Soccer Saturday - Week Four

The kids played in a tournament this weekend. Each team played 2 games each. The kids had so much fun. Maddie's team won their first game! Their second game went into triple overtime. It was really exciting, but so stressful! It was supposed to rain all day, but it managed to hold off until the last ten minutes of the last game. Then, the sky opened up and poured down like Armageddon just as we got in our cars. But we were rewarded with two gorgeous rainbows on the drive home!

Maddie's birthday weekend - Part II

Grandma and Grandpa Hickey, Uncle Sean and Aunt Jen came to visit for Maddie's *second* birthday weekend. Maddie got this hat for her birthday, so the collection of cool hats continues. What are these kind of hats called? Anyone know?


We went out for drinks and music Saturday night - Aunt Jen volunteered to babysit. I won't get into why Linda is making this face, but some of you know why...

Honestly, I think I posted this as evidence that I can look halfway decent if someone cares for and entertains all four of my children for 30-40 consecutive minutes. This may not be replicated for at least 6 months. Can I just print out a life-sized copy of my face from this photo and walk around with it in front of my actual face? It may be a little Conan O'Brien if I cut out the mouth and stick my real lips in, but so be it.


Jackson is loving his Aunt Jen! The hard thing about moving away is that Jackson doesn't get to see everyone in the family as often, but he is still comfortable with them. I'm very grateful for that. He is such an easy-going baby.

Three Months Old

I can't get enough of these hats...


How cute are they!



Hard to believe he's three months old already!

Soccer Saturday - Week Three

This weekend held a visit from Grandpa Ken to help us celebrate Maddie's birthday. I finally get a picture of Jackson with his namesake!


Grandpa couldn't wait to see Isabella play soccer. He was rewarded with the show of all shows - Isabella asked the coach if she could play goalie. John recalls it as the most stressful experience of his life.


This is Isabella yelling at John: "What, Daddy? Why are you yelling at me?" How HUGE are those goalie gloves?


The kids really loved having Grandpa in for the weekend. Grandpa definitely hasn't lost "the touch" with our babies. He can still settle the fussiest baby with just a little fresh air and the leaves on the trees. No one can cry through "the walk" with Grandpa!

Maddie's Birthday Party

Maddie's bithday party was at a local indoor playground. They specialize in birthday parties. We even had an assigned "party pal" who helped keep the party moving and got everything together.


They played for a while in the playground, then the party pal started a treasure hunt which ended in the room where the pizza and cake were waiting...


We went with a cute little fairy theme. I loved this Tinkerbell cake. It says 'Happy Birthday Maddie' around the outside. So cute!


She was glowing. She invited eight of her closest girlfriends from school and they all seemed to really have fun. And it was no pressure for me! I actually enjoyed myself!

My current favorite photo... (Twelve Weeks Old)

Jackson's t-shirt says: ROCK ME ALL NIGHT LONG.

Eleven Weeks Old

And they said kids learned how to use computers early in our generation... Jackson will be making a killing at PartyPoker.com by the time he can talk!


This child has many faces. He looks so different from picture to picture. John said to notice the red hickey on his neck from the baby trying to nurse on him. :)

Soccer Saturday - Week Two

I'm sorry we must interrupt your regularly scheduled weekly soccer update. Bella, Jackson and I went back to Ohio for my great aunt's funeral. It was a lovely tribute to a woman I wished I had been able to know when she was younger. She had a spirit that not many people have and most of us wish for.

Ten Weeks Old

Baby Jackson is so smiley. He smiles all day long. He imitates whatever faces people make at him. If you smile and laugh at him, he does the same right back. It can be hard to capture with the camera, though, since the camera blocks your face when you're taking the photo. I have learned to compensate for this by using the screen on the camera (instead of the viewfinder- which I much prefer), locking in the autofocus and talking to him while shooting without looking at the screen. It makes for a few great shots and many off-center, out -of-focus ones!

This is his favorite way to express himself right now. One arm is always in motion.

"Power to the little people!"

September 11

I feel a need to speak about today. Of course I remember where I was when I heard. My mother-in-law called me and told me to turn on the tv. I was fixing breakfast. Liam was 3, Maddie was almost 2. Neither of them went to preschool yet, so we were just at home, doing what we usually did.

