Oh Sister...

I love my sisters.  All four of them. (3 bio/1 step)  They are the only ones I've got, but dear lord can this one test me.  It's December 29th, and I just received a holiday card from my sister Emily.  No biggie, she's got four kids 2-7, she gets a grace period for just about everything.  But check out the address label on the envelope...  It is really bothering me.

I've never seen this before, so I'm guessing this a new kick for her, sharing her pro-life/anti-abortion stance with everyone she sends a card to, but really?   Besides being generally obnoxious (I don't talk about being pro-choice around her), um you know who already freaking knows life is precious?  Maybe her sister whose babies were a four year project (costing many thousands of dollars)?  Or maybe the one who held her dead baby in her hands (4 yrs ago tomorrow)?  Or the one who almost lost her twins and spent four months in bed so they wouldn't die or spend their first several months of life in the NICU?   Oh preacher, meet the choir.  How terribly insensitive.

And maybe I'm a stickler for facts, but given I've actually seen a young fetus w/my own eyes (not on an ultrasound screen), I can pretty much guarantee that a 10 week one does not have feet that large.  At about an inch long total, if feet were actually half an inch long (as above), you'd need to be mating w/Bigfoot.  Not that it really matters, though it seems the whole point of the propaganda laced illustration.

Oh tell me wise one how the size of one's feet determines their value...  What does a size 10 make me?  Wishing I had a big sister with a little more sense...

The Day after Christmas 2004

I still remember watching the horror of that day unfold. It was Boxing Day, ten years ago, when a huge earthquake created a tsunami that swallowed up almost a quarter million people in Southeast Asia.  When so many lives were falling apart (I'll never forget the Nate Berkus interview w/Oprah where detailed how he lost his love to the sea), mine as I know it now was falling together. (Thankfully, Nate's has too and he's now married and expecting a baby!)

I'd recently met a really nice (and cute and funny and smart) Indian guy, and after the tsunami I e-mailed him to ask after his family there.  He's from Bombay, so maybe I was just being nice, but he liked it and asked me out.

A week later, we went on our first date.
A year later, we got engaged.
Two years later, we got married.
Five more after that, we finally brought our babies home.
Now a decade later, I couldn't be more thrilled that he's my partner in our life's adventures...

Hope you and yours had a fabulous Christmas! XO

L'Aime pour les amies (love for friends)

I have some pretty creative and enterprising friends that I thought I'd share with you as we are in this season of memory preserving and gift giving.

If you are a scrapbooker...
Peppermint (middle name: Patty, no joke) is a friend from way back in Jr. High.  Back then (some 25 yrs ago), we always sat next to each other in home room every day since our last names' started with the same two letters, and now she has a fabulous design firm called, One Little Bird.  As my yet to be completed wedding scrapbook (nearly nine yrs later) can attest, I am decidedly not a scrapbooker, but I love me some paper and appreciate good design.  Please check out how fabulously talented she is and follow her on Facebook or Instagram for promotions...

If your body need a little pampering (hello?)...
My dear friend Gina is what you might call a Jill of all trades.  A writer and producer, a corporate hack like me (that's how we met over a decade ago), and now she has launched her very own skin care line, Naturals by Gina B..  Pretty sweet, right?

I can't speak highly enough for her first two products (the Kiss my Ash scrub and balm, both of which my feet loove).  They are all natural (no junk) and smell absolutely heavenly (from essential oils).  She has also just launched two new products in the last few days, another balm and a coffee scrub.  They make awesome (and affordable) gifts, and if you're lucky, they'll come in some of her awesome signature purple bubble wrap (which the twins are completely bananas over).

Turning Three

The kids had an amazing birthday week (plus) between their schools celebrating the holidays, their birthdays, and then we spent a long weekend in the city.  They are really just getting so big.  It seems like a long three (four, six) years, but when you think about it...  They are already a sixth of the way to college and though I will likely return to work, already halfway to not being ours full time.



Making organic sugar snowflake cookies

(thanks Honest Company for the mix and cutter!)

Preschool party #17

Celebrating at home the night before THREE!

Balloon Love!

 

Not everyone gets their b-day gifts under the tree, but we do!

 

 Celebrating the third anni of their arrival (at 5:06 and 5:07pm) at The Rainforest Café.

My goofy girl...

We took the kids to the pedi for their now annual check-up while we were in the city.  Everything is A-OK and they've added the requisite couple inches (pushing 40!) and pounds (now 30+, finally!) since we were there last. 

They've been in 4T clothes for months, so it didn't surprise me that they are actually climbing in the height percentiles (now 91% for A and 87% for M).  Their weights are also on a pretty consistent curve at 45% for him and 44% for her (that's up slightly for her, now if we could just pork him up a bit).  Their BMIs are both at 14 (which is 2% for him and 5% for her).  They are totally my little clones...  Happy Birthday kiddos!! :)

A Few of My Favorite Apps

I admit to being slightly tech challenged (I haven't yet taken the time to figure out how to watch the new Downton Abbey season online before January, since its debut in the UK in Sept.  If you know, let me know!), but I'm trying to work on this and thought I'd share some of my favorite apps right now.

I treated myself to a new iPhone (the 6) for my birthday in September (which I promptly broke, but that's another story) partly because of their new ApplePay.  It's not accepted many places yet, but more are coming, and I'm getting the hang of it.  It is super slick.  It is supposed to be much more secure than swiping credit cards (which we use for everything and pay off monthly) because it is encrypted using a one time code, so there is nothing meaningful for a hacker to steal.

