We wish you a Merry Christmas ...

And a Happy New Year!
Wishing you all a happy and healthy 2009.
Our house is filled with excitement for Santa to arrive. It's so cute to see how much Emma is looking forward to the big moment. She actually walked herself upstairs and hopped into bed on her own for her nap today, because she knows when she wakes up Christmas Eve begins (a party at Nana's and then RaRa and PopPop will arrive for bed time and in the morning lots of special treats for our girls). We are excited to have 10 days off and have lots planned (Disney on Ice, Tracy Morgan comedy show, Edaville RR and lunch for PopPop and Rob's birthdays, New Years Eve at Danielle and Erol's), what a fun time of year.
We are really looking forward to having my family over tonight and tomorrow and to having Timmy join in on our Crazy Pajama Christmas morning tradition (yup April and Timmy are getting up early and driving to CT in their PJs!!!). We will enjoy a fabulous french toast casserole (family recipe courtesy of my dear friend Kerri) and later on a Maple Glazed Pork Tenderloin with all of the holiday fixings. YUM ... I LOVE HOLIDAY CHEER!
Thinking of you all and sending Sarah some positive labor vibes for her little one to arrive quickly and painlessly (here's to hoping xoxoxo). Can't wait to hear about the newest addition to your family!!

Shout out to Pi

Sara, Sue and I have to post a shout out ... to Pi! Apparantly that's short for Pizzani. This was the Italian man we met at the Mexican joint last night. We had a fun Girls Night Out, which we thought was going to be low key and casual ... just 3 ladies heading out to have Margaritas and Cedillas ... but we were seated next to a table of single older Italian American guys who had already had a few too many drinks. So ... a $20 bill was slid on the table next to me and Pi's buddy asks "do me a favor, buy my buddy a drink and make sure you make a big deal about it and that he thinks it's from you". Well you know Mary ... I immediately oblige and concoct an even more elaborate plan ... I ask the waiter to make something phenomenal and definitely flaming! He does ... and comes back with a Mexican Margarita Bowl with a flaming lime in the middle! Well let's just say this gesture made those guys night and us girls had a great chuckle about it ... and a free round of Margaritas :)

CBIZ

Hmmm, just a little update ... Rob's company was acquired by a national firm this week. Tofias will join with CBIZ as of the new year. Take a look at the update: http://www.tofias.com/whatsnew/newstemplate.php?printflag=true&id=1826
Hopefully this will bring more opportunities for Rob and his coworkers and the possibility of relocation is also peeking my interest ... although I have to admit, being here in our house today with the warm stove and the snow falling outside our door, I am very content.

Playing catch up ...

Whew, this week FLEW by! But I didn't want to just skim past last weekend's events either. So I'm playing catch up. We had a wonderful visit with old friends, who now live closer by and will become a regular part of the Kerr happenings :) Danielle, Erol and their adorable labradoodle Foster came to stay with us last Saturday. It was a cozy visit, and both Rob and I were extremely surprised at how well Foster did at our house. Danielle purchased these adorable doogie booties which are meant to protect dogs paws from the harsh sand/salt from NE weather but instead they were used to preserve the mahogany wood floors Rob installed nearly 3 years ago. We truly appreciate the thought and it definitely made us more at ease to have the 4-legged visitor. But seriously, if you have not had the pleasure to be around a labradoodle, you should know that Danielle's description of "cuddly, gentle, laid back, and low energy" was absolutely on the money. He only took a few minutes to sniff around and then settled in for the evening with out any disturbances. Danielle and Erol, you either go very lucky with this puppy or all of your persistence is really paying off, Foster was great. So this was our "housebreaking" weekend, where Rob and I were exposed to how a dog could potentially fit into our family ... well not quite yet. We like to be able to be spontaneous and pack up the kids and go away for a few nights, and with Dewey we can do that. All he needs is our bed, a bowl of water, a bowl of food and his litter box and he's good f or 3 nights solo! That's more our pace for right now. But maybe one day...
Later that evening we enjoyed a yummy home cooked meal in (Shallot and Parsley Cod, Green Lentils, and Parmesan Swiss Chard and scrumptious chocolate molten lava cake!) and then we did what all 30 somethings do ... we played ROCK BAND!!! What a perfect night.
And on Sunday the girls and I left early to head down to RaRa's for a fun day visit and to pick up an old family tradition, seeing Santa Claus at Uncle Johnny's Knights of Columbus party. This is special to me because my sister and I always got to attend this party and now my girls are invited too! This Santa brings a bag of toys all wrapped and tagged with each child's name on it! It was great to see Emma's face light up when Santa grabbed a present and said "Emma K" and then he grabbed another and said "Julia K", Emma was a bit shy but walked up proudly and said "Thank you Santa". She was thrilled to see he knew how much she treasures Princesses because her present was wrapped in princess paper! Emma received a Rudolph T-shirt that has a lit up red nose (it shines bright any time she moves) and Julia got a cute little baby doll. The girls were so happy and the magic of Christmas is officially upon us.

