Good bye to 2012

It has been a pretty good year for our family with many great adventures. 

Annalese and Robert took their first ski lesson.
Matthew celebrated his first birthday.
Mom celebrated her 4oth birthday.
We joined a pool this summer and the kids were able to swim  just about everyday. 
We attended a fantastic 4th of July party.
Robert started Kindergarten.
Annalese started 1st grade.
Aunt Kacki and I took Annalese and Robert to the first PSU football game with out Joe Paterno.
Annalese turned 7 and celebrated with a TKD party.
Robert was Sheldon for Halloween, and Annalese was a PSU cheerleader.
Robert turned 6 and was supposed to have a bike party, but it was rained out due to Hurricane Sandy.
We celebrated another Thanksgiving and Annalese dressed up like a pilgrim.
Mom and Dad purchased a building right across from the kids' school.
We had another great Christmas.  Robert received a Wii and Annalese a keyboard.
We lost our dog, Ralph, to cancer in October.  We miss you Ralphie!

Over all not a bad year.  Dad, Annalese and Robert went to the Rivers Club for New Years Eve with Aunt Kacki.  Matthew was sick all day so I stayed home with hime.  By evening, he was feeling better and even eating and drinking.  I am sure he will be fine tomorrow. 

It has been a good year!  Looking forward to many more adventures.

Happy 22 month birthday Matthew!

Happy 22 month birthday, Matthew! 

We just found a ton of school bus pictures and your excitement is infectious!  You are so adorable.  You are growing and changing so much.  Just today, you said your first 3 word sentence.  Yes, I do.  It is so amazing to hear you speak so many words. You love the basketball hoop and throwing jack balls all over the house.  Christmas is a great time of year for you.  One of your favorite activities is plugging in all of the Christmas trees and lights.  Let's see what else.  Oh you love to "eep" very much.

You are such an incredible baby.  We all love having you around!  Kisses to you.

The Bartolacci Building

Today we took a big step for our family. We are now the proud owners of the property on Dorseyville.  Welcome to Fox Chapel Town Square.  It is certainly going to be a ride, but we are working hard to make it a nice place for businesses so that in the end, we can send our children to college!

Happy 21 Months Matthew

Wow 21 months!  Where does the time go?  You are still such a happy little guy.  You love to play with your sister and brother, vaccum, and talk.  Just yesterday you said "two buses."  So cute!  Your vocabulary just amazes me.  All you want to do right now is vaccum or "eep" as you call it.  If we put the vaccum cleaner away you get so angry with us.  I have to say you are quite persistent because you won't take no for an answer and we have to go and get the vaccum cleaner out.  Love your spirit.  Unfortunately you have been sick for a number of weeks so we are hoping that you will recover soon.  We want happy, happy man back!  Love you little one.  You are such a joy for us all.

The Tooth Fairy Has Arrived

Today at school, Annlese lost her first tooth!  Oh was she excited because the nurse gave her a special box to keep the tooth.  It is the front left bottom  tooth.  She called Aunt Kacki, Grandma and Pap Pap to tell them her news.  It is funny to see how proud she is. 

The Tooth Fairy gets to visit our house tonight!

Halloween Update

It has been so crazy around here that I never posted about Halloween.  In keeping with the spirit of Halloween, it was quite a strange year.  Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast on Monday bring nothing but rain, wind, and clouds for the rest of the week.  Because of the weather, Trick-or-Treating was postponed until the following Saturday on November 3rd. 

This holiday is made for Robert!  He loves going door-to-door for all of his candy treats. This year he was Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory, Annalese was a Penn State Cheerleader, and Matthew was a Pumpkin.  They all were so cute!


Fun night although it was a bit quieter than usual.  But the holidays have arrived.  Let the fun begin!

Happy 6th Brithday Robert!

Yesterday, Robert celebrated his 6th birthday.  We started the day by going to the Strip for smokachinos and bread sticks.  Kids loved going to Wholey's and walking around to see all of the interesting sites.

In the afternoon, Dad took both Annalese and Robert to the bike track for some riding time, and then they came home for a a terrific steak dinner.  We gave Robert a new bike helmet and winter coat for his birthday.  His new coat is perfect for skiing in January!

Robert had a pretty good day.  Can't believe he is six already. Happy Birthday B Boy!  We love you!

