Williamsport = The Best Place on Earth.

The game was won in the final inning by the team from Georgia. One kid on the team from Washington State had the worst day of his young life, I suspect. We'll call him Brad Lidge. He was called on to relieve the starter in the final inning of the game. The starter, we'll call him Cliff Lee, had pitched incredibly - giving up one run through 5 and scattering about 6 hits. Little Lee opened the 6th inning with a walk and the manager immediately called for his closer. In comes the twelve year old Brad Lidge. He has a one run lead. The score is Washington 2, Georgia 1. There is a runner on first. Nobody is out. His job is to preserve the lead... and the win for his team. Lidge proceeds to throw three consecutive wild pitches - advancing the runner from first to second... second to third... and lastly third to home. Tie game. There were some intermittent hits and walks after this and, frankly, I can't remember how the go ahead run came in but the top of the 6th ended with Washington being down 3-2, having given up the lead, with only one more set of at bats to try to win the game... or go home. Young Lidge, for all intents and purposes, had lost the final elimination game for his team. He was visibly upset. But there was hope...

In the bottom of the 6th, Georgia brought in their closer - we'll call him Lee Smith. The kid was GIGANTIC! Like - I wouldn't be able to make contact off of this little leaguer. Anyway, in true baseball fashion, Lidge was given the opportunity to redeem himself in the bottom of the inning. There were two outs, the tying run on third - the winning run in scoring position on second base. This was when mighty Lidge comes to the plate. Redemption time. After several blistering fastballs, the count runs to 3-2 and the brave young kid fouls off, what seems like, 20 pitches. At this point Lee Smith is bringing nothing but heat. It's sheer power vs. skill. Lidge keeps fouling off pitches... he's staying alive. Battling. Finally - Smith reaches back for something special and blows a high hard one right past a swinging Lidge. The Georgia team erupts in celebration while young Lidge throws his bat and helmet and cowers into the dugout - where his coach embraces him and tells him, surely, not to cry for they have had a great season.

My dad, the boys, and I all piled into the car yesterday to venture 3 hours into the mountains in order to catch a glimpse of the Little League World Series - happening in Williamsport, PA.


Well, it's official. The LLWS has officially topped my list of fun things to do with the kids. If you like baseball, if you like free and fun places to take the kids, and if you like climbing up to the top of a hillside only to slide down headfirst on a cardboard box - then this event is for you. (The one draw back is that beer is not permitted. I know... I know... you CAN watch baseball without drinking beer - but it isn't quite the same.)



After exiting Interstate 80, the drive to Williamsport winds you through the Appalachain Mountains and, at moments, looks down upon the Susquehanna river below. We passed several card shops and fresh produce stands along the scenic drive. This is little town America through and through. Upon arrival, there are two stadiums - Volunteer Stadium and Lamade Stadium - that are connected by an awesome concourse including food stands, picnic tables, souvenir shops, and sunflower seed stands (SWEET!). Games were scheduled at 12pm, 2pm, 4pm, 6pm, and 8pm.

We got there just after the 2pm game started. We peered through the gate, hoping to find five vacant seats in the packed Volunteer Stadium to no avail. As we were standing there gawking at the Latin American team taking on Japan, Orel Hershiser breezed by us. It happened so quickly that I barely had a chance to tell the kids who he was. "HOLY CRAP! THAT WAS OREL HERSHISER, KIDS," I told them. "Who?" "You have so much to learn, children." Orel had just grabbed a hot dog, it appeared, and was heading back into the Press Box. So cool.

We finally settled in on the hills beyond the right field fence at Lamade Stadium. We figured that we could grab a drink, find some cardboard (for the hill), and wait for the 4pm game to start. The best way to describe the atmosphere there is like a folk festival. Lawn chairs littered the hillsides beyond the outfield fence and the smell of grilled hot dogs and hamburgers filled the air. The kids behind us stretched out a blanket and displayed their impressive collection of baseball pins that they had diligently collected throughout the week here in Williamsport.

The kids met new friends, slid down the hills, and talked about pins and baseball cards, while my dad and I sat back and enjoyed America's pastime being played by twelve year old boys from all over the world on a field in rural Pennsylvania - where 15 thousand baseball fans flocked to see them, cheered, and ate grilled hot dogs while they watched... and longed for a cold beer.

Rain... it breaks stuff

My parents and I took the boys to the Harrisburg Senators game on Thursday while Geana took Ella and Anna to a doctor's appointment and then got their nails done.


