"But if you want facts, Indy, I've none to give you. At my age, I'm prepared to take a few things on faith. "

So, I have the greatest husband in the world (in case you didn't already think so). Yesterday, at the end of a crazy weekend, he told me we had some errands to do--get the kids ready, etc. I thought we were going to Target; instead, he dropped me off at the 6:20 showing of Indiana Jones. His directions were to eat popcorn and enjoy the break. Did I ever! I loved the new movie, having grown up on Indiana Jones movies. It was like a mini-vacation.

Matty is a wonderful dad, but also an amazing husband. I feel tremendously blessed by our life. So many times people complain about their spouses, kids, etc. I wanted to take a minute to brag. This is my perfect little family--all mini-Matt's.
Amber

"Do no try to get the jar off my head, because it hurts when you pull. Please simply sit next to me and hold my hand, and the jar will soon come off "

The famous wisdom of Winnie the Pooh...this is Zoey with her friends from church. She's really in to holding hands right now--which is just too cute. I love it. On the left is Kaitlyn, also three, and on the right is Alyssa, five.

We went to see a little program about birds at the library today. It was cute. Zoey raised her hand to ask a question--a good one, I might add! I feel like she is all grown up. She's going to break my heart.

Ollie is a cutie, but is having major gas problems which makes him super fussy. I'm going to get some medicine for him today. I hate to see the little guy in pain.

We are going to Famous Dave's for a late lunch/early dinner. I can't wait for sweet tea :)
Amber

"To be in your child's memories tomorrow, be in his life today."

Here is little Ollie, looking to me just like a mini-Matt. I picked the quote for today because we are doing such a crazy thing by having Matty stay home with Ollie, just like he did with Zoey. It is a huge sacrifice to give up the money Matty could make working full time; however, when I come home and I have such a happy baby, money doesn't amount to much. Matty can actually make Ollie laugh--I haven't been able to yet.

It is an unusual undertaking--Ollie, like Zoey, will only be taken care of by family, and only Matty or me until he is walking. I look at Zoey and how amazing she is and know that it is worth it. Again though, people tend to devalue the experience but maybe that is simple because most people don't choose it. Moreover, I am so proud of Matty because he is still managing to do his work at the Sun, freelance (he just got a WNY Family article on co-sleeping), and keep our house in relative order. It is amazing to be married to such a great guy. We are a good team.

I guess some people may wonder why I am writing this. I've been really doing some soul searching about the concept of family lately, and I've come to realize a few things:

1) just showing up is a big deal--Chris may not always want to babysit Zoey at 7:15, but she puts on her game face every day. She always makes it seem like it is her pleasure to watch Zoey.
2) families are chaotic, but synergy is amazing when we are all working towards something
3) kids pick up on everything
4) it may not take a village (sorry, I hate Hillary), but I'd say it takes a tribe--my family, my church, the library playgroups, my friends, etc. all impact how our children will turn out
5) if you blink, you'll miss something
6) establishing a "history" is so exciting!
7) a little goes a long way--my sister, Sissy, emailed Zoey a little note yesterday and Zoey printed it out an showed everyone

With that being said, Zoey and I are going to make spaghetti and meatballs for dinner. (Funny thing--we call Ollie our little meatball since he is getting his cute little round face)

Amber

"My father was my best friend. . ."

Ok, so I know I am supposed to be jaded by the overexposure of Tim Russert's funeral, wake, etc. But, I am not. In fact, I watched a whole memorial service on tv this afternoon. It's really weird, my fascination with Tim Russert. Obviously the Buffalo connection is there, but there is more. I guess it comes down to this: how many sons can really say, "My father was my best friend" and mean it the way that Luke Russert appeared to today? I don't think many can. I hope that one day Oliver feels that way about Matty. The tie between parents and children is so curious. Sometimes it is a life line and sometimes it is a noose. Clearly, Luke Russert meant what he said and that amazed me. He also inherited the gift of Tim Russert--the awww shucks down home boy rhetoric, tinged though with a deep understanding of people and politics. I loved his speech at the memorial because the twinkle was in his eye, like his dad's. He made clever jokes--which sounds tacky--but it really was a tribute to just how cool a kid Tim Russert raised. He talked about a "Special Edition" of "Meet the Press " and paired up some really interesting head to head debates for Tim Russert to moderate. It is hard to describe, but it really stood out to me--as both a parent and a teacher. I hope that my kids could be so eloquent and gracious.