Matthew is 20 months

Happy 20 month birthday, Matthew Man!  You are such an amazing child.  I have lost track of all of the words that you know now.  Today you said "off" and "on."  This week you said "email" "rag doll"  pluse lots of other words.  We are working on our colors- everything is blue at the moment, but you know how to say yellow, pink, green, purple, red, and black.  You say oatmeal and mail.  You can roar when you see a lion.  I can't believe how verbal you are!  One of your favorite activities is kicking your green ball around the house.  We must have a future soccer player on our hands.  Still one of your favorite things to do is smile!  Such a happy baby.  You have filled our lives with so much joy.  We love you Matthew Peter!

Thank you, Ralph!

Today is a very sad day for our household.  It was time and we had to take Ralphie to the vet so that he could go to dog heaven.  There is a hole in my heart and our house seems so empty and quiet.  Ralph, thanks for being such a wonderful family dog!  We will miss you so very much.

Happy 19th Month Birthday, Matthew!

What an exciting time for Matthew Man.  He is very busy with Story time, Gymkhana, and Kindermusik.  He loves going to all of those class to sing, play, dance, and spend  time with mom.  We have a great time together.

What has Matthew been up to?  Well his vocabulary keeps increasing.  He has added tickle, choo choo, kacki, milk, cracker, and yellow to his list.  He says ma ma , baby, da da, very well now.

Matthew is very busy when he is at home.  One of his favorite toys now is the train table.  He loves to go downstairs and play with all of the trains and tracks.  Blocks are still a favorite and he is building more and higher towers with them now.  Matthew loves to push things.  He pushes the grocery cart when we are outside and he pushes Lily's stroller around the house.  He now loves to take the magnets from the refrigerator and throw them towards the living room! 

Yes, Matthew is a growing little boy who still loves to smile.  I am enjoying my time with him.  Love you little man.

Mom

Happy 7th Birthday, Annalese

My little girl is 7!  Had the family over yesterday for a light lunch and cake!  Fun day and Annalese greatly enjoyed her day.  Can't believe she is seven.

Happy 9th Birthday Ralph!

First Day of School 2012

What an exciting morning!  Robert is going to Kindergarten and Annalese is on her way to First Grade.  My little babies are growing up!

Annalese's Birthday Party 2012

Kennywood Day 2012

Matthew is 18 months old!

Matthew is a year and a half.  Can't believe it.  He just keeps getting cuter and cuter.

Mother/Daughter and Father/Son Day 2012

Annalese and I spent the entire day together.  We started our day at the Museum of Art where Annalese showed me some of the sculptures and art work that she saw last week at her art camp.  Then we met dad and B-Boy at the Vintage Grand Prix for lunch.  Afterwards, we headed to the Carnegie Science Center to view "Born to be Wild" about orphaned elephants in Kenya and orphaned oragatans in Boreno.  This was Annalese's first IMAX film and she loved it!   Then off to dinner at the Bagel Factory.  Then we headed to Color Me Mine and painted mugs for Grandma and Pap Pap.  We were very tired and ready for bed when we got home!  Thanks for a great day Pumpkin Pie.

Dad and B-Boy worked at little in the morning and then headed to the Grand Prix to meet us for lunch.  They checked out the cars, but then went home.  Robert wanted to go to the bike track where he rode for 10 miles!  He was out when he got home.

And we did not forget about Matthew. He stayed with Grandma and Pap Pap and was well cared for.  We all had a great day!

Happy 17 Month Birthday, Matthew!

Little Matthew Man is 17 months today.  And he is as cute as ever.  Since we have been going to the pool pretty regularly, he is starting to like the water and wants to swim.  He even goes off the diving board with mom's help.  He walks up the steps, climbs onto the diving board which is a real challenge, walks to the middle of the diving board, does his jumps, then goes to the end of the rail where I grab him and pick him up so he can "jump" into the water.  He is adorable doing this, and he is so proud of himself.  He still likes to read and "Moo, Baa. La La La" is still the favorite.  A new activity he found is riding his bike.  Ok, pushing his bike.  But next year I know he will be ready for the bike track. 

I love watching him grow and change. Getting kisses is a great perk of this age, too.  Can't believe he is 17 months.  So glad you are here, Matthew Peter!

Mom

9 year Wedding Anniversary

Today, Robert and I celebrated our nine year anniversary.  Nine years, a dog, five cars, one renovation, one addition, three kids, and a country club later, life is pretty good.  So lucky to have a kind, hard working husband, three terrific kids, and our dog, Ralph.  This is how I thought my life would be.  Barto, thanks for a great nine years!

