My Mad Sewing Skills!

In reality, I could never earn a spot on Project Runway...but I try! I'm a pillows, curtains and linens kind of girl. For some reason, something about Nicholas' Halloween "bag" bothered me - probably because it was a pillow case! Hey, that's what I used when I was little and no one ever said anything about it. In any case, I thought it would be cute if I made bags for all the kids to use next year considering it would be the first year they ALL went out together. So, on one of our mother/son weekends, Kolya and I went to JoAnn Fabric and I let him pick out material for everyone's bag. (For those of you wondering, we did more "manly" stuff, too!) Clearly, I don't actually have any time to take on a project like this but I love a challenge.

This weekend, we were super laid back and stayed around the house having fun. I decided that it would be a great time to try making one of those bags. (Oh, at this point, I also have to mention that I've purchased gorgeous fabric to make Christmas stockings for all of us - a project I'll probably get around to in about...oh...six more months or so!) Anyway, I finished Nicholas' bag in record time and it turned out pretty well. It's nothing anyone would pay any money for, but I'm proud of it and it's something I made for my kid. Maybe one day, one of my grandkids will use it!! Mykola was really proud of me, too, although he asked why I insisted on making our son a "murse" (for all you non-metrosexuals out there, that slang for "man purse"). Love him! Either way, I thought I'd share the finished project with you. I know you're dying to have one, too!

Merry Christmas 2009!

WOW! What a great Christmas! Kolya and I spent the entire (and I mean the ENTIRE) day on Christmas Eve tracking Santa Claus' whereabouts. In the process, we learned a lot about geography. So, in case you ever need an extra Trivial Pursuit player that's filled with useless world geography facts, your best bet is one of us!
Tato got home just after noon and we spent the rest of the day preparing for Santa's arrival. We made him some cookies and watched our favorite Christmas movies on t.v. Nicholas was so excited he wanted to go to bed at 7:00 hoping that Santa would come sooner if he moved his bedtime up an hour and a half!

Well, Santa came and left a LOT of presents both big and small for all of the Rowdy Rozsas! Kolya was in our room by 5:30. Being the terrible (and tired) parents that we are, we made him wait another hour so we could all unwrap presents together. Talk about fun! To watch the triplets attack their gifts was really great. I have to admit, though, that for them it took about 5 minutes for the novelty to wear off. Nicholas, of course, was SO excited. He kept reminding us how good he was this year. After getting some super awesome presents, I'm sure next year he will be even better!

We spent the rest of the holiday weekend spending time each other, playing with our new "toys" and preparing for our family to come next week. It was great to have a quiet Christmas because we know the next few years will be wild and crazy! That's one of the perks of moving back closer to home. We are also REALLY excited to finally move into 2010 and discover all of the wonderful things that come our way. We hope that you all enjoyed your Christmas and that God continues to bless you with love, health and happiness now and throughout the New Year!

Love, hugs and Christmas kisses!

The Rowdy Rozsas

First Reconciliation

Nicholas made his 1st Reconciliation (or 1st Confession) this past Thursday. He was a little nervous having to confess his sins to Father Phil for the first time, but everything went really well and he was very proud of himself! Thank you to everyone that send him cards/letters of encouragement. Nicholas was really happy to get them and touched that everybody was thinking of him!

He was so excited to tell me all about it when he got home (I didn't go because two of the babies were sick). This is how he described the experience to me...

"Mom, I went up to Father and sat down. I unscrewed the top of my head, pulled out all of my sins, gave them to Father, and then screwed the top of m head back on. Now, I'm empty!"

He and his class also got to sing two songs in church. Here's a video of them singing "Open My Eyes, Lord."

Afterward, they had punch and cookies to celebrate! Congratulations, Kolya - we are all very, very proud of you!!

Get this monkey off my back!

A little sibling play time this morning. Matthew is sitting on Olivia's back, and Daniel apparently wants whatever Matthew has in his hands! Remember, this is how it is all day, every day! Oh, the joy....

Giggles in the morning!

The babies LOVE their older brother! No matter what he does, they giggle like they've never seen anything funnier. Here's what I woke up to yesterday morning. It is the best sound in the world!

Christmas Goodies!

A good mother loves EVERYTHING that their child creates. In this case, it includes the "gingerbread" house that Nicholas made at school last week! While it added something homemade and creative to our Christmas decorations, I'm not sure that I'd want him on the construction crew that builds our house! Check out the gaping holes in the walls and the uneven roof line...it's the BEST gingerbread house I've ever seen!! How could you NOT love it?

Because he did such a great job with that project, I asked Kolya to help me with my special project this year. Last year, I didn't have much time for anything except taking care of new babies! So, this year I thought I'd get back into the spirit of giving and make Cookies-in-a-Jar (Chocolate Chip and Oatmeal Butterscotch) for some of our friends and family. It was much time consuming than I thought and actually a lot of fun to do. I had the Christmas music going and got a lot of help from my little (and not so little!) elves. I ran into a snag or two, but they were easy fixes. Next year, assembly will be flawless! Bon appetite!

All of the raw ingredients...

My little elf...

The chocolate chip jars ready to be packaged...

