I sure can grow them!

Look at the belly on this chunk! I can tell ya..this girl never misses a meal!

Routine

The kids are back in school, the transition was smooth. I have to admit I was a little worried how Brandon would do. It's been nice for me too, yesterday I managed to get a lot done in the 3 hours that Brandon was in school...today..not so much! I did manage to catch up on some lost sleep from the night before though.
I think tomorrow Gabriella and I will hit Target and see what great deals we can find, I figure I better enjoy the last bit of my leave...I only have 6 weeks left and than it's back to work for me...booo hooo!!

pictures

Deck the halls

As you can see we put the tree up yesterday. It looks great and the kids had a great time doing it. Even Jeff enjoyed it...and get this he put the lights on it (I'm a light freak, so getting it to fit my standards is not usually a pleasant experience)
Today we will tackle the lights outside and then we will be all ready for Santa!

The Corsaro Kids!

Yeah...yeah...I know...I have beautiful kids!

Doing my homework...

Tonight at church Dr. Mark asked everyone to list the 12 things that they are most thankful for...so...that is what I am going to do.

1. My family (of course)Jeff is my soul mate and I totally believe God brought him into my life life when he did for a reason. Alyssa, Brandon and Gabriella, they have all defined who I am...I never could have or would have known how sweet life could be with out any of them.
My sisters...Julie...cause it's never a dull moment with her and even when you want to reach out and strangle her you realize she is one of the only people in life you could ever really count on.
Jill...cause no matter how far apart we are we will always share a bond that nobody could ever explain...and a lot of stupid memories to go along with that!
Mom...cause face it...I am the mom I am today cause she was the mom she was. One of my true best friends (and is willing to keep Brandon at the drop of a hat)
Dad...cause even if we don't always see eye to eye...you are my dad and damn it...we had some great times!

2. I'm thankful for my home. Regardless how small it is...it's still our home.

3. I'm thankful for my job. Of course I would MUCH rather be a stay at home mommy...but if I must work...Miracle Mile would be my first choice.

4. I'm thankful that Jeff and I are able to provide for our kids the way we do. I'm glad Alyssa is able to dance and I'm glad Brandon can wrestle.

5. I'm thankful for our pantry and fridge that is overflowing with food. May sound silly...but way to many people will never know what that feels like.

6. I'm thankful for my friends (this should have been #2 but I got side tracked)
I have few people in my life that I would call "friend" you know who you are and I am more than thankful for you!

7. I'm thankful for Starbucks...yeah...really I am! Fraps have been known to pull me from even the worst moods!

8. I'm thankful to be living in the USA. Honestly I would not want to live anywhere else!

9. I'm thankful for my health and the health of the rest of my family

10. I'm thankful for my church. I feel so at home when I go.

11. I'm thankful (somewhat) that my hubby does not care if the house is not always clean and in order. Really, it does make things less stressful...if only I did not care.

12. Really..my life is full of so many things to be thankful for...I could count on one hand how many things in life that have happened to me that I am not thankful for. But really...I believe we are not in control...and things happen for a reason...so if we dug down real deep, even in the toughest times in life we could find something that came out of that situation that we could be thankful...really...sit and think about it...you may see that I'm right.

Wow...look at me...I am capable of doing homework...10 years late...but still!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone...take an extra second today to look around you...and count your blessings!

Midnight in my room...

No...you sick people...it's not that! It's Brandon playing army!

Just because

Gas bubbles...

Excuse me if you notice more spelling errors than usual...I'm typing one handed...
Gabriella once again is plagued with the bubble guts (as daddy calls them). This time I am armed with gas drops, though it does not seem to be doing any good. Looks like it will be another long night.

We took the kids for pictures today. They turned out pretty cute...don't worry, they will be coming in Christmas cards in the next few weeks.

The long hours have started for Jeff...the money will be nice but I miss his company...poor me! : (

The kids go back to school on Monday. I have to admit it has been wonderful having them home. It took alot of stress off knowing I did not have to get them up and off by a certain time. I do look forward to having them back and getting settled into a routine....what ever that may be now.

That's all for now...Gab is asleep now...so I guess that means I better be too.

xoxo to all

Random

For the last few weeks we have set Thursday nights as family game night. Last night we played the game of Life...and for the record I would just like to say I kicked butt!! We all have a lot of fun and it's great to be together as a family.