5 Year Anniversary

First the happy reminder.  Five years ago, Robert was baptised.  It was a very bright, happy day for a very bright happy occasion.

But that bright day turned very dark for us by days end.  This is the five year anniversary of when Annalese ended up in the ICU at Children's Hospital.  I still remember that awful feeling of walking into the house without her and walking past her room wondering if I would ever put to her sleep into her crib.  The next two weeks were so hectic and full of angst.  I was so happy when I brought her home on July 19th.  But the next two months were pretty tough too since we had to detox her from the medicines in the ICU.  Poor little girl. 

But today, the sunny skies has returned.  Annalese if a vibrant six-year-old on her way to first grade.  I love her giggles and laughs and can't help every now and then to think that I almost lost those.  I cherish every moment with her. 

Even with the boys, I am so glad that I have each day with them.  They are such wonderful special people.  I can't image my life now without any of the.

Annalese--so glad that you are here today with us!  We love you.

Matthew's 16 Month Birthday!

Wow, another month old.  Matthew is growing and developing so nicely.  His new thing is to shake his head yes and say "ya" to answer questions.  Matthew, do you want milk to drink? "Ya with the head shake.  So cute.  He is into everything and is now climbing on the furniture.  He can climb into his rocking chair, but he needs help getting out.  On Tuesdays he goes to story time at the Shaler Library and has a blast.  I love to see the excitment on his face when Miss Joy brings out the bubble machine. Some favorite toys are the vaccum cleaner and blocks.  He likes to take his shoes and throw them into the washer when mom is not looking.  Matthew loves summer time foods such as watermelon and strawberries.  He is doing well with this signs.  So far he has more and finished down which are incredibly helpful.  Still working on others, but they will come.  We started going to a pool and he loves to play in the water.  Soon enough he will be with his big brother and sister in the deep end. Do I dare say that he continues to be a great sleeper.  That makes everything so much easier.

I am with Matthew all the time, but I feel the days and months go so much faster with him.  Is he really 16 months old?  Next year at this time, he will be getting ready to go to preschool in the fall.  Unbelievable! 

Love you Matthew.  You smile and laugh bring me so much joy everyday!  So glad you are with me.

Matthew is 15 months

Can't believe Matthew is 15  months.  He is very active and learning so much all the time.  He tried watermellon for the first time at dinner and loved it!  His favorite skill to practice right now is walking backwards.  It is so funny to watch him.  He waves bye, bye, and says da da when he sees Robert.  Matthew is very social at story time and Kindermusik as he walks to each person and says hi.  Lately, he has become a screamer.  And wow, can he be loud!  It is only a phase.  He is extremely independent and doesn't like to be told "no."  His favorite activity is running the romba who we call Bruce.  That is the first thing he does in the morning--goes and sees Bruce. 


Update on the other two.  Annalese's new bed came yesterday and daddy set it up.  She was quite excited to be sleeping in her own bed once again.  She only has two weeks of Kindergarten left!  I can't believe I will have a first grader.  She really is a big kid.  My little girl is no longer a baby!

Robert had a flag football game today and did well.  He had a 50 yard run and almost scored a touchdown!  Needless to say he was quite excited when he arrived home.  Yesterday, Robert had a tball game and did so well!  His hitting is improving.  I think going out and practicing the day before helped quite a bit.  He is a great little athlete and will do well in sports as he gets older.

Annalese, Robert, and Matthew.  What great little kids with such great personalities.  I love seeing them grow and prosper.   This will be another incredible summer with the opportunity for each to again try new things.  Belonging to a pool is perfect for our family at this time.  I think I am going to have three fish on my hands!  Happy Summer!

Happy Mother's Day!

Not too bad of a day.  Dad made breakfast this morning.  I received great gifts-strainer with smiley faces, a pig skillet, a little egg skillet, and a cook book.  We will be doing lots of cooking this summer!  Dad also gave me a Polo top.  Annalese made a book with her hand print and a book at school, and Robert baked some muffins that came with the cutest poem about moms, titled "If you give a Mom a Muffin." 

Mom and Dad, Kathy and Fred came up to see Robert's flag football game.  Because Matthew was sleeping, I stayed home, but took advantage of the time and walked for an hour on the treadmill.  I want to lose some weight so now is as a good a time as any to start!

When grandma and pap pap were leaving, Matthew waved and said "Bye Bye!"  Way to go Matthew.  Seeing my child grow and learn is one of the best Mother's Day gifts.

