Miss Mallory has pierced ears!

We did it - we pierced Mallory's ears on July 9th when she was 12 months and 2 weeks old, for those wondering that is only 2 weeks before we pierced Maggie's.

Some may say it is mean but I think she is quite cute in them and she hasn't bothered her newly pierced ears at all! 

Thank you to Aunt Haley and Natalie for coming along on our trip, you not only were an awesome photographer but great company.  And we cannot forget Cale and Maggie - they came along for sibling support as momma put Mallory through just a few minutes of little pain. 

And yes daddy approved the piercing! 

Waiting to get started



No sure why I am sitting here but okay!



Cale adding his support

The gal had the gun stuck for a minute or so we thought!



And ear #2 must be done

 

She really only looked sad for a minute


 

and no I did not enjoy causing her the pain but she sure is cute!

All calm after some milk and TLC

Mallory you did a great job getting your ears pierced! 

I must say you were cute before but you are even cuter now. 

I know you won't remember the slight pinch of the piercing and I hope you like them!

A birthday letter for Cale and Mallory....

Cale and Mallory, as you turned one I asked some of our family members if they would like to write you a letter remembering your 1st birthday.  Here is one of your letters that I have thus far:

Happy 1^st Birthday Mallory and Cale!

It’s so hard to believe that you are already a year old.  Watching you grow into amazing little people has been so rewarding for me as a grandparent.  When I first heard that your mommy and daddy were having another set of twins, I really did not know what to think.  But the four of you really know how to make it easy to raise 2 sets of twins!  You all have your own personalities too …. Caden is the gatherer and protector; Maggie is the leader of the pack and very independent; Mallory loves to be held and always reaches out to you when entering the room; and Cale is so lovable and has a smile and giggle that melts your heart.

From the time you were born, your big brother and big sister have embraced you with nothing but love.  They always want to hold you, kiss you, and tell you how much they missed you while in daycare; and the two of you just light up when you see them.  Of course, now that you are mobile, you are starting to get into their toys and that does not always go over so well.  But all in all, the four of you get along very well.

You have both had a very busy 1^st year.  Some of our time together has included several outings to Red’s games, spent a week together on a family vacation in Florida,  spent lots of Sunday’s watching Steeler football games with Memaw (while mommy and daddy were at Bengals games!!!), and have had a few sleepover’s too.

I love spending time with all of you, and cherish every moment of our time together.  You bring so much joy, love, and laughter into my life.  My friends always ask how I can possibly keep all four of you at the same time.  I tell them that watching twins is really easier than just one, as you can all entertain each other.  It’s only hard when you are by yourself, or one of you (or more) is sick and needs more attention than the rest.  Plus, I get a lot of help from Papa Frank and Big Papa!!!

The most wonderful part about being a grandparent is that everything stops when the grandkids come over, and the rest of the time is all about spending time with them.  It’s also a great feeling to see your son become the father that he has become.  Matt, I could not be more proud of you!  You and Trina are amazing parents, and if anyone can handle raising 2 sets of twins, it’s the two of you.

Mallory and Cale, I’m looking forward to creating many more special memories with you in the upcoming years!

Love,

Memaw Jo

I hope that one day when you read this you realize just how much you both mean to all of us!

It was simply a family, friend, fun weekend...

This will go down as one of my most favorite weekends from this summer a few simple reasons, it involved joyous celebrations, family time and time with great friends, memories with my babies and was topped off with a birthday celebration - that was long overdue.  

I was lucky enough to start off the weekend with a date with the hubby, it was on the golf course so that was a bonus.  I did not play golf well but that did not matter to me, it was time to be with my husband, have conversation that did not involve asking each other to help out with the children in any way, and it was a time that we both used to celebrate a big change in my career.  A huge thank you to Memaw Donna for hanging with the children while we had our date on the golf course! 

I am so very excited about a promotion which I received last week but had not yet had the time to sit down and truly process the feelings or thoughts.  I am so very honored that my boss has given me the chance to do this job and to work with an amazing team of people who work hard and support each other.  I know there is a lot of hard work ahead of myself and this team but I know we can do it!

Saturday was a chance for one on one time with Mallory and Caden, well okay two on one but close enough.  We ran a few errands and just had a fun time chatting, I cannot believe the little man Caden is becoming and the very proud big brother that he is around Mallory and Cale.  Our outing gave Cale and Maggie a chance to spend some time with daddy which again is a wonderful thing - time with our children.
We topped off Saturday by ANOTHER date night to attend the joyous reception celebration of the marriage of Ken and Lisa Marshall, some wonderful friends who were married earlier in the summer.  Their reception was casual and a ton of fun.  Lots of catching up with friends who we have not seen often enough this summer.  

Congratulations to the Marshall Family and thank you for a reason to get us all together!

No worries the children were off having their own fun with grandparents.   Caden of course went racing with Papaw Casey and Uncle Adam  - he got to walk on the track to see the cars which made his night.  The other three were catching up with Memaw Jo as she returned from her wonderful vacation!



And finally, Sunday, one of the hottest Reds games of the year but we went and we all had a good time and owe Memaw Jo and Papaw Frank a huge thank you for not only watching kids overnight but for hanging through the very hot game with us.  We had fun but man was it HOT.  But getting to see Aunt Debbie, Uncle Jimmy and Jacob was an added bonus to the outing.

We topped off Sunday with a long overdue birthday celebration for Memaw Jo!  Her birthday was way back on July 3rd but we had not had the chance to celebrate all of us together. 

Memaw Jo - we love you very much and you deserved a very happy birthday celebration. 

