My Hubby Started A New Job

David has a new job and it only happens once a week on Sunday mornings.  He works for 9, 9 year old children and the topic of his new job is all about God.  This job does not pay any monetary amount but I think it will pay back in many different ways.  David has taken on the 4th grade Sunday school class.  This past Sunday was has first class and I think he really enjoyed it.  This class will probably not do much in the way of crafts and art but they will learn more than they are expecting to.  The first homework assignment for these young people was to go home and think........"what do you want to get out of this class"? I will be anxiously awaiting the responses that come in from this assignment.

I am so proud of my husband for his drive to be active in his community, provide for his family and keep faith at the forefront of his endeavors.  He is an excellent role model and teacher to his 6 children and he is very good to me. 

On Sundays we all sit together for mass and depending on the topic he will nudge or whisper to the boys or Mairin and point out something of importance that they might have  missed.  He refuses to let any excuse take the place of attending mass.  He often asks the kids to repeat the order of importance and it makes me smile every time.  God..Family..Country.   Nighttime is where they all learned their prayers in both English and Spanish.  He is truly raising another generation of faith. 

Labor Day Success-Things I forgot

I forgot to talk about the success we all had in Stanton on Labor Day Weekend in waterskiing and kneeboarding.  We asked Eamon and Liam if they were interested in learning how to kneeboard and they both jumped at the idea.  We got out the ropes, Heidi drove the boat and I did the in water teaching.  It took about 3 tries each and they were off and running.  They loved it and wanted to keep going around and around the lake.

 On the last day of the weekend our neighbor had some extra gas he wanted to use up and said he was willing to get them up on waterskies.  He had the child size skies and the boys were interested.  My dad and I were the in water teachers and after some shallow starts they each figured it out and off they went.  They each went around the lake twice and the longer they went the more comfortable they grew on the skies.

 Miss Mairin watched all of this activity and decided she was going to kneeboard.  Please note that Mairin will NOT go tubing so I was shocked and excited that she wanted to try.  She rode around the lake on the kneeboard and did great.  I think it wiped her out as she said her hands were sore for the next day. 

I was also able to get Aunt Dorie give the trips haircuts while we were there.  How nice to cut hair outside and save us a trip to the barber shop.  These weekends up north can be so productive.

The weekend would not be complete without a trip out to the pond for some serious fishing.  David, grandpa and the boys headed out and said it was a great success and came home with enough for several dinners.  We took a bunch back with us to have later on this winter.  The boys were baiting their own hooks and taking the fish off too.  I can't figure out who enjoys it more...the boys, David or Grandpa.

Not Very Original...The Cider Mill..lol

Can you guess where we are?  Doesn't every mom with kids hit a cider mill enough to never want to go to another one again by the time the kids are 5 years old?  I grabbed Aunt Myrna and told her we were trying a new one out.  We headed out to 3 Cedars Cider Mill in Northville (it is far far away and I still dont believe that it is really in Northville).  The best best part of this entire place is that it has a screened in porch to eat your cider and donuts...NO BEES.  It really is a cute place and the kids got a hay ride, played in the corn box, rode little tractors and got a treat from Aunt Myrna.  The best for me was the wonderful adult company in having Myrna with us. 

We don't get many pictures with Aunt Myrna but this one was a keeper.  She is truly an amazing person and so generous to me and my kids......She leaves me speechless.  Glad you could go with us Aunt Myrna.

The Mott's Like Bikes

Today was the Tour De Troit.  How fun.  We went downtown and spent all morning riding around downtown Detroit on bikes.  The kids stayed home with cousin Maddie but David and I had a ball.  It was a 22.5 mile jaunt and the cops had most streets blocked off so we didn't have to stop.  We started in front of the old train station at Roosevelt Park and went all over.  It was cool to look at everything while we tooled along.  For all of my friends who are afraid of Detroit, this is a great ride with lots of people and we all felt very safe and secure during the entire ride.