There are two things that I enjoy photographing more than anything else... the kids... and baseball. When the two things intersect, I thoroughly enjoy the task of snapping away photo after photo. I took this picture as we got there and uploaded it to twitpic right away... good thing I did.

When we got to the ballpark it was about 85 degrees, and rising, with 99.9% humidity. By the third inning we had spilled one large Sprite, realized that we forgot our sunblock, and went to the potty 3 separate times. (As an aside - Metro Bank Park still uses old school urinals. The last time I saw these were in Cleveland's Municipal Stadium in 1988. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about - instead of individual white porcelain urinals - they have a single stainless steel trough that runs the length of the bathroom wall. Guys have to claim their spot, unzip, and just let her rip. No privacy. No shame. No nonsense. The boys thought this was great! Upon seeing the trough, James said, "Dad - what is this? Do you take a bath in there?" Ummmm.... no.)

The kids were miserable... like "end of the world" kind of miserable. At one point we went to the ATM machine, which was in a small air conditioned kiosk, and James said, "Dad - this is the best part of the whole trip so far!" We stayed in the kiosk until an old lady came up behind us and we had to vacate the premises. I think she thought we were robbing the machine.

Then... the skies opened up in the 7th inning. It poured. And poured. And poured. Then it let up for a second... and then it poured again. We were soaked. Before the rain started, it was up to 90 degrees and the rain was a welcome relief. I've never stayed in my seats during that type of rain at a ballgame. They were still playing and we were the only people in the seats. The first baseman for the Curve, Jason Delaney, felt sorry for us and gave us their warm-up ball after they were done and starting the bottom of the 7th. Here is Sammy and my Dad in the rain with the ball. The large streaks in the picture are the rain drops pelting down from the sky.

Eventually the umps delayed the game and we left. I took a hundred awesome pics - most before the rain came. When I went to upload them to the computer, it didn't work. Likely because the rain got the camera wet. The pictures above came from my phone that I sent to facebook or twitpic. My phone died, too. As we speak it is sitting in a bag of rice - still trying to dry out. Please keep my phone in your thoughts and prayers... UGH. I learned a valuable lesson this week - STOP TAKING PICTURES WHEN IT RAINS, MORON!

Other than the phone breaking (the camera works again), we had an awesome time. Minor League baseball with the kids is so much fun! I recommend it for anyone with kids. It's actually more entertaining than the big leagues, because of the close proximity to the players and the fun games in between innings. Sammy caught a t-shirt, too.

Beat It

One of my fondest memories as a child was dancing to Michael Jackson's Thriller Album at one of my childhood birthday parties (probably about age 6 or 7) at my old house in Pleasant Hills. It was barely dusk. We'd been partying all day and Thiller must have been a recent release. (Playing with my cousins on the weekends still sits as the BEST thing about my childhood - particularly during football season. This event happened to be in the summertime... but I digress.) Anyway - our backyard had a patio that sat right near the house and looked upward to a hillside, sloping gradually up to a plateau at about five feet. On that evening, my cousins and I decided to use that plateau as a stage and do crazy monster dances to Thriller, Billy Jean, and Beat It.

Last night Geana and I took all of the kids to Glenolden's fireworks display. They had been postponed from earlier in the year and this was the make-up date. While we were waiting for it to get dark, the DJ was playing a lot of songs from the Thriller Album and MJ's Beat It came on. I caught myself thinking back to my childhood where - at about this same age - at about the same time of night - at about the same time of year, 24 years ago, - I was doing crazy dances to this very song with the children closest to me in my life. I don't really know what took me there - it just kinda happened. I watched the kids dancing and couldn't help but think of them in 24 years. What would they be doing? Who would they be with? Would Michael Jackson still be played at events like this?

After a bit of reflection, I immediately pulled out my camera and started to capture the kids dancing and laughing together. This was the video of Ella, James, and Robby that I got... once again Robby steals the show.

"Bow Chika Wow Wow"

Aunt Melissa & Uncle Justin got the quadruplets and Mommy Roku for their birthdays. I can already tell you that this thing is going to change our lives - especially when it gets too cold to go outdoors. It's a device that connects to Amazon.com's video rentals and to Netflix. You just log on through Roku and virtually any video that you want shows up on your TV within seconds. It's phenominal!

