2 years = a world of difference

Two years for me has been a blur. Everything goes at lightning speed. Hours become days and days become weeks and weeks become months and next thing you know, your kids are graduating college. But everyday, Ryan and I reflect on how fast they are growing (not always intentionally...it's not like we have a specific time we sit down and say, "oh, let's see how much they have changed...but it does hit us). We both remember how tiny they were and how much they have grown...

This is Ronan, exactly two years ago from today:
And here's Riley, exactly two years ago:

We had just left San Diego -- to make our way back to Pittsburgh -- before we moved to Tampa. We were in Yuma, Arizona...in a hotel...and it would be two years later that the kids would look like this:

I took this picture this morning. I can't believe how much they have changed....And no, Ronan's thighs don't really have those creases anymore. I wish they did, though. Then, they'd probably look a lot more like mine.

Swiffer-Happy

I was in a cleaning mood yesterday. Yeah, I even cleaned the baseboards in the kitchen. Believe it. And because the cleaning mood is so contagious, Ronan joined in the spirit of cleansing by happily swiffering the kitchen. And guess what, he did a really good job. I didn't even have to go over any spots. Probably because he swiffered for about 40 minutes...but whatever. It entertained him and he was helpful. It's a win-win situation.

Now, if only he knew how to cut the grass...we'd be really good to go.

It's Public...

Were you shocked when you went to visit my blog and found that you didn't have to log in? Yeah, I decided to unlock it...for now. I have the ability to somewhat monitor, or see, where I'm getting visits from...so I opted to make it easier for some of my friends to keep up with what I'm doing. Don't get too excited, though. If I find that I'm being spied on again -- the bars will come back down. I'm harsh, huh?

Enjoy it while you have it!

Have any cars? Anyone?

My kids can never ever say they don't have toys. From the day Riley was born, she was spoiled with toys and stuff and more toys. Even now, we have to limit what we buy because our house is just filling up with stuff. Our budget no longer allows us to purchase anything that has the word "toy" in it...or anything that can be played with. But, apparently, those rules don't apply when it comes to my parents (or Pa and Grandma)...the last time we were in Pittsburgh, my dad bought Ronan HUNDREDS of matchbox cars. And I'm no exaggerating. We had a suitcase full of just matchbox cars. I hid it in the kitchen, until today...so Ronan went to town:

The sad thing, is that this wasn't even all of them. I had to put half of them away in his room because I couldn't handle it. There were so many. And he was whipping stuff off of all the shelves and before I knew it, the room was completely chaotic and overwhelming. Needless to say, I picked it all up before I went to pick Riley up from school....

I got me some bangs...

Okay, so I took the plunge the other day. Ryan had taken the day off, so on Friday, I decided to just go and do it. I got me some bangs. Nothing of hotness value, but man, I felt so much better afterwards. He cleaned up my layers and now, my hair looks like it has some sort of shape to it... I didn't get many pictures, but this is a self-portrait I took of Ryan and I:

And then here is another one that Ryan took of Ronan and I. I am wearing my dorky glasses, but I had to because my eyes were all red and itchy from allergies. I couldn't handle my contacts for another minute...

Biker Boy (and his sister!)

Shelley bought Ronan a cute Harley shirt a couple weeks ago. He sported it yesterday and I told her I'd take a picture of him wearing it. I didn't say he'd be awake, though...he was exhausted!

But then he got all silly on me and was playing in the kitchen with Riley. He found these sunglasses (which are for a Build-A-Bear -- from Joni) and being that he has a tiny head, they fit him...

And then he thought he'd finally be nice to his big sister (who he had been hitting all day and I mean ALL DAY) and hugged the poor girl right as I took this picture. When he wants to be nice, he can be so cute!

It's so nice when they get along...wish it was like this more often...

Disney...Again...I know!

Having the luxury of living so close to Disney, we decided last minute to go this past weekend. The weather was amazing and the best of all, we were able to stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge for a great deal. Since we've already been to the parks a bizillion times, we opted to enjoy the resort and were picky about which park we'd actually go to.

Ryan was able to get last minute reservations at Hollywood & Vine for a character breakfast on Saturday morning...so we went to Hollywood Studios. We saw the Indiana Jones show. I have never seen the movies (except for the last one), so I can't say it meant anything to me, but it was cool to watch. Both of the kids seemed to enjoy it...here is Riley at the end of the show, in front of the set:

This is Ronan at breakfast. He was overly excited for the characters -- Leo and June from Little Einsteins (his fave show) and Jojo and Goliath from Jojo's Circus.

