My babies!

He LOVES to eat!

Blowing bubbles

Sweetest smile!

Waving to Daddy!

Eating again!

Cookie time!

Yum!

What a surprise!  He likes it!

He melts me....

Kids...

Building Museum, D.C

Grandma Myrna!

Grandma Myrna and D

4 Eyes!

B&O Railroad Museum- Baltimore

Playground at Railroad Museum

Train ride...we had to do that a few times!

Little Italy

New Bike Seat!  

Joy

Olivia just started her second semester at Northern Virginia Community College.  She also got a new job as a hostess at Champps Restaurant.  So far, she loves it.  She wants to earn a degree in Sonography and do ultrasounds for pregnancies.  She is still so young so time will tell if she changes her mind but for now, I think it's a great goal!  I am just happy to have her home...and hope she stays for a LONG time!

DeAndre had his second scrimmage today as a Varsity player.  He caught a pass and proceeded to score a touchdown.  He is so talented and we are so excited to watch him progress as a person and athlete.  He has been spending a good amount of time with his girlfriend Katie.  Olivia and I make sure that he is a gentleman.  So far, so good!

Rocco is almost three and talking a mile a minute.  He has the cutest little face and the spunkiest personality.  What a joy he is!  The other day he said, "Como estas Mommy?"  He is super smart and has an amazing memory.  We built a fort in the basement and he summoned me in it to tell me a story by flashlight.  It went like this.  "Once upon a time in a land far, far away there was an eagle.  His name was Choncho and he was a big boy like DeAndre.  The End. "  Best story I ever heard!  Rocco is starting preschool in about 3 weeks.  He is excited and I am not.  I will probably sit in the parking lot crying for the first month.  

Roman has recently starting walking.  He is 11 months and I can't believe that this little angel boy has been mine for a year!  He is so peaceful and sweet.  He literally breaks my heart daily with his sweet smile and big, slobbery open-mouthed kisses.   I melt at the sight of him and want to keep him safe and happy every second of his life.  He LOVES food!  He tries everything and snubs all baby food.  He is ready for the big boy stuff!  His chubby limbs and face are testaments to his munching habits.

Matt and I are exhausted and yearning for peace at the end of most days but we are keenly aware of our blessings and aim to take nothing for granted.  We remain fiercely dedicated to these four beautiful people that fill our days with laughter, love and unending joy.

Brain in overdrive

Ok, here's the thing with me.  I am constantly trying to figure things out. Make some peace with the world that I find so disturbing on so many levels.  I need a philosophical chat session...I have heard and read from religious sources that education and intellect can block the heart from feeling faith and hope.  But that offends me because I know that my heart is not blocked and that it is what drives my internal conflicts.  It is my concern for the suffering and the oppressed that directs my inquiries and my desire for answers.  It is distressing for me to read on the news that a mother in Somalia watched her baby starve to death and had to bury it on the side of the road.  It breaks me down...and it makes me angry.  Why isn't the world in an uproar?  Especially a religious world that claims to believe in the tenets of love and charity.  I know that some people are doing something.  I wish I could do more...but the philosophical question remains...why?   I talked to a friend about this question and she said, there can't be a why, it just is and that is all that makes sense because if there is a why then I don't want to know that God. (that is paraphrased) But the point is there and what she said resonated with me.  I have heard people say, I don't know why but I believe that the reason will be revealed to me....  I guess it's easy to say that when it isn't you suffering.  So, why are certain prayers answered and not others?  Why do some get an answer to a simple question of should I take this job or that one but a mom begging for food to feed her starving child gets nothing and watches it die in her arms.  Is it not arrogant to think that "God" is so concerned with your petty request...?  If I prayed I could certainly NOT pray for myself...so today this is where I am.  We are born and we are here and the circumstances we find ourselves in are pure chance, there is no such thing as luck or fate or predestination...ours paths are directed by our choices and we just have to do the best we can.  Amen.