our big boy turns 4!

how is this possible?! part of it has to be that jeanne looks so much like james, and thus i am constantly reminded of james as a baby. but he's all grows up now! mimi and papa got him a hotwheels game that he plays by riding a stationary bike in front of the tv. corey and i sat and watched him from behind the other night in shock of how big our boy looked... shock and awe. he's such a pleasant dude. we often laugh that if there is something we complain about regarding james, it usually involves his high happy energy levels. that kid can just get too happy and excited sometimes... !?

all he had asked for his birthday was a hotwheels themed party. we went to meijer (why pay more!) and he got to pick out his monster truck cake, and while he slept during his nap i decorated for his car par-tay. we (and luckily especially he... and max...) had a blast complete with beer and barnaby's. happy birthday, big boy, james. we love you.

back to boston

there and back. james, jeanne and i headed back to boston for a long weekend. we got to meet little kevin and bridie. what cuties!!! it was SO nice to get in some family time before the holidays. mom and dad had gotten the christmas tree up, and i was more than happy to put up lights and my favorite ornaments (some major weeding was necessary!) cookies were baked, santa was seen at the local movie store, nest was raided (my mom's store), and rocks were thrown in the frozen duck pond. good times were certainly had by all. it was SO wonderful to catch up with my boston sibs. kev is hard at work at the law firm, shan is a mamaste whirlwind, mike is busy studying law, and katie certainly has her hands full (doing what it is she and i should be lauded for- mommying while managing to stay sane... only she looks better while doing it.) john and james were the goofiest peas in a pod, and when lupe was over the 3 of them were the best of pals. the day we were leaving, the monitor in my room let us all listen in on their sad conversation-

lupe: james, i sure am going to miss you when you leave.

james: yeah.

lupe: and you're going to miss john, too.

james: yeah.

amazing the way our little 4 year olds can voice their sweet emotions. another funny conversation (here's some background- james and john were playing in the kitchen and i forget the details, but something got spilled or broken... at least there was a loud noise or something that made katie head in to see what was going on...)-

katie: john, did you spill those?

john: no.

katie: james... did you?

james: no.

(katie walks out of the kitchen but hears this whisper...)

james: (to john) whew! that was close!

jack was also very excited to have such a friend in cars and trucks and construction. he and james naturally had a LOT in common! bridie was just an angel. those eyes! they are so dark and warm, and just make you want to smile. kev is just a little wiggly puppy dog. he reminded me a lot of jackson cressy in the amount that this kid smiled and kicked. he is one happy boy! and they had all been thinking HE was big! well, jeanne put them all to shame with her cheeks and thighs, and ankles,... she and john also tried rice cereal for the first time while we were out there. who knows how it went... that stuff is so messy, and they seem to have more fun spitting it out than swallowing any of it... and maeve is truly cindy loo who. what a sweet cherub face and voice. i think she liked the thought of being jeanne's big girl cousin. they looked pretty cute in their matching plaid dresses (pleasant coincidence!)

and now we're back! the trip was a blast, and james was such a happy and helpful travel companion (put him on a toll road or in an airport and he's in heaven!) jeanne can cross her first flight off her to-do list. she was pretty good, too... and i think i did pretty good, as well!

A Thankful Thanksgiving

wow, wow, wowza. what a weekend! this was an extra special thanksgiving weekend because mom and dad cressy were also celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary!!! thanks for being such fabulous role models, guys. SO, the weekend began on wednesday, picking aunt kimmy up from the airport (always a favorite trip for our transportation-loving boys) and then getting family portaits taken that evening. no need for the photographer to work on getting us to laugh. sean crawling away from the group as fast as he could as soon as everyone was in place had us all in stitches (except sean, of course...) hopefully we managed at least ONE good group shot! thursday was thanksgiving, and we were especially thankful to be a part of lizz and brett's baby son, hugh's, big baptism! he was VERY well behaved. james also was able to take part in the mass by borrowing the microphone during the homily to say that he was thankful for cars and trucks and candy... Dinner was a lovely affair up at the lake with all the Bogumills and Katie, Michael and Claudia. We are so blessed to have some of my family nearby to make me not feel SO outnumbered as a Garvey! Don't misunderstand me, you won't find a prouder Cressy, but this time of year makes one homesick for their own family, too. James, Jeanne and I, in fact, leave tomorrow morning to fly home to Boston for a Garvey fix. Friday morning found us en route to Chicago for an overnight with our immediate Cressy family. First we hit up the planetarium (WHAT a view!) and then headed to the hotel for some fun down time. The adults got to indulge in a fancy dinner while the kids (unbeknownst to us at the time) took full advantage of the new sitters! We came home at midnight to a room full of awake kids and baby! Oh well. After 6 hours of Corey and I failing miserably to get the kids back down, we decided to head back home to the comfort of our Mishawaka house and some well-needed rest. Kiernan and Bill were martyrs that night by offering to watch our kids (as well as their own) while Corey and I got to attend another fancy anniversary dinner celebration for mom and dad AND uncle John and aunt Clare. Sunday Sunday Sunday finally found us back in our groove, with mass, naps, and football. AND now it's advent!!! The decorations are slowly creeping upstairs...