Ronan didn't smile for the pictures -- mainly because he was to enamored by them and was trying to figure out exactly how many hugs he could fit in before they would leave the table. Riley was just more into them signing her book...but she hammed it up for the camera at the right time!

On a side note, we sorta starved the little dude this morning. Breakfast wasn't until 9:05 and normally, he's eaten 2 waffles at home by 7:30am. But, we held off as long as we could and by the time we got to breakfast, he was hungry! He ate almost 2 of the of Mickey waffles and then the characters started to come by and all was over by then....it was a good try, though!

B-I-N-G-O and flabbo are my arms-O

If you know any little bit of me, you know I have an extreme mental issue about my arms. I suffer from the disease called: ithinkmyarmsarefat. Now, I lift weights. In fact, I really enjoy it. I like the muscle growth I've seen in the past. I enjoy seeing the progress I make, as far as how much weight I can lift, and weight training is also a great way to burn calories.

No matter how much I lift, I can't seem to get my arms to look cut or ripped or even remotely toned. I know...diet...blah blah blah...cardio...blah blah blah...whatever. Okay, so after the lectures, let's get back to what's really important. My arms.

This story I'm about to tell you, is what has made me even more neurotic about my arms and increased the fear that I'm going to die with bingo arms:

I hosted a mommy lunch at my house a few months back and after the lunch had ended, a couple of us stayed and chatted about diet and exercise and other random things. I opened up more about my concerns and stated that I had flabby arms, to which another mom said I didn't. To prove her wrong, I held out my arm and shook it lightly and showed her the waves it made as I moved. The other mom said, "oh yeah they are, how did they get that way?" I told her "probably from poor diet and lack of exercise, I don't know..." but what I really wanted to say was, well, I probably shouldn't write what I WANTED to say.

I about died. Now, I wasn't asking for her to say, "oh Maria, they look great!" or "Maria, everyone's arms shake a little..." No, the girl confirmed my biggest fear and no joke, I looked into liposuction that afternoon. Don't worry, I'm not doing it, but don't think that I wasn't considering it!

I feel them shake when I fold towels. I see them flab around when I hold my arms out for hugs. It's such a huge insecurity I have, that I notice them all the time. When I'm at the gym, lifting, I stare at the little dimples on my arms that are magnified by the lighting and wall-to-wall mirrors.

But this is what they look like when I flex. I'm no body builder, but I don't think they look too bad. I just want to know why they can't look like I have even the tiniest bit of muscle tone when I'm not flexing. It's so annoying.

So yeah, I love lifting weights and thanks to the oh-so-honest mommy from that lunch, I'll continue to lift weights until I can't do it anymore. I guess I should thank her for her honesty, but man, I can't say it didn't hurt just a little....

I need a haircut...I really need a haircut...

It's been since July. Of 2008. Yeah, you read that correctly. It has been 8 months since I've had a haircut or trim or anything stylish done to this frock I call my hair. I don't know why I haven't gone. Let's see, Ryan and Ronan go about once a month, at about $12-15 each. Riley hasn't gone since before Kindergarten, but that's because she doesn't want to and she wants her hair to be LOOOONNNNNGGGG.

I feel guilty spending the money on it. What would it cost me? Uh, about $35-45 with a decent stylist, right? And I know I wouldn't go every 6 or 8 weeks...but I still cringe when I think about the money I would be spending on dead keratin.

Does it stop me from complaining about it every few days? Absolutely not. I talk about it everytime I find a new gray hair or if I can't get my hair to part in the right place. I think I want bangs. I don't know. If I would just make a stinkin' appointment, I could get it all over with. But, I'm stubborn and I probably won't.

EXCEPT, for the fact that I'm in Rochelle's wedding and I'd like to mask my scary forehead. I'm going to have to take the plunge in the next week or so...just in case I don't like what they do. I should just start wearing wigs.

CKITW: Cutest Kids in the World

Every mother thinks their kid is the cutest, I know. Heck, I think my friends have the most adorable children born on this planet...but there are just some days that I look at them and think "man, I must be the luckiest mom in the world." Yesterday, was one of those days.

Riley eats a popsicle almost everyday when she gets home from school. They are sugar-free, okay? (Haha.) Anyway, Ronan decided that yesterday was going to be the day he was going to give it a shot and take a lick. He did. At first, it may have seemed as though he liked it, but he quickly turned his nose and decided it wasn't for him...oh well, it was worth a shot!

