In the mail

This week I finally mailed my official copies of my thesis to be bound. I know, many of you are thinking "ridiculous didn't you start that years ago?" Yes. 6 1/2 years ago. It has been a brutal process. If I knew when I started, the amount of time, resources, and stress it would cause I would have run the other way. But, I am proud I gave a voice to my participants, did research I believe in, and most of all, that I finished.

Thank you to all who cheered me on. Especially BK.
I promise I do not plan to go back to school for a very long time....unless it is to be room mother, or help with a science project:)

Russell is a walker!

Russell has officially graduated from crawler to walker! Quint loves that is brother is standing tall next to him now. It is so fun to have both of them toddling around.

Here is a video from yesterday of Russell showing off his skills!

Flashback Friday

Exactly One Year Ago Today....hard to believe.
Russell was due in two days...now we know he was too cozy and waited 10 more days!
We were so excited for Russell to arrive, but I was dreading labor:)
He has turned out to be more than we could ever ask for, we can't imagine our family without him!

Gama Visits

Grandma Sylvia was able to get a few days off and took some time to come visit us. It was exciting because she had not seen Quint and Russell since Thanksgiving. As soon as she arrived Quint assigned her a new name "gama". Quint is talking up a storm and I think Grandma Sylvia loved her new name:) We spent a lot of quality time, and played with the boys. It was great. Here are some pictures of our time with Gama.

Bye Bye Gama, can't wait till Thanksgiving at your house!

Flashback Friday

YEAR ONE DONE!!!


Today BK finished his last final. It is official we made it through the first year of medical school successfully! In some ways it seems like forever ago that we celebrated the start of medical school, and in other ways it seems like it flew by.
Here is a look back at us in August. Do we look niave?

Hard to believe this was the first day I met Lauren. She was bouncing a fussy James by the door of the ceremony, and was doing the same with Russell. Turns out they are one month apart exactly. We were instantly great friends. I am so grateful for her.

It all happens in three's

It has been a crazy few weeks, which is why I have been so absent. I don't know why the house of cards all falls at the same time, but in life it always seems that way. It all started with Chuck the Truck.
1. Chuck the Truck died...on the way to pick up Wabecca at the airport. It was a crazy situation, smoke pouring out of the hood on interstate 80...a ride in a semi truck with the babies...Wabecca's first rental car...and buying a car that is not a junker! Crazy

2. My beloved Imac decided to crash. I know you are not supposed to love things, but it is pretty close, it is my portal to the world. So, it was just another bummer. At this point I was worried...what is next!

3. Finally, I realized I wrote 8 checks out of my old check book, so I spent a few hours on the phone trying to avoid charges, and apologize to people. Seriously how could I be such an idiot...but in all the craziness, I am giving myself a pass. I was annoyed but I thought it could have been much worse! Meanwhile we are car hunting without our Imac!

You have to love life...this is just how it is sometimes. All I could do was laugh. Slowly we are recovering. God pointed us to the perfect car..the computer is with a Genius and thankfully still under warranty...and no fees from the check debacle (yet anyways). We will keep you posted.

In all this my fabulous Grandpa passed away. But, I did not think that was a crazy life thing..it was just very sad. I prefer to remember Grandpa as a fabulous, so that is why his death was not one of my things. When I get my computer back I will blog about my grandpa, but I want to make it a great post with pictures...so I will wait till the computer is healthy again.

Flashback Friday

Christmas 2004
Celebrating with our California Family
We miss you all

Flash Back Friday

June 26th, 2004

One of my favorite photos from our wedding weekend.  

This was taken at our Rehearsal Dinner at the barn.  

This picture captures the excitement from that day.  

In one day BK would be my husband, and the hours could not pass fast enough:)

Whenever life gets between BK and I, 

I close my eyes and think about this time in our relationship.  

