Now I'm a Mom: Time is just flying by...............

How is it possible that we are already at the end of October? Wasn't it just summer, like yesterday?! Anyway, I see I have some catching up to do.

First day of school came along and everyone got off just fine!

The weekend brought my Aunt's 60th birthday party! She'll kill me if she knew I was posting this picture online, but hey, you only turn 60 once right?! And on her, 60 is like the new 30! LOVE YOU Jan! You are a Rockstar! :) Her party was held at a lovely waterfront venue so we were able to capture some sweet shots. Here's a new family of 5 shot! This was truly astounding - this play boat was actually "shipwrecked"! It used to be down by the waters edge, but due to Hurricane Irene, it drifted up shore ~ The kids had a great time playing in it regardless! It's very sweet to witness the bond these 3 share ~ Here's one of my favorite shots of many of the incredible female members of my family! I love each and every one of these fabulous ladies! :)

The next day was Sept 11 which is always a somber day here in NY, but this year especially so, because it was the 10th anniversary. We decided we would spend the day doing something fun while honoring those we lost. I had heard about a special event taking place down at the beach and just knew it would be perfect for us.

While we were on vacation last summer, we visited a water park and Ryan loved the simulated surfing ride. http://nowimamom.blogspot.com/2010/09/will-he-ever-be-able-to-walk.html

So when I found out that FDNY firemen were going to be volunteering their time on this day to help kids "surf", I knew we needed to be there. What an experience it was! Too bad the sun wasn't out that day!

Here's Ryan suiting up for the big moment! And here he is just waiting his turn, passing his time with his sisters (ALWAYS his biggest cheerleaders!) Here we go!

Here's the video of my amazing brave boy battling the waves for his first real surfing experience! How COOL is this?!

When it was all over, he came out of the water so proudly!
I said to him, "Hey Ry, ya ready to do that again?".....he answered quickly, "No Thanks, I'm good!" LOL

We spent the rest of the day having a beach front lunch with Grammy,

and boogie boarding our little hearts out ~ God Bless America and God Bless http://www.surfersway.org/aboutus.html

Next up was the NYC Buddy Walk! So exciting that a picture of all 3 of my kids was chosen this year. There is nothing quite like seeing your kids seeing their picture on the Jumboton in the middle of Times Square! What a thrill!

We were so happy that Aunt Linda was able to join us this year! :)

After catching the video in TS, we headed to Central Park for the Buddy Walk!

What a great day!

The following weekend was the Long Island Buddy Walk! We couldn't miss that! :)
So Grammy, my niece Kim and her boyfriend Curtis, and my friend Debbie and her son Brandon all came out to walk with us in support of Ryan. Another beautiful day was had by all! Here's our team ready to walk!

Ryan was so happy, he started "Buddy Running!" LOL

I'm not a Star Wars fan, but was psyched when I spotted THESE guys cheering us on! LOL We HAD to stop for a picture.....at least those of us brave enough to pose with these guys! ;)

I must say, it's been a busy, fun 2 months since I've last posted. Combined the kids now have more activities going on then I can count.....soccer, band, basketball, chorus, baseball, gymnastics, tennis, drum lessons, flute lessons, Sunday School......the list goes on and on but it's all good!

At least Mark and I got to sneak out to NYC the other night and catch a Gavin DeGraw concert! (Thanks Grammy for babysitting!)

Gavin is a sweetheart of a guy and an amazing musician - please do yourself a favor and pick up his new album "Sweeter"! You will not be disappointed!

OK, so to end this post, I will share a picture from just a few hours ago. Ryan couldn't wait to get off the bus to share this with me! Here is his spelling test from today! :)