It Won't Be Long Now!

The countertop is ordered, the lights are on their way and soon we'll be firing up the new dishwasher for her maiden voyage. We have turned the corner ladies and gentlemen and the end really is in sight...

Night Terrors

I'd have to say Chris and I had one of the most unnerving and traumatic evenings that we've ever had as parents a couple of weeks ago. We found ourselves at the emergency room of Sturdy Memorial Hospital with poor little Maeve at 11 PM following a seizure-like episode that shook Chris and I to our cores. With her cries intensifying by the minute accompanied by facial distortion due to the retraction of her lower jaw and an inability to speak clearly, what we thought may have been a seizure has been more or less ruled as an episode of night terrors. I had never heard of a night terror before this experience and quickly learned of the large distinction between a terror versus a nightmare. There is plenty of research and literature available on the subject and most children grow out of them by about age 8 but I wouldn't wish this experience on any family and have my fingers crossed that our little Maeve doesn't have to endure another one. Although she has no recall of the event, it doesn't make the possibility of another night terror more bearable.

Another Bundle of Love

The newest addition to the McNamara clan arrived on 12/4/09 and my greatest apologies to the little guy for not getting this information posted with more immediacy. Welcome Kayin Effie Reid Freeman born to Katie and Olase. Arriving by c-section, he weighed in at 8 lbs., 15 oz. at 8:03 in the morning at Memorial Hospital in Pawtucket. He is loved by all and is thriving in his new environment. Although we don't get to see him as often as we would like, we savor each moment we have with him and look forward to watching him grow.

Listening...we're working on it

So we're now charging head first into the world of Michael as more of a toddler and less of a (dare I say it?) baby. His favorite activity is climbing and his forte? Defiance. For the time being, his belligerence is still amusing Chris and I as you'll see in these two clips. The amusement will surely give way to exasperation in the not too distant future.

Merry Christmas

It IS a magical morning. So magical, that you may feel compelled to finish Santa and Rudolph's leftovers. Go figure.

It's That Time Again

What can I say about this year's phone call to the North Pole? Maeve was basically terrified that Santa was going to address her with any sort of question and she pretty much refused to ask any questions of him on her own. She instead, preferred that I interpret for her. Michael seemed somewhat interested about who was ho-ho-ho-ing on the other end of the phone line and kept checking periodically on the conversation. Despite all of this, Santa did a wonderful job at fielding all of my very important questions and reassured us that he would NOT check on us while we were sleeping and that he really, REALLY would enjoy the eggnog we promised to leave him on Thursday night. Cheers Santa...and your little elf too!

Slowly but Surely

For all of you who are wondering how the new kitchen is progressing (and also those of you who have had to endure my complaints for the last couple of months) here are some random but recent photos which document the evolution...

One of Chris' earliest crusades was the ripping out of the old oven vent and covering up the hole on the outside of the house. The following picture (the best one I could find) shows the vent to the left of the window and the picture after that shows a lack thereof...

Construction of the "cut out" connecting the living room with the new kitchen...

The new french door is in (which we hope will let in more natural light from the breezeway and give the room more character). It was one of our most favorite finds from a really neat place out in Springfield, MA called the ReStore (a tip we received from Jen) which sells salvaged and surplus building materials at super low prices. Final price? $50.00. Nice.

Maeve helps Chris test drive construction on one of the new Ikea cabinets...

Has anyone seen my son?

The walls are dressed and the room begins to look more like a room instead of the absence of a room...