The Balow Boys!!!!

Welcome, welcome, welcome to the Balow Boys! My friend, Adrienne, forwarded me some recent pictures of her boys, Aidan and Keegan. Aidan is 2, almost 3, and Keegan is 6 months. The pictures were just too cute to not put on the blog. They are some good lookin' boys.

Watch out....we're bikin' fools!

Since William has learned to ride his bike without training wheels, I decided I needed a bike to ride around camp. I also decided we needed to put a cocoon/baby rider on the back for Paulie.

My bike arrived and we assembled it and I took my first ride over the weekend. For my test ride I decided to ride the bike without Paulie....GOOD decision on my part. Um, a little someone who will remain unnamed decided that he needed to cut right in front of Mommy and hit her front tire with his rear tire. Well, needless to say there was a bit of a CRASH and Mommy went DOWN! Good thing it was just Mommy and not Mommy and Paulie. So the unnamed little boy was not allowed to ride the first test ride with Mommy and Paulie. After the test ride, we all went together on a ride....and the little boy was told to keep his distance from Mommy's bike!

Paulie loves the bike...and so does William. The things we do for our little ones. Enjoy the pics.

Happy, happy, happy.

Art by William

William has been working hard on his artwork since Santa brought him an easel. He loves to color in his Circus coloring book, paint on his easel pad and draw on the chalkboard. I think the easel was a good present!

William must be learning alot at school too. He is very studious when coloring....working very hard to stay in the lines. Here are some photos of his work.

Working hard to color in the lines.

A picture of his work.

So proud of himself. And then of course, the seriousness morphs into playful laughs, goofy faces, and big smiles.....just see below.

Auntie Sara

We spent alot of time with Auntie Sara over the holidays. We took alot of pictures...some of them self portraits. Here are some cute ones of Aunt Sara and her two loves...the Wee and the Pee. There are so many good ones...some great frameable ones....I just had to put them all on the blog.

William and Sara in one of their many self portraits.

A better shot of the two of them.

I love this shot of them. Only seeing part of the Pee's face is just too cute!

Kisses and hugs.

I love the look on William's face.

What a trooper Aunt Sara is...even teaching William how to play cowboys and Indians. Hi ho Aunt Sara....Away.

Smiles and laughs for Auntie Sara.

More kisses.

Count your blessings.

For those of you who live in the land of fast Internet connections....ya know, DSL and Broadband, count your blessings. I know that I often post about being in the land of fast Internet and the joys of it when I am visiting family. But, really, you need to understand why. On my most recent post, Welcome to the Circus, you will notice that my post was published at 11:07AM. In reality, the time that my post was published was 11:53 AM. That's right folks. It took over 30 minutes to upload 8 photos and type up a short narrative about the circus! During the thirty minute picture upload, I unloaded and loaded the dishwasher, wiped down and cleaned the kitchen cabinets, started a load of laundry, folded and put away a load of laundry, put Paulie down for a nap, started a movie for William, helped him with his snack, and completed the write-up for my post. So, for those of you in the land of fast DSL and Broadband, enjoy it! I am looking forward to those fast connections someday. Oh, and I do count my blessings....at least my Internet connection is better than my other option....dial-up! Imagine the posts on that!

Welcome to the GREATEST show on earth!

That's right, boys and girls, step right up. It's the circus!!!!! Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey to be in fact!




While visiting my parents over the Christmas Holiday, my father saw that the circus was coming to town....and we were going to be there! I have wanted to take William to the circus, but they never seem to make it West of Tallahassee....or rather, South of Atlanta and West of Jacksonville. So, this was a BIG TREAT! My mother decided to stay home with Paulie....he is just a wee bit too young for the circus. My father, William, Kevin and I went and had a glorious time. Now it wasn't the largest circus....ya know, the one with three rings. Ours had one ring, but it was still exciting for a boy and his first trip to the circus. William pretty much spent the entire time in my father's lap with a look of extreme amazement on his face. My father remembered his days as a boy and the excitement experienced when the circus would come to town. In those days, it was thrilling to see Elephants, Tigers, trained dogs, high ropes/wire acts and clowns. That was not common place then. Williams even got a commemorative clown coloring book, which he LOVES and colors in all the time. So, here is to all the boys and girls who love the circus. Enjoy the photos!

The ring entrance.....I tried to get a good shot of it. Of course, it was in the dark and my flash would only allow so much light. And, remember, I am not supposed to be taking pictures.

William and his clown cup filled with icee. It was a great time for him....filled with as much sugar as allowed. We had icees, cookies, popcorn and cotton candy. Some good ole fun and great nutrition.

Happy watching the circus. Laughing at those silly clowns.

William's face throughout the show...except when laughing at the clowns. It was just so darn cute!

The elephants and their show.

Praise for A Thousand Splendid Suns

I finished A Thousand Splendid Suns last night and LOVED every page of it. The book was very different than The Kite Runner. Both books are set in Afghanistan, but are very different. A Thousand Splendid Suns explores the relationship of two women. Most of the book, over half...close to two-thirds, is the back story of the two women when they are living their separate lives. It is when the two women come together that the book begins to soar and you CAN NOT put it down. Every page makes you want to read deeper and deeper into the story. I felt some much more for this story and the characters then in The Kite Runner, which I really liked, too. I don't know if I like this book more because it was about women and you were able to see Afghanistan and the culture through the female perspective. I am going to think that may be it. Whatever it is....it is definitely worth the read. Maybe even a second read!

IT'S ALIVE!! IT'S ALIVE!!