I signed up for Target's Cartwheel app over a year ago, but then didn't use it for months.  When I finally got into it last summer, it became a bit of an addiction.  One that has now saved me nearly $350...  If you haven't tried it yet, it is really great, and yes highly addictive (you've been warned).

Amazon Price Check is a great little app that will scan the bar code (you can also type, snap or say the product) and search for any item and give you the best price in their system.  Really helpful when you find something (in a store, on a deal site, etc.) and wonder if you might be able to find it elsewhere for less or what is the best price.

I'm still a paper planner (and white board calendar) girl, but I've started using the Cozi family organizing app and find it helpful in keeping our four calendars coordinated.  It also gives you the option of automatic updates on family movie openings, house maintenance scheduling, and life tips.

I'm a big fan of Consumer Reports and they have a great app for when you are out shopping and want to check if something you're looking at is rated and how it fared in their tests. (Subscription required to access, worth every penny BTW)

Do you have apps that you couldn't live without?  Please share! :)

Lots of Firsts and Holiday Fun

I took the kids to the movies recently, since I figured it was time (at nearly three) to brave the theater for the first time.  And they did great!  We went to the premiere of Penguins of Madagascar, and totally lucked out that the earliest nearest showing was at a theater (I'd never been to before) with reserved recliner seating.  I'd booked us three seats (obviously), but since two were together and the other next to them, we just popped up the armrest and called the two a love seat.  I think it helped them that we could all sit cozy together.  We're definitely going back there for future movie outings.

 

Watching previews and having their morning snack

We had a fun weekend at my parents' in northern Wisconsin, and have made the revelation that instead of going straight up and back, shortening the extended family portion and spending the second half of the long weekend as a nuclear family getaway is pure brilliance and will be part of our repertoire moving forward.  Much more relaxing...

We went to my mom's for Thanksgiving.  I may be one of the only people my age who has never hosted a proper Turkey Day as she is old school and does everything herself.  This will likely never change in her lifetime.  The kids had a blast with their cousins...



Here playing with the girls...

At my dad's farm, we went out to the barn and pasture to visit the animals and the kids made their first snowman! (maybe ever? at least of this year, since we have no snow yet)

We spent a night in Madison and ended up on State Street as the WI/MN football game let out...

We went on to the Grand Geneva from there, our first time there during the holidays.  They have lots of great activities (we're headed back to ski later) and fancy light and gingerbread displays that the kids loved.

Marielle wasn't having any of this sleigh...

 

The kids loved the Thomas show.  It was relatively short and interactive (their first live show) and gave me some serious showchoir flashbacks.  I wonder how much these performers have to take before each show... ;)

Dancing!

Snow!

 

The huge lobby tree

We just missed sitting with Santa there, but we did get to go to the waterpark (their first trip!) 

Next up Santa visit and (their first) tree cutting!

35 months old

We are rounding the final month to three, which is crazy...  Even though it has felt like winter for weeks, it's been a busy fall around here. 

Playing in the leaves at the rose garden at the Chicago Botanic Garden

It was 30 degrees (with 50 mph winds) and snowing, but the twins went trick or treating to a few of our neighbors for the first time this year.  They had three Halloween parties in one week, so of course we all came down with some sort of plague, that took a good two weeks to get everyone over and done with. 

We kind of glossed over Halloween prep last year (one of several fall slights due to our India trip prep), so this year we started planning early.  When I asked them over the summer what they wanted to be, they both answered, "ELSA!".  So yeah, that didn't happen (mean mommy), but we settled on Anna and Olaf (after some searching) instead.  But then Halloween week came and Alistair didn't want anything to do with his (admittedly cumbersome) costume.  So I went back to Party City the Tuesday before Halloween and exchanged it for Thomas.  Crisis almost averted...

As the doors to the preschool party open...

Somehow there were no other Frozen characters at any of our parties.  Yay for non-conformity!

Since the kids started school in January, they missed out on school pictures last fall.  Well, now they are in two preschools, so they had two sets of pictures done.  One was decidedly better (and correspondingly more expensive) than the other, but I'm just amazed they were able to get them to cooperate. 

Just a proof, but this pic is like seeing a unicorn...

 Yes, they look like an ad for Old Navy

At least one is smiling...

On that note, we had our very first parent/teacher conference recently and of course (as is typical) they are a dream at school.  Great at listening, helping, sharing...(ha ha!)  Still trying to figure out how to make that the norm at home...  It was interesting to see them interact at their one preschool Halloween party that was mom led/run.  They don't really interact with each other that much at school, which the teacher confirmed is kind of their norm.  They are all over each other at home, so I guess another of the many benefits of school is it gives them a well earned break from each other.

Somehow Thanksgiving is next week, so we're headed north to spend a few days with the family and another few lounging (and seeing Thomas) at the Grand Geneva.  DH is turning 39 (for the first time), and I'd hoped to squeeze in a birthday/Christmas beach trip this year, but right now we're just staying over in Chicago for a few nights and trying to plan something for spring. 

I'm trying to get our kitchen done by the end of the year (new buffet and FR built-ins are nearly done, kitchen is part way there).  When I couldn't find a new house I liked, I figured we might as well keep making this one what we want.  Happy Thanksgiving!