Will Starts Pre-K!!!

He's seen his sister do "the first day of school" so many times--he was SO excited that it was finally his turn!!!

Brookey Starts 3rd Grade!

She's hardly my baby anymore :(

This year it's a Interior Designer...I wonder what next year will be!

At the first day Mass-she was so excited to be a 3rd grader!

Sarah-15 Months

Our Little Baby is no longer a baby anymore! She's a crazy, walking, talking, screaming, laughing, dancing "little" toddler!

Each my of kids is sooooo different from one another..it's surprising they all came from the same parents! I have my sensitive, mature, art-sy, free spirit (Brooke-most like me although I am not art-sy!). My serious, by-the-book, boy's boy (Will, most like Scott in almost every way possible). And then there's Sarah Marie who is a social butterfly, SUPER smiley, loves, LOVES attention, must-be-in-the-center-of-it-all, kind of kid.I have no idea where this kid came from!! :)

At any rate, she keeps this whole family on our toes and she's such a blessing...no matter how crazy she gets at times!!! She's a typical "toddler"...age 12 months to 3 years and for me, this is the most difficult age. Still in diapers, unable to truly communicate and always on the move!! The good news is, I've been there, done that, so none of this is really surprising.

Here are some milestones/highlights of age 15 Months:

1) She's the little teapot, short and stout: weighs in at 26 1/2 lbs (95th percentile) and 2 feet, 7 inches (only 75th percentile). She's got a giant belly and thunder thighs to boot. She's a big girl :)

2) She loves to eat (obviously). Some faves include Mac and Cheese (ABSOLUTE fave!), peas, bananas, any pasta, taco casserole/beans, Clif Bars and cheese.

3) She's still "allergic" to regular milk so she's on 100% Lactose-Free. She's fine with other dairy, just not milk on it's own.We'll try again in a few months.

4) She's allergic to blueberries.

5) She's most definitely behind the other 2 kids in terms of speech. Both Brooke and Will had many more words under their belt at 15 months. However, she's completely bypassed the "mama" "dada", juvenile baby words and her first words were: Nana (banana), Flower, Fruit and iPad. So although the kid may not say 1,000 words, I'm not worried about her one bit!!

Camping 2013!

Last weekend we did a "trial," one-night camping trip to Point. Reyes. We chose Point Reyes because number one, it was close to home...but also because I only booked 2 months in advance and every campsite in the Western Hemisphere was already booked 9 months ago. I find this crazy!!!

At any rate, we missed camping last year because Sarah was just a few months old, but were eager to get back at it this year. We had no idea how she would be, or how everything would work taking THREE kids camping!!! It worked out brilliantly! We all had so much fun and the worst part of it all was leaving after one night.

We packed a lot into our 24 hours of camping....we started with a trip to Heart's Desire Beach on Tomales Bay. The we set up camp, played at the camp playground, did a scavenger hunt, drove to another beach in Pt. Reyes, made dinner...then the highlight--S'mores and silly stories by the campfire. Sarah went to bed around 8:00--I put her in double-jammies and covered her up with three blankets and the kid did not move ALL  NIGHT. I woke up around 4am and uncovered her and made sure she was still breathing!!

So now that our "trial" run was a success, we all have the itch to go again! I scored a reservation for a long weekend in October at Samuel P. Taylor National Park- in the redwoods of Marin County-one of the best places to camp with kids. I was only able to get a reservation because there was a cancellation AND it was after "summer" was officially over. But in the Bay Area, we know "summer" starts in August and ends in late October :) Next year I'm going to be on the ball and do our real summer reservations 9 months in advance. Better start on that soon :)

Heart's Desire Beach, Tomales Bay

She's a water girl!

Chilly evening at Limantour Beach near Pt. Reyes Station

A good book at the beach

Getting ready for S'mores!

Cheer Camp

Brookey's school offered a cheerleading camp for summer school this year, so she took the class with a few of her friends. They had a blast!! As you can see, the made their own cheer shirts! :)

The group performed their cheers and dance routine for parents which was very cute. Next, they'll get to perform at the school sports rally in the fall and at a high school football game next month!

She loved cheerleading!

Game Face

Buddy started flag football a few weeks ago. It's pure hilarious-ness. These kids are 4 years old and as Scott says, "They don't know the ball from their butt." Translated--football is a difficult game to play at age 4...the kids are out there running around, chasing each other, not knowing what in the world they're doing!! Like I said, HILARIOUS!!!

However, I have to say, the coach is VERY good. VERY patient, but tough on the kids. He doesn't let them get out of line or cut corners. It's been a great experience.