Everybody's working for the weekend!

Rob and I had the most perfect day on Friday. We planned a personal day off from work and sent our two little cherubs to daycare, yup you read that right. We had a full day of just husband and wife time. It was wonderful. We got to have a leisurely breakfast, wait for our new couch (which is really perfect except for a minor size issue -- to be resolved by the New Year), then we went out for his dream lunch (Capital Grille burgers and truffle fries). Now, I admit that after our last visit to the Capital Grille during Restaurant Week I was no so impressed, so when he proposed we try his favorite lunch I was a big skeptical. However, my hubby has seriously redeemed himself! Their signature burger is unbelievable: Here is the description: An “almost too big to wrap your hands around it” chopped sirloin burger blended with onion, smoked bacon and Havarti cheese. A toasted onion roll completes the journey from All-American Classic to all new sensation. Served with phenomenal truffle oil fries.
I paired it perfectly with a glass of Old Vine Zinfandel and Rob enjoyed his classic, Knob Creek and coke.
So, I am now a fan of the Capital Grille, especially when I'm with my man.
We had the best day out, it felt like we were playing hooky -- which we were but this time it was from family life. It's OK to sneak away for a few hours ;) We also got the bulk of our Christmas shopping complete so we were very productive too!
The girls had a great day with their friends at daycare and then we took them out for a special night at the Aquarium ... it was the festival of lights and it was FREE!!! Emma loved all of the music and the ballerinas that were there to promote different dance companies, and Julia loved the big fish tanks. It was a long day/night but well worth it to see the smiles on their faces. Emma also let Santa know that in addition to a balloon, she would also like a Zebra for Christmas... hmmmmmm ... we thought she was going to be our easy child-- but a Zebra?
Other big happenings -- Julia got her 2nd tooth, it's quite cute and she's crawling everywhere! She's doing the classic crawl, no soldier crawl for her. She is a busy little lady and has the lungs of a very high pitched hyena!

Ok, I have to stop procrastinating on getting prepared for the week ahead but I will write more about our weekend tomorrow.

Welcome little Juliette

We want to send a warm welcome to Juliette Rose, she was born on 11/15 to Sarah and Eric and big sister Alida! Can't wait to meet her.

Good for the Soul ...

This weekend was one of those "good for the soul" kind of weekends. Not only did we get our Christmas tree but I also got to spend an ENTIRE day with my best friend on Saturday. A big thanks to Rob for taking care of the girls all day ... and with out any complaints! The girls loved having their Daddy home with them all day.
So Saturday I left for Clinton Crossing Outlets at 9 a.m. and meet up with Michelle at 10:15. We got to peruse and shop leisurely with out any time constraints such as, "I can stay for 1.5 hours because I have to get back to feed the baby" or "I can shop for 2 hours while the girls nap". Nope I was granted a girls day away. It was awesome and very very much appreciated. Michelle and I took full advantage of this rare opportunity and did what any Irish gals would do ... we ducked into a Pub around 2 p.m. for lunch and a beer (Guinness for me and Heineken for her). It was lovely! We got to gab for hours about life and all of the changes we have gone through, some wonderful and some unexpectedly frustrating, but through it all we have been able to lean on our friends! It is a beautiful thing when you only see each other a handful of times each year but the moment you walk up to one another it's like you were never gone. We also got some amazing steals at Banana and JCrew and Michelle snagged a great dress at Off Saks. All in all it was a very successful shopping outing and even more, it was just the catch up day we needed. Big hug, friend.
And Sunday brought a snowy morning which made finding our Christmas tree even more fun!
I, being the city girl that I am, bet Rob that since it was snowy that people would opt out of finding a tree that day. Well Rob was right, snow=nostalgia and therefore lots of families cutting down trees. But it was perfect ... everyone knows I love a crowd! We took the tractor ride out to the trees and Rob cut down our perfect 3rd Christmas tree (Julia's 1st!). What a pretty tree!

