Odds and Ends

Joseph has learned to suck his thumb.

Thomas, Maria and Anthony are standardized testing this week.

I'm in planning my book orders for next year and writing finals for this year in my free time.

Bill's work has slowed down so we've seen him before dinner 4 nights this week.

Baseball ends next Sat.

Charles had a speech assessment on Wed. We will have to go back to finish the articulation part because the pathologist ran out of time.

Cecilia's tricycle has been fixed so she took James on a bike ride today which he loved. Then she asked me to help her on her 2 wheeler some more.

Celebrate Memorial Day

Please pray for our troops.

Pray for peace.

J--James, jumping James

James is two, and what can he do?

• VACUUM!
• play with the knobs on the stove
• jump
• speak fairly articulately--"When I sit sofa, I hold baby?"sing, sometimes songs of his own making
• eat, but only what is not being offered or
• eat anything, as long as it is not a time when anyone else is eating
• go to the daycare during Mass...most of the time
• suck his thumb
• listen to Goodnight Moon or Big Red Barn
• frantically say and sign "all done" when being forced to do something he doesn't like...like get shots
• help make pizza dough and roll his own pizza
• Say his siblings' names--"Thomas", "Thomas", "Ria", "Chah-rohs", "Cee-ya", "Goldfish"

He can't:

• tell the twins apart
• say his own name

He won't:

• Say "yes"

There is no one as fun as Uncle Marc

So, obviously, there has been no shortage of pilgrims coming to see the new baby. Marc stayed for a few days while my mom was here too. And as usual, he outdid himself with uncle-ish fun. Within moments of his arrival, he had Cecilia squealing with glee:

This is just after he started to put her in the outside trash can. She loved it, of course.

He also brought his "just in case the May children break my knee again" crutches as a toy for our oldest 6 to share. You can imagine how well they went over. Thankfully, he took them home again.

He also helped keep track of James when no one else did and gave Maria some attention, which she never tires of.

A Day with Pop

A few weeks ago Bill popped in for the afternoon, just long enough to see Thomas and Anthony's baseball game and to hold his newest grandson.
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What Are They Up To?

Joseph has been working on getting a word in edgewise in this big family; he has started to smile and coo.

Cecilia is learning to ride a bike without training wheels. (see the picture of my mom teaching her in previous post)

Charles has started to show an interest in reading. On Saturday he enthusiastically brought his words to the table for a game of speed Scrabble. He and Thomas played on a team together.

Visit from Grandma

This is a sign that I had a wonderful two weeks with my mom: there are about 4 pictures from the entire visit. I was having such a good time, I didn't want to pick up the camera.


Throughout the visit, the kids were in Grandma heaven too. She made the girls new reversible aprons, played baseball with Thomas and Anthony, washed and held and was the barber for Joseph, cleaned with James and his birthday vacuum, fixed Charles' long broken fire engine sleeping bag, and in general was liberal with her love and attention. I soaked it up also, to the detriment of my email correspondence and blogging, and I have no regrets. When she left, the kids and I had a pity party which included generous amounts of pizza, TV and ice cream.

Joseph's Journal--1 month old

Dearest, I have always said that I think new babies are funny looking and that I don't enjoy holding them or breastfeeding, but you have proved me wrong. One day you and I went out alone to run errands, and in the van in the pouring rain I fed you. I listened to the pit-a-pat of the raindrops outside from the sleepy warmth of the front seat and suddenly realized how very, very much I was enjoying holding and nursing you. I looked at your squishy face and thought about how beautiful you are and remembered the moment of your birth when the midwife handed you to me. Gripping onto the rail, not quite standing or sitting, I wrapped my free arm around your dirty newborn body high on my shoulder, nuzzled your fuzzy head, kissed you and said, "Hello, Gorgeous. I love you!"

"C" The Capitol Building

In May, a friend I met online arranged for a tour of the Capitol Building for a few homeschool families. I borrowed a teenager and metroed us into the city for the day. I would have loved to stay and just look at the art, but there wasn't time. We did say hi to some statues that have duplicates at the capitol in Honolulu and take a gallery tour where we watched a bill about mortgage rates debated. I thought they wouldn't be interested, but at the end of the day, all the kids said the debate was their favorite part.

The House and Senate make their home

Beneath the Capitol's great dome.

Me, Anthony and Thomas; Mary Chris and Cecilia with the Kamehameha I statue from Hawaii; the kids and me with the Fr. Damien statue; waiting to go on the gallery tour (for the record, Maria made a face in every picture); me, Joseph, and Ronan; Katie, Mary Beth, my kids, and our friend Elizabeth who came with me to help that day