Snow Day!

Here comes Alec--out of the first-ever snow tunnel!

Few words are needed to highlight another awesome day with the kids enjoying another foot of snow received overnight! School was closed, we were up early, and took full advantage of the day! We made our first-ever snow tunnel (the kids loved it!), rode in our sleds and played with puzzles, Play Doh and board games while drinking hot cocoa with marshmallows. Seriously, is this not a kid's (and parent's) dream day! :)

Princess Abs takes a turn--and we think she likes it! :)

Now, it's a challenge and exercise all in one--who can go through the fastest and the most times before Mommy says 'Red Light?' :)

Aramis in the sled--just enjoying the view....

While inside, we caught Aramis on the phone. Probably making a call to his agent about his future sports career. Getting all the sponsorship deals in line early....

What can you say about a plastic bucket/tub other than they are useful for storage--and from what we learned in one day--a favorite 'lounging' spot for children home from school on a snow day!

Yup, every single one of them was caught at different points in the day.....who knew???

Aramis gets a ride on the sled from Carol....weeeeeeee!! :)

Snow Tunnel videos I and II....!

Miracle on the Circle....

The video below highlights our miracle for today. What is it, you may ask?

The answer: Prince Aramis (age 3) reads.

All. By. Himself.

He just started Pre-K four months ago, yet somehow, shocks his own Papa with his amazing intelligence. A great day all around and definitely one for our memory books.

Go Prince Aramis...!!!

Hurray for January!!

The new year began with a lovely celebration of King Tony's Big 4-0! He's crossed over, officially, into the 'middle ages,' and believe it or not, did so with a relative smile on his face. (maybe the crab/salt potato feast had a little to do with it?)

The snow has finally reached New England, and the royals are beginning to tread outside to investigate. A little bit of shoveling, a little bit of sledding and a whole lot of snowball madness.

We continue, as parents, to learn that technology DOES have a place in the lives of all families. We use it to maintain our family blog, communicate with faraway friends via email, and our children seem to now use it for learning as well. Here are Princess Abby, Prince Alec and Prince Aramis using their V.Reader, CD player and MobiGo--all at the same time! Technology reigns supreme....ugh!
A quick shot of the castle after the most recent snowfall....

..and what it looks like from the street--beyond the major, plowed snowbanks!

Snowball fights are a regular occurrence here in the kingdom. It's a fantastic exercise to teach hand-eye coordination as well as fine and gross motor skills. Our nanny Carol is occasionally sacrificed as the royals work to develop their snowball throwing skills. Hang in there Carol!

Prince Aramis...."Hey...it's freakin' COLD out here! Wanna put my gloves on Mom???"

Hidden snowball in hand, Prince Alec gears up for a pelting.... (above and below)

Fortunately, Carol still loves the kids--even if they massacre her with snowballs! :)

Abby-Kat gets in on the play....she's sporting a pretty good arm herself!

Abby and Alec really enjoy their sleds...

Abby, Aramis and Alec at our playgroup holiday party -- wearing the most precious shirts designed by our very own Aunt Wendy who owns and operates Chic Boutique (http://www.chicboutiquecreations.com/). Check it out for personalized year-round kid gear!

As part of our holidays, we enjoyed the company of the Dubes--Godparents to Prince Alec. Their gorgeous son, RJ, turned a chocolate fondue party into a memorable evening of laughter!

"I LOOOOVVVEEEEE chocolate!" (Naw...we couldn't tell, RJ!) Heee..heeee... Priceless!

Alec with his guitar

It may not seem relevant or important, but for those that know us well, they'll recall how often Alec asked for a 'blue guitar' for Christmas. It was a multi-times a day request for months! Fortunately, Santa Claus delivered...and Alec today proves that he's a true rocker---shades and all!

Lookout Eddie Van Halen!

On a parting note....some snowball madness starring aces Abby and Alec....!

Oh, December......

The Kingdom is all abuzz with excitement for the holidays. The children have finally warmed up to their meeting with Santa, and today, we were surprised at Alec's request which came as an unexpected surprise. Video below.... The question posed to blog readers now is: Should he get one, or not?? :)

We also got an unexpected visit from a few 'locals,' who yesterday, made an appearance pretty much on our doorstep. Typically, the royal guardsmen would take to these visitors with their bows and swords, but before all disaster struck (and we ended up with venison stew), the royals enjoyed some precious time with, according to them, Santa's 'reindeer.' The joy of innocence! Truly something to savor.....

Harried Holidays Begin......

(Get into the holiday spirit yourself! Purchase a super-sweet designer T-shirt with holiday applique from Chic Boutique http://www.chicboutiquecreations.com/item_56/Girl-Christmas-Applique-T-shirts.htm! Alec poses with one of his 'reindeer' shirts....the perfect holiday gift for children.

