Closet transformation

--This post was written by Pete.--

Apparently lots of people have "that one closet" that they're always afraid of going into because of the amount of clutter that has built up... I had a closet like that, but I hated it more for it's uselessness... It was far too deep, you'd have to crawl up into it to get anything into the way back and plus the doors were so narrow that I always felt claustrophobic.  In sum, it was a waste of space and it soon became "that one closet"... we'd just throw things into it that we couldn't find a space for.

Here are some before pictures:

You can't see the doors because they're hidden.  (Yes, I'm being sarcastic).

The doors weighed a ton and the magnetic release thing didn't work correctly, so opening the closet was already a pain.  It was the type that you were supposed to push in and then the spring would push the doors out and they would be released... well, I'm not sure if it was the weight of the doors, the '70s carpet that was rubbing the bottom... or just the fact that the doors were no longer square to the frame.

Regardless of the fact that the doors didn't open well, I just didn't like the closet... I wanted to get rid of the whole thing, but Theresa didn't like my idea of eliminating the whole thing (that might be noticeable).

What she suggested was just make the doors wider and so...

Several hours of labor later and way more dust than I anticipated, and voila!  The space was transformed from a closet into...

An office!  OK, so it's not ideal to have an office in a closet, but when you're an amazing mother of four little boys who works from home, this comes in handy!  The desk fit just perfectly!

Anyway, I much prefer the use of space now.  Would I do it again knowing what I know now?  Probably... I'm a sucker for projects.

Our very belated Christmas Letter...

2010, Where To Begin?

To be honest, we weren’t going to do a Christmas letter this year. It seems that there is always some curveball that gets in the way, however, after reading some of your Christmas letters, we were inspired to share our crazy life with you again.

It indeed has been a wild year! Yes, we are at a new address (again!), but I’ll get to that shortly. Let’s see, Gregory turned five this year, learned to read and write and attends kindergarten. He loves it – and although it does come with more runny noses and some potty humor, his mom loves it too because some else can have a turn answering all his questions! The child really has a mind like a trap – for example, we were speaking about my aunt (his granddad’s sister) and we reminded him that he met her when we stopped to visit her on the way to New Orleans from Maryland. “Oh yeah” Gregory said and I thought he didn’t quite remember, but Pete asked, “what movie did we watch at her house?” (Who in the world would remember that? He was only 3!) “The cat one!” Gregory said…sure enough, Artistocats…it blows me away how much he remembers and he amazes us like that all the time. He is our treasure, our big helper, and our instigator of all things rascally!

Louis turned four this year, and has had quite a year. Finally diagnosed last year with Mastocytosis, we have been working hard to help fight the symptoms and the disease in order to allow him to live as much a normal life as possible. He and his mom even took a trip to Tucson, AZ for the Mastocytosis Society Conference and while there met with a renowned microbiologist/ nutritionalist. Long and short of it, we have to do a lot of monitoring of external and internal triggers to keep the symptoms at bay. We have a caring bridge site you can visit to learn all about his wonderful, tender, painful, and heroic little life: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/louisfm Also a fundraising site was launched by his uncle Paul (my sister Grace Marie’s husband) to support Louis: www.helpLouis.com

Leonardo is an amazing two year old. He can verbalize better than either of his brothers could at that age and he has such a sense of humor! It is such a blessing that he can speak so well, because we get a remarkable peek into the mind of a two year old. He is so carefree and lively! He doesn’t really seem to have any fear (not even of getting in trouble), but if we start the countdown he will usually obey (although reluctantly!). He also has an excellent memory and can keep right in step with his big brothers. He is joyful, rough, funny and lovable – delightfully surprising all he meets!

Theresa is full of life, literally! We are expecting baby #4 in late March – and yes, it is another BOY! We laugh at God’s humor and are delighted to help build up another man of God. Theresa also continues to have success in her Mary Kay business this past year, having earned her 3rd Mary Kay Career Car! She is a leader in the Mary Kay world and an inspiration to all the women she meets. She also created oil paintings, worked with Pete in marriage ministries, and continues to write on life (and has been a guest contributor to the Office of Life for The Courier, the Diocesan newspaper).