You know in that Frankenstein movie where the doctor/creator screams "It's alive! It's alive!", well that is what has happened in our house tonight. The P-lay, the P, the Paulie Wallie, Paulie Knuckles, whatever you want to call him has taken his first steps! He won't walk for Mommy and does not really like to finger walk with Mommy, but Daddy enters the picture and The P....well, it is all over. So tonight after dinner Kevin put Paulie at the far end of the rug and guess what....you got it....the P walked all the way over to Daddy! He just kept walking and walking and walking. And of course, when I went to get the video camera he decided he had enough. So it goes. But at least HE'S ALIVE....and walking!

Christmas break reading

Over the Christmas holiday I read and read and read till I was so sick of books I had to take a break. It was wonderful relaxing at night, not even wanting to flip through the TV channels. I guess this is one good thing about the writers strike.....I am reading more books, and at a faster pace! Gotta love it.

So, I have heard so much from some of the book club ladies about a few books that I decided to give them a chance myself. Our book club decided to take a break over the holidays, and well, I think we are still breaking because nobody has mentioned picking a selection for January. May have to send out an email about that....reminder...remember to do that. Again, another aside that I always seem to put in my blogs. Back to my books. I read Something Borrowed and Something Blue by Emily Giffin. I really liked the books. They were quick reads....easy fluff. Maybe that is why I was able to read them during my visit, amongst the chaos and family visits. I liked how the characters in the two books were intertwined. I am not sure which of the two books I liked more....they were about the same. Just some good ole fluff! And, sometimes that is the best kind of reading ya need! Consider reading them if you have some time. Now I am reading A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. So far the book has been REALLY good. A different read than The Kite Runner, but just as enjoyable. I'll let you know how the rest of it goes.

Meet the Whitneys!!!!!

Our friends, Mike Whitney and Laura Owens, married today! Laura is now Mrs. Laura Whitney! Mike's mother, stepfather and sister flew in from Oregon for the ceremony. It was great to see a loving couple begin their lives together. Here's to the new couple....may they have many loving, fun-filled and memorable years together.

The Whitneys just after their "I do's".

Putting on Mike's boutonniere before the ceremony.

Exchanging rings and I do's.

Mike and Laura Whitney.

Friends and family, John and Jamie, Jessica (Mike's sister), Mike and Laura, Christina and Bob (Mike's mother and stepfather), Tracy, Kevin and Paulie.

Mike and his ladies....Jessica, Laura, Christina.

Video of William riding his bike

Scroll down to the bottom of the blog and watch the video of William riding his BIG BOY BIKE....WITHOUT training wheels!

He's growing up!!!!!!!

Today was a "special day" as we say in our home. For months, William has been riding his little boy bike with the training wheels hiked up as high as possible. He would ride the bike on both wheels working really hard to not let the training wheels touch the ground. Since the weather was so warm today, Kevin went out front to sweep up the leaves by the front door. William noticed his big boy bike that Santa brought last year and decided today was the day he was going to ride it. Kevin was a bit leery, but put him on it and guided him for about 20 meters. William turned to him and said, "Stop, Dad. I can do it." And he did......he rode his bike without training wheels for the rest of the day. He was so proud of himself. He came running into the house to share his news. Here are some photos of my speed demon in all his glory. His face is beaming! I have video that I will upload soon.

My little boy is no longer a little boy, he is a big boy! Getting bigger and bigger every day! Today really was a special day!

Finally! It only took 4 1/2 years....

The Von Guntens/Seyberts/Capozzolis have finally been together in one place for a family photo! Now I am not saying that we all looked fabulous or that every child cooperated and smiled beautifully for the camera. But, hey at least we can document that we were together. The last time ALL of us were together as a family was for Tye and Kelly's wedding. Since then, a wedding has occurred, Kevin was deployed 25 months (straight), and four babies have been born. Alot has happened! I am thrilled to be able to post this photo onto the blog. I don't know when this will occur again! Enjoy the photo. I hope you get a good laugh from the kids.

Things a mother is so proud to say.....

As Paulie has gotten older and more mobile, he really loves to play with his big brother. They are great playmates and spend hours in William's room or the playroom together. It is quite nice....at times. Most of the time they are really good to each other....or should I say William is NOT TOO mean to Paulie. With Paulie being younger, it is easier for William to torment him....as any younger sibling knows. So, this morning while I was uploading photos to the blog, William and Paulie were playing nicely on the easel behind me....or so I thought. When I turned around, William's face was covered in green marker and then I saw Paul....also covered in green marker. And I uttered my most proud phrase, "William, your brother is not a coloring book. We do not draw or color on him." I hope that every mother with two young children get the chance to say such wonderful phrases. It brings such joy and love to your heart. I know that I am doing a good job as a mother when I am able to say such loving things to my son. Mother of the year, 2007 again is awarded to me. Thank you!

Oh, and as I was wiping the evidence off with a damp cloth, it hit me.....I should have taken a picture for the blog. Sorry....I will try to do better next time.

A baptism baby

Ms. Abigail was baptised over the Christmas Holiday. Aunt Kelly sent some really cute pictures of her in her gown. She was a really good little girl during the ceremony...did not cry once! She is so tiny and too cute for words!

A new year, a new template

As 2008 rang into the year, I decided that The Capozzoli Clan needed an update. 2007 was a great year and will always be remembered with the creation of our blog, but it is time for a new and improved version. We hope that all of you will continue to log onto our blog and keep up with our crazy adventures.

Oh, and if you are wondering why there is a lack in blog updates...well, I am back in the land slow Internet service. Good bye to the days of fast DSL connections and hello to slow and sometimes, painful uploads.

And, in typical fashion, I uploaded all of my pictures and video to my mother's computer and then promotly left WITHOUT burning them onto a CD. You will have to check back later for those pictures....like Spring time.