Tess's Wish

Dad's day at preschool reminded me of the number one reason I am excited for Minnesota:

Irish eyes are smiling...unless you are Declan and it is naptime.

Happy St. Patrick's Day from the Reilly clan!

Growing older

Tess, one month from being 5 years old, has seemed so mature lately - bringing up important topics on her own, being truly kind to her younger siblings, taking the time to teach them things, telling us her interests and pursuing them. Tonight, I was thinking of all these things as she and I sat on the couch watching American Idol for an hour after the two younger kids went to sleep. I have never watched this show before, but wanted to find something she would understand the concept of and we could do together to relax. She seemed so old commenting on which singers she liked and asking relevant, interesting questions. It makes me a little sad how quickly she is growing up. Then, on our way upstairs for me to tuck her in, in a low sweet voice, she started singing the song Chris and I sang to her every night we walked up the stairs when she was a baby to signal bedtime.  I got tears in my eyes. Thank goodness - she is still my baby.

Welcoming home our Dada in the middle of a call week!

 

Tess's First Piano Recital

I was more nervous than Tess today in anticipation of her first piano recital. Tess is 4 and 3/4 years old and has been taking piano lessons for 10 months with the great assistance of Mimi Jeanne, who gave her the lessons for her 4th birthday and practices with Tess. Tess was so calm and confident during her first recital.  We are all very proud.

Tess's First Piano Recital

Christmas Tea Time Tradition

We went to Christmas tea at the Drake today to celebrate Aunt EB's birthday. This was the second year of our annual tradition and the girls seemed so much older than last year.  Tess ordered and tried tea (and then switched back to water in her tea pot), and they really enjoyed the special part of a tea party - just sitting around and chatting.  And of course, they loved being "fancy."  Tess appreciated that the bathroom at the Drake says "Powder Room" on the door - how fancy!

First Cousin Sleepover

We had a very special guest for the weekend, and LOVED every minute of it. Sweet Cora was played with by everyone, fed by my big helper Tess, accessorized by Claire, and was ultimately worn out. Feel free to go out of town anytime, Aunt EB and Uncle Michael. We loved having Cora over for her first cousin sleepover.

Mom of a Train-lover

Living near a train station has its perks, but I used to think that it also had downfalls - mainly the number of times I would get stopped by a train, especially freight trains, while taking the kids to school, running errands, or trying to get anywhere quickly.

However, now that I have a train OBSESSED little boy, I only can see the good of  passing the train station many times daily. Today, after we dropped the girls off at school, Declan and I got caught by a l-o-n-g freight train. We were fortunate enough to be the first car stopped by the lowering gates, so we had a front row seat to watch. Declan squealed as the gates lowered, I re-positioned my rearview mirror, so I could watch his face. 19 month old Declan sat stone-still, not blinking, mouth opened, eyes sparkling watching the train and as the caboose pulled away, he took a breath and yelled, "Bye bye ChooChoo.  All ABOARD!"  With him, it is fun to get stopped by a train.

Gardening turned Water Fight

One peaceful, beautiful spring day, Tess, Claire and I picked out our flowers to plant in our flower boxes, planters and yard. I put Declan and Claire down for their naps, and Tess and I planted all afternoon.  Tess, who had been asking about seeds and flowers for weeks during our cold and soggy spring, was very excited about gardening and was actually very good at it and a huge help.  

Early in the evening, Chris arrived home from work and with the little kids now awake, we all returned to the yard to finish up and water what Tess and I planted. Well ... that wasn't as peaceful as earlier in the day as Declan ate dirt, Claire got dirt and flowers everywhere but in the planters, and Chris started an awesome water fight that left all of us drenched, made us laugh so hard our stomachs hurt, and confused poor Baby D to the point that he was walking around shaking his head and looking to the sky for the next strike of water. It was a perfect day.

 

Teamwork

I just heard Tess call to Declan, "Hey Declan, Claire and I need your help." Obviously, I am intrigued, so I follow the voices. Claire and Tess needed their brother's muscles to get to the popsicles....I am in trouble with this kind of teamwork....They did succeed. 

The Return of Waffle Mornings

Most weekend mornings, Chris and I growl back and forth to each other to decide who is going to get up with the kids when we hear the first little voice at 6:30 a.m. To be honest, most mornings, Chris wins and gets to sleep in to the luxurious hour of 8:30 a.m. -- he does only get an average of 5 hours of sleep a night now-a-days due to work (and hockey).  However, even if he is "sleeping in," the kids go to find him when they get hungry. Tess tickles his toes; Claire nuzzles in under the covers so she is nose to nose; and recently, Declan gets in on the action by body-slamming his little 13 month self onto Chris' belly.

So Chris pulls himself out of bed and makes our waffles. On these lazy weekend mornings, we love to actually sit down while we sip coffee, lick syrup off our fingers, and breath a little after the craziness of our weekdays.  Here are a few pics from a recent waffle morning.  And, as you can see, our growing family is soon going to need more than one waffle from the waffle maker to share!

And some oldies, but goodies from past waffle mornings that make me realize we need more of these moments:

Tess at 13 months:

Waffle Morning Dance Party - Tess at almost 3 years and Claire at 15 months:

Afternoon Quiet Time