Thanks for giving!

Thanksgiving with our friends.....THANK YOU!

A super clean baby!

Turkeys in our backyard....just a few days before thanksgiving! WHERE was my shotgun????

This is a little late, but we are very THANKFUL. We have so much to be thankful for....

dinners full of love from friends

thanksgiving dinner made with love and care

not cooking for sooooo long!

cards

calls from those who love us

a healthy baby and mommy

gifts for Marina, me and the kids

homemade gifts full of love and time

calls to check in

visits and visitors

flowers

patience

sleep - when it comes

calls from friends stopping by

health, happiness and our home

a good paying job

a totally stingy company that is still in business

calls from friends to take my older kids for an hour or two

chocolate :)

and the list goes on.......

Thanks so much to everyone who has taken care of us this last month. Crazy and difficult at times. The lack of sleep makes my brain foggy so hopefully I have not forgotten to thank anyone. I find myself thankful it is not summer yet and I do not have to juggle 4 kids at home. I am especially grateful for a husband who has stayed up late, gotten up early, came home from basketball and snuggled the new babe just so I could get a break.

New Baby

We have been sleeping great since Marina came home. The kids love their new sister. Marina gets lots of hugs and kisses. Marina is now 6 lbs. 11 oz.

The Next Bach

Ethan had his first piano recital tonight. He did a great job. Feel free to watch.

Marina Lauren Chiapelli

Marina was born today at 7:11 pm. She weighed in at 6 lbs. 7 oz. Mom and baby are doing well and expect to come home on Saturday.

Happy Halloween!

Neal Armstrong
Tinkerbell

Witch

Kira's kindergarten class party

A "bun in the oven", chef, Neal Armstrong, witch, and Tinkerbell

Our pumpkins - Elmo (Natalie), Throw-up (Kira), Cannibal (Ethan)

The Chef with his 'bun in the oven'

We have been partying all week! Cub scout party, Daisey's party, 2 class parties, church party and a neighborhood party! WHEW! The kids have gotten full use out of the costumes and Natalie has found a love of Halloween!

With only 12 days to go until my due date I had no desire to dress up. BUT the season got the best of me. I LOVE Halloween and just had to come up with something. So on Friday afternoon I pulled together this little "bun in the oven" number with Jeff as the Chef. Kira is a Witch, Ethan is Neal Armstrong and Natalie is Tinkerbell. No theme, but everyone loved their costumes and we had a lot of fun at all the parties.

Our pumpkins are N-Elmo, E-Cannibal Pumpkin, K -Throw up Pumpkin. Hope everyone else had a fun week too!

Fall in Western NY

We love fall here in NY. The color of the trees are so vibrant and pretty. The first fall we lived here we had a crazy storm which dumped snow on all the trees with their majestic leaves still on the trees. Many of the trees lost limbs and some totally fell over. The following fall was pretty bland, but I did not realize it. The trees were still recovering and did not produce the beautiful colors that we are seeing now. The kids have been coming home from school everyday asking to rake the leaves. Of course I say yes, but they don't get very far by themselves. For family night this week we raked the leaves and played in them until dark. It was a lot of fun!

We have also carved our pumpkins...I will have more pics on Halloween.

To the Fifth Power

Tagged for a meme! (Thanks, Jenna - Jeeze!) Here goes. . .

Five North American Cities in Which I'd Seriously Consider Living:
1. NYC, NY
2. San Diego, CA
3. Colorado Springs, Colorado
4. Philadelphia, PA
5. Any beach on the east coast south of South Jersey

Five Songs to Which I Know all the Words:
1. "Sunday, Bloody Sunday" by U2
2. "Hotel California" Eagles
3. "Something in the way she moves" James Taylor
4. "Penny Lane" Beatles
5. "I am a Child of God" Naomi Randall
*I need to listen to the radio*

Five Foods I'd Wish to Have in Unlimited Quantities on a Desert Island:

1. Home made rolls
2. Butter
3. Strawberries
4. Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate
5. Peanut Butter

Five Chores I Should Be Doing Right Now Instead of Blogging:

1. Reading Jesus the Christ (is that a chore?)
2. Cleaning the downstairs bath
3. Making a frozen dish to save for after the baby
4. Sleeping (is this a chore? I just know the computer keeps me up longer than I should be)
5. Mopping the kitchen floor

Five Childhood Friends I'd Love to See Again:
1. Jeana Sparano
2. Amy Mohn
3. Jenna VanSciver
4.
5. I can't really think of anyone else :)

Now, five friends to tag (but please play even if you aren't tagged, and then let me know!):
1. Eliza - you need something to do right?
2. Amy
3. Rachel - because I know you will :)
4. Andrea
5. Audrey