Surprise Vacation

So, this weekend, I decided to surprise my sister. She's 7 months pregnant, and on bed rest, so I thought it would be nice to drive up, keep her one year old occupied for a few hours, fill up her pantry (cause she's not supposed to be leaving the house), and generally give her some company. Surprise! Turns out we're the ones who got a great weekend out of the deal. (Though Cyndy enjoyed our visit, too, I hope!)

We drove up Saturday morning and stopped off at the grocery store to get pickles and ice cream (*grin*) and some yummy easy foods. I called her on some lame pretext as we got near her house, and ended the call by asking if she was going to open the door, cause it was cold. And boy was it! We happened to find the one place with SNOW in the northeast this winter, I think!

So, we chatted, I saw her gorgeous work on the new nursery, we played pinochle, ate a big breakfast and dinner (I was supposed to be NOT causing work, but Barry just jumped right in and handled all the cooking!) , and enjoyed our incredibly talkative little niece! She apparently has learned TONS of words since we saw her last. She recruited both of my kids as willing slaves. Then, this morning Barry and I took the kids out sledding while Scott and Cyndy hung out at the house. Plus, we got to sleep in their gorgeous Adirondack themed room with a fireplace and snow falling outside - seriously, who benefitted more by this deal, I ask you???

Here's some photo highlights. None of my sister, because she didn't look overly thrilled about having her picture taken. She's still tiny, whatever she may say - except for her stomach, which I do admit looks like she's having quadruplets! (Sorry, sis!)

Here's Baby Faith helping me with pinochle. Didn't need much help, though, with my sister bidding 70 on one hand!! (Long, giggly story - probably had to be there...)


She then captured my kids in the dog cage by crawling in, ordering them in after her, sneaking out, and shutting the door! She proceeded to play the piano for them - as Scott said, she had a "captive audience"!

And here's a ton of pictures from our snow adventures. The one big spill was so funny I had to include it - Nicky forgot to lean forward on the tube and fell off on his butt, which then caused Kai to flip head over heels. Naturally, she didn't find it amusing. Hm.








We rounded off the visit with a trip to Brook's BBQ on the way home. They have the WORLD'S BEST chicken, no lie. All in all, a much better weekend than we would have had staying home!

Finding Joy

This was an uneventful week in the average american household. Not much was happening that could be construed as exciting, or blog-worthy. But looking back over the whole week, (and downloading photos from same), there were plenty of little joys, if you know where to look...

We (or one of us):

-Read new Relevant magazine
-Beat the Browns on Madden O7
-Beat Bowser on The New Super Mario Bros.
-Read "Seabiscuit", again
-Watched "Top Chef"
-Made several scrapbook pages
-Played with Mommy's fuzzy scarf
-Watched "What's Up, Doc?"
-Got a blue tongue from raspberry drink at Perkins
-Finally spent birthday money on four fashion-conscious (and adorable) outfits
-Ate delicious tiramisu from the new Fresh Market
-Read "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix"
-Got beautiful pink roses
-Went rollerskating with a friend
-Got recruited to do the children's sermon five minutes before service, and actually pulled it off
-Helped several kids to NOT FAIL English by keeping them during lunch to finish work
-Played dress up as Voldemort and Darth Vader
-Caught up on sleep
-Watched 24, got the DVD, watched it again, watched the sneak preview of the first 10 minutes of next week, waited impatiently
-Woke up to the first dusting of snow of the season
-Updated the 24 Wiki
-Decided on a vacation destination for the summer, after much democratic debate - we're planning a combo trip to Philly and the Outer Banks

I think sometimes it's easy to look forward to big events coming in the future, or memories of the past. What's more difficult is to find joy in the everyday moments. Sure, there were some down moments this week, too. Lots of things didn't go the way we planned, tempers flared, people were cranky. But hopefully this little list will remind us to enjoy the little things in life.

Why Don't They Just Say It's A Cold?

