Saturday, August 18, 2012

Big Sister

Norah loves to read to herself, and now she has discovered that Susannah will listen to her read, too!

What a good big sister, entertaining the baby so mommy can get some work done!

Free!


Haircut001, originally uploaded by Chiara and James Hemsley.

JC Penney is giving FREE haircuts to kids for the whole month of August, and since so few things in life are truly free, I decided to take them up on it. Luca was a wild-card--I wasn't sure if he would throw a fit or just sit like a deer in headlights. He chose to sit like a deer in headlights, and sucked on his nuk furiously! Norah was really excited beforehand, but she just sat there looking sad the whole time.

Anyway, Luke's bangs are a little crooked, and there is a piece of hair that I will have to cut in the back of Norah's head, but other than that, not bad for free! :-)

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Herding Cats!

"Norah, go stand over there. Luca, go stand next to your sister. Now hold hands! Now look at mommy. Luca! Luca! Luca! Aghhh!" *click*

Chicago City

The kids and I took a trip to the Shedd Aquarium today and afterward, we took some photos by the lake. They had a great time seeing all the fish, the dolphins, the eels, and then the sailboats!

10 short years

James and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary on August 11! We got a sitter, ditched the kids, and went downtown to a fancy dinner! It does NOT feel like we have been married for 10 years! It's been a great ride, and, 3 kids later, we are still looking for more adventures!

I go zoo!

Luca has been saying "I go zoo ee ion!" (I want to go to the zoo to see the lions!) for a few weeks now. It's been so bleeding hot that we haven't been able to go until last week. We got ourselves there, and it turned out the lions weren't out! Luca still found plenty of cool animals to look at, though!

Kitchen Before, During, and After



Here are some pics of the kitchen before we had the cabinets painted, while we were having the cabinets painted (which took 2.5 days), and then finally when they were finished!  I think they look so much brighter!
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Thursday, August 9, 2012

New Garden!


New Garden002, originally uploaded by Chiara and James Hemsley.

While the parents were here this weekend, we also had a chance to work on our ongoing project, the front garden! James and I made the new path ourselves, and then he dug out all the sod to the right of the path, and then Maria and Chiara planted flowers and mulched the whole thing. What do you think?

A can of worms from the mind of a 5 year old

We were reading a book called “Iris has a virus” today. After the book, Norah started asking questions, which led to more questions, and more questions…
Norah: “How did Iris get the virus?”
Me: She probably ate it or breathed it in.
Norah: “Did she know she was eating the virus?”
Me: No, viruses are really really tiny.
Norah: “How did the virus make her sick?”
Me: It went into her cells in her body and made them not work right. Her body got mad and she got sick.
Norah: “What does a virus look like?”
Me: Here, let me show you (on Google Images).
Norah, upon seeing the virus: “What are those spikey things for?”
Me: those are things that help the virus know where it is, and if there are other viruses around, and when it can start making more viruses.
Norah: “How big is the virus?”
Me: Here, let me show you (an animation found on Google search that shows the relative sizes from a coffee bean to bacteria, to viruses, to proteins, to atoms).
Norah: “How do we breathe viruses in?”
Me: they are so little they can float in the air if someone who has the virus sneezes nearby. You can’t see them they are so tiny!
Norah: “How do we know what they look like?”
Me: Scientists use microscopes to look at them.
Norah: “What’s a microscope?”
Me: Here, let me show you what a microscope looks like (thanks, Google Images!).
Norah: “How does the virus stay under the microscope if it can float in the air?”
Me: Good question! We have slides that we can put tiny things on and cover them up so they can’t move. Here, let me show you (Google Images to the rescue again!).
Norah: “But how do scientists GET the viruses if they are so little and you can’t see them?”
Me: Another good question! They get them from taking some blood from people who are sick, or maybe from someone’s sneezes, or from surfaces like doorknobs, tables, chairs, that people touch. Viruses are everywhere!]
Norah: “Okay, thanks! I’m going to go play now.”



Monday, August 6, 2012

Bathroom Before and After

Chiara's parents came to visit this weekend and while they were here, they helped us update our guest bathroom. Here's a collage of before (top row) and after (bottom row). It looks great in person--what a transformation!

Serious shot


Susannah 2 mos, originally uploaded by Chiara and James Hemsley.

Here's a serious face from Susannah the Serious.

I'm 2 months old!


Susannah 2 mos, originally uploaded by Chiara and James Hemsley.

Name: Susannah
Nicknames: Zu-Zu (daddy), Suzy-Q (mommy), oo-ana (Luca), and Princess Poo-poo (she earned it!)
I like: swinging, taking walks outside, looking at the trees and the sky
I can: hold my head up pretty well, smile, coo, bat at toys (sometimes)
I love: to be held and cuddled!

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Stunt Kite

Vinny took his stunt kite to the beach, and here is James giving it a whirl. As you can see, at this point, the kite was practically flying at sand-level--then he got it to go back up!

Kids in a pit

There is nothing better than digging a big pit at the beach and throwing the kids into it and seeing how long it takes them to get out!

More Beach Time!

Daddy and Norah at the Lake

Nonna and Norah

Susannah doing what Susannah does best:

sleeping!

Luca doing what Luca does best:

moving!

Daddy and baby

JiJi and Norah

Breeana and Susannah

Breeana loves to hold Susannah, and Susannah loves to be held, so they get along great!

Siblings

all three kiddos!

Sisters

Norah and Susannah

Offspring

Here are all the grandkids from the Jasinski side of the family:

L to R: Ivana, Luca, Norah, Freida, Breeana, Susannah, Ethan, Lucia

Together

My brother Marco came from NY to Mi so all five "kids" were together. Of course, cheesy pictures were in order!

Oma and the Grandkids

Here's Oma with some (but not all) of her grandkids! From L to R: Luca, Lucia, Norah, Ethan, Susannah

Weaving

Norah and Ethan learned how a loom works while we were at the Gardens.

Cousins (and friends!)

Norah and Ethan played so well together this summer! They would give each other big hugs when they met, and Norah would always ask me if Ethan would be where they were going. I am glad that they are really starting to be friends. I was always good friends with my cousin James growing up, and he was about 6 months younger than me, too.

Rock Quarry

We went to Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids. They have an AWESOME kids' area, complete with a "rock quarry" (sandbox) where the kids can dig for fossils. Here are Luca and Lucia practicing their digging skills!

Luca the fish

Luca could practically live in the pool if we would let him. He loved swimming and blowing bubbles and jumping and floating and checking the temperature (which was always 85, according to him).

Enough goggles?

Lucia does not particularly like going in the pool, but she sure does love getting geared up for the pool! I count 4 pairs of goggles!

Popsicle twins

Luca and Lucia love popsicles! Popsicles love to drip! Popsicle juice loves to stain clothes!
Therefore, no clothes and a dip in the pool right after these popsicles!

Nonna and Susannah

Susannah was so good at the beach! She just stayed under the umbrellas and relaxed!

JiJi (Jeri) and Nonna

Chillin' at the beach!

Rapt Attention

Here are the kids listening to a lesson from Alessia! Just kidding--she was just sitting there and they are still sitting still because they are still eating.

Lunch for lots of tots!

We brought all these kids (+ Susannah and her cousin Freida in the tent back there) to the beach!

Nicholas and Ivana

Our niece Ivana with her daddy, Nicholas! She is a mischievous (but very cute) little thing!

Love the Beach!

Here's Norah Bear at L. Michigan! I live these "puddle jumpers"--they help parents relax a little and let the kids jump around in the waves!