Happy Birthday Kathleen Zara!!

Happy First Birthday to little Kathleen Zara Rock! I can't believe it has been one year already and yet I can't remember not having her around. Although we don't get to see her as much as we would like, we really feel connected through her blog as we watch her grow (Joce is much better at updating her blog - practically everyday!!).

So, happy birthday Baby Girl - know that we love you very much and are so happy to have you as part of our family. Hugs and Kisses! Now go eat some cake to make mommy feel better!!!

Dirt Monsters Dance

I got this video from the library called Dirt Monsters. It is all about construction vehicles at a construction site. To say that Tommy loves it would be an understatement. We watch it at least 6 or 7 times a day. This is the opening song and yes, he dances like this EVERY time.

Happy 16th Birthday Mary Rose!!!

Mary spent her 16th Birthday in New Jersey with us so we wanted to make it as special as possible. Tommy woke her up this morning and instead of saying "Happy Birthday" all he said was "CAKE!" - it was so cute. After dinner, we did cake and Mary got a awesome Hannah Montana card - I think it was her favorite part of the day :) Happy Birthday Mary Rose! We love you very much and are so lucky to have you as such a special part of our lives.

Day Two at the Beach

Here are some pictures of our second visit to the Shore. You may notice the wonderful barrier that Tom's mom made to corral Jack while on the beach. It worked like a charm. It was just fabric and old broom sticks but we had a couple of different people stop to ask where we got it. Good job mom!

Our First Day on the Beach

As mentioned in an earlier post, Tom's parents are in Ocean Grove for July and graciously had us at the house for a couple of days. The boys did surprisingly well and enjoyed themselves immensely. Thank you Gramma and Pop!!

Happy Birthday Aunt Jocelyn!!

I know we are a day late but we wanted to say Happy Birthday to Aunt Jocelyn! I hope you are having fun in England. Give Zara a hug and a kiss from us. We love you!

An update on Tommy

For all of you who haven't heard yet, Tommy did get into the Disabled Preschool Program for this Fall. He will start once he turns three. Tom and I met with his Child Study Team and his teacher today to go over the program specific to Tommy. We were very impressed with all of their observations of Tommy in their assessments. We felt that they really got a good impression of Tommy and understood a lot of what his daily life and struggles are like. His teacher seems very capable and willing to cater to Tommy and his specific needs. We will take Tommy on a couple of classroom visits and a bus ride before he actually starts on September 19. My baby is getting big fast!

As for his Listening Program, we are still trudging along. It is getting a little more difficult to convince Tommy to put the headphones on, but he is being a trooper about it all and does it twice everyday. Tom put together this little backpack so that Tommy can listen outside and move around at will. It was a water backpack that Tom used to use for bike riding so it is small enough for Tommy and has a place for the wire from the headphones (where the water tube used to go) to go into the backpack. It has been a life saver. Only 14 more weeks to go!

The Boys New Room

OK - I know it has been forever since I have updated my blog but time is just slipping away from me. I really don't know where half the summer has gone. Besides, I've stopped trying to keep up with Jocelyn - it's a completely futile effort!!

Tom's parents rented a house in Ocean Grove for the month of July and were gracious enough (and brave enough) to have Jack and Tommy down for the weekend. I took advantage of the time and revamped their room. I painted, put together new beds, new bedding, new curtains, and a new Ikea dresser (enough said! 3-1/2 hours later). It was quite an undertaking and one that I don't ever anticipate doing on my own again. So much for a weekend of relaxation without the kids!! I was lucky enough to have Mary Rose around to help me put up the first coat of the blue and tan paint and assemble one of the new beds.

Just a side note on the bedding - I love it. It took me awhile to find something that I liked that would last longer than a year (I didn't want any characters as the boys like something different every 6 months). It is from www.olivekids.com and is so cute. We chose the "Heros" theme. It is all cotton and is quilted around the characters. It comes with a ton of accessories should we choose to expand the theme. It was a little on the expensive side but well worth it as it should last as long as the boys are in the toddler beds!

There are still a couple of things left to do in the room like hang the curtains, put pictures on the walls and buy a toy chest. We are also going to put a black shelf around the room about a foot down from the ceiling to hold all their knick-knacks.

When all was said and done - I love it!! and so do the boys. Tommy was so excited when he saw his new bed and Jack is doing awesome in his new toddler bed.










































These are the curtains