We started the day at Sammy's Gailic Football tournament but left after his first game because of the unbearable heat. After briefly stopping at home base, we were going to head out to the pool - but it quickly turned into a lazy day where we cleaned the house and played in the backyard instead. After playing in the sprinkler for about 30 seconds and having a mega fight about it, we decided to watch a movie with the new device. Cool A/C was the solution to today's heat.

We've decided that, until we watch our first 4 movies, we will rotate the movie selection process through the Morris Quadruplets until we've all picked one. Today was James' turn to pick the movie. After about a half an hour of browsing through movies online, he chose "Bow Chika Wow Wow" - or as most people call the movie "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang." (Gotta love my kids!)

James and Robby didn't make it through the first 30 minutes without climbing all over everyone and decided that "Bow Chika Wow Wow" wasn't really that great of a movie afterall. I was asleep after about 20 minutes b/c, I too, have never really enjoyed this classic flick.

Although our first attempt at watching a family movie together via Roku failed (somewhat - Mommy, Anna, Ella, & Sammy are still watching) I'm sure that we'll be watching many more movies in the future.

Any movie suggestions for tomorrow?

Birthday Presents

Today is the quads birthday - and it's also Geana's birthday. She wrote this earlier in the week and I thought I'd share it with you today. Happy Birthday to my lovely wife... and to my four crazy quadruplets.

By Geana Morris:

OMG – were you freaking out when they told you, you were having QUADRUPLETS!?

Do you want the real answer? Or, the answer I give people on the street because I know it is what they want to hear?

Street: OMG, YES. I was totally freaking out. I was like, OH MY GAWD - WHAT AM I GOING TO DO?

Real: No. Strangely enough, this weird sort of calm came over me. Anyone who knew me pre-quadruplets could tell you I am not a calm sort of person. But, when faced with the overwhelming truth of something incomprehensible, my body went into this calming mode that even I can’t explain.

As my four are turning five, it is causing a nostalgic moment in which I look back and ponder wistfully at the last five years of my life. Where did the time go? The last time I looked, I had 4 babies and now I have 4 soon-to-be kindergarteners. What’s the deal with that?

As a biological defense mechanism (I suppose) my body has forgotten some of the story re: pre-birth and birth of my quadruplets. Fortunately, I have a Discovery Health show from which my most vivid recollections come. I do remember bits, like feeding time when I would line the kids up and use my homemade bowl contraption to feed them sort of like an assembly line and singing (to the tune of Down by the Station),

Up in the bedroom, early in the morning
See the little babies all in a row.
See the little Mommy feed the little babies
Chug, chug, toot, toot, off we go

I didn’t know what to expect. I knew I would need 4 cribs, lots of bottles, formula, diapers, etc. But other than that, there really wasn’t anything to prepare for prior to bringing them home. I was fortunate to find an organization called Mothers of SuperTwins (MOST). There I joined a group specifically for Quads, Quints and Sextuplet parents. The group and reading lots of books, gave me some sense of what I would need and some decisions I would need to make along the way. Like, RSV – I had no idea what that was prior to having premature babies. But I was ready for the visitors when my babies came home.

In addition to MOST, I found Mainline MOMs. The only group of people who don’t refer to me as “the quad mom” – well, most of the time. It’s a place I could go to and be Geana Morris. I am a mother to quadruplets, therefore I get the adjective. But there, I was just a mother like the rest who had too many kids and not enough hands. Albeit, I had 8 (10 really) hands, but who’s counting. This group of women didn’t let me drown alone. They forced themselves on me because they knew if they didn’t I would’ve tried to go it alone. No – they didn’t force help like bombarding and taking over babies, etc. They forced me to get out, laugh, talk, and think about other things at a time when I could’ve just vanished into a haze of babies and all of their stuff.

Oh, and the baby nurse, Rye. I had no idea who she was. Really, an online friend gave me her info and in a desperate moment when the quads were 6 months old, I called her. She came over, took pity on me and within two weeks scheduled the babies and forced me to get dressed EVERY day. That was a hard task – not the scheduling, she had that under control in ONE day. It was the dressing thing… I had no clothes! Rye saved me and my marriage. The quads still got to bed at 7:30 every night. Everyone says “Oh…. You must have gotten no sleep for the past 4 years” I definitely play into it when it will get me some sympathy, but truthfully, from 6 months old the quads slept from 7:30pm to 7:30am EVERY NIGHT. We got more sleep then singleton parents who rock their babies to sleep and refuse to put them in bed awake letting them fall asleep on their own. Suckers! (jk – not suckers, just ill advised)

Between then and now, it is all a blur. In fact, I often come to tears when looking at photos from the last 4-5 years. I have a vivid memory of Robby pushing himself up to sit and turning around to look at me (is it a true memory or Memorex – I’ll have to go watch the shows to figure it out). I especially love the clip of Ella trying to walk at Theraplay and falling back on her bum (thanks D.H. for thinking that was worth seeing). Otherwise, my heart breaks at the memories that couldn’t be stored in this over-worked brain of mine.

