Happy Halloween!

Of course the planning for this evening had been done months in advance. Of course.

In reality, I think I said something to the effect of "If you don't yet have a costume, go pick something out of the dress-up bin in the basement. You've got about 15 minutes to be ready!"

We did put in our time with the pumpkins.  The kids drew up their pumpkin plans and Mike carved and carved and carved....poor guy. Next year I think he'll get smart and pull out the electric drill.

Here's the way the pumpkins looked before the dog got a hold of them:

Teresa's...




Aidan's and Molly Grace's (Erin's is uncarved in the back. It was last on the list and Mike ran out of steam)...




Poor Moira. She had a beautifully detailed Celtic design for her pumpkin that she had started on, but the whole thing collapsed. She was intent to throw it in the woods, but then she got sick, so I took the liberty to put it on the blog anyway...



Bridget's...



Hmmm...I'm not sure what happened to Eileen's pumpkin. I'll blame it on the dog :)


And now for the costumes:

The cute trio of Raggedy Ann dolls (Bridget, Colleen and Eileen)...




Aidan the Good Packer Vampire. He wanted everybody to know that he was good. I told him to say, "May I pleeeease suck your blood?" (A week or so ago Aidan announced he was going to be a mini wheat! Where this came from, I have no idea. Then Grandma sent this costume in the mail, which she made. Nice save, Grandma!)




Emmett. Hmmmm...I'm just not sure. A plumber? I do know, however, that the plunger is an integral part of this costume. And I believe that is toilet paper hanging from his back pocket. Yup, he must be a plumber!




Even more interesting. I think I'll let Owen explain this one...



Conal-boy as Jack Sparrow...




Teresa with a last minute costume pick. A cheerleader. But hey, where's the green and gold? What town do you live in anyway!?




Molly Grace (princess) and Margaret (Snow white) were too busy to get a picture. And Moira volunteered to pass out candy, but ended up getting sick.



And last but not least, the little pumpkin herself...

Our Best Therapists

A couple of weeks ago, Erin had her first post-op session with her therapists. Because many children with Down syndrome have low muscle tone, extra help with specially trained therapists is pretty standard. Erin has received physical therapy since three months of age. We'll also be starting oral motor therapy next week. In addition, we have a general "teacher" who acts as overseer for all of Erin's therapy needs. Up until she turns three, all these therapists come to our home, which is nice. This last visit they were so impressed with Erin and her progress! She was sitting unsupported, babbling, playing with toys, and very social with everyone, even though we hadn't done "official" therapy since August (because of her heart failure). Our therapists came to the general conclusion that they should hire out my "team" as therapists, and gave my gang all the credit for helping Erin so much. Let's just say all that stimulation comes pretty naturally around here. There's always somebody doing therapy with Erin, in one way or another.

Here's a shot of my built-in therapy team (with Erin feeling the need for a little break) haha.

When Cousins are Like Sisters

Look what I found the other day!  One of my favorites.

A Mental Obstacle Course....

...is what my brain often goes through when I have conversations with Aidan. Here's a sample from today:

Aidan: Does Erin need a pacifier?

Me: I don't think so.  Not right now.

Aidan: Is she getting hungry?

Me: Not yet.

Aidan: When she cries, and if I find her pacifier, can I earn a dollar?

Me: Huh?

Aidan: Repeats above sentence.

Me: No, a dollar would be too much money for finding a pacifier.

Aidan: What if it's really lost?

Me: Well, still...I don't usually pay my kids to find things (I say usually, because I actually have before).

Aidan: How much money could I get if I find her pacifier? (Can you tell by now that Erin's pacifier is very often missing??)

Me: None. Why do you want money?

Aidan: I want to buy something at Toys R Us.

Me: What do you want?

Aidan: Something plastic...well, lots of things plastic.

Me: What kind of plastic things.

Aidan: They all come together.

Me: WHAT all comes together?

Aidan: Whales. I really want those whales I saw. But they cost $5.

Me: Ohhhhh.

Aidan: So if you need me to find something that costs $5, let me know.

Me: How about my wedding ring? That'll win ya a prize for sure. (My wedding ring has been missing since I was pregnant with Molly Grace. I'm still counting on St. Anthony to help me out!).

