Sometimes it takes a child....

...to make you realize how you really feel.

I tucked the best kids in the world into bed tonight for the last time in at least a really long time. I have been babysitting Katie, Henry, Joseph and Andrew since Katie and Henry were 8 months old, and Joseph and Andrew were 3 1/2 years old. Needless to say, I will miss them... a lot. These four kids continuously make me smile, laugh, and feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It is impossible to not fall in love with these kids. Its true, they have me wrapped around their little fingers.

Its true, Joseph and Andrew are now cool 7 year olds who around any other people won't show me any affection. I get it, they're going into 2nd grade! You can't act like you like girls in 2nd grade :) But tonight, they both gave me hugs, told me they'd miss me, and told me they'd love me. I don't try to cuddle with them, because I most certainly don't want to embarrass them! But its nice when I get a moment to just talk to Andrew or Joseph when they're not around anyone else because they tell me what they're excited about. They have things they want to tell me and want to brag about, they just want to make sure no one else is looking. I also think I've gained points over the years because I have a slight knowledge of Star Wars, Bakugan, Pokeman and other boy things! Watch out when these boys get to High School Mike and Elena... they will be breaking hearts and setting records for their sports teams!

Over the years I've spent a little more time with Katie and Henry because of so many "9-1" mornings when the boys were in school. I remember when I first started, they couldn't walk yet, and I'd go upstairs to get them from naps and have to carry them downstairs one in each arm. If I wasn't good at multi-tasking before watching Katie and Henry I'm amazing now! I will never forget how they loved Avacado, and watching them move from sitting, to crawling, to standing, to running.... to swinging on the swings, swimming in the pool, and chasing after their brothers during keep-away in the backyard. These two still love to cuddle with me, still give me hugs no matter whos watching, and still have their little kid laughs that make you smile no matter what mood you're in.

These kids are family to me. They were at our wedding, and make me smile when I saw them walking down the aisle. They have made me a part of their life and have become a part of mine. I've always felt comfortable, welcomed and trusted by Mike and Elena which totally allows me to relax and love their kids the best I can. I will miss them all immensely, and you can bet when we come home to visit we'll be stopping by to see my kids :)

SURPRISE!!!

Monday evening, Steve and I were planning to have dinner with Christy and Josh. 6:45, spaghetti, their place. Classic hanging out with the Mitchells meal. We were pumped to spend time with them, and a little sad that it would be our last hang out for a while. We got to their house, walked inside, and Christy told us to head outside because Josh decided to grille instead. We opened the curtain and sitting in front of us were like 30 of our close friends. My jaw dropped, my natural reaction was to smile and laugh, and Steve because incredibly calm like he normally does. We were SHOCKED!!!!!!!! We were planning to have a going away party on Thursday (last night) that we had given a guest list to Stace and Kristen for, and were asking people if they knew abot it! All the while.... everyone had pulled the wool over our eyes and switched the party day, location and everything to really shock the heck out of us. So many people we love were there, it was amazing. My parents even came up from Columbus!!! Needless to say, we felt sooo loved. There was good fun, good laughter, cornhole, convos, so many people we weren't expecting, and it was unbelievable!!!

If that wasn't enough... Tuesday evening, our friend Brian cooked an amazing meal for us. Complete with fresh tomatoes and mozzarella, cantaloupe with prosciutto ham draped over it, home-made gnocchi with mushrooms, prosciutto, and peas, and flank steak. WONDERFUL. And we sat down and had this amazing dinner with Comer, Beau, Josher, Stace and Zig-Man. Talk about a fun wonderful night.

Still more... my mom came up Wednesday evening and helped kick off packing up our apartment. Over 24 hours we packed up our ENTIRE kitchen It may not seem like we got a lot done, but my parents are awesome packers, I'm not, and having my mom help with the kitchen of all things was wonderful. It was so great to spend the time with her, and be able to get a huge chunk of packing out of the way.

There are still more dinners to come, and time to spend with friends, as well as packing to be done and final arrangements to be made. But either way, this week has been wonderful, we have enjoyed all of our time with friends and family and while it is impossibly sad to be moving away from everyone and I will eventually cry a lot, for now, we are having so much fun making all of these memories this week.