So, Nicky has an "upper respiratory infection". He, of course, feels just fine now. Never mind that he came crawling into my bed at 5 AM burning up with fever again (repeat of last night). Never mind he was coughing and sniffling all morning. Never mind I took the day off work (well, off inservice, anyway) and called our family doctor. In my professional opinion, (and who's more professional than a mother?), the act of calling the doctor and making an appointment is sufficient to guarantee the complete reversal of any symptoms a child might be displaying. Just so that mom can look like an idiot, and the doctor can make her "you bothered me with this??" face. And write you a prescription for expensive antibiotics we both know she thinks he doesn't need. Don't worry. 2AM tonight, when the only option is the emergency room, he'll be miserably sick again. Then I'll be glad I have his prescription in hand. Until then, here's his very best "I'm sick" face.

Jack's Back

*sigh* I wait, and wait. Finally, the first night of season 6 of 24 is here. But I miss the first part, cause I KNOW 24 is on at 9. So do I ask when I need to be back from developing film? Nope. And then I get stuck at the world's slowest photo kiosk (after leaving two other places where the kiosks aren't even working!). So by the time I come in the door, Scott's hollering that I'm missing it. Huh? Oh, great. It's on at _8_ tonight. I sit down and try to catch up, calling the kids down to find out if Scott, oh, I don't know, FED them before banishing them. Only to discover that not only haven't they had dinner, but Nicky's burning up with fever. ("We didn't know if we should tell Daddy because he told us not to come downstairs," says Kai. Obviously, we need a refresher on EMERGENCIES vs. being a pest.) Needless to say, my viewing of the first two hours of Jack's day is sketchy at best, as I try to deal with a sick child and a hungry family while watching, but not letting the kids watch.

BUT, all that aside, can I just ask who else but Jack Bauer could be held by international terrorists, escape using only his wits, get a car, a cell phone, and a gun, and be storming the safe house of the terrorist leader in under 15 minutes?? It's so unbelievable, and yet... so addictive! Go, Jack- we're running out of time!!

I (heart) New York!

Yes, I know the picture is a blur - but that's how I always think of New York anyway: a blur of color and sound and light and people! (And really, really, really bad drivers!) We all went along on my drama club trip to New York on Friday. I was glad I could take everyone, because Nicky has never even been to the city. The trip was a little stressful for me, because I had to keep track of the 52 people who were my personal responsibility, and the ushers at the theater were NOT helpful, sending my kids here there and everywhere and not wanting to let me make sure they were all situated before getting in my own seat. *sigh* But the play itself (The Phantom of the Opera, in its 18th Broadway year) was WONDERFUL. All of my drama kids were completely overwhelmed by the production. I was very proud of them for their excellent behavior - even the bus driver said what great kids they were, which means a lot when you're taking middle schoolers on a long trip! All in all, the trip was a great success. My only disappointment was that I had seen Phantom before - next year, I hope I can finangle tickets to Wicked or The Pirate Queen!

Here's a few more pictures I can show you - most feature my drama kids, which I don't think I should share on my blog without parental permission and all that jazz:

E-A-G-L-E-S Eagles!

Well, I wish I had written this post last Sunday. Last Sunday, we watched and laughed and cheered as the Eagles defeated the Giants. The last second field goal by David Akers was fabulous, and the whole family had a great time cheering on "Daddy's Team".

This week's outing versus the Saints? Not so much fun. The short week and some stupid penalties ended the football season around here. But I'm still glad the Saints eliminated the Eagles, not the Giants. After all, the Giants had already ended the Pack's playoff dreams. So, football is over for another year as far as this family is concerned. But as one of the FOX announcers said, the good thing about the end of the football season is that 24 starts tomorrow! Goodbye, Dawkins jersey, hello Jack Bauer for President T-shirt!

Finally Scrappin' Again!

I've been so very busy that I was just THRILLED to get some time to scrapbook the last two evenings. I've finally managed to clear everything off my to-do list - until I find more things I need to do later in the week, I'm sure!

I'm really happy with this layout I made for a sketch challenge on Scrappin_FUN. I probably shouldn't post it here since so many Scrappin_FUN ladies visit my blog, but they'll know it's mine when they vote anyway - who else would be scrapping a picture of Kai?

What's neat about this layout is that I could only find ONE piece of paper that matched Kai's outfit, and I had NO clue where I got it. So I made the striped paper with paper strips, hand cut the title, and improvised! The other time consuming element was that star - I had to peel the back off and stick each individual rhinestone... urgh! But the end result was worth the effort - now I can always remember my sassy little "glam rocker"!

