Purple Polk-a-Dot Umbrella

Little Iz has been asking for an umbrella since we moved to Chicago. For Valentines day her dreams came true. She uses the umbrella inside, outside, in the sun, wind, and dark. She takes it in the car and to bed with her. Now we just need some rain so she can use it for its real purpose.

Pre-School

Izzi had her first day of pre-school on Tuesday. She has been waiting for this day since she was 2. The pre-school is run through the high school, so on the first day I took her in and they had one of the student teachers come and escort you to the pre-school area. She wasn't about to wait for me or the teacher, she just walked right in front, as if she knew where she was going. Izzi is so great that way, we never have to worry about her being nervous, going into a new situation. She just does it with excitement. I definitely wish I was more that way, I get nervous doing anything unfamiliar. Izzi is one of a kind and still the same old blue eyed monkey she always has been.

Yes I was the totally lame mom that took pictures of it all.

Nothing Better

Winter is hard for many reasons, but one big reason for us is the shortage of good fruit. Now I love an apple as much as good old Johnny did, but the lack of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, peaches...it's just so sad. Winter has one true redeeming quality and that is mandarin oranges. I am not talking about Cuties, or Clementines I am talking about the ones you buy at the asian markets, they still have their pretty little green leaves on them. They are delicious, sweet, juicy, and my kids can eat 2 lbs of them a day.

It is a good day when you walk into Costco and you see the big cartons of fresh, brightly colored fruit calling your name. For us that blessed day was last week. The strawberries and blueberries were enjoyed for a day and a half, and then bliss was over. I guess we are back to apples and oranges until our next Costco run.

Let Them Eat Cake

There is something fun about abandoning your daily routine to have chocolate cake for breakfast. This was a Valentines Day treat. Izzi thought it was great, and Max just kind of picked at it. In his defense he has been sick the past couple of days.

More Snow

The snow was so deep at some points it went up to my thighs. Max fell off the sled, making one of his hot pink boots fall off. Izzi did a much better job pretending to like the snow. She feigned a few smiles, forced a few laughs then cried to go home.

Snow

I know everyone has seen and heard about the blizzard here in Chicago. It was crazy. Not scary crazy or good crazy just crazy. There is snow everywhere, and no where to put it. Chicago is actually loading there snow up in trucks and trucking it out. The morning it ended we took the kids out to play in the snow. I don't think they thought it was as fun as Dave and I did. We loved it. The snow here is very light and fluffy, not so great for making snowballs, snowmen, or snow huts. But very fun for falling, sledding, and snow angles.

Take Advantage of Free

For most people who move away from family, it is hard to try and find a trust worthy babysitter for your kids. Lucky for us we moved away from one family and moved by another. Thankfully I have in-laws that are very willing to watch our kids for us, so we can go galavanting through this great city we live by. Because Chicago is so crazy cold, all of the amazing museums are free in the month of January. So Dave and I decided to take advantage of free and go to the Art Institute of Chicago, which is incredible. Now I have been to plenty of art museums in my life time, but now that I am older and much wiser I think I appreciate them a little bit more. The talent and stories that are kept between those walls is pretty unbelievable.

After we had looked at all the art that we wanted to see (you could be in there for days and not see it all), we wanted to keep the day going with a bit of sophistication so we decided to eat at one of the best well known dives in Chicago. Billy Goats Tavern. It was everything Saturday Night Live portrayed it as. "Cheezborger, Cheezborger, no french fries just chips." It is underneath Michigan Ave. in a dank, dark little restaurant. It was fun. The cheeseburger, defiantly not the best I have ever had, but well worth the $3.50.

It was a fun day without the kids.