Our friends and family are the best. Hands down.

SYTYCD

In case you don't watch So You Think You Can Dance... you're seriously missing out. And you don't even have to love dance. A piece last night (see video #1) danced by Melissa and Ade, and choreographed by Tyce Diorio was the most amazing thing ever. It is about a friend of Tyce's who is currently battling Breast Cancer and it was impossible to keep from crying while watching it. Especially when thinking about my mom.

This is a show that not only teaches about dance and inspires so many to dance for the first time, keep dancing, or come back to dance. It also speaks to issues in our world today. This season, Addiction was also touched on (video #2). Choreographed by my favorite choreographer ever, Mia Michaels, and danced by Kayla and Kupono. Video #3 is one of my favorite of the season, also by Mia Michaels (go figure), danced by Randi and Evan, and is about nothing else by Randi's butt! Its just a fun, incredibly original piece. After that is a piece from this week by Laurieann Gibson, danced by Jeanine and Brandon about love and being soldiers in war. Jeanine and Brandon are amazing and I couldn't help putting it in. Lastly... is my favorite dance of all time on this show. Season 3, danced by Lacey and Neil, and - sorry - choreographed by Mia again. This one is about Mia losing her dad to cancer and meeting him in heaven. It is simply amazing.

In any case... watch one video, watch all 5, but I just had to express my love for dance, and the amazingness of this show. If there was one thing from my past that I desperately wish I still did, it is dance, easily. Anyway, enjoy!

Having fun....

I've been re-vamping the ol' blog the past couple days. See if you can spot all the changes!

Also... summer is glorious and I could spend every day I babysit in the pool with kids. WOOT!

“For weddings and a funeral.” Pt. 2

Trait '08 Wedding - Steve was in it, I was Kait's lackey for the day :)

Our wedding!! Come on, just try and tell me we're not cute!!

In contrast to my last post, I am also an expert wedding goer. My large family and friend base has provided me multiple opportunities a year to perfect my wedding etiquette.

This year is a slow year for me. Besides our wedding in January, we currently only have 2 weddings to attend. Over the last three years, I have added an extra couple weddings each year on account of photographing them. In stark contrast to attending funerals, I quite enjoy attending weddings. I love seeing THE DRESS, the color palette, the table details, the ceremony structure, the bridal party outfits, the jewelry, the food, the dancing… etc. I love it. I think if I weren’t in Art Education I would have potential to be a wedding planner. Maybe I’ll attempt it at some point in my life! Of course I was more than excited to plan our own wedding; I loved every minute of the planning and the day itself. (Okay, maybe I wasn’t a huge fan of stuffing and sending invitations, or doing the seating chart…) Either way, if you want to invite someone to your wedding who will provide pure excitement, I’m your girl!

I have been to my variety of weddings as well… catholic mass, non-denominational, inside in a church, hotel, and building, outside at a conservatory and camp, afternoon start, and evening start…etc. I’ve even watched a live streaming video of a cousin’s wedding in Las Vegas. I’m ready for just about any wedding situation you can throw at me.

I know which outfits are my wedding outfits… which mainly consist of dresses, but occasionally I’ll throw a skirt or two in. I have tricks to make sure my dresses stay comfortable all day as well. I have the heels I can stay in all day and night which work equally well for sitting in a pew and dancing the night away. I have certain gifts I usually go for on the registry, and have some gift ideas stowed away in case I need to create something on my own.

Steve and I have even started a game in which we try to predict different things throughout the night – Wedding Betting! For instance… guessing if 1 Corinthians 13, Genesis, or Ephesians will be read during the ceremony. Other categories include but are not limited to… food served at the reception, first dance song, and getaway car. It’s a fun game, I suggest you play with us or play it on your own when you attend weddings!