I do remember lots of hugs and kisses. Sheesh – I can’t get out the door without hugging and kissing everyone. I will need to remember that and plan accordingly once I start working again. I know my kids yell, because I yell. I am trying to work on that. I do as well with not yelling as I do with dieting. Every morning I wake up and it is going to be the day I do everything right…. Usually by 10am I’ve yelled and eaten the wrong things! Some day. Some day.

I’m gearing up for the first day of Kindergarten. I can’t tell if I will be emotional or not – you know, it’s been a long five years. Will I fill up at the thought of my babies growing up? Or, at the thought of how the heck did I just do what I did? Remember, in the beginning I had no idea – I still don’t. I was looking at my sister’s 14-year old twins tonight and thinking – HOLY GOD, what am I going to do with 4 of those!? No, I think I will be filling up because they survived me. Regardless of how I messed up or yelled or wanted to be anywhere but here at times, they survived. I don’t know about you, but I know there were days when the sun came up and I thought “how can I do this again?” Thinking, this cycle never stops – day after day, after day – this is hard and I’m tired – this isn’t glamorous and if one more person rushes over wide-eyed and gushing I will scream. They survived homework and tantrums. Meetings. Boredom. Because sheesh – there were times when I was bored to death. I love them and all, but hey I loved working in town and going out to lunch and taking showers and buying clothes and talking to people too. Yea… they survived me.

So, instead of all that, I give the street answer:

OMG, YES. I was totally freaking out. I was like, OH MY GAWD - WHAT AM I GOING TO DO?

Happy 5th birthday to Robby, James, Anna & Ella – the best birthday presents ever!

1 Year Ago

Exactly one year ago, yesterday, was the worst day of my life. If you are new to this blog, our family endured emergency brain surgery to Sammy (our oldest) at about 6:15 in the evening, followed by a devastating house fire at about 9:15pm - from which our friend and Geana's sister safely evacuated all four of our three year-old quadruplets as well as their own two children (cousin Justin is in the pic above). Sammy was hospitalized for a week and we were out of our house for about 4 months as it was cleaned and rebuilt. As I reflect back on those memories, I can't help but be grateful for each member of my wonderful family. We could have easily lost all of our children on August 1, 2008.

Sammy:
Thank you for being so sensitive. I know that I get on you at times for not being "tough" enough and for not sticking up to your little brothers when they gang up on you. I know you can do it and just choose not to. When I really sit back and think about it... I'm glad that you are so caring of the others around you. That deep rooted quality within your being will set you apart from almost everyone else as you grow up. I urge you to not let go of that piece of you as you get older and to let it be the foundation of who you become and share it with everyone who gets close to you. It makes you incredibly special. I love you. Thank you, also, for you increased interest in baseball this past year.

James:
You're always trying to make people laugh around you and I see the delight in your eyes when you achieve your goal. Sometimes you cross the line to inappropriateness (is that a word), but as you get older and learn how to navigate that line and make people laugh without talking about poop and butts (sometimes it still works), you'll become even more funny and make me laugh even more as time passes. Thank you, also, for allowing me to link back to a poop joke in this post.

Robby:
You're brilliant. Your mother and I know it. Sometimes, though, your brilliance is lost in your strives to gain our attention. I'm sorry for that. Please know that we can see past your misbehavior and occasional craziness into the bright, smart, and intelligent little boy that you have become. I will strive to give you the attention that you need in order to help bring out the incredible little boy that lives within you. Thank you, also, for all of your help while I've been in my cast. You've done everything that I ask of you - even taking out the trash at the ripe old age of four years old.

Anna:
You are so caring of your brothers and sister as well as your Mom and Dad. You constantly are doing things to make your siblings laugh - usually so that they stop crying. You're wonderfully wacky and I can see the creativity that bubbles within you. You're also hot and cold, my dear. When someone crosses you (even if it's me) you aren't afraid to show me how you feel. But then your crooked smile lights up my eyes and your dimples pierce my heart. You are my grandmother - Gram Morris - through and through. Thank you for living up to the nickname, "Drama" that I gave you when you were a weeeee little baby.


