Another 'What we do' sort of post

Below is a shot of what Ella does when she does not feel like sleeping. If you look at the end of the crib, you'll see the bookshelf. She stands in her crib and, one by one, brings books into her crib. Since I'm not in the room when she does this, I'm not sure if she flips through the books or just accumulates them. In any case, I regularly find piles of books in her crib.

Once Ella knocks all the books off the shelf, Noah enjoys swimming in them. They have a symbiotic relationship, Ella and Noah.

Christmas Eve

"Is something going to happen with this tree?" says Ella. "I'm really digging all the shiny ornaments. If only they were a little lower, I could reach them."

"I don't know, Ella, I heard something about wrapped presents under the tree but it seems improbable to me. Wrapped presents under a tree? Who does that?"

"I know, Noah, it seems a bit odd to me as well. On another note, don't I look pretty in my Christmas dress?"

"Yes, sis, you do look nice. As far as the tree, we'll just have to keep watching."

Q & A with E & N

Question:
What do you do if you've just finished your lunch of tofu squares, grilled cheese, artichoke hearts and fig bars?

Answer:
Play peek-a-boo, of course!

Horton Hoopla

We've been back for over almost a week and I am still reveling in the good time that we had in Connecticut. It was fabulous! In keeping with our previous foibles, the trip started with a flat tire on the way to the airport. At 5:45 AM. In the snow and 5 inches of slush. Thankfully, Pish saved the day and had the tire changed in 25 minutes flat. After that, it was smooth sailing.

In an effort to keep babies content and quiet on the airplane, Ella ate a few too many on Gerber Puffs and Cheerios, and was looking a bit overstuffed.

The kids LOVED exploring Papa and Nini's house. They have a two story foyer which was perfect for playing peek-a-boo.

The Achmoodys arrived shortly after we did. Ben, almost 3, is quite the active little fellow and he immediately took to wrestling with Papa.

Micah, age 5, and Ella got to know one another. Actually, I think that Ella just wanted his apple slices.

Attempted pictures of the cousins...of course, we forgot to get a picture of the entire family, but that just means that we'll all have to get together again sometime soon!

Relishing the fact that they are in REAL high chairs with trays.

Doesn't Noah look tiny in this chiar?

Thrilled by the massive whirlpool tub and the water pouring out of the faucet.

Giggles with Papa and Nini

Learning to climb stairs

Best dad ever

Noah loves being pulled (or rather zoomed) around the house in this little cart. Ella gets a kick out of watching Noah.

Coming clean

Lest you think that we have our T's crossed and our I's dotted...This story almost competes with locking the kids in the car in the departures lane at the airport. Thanks to Skippy and Boomer of Chicago Police Department (yes, that is what their name tags said), we were able to get back in the car without breaking the window. The only casualty of that incident is that the passenger side door that has to be opened from inside the car. But I digress.

We had snow last night and Pish had some extra items to carry into work this morning so he asked me to drive him to the train station. It is just a few blocks, but I was game for getting out of the house. Even though it is a multi step process to get the kids in their car seats and out to the car, it seemed worth it. We put Noah in his coat and stuffed a blanket around Ella in her car seat. Never mind that it was 13 degrees outside, we were just going on a quick trip. Rather than taking the time to get dressed in real clothes, I stepped out in my PJ pants, plastic gardening clogs, and coat. After living in NC for two years and being on bedrest/nursing round the clock last year, I had no boots. You can see where this is going...

As soon as we crossed over the train tracks, the warning chimes on the car started going off and it flashed 'STOP CAR IMMEDIATELY' along with the oil pressure light on the dash. Thanks to someone who shall remain nameless, I knew that this was not a 'pull over when you feel like it' sort of warning light. We parked the car and came up with a game plan: put Matt's ear muffs on Ella and stick her in the Baby Bjorn inside Matt's coat, tuck Ella's blanket around Noah and high tail it back home through the snow. To say that I was cold would be an understatement but we made it home in about 5 minutes with minimal vocalizations from the kids. The car is now at the mechanic and I promptly ordered a pair of the warmest snow boots that I could find. The mechanic just called and here is the irony...all that was because I forgot to get the oil changed.

Moral of the story: there are no 'quick little trips' with kids. Prepare for the worst and dress for the weather. And get your oil changed every 5,000 miles.