Wizard of Oz & Christmas Lights & Walking

Anna Rose said she was a lucky girl tonight and she sure was right about that.  Our night started with a walk around the neighborhood and it would be nice if the reason was simply to go out for a walk.  But in reality, I was about to pull my hair out and needed a break.  We bundled up (it was about 32 degrees) and headed out in the double stroller, with Greta trotting alongside.  As we started the walk, Anna started to point out and talk about all the Christmas lights and decorations.  She would say, "I want that one.  No I want that one."  The past weekend we had talked about her helping Nick put up Christmas lights and since then she has been scoping out what kind she wants.  Once we got home, I made a mental note of how a little fresh air seemed to help out all of our moods and behaviors and I plan on doing that more often. 

After dinner, we touched up Anna Rose's fingernails, got her dressed, did her hair in a make-shift "up-due," and applied a touch of lipstick.  She was all ready for her date with her special guy- Daddy!!!  I sent them off to go see the Wizard of Oz and had some fun time with Kate- giving her a bath and reading books.  It amazes me at how much she seems to be soaking in and understanding these days.  Pointing out the baby and duck in the book and following simple directions.  Now that she is a walking girl- she is all over the place and I find little pieces of evidence to support that throughout my day.  Currently there is a piece of food from the play kitchen and a magnet on our kitchen floor and earlier I stepped on a piece of chalk while cooking.  She is very proud of the fact that she is walking and one of our favorite activities at the moment is to chase her calling her name- she smiles and giggles and then does her full out belly laugh once I get her- it is precious! 

Nick and Anna Rose arrived home and I was anxious to hear all about it.  Her eyes and mouth opened wide when she saw the ice-cream I had set out and proceeded to say, "I'm a lucky girl!"  While she enjoyed her ice-cream treat, Nick and Anna told me about their date- including the funny questions and comments Anna had during the play (Toto turning into a kid, "That's a different Dorothy,"  "Is it over?"- after every scene change). 

My first post

OK...so I'm taking a little break from what is again a crazy work day to post a few words on here. First, I am so glad that Kara got this up and running. We had talked about doing it for the last 18 months or so, to the point where I actually added it to my to-do list in June of 2009 and it has just sat there in red ever since. Little did I know Kara would be able to put it together in about 5 minutes. That's why I love my wife.

Anyhow, I wanted to comment on Kara's post about our night with my parents and grandparents about 10 days ago. It was indeed very special and not a day goes by that I don't appreciate how lucky I am to have such a wonderful family and 4 amazing grandparents that I get to share my own children with and appreciate in my adult years. So, much thanks to Kara for arranging this special night which was the first of my 34th birthday celebrations. Since then, I've had one other and have one last one coming up this coming weekend. In reality, I really don't care about celebrating my birthday multiple times. Not sure why it always seems to happen though?!?

We just returned from a long, fun trip to Chicago for Thanksgiving, which is where I also got to go out on my actual birthday. It was great to kick off the trip with the night out with Kara, Kristine, Art, Stacy, Rustin, and CA. We saw the highly regarded Talking Heads cover band, This Must Be the Band, and I must say, they were outstanding. I can't wait to see them again. It was great getting to hang in Chicago with my in-laws, meet Elena Ruth Knickerbocker, spend a relaxing Thanksgiving Day at Tommy & Kim's, stay at Davey & Kim's for 3 nights, and go out to dinner with all of Kara's siblings and spouses on Saturday night. So, not only do I feel very lucky for the family I have of my own, but also very lucky to be married into the family that I am.

So, now it's back to work and I am going to try to get in the habit of posting on here with some regularity.

Memorable and Amazing Evening

With the catchy title- one might think that we were out and about seeing and/or doing something amazing.  When in fact, we were at home having dinner- a rather simple and ordinary event.  What made this meal and evening so special is that we were celebrating Nick's birthday with his parents, and all four of his grandparents.  To me, this is amazing!  All four of my grandparents have passed on and after an evening like Friday night, I so wish that I could spend an evening with them all- talking, sharing stories, and laughing.  Nick's grandparents are wonderful!  They each have their own unique character and I treasure the times we get to spend with them.  I tried to take some photos to capture the evening but I hope I can always remember the smiles and stories that they were sharing. 

Time is Flying By!

Being a parent of two little kids, we are constantly told that the time will go by so quickly!  We will blink our eyes and our children will be graduating from high school.  While there are many days in which I do not feel that way, I do realize that this time is precious and it seems to be going faster and faster.  I want to try to capture some of the craziness that fulfills our lives so that when this time is long gone we can go back and try to remember the good, challenging, and amazing times.  The intent of this blog is mostly for us to remember these times but to also share with our family- some who live apart from us.