enjoying the final fun days of fall

it is nearly winter (in fact i am writing this while enjoying the view of our snow covered yard... and to think last time i wrote it was sunny and warm!) but we are soaking up the remaining fall time while it's here. after the leaves were raked up, we decided to go have a jump. it was cold and somewhat wet (not a great combination especially for frolicing in the leaf pile) but james certainly was unaware and having a blast. sean... well, we walked through the leaves hand-in-hand once or twice, but he didn't seem to enjoy it when i laid him down in them... oh well, maybe next year. seriously though, no sooner did we get our group shot in the leaves, then the leaf picker-upper came by while we were out! so, we climbed the tree and had front row seats for watching the giant leaf vacuum in action.

i have also captured some more luscious photos of my princess phatty. she is quite the cheerful chubster. james and sean are quickly becoming her favorite entertainment, and they love having an easy laughing audience. she is getting a loud voice, which i hope you can witness on the picasa videos (you'll have to double click on the slideshow to find the movies i made.)

oh! and our eldest is really growing up. he has a girlfriend!!! james and isabel are as close as they come (said his teacher at his PT conference.) i was lucky enough to witness them in action as they played in the snow on the playground (again, you simply MUST check out the videos on picasa!)

happy halloween!

october flew by, and as i am writing this, the windows are all open and i am listening to the birds singing happily in 70 degree weather! you can't beat south bend for curve-ball weather. anyway, halloween was a blast. we had fantastic weather then, too, probably to the detriment of poor seanny's elephant fur... he did seem to get a little overheated about an hour into trick-or-treating and so we headed for home. we were happy to have little tootsie roll, claudia, and her "mad men" parents with us. james really got into the spirit of things this year and was running from house to house and both he and sean seemed to think that they had to finish all their candy as they recieved it! 2 houses into it and sean had chocolate fangs drueling a nice brown onto his elephant chin strap. a week ago i honestly don't think my kids could've given you a straight answer as to what candy is... oh boy, can they now! jeanne was a trooper in her little hand-me-down pea-in-the-pod costume (thanks aunt katie!) just wish i had thought to bring a bjorn or stroller with us. i'd forgottwn how heavy they can be when they're asleep!

the other pictures are of sean and mr. kitty. he is a stray neighborhood cat that is in love with sean and will follow him anywhere. they have a blast together, but, as cute as it is, i still hate cats. mr. kitty has taken to sitting outside our window all night just meowing, wanting to come in, i assume, but, man, does that sound get grating.

oh! and i need lots of props for my pumpkin this year. it is an image of our house and while not the best representation of my work, i did it with freaking salad tongs and nothing else!!!! i thought the boys would help me at least dig out all the goo inside it and help make some yummy pumpkin seeds, but no sooner do i have the paper covering the table, the shirts off the kids and the top of the gourd cut off, then sean takes one look at the mess inside and starts crying and i force james to just at least touch the fun slimy stuff and he, too, says, "i don't think i want to do this, mom" and proceeds straight out of the kitchen. SO, needless to say, i ended up having all the fun by myself at naptime. ENJOY!

starved rock

so corey and i (& jeanne!) went on a little getaway to starved rock state park in utica, illinois! mimi and papa stayed and watched the boys while we went hiking. we had lovely fall weather and really enjoyed ourselves although we kept seeing things that would make us think of the boys (note the pix of the barge heading into the lock... james would've had a heart attack to witness such an event!) jeanne was a real trooper. she does love the bjorn and, as a result, (unfortunately for her) slept through most of our hikes. anyway, we're back and feeling rejuvenated!

october is here

i have no catchy title this time. our pictures are from a variety of outings and home life, so i could not come up with a unifying slogan (any thoughts, anyone, after seeing all the pix?) anywho, jeanne is growing... BIG time... literally. she is by far my biggest babe yet (and that's saying something!) she was 15 lbs. at her 2 mos. checkup, and i guarantee has put on quite a bit since. and while she is off the charts with her weight, at least she is also off the charts with her head size and in th 99th percentile for height. all this to say she is at least proportionally large. and what a sweetheart. she gives the best smiles and has even started laughing when i tickle her! 2 nights ago was her first night in her crib in her own room and she did just fine. before we'll know it she'll be sleeping through the night (fingers crossed!) james is a pro at this whole school thing, and he has been a big help on mondays and tuesdays, holding sean's hand as they get out of the car and walk up to school. it is quite a cute sight to see them walking hand in hand up to the door and out again when school's over. he has been taking swim lessons once a week, going with papa to knollwood and the reports have all been good (not that he has actually put his face in the water yet, but we're making progress!) seanny is still our little seanny. we're so happy that he has taken to school well, and he has become quite sweet on jeanne, his favorite activity being pointing out all her body parts (especially her nose- check out the photo.) corey and i are definitely staying busy, but loving the fall weather. love you all.