New Year's Eve 2011

Well, this is it.

My last blog of the year.

What a year it has been!

We certainly have been blessed.

• 
  
  
  Both girls received bikes over the Summer.



• 
  
  
  Samantha started pre-school in the Fall



• 
  
  
  I started full time work after 2 1/2 years of being at home with the girls in September



• 
  
  
  We moved out of our apartment and moved into a house with a MUCH safer neighborhood



• 
  
  
  Sarah is potty trained & as of the last few weeks, has woken up with a dry diaper every morning!



• 
  
  
  Our photography business has grown significantly. We photographed 8 weddings this past year.

A look back at 2011

January - June

July - December

Thank you to those who have jumped on the Madore-able blog. I started this blog as a way to get the word out on what was going on with our family. Plus, we love taking photos, so what better way to tell a story then through pictures? So, I thank you for your feedback, and your comments. It makes us happy to know that our life stories can be your entertainment. Stay tuned for more Madore-able adventures in 2012!

A very happy and Healthy New Year!

Welcome 2012!

Five Things Friday

Five Things That Happened This Past Week That Made Me Smile

(I have decided that I'm not going to write any more 5 Things Friday for the rest of the year!)

1. So we found out Christmas night that my sister-in-law Jessica and her husband Paul are pregnant and expecting their first child Summer 2012. Sooo excited and happy for them!
   


2. We were unable to celebrate Christmas with Jeremy's family last weekend, so instead, we're celebrating this weekend. It'll be nice to see everyone. What the Madore-ables don't know is, we'll be staying at a hotel in the area with a pool.


3. This entire week, Jeremy's has had a genuine vacation away from work. It's been so nice to have him home! Everyday this week, we've done something fun: a hike, Imajine That, shopping, and a trip to the playground. The Madore-ables have really enjoyed having him home too.


4. Last night, I had the day off from both of my jobs, which was very nice. After the girls went to bed, Jeremy and I had a date night of ice cream sundaes and a movie.


5. Both of the Madore-ables have slept in the last few mornings. It's by only a half hour, but still. 30 minutes is 30 minutes right? We also have the Madore-ables wear diapers to bed, even thought they're 100% potty trained otherwise. Sarah has woken up with a dry diaper for almost 2 weeks straight!

Photo Dump

Christmas Day 2011

Our Christmas was very casual and low key this year. We started off the morning with breakfast, and Christmas morning church service. Then we came home to dive into presents. It was nice to see the girls get excited about opening things in their stocking even before we opened the presents.

The girls opened up their big gift and were very excited to see a brand new doll house. Unfortunately, some of the pieces were broken, and were disappointed to find out that we had to return it to the store and exchange it. The Madore-ables quickly forgot about it, when we told them that there was one more present for them, but it was a scavenger hunt. The girls (especially Sarah) have taken quite a liking to the television show, "Blue's Clues". Well, Jeremy and I decided to put a spin on the show and call it "Bow's Clues". We tied tags to Christmas bows around the house. The girls had to look for the bows and we read the tags to them to reveal the next clue.

The key to the girls toy room was attached to tag (4). We had to shut and lock the toy room door with their present behind the door, because it was so big, it was impossible to wrap. All morning long, the girls were asking every minute they could as to why the door was shut and locked. So, when it came time for the scavenger hunt, and the girls saw the key as their last clue, they knew right away where it went and what they needed to do to get inside. It took Jeremy a couple of hours, but he set it up right away. We haven't been able to pull the girls away from it since...

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the day...

A Letter To My Girls On Christmas Day...

Dear Samantha and Sarah,

Today is Christmas Day. While Mommy and Daddy are running around getting everything ready for you today, we'd like to pause for a moment to say thank you. You are almost 4 1/2 and 3 years old, and you have no idea at this age how much you have impacted our lives. Yes, you drive us crazy with your little arguments and your non-listening. I'm not going to lie. However, there are days where you remind Daddy and myself to just take that moment and giggle at something simple like a sock hand puppet, or you remind us to really take time to appreciate the little things.

In just a little while, we're going to go to church, and then come home to open presents. We can't afford the "really popular" toys, but knowing that we've set up a scavenger hunt for you really makes Mommy and Daddy very excited. When Uncle Wayne called up our house last week pretending to be Santa Claus on the telephone, I wish you could have seen your faces. The expression alone could make anybody turn their frown upside down. It was truly beautiful the smiles, the excitement, the mystery.

