Brothers In The Snow

We got 6.5 inches of snow last night on top of 2 we already had so it was time for some winter fun today. It was also the first time Jamie's really had a chance to play in the snow - ever.

You guys.  THEY PLAY TOGETHER NOW.

This is fun, Mom!

Wolf Boy

REALLY. THEY PLAY TOGETHER.

Christmas Joy

Christmas was magical this year.

This year, Jamie was old enough to really get the whole concept of Santa and opening presents - he could get into the wonder of it all.  Also, he was not sick for Christmas this year - which is an immediate improvement over last year.

Liam, of course, loves Christmas and was practically vibrating through the walls on Christmas Eve.  That was Scot's birthday and we had to keep reminding him that while the next day was Christmas, right then it was DADDY'S BIRTHDAY.

Leaving cookies for Santa

I don't have a picture of the stockings or the tree or all the presents because I was having too much fun with the kids.  We came downstairs Christmas morning and they were so excited.  Santa brought stuffed Totoros (thanks to his sneaky elf helpers, Trista and Dan) and they both loved them.  It's been Jamie's favorite pillow ever since.

For the first time ever, Liam told Santa what he wanted for Christmas.  He asked Santa for the Lego Ninjago Fire Temple.  After shunting one of his larger gifts over to his birthday pile (in February), Santa was able to bring the Fire Temple.  The pictures say it all.

One happy Spud

Jamie enjoyed stocking gifts as well - his favorites being Totoro and the chocolate candy.  

After stockings it was time to make breakfast.  After discovering them last year, I again made individual Monkey Breads for breakfast.  OM NOM NOM.

Seriously, folks, these are heaven in a ramekin.

After breakfast we got down the big gifting.  The kids were spoiled by one and all.  Scot spoiled me rotten and bought me a Kindle Fire as well as a new lens for my camera.  It was also a very kitchen-y Christmas as I received (from various generous family members) some new fun baking accoutrements, a panini press, and spices.

More Legos for Liam - clearly he doesn't mind.

One of Jamie's favorite presents - no more high chair!

It was also a very book-y Christmas.  Books, books, and more books! For everyone!

Scot's parents joined us in the afternoon for round two of gifting.  Jamie was napping when they got here so we let Liam open his presents first so he wouldn't die from antici. . . pation.

Grandma and Granddad were very generous.

The contents of the large red bag.

After Liam was done the adults exchanged gifts and when Jamie got up he got to open his stack.  And then, finally, we were done with presents and could move on to playing with our toys and eating dinner.

We had NY strips for Christmas dinner.  As well as risotto, fresh steamed broccoli, salad, rolls, and cranberry orange tart for dessert.  We were tired of the same old roasts so we did something different this year. It was delicious.

I ended the day content, happy, and NOT completely exhausted.  The boys had a blast, we enjoyed all of their excitement and joy and Christmas felt like a holiday instead of a chore this year.  

I hope your holiday was merry and bright!

A Trip To Phipps

This week has been incredibly stressful and difficult.  I feel like I've lived through 3 months worth of crises in the space of seven days and, frankly, I don't like it very much.  Neither does anyone else in the house and we're all pretty cranky.

So, this morning we took the kids and went to Phipps.  We haven't been in several months and this is usually a very relaxing family outing for us.  It wasn't so awesome this morning (if you saw a woman carrying a yelling, screaming red-headed demon toward the exit, that would have been me) but we did our best to enjoy it regardless.

The fall flower shower is in full swing and the place is stuffed to the gills with mums - all colors, shapes, sizes, and statures.  The main room off the rotunda has been turned into a massive train display.

This was Jamie's favorite room.  Hence the screaming when informed it was time to leave.

"Choo-choo!"

As usual, the display designers at Phipps have left their unique twist on things. Left amidst the idyllic scenes of farms, the country store, and outdoor activities we find a barn...

...with dinosaurs.  RAWR!

And oh, the colors!  Reds! Oranges! Yellows!

If this isn't the definition of fall, I don't know what is.

As we left, a quintessential Pittsburgh scene greeted us.

The Cathedral of Learning against a perfect sky

The most exciting part of our visit (for me) was that I took my very first fully manual picture on my DSLR.  I wanted to get a picture of one of the waterfalls in the Tropical Room and I wanted to slow the shutter speed down enough to get some nice blur on the water.  

I did it!

It might not be the most interesting or most perfectly composed shot ever but I used the full manual function and I got the camera to do what I was hoping to make the camera do.  Holy cats, I'm not a complete camera imbecile!

It's All Happening At The Zoo

Our last big outing while visiting my parents was a trip to the zoo.  This was Liam's favorite part of the trip because he knew the dinosaurs were back at the zoo and he couldn't wait to see them again.  Each summer the Detroit Zoo installs a whole raft of animatronic dinosaurs that move and bellow and spit water (some of them).  You walk a gravel path through a wooded area and the dinos are all tucked into the trees.  They're huge and really cool and very, very well done so Liam was excited.