As the leaves fall and temperatures chill, we know very well that the start of the holiday season is just around the corner...which kicks the Kingdom into high gear. We love the holidays! They guarantee many precious moments with family and close friends, cherished memories with our children, and a lovely jolt to our adrenaline levels as we complete our Christmas shopping amid thousands of others. The last few weeks have been harried to say the least. We welcomed guests from Colombia for Thanksgiving, completed our indoor/outdoor decorating, and enjoyed several 'holiday boosting' activities including our church's Snowflake Fair and visit with Alec's Godparents the Dube's to the Enchanted Village, to name a few. We're now only in early December and while much more will unfold for us and our little ones in the weeks to come, we are ecstatic about the start of the 2010 holiday season which may culminate in a warm climate where we'll ring in the New Year. We'll see what Santa brings!! :)

As parents, we have worked diligently to teach our children that holidays are more about giving than receiving. For years, we have educated them about philanthropy and community support--getting them involved in as many projects/programs as we can. We volunteer in our community and church on diverse projects and support various local charities. This season, we opted to include Local Heroes Massachusetts, which organizes goodie boxes for troops stationed overseas. http://mass-localheroes.org/ All the royals got involved--even our little ones who helped decide what was to be placed into our holiday boxes for the troops. Interestingly, soldiers can expect The Chipmunks DVD, lollipops and oatmeal to name a few. Princes Alec and Ari put into one of our boxes some useful items requested by the Troops--gum, Slim Jims, deodorant and hand sanitizing wipes. :)

Abby adds gum to a box...especially for the holidays. ;)



Snowflake Fair at Trinitarian Congregational Church was a success, and per special requests, Queen Wendy again made Gingerbread ornaments to sell. Aren't they pretty???

As a special treat for our little ones, we took them to the Enchanted Village. They were mesmerized by the Santa Claus showpiece. Although the display looks a little ancient, they knew exactly who they were looking at. Sadly, he didn't ask them what they wanted for Christmas...but they kept talking to him in the hopes that he was listening.... :)

http://http//jordans.com/en/About%20Us/Store%20Locations/Avon/The%20Enchanted%20Village.aspx

Abby, Alec and RJ hanging with Santa Claus.....
King Tony and Aramis take in the sights....so cute!

Still chatting with Santa.....!

King Tony cuts down our Christmas tree every year. He's amazing.....

"Where are you, Honey?" I can't see you...are you ok? Do you need any help?" Tony's response, "I'm here! Stop taking pictures and help me already!" ;)

Although we have a freshly cut Christmas tree in our living room, the kids get their own trees in their bedrooms and in their basement playroom. This allows them to decorate (with handcrafted ornaments or whatever they desire) their trees as they desire. Here are Abby, Ari and Alec working on one of their trees... :)

Photo of Tony, the kids and cousin Jorge from Colombia, who joined us for Thanksgiving...A long way to travel to enjoy Black Friday, don't ya think? They loved it...and spent the entire Friday shopping. They left with their wallets and returned with 20 bags of goodies. Well done!

Thanksgiving was an undeniably memorable day this year. Cousins Mark and Amy hosted this year's big feast in their gorgeous home. Mark, who is also the founder and CEO of http://www.helium.com/, is a man of many, varied talents. Here he is carving his self-prepared turkey, which was nothing short of delicious!

Adding a tremendous amount of hilarity to the day, his wife Amy attempts to coerce our Colombian relatives into kissing her whipped cream covered mouth and suggested to them it was a 'tradition in our country.' Libations were flowing and this may have been one of the most hysterical moments of the entire afternoon. :)

Jorge and Andrea at their first American Thanksgiving. They aren't sure where to begin!

My new favorite dish--savory bread pudding. Cousin Amy created this absolutely fantastic savory bread pudding with anise and cranberries that in my mind, is better than ANY stuffing I've ever eaten (or created). I'm adding it to my list of Thanksgiving recipes from this day forward--it was THAT good!

Although we've not had an ounce of snow, Colombians apparently hate the cold--as evidenced by this photo of cousin Andrea who was bundled up tight INSIDE after dinner. :)

Princess Abby begins her holiday cookie making with gingerbread ornaments. She stole the recipe from her Mom, and is already off and running without much help required.....
Go Chef Abby!

Happy Holidays...more to come! :)

DESIGN SQUAD | 2010 Trash to Treasure Winners | PBS

Our two nieces, MaryAnn and Lilly were BOTH recently announced as winners in Design Squad's 'Trash to Treasure' competition. The trailer of the show within which they will be highlighted is above (MaryAnn: Smarter Toilet; Lilly: Sibling Soaker).

One week after filming, both girls were invited to the White House to participate in the first-ever White House Science Fair. 85 high school, university and post-graduate students from around the country were invited--and Maryann and Lilly were the only two students selected representing the entire state of New York! They rubbed elbows with President Obama, Nobel Laureates and some of the most intelligent minds in the world today. I think we can all expect great things from these girls. We are very, very proud! Hopefully we'll be seeing more of them when they get accepted to Harvard and MIT!

Go Maryann and Lilly!! :)

The leaves that Fall.....

Nothing says "Fall" quite like the release of millions of dried up leaves which not only decorate, but desecrate your yard (if you don't take care of them, of course!). The royals took full advantage of the second (yes, cleaned them up once already...) falling of leaves and got the little ones into the spirit of 'leaf cleanup' by building leaf piles! Remember when you were a kid and spent hours jumping in the leaves after raking them? I remember building 'trails' (like roads created by leaf borders) which my neighbors and brother would run through for hours. It wasn't only great exercise, but great fun! We're sure that the kingdom's royals too will enjoy this experience since we have a gigantic yard to maintain...and eventually...it will require all hands on deck to do the raking each season. Happy Fall!

And after a full day of play/work, everyone enjoys Queen Wendy's homemade Chicken Pot Pie...yumm-o!! :)