I can see clearly now, the rain is gone...

I discovered this morning that I am a fan of Montessori. Mike, B, and I went on another preschool tour this morning while A was in school, and this time we checked out another Montessori. I wanted to see if I just liked this [particular school that we have toured, and I am already a fan of], or if I like the whole Montessori idea, and the conclusion is- the latter! Now it feels as if we don't have to make any difficult decisions at all! We are going to put in applications at both the Montessori schools we toured, and perhaps our decision will be made for us- otherwise it won't be a hard decision, because we'd be happy with either choice.

Mike's sisters and mom are coming to town tomorrow, to look for a prom dress for Sarah, and do some more looking at bridesmaids' dresses for Darci's wedding in December. I think I'm going to go to a movie by myself tonight, and we have orchestra tickets to bring the kids to a concert on Sunday afternoon, so that's our weekend in a nutshell.

Hope you all have a great one!

Matriculation Madness!

How did it get to be the last weekend of January already? We are in the midst of preschool touring, with application deadlines coming up next week. We toured a German immersion preschool yesterday, and we are touring another Montessori preschool on Friday. This feels like we're making a decision about college, and to think- preschool is not even a requirement, and not all kids go! However, I think A will really enjoy it, and I think she is going to be craving more stimulation and social interaction, since she already is to some extent, and we're already going to "school" twice a week!

Hanging Out at Home

I Made It!

I have been avoiding posting to the blog, since writing about my past week would make me relive it, and I'd rather not. Mike was out of town, enjoying his birthday and Christmas present combined, which was a trip to Orlando to play fastpitch. I had friends and family who really helped me survive the 5 day stretch. I wouldn't have made it without dinner at Hope's and Chad's on Thursday night, Danielle's on Friday night, dinner made by my parents at my house on Saturday, and visiting my parents' house on Sunday. Thanks everyone!!!!

We had a visit to the pediatrician on Thursday afternoon for B's red hot infected index finger. He was given a week's worth of Keflex TID, and plenty of finger soaking (yah, right), and it was looking worse yesterday, but all of a sudden today it looks like it is improving, so I think I'll avoid a repeat visit to the Dr. for now. I think splashing in the bathtub last night really helped. B has become quite the diaper changing wrestler lately. He also has been trying to pull up like crazy, and he loves to be standing, holding on to hands. I think he's figured out that crawling is only a temporary measure, so why waste time learning that when you could work on walking instead?!

A and I are going to have some mother/daughter time tonight, with a new session of gymnastics. If you haven't seen A receiving her medal yet, check out the video clip on the bottom of the page. We used to go to gymnastics on Tuesday mornings, and Mike would come watch A, and take care of B, but now that we've switched to evenings, I think it will just be the girls. Too bad for Mike though, since it is really fun to watch A's athletic feats.

Mike is going to bring the kids home from the gym tonight, and I'm going to Danielle's, so we can start our new hobby. We are going to make Christmas scrapbooks. We've already been to Archiver's, and purchased some basic materials and our new albums, of course. I think A especially will enjoy looking through the book when I get it out before Christmas this year with the rest of the Christmas stuff that she enjoyed so much this past year. Christmas ONLY- I think it will be less daunting if I stick to something very specific. I think it is going to be fun to look back through the years, and see how we've changed/how our decorating/wardrobes, etc. change over time.

Bedtime Adventures, One Memorable Moment of Many

A says to me tonight, approximately one hour after being tucked into bed the first time: "I can't go to sleep, Mom. I have too much to do!" After stifling my laughter, I ask what exactly she needs to do, "I have to help you with dishes!" Wow, she really must not want to go to sleep.

Misc.

I had a really nice birthday. I slept until 9 am, and the house was empty when I came downstairs in the morning. Mike had taken the kids to a nearby bakery to pick up some eclairs. My family gave me a brand new pillow and the softest moss green throw (blanket). I got a jacket from my mom and dad, but it felt too tight in the arms- another reason I've got to get my eating back on track. Mike was home for the MLK holiday; we went to Chai's Thai, where my cousin's wife Nok is a server, for Tom Kaa soup- so good! Then we went down to Prior Lake so Mike could get in one more round of batting practice before his fastpitch trip to Orlando on Wednesday. Dad made sausage pizza, and we had a nice visit. B was quite chatty at the dinner table tonight, and A said, "he's talking up a story!" instead of storm- very cute.

