Summer's Coming!

Sorry that the posts have been slow in coming. In addition to not having a lot of leisure time anymore, there have been some technical difficulties making it hard to post pictures.
Matthew and Thomas are doing great. They both love school and have made many friends. Having been home just over 3 months, it's amazing all they have learned. They figured out pretty early on that it was useless trying to communicate with Mama and Papa in Ukrainian, so they have been picking up English very quickly. In fact, they even speak English to each other. Since Thomas is so young and his language skills were not as fully developed, he seems to really be taking off with his English. We can't help but be taken aback when he says things like "Look at that, over there" or "You found it!". When we were leaving a party a couple of weekends ago, Matthew said to one of the other guests, "Nice to meet you."

The boys thoroughly enjoyed the Memorial Day holiday and Matthew keeps talking about how he will be marching in a parade one day soon and will be sure to throw lots of candy our way. Other big news in our house is that Mama returned to work this week, part-time. After 16 weeks of family leave, it felt good to get back to a bit of my former life. It's great seeing all my friends and colleagues at Aetna again, too.

Cinco de Mayo

Matthew and Thomas enjoying a little Mexican fiesta. You should have heard the two Ukrainians correcting each other on the proper way to pronounce "quesadilla".

Many of our friends have inquired about how the four-legged members of the family have adjusted to life with the two boys. Do they look terribly stressed out? Other than an occasional cameo appearance, the cats prefer to keep some distance from Matthew and Thomas.

Matthew hasn't let numerous spills discourage him from riding, but he would probably benefit from more protective gear. If only we could find some leathers in a size 5T.

Fun at the Fire Department

Happy May Day everyone...workers of the world unite!!! It's an eastern Europe (and some colleges) thing. A few weeks back, the boys took a field trip to the Middletown Fire Dept. There, they were greeted by Firefighter Steven Beeler and given a tour and souvenirs. Thomas fell from a truck and later hit his head on a pipe fitting. Matthew just wanted to take the trucks. Both boys want to be firefighters and love to see fire trucks.


Firefighter Steve and the boys in front of their truck.

Matthew and thomas attempting to commandeer the tower truck.

Thomas wishes this rig had adjustable pedals.

The boys and firefighter Steve. Yes ladies, firefighter Steve is available!

THAT'S ALL FOLKS...for now

Swing Time

If you've been in our neighborhood lately, you've noticed a new structure has been erected. Just in time for Spring vacation, we have a beautiful new swing set in the backyard. No, it's not the crew from Extreme Home Makeovers. Our family pitched in to get the project wrapped up in a weekend.

Kaitlin and Matthew break for ice cream during construction.

Finished! Just in time for cousin Gina's arrival on Sunday afternoon. She spent a few days of her Spring vacation with us and was a great help with the boys.

Matthew likes a good push, so he can get some altitude.

Hope everyone is enjoying this great weather. Come back soon, Gina. We miss you!

Smiling Faces

This week has marked yet another milestone in Kelly World. Thomas started school on Monday. He attends Joni's Childcare and Pre-School three days a week. Yesterday was filled with excitement and emotion as Thomas headed out, lunchbox in hand, for his first day at school. There were lots of tears and a bad case of separation anxiety ... but, enough about Mama. Thomas did great. He was happy to return for Day 2 today, and even stayed into the afternoon. Big brother Matthew has been a great source of moral support.

And if Thomas starting school wasn't stressful enough (breathe, Mama) we also had to face Papa's first business trip since the boys came home. We all managed fine, though. There was a lot of talk about airplanes leading up to it, using Matthew's U.S.A. map placemat as a visual aid, and that seemed to help.

We had fun on Friday night when our good friend, Kathy, came for pizza and ice cream. An avid tennis player, she equipped the boys with new racquets and tennis balls. Expect to see them on the local courts soon.

Matthew takes Karate two days a week after school. If you're lucky, he'll offer you a quick demo, like this one on the couch.

Can't resist closing without another look at our Man of the Week, Thomas. We are so proud of him. As he says when Mama picks him up from school, "Lublu" (Ukrainian for "love"). Lublu, Thomas. Lublu.

Easter Blessings

It was quite a weekend for the Kelly's. After much anticipation, Matthew and Thomas were Baptized at the Easter Vigil Mass on Saturday night. Considering the service was about 2 hours long, and started at the boys' normal bedtime, they did pretty good. Thomas, of course, was his usual talkative self. His ramblings started early. Before the service began, all the lights were turned off and the entire Church was quite and still. From the back of the Church, one believer rose to his feet and in a voice full of conviction cried out "I got to go pee-pee!". He never really quieted down for the rest of the service. Since we know that he was calling out to the Holy Spirit, though, we can't get upset about it. Matthew did great, even when the water was poured over his head. By the end of the Mass, though, he was flat on his back and fast asleep on the seat. Thomas was still running around talking.



Breakfast of Champions - despite the late night Saturday, the boys were up early and Mama and Papa found them in the kitchen, rifling through what the Easter Bunny had brought in their baskets.

Easter Sunday was a day to spend with family. The boys enjoyed the playground at Papa's elementary school in East Lyme with Aunt Barbara, Jessica and Babuschka. What a bonus ... we even make a quick trip to the beach. Matthew and Jessica take in the sea air and sunshine.
Papa explains to Thomas that it was clear enough to see Long Island.

March Madness

Hard to believe another week is ending. We've been keeping pretty busy around here. Last weekend, we had a great visit from the boys' Aunt Barbara and cousins Ryan and Jessica. We went to a birthday party for Kaitlin (the boys love those!) and played on our neighbor Kelly's swing-set. St. Patrick's Day is always a major holiday for our families and the boys are just as into it. Matthew made a couple of art projects in school, in keeping with the theme, and they both enjoyed several meals of corned beef and cabbage. Mama even got to go out with the girls that night. Thank goodness for my Book Club. You ladies are the best!!!

This Saturday, Matthew and Thomas will be baptized at the Easter Vigil. Our pastor approached us with the idea and, the more we thought about it, we decided it would be a very special way to celebrate all the new beginnings in the boys' lives. They both got haircuts yesterday, to be sure they are looking their best.

Otherwise, it's been a pretty typical week around here. Matthew loves school and begins going full time next week. Thomas keeps busy with the library, gym, etc. Papa bought him a pair of sneakers, so he can really cover a lot of ground now.

Our warmest wishes to all for a very Happy Easter!

Matthew, the Ukrainian Leprechaun.

We had a great time with the Starks last weekend. From left, Ryan, Barbara, Jessica and Matthew.
Richard, Thomas' sylist, did a great job with "snip-snip" yesterday. He gives good candy, too.