Anyway, that is all. I'm surprised how much this is holding me captive. I wonder if the new FMS insurance has enough shrink visits on it to figure that one out? :)

Amber

"Someone tooted...and I guess it must have been me."

Aaah . . . the innocence of being Zoey. At Toddler Time tonight, right before the class started, Zoey "tooted" loud and clear. The teacher made a joke, saying "There must be a frog in here." Zoey, ever ready to take credit for ANYTHING, says, "Someone tooted. . . and I guess it must have been me." She's kind of my hero right now. She laughs, and everyone laughed with her--not at her.

In the excitement of having a new baby, it's easy to overlook just how cool Zoey is. She's my little buddy and she expresses herself in ways (not tooting necessarily) that I aspire to. Easy to love, wildly emotional, and ready to share herself. It is a wonderful thing to watch her believe that the world is so delightful, so magical, that every morning is a an adventure for her to explore. I foster this, the best I know how, and dread the day she isn't thrilled to exist. After a sort of crappy day yesterday--no particular reason--I made the comment to Matty that my day hadn't been so good. Zoey shared whatever she was snacking on and said, "This will make your day perfect." And it did.

Amber

"My best friend will be there. . . and that will make it really fun."

Ollie "just chillin" at the picnic. He's 9 weeks old. At his checkup, he was 12 lbs. 3 oz. and in the 97 percintile for height.

Today was the father's day picnic at church. Zoey whispered the quote of the day to me on the way out of her nursery classroom. I could sense the excitement that she and Kaitlyn (in the picture with her) had decided to be "best friends." It choked me up for some reason; perhaps because friendships become so much more complicated ! When I asked her how she knew that Kaitlyn was her best friend, she said, "Because we hold hands and laugh together." Sounds like a good definition to me.

"It's crazy...what his wife laid out for dinner is still in their refrigerator."

Tim Russert was a Buffalo icon; to the Chandlers, he was a person to admire. Matty took Zoey to meet him a few years ago and today I am especially sad. He was a "good guy" and there's a lot to be said for that. Matty said the quote of the day. It gave me chills. Pray for his family.
Amber

I am returning this otherwise good typing paper to you because someone has printed gibberish all over it and put your name at the top."

Well, I am surviving being back at school. It is going much better than I had anticipated. There are weird parts--like pumping at school--but overall, everything has been awesome. My team is great, my students are happy to have me back, and Matty has been awesome at home with the kids.

My quote is in response to the chaos of doing writing workshop with 7th graders. There are pretty much two types: "My paper is already good, so what can I possibly have to do" and "I'm not good at writing, so I don't know how to do anything else." The portfolio is a nice way to end the year, but I felt like I was going to go crazy explaining that there is always room for improvement!

Matty and I are doing the two ships passing in the night thing right now. He goes in to write when I get home. However, when he gets home I have the kids asleep and we get to hang out. The rest of the week though is a bit hectic. Tomorrow night we'll be at church for Heather Hilkey's birthday party until 9ish. Thursday night Matty has a softball game in Wolcottville (wherever that is!) and we'll get home around 9:30. No wonder Zoey isn't on a schedule! We are breaking Ollie in to the Chandler way of doing things, and he is doing great so far.

I found out today that I got the summer school job at the high school--two sections of 10th grade and 1 section of 8th grade. I'll make a good amount of money doing that; now my entire Trocaire check will go to our vacation to Maine/New Hampshire. Matty booked the room last night. We are going to stay in Dover--Matty's home town. We'll be there the week of August 18th--just in case any of my NH friends are reading this.

Tonight is Toddler Time and the much awaited PJ Party. Now that Zoey is three, she can go to a second program that starts right after Toddler Time. I'm going to read Monster (the book being recommended for the 10th grade for summer school). I wonder what I should do with the 8th graders? I'll have to ask around and see what teachers have already done.

Gotta run. Don't you love the picture of Zoey and Ollie!?