Happy Birthday, Mrs. Stokesfelter! Hope you have a great weekend!

And the Winner is...

I was remiss in not mentioning the recipient of the Ugliest Sweater Award- Mr. Jeff Kamin. No one can pull off leopard spots, beadwork, and shiny golden thread like Jeff!

Ugly Hot Nuts

We had a nice time on Saturday night at the Ugly Sweater Party. There sure were some ugly sweaters, and various takes on what constitutes ugly. Mark and Danielle went with the tight look, which was hilarious/ugly; Chad's effort was borrowed from Dad's closet ugly, as were Mike's and Mike's (father-in-law's closet). Sarah sported a school teacher ugly sweater vest, with inappropriately placed apples, while Thomas countered with a babies are never ugly sweater. Wendy was resplendent in an 80's era, Shaker knit striped table runner style- 80's ugly. Candy showed up in a South American smelly/ugly flashback to the Guatemalan sweater tables set up every year in the student center at UMM. Eric, Katie, and Hope have no room in their wardrobes for ugly, but we're glad they came to the party anyway!




















As requested,

Ugly Hot Nuts

• 2 1/4 cups (18 ounces) assorted unsalted nuts, including peeled peanuts, cashews, Brazil nuts, hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans and whole unpeeled almonds


• 2 Tbs coarsely chopped fresh rosemary


• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper


• 2 tsp dark brown sugar (I used light brown)


• 2 tsp Maldon or other sea salt


• 1 Tbs butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Toss the nuts in a large bowl to combine and spread out on a baking sheet. Toast in the oven until they become light golden brown, about 10 minutes. In a large bowl, combine the rosemary, cayenne, sugar, sea salt ,and melted butter. Thoroughly toss the toasted nuts in the spiced butter and serve warm.

Over the River, and Through the Woods

We're going to Grandma's house today! A and B are going to my parents' house tonight for their first sleepover without Mommy and Daddy. We're doing this so much earlier with B than we did with A, but I guess that's the way it goes with second-borns. The kids are being shipped out, so we can have a rip roarin' good time tonight at our Ugly Sweater Party. Pictures to follow...

Eyesight Update

I went to the eye doctor today, and for the first time I can ever remember, my prescription stayed the same! I also saw the contact lens fitter, and I'm glad to find out (as I had surmised) that contacts have changed significantly since I last purchased them (while in PA school in Chicago). So if these new contacts work out, I'll be without my glasses a whole lot more often. Gosh, ever since Danielle said I should write more about myself, I have. What, do I even have kids?

p.s. They're doing well, Grandma and Grandpa. I know you like to check the blog for grandchildren updates.

StokesYear's Eve: Laid Back-

...sippin' on gin and juice (or organic fruit malt beverage- Peels, contributed by Stokes). Happy StokesYear's Eve to All! Our dear friend Jen had to return to Oregon on the 29th, so once again we had to celebrate New Year's early. We were graced with the presence of our children, so needless to say our activities were a bit restricted.

After hanging out at Hope's house, Mike dropped me off at the Radisson downtown, as my dad gave me a free night stay voucher which expired at the end of 2006, and I didn't want it to go to waste. Also, I had had an absolutely terrible Thursday, handling others' (A's and B's) bodily wastes- not fun. My hotel stay was really relaxing. I have never stayed at a hotel alone, and wasn't sure if I was going to like it or not, but it was really peaceful. I read in bed, tried to discover what my sleep number is (jury is still out- I tried 80, I tried 35...), took a luxurious shower in the morning and shaved my legs, and got to blow dry my hair all the way dry- woah. Mike came downtown with the kids in the morning, and we went to lunch at Ike's, did some shopping, and went to the Mary Poppins display on the 8th floor of Dayton's (Macy's :( ).

We met my parents for lunch at Chipotle on Saturday, and then went to the club to swim. Other than every other family in Savage, MN having the same idea, we had a really nice time. B just loves to splash, and be pulled through the water, and A got pretty good at jumping in off the side of the pool without holding on to Mike or me.