I won't continue (even though the conversation did) but you get the picture....  I often have no idea where our conversations are going to end up.  Aidan has the art of conversation, the gift of gab. It's an Irish trait. And we all know where he gets it from...Like father like son :)

Double Cousins

Yes, my sister is also my sister-in-law, and Mike's brother is also his brother-in-law. And by the way, they have the same name, however spelled differently (Kelly and Kelley). That makes my brother-in-law's brother my husband. So, if you've followed all that, you know that our kids are double cousins. Here's the whole gang...

Top row : Bridget(10), Molly Grace (3), Owen (14), Margaret(4), Eileen(12), Colleen(11)
Bottom row: Aidan(6), Moira(14), Erin(7mo), Emmett(12), Conal(8), Teresa(8) (My kids in bold)

Sometimes...

...even princesses forget their manners.






Other times, one spoon just isn't enough.

Aidan's Interview

Wow, it's hard to believe we're already a good chunk into our school year. We're completing week seven. We started mid-August, because of Erin's surgery, and then took a couple weeks off in September. This is our eighth year of homeschooling. We continue to use Mother of Divine Grace, which is a Catholic classical curriculum. We do have a couple of "firsts" this year. For one, we have our first high schooler.  Moira is a freshmen. The other first we have is our first BOY kindergartner! (When Aidan first found out that he was starting kindergarten, his reply was, "What?  But I'm a BOY.  I thought only girls do school!").  Eileen, Bridget and Teresa are in grades 7, 5 and 2. In addition, Molly Grace, 3, is our top-notch mess-maker, and sweet little Erin's job is to keep everybody smiling.

After lunch each day I try to read a story to the little kids. But life happens, and sometimes I just don't get to it. So, for a back-up plan, we implemented Reading Buddies this year. Each older kid pairs up with a younger kid and reads to him or her. It seems to be working out great, and at least I know the younger kids are always getting some reading time in. Moira pairs with Molly Grace, Eileen pairs with Aidan and Bridget pairs with Teresa.

Yesterday, Eileen finished her book with Aidan early and decided to interview him. She and Bridget came up with the questions. I thought it was cute. So, here is Eileen's interview with Aidan:

E: Do you like school?
A: A little bit.

E: What is your favorite thing to do in school?
A: Draw pictures

E: Who's your favorite teacher?
A: Mom (I love that one!)

E: Do you like doing school with four girls?
A: I don't care.

E: Do you like sharing a bathroom with five girls?
A: No. We don't all fit in it.

E: Who's your favorite sister?
A: I don't have one, I like them all (Good answer!)

E: Do you wish you had a brother to do school with?
A: Yes!

E: What's the latest word you learned how to read?
A: mat

E: Are you glad you're homeschooled?
A: Yes.

E: Do you have a lucky pencil?
A: No. By the time I start school they are all taken.

E: Are you glad you have your own room?
A: Yes.

E: Do you ever get tired of eating cereal?
A: No, I don't!

A little explanation on that last one.....Aidan's favorite food is cereal and he could eat it for every meal if we let him! They had fun with this! I hear more interviews going on in the house, so I think there may be more to come...Congratulations if you made it this far. You must be a grandma :)

Singin' in the Rain

It was one of those wet fall mornings. The kids were fed and dressed. I ran upstairs to take a quick shower before we started our school day. As I was getting ready, I could hear the school buses winding through the neighborhood, picking up kids for school. I thought to myself how thankful I was that I could homeschool my children, and how I loved the fact that I got to spend each day with them. I also noticed how quiet the house was...yes, I thought, my little angels were downstairs, already hard at work on their assignments. Finally, after seven years of homeschooling, the mornings had become routine and the kids knew just what to do. Ha!

Because I've homeschooled for seven years, I should have known better. After fourteen years of parenting, the sound of silence should have at least raised a suspicion.

I came downstairs to more silence. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of four of my "angels" running around outside, singing (loudly) in the rain. Soaking wet. All this while other kids in the neighborhood were waiting patiently in cars or with umbrellas to get on their school buses. Of course I instantly wondered what the neighbors must think about our style of homeschooling.  Thankfully, we have the best neighbors, who know my kids very well.

So, I gathered them in and took their picture. I just love the look on Teresa's face. She wasn't quite sure, at that moment, if she was in trouble or not.




Thank goodness my kids add some spice to life, otherwise it would be way too boring. And they seem to keep providing me with plenty of opportunities to practice the virtue of humility, so I've got that goin' for me.

Sisterly Love

Poor Aidan

These photos may just about sum up Aidan's childhood, surrounded by six sisters.