9 Years!! (and many more to come...)

I knew from the very moment that I met Lino that we were meant to be together. I believe in soul mates, and I know that he is mine. I am so very blessed to have him to share my life with.

It was such a wonderful day! I don't have that many wedding pictures on the computer. (I should really scan some more one of these days!) The bottom picture is one of our 'self portraits'from our first day on our honeymoon at DisneyWorld. It is my favorite non wedding picture of us.

Happy Anniversary to us!

200 Have and Have Nots

I have seen this on some other blogs I visit. The ones I have done are bolded.


200 Have and Have nots!

1. Touched an iceberg
2. Slept under the stars
3. Been a part of a hockey fight
4. Changed a baby’s diaper
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Swam with wild dolphins
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a tarantula (it was on a clipboard)
10. Said "I love you" and meant it
11. Bungee jumped (I wanted to)
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a professional sports game
17. Been to the top of the Sears Tower
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment (more than once...)
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Bet on a winning horse
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Taken an ice cold bath
28. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Ridden a roller coaster
31. Hit a home run
32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
33. Adopted an accent for fun
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment
36. Loved your job 90% of the time (when I was at Learningsmith and now, of course)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Watched wild whales
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Gone on a midnight walk on the beach
41. Gone sky diving
42. Visited Ireland
43. Ever bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited India
45. Bench-pressed your own weight
46. Milked a cow
47. Alphabetized your personal files
48. Ever worn a superhero costume
49. Sung karaoke
50. Lounged around in bed all day
51. Gone snorkling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Done something you should regret, but don’t
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business (my Etsy shop!)
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Sung on a CD
60. Gone without food for 3 days (I was pretty poor a long long time ago)
61. Made cookies from scratch
62. Won first prize in a costume contest
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Been in a combat zone
65. Spoken more than one language fluently
66. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
67. Bounced a check
68. Read and understood your credit report
69. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy
70. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
71. Called or written your Congress person
72. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
73. Seen the Golden Gate Bridge
74. Helped an animal give birth
75. Been fired or laid off from a job (fired by registered letter after Maggie and Cassie were born!)
76. Won money
77. Broken a bone
78. Ridden a motorcycle
79. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph (and got a ticket)
80. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
81. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing
82. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
83. Eaten sushi
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read The Bible cover to cover (when I was a kid I found a childrens bible)
86. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
87. Gotten someone fired for their actions
88. Gone back to school
89. Changed your name (when I got married...)
90. Caught a fly in the air with your bare hands
91. Eaten fried green tomatoes
92. Read The Iliad
93. Taught yourself an art from scratch
94. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
95. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
97. Been elected to public office
98. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
99. Had to see someone you love in hospice care
100. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you (does my sewing count as artwork?)
101. Had a booth at a street fair
102. Dyed your hair
103. Been a DJ
104. Rocked a baby to sleep
105. Ever dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all fours
106. Raked your carpet
107. Brought out the best in people
108. Brought out the worst in people
109. Worn a mood ring
110. Ridden a horse
111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap (though you couldn’t tell what it was)
112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe
113. Buried a child (my WORST fear)
114. Gone to a Broadway play on Broadway
115. Been inside the pyramids
116. Shot a basketball into a basket
117. Danced at a disco
118. Played in a band
119. Shot a bird
120. Gone to an arboretum
121. Tutored someone
122. Ridden a train
123. Brought an old fad back into style
124. Eaten caviar
125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need
126. Ridden a giraffe or elephant
127. Published a book (someday)
128. Pieced a quilt (someday)
129. Lived in an historic place
130. Acted in a play or performed on a stage (1st grade I was Mrs. Claus....)
131. Asked for a raise (and got it!)
132. Made a hole-in-one (does miniature golf count? lol)
133. Gone deep sea fishing
134. Gone roller skating
135. Run a marathon
136. Learned to surf
137. Invented something
138. Flown first class
139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite
140. Flown in a helicopter
141. Visited Africa
142. Sang a solo
143. Gone spelunking
144. Learned how to take a compliment
145. Written a love-story
146. Seen Michelangelo’s David
147. Had your portrait painted
148. Written a fan letter
149. Spent the night in something haunted
150. Owned a St. Bernard or Great Dane
151. Ran away
152. Learned to juggle
153. Been a boss
154. Sat on a jury (I love jury duty!)
155. Lied about your weight
156. Gone on a diet
157. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget
158. Written a poem
159. Carried your lunch in a lunchbox
160. Gotten food poisoning
161. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission
162. Hiked the Grand Canyon
163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks
164. Gone to the opera
165. Gotten a letter from someone famous
166. Worn knickers
167. Ridden in a limousine
168. Attended the Olympics
169. Can hula or waltz
170. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books
171. Been stuck in an elevator
172. Had a revelatory dream
173. Thought you might crash in an airplane
174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert
175. Saved someone’s life
176. Eaten raw whale
177. Know how to sew
178. Laughed till your side hurt
179. Straddled the equator
180. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
181. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival
182. Sent a message in a bottle
183. Spent the night in a hostel
184. Been a cashier
185. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
186. Joined a union
187. Donated blood or plasma
188. Built a campfire
189. Kept a blog
190. Had chicken pox (twice!)
191. Worn custom made shoes or boots
192. Made a PowerPoint presentation
193. Taken a Hunter’s Safety Course
194. Served at a soup kitchen
195. Conquered the Rubik’s cube (I was the school champ in the 4th grade)
196. Know CPR
197. Ridden in or owned a convertible
198. Found a long lost friend
199. Helped solve a crime
200. Received a professional massage

Conflicted

I am feeling very conflicted about weaning Nate. Lino had mentioned that he thinks we should start. Nate's dentist thinks I need to. It was strongly suggested at my OB appointment I had recently.