But before we hit the dinosaurs, we stopped into the Butterfly House.  This is always a calming oasis of green plants and fluttering lepidoptera.  Dad planned ahead and wore red which always attracts the butterflies.

Two landed on his back to start with.

Then one moved up to his shoulder.

The dinosaurs were even better this year than the last time we saw them.  They had more of them and they were fantastic.  

Brachiosaurus

T. Rex

Quetzalcoatlus

They don't spare the gore, either.

The detail was amazing.

"Wow, Mom!"

Giganotasaurus.  Yes, he was HA-UGE.

After the dinos we wandered through a bunch of the zoo.  We didn't see the whole thing because it's a big zoo and Jamie has a time limit.  We were working to see as much as we could before we needed to head home so Jamie could nap and before the worst of the heat of the day.  But, we got to see a fair bit and then snagged a ride on the train to get back to the front of the zoo.

Mandarin Duck

River Otter

The ubiquitous peacock

Gorilla.  He was magnificent.

The boys and me at the entrance to the polar exhibit.

Jamie inside the polar exhibit

Liam on the train

It was a great day and I'm really glad we saved it for our last outing of the trip.  It gave the kids something to look forward to and ended our vacation on a high note.  Days like this one remind of how much easier things are getting as the kids get older.  We still have our rough spots - oh boy, do we - but getting out and having fun together is a regularly attainable goal these days.

Now, we're back in the swing of things here at home and looking toward the start of school.  In just two more weeks Liam will be a first grader.  Where did the summer go?

Beachy Fun!

While we were visiting my parents last week, we made it a point to hit the beach.  You can't swing a dead cat without hitting a beach where they live whereas it's a two hour drive to Erie to get to one around here.

So, yeah, the beach was on the list of must-do activities.

Sunday morning we got up and went to early Mass then headed straight home, changed into beach attire and headed off for a couple of hours of sun and sand before we had to go home for Jamie's nap.  Liam has been to a beach before but it was Jamie's first experience with it and he loved it.  The water was the perfect temperature as well as clear and clean.  Jamie ran right in and was completely fearless about the water.  The kid would have walked in over his head if we let him.

They also spent a good amount of time playing in the sand and just generally having a great time.

Getting a shell from Puppa

A handful of sand...

...bombs away!

THEY ACTUALLY PLAYED TOGETHER.

Puppa with his grandsons

We stayed for a couple of hours and then everyone was hungry and getting tired so we packed up and headed home.  I'd forgotten how much fun being at the lake can be.  Walking up to the beach, I caught the smell of the water and suddenly I was a little girl again, on vacation with my family, knowing that we were almost to the most fun I would have all day because I could smell the water.

It was great to make those memories with my kids.  I hope we can do it again next year.

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

At the end of last week I picked up a rental mini van, packed up the kids and a ton of crap, and headed off for the 6 hour drive to my parents house for a 5 day visit.  The kids were very excited to go see Oma and Puppa as it's been over a year since we made the trek up to see them (they have come to visit us in the interim).

It was a fun and busy visit and everyone had a great time.  I think I'm still recovering.

Saturday morning we took the kids to a local playground to run their beans out a bit.  They'd been trapped in a car for most of the previous day so they needed some time to run.

Oma and Jamie enjoying the swings.

Saturday afternoon we took it easy and then four of my high school classmates drove in from various parts of the state to hang out for awhile.  I saw Jan and Paul about a year and a half ago at our class reunion but I hadn't seen Phil since high school.  I also got to meet his lovely wife and his adorable son.  They all hung out at my parents place, we grilled, ate, drank beer, and chatted for several hours.  It was really a lot of fun to see them and I was grateful they were all willing to drive to my parent's house so that I didn't have to find someone to take care of the kids.

The 2011 Meeting of the Sarcasm Society

(L to R: Jan, Phil, Me, Paul)

We tried to keep the kids busy for most of the days we were there by having some sort of activity in the morning and then be home by lunch/nap time.  This way Jamie still got his naps and we were home in the air conditioning during the worst of the high heat in the mid-afternoon.  We spent time at the beach and the zoo on separate days and one morning we went to the local mall to avail ourselves of the playground as well as the children's clothing outlets.

Up, up, and away!

I'm sitting on a giant ear of corn, Mom.  I'm not sure how I feel about this.

We stayed through Tuesday and drove home on Wednesday.  We were all glad to be home again.  This was the longest trip away from home the kids have been on and they were missing home and Scot by the time we finally returned.  I then celebrated our homecoming by smashing my car into the brick corner of the garage.  Welcome home!