Hanky wear.... the latest in baby fashion

AND NOW, HERE TO MODEL THE LATEST BABY HANKY WEAR...

THE BEAUTIFUL ALYSSA!!!

AS A DIAPER!

AS A SHIRT!

AS A SKIRT!

AS A DRESS!

AS A JACKET!

AS A HEADDRESS!

AS WESTERN WEAR!

AND FINALLY AS A Sleeping Accessory!

from 8yrs old to almost 10.

Before
First of all, I have to say that hair length is one of those battles that Heath and I have always agreed would not be one we would fight with our children. You have to pick your battles as a parent. That being said, Karston and I have been having many talks about getting his hair cut short. He complains to me that it is always in his eyes and that people keep telling him he looks like a girl. Last Sunday he talked with his dad and we told him that we think he looks older in his face with short hair. He agreed that it was the right time. So when we got home from a day in the City, Heath cut Karston's hair with the buzzer, using a size 6 gaurd. Karston immediatley liked how he could now spike his hair a little bit. Karston is not the only one to love this new look. Everyone at school the next day loved it. I have mixed feelings about it though. While on the one hand he is very handsome and I love the short hair, I also don't like how it makes him look so much older. What happend to my little boy?

After

Karston entertains at Union Station

After a long day at the Field Museum, we went back to Union Station and had to wait for our train. We had a really long wait so Karston decided that he would help us pass the time with some pantomiming. He was really funny. He did most of it before I thought to video, but this is mostly what it was all about. Please be advised that upon returning home that evening, Karston did get a haircut. His hair is much longer in this video than if you were to see him today. Maybe more on that in my next post. ...

Family day at the Field Museum!

This is how Alyssa saw the Museum...

Golden Locks

Alyssa's hair has gotten really long.

But since it is curly, is bounces back up to her ears.

But no matter what, she is always beautiful!

Best Friends...

Last night Josiah went to "Buddy night" at his best friends Karate class. He had so much fun learning different kicks and techniques. They also played some games that he loved. They played a relay game in which they had to run to the first cone and do jumping jacks, the second cone and do push ups, and the third cone and do a dance move. This particular class was kids ages 5 to 8 years old and it was just hysterical. Every kid made up their own dance move and every one of them were different. Some 5 and 6 year olds were doing the chicken dance and some just did their own interpretation of dance. I was already laughing when it came to Josiah's turn. He went to the first cone and did what he thought was jumping jacks. Some one in the crowd said he looked like a little bird trying to fly.Then he went to the second cone to do push ups. He laid down on his tummy and lifted his head and neck off the floor and then back down. I held my breath as he ran to the third and final cone. He just stood there. Then the instructor told him that he had to dance so he got down on the floor and did the funniest break dance I have ever seen. All of the kids were so cute and good sports about everyone watching and laughing.

He also played dodge ball for the first time last night and did pretty good. He one of the last 5 every time. He told me later that he wanted to play that at home sometime with daddy and Karston on one team and he and I on the other. I told him it is more fun when there are lots of people, maybe our next party.

At the end of the night, the instructor asked questions and whichever of the buddies (non-karate students) answered correctly they would get a prize. I knew that Josiah would not even attempt to answer because he is so shy, so we did not expect to walk away with anything but a great experience. Then the very last question was for the Karate students to answer and they would win a T-shirt for their buddy. The question was What is the instructors name in Korean? Josiah's friend Tony got picked to answer and got it right. Josiah got a T-shirt. He was so excited.

After it was all over we were getting ready to leave and I heard Josiah tell his friend, "You are my first best friend, my mom is my second."

Check out my Slide Show!

icicle tears

Even our house has been crying because it is so cold outside!

Missing !!!!

If you have ever had one of your children go missing than you know it is a heart wrenching experience. It happened to me today. Josiah and I were waiting for his bus to come and get him and it seemed to be very late. As we waited, I started to wonder if it had actually come early and we just missed it. Finally when the bus should have come at 11:10am and it wasn't there at 11:20, I decided that I had to just take him to school. The kinderagarteners line up to go with their teachers to the class room at 11:30am and I still had to get Alyssa dressed before we left the house. I quickly got her dressed and went to bring the dogs inside. Josiah followed me outside and I told him to get in the van, and then I went back inside to put the dogs away and grab Alyssa. When I got back outside, I could not find him anywhere. I spent the next few minutes running around the outside of the house calling his name. I then came inside and called his name some more while running from room to room. Then I thought what if the bus came and he got on it, he would be at school. As I got in the van and pulled away, my heart was pounding again and again. The bus had not yet gotten to the school, so I got Alyssa and we ran to the office. I asked them if one of the busses had been reported late. They said no so I proceeded to tell them what had happened at home. They said that they would radio the bus and then they let me go to his class and see if he had gotten there yet. Before you knew it the teachers and other staff were all there and upset. Someone said "Oh, here comes our principal!" I went over to him and he said that he had gotten confirmation that Josiah was on the bus. Whew! Of course, I cried even more at the release of emotion that had been welling up in side of me. I stuck around to see him get off the bus and when he saw me he looked at me like 'what are you doing here?' I hugged him tight and then let him go to class. Apparently, there was a sub-driver today and he didn't know the route very well. He was not only late but he missed severa stops along the way. Josiah is one of the first stops on the route so they didn't get to the school until 11:50am. It was the most intense 20 -30 minutes of my life.