I nursed Maggie and Cassie from the day they were born, March 2003, until Christmas Eve 2005. 33 months. When they had their last 'mama drinks', we were down to just the before bed nursing sessions, and it was just getting to be too much. It was 24 days before Nate was born. ( it really was painful for me to nurse while pregnant.)

It started to get really bad at around 5 or 6 months pregnant, I would be in tears sometimes, and that just isn't good. I had initially hoped to let the girls self wean, but I also wasn't going to nurse 3 kids at once! So, we told them that once Santa came, they were really big girls, and big girls didn't need to do mama drinks any more. (We tried not to put too much emphasis on Nate getting to do drinks, other than he was a baby and needed too, we didn't want them to resent him)

He has nursed like a champ. He is not ready at all to wean. He is 2 1/2 this month. I have tried to limit nursing. It is very rare that he nurses in public anymore. I have even tried to start cutting out the during the day times, which for the most part he doesn't notice, but there are times when he won't hear of it. He cries and I feel so badly about it.

After all, he is still so little. He is our last baby. It is still a huge source of comfort for him. For the most part, it is a source of comfort for me, too.

Yet, I do feel touched out- a lot. There are some days when I just want to say "Hands off: No touching!"

He doesn't sleep through the night. He is getting there, there are some nights when he will, though I still wake up and then worry that he isn't up. I haven't really had a consistent good nights sleep since the day before Maggie and Cassie were born!

At my OB appointment, the nurse practitioner person seemed to be pro breastfeeding, however suggested that I stop. One reason is so I can get a baseline mammogram done. The other reason is that I have struggled with anxiety/depression (since after the girls were born) and she is reluctant to (won't) prescribe anything while I am nursing.

Nate has some issues with his top front teeth. They are extremely soft, and he has some cavities that have worn down two of his teeth. His dentist thinks I should stop nursing. (So, I feel as though I am the reason his teeth are the way they are right now....guilt is fantastic)

I just don't know. I definitely feel as though we can use the same theory about when Santa comes, he is a big boy now and big boys don't do mama drinks. He will be about the same age as the girls were, I think he will comprehend it.

The other day I was sitting down and Nate wanted to get up on my lap (to do drinks), and I tried to keep him off, No drinks right now buddy. He cried and looked at me and said in such a sad little voice "I just want to snuggy Mama" I felt awful!!! Of course you can snuggy, buddy! Which soon turned into a nursing session.....

We just got him a twin bed, and will be moving him from his crib soon, so maybe that will help with the transition.

If not, Christmas isn't that far away, right?

To the Cape for Dad's 70th

My aunt had a small family gathering at her house on Saturday. One of my cousins was here from Texas, so we took that opportunity to celebrate my dad's 70th birthday.

A couple of things about my dad. He watches tennis all. the. time. The Wimbledon women's finals were on Saturday. I was really worried that he would wind up not showing so he could watch tennis. He and my sister did finally get there....(I am just glad it wasn't the mens finals, as that wound up going for more than 5 hours!)

Dad is also kind of predictable. When my aunt called him into the dining room and we all started to say surprise, etc., he looked and said "It's not my birthday" (which, technically, it wasn't the 18th, but we are all here now)

He did seem to be pleased though. I think I saw a glimpse of a smile behind his beard. And he seemed to enjoy opening his gifts.

The monkey had an "Older Than Dirt" t-shirt on and played The Birthday song by the Beatles. Nate and Cassie and Emmilu had a great time dancing to it.

Nate in his jon-jon. I changed his clothes after he went swimming.

Maggie, Cassie and Cousin Caroline. We only see her once maybe twice a year, and she writes the girls back when they send her pictures.

After we had eaten lunch and before the cake and presents, Maggie and Cassie really wanted to go swimming, so Lino went with them. It was raining, but none of the kids seemed to mind.

4th of July fun

We had a fun 4th of July weekend. We went to the Bristol Parade on Friday. It is the oldest in the country. It was a lot of fun, even though it looked like rain for most of the morning. Unfortunately, we forgot the camera, so no pictures.

There were quite a few marching bands from other states, they were all really good. There was even a band from Canada! (Am I the only one who finds it a bit odd that Canadians would march in a 4th of July parade?)

Marines, Navy, Army, Coast Guard, National Guard were all represented. Current as well as veterans from World War 2, Korea, Vietnam, Operation Desert Storm and Iraq. (I don't remember Air Force, but I can't imagine that they weren't represented)

Lino and I clapped loudly for all of them. I fully appreciate those who have served and are serving our country. It isn't something that I could do, and I may not agree with the current administration, but the servicemen and women are doing their jobs to keep my family safe.

All of the state politicians: Governor, Lt. Governor, Senators and Representatives were there. Lino wouldn't let me yell out "We Need Renewable Energy!" to the Governor as he walked by. The current Mayor of Providence was there. He didn't get nearly the response as the former mayor Buddy Cianci did. We clapped politely for Cicilline, cheered super loud for Buddy. He did great things for the city of Providence.

The kids pictures were taken by a couple of parade people. It was a long parade, but they did great. They enjoyed seeing Cookie Monster, Elmo, Dora and Diego march.

Next year I plan to do family shirts and have us all decked out. Lino really loves the 4th and the parade is a fun tradition. I will be sure to pack the camera, too!