Snow

Olivia loved our first big snow storm of the year. She didn't love all the gear that went with it but I think it was worth it when we got outside.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve we went to Church and exchanged gifts with Megan,Willis,and Logan. We later went to my sisters house for a wonderful dinner, gift exchanging, and our favorite "the hot chocolate bar". The kids had a blast and I think they all got what they asked Santa for. As you can tell by some of the pictures the kids were very excited. Christmas morning we opened stockings and presents and hung out in our pjs all day. Olivia had so much to open that she actually couldn't keep up with it all. Later the family came over and we had a great dinner prepared by Joanie. Thanks Mimi. We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and we look forward to starting the new year happy and healthy.













Even the dog was tired!!!

Welcome Banner

Max( our nephew) got the greatest gift from Santa on Christmas morning- a new puppy named Banner.
He is the most lovable little thing. He is 10 weeks old and Santa has left him in the care of the Ganter family. Take good care of him. Santa's little helper fell in love with him while taking care of him for the 5 days before Christmas.
Welcome to the family Banner!

SHH!!!!!!!

We had to get Presley's puppy crate out for the new arrival of my nephew's "X-mas surprise". Presley could have cared less but I turned around and Olivia climbed right in and made herself at home. Please no-one call child servives. It is not the norm to lock our child up in a crate.
To those of you who don't know the Ganter family- they lost Yukon( a yellow lab) in August. He was 15 years old and the first baby of our family. He will never be forgotten! All Max wants for Christmas is a new puppy. From what I here Santa may deliver. SHH!!!!!!!!!


Yukon 1995-2008

Happy 40th Birthday Todd!

Last night we celebrated Todd's 4oth birthday. We had pizza and of course cake. The cake had a picture of Todd riding a bike when he was little. Very appropriate! Everyone wishes Todd a healthy,happy, and fullfilling year. Happy Birthday Todd! We love you!

Potty Update

Olivia has continued to go potty every night for the last week. To my surprise when I arrived at daycare today to pick her up, her cubby was decorated with streamers and a certificate stating she used the potty at school. How exciting is this?
Ps:She also went "poop" the other night for her daddy but hasn't since. Its sad to say that he saved it to show me. This is what our lives have become . Saving poop and cheering about it. Its probably a good thing he saved it because I don't think I would have believed him..

Oreos

After dinner tonight we decided to give Olivia Oreos for dessert. I think licking the tray of her high-chair is an indication of how she liked them. For all you people who twist their Oreos- add 1 more to the mix. She has twisted them since the first day we gave them to her. Its amazing how they learn at such an early age the RIGHT way to eat an Oreo!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We went to my sister's house and had a fantastic feast! Food, family, and fun-What more could you ask for? Here are a few pics.

Pee Pee in the Potty

Well-
Just when I thought Olivia couldn't get any more smarter she happened to pull off the one task I thought would be the hardest -Pee Pee in the Potty. Last night after her tubby I sat her on her very own "tiny toilet" and sure enough James and I heard the wonderful sound every parent waits for. Also there is light at the end of the tunnel for the sound of money staying in our piggy-banks(the cost of diapers is crazy!). It might have been just a fluke at the tender age of 20 months old but the hope is there. Just had to write it so I didn't forget this wonderful moment.

Table For 1 Please!

Olivia was very excited to get an early Christmas gift from her mimi. She just loves her new table and chairs. James and I set it up in the family room but I think we are going to move it downstairs into her "carpeted" (did I mention carpeted?) playroom. She had discovered if she keeps pushing the chairs in and out it makes a dreadful noise on the wood floors and drives us crazy. Thanks mimi!

Girls vs boys.....

This past weekend we had a visit from Kevin and Laura who live in upstate NY. We were so excited because we havn't seen them in a while. Sat night we got a group of friends to come over and we all sat around drinking wine, eating pizza, and playing Trivia Pursuit 90's Edition. The game was going quite well(women against men of course). The more drinking we all did the more the game got entertaining. Towards the end of the game Matt pulled through with one of the the winning answers of "Emeril", and Kevin won the game with Tickle Me Elmo. It was probably a good thing because at one point Matt rolled a bottlecap thinking it was the dice. It was time for the game to end. The boys had won and the girls were pouting.
PS: Notice the many bottles of wine on the table- Time to restock the wine rack!

And so it continues.......

And so it continues that James is away on business and Presley continues to misbehave by stealing my slippers. In the mean time I went to put the laundry in the washer and came back to find Olivia sneaking into my pocketbook. I have realized that I need 2 pairs of eyes and 4 arms to keep up with my mischevious little girls.

While the daddy is away the dog will play.......

For some odd reason(well its not that odd-we all know who the leader of the pack is in our family) Presley always decides to act out while James is away on business. I was working on the blog and I heard the dog run upstairs(which she never goes up without me) and came back down for me to find her sitting next to me with my sock hanging from her mouth. As annoyed as I am that she does not listen to me I found the situation to be the perfect picture oppurtunity. How can you resist that face? THIS COULD BE MY PROBLEM!

From Pumpkin to Peppermint!

I realized today as I drove through Starbucks that the fall season is coming to an end. I should have realized this when I looked out the window and saw the yard covered in leaves. But I only realized this when I went to order my weekly Pumpkin Spice latte and discoverd that the new item on the menu is" something peppermint". It may take me a while to recover from this one.
Isn't there a place in this world where it is fall all year and it is ok to leave out pumpkins?The piles of leaves in your yard could make nice lawn ornaments. Just a thought!

Joining the Blog World

Hi everyone-
James and I have decided to create a Ruotolo Family Blog. Between this and Facebook I don't know which one I will be more addicted to. We wanted to keep everyone updated especially our family and friends who live so far away. Everyone is so important to us and we hope you enjoy our milestones and mishaps along the way.

Stay Tuned!!!!!!!!