David thought this event was a race so the entire ride he was shifting thru the maze of bikes attempting to improve his place.  I rode with him for awhile and it was nice having him as a tour guide pointing out what the buildings were and what they were back in the day.  My favorite question was.."Are we in a rough area right now?"  We really got the blood pumping when we spread out around Belle Isle.  After the ride they had all kinds of vendors serving good beers and good food from local restaurants.  It was a little overwhelming to see over 4,000 bikers needing to eat at the same time but eventually we made it thru the lines.  It was a little after 2 when we were all tired, full and ready to head out.  In the picture is my niece Coco and her fiance Chris my brother in law and sister in law..Billy and Nadine (did I ever tell everyone how cool and charismatic Billy is? He is just great.) and my sister in law..Kathleen. 

The best is when you come home and you see your kids trying to be just like you.  They all had their bikes out ready to ride the driveway.  Too cute.

Never Forget A Tradition

As a kid I remember my mom doing many things that I thought were very common and normal.  My mom would can tomatoes and  make jelly and jam and can them.  She would come home with loads of apples to make applesauce and freeze.  She would make large kettles of homemade chicken noodle and beef barley soup and sell it at the restaurant that we owned.  My mom always made sugar cookies to decorate at the holidays and she would make the frosting herself too.  (she still makes them for the holidays and brings them down to me for me to decorate with the kids)  She would also make every type of pie: raspberry, blueberry, peach, strawberry and pecan pies.  My mom did not buy a lot of baked goods but rather she enjoyed making them herself.  She did all of this because her mother did.  Mom never needs a recipe for most of these items and if she did she would just call her mom and ask.

I left Stanton in 1992 after graduating from high school and went to college.  I then moved to metropolitan Detroit where I have been ever since (other than a year stint in Mexico in 2004).  People in different areas have different traditions.  I am insisting that I bring some Stanton to the city by learning how to make all of the things that mom did and practicing while I can ask questions.

I recently spent the day with my dear aunt, Myrna (mom's sister) canning tomatoes.  The beauty of the city is that we were able to take a trip down to the Eastern Market to get all of our spices...and to get several bushels of tomatoes.   Myrna lives close so when mom is not available I am to learn and practice with her.  We set up her kitchen for a day of cutting, chopping, boiling and sealing.  It was so much fun.  Myrna is a retired teacher so she is so good at being patient, detailed and letting me do every step so I will know for next time.  We ended up getting 25 quarts of tomato sauce and we seasoned half with Italian spices and half with Mexican.  I am ready for a full winter of chili, spaghetti, lasagna and whatever else I can put tomato sauce in.  A huge thank you to Aunt Myrna for all of the help and a thank you to my mom for a memory that makes me want to continue it.

10 Years Ago Today

It was just 10 years ago today when I had a doctors appointment that I went to on my own and found out some exciting news.  I called David and told him to come home from work a little early because I had something to tell him. He came home, walked in the door (a bit agitated) and said, "what?"  I told him that I was preggo. We both were a little shocked and of course it really doesn't sink in at first because your life goes on as it did the day before.  It becomes a waiting and day dreaming life..waiting and waiting for your life to change. 
 I often think back to the days of just David and me and how "la tee da" we were.  We would sleep in late and have all sorts of time to do whatever.  I remember the days of a clean house, laundry always caught up and a schedule that would move and groove with us.  Every Sunday after church we would grab a paper and head out to breakfast.  We would read our sections and enjoy each others company but there was never much conversation as we were both digging into our reads.  We had so much time on our hands that we were known to drop in on the in laws just to be a part of their chaos.  I loved showing up at Tom and Pam's and just sitting at the kitchen table while everything was happening around me.  They have 4 kids and the kids were 6 to 12 years old at the time.  Pam was always cooking a fabulous dinner and the house was just rattling with busy kids.  There were always papers on the table, folders full of schedules that Pam had to remember.  Tom was usually in the family room enjoying a minute of down time.  Little did I know that roles would soon flip and Tom and Pam would be coming over to my chaos 10 years later.