It reminds me, when you strip away all this life stuff, we are still Christy and BK

Fears of being 30

When I turned 20 i was afraid of learning to "be more adult". So, I have been thinking, what am I fearful of in my 30's?
Well, just to name a few....
BEING 30
I know, it is viewed as old by many groups of people! (I used to be one of them)
LOOKING 30
ok it is vain, but, seriously, it is not possible to look as cute as I did when I turned 20. Questions have been running in my brain...am I too old for long hair? Do I have to start wearing make up all the time...it does look better....ahhh. Do people think I am old when they look at me? It is stupid, but aging is lame.
BEING A MOM OF "KIDS"
For some reason, I view mom's of kids (schoolagers) to be much older than new mom's with babies. It does not make sense, since it is only a few years difference for the child, but i perceive it to be much older. So, I am fearful of being a mom of "kids". Maybe it is more I am fearful that raising children will start to add wrinkles, gray my hair, and overall make me look more haggard. I am not sure what the secret is, but some mom's look rockin' you see them at the store and their kids don't whine, and they look like they actually brushed their hair. That is my goal. I am fearful of the mom you see at the store who looks beaten down by life. Clothes don't match, or they have spit up on them, kids are going crazy and they are just trying to get some milk. Sometimes I feel like that mom, and it freaks me out....I am wishing for rockin' mom experiences...fingers crossed.
THE CRITICAL DECADE
I view this as a critical decade in raising our children. I am fearful that I will not do a good job. I am fearful of not having all the answers, or not being diligent enough. When I leave my 30's Quint with be 12 and a lot of his formation will be done...so for you praying people, please pray that we will be the parents God calls us to be, and if we don't have the answers, we will seek Him first.

As a 30-something, I hope to embrace this decade and tackle its challenges. I hope to still flirt with my hubby, and never let our marriage become stale and boring. I hope to be an active, fun, intentional momma. Overall, I think my 30's are going to rock...I hope to give my 20's a run for their money:)

Flash Back Friday

MY MOM

I came across some old black and whites at Mom and Dad's.  I love the look and lighting of the old black and whites. This is my Mom, she is fun, generally very happy, and has a legendary laugh.  Wish I could have known her back in the day, I think we would have been great friends:)

One week left as a twenty-something...

I have one week left of being a twenty-something. As I prepare to enter my thirties, I have been reflecting on my twenties.
When I turned twenty I cried. Not because of the age, but more my perception that you must "be more adult" as a 20 year old. Prior to twenty, when I would royally mess up, I would think...I am a teenager. For some reason it was comforting. Therefore, the transition to 20 was a frightening undertaking.
My twenties were full of growing pains, and amazing growth. Some moments where I was beaten down, lying flat on the floor, to others where you could not pluck me off the ceiling:) During this decade I made peace with not being "normal". I also learned playing it safe is not the FUN choice:) My twenties were challenging, striving, exciting, briefly stagnant, fun, loving, and alive.
Overall, how could I not love a decade in which I turned back to God, found a career I love, met my love in life, and was blessed with Quint and Russell. I learned a lot in my twenties, and although I don' t know if I am ready to say goodbye to them, I am so grateful for this decade.
I am going to enjoy this last week:) If anyone wants to know how old I am today I will gladly tell you 29!

Bath Fun

I finally splurged and got a bath mat. It was very challenging to hold on to Russell in the bath, but with the mat he doesn't slide around as much. The boys love taking baths and it is fun to see them play in the water together. I love baby bath pictures, it is ineveitable they will be used to embarrass them as teenagers. This looks like a good one for the yearbook page...haha

Spring Break

We had a super spring break! The weather was fantastic, and we were able to be outside most of the week. We loved having Daddy home. We have decided everyone is happier when it is possible to play outside. We played in the yard, took walks, and visited our favorite park. Although everyone assures us it will snow again, these glimpses of spring are so exciting!

Flash Back Friday

Little Christy and little Rebecca:)  This is us on our yearly family vacation to the Thousand Islands.  The Taylor's have always loved the water.  We went every summer till we moved to California.  We camped, boated, swam, cliff jumped, learn to ski, and made countless memories.  I am wearing my first swim team "team suit"  go Southeast Sharks!

Will I miss this?