Ella:
You may have the smallest body in the family but you have the biggest mouth. I can hear you as I walk up the street, walking home from work. You're usually yelling at Robby and James or calling for your Mommy. Fortunately for those around you, your hugs are as big as your mouth. Honestly - I've never felt a hug from someone that is so strong and complete as when you give me a hug. Your fake kisses, as you lick my cheek, are wonderful, too! You fill my heart and every one's who comes around you. Thank you, also, for learning to snore so loudly that you wake me up in the morning when you come into Mommy & Daddy's bed.

Geana:
We've been through a lot this year and, though it all, we've remained together. Sometimes that's simply enough when the stress gets so great that you don't know what to do and don't know where you can turn. I'm looking forward to a new year with a little less brain surgery, some fewer house fires, and a little more time for the two of us... together. Oh yeah - and congratulations on your Master's Degree that you just finished in July. You did it - despite all of the stress and craziness!

Did Ya Ever Fall in Love Again?

WARNING: SAPPY POST!
(you've been warned)

Have you ever caught yourself looking at one of your kids and just melting inside? That happened to me tonight with James. It was shortly after Robby had created World War III with Anna and Ella by taunting them with his new Aunt Monica (harmonica). And it was just before Ella threw a fit worthy of an Oscar because she wanted a hug from Mommy before bed.

I had just kissed his skinned knee and told him that it would be okay and he just looked at me and said, "Daddy - I really love you." It was one of those moments when you feel utterly responsible for this little life that is in front of you. It was completely unprompted and he didn't want anything from me in return. (That's often a game my kids play... I want a cookie therefore - Daddy, I love you... now gimme a cookie, man.) I'm not sure why it got to me - perhaps because he caught me unaware at a moment when I was able to give him my undivided attention. He looked at me with his glasses on the tip of his nose and just said it.


I remember a specific time in the NICU, holding James and trying to get him to take a bottle (this was before they learned how to suck.) I thought to myself, "I'm so lucky to be able to hold this little guy in my arms and be able to look around and see three other babies just waiting for their turn. I'm never going to be short of love in my life."



Today he proved it. I love you too, buddy!

Sunday Podcast

I have decided to record a podcast every Sunday (we'll see how good I do.) I'd like to do a podcast from wherever we plan to go with the kids on that day but so far I've been a chicken sh@t and have been afraid to whip out my laptop and headset microphone at the pool or at a party. One of these days I'll do it... But for now - listen to Robby, James, and I discuss our day and play four awesome tunes for your commute into work tomorrow. Enjoy!

Quadcast # 20 - Starring Robby, James, & Daddy!

“Street Corner Preacher” by Amos Lee
www.amoslee.com

“Trees” by Kingsfoil
www.kingsfoil.com

“Computer” by State Shirt
www.stateshirt.com

“Hot Balloon” by 100 Year Picnic
www.100yearpicnic.com

You can subscribe to the podcast by going into itunes and searching for The Quadcast. There are two podcasts by this name but you should be able to figure out which one is mine.

My Conversation With God

Me: Good afternoon - this is Kurt.

Geana: Yes - GOD?

Me: Ummm... ok.

Geana: Yeah - God... Robby just peed outside on the driveway.

Me: What? Are you kidding me?

Geana: And God, he won't say he's sorry.

Me: Was it an accident?

Geana: Even more than that, God, he said he's going to do it again when I'm not looking.

Me: What's going on? Robby peed outside, he's not sorry, and he is going to do it again? What happened? What's going on?

Geana: Robby - talk to God. He wants to know what's going on.

(Robby in the background): Mommy - God knows what's going on all the time! I don't have to tell him.

Me: Don't put him on the phone... my door is open.

Geana: Hey Rob - God can't talk to you right now. He's too busy. Also - he's pretty upset. You'd better say your sorry before it starts to thunder and lightning.

Me: Ugh... let me talk to him.

Geana: Looks like he freed up, Rob. God will speak to you now.

Me: No - I'm going to talk to him as ME!

Geana: Oops Robby - sounds like someone called him on the other line. God put me on hold.

Me: Geana - purgatory sucks, huh?

Geana: Shut-up.

Robby: YOU CAN'T TELL GOD TO SHUT-UP!