One of the finished products!

Endless hours of fun...

Mykola and I started packing some books the other day, and had a couple of boxes left over. The next morning, I gave an empty one to the kids to see what they would do with it. After all, we survived without all the newest gadgets and gizmos when we were little, right? All I can say is, I am amazed at how much fun they had! They entertained themselves for hours and hours with that box until Kolya tried to get into it and cracked it down the seam. I tried to save it but no luck...the kids noticed the tape and pulled it off within a few seconds. Regardless, I got to get a few good shots of their new favorite toy!

Told ya so.....

We've been warning the babies about getting stuck on the window ledge. Daniel didn't listen and here's what happened....

Our little "burrito!"

Nicholas wanted to go out and play today despite the nasty wind and cold temperatures. So, I sent him out with two jackets, a hat and a pair of gloves. When he came in for the night, he said to me very matter-of-factly, "Mama, it's really cold outside!" You're kidding me?? So, in an effort to warm him up a little quicker, we took his comforter off his bed and wrapped him up on the couch. He looked like a little burrito! Do you like his new T-Rex slippers sticking out of the bottom of the wrap? Matthew thought the whole thing was a riot and kept bouncing himself off Nicholas' legs!

Crazy Bed Head!

I thought I'd share these pictures of two of the kids from the other day just as they woke from their nap. Olivia and Matthew had such crazy "bed head!" I'm not sure what happened to them while they were sleeping but it looks like they both stuck their fingers in light sockets!

Brotherly Love, continued....

Just a few short videos that Mykola took of the boys playing the other night. It just goes to show you that everyone has their own idea of "fun!" Enjoy!

Going where no man has gone...

If you've been to our house lately, it's impossible not to notice the yards of barricades we have surrounding everything. We've got them in front of our books, DVDs, plasma TV and, for now, the Christmas tree. We've even stripped off our couch cushions in order to take away the "launching pad" factor. While these have been very effective with Olivia, the boys have teamed up and found weaknesses in our fortifications. Namely, they use other furniture to hoist themselves up and over the walls, they stack the cushions to climb up higher, and have managed to push out one of the slats in the gate to the kitchen, creating the perfect escape route. They've even walked on the windowsills to get from one point to another. (Imagine a movie where someone is trying to get from one window to another by scaling the outside of a building - they've got their face plastered to the wall, hanging on for dear life. That's our little Matthew!)

How, you ask, have they managed to figure this all out at the tender age of 16/17 months? They're adorable, evil geniuses!! The problem is that one day they will realize that they outnumber me and, together, they can overtake their poor, weak, not-so-bright mother. If you find me duct taped to a chair in the closet, don't say I didn't warn you!

Daniel the Bully....

There is no doubt that Daniel has the run of the play area. He's not the biggest but he is definitely the strongest. He takes the toys he wants without much argument, and he man-handles the other two at will. Mykola is convinced that he will be a wrestler some day, while I think he will be the champion of a "strong man" competition that tests uncanny, superhuman strength. I'm telling you - it's really wild how strong he is for his age! Daniel takes special pleasure in torturing his sister. He's not malicious about it but he does take full advantage of her smaller/weaker status. If Olivia is squealing, it's most likely because Daniel is using her as a stepping stone. He also finds it enjoyable to "punish" her for throwing a tantrum. Take a look at Danylo's version of tough love....

Kolya found some squishy balls the other day and gave them to the kids. Well, instead of sharing the new found treasures, Danylo decided to hoard them all. While Daniel was overjoyed, Matthew was very distraught and showed us by demonstrating his new found talent - throwing himself to the ground. It didn't help that we were all sick, which made him even more cranky. Thankfully, these episodes are short and sporadic. I think he's realized they don't advance his cause! Check it out...

Kids that LOVE to eat!

It took a few days, but the kids are now very proficient self-feeders. I'm really proud of all of them, especially Olivia who has really started to enjoy the dining experience. She's even pretty quick about it - what used to take her 45 minutes now takes her 10! When she doesn't want to eat, however, her mouth is closed as tight as Ft. Knox. Can you tell how stubborn she can be in the picture above? Wow! We still feed them every once in a while if the food is particularly messy or runny. It's more of a selfish choice so that we don't have to spend an hour after the meal cleaning goop out of the creases in their chairs! Here are some pictures from their eating adventures....

Here's a short movie of them eating mac-n-cheese the other day. They remind me of people who are going to communion in church....the tilt their heads back and open their mouths so wide they'd actually need to unhinge their jaws to open them any wider! Enjoy!

Olivia, the Exhibitionist!

It's very difficult for me to say this, but my daughter is a flirt and an exhibitionist. Clearly, her father and I are hoping that she grows out of this stage....and fast! Unless I put her in a turtle neck, or something that has a very small opening for her head, she rips her shirt over her shoulders and lets the whole world see her little mosquito bites! For the winter, at least, I've invested in long, sleeved onesies that button along the bottom. That should prevent her from flashing the world for at least one season!

Houston, we have a pooper!