Ronan is a hambone. He will now say "cheesh" when I point the camera at him and tell him to smile. He's so much like his sister, in that regard. Listen, my kids are part-Asian. They are used to the camera and having a ton of pictures taken!

Seriously, how cute are they? I can't believe that they are mine. I'm so lucky. Even with the whining, the crying, the tantrums and the demands, they rule my world in the most amazing way. Thank you, Ryan, for being the baby-daddy and giving me the most PRESH kids in this world. Okay, enough emotions for the day.

Shuttle Take-Off

We had the amazing opportunity the other night to see the space shuttle take off from our front yard! We saw them counting down on the news and Ryan wondered whether or not we'd be able to see it...and sure enough, there it was. By the time I had even considered bringing out my camera, it was just the leftover smoke...but it was still pretty cool, nonetheless.

If you look closely in the the second picture, here, you can see a tiny white speck in the top left quadrant of the photo. That is the shuttle. How freaking insane is that?

Anyway, you don't get to see those too often and especially not from your front yard. I'm looking forward to hearing the sonic boom the shuttle makes when it comes back into Earth's atmosphere. Ahhh, the little things in life, right?

My Little Monkey

Who would have thought that we would be this excited about a kid eating a banana?

Love him so much....

Progress, baby, progress...

I hope you are sitting down for this.  You probably are, since you're at your computer and how many people stand while they are on the computer...unless it's on a higher table...anyway...

Ronan has been going to therapy for his feeding issues for about 3 weeks.  Miss Janet is his therapist and seeing what Ronan has accomplished this past week, well, I would have to say she's pretty awesome.  

Ronan has a hypersensitivity to texture.  That, along with his allergies, basically makes eating and meal times a nightmare for us.  Our visits to Miss Janet are designed to just get him used to different textures and perhaps, put those different textures into his mouth.  He's been "playing" with applesauce a lot and though I can't ever see him eating it, we re-introduced the banana at the session and believe it or not, he actually ate it this weekend.  I about died.

I eat at least 2 bananas a day.  It's the only fruit I like.  Well, it's the only fruit that I will eat without something sweet on it.  I offer it to him every single time and every time, he says no. Then came Sunday morning and when I offered it to him, he said, "yes."  I thought he was messing with my mind, so I said "no" and he yelled back "yes" and well, I offered him the banana.  The boy took a bite!

He had this nauseous look on his face, so I was scared he would freak out, but he didn't.  He went back for more.  He ate almost half a banana and with each bite, came a cheer and some high-fives.  

The next day, he had another half of a banana.  You would have thought he graduated college...I was so excited.  Because it's not just the banana.  It's starting to filter into other things too.  He licked a Flintstone vitamin.  He took a bite of a gummy candy.  He licked a popsicle.  It's just all these things I didn't think he'd ever do.  It's been a slow and long road and I'm sure I'll have lots of obstacles in the way -- but this, my friends, is progress.  

(Who knows, someday, he could be some famous chef or something...wouldn't that be funny?!)

Wanted: Cleaning Lady, for free.

If it isn't laundry, it's cookie crumbs. If it's not that, it's the looming fear of what lurks in Riley's room. If it's not that, it's the toy explosion in the livingroom, or the playdoh bits all over the kitchen floor, or the dishes in the sink, or the goldfish crumbs underneath the ottoman...it's never-ending.

It's exhausting. I am constantly doing something, as far as the housework goes. And even after I feel like I've accomplished something, I turn around and a bucket of cars has just been dumped in the middle of the livingroom...or Riley's started painting ON her art table and not on paper...or Ronan decides to do the RiverDance on his waffle cookies.

I have dreamed of a cleaning lady. Like the one that comes everyday, in the morning and cleans your entire house by lunchtime -- while you sit in your livingroom, on your laptop, watching the Today Show, munching on crumpets and sipping tea. Then, I get a slap on the face by my two-year-old who wants me to play Thomas and I am back to reality...that I am, in fact, the cleaning lady.