Geana: Don't tell me what to tell God.

Robby: But you can't tell God to shut-up, Mom, that's not nice. And he's GOD!

Geana: Not nice is peeing on my driveway.

Me: Ugh. Let me talk to him.

Geana: Here Robby. He's on the phone.

Robby: God?

Me (in deep godly voice): Yeess Rooobbbyyy. It is me... God.

Robby: I'm sorry my Mommy told you to shut-up.

Me: That's okay. She didn't mean it. I forgive her. Everyone sins... some more than others.

Robby (to Geana): He forgives you, Mom.

Me: Now - did you pee on the driveway?

Robby: Yes.

Me (trying to be super Godly): WWWHHYYYYY?

Robby: The devil made me do it.

Me: What did he say?

Robby: He said, "Rob - go outside and pee on the driveway."

Me: You'd think the devil could be more creative, huh?

Robby: I know. I think it was James in dress-up, really. I'll ask him. JAMES - I'm talking to God. He wants to know if you were dressed up like the devil and told me to pee on the driveway.

James: Can I talk to Santa?

Robby: No - I'm talking to God right now and he's really busy. Mommy already told him to shut-up.

James: But I want to talk to Santa.

Robby: God - is Santa there?

Me (as me): Robby - stop peeing on the driveway. Ok?

Robby: (silence)

Me: Robby?

Robby: Dad - I didn't know you worked for God.

Me: We all work for God, Rob. Now don't pee on the driveway again.

Robby: Where's God?

Me: He left.

Robby: Ok. Mommy - I think Daddy killed God.


Ok - so 95% of this conversation is made up. Geana did call me and pretend I was God after Robby peed outside - but when I started trying to recall the conversation my imagination kinda took over.

Like Crack... only worse.

The kids went to the Dentist yesterday and he told James that he needs to stop sucking his thumb. Needless to say - today has been a pleasure.

Today has consisted of James yelling, screaming, kicking, throwing fits, and taking out his thumb-sucking addiction detox on his brothers and sisters (as well as his parents).

The Doc suggested we put Tabasco Sauce on his thumbs and create a sticker chart. We've done both but the poor kid can't seem to get right. I'm ready for him to break out in a cold sweat and start convulsing and foaming at the mouth. Hopefully it won't get to that point.

Alone Time

One of the things that I'm realizing I miss a lot about the quads is the opportunity to have short, individual moments with each one. In a way - because there are so many of them - we miss a lot of their individual moments and realizations simply because we are trying to spend time with each of them. For example - Ella peed in her bed last night and came running into our room - all wet. I cleaned her up, pulled off her pajamas, threw one of my t-shirts onto her and brought her into bed with us. She's so small and cute. As we were laying in bed, she kept putting her little arm around me to give me a hug. (We never fell asleep because of Mommy's snoring).

On the other hand, I'm sitting in the playroom with Robby and James and we're playing with our computers. They with their toy laptops and me with my real one. They are talking with one another and having entire conversations and interactions. People with just one kid (or with kids at different ages) miss out on this unique aspect of having multiples. Here was a conversation that was just had about the toy computers and the toy kitchen in the playroom:

R: Maybe the laptop can fit in the dishwasher.
J: Don't put it in the dishwasher.
R: Why?
J: Because.
R: Go play with your digger.
J: Ok.
J (to Daddy): Robby's putting the laptop in the dishwasher and I think it should go in the refrigerator.

It's a delicate balance that we try to achieve around here. Having special one on one moments and then encouraging them to interact with each other and play together.

Fun times.

Decorating for Christmas

First of all - Geana and I have been dreading the decorating this season. The quads are three and the boys will wreck any and everything that gets in their way. What's the point of decorating if all of your decorations are going to get destroyed??

As you may know - we got our Christmas Tree two weekends ago and not decorate it when we got it home because the Steelers were playing a big game against the Patriots and we had to give our undivided attention to Big Ben and Fast Willie at 4:15 sharp. So - our tree has been sitting in our living room for a week... naked (except for the Terrible Towel that I hung from one branch but promptly removed after the game.) This weekend, the plan was to decorate the tree. Geana stayed up at her sister's on Friday night so I cleaned up the house (after I watched my alma mater win the PA Class AAA State Football Championship on PCN!) I broke out the decorations on Saturday morning, awaiting her return. The kids were psyched! They couldn't wait for Mommy to get home and for us to start decorating. Well.... turns out Daddy made a slight miscalculation - we weren't decorating until SUNDAY! Oops.