I will spare you the pictures of this event, so you'll just have to take my word for it! Matthew is officially doing #2 on the potty! He is notorious for finding a secluded corner of the living room and grunting until he finishes his business. Well, a few Sundays ago, just before church, Mykola decided to try taking him to the potty. Low and behold, he did it! And the funniest thing about it was it took him only a few minutes and he acted like he'd been born to do it! No fuss, no muss. Since then, he's been a regular visitor to the potty with really good results. I'm still amazed that something so cute and little can produce such stinky "submarines" (Kolya's word, not mine!)

Yay, Matthew, we're so proud of you!

Halloween 2009

We had a great Halloween this year! We spent a lot of time carving our pumpkins and deciding on costumes. From the picture, you can see that Kolya decided he wanted to be Frankenstein. So, in an effort to be original, he and I made his costume this year. I think we did a great job for our first try, plus...he LOVED it!! We decided that, because we had so much fun putting it together, we would make all of our costumes from now on. Who knows what we'll think of for next year but we sure will have our work cut out for us. It'll be the first time that ALL of us go trick-or-treating. Nicholas even helped me pick out Halloween fabric so I can make candy bags for all the kids. Stay tuned for pictures from the 2010 Halloween extravaganza!

As for the rest of the day, I was happy to help out in Kolya's classroom in the afternoon for their Halloween party. It was so much fun! The kids had a great time going from station to station, doing different activities. After we got home, we got ready to head out for trick-or-treating. We had a great time with our friends, Mo and Sarah, as their little boy, Lucian. Kolya's friend, Gabriel, came along, too. Thanks, guys, for coming and making the night a lot of fun!

We've been busy!

I know it's been quite a long time since my last post! I'm really sorry that I fell off the blogging wagon. We've have a really busy few months - school, soccer, illness, visitors, and so on and so on. But, from now on, I promise to update the blog at least once a week with pictures and news from the Rowdy Rozsas! Love to you all!

Armageddon...

Some say that eventually California will suffer a tremendous earthquake, fall into the Pacific Ocean and cease to exist. From the weather here recently, I have to disagree. If California were to meet its demise, it will certain be from the raging wild fires that plague this State from year to year.

Today, there are several wild fires that are burning out of control throughout the state - one of which is just over the mountains on the way to Los Angeles. Kolya and I were out running errands and the ash was literally falling out of the sky and covering our truck. We took some pictures because, quite frankly, its interesting to see but we hope to never see it again. Keep in mind that we took the pictures at about 3:30-4:00 in the afternoon, and that this is NOT cloud cover...it's ALL smoke!

Please say some prayers for the firefighters who are battling these blazes day and night. They rarely get any rest, and are doing everything in their power to keep people and property safe. God bless and protect them!

The picture below is take to the south. That's where this particular fire originates.

It was really odd to see the sun glowing red instead of its usual color.

This was the view out our kitchen window. The people to the north still had some sunshine.

Again, this picture was taken in the afternoon. Even with all the curtains open, it still looked like dusk outside.

We'll never go hungry!

This is the second year that Mykola tried planting a "garden." I use the term very loosely as we have no soil to grow anything in, and the "garden" looked more like a newly dug grave site rather than a source of nourishment. Kolya decided to help this year, and took it upon himself to monitor its progress very closely.

Considering the garden was only a foot wide by two feet long, there was not much variety in our crops. Mykola planted pumpkins, carrots, corn and peppers. The peppers never came up, the sun killed the seedling pumpkins, the corn never grew beyond 4 inches tall. By default, the overall winners were the carrots! The boys went outside and harvested them today. Kolya was so excited! He refused to throw away the smallest carrot, even though a rabbit would have certainly passed it up! Here are some pictures from the Future Farmers of America - Rowdy Rozsa style!

Funny home movies!

Just thought I'd share these cute movies I made of the kids the other day. People said that when they got a little older they would entertain themselves. Apparently, they were right! Enjoy!

The kids have learned that if they cover their heads with something and then try to walk around, things get very interesting. I thought they'd be brilliant children....now, I'm not so sure!

Getting on the floor with the kids is like being a fresh piece of meat in a lion's den. You are mauled within seconds - especially if you have the camera with you!

New play toys....

Since the weather has started to cool off a bit, I thought it was time for me to get the kids some "new" outdoor play toys. The plan is to get outside in the morning, after our walk and before it starts getting too warm. With a little research, I found some play cubes just south of where we live - all I had to do was go and get them. I washed them down and, voila, a whole new learning environment for the kiddos!

We took them outside on Sunday morning to see what they would do. As usual, Olivia had a meltdown when we put her in the grass. For some unknown reason, she HATES feeling the grass on her feet/legs. So, instead of playing with her brothers on their new toys, she pouted and sniffled all by herself on the mini picnic table. What a drama queen! As for the boys, they loved it! It'll take them a while to figure out how to climb on, in and over everything, but I'm sure it won't take long. Overall, I think they had a good time their first time out!

Sleeping Beauty!

There are no words to tell you how cute this little girl is! Olivia rarely complains and pretty much finds a solution to every problem she encounters. I'm guessing that she was tired and we didn't attend to her needs fast enough, so she decided to take matters into her own hands. God love her for being able to fall asleep anywhere!