I clean every morning. I vacuum, I clean the kitchen, I do laundry, I pick up toys...but by the time Ryan comes home, it looks as though I have done nothing. Wonder what he thinks I really do all day long...Facebooking, right? Occasionally, I have something to show for my time. Yesterday, I had Riley's room spotless. So, when Ryan was home, I sent him to her room to praise my progress. And then this morning, I woke up to see that Riley's art table (that I had spent 25 minutes scraping paint off of...) was marked with paint and covered with dried brushes and papers stuck to the table. How depressing. (But she's 6, what can I do? Tell her to not paint?)

So here I am, back to square one again, wishing I had a cleaning lady; someone who would do it for free because we all know that in this economy, stay-at-home moms make no money. (Boy, do I wish I was an AIG executive with that nice bonus...but, I digress). Anyone want to work for free? Didn't think so..

Harrisburg and Tampa Egal's Family Reunion: Disney (Where else would it be?)

Yes, we go to Disney all the time. I mean, why shouldn't we? We have annual/season passes and we live less than one hour away. I think it makes up for the first 30 years of my life in which I have never experienced the World I call Disney. Haha.

So, last year, after a huge family vacation debacle, my sister-in-law, Courtney, and I decided to plan our very own amazing vacation. With some phone calls here and there, we opted to do the Disney vacation with our families. We planned and planned and planned. I set-up dining reservations and the week finally came...February 13th-22nd, 2009.

The Harrisburg Egal's arrived at Orlando's International Airport, after several delays, and we met them at the Wyndham Bonnet Creek. Courtney's grandparents have a timeshare and they graciously gave it to them and allowed us to stay with them for the week. The first night there, I made us reservations at the T-Rex Cafe at Downtown Disney. It's basically like the Rainforest Cafe (in fact, they are owned by the same company, I believe), and although overpriced -- it was a cool atmosphere and pretty awesome for your dino-lover. This is a picture of Maggie, Ronan, Conner and Riley outside of the restaurant.

Afterwards, we walked around Downtown Disney and did some light shopping. FYI, I bought nothing. I was a good girl.

The next day, we went to Magic Kingdom. Poor Conner wasn't feeling so great, so we didn't get to ride too many rides, but they did get to walk around for a bit. That night, we had dinner reservations at one of my favorite restaurants, 'Ohana. The food is amazing and if you starve yourself all day, you can really stuff it in at night. I saved myself for the shrimp and the bread pudding. Love that stuff. I think I gained about 3 pounds that night, but it was worth it.

On Sunday, it was breakfast at Chef Mickey's. I really enjoyed it and I think the rest of the family did too. You get to be right up close and personal with the characters, as they all stop at your table, sign autographs and you can take pictures with them. Unfortunately, this was also the start of Riley's 5-day fever/illness. The girl was sick all week...with a fever ranging from 102-104.6. It was awful. It even got to the point where we drove all the way back to Tampa so she could go to her pediatrician...who chalked it up as a virus. Poor thing had a sore throat all week and was not up for doing anything. She moped around a lot, you couldn't blame her...but in the midst of it all, she still could smile for her momma...
This is Ryan and Jason at Chef Mickey's.

Here are the kids with Chef Mickey, himself. I was probably more excited than all of them. I couldn't stop flashing my camera...I just love Disney...

Ever since their birth, Riley and Conner have always had this connection. Conner is 2 months older than Riley, even though he looks like he's 2 years older than her! He's really tall. Anyway, no matter how far away we are, they have remained close...and I just love it...

Oh and here's a picture of the kids with Buzz.

Now, the surprise of the week for me, was how close Maggie and Ronan became. The last time they saw each other, Ronan was still an infant, stuck in a carseat. He might have just started walking at the time, but they definitely did not interact at all. In fact, I think Maggie would get extremely jealous if Courtney held him...but not this time around...

These two played so well. Ronan would follow Maggie around and Maggie would make sure he was included in everything they did. Ronan imitated everything she did and you could see how close they were becoming each and everytime they played together...

After they left our house for the airport, Ronan asked for Maggie (it was so sad...). Hopefully we'll be able to see them sooner than later!

All in all, the trip was good -- considering the illnesses. We love spending time with them...we miss them so much. And maybe someday, we'll live near each other -- as long as it's in a place that doesn't snow!

Love you, Harrisburg Egal's. Miss you lots!

What Facebook Means to Me, An Essay...

I'm kidding, I'm not writing an essay, although I probably could...with as much time as I spend on it.