Needless to say - the kids were quite miffed - so James took it upon himself to do a little decorating all alone. I put a bottle of nail polish on the steps as I was cleaning the night before (to take up the next trip up). I had completely forgotten it was there and in all of the celebration of the Jags winning the States I seem to have left it there. Oops again... While we were in the kitchen getting ready for the day, James grabbed the bottle, opened it up, and started painting our couch. When I caught him, he said in the most innocent of voices, "I was just decoratin' for Christmas - Daddy." Grrr..... Every mistake that I had made in the past two days was brought to fruition with his painting of the couch. I promised decorating today - wrong. I left the polish on the steps - wrong. I wasn't paying attention to who was in the kitchen while we were getting dressed - wrong. And now I had a wonderful PURPLE couch to show for it.

Sometimes things just don't go your way.

A Day With The Kids

Geana is in Bedford, PA today, attending the Mother's of Multiples State Board Meeting. This means that, all across the state of Pennsylvania, there are multiples hanging out with their father's today. Below is a chronicle of our day:

5:30 - Mommy woke up and left.

8:30 - Daddy woke up with Anna, Ella, and Robby (James and Sammy are visiting Aunt Roe)

9:00 - Arrive at Dancing School with the three kids. That's right - we were up at 8:30 and out the door by 8:50. I'm accepting "Father of The Year" votes now. Hey - just three kids is cake.

10:00 - Invade the local Dunkin' Donuts and gobble down wee fistfuls of munchkins.

10:30 - Get home from Dunkin' Donuts and use the potty for the first time today. Whew! I was livin' on the edge this morning. Potential disaster averted...

10:45 - Clean for about an hour while the kids watch Dora and Johnny & The Sprites.

12:00 - James gets home with G-Mom but Sammy stays with Aunt Roe and Justin to go to the movies. G-Mom leaves and we play dress-up until nap time at 1:00. We devoured a bag of pretzels and I showed the kids how to lick their fingers and eat the salt at the bottom of the bag.

1:00 - Nap Time

That's where we are right now. We're either going to the Zoo or to Chuck E. Cheese this afternoon, I think. It depends on the weather and my ambition once they wake up. I will blog the rest when I get back.


UPDATE - 5:55pm

We ended up venturing out to Chuck E. Cheese. I made the mistake of thinking that a Saturday afternoon at 4pm wouldn't be very crowded. WRONG! I knew that there would be some people there, but there were enough people there to make you think the Pope was speaking or something. PLUS - about 25% of the games didn't work. Literally. I'm not a complainer but I was contemplating talking to the manager. It's hard enough to take 4 kids there, but having to test every game started getting annoying. I'm too tired to list all that was broken - but it was a lot!

4:00 - Arrive a Chuck's.

4:01 - Realize I've made an error in judgment about the number of people that go to Chuck E. Cheese on a Saturday in November.

5:00 - Leave Chuck's with two spiders, two dinosaurs, and two hair clips - courtesy of our 76 tickets.

6:00 - Dinner

6:30 - Mommy Home

7:00 - BED!

Is it too early for Christmas??

I have always thought that you can't even begin to think about Christmas until after Thanksgiving. I have a feeling that the holidays have arrived for our family...

James is dressing as Santa for Halloween this year and is planning on bringing presents to all of the houses he visits (in exchange for candy, of course). He asked us to put on Christmas music in the van tonight, and we did. I have to tell ya - it was nice hearing the Christmas tunes and having he kids sing along. Anna, Ella, Robby, and Sammy all fell asleep on our way home, but not James. He was wide awake, his eyes glimmering with the thoughts of Santa Claus and Christmas Eve. The excitement was palpable. He can't wait.

I know that part of his excitement is for Halloween. He hasn't stopped talking about Santa for the past several weeks. He's been asking questions, making plans, and getting all of his ducks in a row so that he is completely prepared for the big day. In essence - he's making a list and checking it twice. I feel like Halloween is a trial run for him to play the part of Santa so that he can see what it is like from Santa's perspective. That way he knows how the big man thinks, what he expects, and how he does it. If successful, he can use that knowledge for his benefit come 12/25. Maybe he's sucking up to Santa. Maybe he thinks that if he dresses up as Santa then he is more likely to get better stuff than his 4 siblings.