So Scott insisted he play in Vallejo, soooo......Will is pretty much the only "white" kid. There are other kids who a mixed race like he is but he's really the only kid that looks like a white boy. Again, HILARIOUS!!!!! He has 2 friends on the team who we know from church and T-ball, so he's enjoying playing with "his friends." We'll probably continue football into the fall and hopefully by the end of next year he'll know the ball from his....

He's a Vallejo Kid!!!!

Fun in Fresno

Since we had not visited Fresno in roughly 9 months, we decided we were due for a trip down there! The kids had a ball swimming all day long in the 100++ degree heat. We also were able to take a trip to the Zoo and Storyland and the Roeding Park rides--places I went when I was a kid. It was neat to take our kids there!!!!

A trip wouldn't be complete without my Classic Family Kid Pic...one kid screaming, one smiling and one being goofy. Yep, par for the course.

Sarah had fun swimming with Grandpa

Fun at the Zoo

Riding the Merry-go-Round at Roeding Park

They had to cool down in the water-play area!

A Roeding Park trip is not complete without a ride on the train!

2013 Whirwind of Events Recap

The first half of 2013 has been nothing short of a whirlwind of big events and milestones for our family! It's been so busy and of course I am way behind on the blog posts. I will briefly try to catch up and hopefully continue on a more regular posting cycle (no promises, though!!)

2013 Big Rooney Events Recap:

February: Most of Scott's Family flew out for his 40th birthday

March: Will turns 4! We celebrate with a weekend trip to Santa Cruz

April: Brookey's First Communion

May: Sarah turns the Big 1!

May: Sarah's Baptism

June: Our 10th anniversary, vow renewal and we get married (again!) in the Catholic Church

Our 10th Anniversary celebration in Napa

Whew! I'm tired just thinking about how we made it through all of those milestones!! None of this includes working, the kids' special things at school, T-Ball and soccer seasons, my birthday, Mother's Day and everything in between! It was a crazy, but extremely special 6 months. I will cherish the memories from 2013 forever. Recapping all of our big events now that they are over, give me a true sense of all the blessings in our lives. Cheers to a great 2nd half of 2013!!!

Sarah's Baptism

It took a year, several changes and a little stress, but it turned out to be a beautiful, touching ceremony! Now all three kids (and me!) have been baptized by Father Michael (AKA: big guy with the red beard).

Presenting Sarah Marie

This is my favorite picture of the day. She screamed at the water on her head, then gives Father Michael the evil eye! It was classic!

Attempt at the group pic #1

Attempt at the group pic part 2, with Father Michael

Brooke's First Communion

Brooke had her First Communion last weekend and what a special day it was for all of us! She has been preparing all of her 2nd grade year for this big day! We were so proud of her! For 7 years old, she has more knowledge about faith than most adults. It has been wonderful to see everything she is learning in school. Scott and I have definitely grown in our faith as well--just by watching her! It was a great experience we will all remember forever!  

She got to carry up the bread during Mass. The highlight of the ceremony for her!

It was such a beautiful service!!!!

My two handsome boys in their Sunday best

We celebrated in Napa at Bottega after church

I love this pic of my mom and Buddy

Soccer

Brookey and Will both started soccer last week. Buddy is not in a real "league," just a developmental skills class on Friday mornings, no games...thank goodness!! Not sure where we would fit in games for him on Saturdays with T-ball going on, too! Will LOVES soccer. He was completely in his element from the moment his class started. He enjoys T-ball, but there is A LOT of downtime in baseball. Not that conducive to an active 4 year old little boy! Soccer, however....they are constantly running and are active the whole time. He just loved it...and he's pretty good, too if I say so myself!!

This is his game face. He's jersey is authentic with "Rooney" on the back...as in Wayne Rooney, the famous player from the UK :)

The Rooney jersey definitely makes him the most professional looking in the class :)

Brookey is starting a real "competitive" soccer league in the fall. Right now, she's just in a more mellow, 5 on 5 league to get some experience with the game. There is one practice per week and a short one hour game on Saturday morning. She played in her first game last Saturday, without having been to one practice or ever playing soccer before! She did great! And I think she had a lot of fun, too!!

Pregame..where did my little girl go?? I think she's taller than me!

Action Shot!

Go Brookey!!

Easter Faces

Sarah and I had fun with the camera today. I always have an interesting subject with this girl!!

Happy!!

Startled

Mad!!!!!

Her famous "Puffer Fish Face"

Goofy

Curious

Stressed!!!

"Outta Here!!!"