The Mazzarelli's Up North: 07/01/2008

7/6/08

A Day at the Hampden Pool

Our friend Tracy and Addison invited us to pool that they used to go to in Hampden which is about 10 minutes away. The kids were so excited but it took a lot of coaxing to get them to be comfortable. Especially Carlo, he was really nervous despite having had prior swim lessons. The pool is really neat because it has zero entry so it is like the ocean when you get in. It is about 2 inches deep and progressively gets deeper. So Carlo stayed in the shallow part for quite a while. Eventually Sophia warmed up to the idea and was playing with her little swim vest on. Once he saw Addison swimming he tried to go a little deeper and got more comfortable. I was very proud that he tried so hard. After playing we had a picnic outside and let the kids play on the playground.

Sophia floating on the noodles.

Everyone playing in the shallow end. Carlo practicing and Sophia playing with the watering can.

Sophia saying "Look Mama, I swimming!". She is in the shallow part touching the bottom.

7/4/08

Happy 4th of July!

Our 4th of July started out with a pancake breakfast with our friends Tracy, Adam and Addison in Brewer. (Brewer is a town about 5 minutes from us). They had pancakes and sausage with all the trimmings. It was very good and very popular because we waited in line for a while. The weather was great so it wasn't too hot that morning so we didn't mind waiting. Then we were off to the parade in Bangor. Tracy has a shop in town (Metropolitan Soul) so we met them there and planted ourselves on the sidewalk outside her store for the parade. For our first parade it was fun for the kids but it was quite warm in the direct sun. So the kids spent some time in Tracy's shop exploring. Our friend Chrisine did the 3K run that morning as well. After the parade we all went home to rest up for the picnic at our house and the fireworks! I made homemade strawberry shortcake (with the strawberries we picked at the strawberry farm) and homemade key lime pie. On the grill we had ribs (made with homemade pesto crust) and the other traditional grilling stuff. We ended our evening with fireworks but to limit the stress on the kids from the loud bangs we watched them from a field at a local school. The fireworks were short but that was ok for the kids because they started at 9:15 which was way past everyone's bedtime anyway. All in all it was a fun first 4th in Bangor with all of our good friends.

Carlo and Addison at the Pancake Breakfast

The bagpipes at the parade. To watch them play and to hear the music from the bagpipes was amazing.

The kiddos watching the parade.

(McKayla, Allie, Sophia, Hannah and Carlo)

The Brewer Fire Dpt. in the parade.

Sophia at the parade getting into the 4th of July spirit.

"Big Bird" in the parade; Carlo took this great pic!

Everyone enjoying some food at the picnic.

Carlo, Allie and Hannah watching the fireworks " a little closer"

A preview of the fireworks.

The guys (all the dads) watching the fireworks.

Even though it was hot earlier in the day it got much cooler

that night. Everyone all snuggly under the blanket!

Addison and Sophia being silly.

Me and my buddy watching the fireworks (with "Teddy" of course)

7/3/08

Strawberry Picking at Adams Farm

We had been talking about taking the kids strawberry picking for a while and met someone who recommended Adams Farm. Adams Farm is about 15 min from our house and it's a U-Pick strawberry patch. The owners were so nice when we got there. He asked Carlo what he was going to pick at the farm and he said "strawberries!" very excitedly. Then he told Carlo that he'd better taste one to make sure they were good. So of course he did and he said to the man "mmm, they're good". So we got our containers for picking and we were off to do some damage to that strawberry patch. We got there around 9am and had picked 9 quarts by 10 am. The kids did a great job picking and we had minimal unripe strawberries picked by Sophia. I was really suprised at the big, ripe ones she picked! I loved doing this with Carl and the kids, just spending time together in nature was awesome! Our friend Becca and her girls met us there and the kids probably ate as many strawberries as they picked.

Sophia hard at work.

Carlo hard at work.

The kids in the patch.

Me and Sophia showing off our pretty strawberries.

Carlo having a little break. This is what mostly what we saw the kids doing!

6/30/08

The Big Brother Caught in the Act!

Now Carlo and Sophia bring new meaning to sibling rivalry, but they have moments like this that make me smile. I know that sometimes there is alterior motive like " I hope Santa sees me being nice to my sister". It may not always be obvious but the love is always there.

Big brother helping put on boots to go outside and play.

6/21/08

My Little Artists!

It is so cool to see the kids have similar interests. I know that Sophia usually just wants to do what Carlo is doing, but like her brother Sophia is starting to show her artistic side. They both wanted to paint so I got out the fingerpaints and let them go at it. They had so much fun and it kept them busy for about 1/2 an hour. And Carlo is getting so specific about his painting and how it is supposed to look. It is amazing to see a picture through his eyes. He is always so proud of his work whether he colored a page in a coloring book or he had painted something that he wants to express. Sophia is like that too, because she always says "look mama!" with a big smile on her face. I love to see their smile of confidence, it makes me feel like they are going to be amazing grown ups some day!

Sophia not afraid to get her hands dirty for the sake of art!

My little Picasso's

Carlo intent on getting his idea just perfect with the paintbrush.

6/21/08

My Beautiful Peonies!

I have never had such beautiful and fragrant smelling flowers in my yard but these were a surprise to us. Since we moved in October we are just getting to know all the in's and out's of our yard. We found a bush with buds behind the garage about one week prior and we had no idea what it would give us. Well to our surprise they were peonies which have the most amazing fragrance! The pictures do not do them justice because you can't smell the picture! They do not last long, about 1 month so I took advantage of them and allowed them to make my house smell pretty. They are gorgeous to look at too. I can't wait to see them again next year!

6/19/08

The "Little City's Annual Picnic in the Park"

Every year "Little City" (AKA the nickname for the neighborhood we live in) has a picnic in the

park; pot luck style. Christine so bravely took on being the person who coordinates all the "Little City" functions. She did a great job organizing and making sure that everyone had a great time. There were long tables covered with food from everyone in the neighborhood and some donated from local companies. All of our neighbors had blankets or chairs to relax in and everyone seemed to really enjoy getting to know someone they had not met before in the neighborhood.

Sylvia helping Sophia blow bubbles.

Some of our neighbors relaxing with their family and friends.

The Cake from a local grocery store for our picnic.

The table full of goodies!

6/19/08

Addison's 6th Birthday Party

Carlo's friend Addison (he lives across the street) had his birthday party at the local park 2 streets over from us. This is usually where we go if the kids want to play somewhere other than outside our house. He had a Kung Foo Panda party and his mom Tracy made him a Kung Foo Panda pinata. It was really cool looking! The kids had a great time just playing games and enjoying the nice weather. The "Little City Annual Picnic" was after the party so we just hung out for the change of events!