Lazee(Laci)?

Maybe it's better to use Christian's name when calling in a take out order

Adventures in Middleton

Our friends, Sebole and Enzo, were kind enough to show us around Middleton this weekend. First stop, Richardson's Ice Cream. Can you blame Berke for this adorable face? He is so happy to partake in his first ice cream cone!

Richardson's is a farm in Middleton that raises 320 cows and makes fresh milk and ice cream. Their cows are not fed any hormones and they seem to live happy little lives.

Here are the boys playing with the HUGE wheel on the tractor.

Berke and Enzo enjoyed looking at all the cows. They saw calves and mama cows like this one; Berke even made a moo sound.

Next we went on a little hike to "make out mountain" where you can see a great view of the city (on a clear day). No making out was done, but lots of goofing off was.
Sebole claims he has never been a male model before, but this proof leads me to believe he may be lying. AMAZING is the only word that comes to mind.

Berke and Enzo had fun eating ice cream, getting a sugar high and then running around and working off all the energy.
Middleton is a pretty adorable town. I think I could see myself in a town like that. It is close to the city, but more rural and spacious. Sometimes I just miss having a yard to play in, or even just a little space for that matter. Thanks Sebole for showing us around!

Up the Nose we Go

Today for snack Berkeley was given some Craisins (dried cranberries). Little did Christian know, Berkeley would be pushing one of those craisins up his nose as far as it would go. Little did Berkeley know how much pain this would cause him.

Berkeley started crying and thus Christian became quite worried. So worried in fact that he called 911; the dispatcher was a bit confused as to why Christian had called, as he did not want an ambulance and his child was still breathing. Apparently this was not an emergency to 911, but it was to Christian. Then he tried to call Berkeley's PCP; the receptionist informed him he could bring in the patient at 7:30, nearly 5 hours later.

Christian was quiet upset, how could nobody care that his son was in pain due to a craisin being shoved up his nostril?

Finally, he called the neighbor, Bob, to come over and help hold down his son while he tried to pull out the craisin with tweezers. Good idea? I think not. This mostly just terrified poor little Berkeley; however the terror was so great that the little guy blew his nose so hard that the craisin came flying out.

Who knew being a stay at home dad could be so intense? You just never know how one will react in time of crisis.

Sand Sculptures in Revere

This weekends adventure: Revere Beach 2010 Sand Sculpting Festival

This is our second year going; it is just such a great free activity, how can we pass it up? It was a nice 90 degree day, so we saw the sculptures and then hung out on the beach and played in the ocean for the rest of the day.

Berke was getting a bit cranky around 4:00 (way pass nap time), but good ole Stef dug him a big hole to play in, and everything was right in the world again.

Big hole=Happy kid

Fun friends+Beach on hot day= A good weekend

Mr. Gentry is 18 months

My baby is growing up. Remember 18 month ago? He was really little and adorable and melted my heart at every sound; not much has changed really except he isn't so little any more.
At 18 months this kid weighs 23 lbs (12%) and is 2 feet 6 inches tall (7%). He currently has 12 teeth and a beautiful smile.

The last few months he has changed so much. He really got crazy good at his walking at 16 months and now runs all over the place. Some strangers told me that they call him "FrankenBaby" because of the way he walks, which gives you a pretty good pictures of how he waddles around. He loves to walk, be free and independent. I am not sure why, but usually walks the exact opposite direction that I need him to walk.....what is up with that?

Berke continues to love music. If he hears it he dances and he tries to make an object into his own personal drum set. Plastic spoons and Tupperware have been favorite toys for the boy as of late.

He is much more prone to trouble these days. He is good at reaching things (like raisins), and I often find him having a nice little picnic with the dog in our kitchen. Speaking of cute, innocent McDuff, Berkeley has really taken an intense interest in him all of the sudden. Berke chases the dog everywhere and when he gets to him he pulls his hair or pushes down on his back; he's having a really hard time learning about "soft touch" and our poor dog is usually the victim of that lack of knowledge. However, Berke really can be sweet with McDuff as well. There are many times Berke sees that Duff is trying to get a toy that is stuck somewhere and Berke will get it free and give it to the dog, this always brings a smile to my face.

This kid is always happy. People love him and he loves people. Many people stop to say hi to him when we go out; he usually gets his shy smiley face on, or he says loudly, "HI!"
There is not a day that goes by that he doesn't make me laugh; this kid is hilarious, but who is surprised about that?