And lest we forget the pater familias! Peter completed his Licentiate in Sacred Theology (STL) in Studies of Marriage and Family at the John Paul II Institute in December of last year. He continued to work from home and together we did marriage ministry for our parish. To make a long story short, in September, Peter was offered a position as the Director of the Office of Life for the Diocese of Winona, MN. After refusing in the past to even consider it, something was different in September and we both truly felt this was God’s will for us. So, Pete boldly works on the front lines, carving a fresh, new and yet, faithful outreach to engaged and married couples, pro-life ministries, teaching true human freedom in dignity and sexuality, and directing the Safe Environment program protecting children. What a remarkable blessing indeed! We are humbled by God’s constant generosity towards us.

So, here we are in Winona, MN! Ready to start a new year and embrace whatever it is God has in store for us this year! Living for God can be confusing, trying, uncomfortable, unsettling and sometimes painful, but one thing about it is that it is never boring! And more than that, despite all the difficulties in doing so, placing yourself completely in God’s hands, you are supported, you are strengthened, you are loved…

May God bless you! And we pray you had the most Blessed Christmas and that you experience an amazing, adventurous New Year!

Busy July

July was a busy month for us. We celebrated the 4th of July with friends and also re-celebrated Gregory's birthday as well as my own (Pete).



We also attended John and Kristen's wedding in Pittsburgh. Yeah John and Kristen!! It was a great time:



Here's a cute video of Louis dancing... it's a little misshaped because the camera was turned, but it's still cute.



Now look at the video again and notice the boy behind Louis. That's his cousin Daniel Roy. Here's how he gets his groove on:



And then after that, we flew down to New Orleans where Gregory and Louis got to hang out with Nanna and Grandad and all the cousins while Mom and Dad flew to Dallas for the Annual Mary Kay Seminar:

Celebration Time!

Excitement is in the air at the Martin household. Theresa and I celebrate 7 wonderful years together today, Gregory turns 3 on Friday, someone else turns 31 the following week and John Slattery is getting married to Kristen next month! The new baby is growing strong and healthy (we'll do the 20 week ultrasound soon). And Theresa's business continues to grow strong. She's going to earn her first new car soon! (See the Saturn Vue below) We're all looking forward to that and we constantly are amazed by the good work she has done!



Louis has become the little entertainer. Check out these next two videos to see a glimpse at how our household has changed now that Louis has discovered "his own voice."

--WARNING-- this first video contains children screaming. We would advise that you turn the volume down (or off) and if there are small children watching who may have a tendency to copy what they see, you may not want them to watch.





--FURTHER WARNING-- the following video was too funny for Gregory to handle on a full stomach and hence was cut short because his father had to clean up the mess. Again, if there are small children watching, we would advise that they not watch this while eating or drinking.



So, while Louis is busy entertaining in his own way, Gregory has been learning all sorts of new songs that both he and Louis love to sing. Here's Gregory singing "Three little monkeys." Much thanks goes to our wonderful babysitter who has taught the boys many of these songs!



Theresa loves the way Gregory says "Doctor". Since you're probably going to play the video again now, Gregory worked really hard at learning how to make the telephone... the sheep in the middle of the song comes from Louis who's playing with a farm ... and don't you just love how Gregory finishes his songs?


Finally, a special thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for visiting... we always love to see you!

Pete meets the Pope!

There will be more pictures of the Pope's visit (especially since we got to go to the Mass as a family), but I wanted to show off this one right away. I just received it this morning from the Vatican (their photographer took this photo).

So, what the photo doesn't reveal is that I actually shook the Pope's left hand (since the fellow in front of me was kissing his ring.)!! What did you say to him, you ask? Well it was the man's birthday, what do you think I said? "Happy Birthday", of course! What an amazing experience and how blessed I am to have met both JP II and now Pope Benedict!

He is Risen!

Happy Easter everybody! We have so much to be grateful for! Theresa is doing very well in her business and I (Pete) am finally getting started on my thesis! I have a wonderful director who is willing to help me throughout the summer to complete it in time so that I can finish with everything in December. Here are some cute videos of the boys who never cease to make us proud.


This first video is an example of how Louis adores Gregory.


This next video is part of the Martin morning routine. If laughter is the best medicine, then we're pretty healthy here.


Have we mentioned recently how adorable Louis is?


A great imagination and an expanding vocabulary go well together:


Easter Pictures

Happy All Saints Eve!

We took the boys out "Trick-or-Treating" for just a little bit this year. We went to Pete's workplace and showed off their costumes (see pictures). We then went to visit Pete's school and after that stopped by some of the neighbors'.




