Moving branches. We had a large pile of branches close to the swings. The boys decided to move them so there would be more room to play.

Liam hauling some of the branches to the patio with plans to build a fire.

Building a fire.

Noonans Celebrate Earth Day

"It's the little things citizens do. That's what will make the difference. My little thing is planting trees."

- Wangari Maathai
Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Environmental & Political Activist

Yes, we know we celebrated Earth Day a week late. But, isn't a week late better than not at all? It was all Bob's idea -- we planted 13 trees.

Tonia and Bobby had strong opinions about which trees to plant, Liam was okay with anything as long as he was able to dig in the dirt. Bobby is partial to Bradford Pears, and Tonia likes Japanese Maples - we compromised and got both.

Note: The Latin is for all the horticulturists. (How did we do Marie?)

Liam and Bobby discussing options.

Liam and Bobby with Pyrus Calleryana 'Bradford' (Bradford Pear).

Tonia and Liam planting Acer Palmatum 'Bloodgood' (Bloodgood Japanese Maple.)

Liam saved a worm from the shovel. We were surprised, we thought he would play with it, but he actually found the little guy a new home.

Bobby and Liam planting a row of Arbovitae Esmeralda (Emerald Green Arborvitae.) We are trying to hide our neighbors yucky old fence, and going for a little privacy.

This tulip popped up this year - right in the middle of the lawn.

View from the Top

Yesterday, Bobby took the gang from Ireland into NYC for a little sightseeing.
Liam with his cousin Siobhan at the top of the Empire State Building.

Bobby's cousin Victoria with her boyfriend Florian and her son Aodan.

View from the top of the Empire State Building.

They went to lunch at Planet Hollywood. Before they were seated they were "encouraged" to have this picture taken. If you look closely you can tell that they had been mumbling through their smiles about their hunger.

Liam with Nicky (who lives next door) and Aodan (who lives in Co. Kerry, Ireland).

The gang enjoying cocktail hour by the fire.

Apres dinner.

A Weekend in the Country

Liam was off to Maryland to stay with Grandma Irene and Grandpa Tony, while Mommy and Daddy went to a wedding in Delaware.

From what we hear, Liam was busy, busy, busy. He feed and groomed Fire, rode Munchy a couple of times, did some demolition work in the yard, worked with Grandpa Tony putting out top-soil, played games with Grandma, cooked eggs, and who knows what else. Sounds like he had tons of fun.

By 11 a.m. Sunday he was in Delaware to hang out with the Noonan gang at a day-after-the-wedding gathering. We first went to Nancy's (mother of the bride ) house where he got to play with Aodan (a six-year-old relative from Ireland,) do a little fishing, and take a wheelbarrow ride. Then we went to a party where he pretended to serve drinks. Aunt Deirdre gave him a tip...then others started tipping him -- he made $12. All in all, I'd say he had a great weekend.
What a perfect morning in the country!
Grandma and Liam grooming fire.
Grooming Fire.
Liam picking flowers to take to Sally (Liam absolutely loves her, she lives next door to the GPs.) Liam went to Sally's house on Saturday and Sunday to ride Munchy (a pony.)Thomas, Billy, Grandpa Tom, Bobby and Patsy.Grandpa Tom and Aunt Deirdre.
The wives of the Noonan boys: Deirdre (Billy's wife), Sinead (Tommy's wife who is due with their fifth on July 3oish), and Tonia.
Bobby, Aunt Margaret, Billy and Thomas.
Grandpa Tom and Bob.
Thomas, Billy and Patsy. Uncle Tommy took Liam and Aodan for a spin around Nancy's yard.End of the ride.Nancy and Tom.
Nancy and her daughter Danika are good friends of the Noonan family, they have know them since Billy, Patsy, Tom and Bob were very young. She is a cool lady. Every visit she makes a scrapbook (note camera in her hand) and the next time she goes to Ireland (which is at least once a year) she leaves it at Tom's house. It's lot of fun to see how everyone has changed and how the family has grown.

An Unexpected Evening

Mommy and Liam came home from Liam's ice skating lesson (a certain 5-year-old wants to be, among other things, a hockey goalie) to find Daddy...COOKING!!!!!!!! Yippee!! Daddy is one good cook.
Then Liam decided to shave and clean-up a bit.

After shaving, Liam dunked his head in the sink. He is very into his new haircut and likes to get his hair wet so that he can comb it. (Guess it's not as fun to comb dry hair.)

A Creative Evening

Liam's car art...

The hands...

Tonia walked into the bathroom as Liam was washing his hands and asked, "how did this water get all over the bathroom?" His reply, "maybe a pipe broke."

Worried about Darth Vader's feelings

Last night Tonia was at her friend Claire's 40th B-day party and the boys were home dinning on fish sticks. Liam said, "yum, these fish sticks are gooooood!" Bobby told Liam to be more considerate because his fish, Darth Vader, was in the room. So, Liam looked over his shoulder toward Darth Vader and said, "yummy chicken sticks."

Yes Ma'am!

So, we are in the midst of a Nor' Easter - the winds haven't started yet, but we have tons of rain and some flooding.

The boys spent the day together while mom stayed at home, snuggled up, enjoying a book. Bob and Liam braved the downpours to go to breakfast, to check job sites for flooding, and then to do a little shopping. Of course they came home with new jeans, a video game, and junk food.

When Tonia asked if she could take a photo of them with their new purchases this was the reply.

The Woodchucks are Back

It's a little hard to see, but the brown ball of fur is our newest woodchuck (you won't believe this, but he is a small woodchuck.) We have somewhat of a woodchuck problem -- last year we counted five, who knows how many new members of the family we'll meet this year. They aren't afraid of me, but when they see Bob they run for cover. Bob wouldn't think so, but I find his "battles" with them humorous at times -- they remind me of "Caddyshack." These woodchucks are seriously crafty little critters.

Easter

Liam showing Grandpa Tony all the loot from the egg hunt.
Counting all the money from the Easter egg hunt. The Easter Bunny knows that Liam prefers money to candy in the eggs. He got $6.55! Grandpa Tony joked that next year we might see a C-note. If that is the case, we'll all get in on the hunt action.
Liam found his basket in the shower of the downstairs bathroom.
Nicky's Darth Vader hat got a lot of play over the weekend.
Dying eggs to use as decoration for the breakfast table.
We decided to go to Bear Mountain for a hike. Liam thought he might drive.
Tonia and Liam on the carousel at Bear Mountain. It was extremely cold out, and the wind was brutal, as a result we were the only people on the carousel.
Do you see any other people? Noooooo... everyone else had enough smarts to know it wasn't the best day for a hike. Because of the conditions, our hike lasted about 15 minutes. Liam yelled, "you call that a hike?" The grown-ups just couldn't hang...it was too da___ cold and windy!

The Saturday before the Easter Bunny arrives...

Liam and Mom (also known as Grandma) playing Old Maid.
Bob (just in from work) with Grandma Irene and Gigi.
The gang at Easter Eve dinner.
Liam and Grandma working hard taking care of the dishes, while...
Grandma and Bob chat, and...
Grandpa Tony wears Liam's friend Nicky's Darth Vader helmet.