Thanks everyone for a great day!

Love,

Mom

14 months old

Matthew is 14 months old today!  This age is so exciting!  Matthew continues to be Happy Baby.  Just this past Monday, I had to take Matthew with me to Robert's tball practice.  While we were waiting for him, Matthew ran around in the outfield and rolled in the grass.  I have never seen a person exhibit such pure joy and happiness.  He laughed and giggled and squealed.  And of course he smiled. 

He seems to be picking up the signs I have been teaching him.  Yesterday at dinner, he seemed to give his version of finished!  But he is also working on his words.  He still uses the word "this" which is very effective.  We pretty much are able to guess what he wants.  His "da da" is pretty solid now too.  When Robert comes home, Matthew gets so excited and runs to see him while shouting "da da!"  I have to get that on tape. 

He eats mostly everything. Right now he is greatly enjoying strawberries.  But he has to have the entire berry because he won't eat a piece that I have cut off for him  What an independent little boy. 

Love having him in my life.  He is such a wonderful baby!

Play Ball

Last night, Mom, Dad, Annalese, and Robert went to the Pirates game against the Phillies.  Had dinner and ice cream before the game.  It was a little slow in the beginning, but it became exciting in the 6th inning when the Pirates tied the Phillies.  It was late and we were getting cold so we left a little early, but the Pirates ended up winning the game in extra innings.  It was fun going out for the evening as a family. 

Not to worry.  Matthew was at home with Aunt Kacki and in bed early!  When he is a little older, we will be taking him along with us!

Happy Easter!

The Easter Bunny managed to make it to our house and brought the kids some great treats.  Annalese recieved a frame, Robert a McQueen pillow pet, and Matthew a book.  Mom made a big breakfast with her signature cinnamon rolls.  Then it was off to church where we were greeters for the 11:00 service.  Afterwards, we joined Uncle Pino and Aunt Linda, Joe and Cristina for brunch.  It was a fun family time.  Came home and saw Grandma, Pap Pap, Aunt Kacki, Uncle Fred, and Aunt Ann.  Our day was filled from beginning to end, but we so enjoyed seeing family and friends.  Happy Easter!

Sad News about Ralphie

Tonight we learned that Ralphie has stage 3 cancer.  Very somber feeling around here right now.  Never thought I would feel so sad about a dog, but I can't stop tearing up.  Ralph has been with us since the beginning.  Our little poomies.  So many memories!  I know that the next few weeks and months, we are going to treat him just a little extra special.  He is such a great dog!

Hair Cut Day!

In preparation for Easter, we headed to the hairdressers.  Annalese had her hair cut into an adorable little bob.  So cute!  Matthew had his bangs trimmed as well because they were so long.  His first hair cut!  And he is definitely a handsome man now.  Just that little trim makes him look older.  My little guy is growing up!

13 Months!

What an exciting few weeks!  Matthew loves to move about with his new mode of transportation. Wow is he cute.  Since he is still unbalanced, he holds his arms up in front of himself, and he even will have his index finger in the air as if he is saying "I'm one, and I am walking."   His favorite activity is sneaking over to the new part and climbing the stairs.  Such fun for mom. 

He also has been working on some new words.  His favorite right now is "this."  When he wants something he points to the object and says "this."  He has his good-bye wave down and is now saying by-by!  And just yesterday when I asked him "where is ma ma?"  he pointed to me!  I have heard him say "ma ma" a few times now.

Matthew loves to read, too.  His favorite book is I Love You Through and Through.  We start our story time with that one and move on to Good Night Moon and I Love You, Goodnight.  Doing my best to get him started early with books and literature.  I want him to be a great reader like his brother and sister.  I know he will be!

I love watching Matthew at this age.  He loves exploring and finding new things in his ever-growing world.  With the nice weather we are having, Matthew loves to be outside practicing his walking skills.  I think this spring and summer and going to be full of very acitive activities.   Looking forward to every minute!

Welcome Walking Man!

It is pretty much official.  Matthew is now walking.  Last night he walked all by himself up and down the hallway four to five times.  And was he proud of himself!  Today, he is even walking more and more.  I am so excited for him, but now I need to be very diligent and make sure that he is safe and doesn't hit into the corners of the walls.  He has grown so much!  Proud of you Matthew Man!