Whatever the case may be… We do a good job of having fun at weddings. I’ll never be the sloppy drunk friend at your wedding, but I’ll toast a few to you. I may not dance to every song, but I dance til my heart is content. I won’t object during the ceremony, but I may shed a tear or two. And I may not always be sitting in the front few pews, but wherever I sit I’ll sit with my wedding knowledge in hand next to my support for your marriage. Let me know if you need anything.

“For weddings and a funeral.” Pt. 1

This week, I have realized how bittersweet it is that I have so many people in my family and that we are so close. The great part, is that we have a bunch of weddings to go to, and babies being born. The bitter is that we also end up attending a lot of funerals.

Steve and I went to a funeral today for my Great Uncle Dick. He was a cool man, very, very sweet and kind hearted, and just a cute old guy. It was incredibly sudden. He was in great health, had survived colon cancer, didn’t have heart problems, and spent time regularly at the yacht club and with his grandkids. Last Saturday, he tripped on a dock and fell into the water. When he got out of the water, he said his stomach felt weird. After heading to the ER, they found out he had a stomach aneurysm, and immediately he underwent emergency surgery, which he came through with flying colors. Tuesday, he had a massive heart attack and never regained consciousness. Thursday morning at 4am he passed away. My Aunt Zoe – his wife – is the cutest little lady, she’s super tiny and super hilarious, and now, super shocked. Their daughter Sharon altered my wedding dress and added the red sash to it. And Sharon’s kids were the two who participated in Beau’s magic show at our wedding to give some of you a little context. The silver lining to the funeral? Steve and I got to see a lot of my family members who will be at the Lester Family reunion we can’t make it to at the end of the month.

In a way, I sometimes feel as if I am a professional at weddings and funerals. In 2005, I went to a funeral every month, March, April, and May. The first was my Uncle Bob who was my dad’s best friend of 35 years, and it was impossible to get through and still gets me teary eyed when thinking about it – including now. April was my Great Uncle Harvey – my dad’s uncle – who was the closest I ever came to knowing my Grandpa DeGroff. Grandpa passed away before Nate was born and my dad always told us that if we wanted to know our Grandpa a little, we should really pay attention to our Uncle Harv. May was my Uncle Jim’s mom. My parents knew her, and Nate and I didn’t really, but mom and I went to support them as they do for us every funeral.

There are some that are impossible to get through – my Grandpa, Uncle Bob, Cousin Jerry – and some that while I loved the relative, I almost feel jaded by all of the funerals I’ve been to and may or may not cry at the actual funeral. And then there are those that we go to in support of the friends and family that have supported us at tough funerals along the way.

I know what is appropriate to wear and what isn’t. I know that I could never walk into a funeral home wearing jeans and flip-flops (though some of my extended, extended family doesn’t…) no matter whom it’s for. I know to always grab a tissue before I sit down in a seat in case my waterworks begin without notice. I know to sign the book, grab the funeral card, and look over all the pictures. I know to stand in line and greet people when it’s a relative very close to me, I know when to go grab water for my friends and relatives who have been greeting people all day and just need a break, and I know when to move along in the greeting line so as not to hold a friend or relative up too long from greeting others.

I know all of the etiquette and protocol for funerals, but I sure wish I could let all my knowledge retire for at least one full calendar year. Nevertheless… I am grateful to have a large family who we are close to.

Eventually....

Dear Blogger-

Its not that I've abandoned you. Its just that my summer job doesn't permit me to be on the computer all the time like subbing did. I promise I'll come back to you soon, once I get time to breathe. I've got a couple ideas for you, I really do! Honestly, I'm surprised Stacy hasn't started harassing me about the fact that I haven't posted anything for a while. Oh - but I will post a few cute pictures of Zig-Face, because I was lucky enough to take a lot of pictures of him and his cute family in his first few days in our world. And he rocks - so here you go. Meet Ziggie Thomas Pietrocini!

Love you blogger... I'll write something more meaningful soon!

Cute cute cute kid!

Hey Movie Star picture...

Look how tiny he is!!

Three men and a baby.

Zig's reaction "WHOA, there's a lot going on right now"

Oh come on, we're cute together.

Hannah is super proud of her little baby brother!

Typical... glad I caught this moment :)

Simmmmmmmbaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!