It started a while back after the MySpace phase. I couldn't handle how MySpace was, so I turned to Facebook and unfortunately, I've been hooked ever since. Ryan calls it an addiction. I call it, well, a neb-noses version of a porn site. I check it all the time. I look for new people to "friend" - which isn't a noun anymore, it's a VERB. If you don't know what that means, it basically is the process of finding someone you know and asking their permission to accept you as their friend, so that you can look through their pictures, read what their friends post on their wall and see what their status is everyday or everytime they choose to change it.

I really enjoy it. I have caught up with many people this way and although I probably won't hang out with them on a regular basis, it is nice to be able to see how they have been doing and how many babies they have.

There is a downside. Even with all the privacy settings I have in place, I can't control what others post or what photos they share with their friends. I have blocked my in-laws. I have blocked several people that are associated with my in-laws...but that still didn't stop them from spying on me and my family.

Last month, I went to Disney (post to follow with pictures) with my brother-in-law and his family (the only in-laws we talk to). We met up with Ryan's cousin (who happens to have a Facebook account and how we reconnected was via ME and Facebook). She posted a picture of my kids and her kids and coincidentally, an in-law friended her that same week we were in Disney and tah-dah, they saw pictures of my kids.

Now, originally, I was freaking out. I felt like I was violated. For real. I contemplated deleting my Facebook account altogether. I was furious that they would be so shady in suddenly friending someone I was friends with and although I can't say that it was the only reason...it seemed like they had ulterior motives on their end. Ultimately, I chose to keep my account because I have good connections there. I can't let them control all these aspects of my life. I had to get over the fact that they had access to pictures of my kids. I guess I just have to suck it up and think that they are missing out on the cutest kids in the world...and they don't and won't ever have the chance to know them.

The whole internet thing can be so scary sometimes. This blog was once NOT PRIVATE and because of them, I had to change it. You just never know who can access what, even if they are labeled as family.

Anyway, even though I love FBing (Facebook-ing), I'm starting to get tired of it. What do I really care what everyone is doing at every hour of the day? I don't think I really do...but it's fun...and it takes me out of the reality I live everyday (even if it's only for 5-minute stints here and there!)

Pittsburgh, Part 3

While I kept Riley out of school for a few days, I had to make up for it (or make myself feel better) by taking both of the kids to the Pittsburgh Children's Museum. It has changed so much from when I was younger, but for the better! It still has the Mr. Roger's Neighborhood room -- and although neither child has any idea who the guy is, I was amused by it and enjoyed watching them run around the room for 40 minutes. We went with my cousin, Alin...

Riley and Alin next to the famous sneakers. (Riley had to ask me what sneakers were. When she realized it meant "tennis shoes" she asked, "why didn't he just call them tennis shoes?") Ahhh, smart. The third floor of this building houses a "Water Play" area. They have two big pool type basins where the kids can push sailboats, splash water and watch how certain objects respond to whirlpools. It also has a large area of water that comes up from the ground and the kids have the chance to build a "plumbing" system, watching how the water moves through tubes. Ronan absolutely loved it. He was so willing to put on the raincoat and water shoes. He tried out every single task that was offered. Riley, on the otherhand, started to freak out because she was getting wet. Funny, though...we were in an entire room of water. It took her 40 minutes of standing around before she finally got into the activities...

If you ever have the chance to go, it's a lot of fun. It's something I'd take the kids back to if we had the time. They were so entertained and the best part, is that for the 5 hours we were there, we still didn't get to see EVERYTHING.

And that is how Ronan felt when we had to leave. He literally freaked out as we walked out the door of the museum. He screamed over and over, "I don't wanna go. I don't wanna go, Momma." It was so sad and even though we could have gone back for a little while longer, I was hungry and let's face it, he's not the boss.

The next day, we went shopping for Riley's shoes for the wedding and after 5 tiresome hours, we finally found them at Payless. That night, we had dinner with the parentals and Uncle Mike and the kids and I hung out at Rochelle & Steve's for a couple hours. The kids truly had a blast there. Let's just say that when we left, Ronan spent the 20 minutes in the car screaming for Steve. Not the way you want to end the night, but I was happy they love them so much....I don't have pictures from that night, but I know Steve does, so I'll have to get them from him...

Pittsburgh (Part 2)

Alrighty, so the MAIN reason we went was for Rochelle's bridal shower. Riley was SO excited about it. Not only did it give her a reason to dress up, but she was going to get to see Rochelle! Riley's looking forward to being a flower girl and you could totally see it that morning at the Country Club. Aren't they so cute?!
And the one below is of the entire bridal party...