I turned on the tv in our living room. The kids were just around, not really paying attention. Later in the day though, I noticed Liam playing with his puzzle. He had a set of transportation puzzles: one was a train, one a bus, one a fire truck and one was an airplane. He was putting the airplane one together and then crashing it into the ottoman. He would put it together again, then crash it into the ottoman. I was spooked.

Our lives have changed since then in several ways. First, I sought out a church immediately afterward. I began going to Unity Church in Tallmadge. I needed help making sense of these events that made no sense. I needed to be among other spiritual peacemongers. We also made a major change at our house. The word "hate" was abolished from our vocabulary. We will not allow the word to be used. The children have to say "I don't like brussel sprouts" or whatever. Using the word "hate" is not tolerated. It seems like a small detail, but not to us. We don't want to contribute one single molecule of hatred into the world.

And finally, Isabella was conceived three weeks after 9/11. I wonder how the energy of that event influenced the children conceived around that time. (I know of many!) She was born to change the world. You can see it in her. She has the fire it takes to make a difference.

Soccer Saturday - Week One

In the league the kids are playing soccer, each team is a country. It's really cute and gives it a cool, "World Cup" feel. Here are our own "Italian Stallion" and "Mad Irishman". Liam's coach came up to John after the first game and said: "Man, your kid has got heart! I mean, that is something you just can not teach! Heart!"


In case you were wondering, this is what kids' size ten soccer shoes look like. How tiny and cute are they?


Speaking of tiny and cute, Isabella is BY FAR the smallest and youngest kid on her team. It's a U6 team, meaning the kids range from just turned 4 to not-yet 6 on registration day. At least one of the kids on her team has since turned 6. There is a 3-4 year old league, but we decided to put Isabella on the team of the friend of ours who coached Maddie's team the last two seasons.


Maddie is adjusting to not being the "star" on the team anymore. It seems like she is still enjoying playing, though. Her coach is, well... intense, to say the least. He screams at the kids and makes us crazy. When he screams "Maddie! Maddie!" I cringe because he's got that "last few seconds of the basketball finals" kind of scream. It takes everything John and I have not to have him killed.

Crazy plays soccer...

After two seasons of watching Liam and Maddie play soccer and being a humble cheerleader (or mascot), Isabella finally gets to play soccer. It is as my dad said - "worth the price of admission." I talked with her after her first practice.

Kat: "Bella, remember, in soccer, you can't touch the ball with your hands, you can only kick it with your foot."

Isabella: "No, I'm allowed to touch it with my hands. My coach said."

Kat: "Um... No. No one is allowed to touch the ball with their hands in soccer."

Isabella: "My coach said I could."

Kat: "When?"

Isabella: "Well, I touched it with my hands at practice and he didn't see, so I think it's okay as long as no one sees me."

Nine Weeks Old

I Rule!


A picture is worth four words- "loves him to death."

(And, yes, the top caption is a shameless reference to "American Beauty" - remember the scene?)

The Isabella Show

I almost haven't wanted to blog because ALL my stories are Isabella right now. But, alas, I must blog them. She is going to a different school than Liam and Maddie this year. She is attending a preschool/kindergarten only which incorporates more fantasy and fine arts than a typical Montessori school. Her school is also a Spanish immersion school - meaning - two of the teachers speak only Spanish to the children. It's really exciting for her because she is so passionate about learning Spanish and has such a great ear for it.

The day we took the tour of the school, one other mom was taking the tour trying to decide if it was right for her 3 year old, but she only brought her 12 month old on the tour. So, it was Isabella, Jackson and this 12 month old. After an hour long tour, I asked Isabella on the way home what she thought. She said she didn't want to go there. I was shocked! I thought she'd love it! I asked why.

Isabella: "Um, well, the one thing that I don't like very much is the babies."

Kat: "The babies? Jackson and that other baby won't go there! They're not old enough. There will be lots of kids your age when school starts."

She thought about it for a minute.

Isabella: "I'll go for lunch."

Kat: "Great, you can go in the morning and stay for lunch, if you want."

Isabella: "No. I'll just go there to eat lunch."

Three days later, we went back for orientation. I decided to pull the trigger and see if the idea grew on her. There were about 30 kids at the orientation. On the way home, I asked her what she thought.

Isabella: "I liked it! There were no babies! I think I'll go there!"