10 years ago today we only knew that we were preggo....the twin news was to come.

It was about 2 weeks later when I returned to the doctor and because of my "whatever" levels were  multiplying so fast they sent me for an ultrasound.  I went right over to the hospital, had my first of ultrasound (1st of many I might add,  I have had more ultrasounds than most will ever dream of having.  I even had ultrasounds while we lived in Mexico)   and found out that I was preggo with not 1 but twins.  I called David again at work and I didn't realize that he had someone in his office so I just started talking.  He knew I had a doctor's appointment but didn't know I went over for an ultrasound.  I told him we were having twins and he said, "What?  your kidding? No way".  In the background this man in his office is listening to his comments and he told David after he got off the phone that his first thought was that we were being attacked again since 9/11 had just happened 2 weeks earlier.  Well thank goodness we were not being attacked again but instead we were bringing a set of twins into the world.

This past week with all of the 9/11 memorials we have taken some time to look back and think about all that has happened in the past 10 years in our lives.  Our blessings are truly over flowing.  A set of twins born at 38 weeks (no labor and no contractions)....a single daughter born at 39 weeks (no labor and no contractions) and triplets born at 36 weeks..6 days (no restrictions, no labor and no contractions).  I am a mother of 6 beautiful children and I have no idea what a contraction even feels like.  Labor pains???? I have no idea what those are....

We have done a lot in the past 10 years and in 10 more years we will have twins entering college. Now that is a reality check.

Schedule Changing

I am on a mission.  The house has taken last place all summer while we have all played.  Today I began the mission.  I painted the family room (same color just wanted a fresh coat since the walls were so scuffed up).  I took my magic eraser around the house and wiped and scrubbed the icky walls and tried to rid my handles of grime and prints.  I have so far to go but I have begun and I am ready to continue.
The beginning of school for us....means many changes.  We are back into a routine that I insist on following.  A new school year brings home cooked meals (most nights), healthy lunches packed with love, evenings that fly by because of activities and a little more love to the little ones since they have me to themselves.  It also begins a regular laundry schedule and weekends that seem to be catch up from the whirlwind weeks.  I think there are battles to either summer or school schedules.  Summer is busy but relaxed.  The kids help me out more but we also are on the go more often and outside enjoying the weather. We all wake up a bit later and most mornings are very slow without any real schedule.  We can do whatever we want...take off for a couple days.  I find that we do alot of sack lunches and pizza over the summer.  I do not cook nearly as much as I should over the hot months.  It is a bit refreshing getting the crew back into action because I feel like I can get our house to run like a machine.  The kids all know what they are doing and when and so do I.  Today the older 3 were off on the bus at 8:10am  and the trips and I hit Jungle Java for some climbing fun and then headed to the cider mill.  Tonight I made dinner and it was good to get back into the groove of cooking.  I was downstairs this morning at 7am with the Today Show on, coffee brewing, making lunches and getting my roast into the crock pot.  I was in the mood for some beef barley soup. 

The kids have had a couple of good days at school.  Liam seems very happy with his class, Eamon is just full of smiles in hopes of pleasing Mrs. Ladd and Mairin is all about doing whatever the teacher wants.  Although I am still getting used to the schedule ...it is still a nice change.

Labor Day Weekend 2011

Woo Hoo...Today is the 1st day of school and all went well.   We went up north to the parents for the weekend and arrived home last night just in time for showers, some reading and bedtime.  It was a crazy weekend as well.  I think we must have done everything that Stanton had to offer.  Eamon and Liam both learned to waterski and knee board and little miss Mairin took her turn on the knee board as well.   The trips spent a ton of time in the lake jumping off the raft.  The triplets ate well at the lake picnic and even got to skip a nap on Saturday.  Some fishing with grandpa ended a great weekend.  I think I spent $20.00 the entire weekend.  Thanks Mom and Dad for always always treating so well while we are there.

The boys that my dad never had.  He is so good to them.