Robert's Firsts for the year

Dad took Robert to his first Pens game a few weeks ago.  Robert loved it!  He now wants to play hockey so we are going to start going ice skating so that he can practice. 

Dad also took Robert to a Pitt Basketball game on February 19th.  Uncle Pino wasn't using his tickets so he offered them to us.  They were courtside seats!  The guys ended up on tv.  Mom watched the game on the internet.  Mr. and Mrs. Master Norris were at the game and saw them.  Robert saw his first slam dunk by J.J. That is all he can talk about now. 

What an exciting life for a five year old boy!

Annalese's First Penguin Game

Yesterday, Dad took Annalese to her first Pens game.  She liked seeing the players skate around  quickly which reminded her of bees swarming about the nest.  I think her favorite part was getting a blue slushy.  For sharing time at school, Annalese took the bag she recieved from the game to show everyone.  I think she liked it!

Matthew's First Slide Ride

This morning I took Robert and Matthew to Pittsburgh Mills so that I could get some walking in before the day started.  Of course we ended up at the little play area for a bit.  Sad news is that Robert is just too big for that area now.  But Matthew Man took his first slide ride with his older brother and loved it!  He giggled and laughed after each ride.  How cute.  This summer will be fun with visits to the park. 

Happy First Birthday, Matthew!

My little one arrived exactly one year ago today!  What a joy he is.  Yesterday we had his party with the family.  He did so well!  He played with everyone and loved the ham we had for lunch.  It was on to cake time.  His brother and sister were quite eager to help Matthew blow out his candle.  But he enjoyed everyone singing happy birthday to him.  The best part--he didn't like the cake! I tried giving him a little piece, and he threw it onto the floor!  Oh well, I tried. 

These past few weeks Matthew has grown so much as is able to do some many adorable things.  He is able to tell us how old he is.  He raises his hand with his index finder up.  He claps his hands, and he loves to play peek-a-boo.  He has been working on his walking skills.  A week or so ago, I brought out Roberts bus so Matthew could push it around.  He loves to walk all over the living room with it.  On February 16th he for the first time stood on his own for about 5 seconds.  We were at a playdate when he did it.  Just yesterday, he pretty much took two steps when he let go of my let and stepped to the pantry cabinet by the stove.  He is doing do well!

Can't believe it has been a year.  So glad that he is here.  I love kissing those cute little cheeks of his.  Matthew, Happy Birthday Happy Man. 

Thanks, Joe!

Joe Paterno died earlier today.  He was 85.  Unbelievable.  Never thought I would see this day, and yet here it is.  Thanks for all of the memories.  Penn State football will never be the same.

Happy Eleventh Month Birthday Matthew!

My sweet little boy is now eleven months old.  He has become very cuddly with me.  When I ask for a kiss, he leans in to me so I can kiss his cheek.  When I ask for a hug, he wraps his little arms around me and puts his head on my should for a great big hug.  How precious!  He has 3.5 teeth now--front two on the bottom and one front on the top and the other front one is about to come in.  He is crawling everywhere which makes my day a little more interesting.  He has found the steps by the front door and loves to climb them, giggling the whole way up.  He loves to eat meatballs, chicken, and turkey hotdogs.  Unfortunately he seems to have changed his mind about his fruits and vegetables.  Doing my best to read him some stories at night, but he is still too interested in nursing.  He loves to pull things out of the laundry basket.  Today all of Robert's clothes that I put in the basket were on the floor.  Yes, Matthew got to them.  Matthew and I went to Kindermusik this afteroon.  He is Mr. Social butterfly!  I love taking him because he loves the music and smiles the entire class.  What a happy kid.  Love you Matthew.  Thanks for bring so much joy to our lives!

Happy New Year 2012!

We spent a festive New Year's Eve again at the Rivers Club.  Dinner was great, and the kids had a wonderful time at the Carnival.  Robert was Mr. Athlete; he hit the basketball shots, made the baseball and frisbee throws, and he hit the bell with the hammer several times.  Annalese enjoyed dancing and playing golf.  Even Matthew liked the festivities.  He didn't get tired at all!  It was fun spending time with the family and Aunt Kacki.  It will be a very big year again for our family.  Matthew turns one, Mom turns forty.  Robert enters Kindergarten.  Plus there will be many more memories made.  Happy New Year!

New Year's Day was quiet for us.  Stayed home and had a low key day.  We did go to see the Hartwood lights.  The kids really enjoyed it, and it was a nice family activity.  Welcome 2012.