Storage Cabinet fun

Stephanie W helped me rearrange the office so that it looks less like a junk room with random furniture and more like a functional, professional office.  With this lovely change is that the storage cabinet in the wall (very odd indeed!!) is now more accessible.  I also got in there and organized the luggage, blankets, pillows, etc a little better and now there is room a-plenty.  The big boys caught on to this pretty quickly!

This cabinet is very odd, it sits about 5ft off the floor in the office.  A strange little hidey-hole that Art wanted to leave empty for he and the boys to play in!

Movies of Yannick

Catch-up time on some of the stuff that Yannick has been doing.  Today there were 3 videos that seemed necessary to take.

Yannick crawling II

Yannick crawling some more

Yannick eating

We do feel badly that there are far fewer pictures and videos etc of our little Nick than the other two.  He just keeps us on our toes - no time to grab the camera! :)

Superhero Nails

Today I painted my nails blue.  Wyatt thought this looked very cool.  After thinking it over, he asked if I would paint his nails too.  He said "they look like superhero nails".  I explained to him that usually just girls paint their nails to look pretty but if he liked it, then I would do it for him too.  He then calmly explained to me that many of the superheros have colored nails.  Hulk's nails are green, Torch's nails are red, and that he wasn't sure but he thought that Thing's nails were probably yellow.  I could not argue with that.  So I painted them.  Then texted a picture of them to the family.  Art called me in about 3 seconds saying "Do we need to talk??" :)

Wyatt and Mommy's blue fingernails

While not socially acceptable, Wyatt thought it looked very tough and was quite proud of his nails.  I have to admit that it caught me off guard every time I saw them.  Later that day, when Zachary got home from school, Wyatt proudly showed off his "superhero nails".  I was expecting Z to laugh at W, but instead I heard "Cool!!  Mom can I have red??" Sadly (or luckily?) I did not have any red polish, and Zachary lost interest.

[editor's note] A few days later, after I had taken all the polish off, he wanted me to paint just his index fingernails blue.  He said "that's because that is where the electricity is shot out".  Again, I obliged.  Perhaps I won't when he's 10, but he's 3.  I never thought my life would involve me painting my child's fingernails.  I thought I lost out on that when we had all boys, but there you go, I still got that life experience! :)

Bye DaU!

We (Wyatt, Nick and I) try to wave goodbye to Art every morning as he rides past on his bike.  Some mornings we don't all make it.  Today, just one of us was there to wish DaU well on his way.

Yannick watching DaU leave for work

Child Labor in CHI

This is why you have kids if you live in a place like Chicago!  Finally, the big boys are earning their keep! :)

Wyatt shoveling the walk

Zachary shoveling the walk

Zachary braving the deep snow

Wyatt stomping in the shoveled snow

It was a nice surprise for Art to see the sidewalks were shoveled when he got home from work.  They MAY have needed a little help from Mom!

Sledding!

This has been a mild winter and we have not had much snow.  We have finally gotten enough to go sledding.  We went as an entire family to "Mount Trashmore" (James Park) to do some sledding.  Yannick was asleep in the carseat for much of it.  I was a bad mom and ruined it for Wyatt.  I went down the hill with him, and my foot got stuck sticking straight out, and slid along the ground, which sadly, threw snow into Wyatt's face the entire trip down the hill.  He was DONE, and refused to do any more sledding - even with DaU.  So I took the younger boys back to the car to warm up. Art had made some hot chocolate and put it in a thermos, but the thermos was so efficient, that the hot chocolate was still piping hot and the boys could not drink it.  I had to pour tiny bits into a cup and blow on it for Wyatt. After Zach and Art were done sledding, Wyatt and Yannick braved the coldy snow again for a quick snowball fight before heading back home for lunch.

My boys at the end of the snow day

We're FREEEEEEEE (mostly!)

Art and I and Yannick drove back to Chicago on Sunday, Jan 2nd, leaving the big boys at Leisure Dr. until Saturday evening, when they will be driven back home by Poppi and MeMa.  It was a mini-vacation for us, taking care of just one.  What did we do???  Mostly work.  I make the 40 minute trip to IKEA to spend all of Art's Christmas bonus plus some Christmas $ on new shelves etc to make a new and improved playroom.  We spent a few evenings putting it all together and getting it spiffy.  We did go out to eat a few times - so much easier with just 1!

Friday night we also went to the B family's house, put Yannick to bed and proceeded to destroy them at first the game Perfection, then Ticket To Ride (train game).  Bob was so furious that I beat him in the first game of Train Game (yes, I MAY have taunted him a bit), that he INSISTED we not leave, and had to play another game.  We got out of there around midnight, but BY JOVE, the won the game!  Granted he had to do it by being spiteful to Lexi, which was also humorous to watch her get irritated at him.  A great evening all the way around! :)  And Lexi made this wonderful brownie pudding thing that was so so so good!

Little Nick missing his superhero brothers is wearing his bib like a cape, which he did himself with no help from mommy!

Partial shot of our new & improved playroom - 2 Expedit cases, 2 green doors, 8 blue pull-out boxes, 2 Billy bookcases, and not shown stuva cabinet ~ $450.  We were still working on this, getting it done just barely before the boys got back home.  They were not impressed.  I had sent a text to MeMa asking her to show them the new playroom so they would not be shocked.  Well, Mommy is thrilled at least!

We enjoyed our little mini-vacation.  Next year, Nick will be old enough to leave also, and then it will be a REAL VACATION!!!!  Oh I am giddy with the thought of it!

Christmastime at Leisure Dr

I am a bad bad keeper of family memories.  I did not take 1 single picture our entire time in Georgia.  Not for Christmas eve and Christmas day at the hotel with Nana (who paid for the 2nd bedroom upgrade - lovely!), not Christmas day at Leisure Dr, not MeMa's birthday, not even, be ready to gasp at the horror, any during Janneke's wedding weekend (none of the rental house, none of the mani-pedi action for Railey's birthday, no pics of the luncheon, rehearsal dinner, wedding day, dinner reception, and NONE of dance-party USA!!).  So, here are some pics that people who felt sad for me sent my way to help me round out my photo documentary of our lives:

Yannick at the hotel, feeling festive with Nana

Saint Nick??

Art carving the turkey - YUCK!

Yannick ready for light saber battle

Merry Christmas Poppi & Nick

MeMa reading to Zachary

Zachary on the hoppity (check out MeMa in the background w/ the bow & arrow!)

Wyatt in the inflatable R2D2 chair

Aunt Juicenana reading to the big boys

Handsome AS Counts family at Janneke & Thomas' wedding

Poppi holding court with all the "little boys" (ZWY + cousins Andrew, Jake, John) during Janneke & Thomas' wedding

DaU & Yannick being silly

Entire Counts Clan with the bride and groom

Thanks to all those that contributed pictures for me!