Do Not Adjust Your Monitor

Ahhhhhhh! Our TV keeps SHRINKING! No, just kidding. But, unfortunately, our old-school 19-inch TV does not have enough AV input-outputs to simultaneously handle our cable box, DVD player, stereo system, etc. So, we have now turned to our super-duper 7-inch portable DVD player to watch DVDs. Poor Katie and Michael were squinting their eyes to watch Belle and Beast this afternoon. They're going to need glasses before they even get to school if this keeps up!

Gobble, Gobble

Eating. A lot. That was basically the theme of our entire Thanksgiving vacation. A conservative estimate would have our family of four putting on a good 20 pounds or so, what with all of the delicious foods that we stuffed into our mouths. Whether gathering for TWO large T-giving feasts with friends/family, eating out at the fine Brockway establishments, or baking some awesome reindeer cookies with Katie (see picture), we were never at a loss for good eats. Of course, we did lots of other great things, too. Thanks to all of those who hosted us and allowed us to catch up with long-lost relatives and friends. And a special thanks to Papa and Grammy for allowing Mike and Traci to slip out and catch the new Harry Potter! Was great to see a movie in the theater and to enjoy some coffee/tea afterwards.

The kids did adore seeing their grandparents, cousins, and other family members. This shot was from our last night in Pennsylvania. Katie stayed up long after her bedtime, enjoying a late night reading session with Papa. You simply can't beat that!!

Thanks, Everybody!

Happy (early) Thanksgiving, everyone!! Since Thursday is the day we give thanks for all of our blessings, we wanted to make sure that we thanked all of YOU! Presumably, if you are keeping up with our blog, you are a special person in our lives. (If not, then you are a creepy stalker. Leave now.) Ahem...anyway, we love posting the ordinary (and not so ordinary) moments in our lives so that we can share them all with you. Thank you all! We'll see you all again after a fun T-giving break!

Now, for an ordinary moment in our life...here's Katie posing with her turkey creation after "Wear Brown to School Day" at preschool. We thought she represented the school spirit rather well, wearing about as much brown as she could.

The Town Drunk

We just can't keep his drinking under control...just look at his embarrassing stagger and stumble! (And if you think this is bad, you should see if we dare to put shoes on him...)

Scrawny Vision

Look, Ma - this thing is PUUUUUUNY! Looks like that is what Michael was trying to tell us when he saw the "new" TV. You see, our ol' 36-inch television which faithfully served us for 10 years finally died today. We were stuck as to what to do until Mike remembered that he still had his 19-inch TV from college. So, now we are living the HIGH life...watching our programs in such huge, crystal-clear detail that you all would be jealous. (Even Katie made fun of the TV, asking why Dora was so small....)

If you have made it this far without laughing at our TV, please do note the large perforated-board cut-out in the entertainment center that fit the old TV. Nothing says C-L-A-S-S-Y like an uneven, cheap cut-out constituting the main focus of your living room!

It's Been Awhile...

Due to various illnesses that ravaged both of our homes, we have not seen our good buddies, the other McGs, for awhile. Katie's bud Connor (3.5 years-old) is doing really well at school, and little sis Madeline (9 months-old) is pulling up to a stand and pointing. It's fun to see these guys hit all of their milestones right along with our kids. We wish they could meet up for their weekly playdates forever...

On another note, we proudly announce that this is CuddyCam's 1000th blog posting!! WOW - it's been a wonderful almost-four years of good stories, laughs, and photos. Let's just hope our kids cooperate enough to last another 1000 posts!

Brainwashing Begins

Traci's diabolical plan to brainwash all of the members of her family into loving the Harry Potter series has begun in earnest. Mike has always shrugged off her suggestions that he read the books, claiming that watching the movies was good enough for him. (As if.) He FINALLY relented this week to a bit more Potter exposure, agreeing to listen to the first book on CD on his hour-long commute. Traci jumped all over that concession and dragged the kids to the library today to pick up the CDs. (Of course, she also let them read their own books in the kids' section, but that's beside the point!) Now, she can't wait to discuss the intricacies of the Sorceror's Stone every night over dinner!!

Between the Lines

My, what a difference a few months make... Whereas Katie used to just scribble when doing any kind of art project, she is now a meticulous freak. She'll spend nearly an hour to color a picture "just so." In particular, she is very careful about staying within the lines (definitely a metaphor for her personality, but that discussion could fill a whole blog entry unto itself....). Here is her latest masterpiece, Beauty and the Purple Beast.

