the aunts, and more...

it's been nearly two weeks since i posted last. i've been overwhelmed with life — specifically, a nasty sinus/cold thing that i couldn't shake (probably because i never sleep or even sit down, unless you call driving sitting), a fun visit from my aunts, halloween (which included one trunk or treat, 1 class party, 1 playgroup party, 1 night of trick or treating, 1 post-halloween-halloween party), a 4 year old sleepover, a trip to the zoo and a visit from my buddy amy. phew. oh, and bob's been working insane extra hours, necessitating solo bedtime preparations (which means my work carries me even further into the wee hours of the night), and the editing of what i believe to be the most articles and posts i've ever edited in a two week period in the history of my wisegeek career. double phew. so i'll start where i left off.

last week we had the pleasure of welcoming my two aunts — my mom's sisters — for a visit. this was a monumental visit...i think the last time the sisters were all together was 13 years ago at my wedding. on thursday, my aunt katherine from california arrived. we hung out, ate, talked and all that good stuff. katherine got to see the kids in action at our church's trunk or treat on friday. i'll post more on that later. late friday night, aunt donna arrived from new york, and the bulseco girls were in full effect.

we had planned to descend upon aidan's last soccer game to show off for the aunts, but due to rain the day before, it had been canceled. aidan took it surprisingly well, especially after we assured him that we'd sign up for the spring season. after breakfast, i left the kids with bob and the girls (my mom, the aunts, annie and i) went to the plaza for some eatin' and shoppin'. can you think of a better way to spend a saturday with your favorite aunts in town? we ate lunch at the classic cup, did some shopping and a little sightseeing around my old stomping grounds in kc. later that night, we ate (are you seeing the theme here?) at jack stack, martin city. it's our favorite barbecue place next to oklahoma joe's (the kc gas station location is the best). i've been to nearly all the jack stack kc locations, and i love the atmosphere at martin city the most.

on sunday, we had our primary children's program in church, giving the kids the opportunity to dazzle the aunts with their singing and speaking talents. it was adorable. the best part was when mia got a little bit of stage fright and sister lapine (ma-pine as mia says it) had to coax her into delivering her line ("i can be like Jesus by being kind"). several people commented on the sheer cuteness of the moment. after church, we had lunch, and unfortunately had to take the aunts back to the airport way too soon. it was a great weekend, and made me wish that we could have more weekends with my mom's sisters. i know that she was so happy to be with them...there's nothing like your sister!

funny story...my mom and her sisters were re-creating a decades old photo of the three of them. i wish i could dig up the original photo! don't they look great?!

at jack stack's

on our way to the plaza for girl time