That same night, we planned her bachelorette party. It had been such a long time since I had gone out "clubbing" that I had no idea what to wear -- as you can see by my dated outfit. I might as well have been wearing pegged jeans and a sweater vest. I'm getting old.

Rochelle was so funny that night...the girl can dance! She spotted this man (happily sporting a 10-90, aka a MULLET) and scooted her way over there so I could take a picture. The guy had no idea he was in it.

By the end of the night, our group had dwindled down from 28 to 6. We had danced and danced and danced and no joke, at 1 am, we all literally stood in a circle, swaying from side-to-side in a complete trance. Rochelle decided that the night was over and so we went outside to wait for rides and get fresh air.

Now, when your shoes hurt at the beginning of the night and you still wear them...you know it isn't going to end pretty. A lot of us suffered through it but forgot our feet hurt when we danced. I can't say we didn't suffer, though, when Rachael (Rochelle's sister), graced us with her little sausages at 1:30 a.m. Something just isn't right about these feet. And yes, she wore pleather leggings out in public. (Rachael, I liked the outfit.)

Trip to Pittsburgh (Part 1)

Last week, we threw my Little (Sister -->Sorority), Rochelle, a bridal shower and bachelorette party. Being that it was in Pittsburgh, I only had two choices. One, drive 15 hours with two kids and pray that I make it there without having to stop every 2 hours to change a movie OR two, fly with two kids and pray that they wouldn't drive me and every other passenger insane. I chose number two. I was really excited about going to Pittsburgh to see my Little, so I was blinded by the fact that I had agreed to get onto a moving object, high in the air, with two demanding little people.

The night before the trip, I started freaking out. I was anxious and stressing hardcore about what I committed to do. I looked at Ryan several times, wondering if I should take either or both children. When we arrived at Tampa's airport, there was no turning back. We were going...

Lucky for us, the Southwest people happened to be really nice that day. The lady behind the check-in counter was friendly and actually offered to give Ryan a pass to come to the gate with us. What a saving grace that was! I wasn't stressed going through security. I was happy to wait for the plane...and then it was time to leave. I started to sweat (mostly because I was dressed for Pittsburgh weather and not Tampa weather) but as we stood in line to board, I truly questioned whether or not I had made the right decision.

We boarded and the kids were ecstatic. Row 18. That was the lucky row. We had it all to ourselves. Ronan was in window, I was in the middle (oh, lucky me!) and Riley had the aisle. It was great. We sat, listened to the flight attendants do their thing and off we went. This leg of the flight was great. Ronan was so happy.



I downloaded some Disney shows onto my iPod and put on some cheap headphones. The boy was happy. There were 6 shows on there, 23 minutes each. He didn't make it through one of them. He would make me change it to something else. I was sure that if could manage to watch every show in its entirety, we'd make it to Pittsburgh in absolute peace. Nope.

Ronan: "I don't wanna watch Doh-wah." (Dora)
Me: "Okay, Ronan, what do you want to watch?"
Ronan: "I wanna watch Doh-wah."
Me: "Okay, buddy, you ARE watching Dora."
Ronan: "I don't wanna watch Doh-wah. Ein-tine." (Einsteins) -- Volume is much louder.
Me: "Okay, Ronan, I'll change it to Einsteins."

And so I did. And after literally, two minutes, he wanted Dora or back to Einsteins. It was really annoying and it got to the point where I started to feel nauseous. He was tired and that's when I decided to hold him tight and try to get him to sleep. With about an hour left of the flight, little dude was peacefully asleep in my lap...ahhhh, quiet.

But wait, I have another child...Miss Riley!

What an absolute angel. She is completely capable of keeping herself entertained and happy -- as long as she has something to do and a snack to match. She gleefully played with her Nintendo DS and when she was over that, she colored...for over an hour. The flight attendants stopped every so often and checked on the status of her work...but it was awesome. I think that if my kids were like that on every trip, I'd fly everywhere....

This is my brother, Mike. He lives in Pittsburgh with his girlfriend and the last time we had the chance to see them, Ronan was only 5 months old. The night we arrived, Mike and Jess came to see us at my parents house and the kids LOVED him. They were all over him. It was really nice to see them hanging out and playing with him -- we're looking forward to seeing them when they move to Florida!

Our first night was great...the kids were spoiled, they hung out with family/friends and we made it to Pittsburgh in one piece...if only the flight home were just as easy (haha...more Pittsburgh trip reports to come...)