Just the last few weeks Berke's vocabulary has really taken off. He has started to mimic everything Christian and I say and I love it!!
Some of his favorite most said words are: Gog (Dog), Mama, Dada, Nana (Elmo), Hi, ee ee ah (monkey sound), ish (fish), banana, go go, ball, oh(he says this when he is very excited or surprised). I am surprised at how I can give him direction now and he can (sometimes) follow through. He's is learning so much, so fast.

He is also loves laughing, running around the house with C's headphones around his neck, carrying his blankets around the house everywhere he goes. He still watches Elmo, Sid the Science kid, and Curious George. He is really into pushing right now, and has no problem pushing anyone out of his way to get what he wants.

He has no fear of water and has been enjoying his water babies classes and all the fun water activities we have been doing this summer. He also loves to splash around at bath time. Any time I say bath, he runs right to the bath tub and tries to get in, clothes or not.

I could go on and on about my cute kid, as evidenced above. What can I say, I love my Berkeley; he is fascinating to watch learn and grow. I never imagined being a mom would be so completely enjoyable.

Berkshires

We headed to the Berkshire Mountains this weekend for Berke Man's first camping trip. He really loved playing in the dirt, puddles created by the rain and all the camp grounds fire pits. He was super sneaky in the picture below; stealing his daddy's granola bar right out of his hand.

We had fun swimming in the lake on Friday and Saturday. The water was surprisingly warm, so we spent lots of time there. Berke is always happy in the water; we practiced floating on his back and kicking in the water which he possesses much talent.

There were about nine families from our church that attended the big camping event. It was nice to get to hang out with such a fun group of people.

Saturday evening we attended Tanglewood and were privileged to hear the BSO play an all Beethoven concert. It was a really wonderful event; I am so glad it stopped raining so we could attend. Berke had a fun time dancing to the music and running around the grass and looking at peoples candles. He loves bright shining object.

Fun filled family time, loved every second of it.

look a like

I received the BEST compliment this weekend. A friend of a friend told me that I look and sound just like Kristen Wigg. I immediately like this guy, because Kristen Wiig is my FAVORITE. She is such an amazing actress and seriously the funniest cast member on SNL right now.

So what do you think? Have I found my celebrity doppelgänger?

I do believe I have been changed for the better

My job is a difficult one. It is not easy to deal day in and day out with elderly people who are abused, neglected, live in squalor, have severe dementia and being financially exploited. It can really be hard on my mental state much of the time. I have been doing work with the elderly for 3 years now and have found it the most difficult work I have ever done; much more difficult that working with children, young adults, and victims of domestic violence. All these fields are challenging and draining in their own ways however.

I believe what has gotten my through each day of my job is my AMAZING co-workers. What an incredible group of people I am blessed to work with. I am especially close to my "ladies" who have become like my sisters, like family, while I have been out her in Mass. There are four of us, who have a particularly close bond. I love these women so much; each of them has such unique personalities, and they have all made living so far from family so much easier. I have had a difficult time as two of them are leaving the agency for other jobs this month. It is hard for me not to get emotional thinking that I wont get to see and talk with these two on a daily basis. I know we will keep in touch, but I also know thinks will not be the same at work.
Julie's last day was Friday. She is going to practice law at a law firm in Lowell, which I know she will be great. Julie is my "Sassy Sister." I think I have met my match in the Sass department. She is so quick witted and sarcastic; I just cannot get enough of it. She calls me "FRESH" it is a New England term, but I think it translates into "you are incredibly funny." I will miss Julie's humor and smile the very most.

Gloria's last day is this Friday. She is going to be a Supervisor over a home care department much closer to her new home. We have always called Gloria, "Switzerland" because she can remain so neutral and open minded; see all sides of the situation. I know she will be great at her new position. It has been great to see Gloria grow in our two years of working together, she has found the love of her life, got engaged, bought a condo, became vegan and will soon be married. This is one strong woman who has been my go to gal when I am having a good and bad day.
We crazily signed up to run a 1/2 marathon together in November, so we'll be doing lots of chatting about our training I am sure. We will also be doing the triathlon together this September.

Luckily we have an all girls weekend planned in Maine this August, so it wont be long until we are all together again, laughing and carrying on.

Luckily for me, Kelly is still around, so I don't have to feel like an abandoned soul.
I love these women so much. We have cried together, done a lot of laughing together, accomplished goals together and supported each other more than we'll ever realize.
Change is never easy, but always necessary!
Good luck my Sassy Sister and my Swiss Miss!