Metal Mouth Madi

Today Madison got her braces put on. She was a real trooper! I am the one who's currently in pain though. The going rate for full braces is currently $5,513. Thank God the orthodontist is nice enough to put us on a payment plan. Since Madi is Hartman #3 to get braces, I have been making ortho payments since 2003. And I still do not see an end in sight. But you will all be happy to know that my orthodontist drives a lovely, expensive, foreign sports car......Oh well, what's a mama to do?

Good friends, good wine, and an early b-day gift!

On Friday night my girlfriend from high school, Chrissie, her hubby, Steve, and their 3 gorgeous kids came over. Even though my b-day isn't for another 7 weeks, Chrissie gave me a present early. I LOVE IT! My own personal wine glass. How appropriate. Below are my 3 youngest kiddie with their 3 kids, watching tv. We always a fabulous time hanging out with them!

Family Up-Date

Okay, after I read Heidi's post today I realized it has been quite a while since I have updated. I am not even sure where to begin. So, here's an update on the fam!

• CJ has adjusted well to 9th grade. He is not playing a sport this fall, so when he is not studying hard..hahaha...he's hanging out with his friends, or babysitting Kamryn while I run everyone else around.
• Kylie is playing field hockey for her school. She has practice everyday after school. On Monday nights she has her Intermediate Jazz class. It's a tough class, but she loves it.
• Madi has PREP (the new word for CCD) on Monday's. She is getting ready for Confirmation this year. She has asked her God-Mother, Tara, to be her sponsor. She has chosen the name Teresa, because it is my mom's middle name. On Tuesday, she takes a hip hop class. She loves it. Next Monday she gets her braces put on. I'll be sure to post pics of Madi in metal!
• Avery also has PREP on Mondays. This year she receives the sacrament of Reconciliation. On Tuesdays she has jazz class. Unfortunately it is not at the same time as Madi's class, so I spend my Tuesdays running back and forth and back again to the dance studio. Avery is also playing soccer this year. She has a game every Saturday.
• Kamryn is my little love bug who just goes with flow! She is completely potty trained, through the night and all. That's right, for the first time in 16 years, there are NO diapers in our house.
• Paulie is still here. He hasn't eaten a shoe in awhile. (Which is why he still here.) He seems to be slowly moving out of the puppy stage. He still hates other dogs.
• Chris has been busy finishing up our renovations. He promises me that the family room will be done within the next two weeks. I think when he's done the family room, I will let him take a few months off before he starts to remodel all of the rooms upstairs.
• ME!!!! Nothing new at all. Just busy being a mommy.

Happy 75th Mom/Grammy

On Saturday the Hartmans gathered together to celebrate mom's 75th birthday. Here are a few pics from the day!

Heidi had a pillow made from one of dad's sweaters.

Mom blowing out her candles.
Grammy and her granddaughters and great granddaughters. The only person missing is Jaclyn. She arrived to the party after work, and after the pic was taken.
Here are the grandsons and great-grandsons minus Matt.
Hartmans hanging out.
More hanging out!
Avery, Jorja, Rylee, and Kamryn
Jaclyn, Casey, Kelly, Kirstin, and Madi.
Happy birthday Mom! We all love you so much.

Mama's Boy

This past Thursday Chris took his mom to a Phillies game. They dined on cheesesteaks and Yuenglings. That's right fellow Hartmans....Grammy had a beer!!! She and Chris cheered on the fightin' Phils to victory! They both had a fabulous time.

The Best Man

George Hartman Sr., son, husband, Dad, Daddy, Uncle George, Godfather, Pop, Poppy, G-Pop, father-in-law, and who could forget..."I'm the Huck and I don't give a ****!" You get the picture.

But the name that means the most to me, and that I am the proudest of is BEST MAN. Yes, I had my father as my Best Man at my wedding. They say when you get married you should have your best friend stand by your side when your saying your vows. Well, my dad was my best friend.

In time of need, he would be there. When I needed advice, he would be there. When I wanted to vent, he would be there. When I broke something, he would fix it. When something great happened, I couldn't wait to tell him. He was just someone that everyone wanted to be around.

Here is the toast he gave to Jo Anne and I at our wedding, "When I was young, and in my prime, I could do it any old time. Now that I am old and gray, I can only do it once a day!" God Damn he was a funny bastard.

I miss you, Dad.

Happy Birthday Best Man.

Love, Chris

Soccer Saturday

Saturday was Avery's first soccer game. The whole gang went to cheer her on. Avery is #6.
Here she is right before she kicked the ball. Hurricane Hannah startede moving in toward the end of game. The girls finished the 4th quarter in the rain. Her team won! Go Blue Diamonds!
Since it was pouring out, and Chris couldn't think of an excuse fast enough, he had no choice but to start painting the family room. Kylie thought it looked like fun, so she climbed the ladder to give it a try. We spent about 4 hours painting yesterday and we only made a dent. It may be a very long time before I post the 'finished' pics.

Friday nights at the Hartman House

I love Fridays.. It's my favorite day of week. People are just happier on Friday's knowing that that the weekend is here. In our family we often order take out, play games,
or watch movies together, just the 7 of us. Tonight was no different. Chris was in charge of dinner. He brought home snow crab legs, shrimp, fried chicken, a turkey breast, (new item at Genuardis), and a bottle of wine for the two of us. He lit the tiki torches around our deck, started a fire, and all 7 of us ate on the deck. AAAHHHH Fridays!!!! It was going to be another fabulous friday family night. Then the phone started ringing. 15 minutes later CJ, Kylie, Madi, and Avery all had plans with friends. These plans involved one of us driving our kids to their friends houses. I lost the coin toss. After dinner I got in the van and dropped off the 3 girls. They each were invited to sleep overs. Thank God CJ's friends live within skateboarding distance of our house. SO, on our perfect Family Friday, I spent a good part of it driving around our town dropping Hartmans off. Kami wanted to go with me, so there was Chris, all alone, on the deck with his tiki torches, fire pit, drink, and cigar. When I finally got home, Chris and I settled in with just 1 kid....Kami. And she fell asleep 10 minutes after I got home. Oh well....there's always next Friday.....

Happy 3rd Birthday Kami

Today is our baby's 3rd birthday....and her special day also happens to be the first day of school. Here is a pic of the birthday girl on her way out the door to her first day of preschool. A little teary eyed.....she doesn't like to get up too early!

The next two kids to start their day are Kylie, an 8th grader and CJ, a FRESHMAN!!!

Finally, Madi, 6th grade, and Avery, 2nd grade, leave for their first day of school.
At the end of day we celebrated Kami's b-day with just the 7 of us. Here she is right before we let her open her presents.
Cake Time....Who needs plates? It's more fun to just dig in.
Okay......It's time for 3 things you may not know about Kami:

1. She was born with a Nevus Sebatous on her head that must be surgically removed wihin the next few years.

2. She LOVES all things Minnie Mouse.

3. She still falls asleep in my arms...and I love it!

Happy birthday to our baby. You are such an amazing little girl. We love you, Puddin!

Happy 3rd Birthday Kami

Happy 3rd Birthday Kami

Happy Kami Eve!

Since Kami's 3rd birthday is on the first day of school, we celebrated her birthday on Monday with Grammy, NaNa, PopPop, the Christiansens, and our friends, the Ives and McCloskey. It was a great way to end the summer. Kami really enjoyed her day, and we did too!