human with a penis can be quickly initiated. Enter Tony and his twin sons who recently enjoyed (or endured) a lot of bonding time whenWendy and Abby traveled to Utah. During that time, something must have happened since the twin princes have become more Daddy's boys than Mommy's boys (well, for a few days anyway...). Look at these boys who have just emerged from 4 days with Daddy exclusively. See any resemblances? It's all testosterone to me! (well, until Mommy took the Flip camera and recorded some time with the boys when Daddy had left the room.) :)