New Year's Resolutions

Well, it's been a lovely, lazy vacation. But now it's time for 2007, which means back to the grind of everyday life. First, though, here's our resolutions for the new year:

Scott wants to lose weight, pray more, and be more patient.

I want to lose weight, take more time to play with my family, do a better job with Sunday School, and get caught up on my scrapbooking.

Kairi wants to read more books, study more for Social Studies, and exercise more.

Nicky wants to learn karate and read the first Harry Potter book.

Here's hoping we can all make these resolutions come true!

Happy New Year!

Raving About the Rave

We headed out to the Promenade Shops, a new "lifestyle center" (READ: Mall) near our house today so that Kai could spend her birthday money, redeem a free birthday burger at Red Robin, and we could all try out the new movie theater, Rave Motion Pictures.

Kai didn't manage to spend her money because she couldn't find anything she wanted. The wait at Red Robin was _40_ minutes at noon on a Thursday! But we have nothing but praise for the Rave.

We went to see "Night at the Museum". The whole family enjoyed the movie VERY much. We thought it was funny, touching, and a great concept for a film. Okay, well the kids just thought it was funny. But either way, we liked it. Nicky and Kairi now have their hearts set on a visit to the Museum of Natural History in NYC, which works for me - I love that place.

The Rave itself though... me-ow. Lots of leg room, beautiful subtle lighting to get back to your seat, rocking recliners with flip up cupholders so you can snuggle with your date or small child - everything about it was fabu! Best of all?? 10 minutes from our new house! I forsee many future trips to this theater!

A Little More Birthday

Just a few more adorable photos of my birthday girl, taken after we got home from the mall. She was very happy with her pile of presents (and the pink roses from Daddy). She didn't want to go to bed and muss up her hair, but eventually, all good things must come to an end. Goodnight, birthday Princess!

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice

I admit. I was a bit apprehensive about a Club Libby Lu birthday party. The cost, for one thing, was enough to give me pause. Another factor were the negative posts on the web and in newspapers, accusing Libby Lu of basically teaching little girls to be... let's keep with the family atmosphere on this blog and say trashy. But Kai really liked the idea, and when I looked into it in person, it didn't seem so bad on either count. So I decided to go for it. Turns out, it was a FABULOUS birthday party. In no way, at any time, did any of the activities seem even SLIGHTLY inappropriate (and I am a pretty strict mommy). The cost was _more_ than paid for with the great prizes the girls got to pick for their goody bags, which were also included and were actually cute little backpacks. The "makeover" that has feminists throwing hissy fits is no more than nail polish, pale pink eyeshadow and glitter lip gloss, with some glitter and rhinestones and a fancy hair do. The dance party at the end that some on the internet villified as an advertisement for pedophiles consisted of playing limbo and dancing to a line dance the kids do in GYM class. (Which involved lots of hopping, stomping, and turning in dizzy circles, with a few cha cha chas thrown in, as far as I could tell.) It's really scary to me that we live in a world were innocent dress up fun can be interpreted as a training ground for the next Paris Hiltons, just because it encourages little girls to ACT like little girls. *sigh* Okay, off my soapbox and back to the fun.

Kairi was treated like a COMPLETE princess from the second we entered Club Libby Lu. She and all her friends were greeted and given cute purple backpacks that said "I had a rocking time!" They were then allowed to pick 5 items from a big series of bins that had lip gloss, hair ties, sunglasses, necklaces, and so on, all tagged at $4.50 each if you bought them by themselves. Considering the party cost $20 a girl, the makeover, makeup compact, backpack and dance party were apparently free. Which is not that bad, since I didn't have to provide paper products, decorations, entertainment, or my house to make a mess in. Actually, it cost about as much as a movie party she had two years ago. And my kids are only allowed parties every other year, which lets us give them bigger parties when they do have them.

Next, they settled the girls around big heart shaped mirrors and started doing their hair and make-up. We had 8 girls total (which was NICE, because we HAD to invite her entire class by school rules, and might have had 15 show up including her special friends who aren't in her class!) They were giggling and having a wonderful time. Each girl got to pick their hairstyle - but 7 out of 8 girls picked exactly what Kairi wanted. They also got to pick their eyeshadow, nail polish and lip gloss shades and get rhinestone stickers on their cheeks. The whole store smelled like cotton candy and baby powder by the time they're done!