Thank you for showing us that there is magic in everyday life.

(Here are some photos of past Christmasses)

Remember, you make everyday fun, but especially on Christmas day. I hope you know how much we love you. Thank you for teaching Daddy and I to be better people. You remind us everyday that there is the magic everywhere...even when we cannot see it.

Love you always,

Mommy and Daddy

From Our Family To Yours...

From our family to yours...

A very Merry Christmas!

Five Things Friday

Five Things That Happened This Past Week That Made Me Smile

1. Earlier this week, my Uncle Wayne called the house. We chatted for a few minutes, and then asked if the Madore-ables were around to talk. When I put Samantha on the phone, her face just lit up. My uncle pretended to be Santa calling from the North Pole, and boy, was Samantha excited to talk to him! After Samantha had her turn, Sarah of course picked up the phone and talked to Santa. I overheard "Santa" ask Sarah if he had any carrots for his reindeer. Sarah's response? "We have carrots. We keep them in the refridgerator".



2. I won another gift card contest at work again this past week.



3. A lot of the Boston radio stations have been playing Christmas songs since the beginning of the month. Between that, and practicing for Samantha's Christmas school concert last week, we've certainly had our fill of the festive music. So when certain songs come on the air, the girls will drop EVERYTHING that they're doing to come over to tell me what song it is. For example, when Burl Ives' "Holly Jolly Christmas" is playing, Sarah will yell out "It's the JELLY song!" (I guess "jolly" sounds like "jelly" to her).



4. For the first time in a long time, Jeremy is taking some time off from work. I'm not talking about a day off. He's actually taking multiple days off. Woo hoo!



5. Since starting our photography business, Jeremy and I have been so fortunate to witness and photograph several weddings. Tonight, we get to do that again and photograph my childhood neighboor and her soon to be husband.

Samantha's Christmas Concert

Last week, Samantha starred in her very first of many musical concerts. She practiced very hard at home. Samantha and her class sang songs like, Feliz Navidad, Up On the Housetop, Rudolph, Must Be Santa and We Wish You A Merry Christmas! It took Sam a little bit to not look nervous, but once she saw Mommy, Daddy, Nanny and Sarah in the audience, Sam was all smiles and sang more.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from Samantha's "Angel Band" show.

Poor girl was so nervous!





A surprise visit from Santa Claus. Samantha asked for a doll house for Christmas.

Mommy (and Daddy, and Sarah and Nanny) were SO proud!

Sarah Visits The Pediatrician

This morning I took Sarah to her 3 year old pediatrician appointment. Sarah's Pedi and I are so excited about Sarah's progress. Sarah was able to:

• - Identify shapes





• - Jump on command (and jump very high too!)





• - Count from 1 to 10

Sarah remembered as soon as we walked into the exam room that the doctor's office is the place for shots. So when I put her up on the exam table she wanted nothing to do with the doctor's office. Luckily, Sarah was all caught up in her vaccinations, so she didn't need one! Luckily, the nurse left me a little paper johnny gown for Sarah, so I pulled it out, and Sarah was quite excited with the fact that we could take it home to color afterwards. PHEW! Saved by the paper johnny gown..

Check out Sarah's growth progression:
December 2009 (1 year appointment) 30 1/4" tall, and 23.8 lbs
December 2010 (2 year appointment) 34.5" tall and 28.9 lbs

December 2011 (3 year appointment) 38" tall and 33 lbs

Sarah's Pedi is so impressed that Sarah doesn't have to go back until next December for her 4 year appointment! Hooray!

Rudolph At Market Basket?

It seems that whenever I take the girls grocery shopping at Market Basket, we walk in looking just fine.

Then it's time to leave, we get to the car, and the Madore-ables turn into RUDOLPH!

Five Things Friday

Five Things That Happened This Past Week That Made Me Smile:

1. This past week, my nighttime job has been running a contest on who can sell the most gift cards. I won two nights so far this past week. A total of $20.00 in cash, and some meal tickets have been won by me. It's not much, but it's the little things that keep me going.


2. This is the second week in a row that I've had a Thursday night off and I've been able to have an actual date night with Jeremy. We've been Christmas shopping the last 2 weeks, and not only does it feel good to get out for a few hours and have a few hours of uninterrupted conversation, but we've gotten about 90% of our Christmas shopping done. WOOT!