Louis has officially decided that walking is the way to get around. He still gets pushed down, but that no longer stops him from getting back up and waddling around.


Theresa earned this piano from Mary Kay (hence it's pink)... the boys both love it.

Walking, talking, happy Louis!!

Maybe this is not a good sign, but one of Louis' first feats was to say "No".


OK, so this is not a shot of his first steps, but close. He doesn't care for walking much, but I suppose if a bigger guy (i.e. Gregory) was there to push us down all the time, we may stick to crawling too!

If you look behind Louis you will see his crib "boxed" up. This was the only way to keep Gregory from crawling into the crib. He found all sorts of ways of getting in, so now Louis sleeps in his little castle. The cardboard doubles as a great surface to put stickers on and to color on.



Here's a cute shot of Louis saying "Mama".


Finally, here's a shot of our happy little guy praising life...

New Toys!!

Gregory shows off his new toys in these two short videos:

Gregory's new ride.

A couple of weeks ago, Theresa and I were coming home from Mass when I noticed this red wagon sitting at the curb waiting to be thrown out... I grabbed it, threw it in the trunk and took it home. A week later, some elbow grease, new paint and a little love, and Gregory has himself a brand new ride!

It was the perfect situation, really. The price was right, it kept me out of trouble for a week, and Gregory (and Louis) have a new wagon! The weather has changed here in DC, so we've already put some miles on it... the big tires help us to go anywhere!

Here's a video of Gregory's first ride... he wasn't too sure what it was all about. As it is with everything, Gregory had to warm up to it first.

Peek a boo, Louis!

Even though the video is a little dark, it is still cute! Our little laughing Louis is not so little these days... he's 22lbs! (at only five months!)

Our new home!

The following is a series of videos of our new house! Enjoy!

First, Theresa walks you through the entrance and the living room:


Then you can see the bathroom and our unique bedroom:


Gregory's room:


The lovely kitchen and dining room...


The play room/ laundry room... Gregory enjoys going "down"; he'll love it even more when his little brother can join him!


Theresa's work space includes a nice little bathroom for her clients:


We are very excited that Theresa gets her own work space. She has done so much to make this place look good!


OK, this might be Pete's favorite room, even though he hides his enthusiasm.


Finally, the sunroom. This would have looked better in the day time, but we just wanted to get these videos uploaded so that you could see our new home, so you'll have to use your imagination.

Sledding

A lot of people ask me, now that I'm unemployed:
"What the heck do you do all day?"....



Yes, that is our back yard. We were sledding on a cookie sheet which worked pretty well... it rained after the snow; making it fun to go down, but very difficult getting back up! Due to the added extracurricular activities, videos of the rest of the house are experiencing delays.

Below are pictures looking out of our bedroom window. Gregory spotted the squirrel rummaging for nuts on top of the sunroom.

Peek-a-boo

Some new videos from Christmas Vacation

Gregory enjoyed playing Guitar with his Uncle John (who has two albums available at JohnSlattery.com).


Gregory learned how to climb up on the step stool and take whatever he wanted from the kitchen counters. He was truly intrigued by the water dispenser in the refridgerator, but luckily we got to him before he got things too messy!


Gregory shows his love to Jesus... we received the crucifix as a gift for Christmas.

Gregory learns new words...

Weekend Warrior

This weekend I finished the two projects I was working on. I had always wanted to put a screen up on the balcony so that we didn't get eaten by those pesky mosquitoes... my only problem was justifying the cost of the lumber needed. Well, Providence came through last weekend. Someone was throwing away a futon that had just the right amount of lumber on it for me to do both projects! The second project was a problem-solver: how do we let Gregory look out at the birds, etc. without having to hold him all of the time? You can see by the pictures below how it all worked out:

Gregory's workbench

I built Gregory a workbench for his tools yesterday... it's not much, but he likes it. Here are a couple of pictures:

























Here's a video of Gregory going off to work with his toolbox. I wanted to take a video of him because he was standing at the door trying to get out when I first saw him... whenever he sees the camera, however, he forgets everything.

Bouncy Ball

I'm in the Washington Post!

The Washington Post came to the Franciscan Monastery where I work the other day and took the temperature down in the catacombs that we have. They were doing a story on where people can go to stay cool. Anyway, you can view the article here. You just have to go to the third page to find my coverage. Here's the picture they put in there of me... second page of the Metro section: