Trouble

Today you...

...threw your veggies puffs on the floor...

...climbed into the wet shower...

...spit up on the couch...

...knocked over the bucket of markers...

...tried to eat a wooden pepperoni from the girls pretend pizza...

...successfully ate a little pink rubber band...

...and anything you could find under the kitchen table...

...stood at the entertainment center and touched the TV...

...over and over and over again...

...chewed on the girls stuffed animals and made them cry...

...got stuck under the bar chairs...

...played with a dirty diaper that was sitting by the back door ready to be thrown out...

...cried when I took the remote control away...

...made your sisters cry when you took their Polly Pockets...

...knocked over the bucket of markers, again...

...pooped out your diaper...

...crawled on top of and destroyed my laundry piles

...messed up the "pet store" that your sisters had carefully set up...

...pulled every Leap Frog letter magnet off the dish washer...

...crawled under the desk to play with the computer cords...

...pulled the glass bowl off the shelf in our bedroom...

...chewed on the vacuum cord...

...screamed while I tried to restrain you to clip your finger nails...

...spilled water from a water bottle that was left on the floor...

...layed in the wet carpet and played with the spilled water...

...and learned to clap.

Yup. I'd say you're trouble.

Happy. Cute. Adorable. Smiley. Easy. Content. But definitely trouble.

Yew Nork

The girls had been praying every night that I would have a good time in "Yew Nork" with my mom and sisters. And I'll tell ya what, I think those prayers were answered. Because we had the best time!

It's been about a month since we went, and I've spent a lot of time since thinking about our trip. First of all , it's amazing that we were even able to take this trip. It seemed daunting to think about a time that all six of us would be able to go. Between pregnancies, newborns, working, husbands, and money, it easily could have been impossible. Yet, somehow, the timing was perfect and finding that perfect time was easy. October 2009. It's been in the works for quite sometime, and we were all so excited to go.

My oldest sister Jennifer, got married when I was ten. My other sister's marriages and mine own followed. Throw in 13 children among us, several different states of residence, and it's plain to see why nearly two decades have gone by since we've all been together. Without husbands and children.

It was like I was getting to know my sisters again for the first time. We didn't have children interrupting us, or husbands (who we really, really love) wanting our attention. It was just us, being sisters. And becoming friends all over again.

I miss out on a lot of family time (insert little violin playing here) and I feel like it has been so long since I've been able to enjoy quality sisterly and motherly bonding. It was priceless. New York was the perfect trip and will go down as one of my all time favorite vacations.

It was the hardest thing to stand in the Dallas Texas airport and say goodbye to my four sisters and my mom. To watch them all walk onto that plane together, not knowing when I would see any one of them again, is depressing. I'm grateful though, that before we said goodbye, we planned when our next girls trip would be. 2012! Anyone told their husbands yet?

Yeah, me either.

Here's a brief rundown of all we did:

We Ate:
New York cheesecake. New York Pizza. New York pastrami sandwiches the size of our faces. New York macaroni and cheese, muffins and cupcakes from the cutest bakeries ever. A very delicious, authentic Italian dinner. We didn't, however, eat at Dim Sum A Go Go in Chinatown. Apparently, some sisters didn't think it looked safe to eat there. Ha!

We Watched:

In the Heights on Broadway. Wicked on Broadway. A taping of the Regis and Kelly Show with Hilary Swank. The Today Show with Matt Lauer and special guest Maria Shriver. A TLC show recording a wedding in the middle of Times Square. The filming of Gossip Girl at one of the hotels across the street from the New York City temple. Donald Trump recording The Celebrity Apprentice in Grand Central station with celebrities Sharon Osbourne, Darryl Strawberry, Brett Micheals, Jesse Ventura, that one Australian cook, etc. Air Force One and many more helicopters land with the President who was giving a speech one street away. We also watched as Bryn spotted and chatted with a team from this seasons Amazing Race...Zev and Justin (who by the way, were totally flirting with her). Those were nice guys, who were so flattered that they were recognized on the corner of a busy New York street. So funny.

We Rode:

The subway (so dirty). Taxis (so grateful to be alive). Double Decker sight seeing bus (so cold). Ferry to Statue of Liberty (so beautiful to see the New York skyline from the Hudson). But mostly we didn't ride at all, just walked our fannies off.

We Sight saw (Yes, I looked it up. That is correct.)

Central Park. The Palace. Statue of Liberty. Top of Rockefeller. The Empire State Building. Times Square. Grand Central Station. Battery Park. Ground Zero. Chinatown. Canal Street (is that really sight seeing?)

The trip was fantastic. New York was exactly like I imagined it would be. Busy. Exciting. Overwhelmingly tall. Spectacular. Gorgeous. Lively. But being with my mom and sisters is what I have spent the most time thinking about. Like I said, priceless.

This Is My Life

By Henry Chiara

As I sneak out from behind the wall, I see the enemies. They're playing Dora Candyland. Just as I suspected. I've got to get my hands on those itty bitty game pieces.

It's gonna have to be a surprise attack. If I keep my head low, and don't make eye contact, they'll never see me coming.

Man. I'm a slow crawler. Easy does it Henry. Nice and easy. Don't mess this up.

There they are. Boots. Backback. Diego. Dora. Wait! What's that? A fairy is playing too? I've got to get that fairy.

Silly girls. They're so clueless. They don't even know I'm here. This is going to be a piece of cake.

Mayday! Mayday! I've been spotted. I've been spotted. Quick. Grab the fairy.

Hurry. Hurry. Hide it in your mouth. They'll never think to look there.

Hey you! Over there! Can you help a soldier out? I've been captured.

They're torturing me. Help! They've found the fairy.

All is lost.

Halloween 2009

The clearest memory I have of Halloween as a child is one year when Halloween fell on a Saturday. I was young, maybe 8 or 9. I had soccer games that morning and it was pouring rain. Pour-ing rain. We showed up at our games, but the organization cancelled all soccer games that day. We were all there in uniform, and already soaking wet, so the coaches asked if we wanted to play just for fun. Those who decided to stay ended up playing the best soccer game ever.

We run up and down that field slipping and sliding in mud like you wouldn't believe. Filthy from head to toe. We pushed and tripped each other and splattered mud on one another as much as we could. It couldn't have been more fun.

Okay, so it's not really a "Halloween" memory. I don't even know what I was that year for Halloween. All I remember was that it was Halloween, on a Saturday, and it was raining unbelievably hard.

Well, in all the years we've been in Washington you'd think that one year we'd have rain. I really thought this would be the year. The forecast said rain. We planned on rain. I finally, after all these years, bought the girls umbrellas (super fancy Ariel ones), thinking there would be rain. We were ready for rain. We were excited for rain. I envisioned having pictures of a true Pacific Northwest Halloween where the girls would be in their costumes with rain boots and an umbrella running through puddles trick or treating with gigantic smiles on their face. Loving every minute of being drenched and getting candy. I liked the image I saw. It would be a Halloween they'd never forget. And the girls had been dying to use their new umbrellas. We needed it to be raining.

I was ready to relive my rainy Halloween day from childhood. But the forecast was wrong. The rain did not come. So we suffered through, yet again, a perfect Fall Halloween evening of wearing no rain boots or using our newly purchased umbrellas. We didn't even put on sweaters. It was a painfully beautiful evening for trick or treating. And the girls loved it. Go figure.

We first went down town to trick or treat along the main street. It was fun meeting up with friends to get candy from the library, cleaners and Sushi restaurant we frequently visit.

We hurried home for dinner. Then the girls picked me to take them trick or treating. ME! I was honored. We hurried out and went right to work before it got too dark. Up and down walkways we went, running. I have never seen two little girls so excited. Gwen looked cute as a button as Little Red Riding Hood. She never once sat down her wolf dressed as grandma. She kept her hood on at all times. And she loved collecting her candy in her basket. I'm so happy she wanted to be that and didn't change her mind after I made her hood. I was worried.

Gabriella, she wanted to be a peacock. And not just any peacock, but a peacock princess. Any mothers to girls out there seen Barbie as the Island Princess? I think that is where she drew her inspiration. She was very clear on how she wanted things to go. Her dress had to be covering her toes. Her peacock feathers had to come from behind her shoulders and not out of her hair (that would look like an alien, and she was sure kids would laugh), and she didn't want the puff sleeves like the other princesses. So I did my best to accommodate, and lucky for me, she approved. She sure was one pretty peacock princess.

When the girls were tired of walking we went back home. Joe and Henry were about out of candy. In almost two hours, we had given out nearly 400 pieces of candy. One candy per child. That's a lot of trick or treaters. Our street is the mecca for trick or treaters. Luckily, there were a few pieces left for the girls to give out. They sat on our doorstep and loved handing out the rest of the candy, and some of their own that they didn't want (sshh, don't tell). They loved seeing all the kids in costume come to their house.

We had a great time. It was, by far, the best Halloween to date that I've had as a mom. Even without the rain.