Spring Break: Day 1

Today officially marks the first day of Spring Break. We woke up to a gray, cloudy, rainy day with a couple of sick kids. So what did we do about it? We made our own spring! The kids helped decorate our front window with flowers, rainbows, 2 sun's, an airplane, and of course, a tie-fighter (upper left-hand corner of the picture, but look hard). It sure made us feel better during such a gray day, and was a huge surprise for Wally when he came home.

We also started making some "sugar crystals" that will hopefully be formed by the end of the week. I think they are enjoying some time off from school and just hanging our together. They have had fun playing games together, especially Raft Wars (it's a fun game, but a little addicting!). Brandon is definitely taking advantage of more time with the video games!

Hopefully we'll have some nicer weather later in the week, but for now, we're enjoying our own little spring in our window.

I LOVE PEEPS!

Now that Easter has come and gone, it's time to start thinking about what to do with all those leftover Peeps. Most people (including RP) can't stand the unnaturally colored marshmallow ducks and bunnies, but I'm actually a big fan. Besides eating them, here is my 2nd favorite thing to do with them (narrated by our oldest):

Another 30 seconds and these things will actually start on fire, but since I was doing this on a paper plate, I didn't think I should push my luck.

Anyway, Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!

We had a pretty fun Easter this year, besides the fact that is was so early and I didn't quite feel ready for it. We took the kids to go see the Easter Bunny at the mall, well, really wave at him because I wasn't going to sell my soul to him for a picture. We did our traditional dying of the eggs, which both of the kids really enjoyed this year. Kelsie got really creative with the wax crayon and would draw pictures all over the eggs and then would color them with well thought out plans. Brandon also really enjoyed the wax crayon and made a few tie-fighter eggs in honor of Star Wars (no matter what we do, it always comes back to Star Wars). The thing that was especially nice for me was that both of the kids are old enough to dye the eggs without too much help, which meant that I didn't have to do it. Don't get me wrong, I'm all about dying the eggs, but if I don't have to worry about eggs getting thrown around and dye splashing all over the place then I am happy to take my seat as far away as possible and just watch them having fun.

Easter morning was fun, but hectic. We decided to have our egg hunt before church (which started at 9 a.m.) which took more time than we thought, so we rolled into church just in time to wait in the foyer until the speakers started. Brandon pretty much found all the eggs before we even started our hunt since he's always the first one up in the morning. He showed great control, however, when he didn't touch any of the eggs and instead went for his basket. We heard Kelsie start to get upset with him for eating some of his candy to which he replied, "but it's so good!". Caleb even enjoyed the egg hunt long enough to realize that there was something in the eggs worth getting out. It didn't take him long to figure out how to throw the eggs (they were plastic) just right and out popped some jelly beans. Kelsie, our eternal planner and helper, made sure that everyone found their eggs but would not let anyone help her find hers. All in all it was a great morning and the kids were happy and we went to church on a little sugar rush.

After church, we tried taking some pictures of the kids in their clothes and then started to talk about why we celebrate Easter. We turned on our movie, Finding Faith in Christ, and Brandon was asleep in the first 10 minutes. Kelsie was really into it this year and had a lot of questions afterwards. The kids also watched The Veggie Tales Eater Carol which we do every year as well. We cooked a ham and potatoes and spent the rest of the night relaxing and having fun.

Milestones

We have hit a couple milestones in our family the last few days:

First Milestone:

This is my 101st post!! I didn't think that I would have enough interesting things to blog about for this long, but I must confess that it is an addiction now. I look at my like through "blogging goggles" and try to think of fun things to write about. It has been a fun way for me to keep our families and friends updated with our exciting life. So, those of you that have stuck with me this long, thanks! I hope to keep you interested in coming back.

Second Milestone:

Happy Blogging!

Happy Freakin' Spring!

Enough said.

A Mastercard Moment...

Parking at the airport: $10

Airport food for dinner: $15

Spending 3 1/2 hours at the airport with great friends: priceless

It's not every day that you get to spend an afternoon at the airport to see some special friends. Lucky for us, our good friends from PA were on their way home with a long layover in Chicago. We waited to tell Kelsie and Brandon that we were going to go see their old friends until just before we left and you would have thought it was Christmas all over again! The whole drive to the airport we heard, "I can't wait to see Sage and Gabe!" Once we got to the airport, we arranged for a meeting place and then waited for them to come. Kelsie was overcome with excitement and when she finally saw her friend Sage, it was a scene right out of a movie. They both ran to each other and ended in a huge hug. It was the same for Brandon and Gabe.

We spent the next 3 1/2 hours hanging out at the airport and enjoying the time we had to spend with their family. The train ride was lots of fun for everyone and getting food at the food court couldn't have been more exciting (Wally had to wait 15 minutes for Brandon's Happy Meal). When it was time to say good-bye, we held back our tears and had to explain to our kids one more time that they had to go home and that we'll hopefully see them again soon.

After all, isn't that what family is for?

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

This weekend, Chicago had it's big parade celebrating St. Patrick's Day and dyed the Chicago River a bright emerald green. They have been dying the river green for the last 40 years and is supposed to be a really fun thing to watch.

I was really sad that we didn't make it this year (you know how much I hate to miss out on things), but next year we will be there front and center for the festivities! I just think it's such a fun way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day!

Here's Proof...

There is an end to this crazy winter! We had a BEAUTIFUL day today! Brandon and I noticed some bulbs that had started to grow in our yard this afternoon while we were playing catch. We were so excited we did the happy dance! It's supposed to get cold again, but this at least gives us hope!

Happy Spring!!!

Friendly Faces

We have met so many friendly people here in Chicago, but there is one man that I see everyday that always puts a smile on my face. He is an older gentleman who serves the local elementary school as their crossing guard. He always makes sure that the drivers follow all the traffic rules and lets them know if they're not (he's not afraid to yell if need be). He also makes sure that all the kids cross the street to and from school safely and welcomes everyone with a warm hello on these cold days.

Since we have had nothing but snow and ice for the last coupe of months, I carry Caleb on my back when we walk to school and have Kelsie and Brandon on either side of me. I use them to hep me balance across the sheets of ice that cover the sidewalks and if I do happen to slip, I do it as gracefully as I can and hope one of the kids goes down with me so I can blame it on them. This must have impressed our crossing guard friend because he has nicknamed me Super Mom. Every time I see him (which is usually twice a day) he always has a huge smile and says to me in his Chicago accent, "Hello there Super Mom! How are you today? Be careful on that ice now, it's pretty slick today. I don't know how you mom's do it. You're just great. Alright now, you have a good day!"

The other day, after dropping Kelsie off at school, we were crossing the street with our friend when he pulled out a Dunkin' Donuts gift card and handed it to me. "Because you mom's are just great, especially you Super Mom!" he said. I was totally caught off guard, but luckily kept my balance! That simple act of kindness made me forget how cold it was outside and how grateful I am for friendly crossing guards!