Friends' Thanksgiving 2.0

A big special thanks to friends Ben, Angela, Lyla (almost 4-years-old!), and Anamarie (2.5) for hosting a ton of us last night for their second annual Friends' Thanksgiving. It was a fantastic way to kick off the holiday season. Katie got to play dress-up and run around with a bunch of her buddies. Traci gabbed and ate with some of her closest mom-and-dad friends, including some that traveled from Florida for the occasion! (So nice to catch up, Cristina and John.) Alas, the only down part of the evening was that Mike and Michael had to stay home to continue recuperating. Wouldn't want to spread pink-eye right before Thanksgiving!

Oh, and just to give you an idea of how crazy the party got, here's a shot of Mr. Jim (Patrick & Colleen's daddy) getting pummelled by at least four kids. When it comes to all of these kids, ages 6 and under....well: Boys can definitely be boys, and girls sure know to squeal really loudly.

Captain Underpants?

Nahhhhhh....just another procrastination technique for our dear Katie. If you say the magic words "time to get ready," she can think of a thousands ways to play instead. Today, she decided to pretend she was Santa Claus (hence, the red cape), delivering toys to us in her undies. Not exactly the way I remember good, ol' St. Nick.... We'll see what adventures she takes on us tomorrow!

The Great Outdoors

We are so sick of writing about our illnesses around here that we'll avoid it for the day! Although all is not yet completely well, everybody was in a good enough mood to spend a couple of hours at a neighborhood playground. We can't tell you how great it felt to be outside swinging, climbing, eating dirt (Michael only), and running. We even took some time to build a big pile of leaves to run through, jump in, and eat (again, Michael only).

And, here's proof that the little sickling is on the mend. He was thrilled to be back at a playground. He was squealing so loudly that you could hear his happy voice from all corners of the lot. Like we said, we aren't 100% healed yet, but this is a vast improvement!!

Rockin' to Rocknoceros

Special thanks to Miss Angela, Lyla (almost 4 years!), and Anamarie (2.5 years) for coming over and watching the sickling today!!Traci had to go into Katie's school for a parent-teacher conference, so she had to leave Michael at home to the care of others. Very thankfully for Angela, Michael literally slept the entire time that Traci was gone. (After a week of 20-minute naps, Michael's 3-hour morning nap was a godsend!) Katie had no idea that her buddies were coming over, so it was a great after-school surprise for her. Traci treated everybody to pizza; and then the pretty, pretty girls all rocked out to their favorite band, Rocknoceros!! (Even Michael got a little into the act with his own crawl dance.)

Speaking of Michael, he had great periods of non-sliminess today, but his eyes are almost entirely sealed shut. If they don't improve by tomorrow, off to the doctors we go...AGAIN!

Rocky Balboa

Thanks to all of you who have been asking how Michael is faring. As you can see, the poor, little dude is still in pretty rough shape. Three pediatrician visits, nearly $100 (co-pays, antibiotics, Motrin, etc.), countless tissues, and a week later, he's not doing much better than when we started. Thankfully, the antibiotics seem to be taking care of the double ear infection, so his mood has perked up a little. But, he can't seem to shake the extremely NASTY sinus/upper respiratory thing going on in his head. His eyes are so puffy that we have likened him to a little Rocky Balboa. Hopefully, we can get our crazy happy Michael back soon!

Feisty When Miserable

Sorry that we haven't updated the blog for awhile...it's been a doozy of a week! What started as a seemingly innocent case of pink-eye on Tuesday has turned into one heckava sinus infection for poor, little Michael. The kiddo has been running high fevers since Thursday, and pretty much hasn't stopped crying since then either. He doesn't want to be held, he doesn't want to be put down, he doesn't want to eat or sleep....yep, it's been pretty pleasant around here. And, let's just say that his calm, cool demeanor takes a 180 when he's sick...throwing all kinds of stuff (including his food, pacis, and sippy cups) has become as common as the tears. Thank goodness that Katie has been an angelic big sister, playing by herself, trying to soothe him, and agreeing to long drives which help to calm him down. Sometimes kids just know when to step up to the plate!

Lost in All of the Craziness of the Week...

Oh yeah, did we forget to announce that Michael started walking last week? Ooops!

Sugar High, Anyone?

Halloween Candy Binge + Preschool Day-off - the Limbs of a few Young'uns = Playgroup Pandemonium

(Sorry, Maisie, Oliver, and Maeve!!!)