Then again, this had happened once before...



When I was pregnant with Alyssa I was on bedrest due to bleeding inside the womb. Karston was in Kindergarten at the time. His bus stop was across a short feild from our apartments and was in front of a church. I could see him get off the bus and walk across the field from my bedroom window. I had been letting him get off the bus on his own for weeks at this point. On this one day, the church happened to be closed, and the other children that usually got off of the bus with him were not there. He got off the bus and discovered he was alone. From my bedroom window, I saw him get off the bus and then drop all of his bags onto the ground. I looked away to see what Josiah was doing and when I looked back Karston was gone along with his bags and the bus had left. I jumped out of bed and quickly got some shoes on and pulled Josiah out the door. I had three flights of stairs to go down before I could get outside and see if he was anywhere in site. I busted through the doors and ran to the field calling out his name. When I reached the church he was nowhere to be found. My mind raced with all of the bad things that could be happening. I called Heath and he called the police and drove as fast as he could to get home and help me. Just about the time that I saw Heath driving into the parking lot, I got a call on my cell phone. It was the school. They told me that the bus driver called and said that he had Karston and was bringing him back to the church. Apparently, when Karston discovered he was alone, the bus driver suggested that he got back on the bus and they would call home. Karston was scared to death because the bus driver finished his route and then went and picked up the kids at the High School before bringing him back. By the time, the bus driver arrived back to the church, the police had also shown up. It was a relief that our son was alright, but I thought for sure I had lost my baby girl. Turns out she was fine and was born several months later, perfectly healthy.



Thank goodness I only have three kids to go through kindergarten, and to tell you the truth Alyssa may never ride the bus. This is the worst feeling in the entire world. I hope that I never have to go through it again. I am so glad to have all of my children safe at home with me this afteroon.

Do You See What I See?

The sky is finally showing some Blue color. After a week or two of seeing a white sky, white ground, white falling out of the sky and while on all the trees and buildings, we are finally getting some color in the sky.

The sun is even starting to shine. Albeit mostly through the clouds, it has been known to fully shine some this afternoon. It has been so exciting for not only me, but the kids too. But seeing the sun shine is almost like a mirage, it is very decieving. Looking out the window you would expect it to be warming up some, but after Karston and I went for a short walk (Two blocks) we concluded that it is still very much winter and still very much cold.

As I sit here and listen to Chris Tomlin sing the song Unfailing Love, the words ring so true with the scenery of today. "Praise You, God of earth and sky, How beautiful is Your unfailing love, Unfailing love, You never change, God, You remain, The Holy One and my unfailing love, Unfailing love.

Another one of his songs that this day is a good representation of is called On Our Side. "Everyone around the world, Hear the joyful sound, See the heavens open up, Hear the music coming down, Nothing's gonna seperate us from the Father's love,.... ...... Come on down to the riverside, Wash it all away, Leave behind your troubled mind, For an uncloudy day, Nothing's gonna seperated us from the Father's love... Or, from the song Indescribable comes the lyrics... Who imagined the sun, And gives source to its light?, Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night, None can fathom... You are amazing God.

But, even more enjoyable than all of the miraculous wonders of the heavens is the fact that my children are starting to feel better and get over being sick. Just in time for a four day weekend too. Yeah!!!

The verdict is in...

A little while back I wrote a blog about Alyssa trying to reach Twenty pounds. We just got back from the doctor and found out She is 19.9 lbs. So close! Well, she is two months away from turning two years old so just for fun, I will keep on checking and see if she hits 20lbs. by her birthday. I will keep you posted.

St. Valentine's Day

One Valentine's Day when I was a teenager, and Heath and I were looong distance dating, I called all my girlfriends together for a boycott on Valentine's Day. We all dressed in black, and met at my house to watch non sappy movies. The only problem is that we ended up picking a movie that was ALL about love. Made us all cry and realize that we were not very good at the boycotting thing.

After Heath and I got married we quickly discovered that Valentine's day was right on the heels of Thanksgiving, Christmas, My Birthday, New Years Eve, and Our Anniversary. So we decided that we didn't really need to put more pressure on each other so we just wouldn't celebrate it. Once again I was boycotting Valentine's Day.

This year I started to think about all the times when I was growing up and my mom made sure that we always got a valentine on Valentine's Day. I thought about how my children think of Valentine's Day. They of course will take all of the Valentine's cards to school to give to their friends, but what will that really mean to them?