Gabriella loves to have a bath, she is always so alert and happy...it's one of my favorite times with her.

Nutcrackers

The kids painted Nutcrackers tonight...they turned out great. I'll have to get an up close and personal picture of them so you can enjoy them to the full potential. : )

One BIG month!

Gabriella is officially one month old today. We just got back from the Dr's, she weights 9lbs 12oz...not bad. We also made another discovery today as well...she is a drama queen..you would have thought her leg was being cut off when she got her one tiny shot! Really, she is a great baby and an incredible blessing in our lives.

Christmas Cheer

Today the kids and I went over to Sheila's and made TONS of Christmas cookies to send in care packages to the military overseas. The kids had a great time...even Gabriella was a good sport and slept in her swing allowing mommy some free time. It was nice a nice way to kick off the holiday season.

Getting so big

Gabriella will be 4 weeks old tomorrow, somehow it seems like she has been with us so much longer. We are finally settling into a routine and I finally feel like I have somewhat of a handle on life again...as a matter of fact my house is even clean again! (still have a ton of laundry to catch up on though) She is such a good baby and really only cries when she is hungry. She's been a great sleeper too. The last few nights she has been pulling 4 hour stretches...HEAVEN!! Alyssa and Brandon continue to adore her and insist on being mommy Jr. So, here are some pictures of our growing princess aka Wooshie Wooshie

Sibling Love

For the most part my kids love each other. Don't get me wrong they fight with each other plenty as well but for the most part they are each others best buddies. It will be interesting to see how Gabriella fits in as she gets older...for now I'll soak up the love and attention both kids have for her...it won't be long until she will be touching someones toys or inviting herself into a "no little sister" zone.

slowing down

I was talking to Sheila tonight while I was waiting for Alyssa to finish at dance. I was sharing with her my feelings of feeling a little over whelmed. We both commented that this time will pass before our eyes just as it had with my other two babies.
I left it at that...until tonight...I was sorting through the boxes of photos I have preparing to actually put them in photo books (imagine that) Anyways, I came across pictures of both Alyssa and Brandon when they were tiny babies. It took me back to the first few weeks of each of them...the sleepless nights, the feelings that life would never be the same...and I remembered that each time things turned out even better than I could have ever imagined. In fact it made me sad to think that 9 years have passed since I cuddled Alyssa the same way I do Gabriella...really...time passed much quicker than anyone could possibly have warned me about...so really...today...I will slow down...I will hold Gabriella at 3am, I will live in each moment and not wish for the next and I will remind myself how blessed I am that God have given me the awesome responsibility of being her mommy!

Not so lucky

Jeff ended up with the bug that the kids had...and tonight I feel as though I have been run over by a truck...news flash...busy Mommy's do not get time off.
On a happy note the kids all seem to be over it and have already filled my weekend with play dates and other social events. Ohhh, the joys!

Life

It all started with Brandon at 3am on Sunday morning, it's the thing that all moms look forward to...a sick kid! Thankfully (since he was sleeping in my bed) he made it to the bathroom. He spent the rest of the day sleeping...
The next night it was Gabriella's turn...she spent the night crying from 1am to 3am...Yikes...talk about a long night!
And today it was Alyssa's turn, I received that call while she was at dance class. Keep your fingers crossed it skips Jeff and I!

Brandon started wrestling today. He is taking classed at a near by high school with other kids his age. It goes from now until March...and get this...he will wrestle in 5 tournaments during this time.

I can hardly believe Thanksgiving is right around the corner. The kids and I are off to the library tomorrow (if everyone is feeling better) to check out some books on the holiday. It should be fun to read up and maybe do a little art project on Thanksgiving and why we celebrate it.

Well...everyone is sleeping so I better hit the sac as well...

Amazed

This is the first picture of the five of us all together...I have to say as I was flipping through the pictures tonight and came across this one it hit me...wow...we have three kids! NEVER could I have imagined my life could ever be this blessed and full...I thank God every day for everything he has given to me...my beautiful girls and my #1 son...and I can't forget my amazing hubby, so thanks God..I owe ya one!

more pictures

God Bless Gabriella

We celebrated Gabriella's baptism today with family and close friends. Besides poor Brandon being sick with some kind of tummy bug the day was perfect. As silly as it sounds it feels good to have her baptised...enjoy these few pictures.