3. Today is Samantha's Christmas concert at her school. She has been practicing hard the last few weeks on her array of music.


4. Jeremy and I decided to have Santa deliver our present a little earlier this year. So, Santa brought us a new box spring and mattress, and I do have to say that I've been sleeping like a baby the last few nights.


5. We've been encouraging Samantha to entertain herself and use her imagination with the toys that are in the toy room. Don't get me wrong, we play with her during the day, but we're also showing her there needs to be a balance between playtime and alone time. Samantha has really tried hard this past week.

Free Foot Rides!

Now that I work second shift, I don't get to put my adoreable Madore-ables to bed anymore unless I have a night off.

Luckily, Jeremy knows how to keep it fun for the girls right before bedtime...

Oh The Funny Things Kids Will Say

Recently, Jeremy was in the bathroom with door closed. Samantha was on the otherside of the door talking to Jeremy when the following coversation popped up.

"Daddy? Does everyone need to go potty?"

"Yes Sam"

"Do animals go to the bathroom?"

"Yes Sam"

"Do fish go to the bathroom?"

"Yes Sam"

(Wait for it...)

"Wait a minute! Does Santa use the potty?"

A Hee Haw Song

Five Things Friday

Five Things That Happened This Past Week That Made Me Smile

1. One week from today, Samantha will be having her Christmas concert. You have no idea how excited she is about it! We've been practicing singing "Rudolph", "Feliz Navidad" and "Must Be Santa" non-stop. Thank goodness for YouTube so we can sing along with the music.


2. Jeremy and I decided that any nights that I have off from work, we're going to turn into a date night for the two of us. With my work schedule, we don't have a whole lot of "us" time. So, tonight we put a huge dent in our Christmas shopping and shared an appetizer at the 99 Restaurant.


3. Sarah has been having a blast playing with her new toys from her Birthday. The girls have really taken a liking to Dominoes, Go Fish, and Uno.


4. The girls take turns each night turning on all the Christmas lights in the house. Seems like such a small task, but the Madore-ables LOVE it and look forward to flipping those switches each day.


5. Both Samantha and Sarah (as you know) love music. Sarah has decided that her new favorite song these days is Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" and Samantha has memorized Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now".

A Circus In Bethlehem

Meet our resident Circus coordinater.

In honor of Advent, Sarah has brought the circus to Bethlehem.

While our resident shepherd is taking a much needed nap, our sheep are practicing their act on the see-saw.

After the shepherd wakes up from his nap, Mary and Joseph decide to try out their skills on the see-saw too. Jesus giggled and had a great time.

After, the Circus coordinater decided that it was time for Baby Jesus to sit on the manger roof. To which Samantha (a.k.a assistant to the circus coordinater) showed much concern.

(Actual conversation)

Samantha - "Don't put Baby Jesus on the roof! He'll fall off!"

Me - "It's ok Sam, God will keep Him safe"

Circus coordinator made sure the animals had front row seating.

Apparently Gabriel was practicing on the skateboard?

After the show concluded, our Circus Coordinator decided to rock Baby Jesus to sleep for a nap.

The Start of Christmas Preparations

Last weekend we went to Maine to celebrate Thanksgiving and Sarah's Birthday with Jeremy's family. When we came home Sunday night, our Christmas tree was decorated with white lights. It really was a beautiful sight to pull into the driveway.

The girls were very excited to decorate the tree with the ornaments and all of the festive things that go with decorating. They really did a great job with handling the ornaments. They concentrated very hard with bringing them to the tree and hanging them on "just the right branch".

Sarah's Big Birthday Weekend(s)

Last weekend, we ventured up to Maine to visit Jeremy's family for Thanksgiving and celebrate Sarah's birthday. It was a family get together where we gathered with cake and ice cream and Sarah and her cousins played billiards for a little while. Sarah helped her Uncle Isaac sink a shot right into the pocket :) We don't get to see Jeremy's family often, so when we do it's really nice to visit. The Madore-ables love it because they can play with their cousins.


This past weekend, we had Sarah's birthday party at our house with a few friends. Sarah had been talking about the party for over a week, so she was so excited when her friends came in through the door to celebrate with her. Dora the Explorer seemed to be the running theme this year. We topped off the meal with a yummy Peep and the Big Wide World cake.