Whatever the motive, he's been as cute as can be. It's going to be a fun Christmas over here in Morrisville.

Back to Poop

Not to belabor the talk about poop, but we spent the day at Linvilla Orchards today with 6 kids (Justin was with us again) - 3 of them had diarea. I'm not sure what we were thinking...

Of course - nobody had to go when we asked before we left the house. Once we got into the van, though, the story changed. We stopped once at Aunt Lisa's house, on our way to the orchard, so that Anna could poop. She went up to the bathroom and couldn't go - so we continued on our way. A few minutes later, we were forced to pull into a Sunoco but someone else seemed to have the same problem as Anna and was occupying the only restroom for 10 minutes - before we finally gave up and left...

We got to Linvilla and took everyone to the crapper. Mind you - it was 85+ degrees out, humid, and it was the busiest weekend of the year. The makeshift bathrooms at the farm were... ripe, to say the least.

Anna pooped. James peed and convinced us that he didn't have to poop. Robby told me that he'll poop tomorrow. All other kids were in and out with no issues.

About 15 minutes later we were at the playground and Robby, on the very top of a slide, gave me a look that seemed to say - WHAT JUST HAPPENED - THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A FART!? I climbed up the slide, picked him up, and shuffled him to the bathroom. BTW - I'm sorry to all of the little children that I pushed away in an effort to get my kid.

Poop ran down his leg as we waited in line to use one of the 2 stalls at the bathroom.

Once we got in there, we decided that his underwear was unsalvageable and tossed that in the trash can. (The place smelled atrocious already so I didn't feel badly about contributing to the stench.) I cleaned his shorts as best I could and we put them back on and went on our way... commando.

As we were vacating the bathroom we ran into Mommy who was in line for the ladies outhouse. That line was much longer than the men's so I took James into the same stall that I just left with Robby. (Everyone in the bathroom who just saw me leave assumed I was coming back for more with the same kid and let me through to the front of the line - little did they know that this was James... NOT Robby... hehe.) James unloaded into the porcelain trough below and is the success story for the day. We left in under 60 seconds flat.

Back to the playground.

Robby - in the bowels of a large wooden pirate ship at this point (with lots of other little children who are wondering where that fowl odor is coming from) is having the time of his life. He's back to normal - playing and living the dream.

All of a sudden he looks over at me with a look of questioning in his eye. It isn't the same look as earlier. It was if he had learned that sometimes a fart isn't just a fart and he was trying to determine what to do. I asked him if he had to go and he said, "I think so." We rushed to the bathroom, in time for this one, and had another bout of the runs for the next 15 minutes.

After this - we left. I had enough and wanted to get to more familiar and friendly ground. Geana agreed. We went to Aunt Lisa's and didn't poop once in the 2 or 3 hours that we were there... go figure.

As far as the public restrooms count goes I'm up to about 30 of the public restrooms in Philly with only about 330,202 left to go.

L-E-T-T-E-R-S to the kids.

I've been reading a lot of "Daddy" blogs recently and I have to say - I've been inspired! Something clicked in my head as I was reading some of these blogs which makes a lot of sense to me - BB&B will eventually be an archive of words and experiences and thoughts that my kids can read at an older age. Imagine that - at 18 years old, a door is opened into your past containing words, comments, and letters from your Dad for almost your entire existence. That seems pretty cool to me.

One particular post by Baby Daddy was particularly inspiring to me and has made me decide to add a weekly "Letter to the Kids" on Fridays. My plan is to write a letter to one of the kids each Friday. I'll plan to rotate kids, but I want this letter to be to a single child, rather than to the group. The individual time that I get to spend with each one is pretty important to me (and them), so I'd like to make this an individual thing, rather than a group thing. Anyway - here's the first letter...

Dear James,

You started school the other day, buddy! I'm so proud of you. You have no idea what it is like to come home from work and hear you talk about Mrs. Tomasetti and Mrs. Brown without me even asking. It's awesome! I'm extra proud of you because I see how much you love going to school, and how much you look forward to it since you've set foot in the classroom on the orientation day. Your little eyes light up like Christmas bulbs (the big ones, not the small ones) and your words move at a mile a minute when you talk about your first two days. Keep it up, man. School can be lots of fun but eventually it will become work, too. My advice - master the fun stuff 'cause it's not gonna last forever. Paint the bear, investigate the toy kitchen, kick the ball... there is always time for work later. I'm proud of you, kiddo! I love you.

Love,

Daddy