We also got to enjoy a first ... christmas cookie decorating with toddlers and other pre-school aged children. It was so refreshing and sweet. Sara and Matt hosted and had all the fixings for fantastic sugar and gingerbread cookie masterpieces. I think Emma met the quota of eating 8 cookies! That little girl loves her sweets ... hmmm wonder where she gets that from? :) Thank you guys for the fun night, I love all of the holiday tidings.

Frosty brings a special treat

Friday night we treated Emma to a "big girl" movie night. We gave her and Julia their bath together but then we told Emma that since she was the big sister we were going to allow her to stay up late and watch Frosty with Mommy and Daddy. Well our little 2 1/2 year old LOVED this. She was so well behaved and snuggled in with both of us on the couch and watched Frosty as content as any toddler should be with the magic of Christmas just ahead.
It was one of those moments where you feel good, good that there are times where you can give each of your children special moments. Before Julia was born and then during first few weeks as a mother of 2, I struggled with the notion that I would no longer have an only child. But Rob and I have found that it is possible to make each child feel special. Our first Big Girl movie night was a big success and that night we both tucked Emma into bed and she loved every second of it.

Amazing ...

Deceptively Delicious ... lives up to its name. Sara invited me and the girls over for a scrumptious and nutritious dinner. I am always looking for great ways to eat a balaced meal so when she shared her new cookbook the other day and invited us over for a tasting, I could not pass this up. It was amazing. The turkey meatball soup was sweet and savory, and very filling. She also had a healhty spinach salad and to top off the meal -- chocolate chip cookies made with chick peas!!!! Yup you read that correctly, chick peas. But they were absolutely delish and you could not tell there were any beans in them. So I am now adding this to my wishlist ;). Thank you Sara, you never cease to amaze me in how you can balance motherhood and friendship with such grace.

On another amazing note, little Miss Emma is quite the reader. She has memorized entire books! Tonight at bed time she read the entire Chicka Chicka Boom Boom book and recalled the correct story line from each page. I know she can not really read but does a 2 1/2 year old really have that good of recall memory to have the story correct on the exact page? She's something I tell ya.

I have a question related to breastfeeding, so for those of you reading who do not want any more BF'ing content this is your cue ...

How much milk is enough for a 9 month old? I have looked in a few books and online but haven't gotten a clear answer. Julia has her check up next week but in the mean time I am curious. She has cut down to only 2 solid nursing sessions a day (morning and before bath time), I am pumping at work but lately she's only drinking 2-3 ounces of that milk while at daycare. She does drink water through out the day (probably 4-6 ounces) and is truly on a full 3 meals per day. It just seems like she went from a baby to a table eater overnight. Now that she has diced table food it's also getting hard to give her the pureed stuff. She does eat yogurt each day and some shredded cheese every few days but I'm just worried she may not be getting enough with out more breast feeding sessions ... any thoughts?

Things I'm excited about today ...

• Happy Birthday to Luigi, hope you have a wonderful day.


• Danielle and Erol have an offer on their house in TX, yay! They will be back in MA very shortly.


• Trying a quick easy dinner (homemade turkey soup and crescent rolls with cranberry/cream cheese filling)


• Julia being able to sit and play on the floor while I type this note


• Emma sitting on the living room floor putting a Dora puzzle together with out any help!!


• Living in the country has some Christmas shopping perks -- we found a very hard to get gift today at Target! YAY


• Rob is on his way home from work and will be sitting down for dinner with us! :)


• My doctor reported I do not have hearing loss, just some distortion of the inner ear tube due to my TMJ (i.e. need to see the dentist and have started taking an anti-inflamatory to relieve the pressure in the ear)


• Christmas is 23 days away


• Fitting into an old pair of trousers ;0


• Catching up on GH tonight when the girls are asleep


• Waiting in anticipation to spend the day with Michelle on Saturday