Tonight I was washing dishes, and Russell was just cruising around the kitchen. He is very proud of himself lately because he is a competent crawler and furniture surfer. He was standing using the cupboard as his crutch, when he grabbed on to my pants and began moving around my legs. He stood there for a while, jumping and pulling on my pants and I began to wonder, am I going to miss this?
With two young ones under three, I can feel more like a jungle gym than a mom. By evening I am exhausted. During these evenings when I just want to scream "stop touching me" I reflect on what many older, wiser people have told me. These are the best years. I am a bit weary of these words. Different people have told me high school, college, just married, and now raising young ones are the best years of your life. I am not sure who is correct or how I will feel when I am older and wiser, but it has helped me to relish the moments. Maybe that is the wisdom. Every stage has "bests" in it, but the important part is to relish the moments. So, as I wash dishes and Russell pulls at my pant leg I take a breath and enjoy the moment. Because, wise people have told me...you will miss this.

Russell can stand

Russell is learning to stand alone. We caught one of his attempts on video one evening. Russell is our night owl, and although we are a bit tired we treasure our evenings alone with him. Tonight we caught a milestone. Our little night owl is the cutest.

Where are you going?

Everyday I am amazed by how much our boys grow and learn. Today I caught a video of Quint playing with his blocks. While I watch him maneuver the blocks questions run through my mind...what is he thinking? Why that block there? Does this mean he will be a designer or builder? Maybe architect? Did Gallo do this as a young child? BK mom recounts how he loved order as a child...is he just like BK? I could go on and on....but when raising children it is hard not to wonder when you look at them...where are you going? And, can I tag along? Watching you grow and learn is like witnessing a miracle and I don't want to miss it. I am so excited to see where Quint and Russell go, and I plan to enjoy the journey. I don't know if this song was intended for this, but it goes with my questions, and sometimes I don't feel like the superwoman I need to be to raise our boys properly. That is why I choose it.

Sharing a room

Quint and Russell share a room. Overall, I think it is great for them, but it comes with its own set of challenges. Russ is teething and wakes up crying...which makes me worry he will wake Quint, then there is always the times we go to lay Quint down when Russell is sleeping and he yells Rus-ell! Rus-ell! Sometimes this wakes Russell which leads to a very angry momma:) The cute part is when they play together like this. I found them interacting after a nap session and it was so cute I recorded it. Hopefully they will overcome our sleep challenges, but at least there are cute moments like this to help us through the hard ones!

Sledding 2009

We have decided to embrace winter:) This video was taken in mid-January when we got some nice fluffy snow. Our neighbor Betty had gotten a big chair for Christmas and offered us her cardboard box. Turns out it makes a good sled! I can't wait till Russell is big enough to join us.

My Sister

Most of you know my sister Rebecca. I can say that with some certainty because she tends to leave an impression. She is a loving, spirited, outrageously fun/funny, and in many ways she is my complement. Where I am weak she is very strong, and vice versa. She challenges me daily, and has helped me grow into a much better person since I began listening to her back in 2001. Because of our differences, we shared a volatile sisterhood. It has grown into a grand friendship. She tells me when I am being an idiot, challenges me in my faith, and loves me even when I don't deserve it. We became sisters at birth, but we became friends in Europe in 2001. Again, Rebecca to the rescue. (She historically has taken care of me, who is the older sister?) I had no plan after college, and Rebecca was in London. So, I went to live with her in 200 square feet, in a foreign country. We bonded, learned about each other (good and bad) and thus began our friendship. Since then, we have always lived apart, but managed to stay connected, trips to California, Dominican Republic (my high roller younger sister paid!), meet at the lake, bus to Boston/NYC, more trips to the lake, even a trip to Iowa. Countless phone calls which sometimes end in someone hanging up on the other, but most the time just sharing life.
Today my younger sister is 27. I wish I could be a super sister and go to NYC and take her to a spa day and a fancy fun night out. But, babies, budget, and Rebecca's work schedule preclude that. So, I blog about how fabulous she is. Therefore, the whole world will know why they should celebrate February 23 1982!
W orth-knowing
A ll about football
B eautiful
E nteraining
C ompletely fabulous
C hrist-loving
A ward-winning Aunt!