I heard that Valentine's Day actually comes from St. Valentine. He was a priest that decided that he would send out a greeting to each of his parishoners to let them know that he Loved them. I suddenly realized that Valentine's Day is not about Romantic Love. It is a chance to tell all of those that we love and care about exactly how we feel about them. So I thought that this year for the first time in over ten years I will celebrate Valentine's Day and celebrate it the way it is supposed to be celebrated.

So, last night I made some homemade cards for each of the children. I went to the local grocery store and bought each of them a small M&M character filled with mini M&Ms, and a small Valentine's Balloon on a stick. I set it all up on the table so that they would see it when getting ready for school. I also bought my sister a flower and card and Karston and I worked together to make a card from all the kids for her. This morning Alyssa and I went to the school my sister teaches at and interrupted her class to give her special Valentine's gifts. It was absolutley great!

Anyway that spurred on all a big craft session for the afternoon. So here are the pics of our Valentine's Day! Even though the kids had fevers and were not feeling well, they still wanted to spread the love by making a card for their grandparents.

This is my perfect Valentine's Day!

Full Time Job

My T-shirt would say "KEEPING UP WITH CUTE IS A FULL TIME JOB"

Snow Daze

Today we had a major snow storm blow through. The kids were out of school, yet again. Even the bank closed up at about 3:00pm. today. When Heath got home we all went outside to clear the driveway. While we were out there I took a few pictures. Now here is my disclaimer... I accidently left my camera at someone else's house and because of the storm I am unable to go get it, so I had to use the back up camera. Look at the post below for more of an explanation on that.

We got about 10 inches today and it is still falling. The village of Grayslake has put out a notice that they will not be clearing any side roads, only the major roads tonight. This is due to a shortage of salt. I have heard reports that we could see up to 18 inches when it is all over.

Some of these pictures remind me of scences from the movie Chronicles of Narnia : The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. The trees have so much snow on them that it is causing them to sag. It is like one big white scene with a little bit of brown mixed in from the branches.

Anyway, we all had fun this afternoon. There is probably not going to be any school tomorrow, so we get another day to enjoy the storm.

By the Boys

So we all went out this afternoon to "help Heath clear the snow in the driveway." (we really played alot while he cleared the snow.) Anyway, I wanted to take pictures really really bad, but I don't have my camera right now. :{ Then I remembered our old back up camera. It is still digital, but not as good a quality. (Amazing that we have advanced in technology so far that our back up cameras are digital cameras.) Well, when I finally remembered how to use the camera again, I found several pictures that I did not take. Apparently my boys found the camera several weeks ago and decided to try their hand at some photography. Josiah fessed up and told me that he took the pictures of the dogs and Karston took all the rest. I couldn't fuss at them too much when I realized my boys might have a future in this field. Here are the pics they took...

Where I wanna be..

I am sitting here and looking out the window at the snow flakes falling so fast. The trees becoming covered in snow yet again and the afternoon commuters driving carefully and slowly home. I am reminded of when the winter first began how exciting it was when there was any predicition of snowfall.

I think back about how beautiful it was at Christmas time to see the snow and the Christmas lights complimenting each other. I aslo remember how my niece and nephew were here at Christmas time and how exciting it was that they would be able to see the snow pile up and then we could all go enjoy some sledding together. Snow brings back these wonderful thoughts and memories, UNTIL....

I realize it will be another day of no school and I will once again need to find something for the kids to do all day. UNTIL...

I remember how cold it can be and has been. UNTIL...

My husband calls and says he heard we are getting 16INCHES tonight. UNTIL...

I find out that my husbands dislocated rib is hurting so bad that he will need my help at 7:00am tto get the snowblower cranked up.

All of this makes me feel like I'd rather be somewhere else. Anywhere else, but when I close my eyes and dream of where I want to be, I see me in a hammock relaxing.

My dream vacation in Greece comes to me with every snow flake that falls.

So here's to relaxing hammocks in the warm glowing sun...

Here's to Vacations (where ever we may dream them to be)...

And Yes, here's to Snow Days In Chicagoland.

A date with Mom

Groundhog's day (yesterday)

Feb. 2nd GroundHog's Day!
Did he see his shadow?

It looks like six more weeks of this...

And this....

And this...

And even this...

While we try and make Heads or Tails of what the groundhog could see or couldn't see...

My best advice is to stay away from this...

And this.

My snuggles

My favorite thing to do is snuggle up in bed under very warm blankets and talk until we fall asleep mid-sentence. Some of the best talks that Heath and I have ever had, have been those late night opening our hearts to each other in honesty.

I secretly love it when my little ones get up in the mornings and come straight to our bed to snuggle and cuddle. I love holding my baby girl when she is sleepy and singing softly until she falls asleep (it doesn't happen often, she would rather lay down in her bed and fall aleep on her own, she is sooo independent.)

I love sitting on the couch wrapped in blankets when our puppies feel that they need some snuggle time. Romeo always wants to be in my lap curled up nice and close to me and Juliette likes to be cuddled up close to Romeo. Now, as you see the pictures below you will understand why I love these times so much.