You are an amazing grandma, mom and mother in law.  I could not have asked for a better mother in law!  Most people are not lucky enough to get that package of a person in their life so I thank you, for not only your support of Matt and I at anytime but for being there for your grand kids.  Oh and they do enjoy their time with Memaw Jo!

Your support allows us to do what we do and to take these children to places we would never dream we could on our own.  So THANK YOU!  Thank you for everything, for always being there, almost always never saying no and for your continue love and support.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

To the Silver Shark - welcome home - I know your wife has missed you, I am sure you were shocked by her growing belly once again.  And know that each morning your biggest fan was watching you on the computer and no matter what says you win!  We are blessed that Scott and Megan could join our birthday celebration and that they are our good friends.

The evening was topped off with some backyard family fun - Haley, Adam, Natalie and Big Papaw - we cannot forget that you were there in the fun - and thank you for the help - now can someone come get the Frisbee off the roof so we can play again?    I love family nights and am so excited that we could all be together having fun.

Most people will tell me I am nuts that a weekend so full with so many things to do was a great one, but you know what - every step of the way I had family and friends with me creating memories which are a page in this book called my life.   I think the only thing missing was a Skye with my sister and her family - we miss you all and cannot wait to see you again.

This is my life, I do not slow down, yes I should, but you know what I say - maybe someday. 

Right now we are enjoying the ride and creating memories along the way!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY MOM!

Happy Birthday Mom! 

May today be a great one for you bringing you everything you wish for all year long!

My life is so much better because you are my mom. 
You are an amazing grandma - excuse me Memaw - and I know you would do anything for any of your grand kids.

You are my hero and were my inspiration for my career to help me get to where I am today. 
You have always been there for me in good times and bad. 
You listen and calm me when I need it and you take the stress I bring like no other mom I know.
You are the best invisible mom I know and I thank you for all of the lessons long the way.
You are one of the strongest and hardest working people I know. You inspire many!

You are an amazing person and we love you bunches. 
Thank you for all you do and for always being there!

You definitely do not look like today is your 59th birthday - here is to many, many more!

Love you

P.S. You are lucky that I didn't have any old photos scanned in here at work since I did this on my lunch break :)

Happy 1st Birthday Mallory and Cale!

It was for sure a great time as we celebrated Mallory and Cale's 1st Birthday on June 24th!  With our Dr. Seuss theme all ready to go there was no way we weren't going for have fun.
Thank you so much to Memaw Donna and Papaw Chris for allowing us to hold the event at the pool, even though it was too cold to go swimming.  Who would of thought it would be 68 degrees out on a Friday in June?? 

\We had lots of family and friends on hand to celebrate with of course yummy food and cake.  I just can't believe that these little creatures are already one year old.  Where in the world has the year gone?  I look back to how much they have grown and changed and it simply amazes me and makes me proud. 

Here is a quick update on what we are doing at 1:

Mallory - she likes to walk while you hold her hands, she is working on being able to stand alone.  She will get on her knees and "walk" but won't put her hands down to crawl - she is close to putting this all together on her own.  She can say "uh oh" but says it for no reason - not when it is supposed to be used.  She says "look", or at least that is what it appears to be to me.  She can say Maggie - mostly after you have.  She raises her arms and moves her grabs with her fingers when she wants to be picked up.  She is an awesome eater and will eat almost anything we give her to try.  She laughs and laughs.  She loves to give kisses, especially to her big brother Caden, as well as high fives.  Teeth numbers 5 and 6 are almost completely in - 3 on top and 3 on bottom.  Her eyes are still magical and amazing but her hair has a long way to go on coming in!  She can be a bully - she likes to hit Cale and recently bit him when she got mad.  She growls at you at times, she is definitely emotional.  She is a climber and a little dare devil.  She is weighing in at 23.11 lbs and 30 inches long!

Cale - he is the fastest crawler I have ever seen so I think walking may take a bit longer - he is a lot slower on getting to where he wants to go that way.  He laughs at you when you tell him no - and responds back with a "no" of his own and a throwing of his hand.  He eats A LOT and loves just about everything but he is still the bottle lover for drinking his milk.  He throws things when he is done with them.  He looks and figures things out - just last night he filled up the dump truck with things that were laying on the floor, then this morning took them out and put them back on the floor.  He talks but doesn't really say words quite as clear just yet.  He has 6 7 teeth - 4 on top and 2 3 on bottom.  He plays rough with his brother and gets MAD when Mallory comes to attack him.  He loves his blankie, and is the best snuggler around.  He is a climber but a cautious climber.  He is a ham, you pull out the camera and he puts the cheesiest smile on his face.  He is a huge cheerleader to many things and always claps when he feels he the moment needs a cheer.   He enjoys the race cars (much to the delight of his daddy and brother).  He still loves to jump.  He is weighing in at 25.3 lbs and 32 inches long!

They are amazing and learning everyday.  They are definitely two different little people with big personalities that are growing bigger each day.



Waiting for our cake

 

The awesome cake by Miss Sarah Burkhart!



So now what do we do with these things?



Yeah! Cake!

Digging in - cautiously

Just checking it out



After the damage - it was minimal



You can't have a party without a baseball game



Maggie catching a ride from Maddox



Dinner with  our twin friends





Look at those legs!



Thanks for the ride big brother!

 A huge thank you to all who made this day special. 

We are grateful that you are in our lives and could not do what we do without you.  

Who would of thought both of these babies had double ear infections during their big day? 

Not me I was definitely surprised by that one.

Mallory and Cale - thank you for being who you are and bringing us smiles and joys everyday.   You are both a blessing to our family.

We had an absolute ball celebrating your birthday! 

We cannot wait to do it again same time next year - hoping for better weather!

Thank you for a great first year and I am looking forward to what the many, many years of birthdays ahead will bring our way!