Once all the girls were done, it was time to party! The limbo and Cha Cha Slide got everyone giggling. We then headed down the mall to get some Haagen-Daaz ice cream, since food isn't allowed in Libby Lu. As you can imagine, 8 girls all dolled up with purple backpacks got a lot of attention - but not as much as Kai did! The girls were fighting over walking by her all the way down the mall. Apparently, she's quite the favorite. Or maybe it was just because it was her party! The ice cream, and then sitting in the mall rotunda to open presents were a sweet finish to the evening, and the girls headed home, after many hugs.

Kai headed through the mall to spend her Pawsenclaws gift card (from her brother) and designed an adorable Kitty stuffed animal. Then it was home to check out all of her loot. All told, she said it was her BEST birthday party ever!

Where a Kid Can Be A Kid

Kai's birthday had two parts. The "little kid" part and the "big girl" part. One of Scott's co-workers had given the kids an incredibly thoughtful Chuck E. Cheese gift card for Christmas, and we used it for Kai's birthday dinner and family fun before her party with friends over at Club Libby Lu. I'm glad she's not too big for the "kid stuff" at Chuck E.'s! We ate pepperoni pizza, played all the games, and Kai beat us all at skeeball - she's a whiz! It was a fun way to kick off an exciting evening.

Kairi, Age 10

Kairi is such a sweetheart, and we're so happy to be her parents. But we can't POSSIBLY be the parents of a 10 year old!! Where does the time go???

Kai's birthday was all about her. From presents to parties, Chuck E. Cheese to Club Libby Lu, birthday money to ice cream, she enjoyed every minute of her special day. I took lots of pictures throughout all the fun, but I took this one first thing that morning so I could always remember the way my pretty, talented, clever little girl looked at age 10.

Present Time!!

Christmas Eve, for us, is about the true meaning of Christmas. (Well, and apparently about baking this year, lol.) Christmas morning? That's about family. And, about PRESENTS!

We had a stupendously wonderful Christmas this year. After opening our stockings, Jon and Laurie (AKA Pop-Pop and Grammy) joined us for breakfast and we enjoyed muffins and bacon and eggs. Then it was time for the present frenzy.

We spent 2 or 3 hours tearing into paper and tossing aside bows. By the time we were done, everyone was happy and the room looked like a toy store explosion. Scott's favorite presents were Madden 2007, a wireless controller for his Game Cube, and a book about U2, by U2. My favorites were Willow Tree and Ten Thousand Villages angels and sculptures from various family members, the complete Indiana Jones trilogy and a VERY COOL signed photograph of Brett Favre!! Nicky adored his DS, and said his second favorite was the electric train that Grandma and Grandpa got him. We also had fun with Grammy and Pop-Pop's gift of a crazy Cranium Cadoo board game. Kairi loved her MP3 player and said her favorite gift was a box full of frog decor for her room from Grandma and Grandpa. Grammy and Pop-Pop also scored big points for a how to draw book. Grammy and Pop Pop were happy with their presents, too - they got a microwave, I Love Lucy DVD's, a Sinatra CD, and a framed picture I had restored of Scott's Grammy.

Here's some of the highlights, in photo form:

The traditional peek down the stairs...


...to see the pile of presents Santa left!


Nicky was thrilled with his stocking contents.


Kairi looks pretty happy, too!


And let's not forget Honey, Midnight, and Princess! They get stocking stuffers, too, naturally!


Here's Nicky's reaction to his DS....


....and Kai tearing into her MP3 player.


Grammy and Pop-Pop are so cute together after 30+ years of marriage!


Kai and Nick also got the coolest Cranium fort (which they've played with A LOT since Christmas!)


Here's their first construction attempt - it can go together hundreds of different ways.




And all of that was before lunch time! After the traditional ham dinner, Jon and Laurie went home, leaving us to watch the Eagles trounce all over the Cowboys. Now THAT'S really Scott's favorite Christmas gift, no matter what he says!