We concluded the weekend (Sarah's actual Birthday) very casually, and quiet. We went to Church in the morning. Then came home and went to the playground for a little while. Hung around at home and played with Sarah's new toys that she received for her Birthday. After dinner, we had left over cake and ice cream and of course sang Happy Birthday to our Birthday girl. (Because you can never have enough cake and "Happy Birthday"). Sarah opened up a special present from Nanny.

Sarah really had a great time. Still cannot believe she's 3 years old!

We Have A Birthday Girl! Sarah Is The Big 3!

Dear Sarah,


Today as of 11:58 a.m you are 3 years old! Just seems like yesterday I was going in for my regularly scheduled weekly doctor's appointment the day before your due date and voila! My water broke, and the rest they say is history. You (just like your sister) were a very easy pregnancy. You never gave me (much) heartburn. You always seemed to be active during the day and let me sleep at night. You made it possible for me to work right up to the very end. And above all, you made the labor and delivery easy and quick. There was no time for an epidural, because you arrived within 3 hours after my water broke!


You've overcome quite a lot in the last 3 years. Your aspiration and throat problems have completely gone away. Boston Children's Hospital discharged you over a year ago from check ups and we haven't been back since! Now you have an amazing appetite. You aren't a big fan of chocolate, but love things like broccoli and other vegetables.

You've recently taken a liking to puzzles, as well as "I Spy" games. You've also been putting puzzles together by yourself as well. It's so cute to see your face light up after solving a puzzle. You're also doing a great job at tracing letters and identifying the letters of the alphabet. Papere and Mamere gave you this really neat Leapfrog toy for your Birthday. You're doing such a great job!

Daddy and I could not be more proud of you. We're just amazed at the level of determination, and the shear fact at how you just want to learn things. Having an older sister is also very helpful too to teach you these things. Always remember how much we love you and we are always here for you. Thank you for being the sunshine in our day and reminding us to take a moment to say "I love you". God knew we needed you, and you have made our lives better just by being here.

Love you always,

Mommy & Daddy

Here is what you looked like on your past Birthdays

And here is a look at what you looked like today, December 2011

Dear Samantha (53 Month Update)

Dear Samantha,

Today is December 3, 2011, which means you turn exactly 53 months old. This is the last monthly update of the year. And what a year it's been! You are growing up so fast, and we're so proud of the progress that you make each day.

You continue to enjoy school very much. It's great to pick you up each day and hear that you had a special task that day. We are just so happy that you enjoy helping out. It shows that you're being responsible and that makes Mommy and Daddy very proud. In just a few weeks you and your class will be performing a Christmas concert. You'll be singing songs like "Up On the Housetop" and "Feliz Navidad". We can't wait to see all the hard work you've put into it, and we know you'll do a great job!

You've really been enjoying going to church each week. I think the fact that you know you can wear a dress helps too, but it's nice to see that you're excited to go. Mommy and Daddy really enjoy going as well. You're doing an amazing job saying your prayers and learning the music and the responses during the Mass.

Last month, we discovered how much you love the hidden pictures puzzles on the Highlights for Children app on the iPad. Well, seeing that you memorized the puzzles, Daddy and I thought it was a good idea to download some new puzzles. It was such a nice surprise to hear you say how excited you were that Daddy downloaded them. You're doing such a good job at trying to figure out yourself before you ask for help. The same goes for the big puzzles.

Your handwriting is getting so much better. Not too mention your coloring! Your new "task" is making Mommy very nervous. You're putting letters together and actually spelling. Mommy was talking to Nanny the other day and mentioned the word, "P-A-R-T-Y" in a sentence. A few seconds later you said, "Mommy! That word is "party". Oh boy. Looks like Mommy and Daddy have to find another secret code to speak in, huh?

Well, here ends another monthly update. The last one of the year. We can't wait to see what milestones lay ahead for you in 2012. One thing is for certain: Daddy and I are extremely proud of you, and we love you so very much. Never be afraid to try something new. Daddy and I are always here to hold your hand, although eventually you're going to be "too embarrassed" to want to hold Mommy and Daddy's hand. So instead, know that we're always here for you.

We love you.

Love, Mommy & Daddy

Here is what you looked like one year ago in December 2010

And here is what you look like today in December 2011