Christmas Carols

...according to Trinity:

Feliz Navidad
I want to miss you a Merry Christmas...

Jingle Bells (my favorite version)
Jinger Bells, Jinger Bells, Jingers all the way
Oh what fun it is to ride...mumble, mumble, mumble, Hey!

Rudolph
Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, had a very shiny nose
If you ever never it, you would say it glows
Then one foggy Christmas Eve, Santa came to say
Rudolph, please guide my sleigh
(short, sweet and polite)

Nursery Rhyme: Jimmy Crack Corn
Jimmy can't come and I don't care...

New Glarus, WI

We took a trip up to WI to spend the weekend with friends. It happened to be one of the coldest weekends so far. Taking the kids outside wasn't much of an option. We took advantage of the indoor swimming pool at the hotel.
We celebratesd St. Nicholas Day which came in the form of our friend's parents putting candy and toys in the kids' shoes.

We stopped by the Santa Express train only to find out Santa had left for the day and the train was no longer taking passengers. We waited to get a good picture of the steam engine heading back home.

Here it is...

Trinity-isms

I thought I would do a post about my hilarious little girl to share with you but also to document for myself.
Trinity has come up with her own vocabulary. The other day she was in my closet trying on my clothes. A sweater didn't fit her and she said "This one is too bungy!" I replied, "What is bungy?" She said, "You know, too fluffy, or big."
Another time she told me something was too "fuzzyly." Clueless, I asked what that meant. Apparently it means bored.
Today we were driving in the car and she asked for her Awana music, which is a bible night she does at our church. I put on the music and she made me keep turning it louder. I looked in the mirror and saw her with her eyes closed intently singing to God. It was the most sweetest thing I have ever seen her do. These are the moments that are special to me because I know she will not share them with anyone other than Eddie or I since she is too timid and freezes up in a crowd. These are the moments that only God and I saw (Everett was sleeping next to her) and I can therefore only explain them in my discombobulated words.

Baby #3

I guess this is our big announcement for those we do not talk to on a regular basis. We are so very blessed to have so many people to share in our joy. We are expecting our 3rd bambino. She / He has an ETA of Memorial day weekend. I am hoping for May 26th which would give us one last night out for our 7th anniversary on May 25th. Although a dramatic beginning to this pregnancy, we are blessed with a fast growing and healthy baby.
Considering Everett is only 14 months, I will answer some questions that may be on your mind:
1) Yes, this pregnancy was planned. It was very thought out and prayed over;
2) Yes, we might be a bit insane for having three kids 4 and under. However, we do hope for a big family. This brings us closer to our hopes;
3) No, we will not be finding out the gender. We enjoy the surprise at the finale;
4) No, we will not be sharing names. We want to avoid this conversation:
Well Meaning Person: Have you picked a name?
Me: Yes, we are thinking about blankity blank blank.
WMP: Really? How about blank blank blank
or perhaps
WMP: hmmmmmm, interesting.
There has been several of these conversations over the years. I would not like to have a record of who doesn't like my baby's name. You see, once the baby is born and named then everyone pretends they like it. This is the scenario I prefer.
5) Yes and No, we have a name picked for one gender and not the other.
6) No, we have no preference as to whether it is a boy or girl.
7) I am feeling good, the nausea and exhaustion behind words has passed, thank you!

I think I covered all the bases and thank all of you for your congrats and prayers throughout this pregnancy.

Thanksgiving

I am most thankful for my family and our home filled with love and laughter. Mostly for God for bringing us all together and centering us.

Everett and my nephew Doug

Trinity and Ava

Every time these cousins get together, they are inseparable.

The Greatest Show on Earth, Again

Much like last November, we made our way to the circus again with friends. Trinity was sad when it was over, she loved it. We made it early this time to hang out with some clowns and play dress up in circus clothes.

Trinity's favorite part were the 7 motorcycles in the steel cage. She also liked running to the bathroom 7 times and eating a whole lot of cotton candy and popcorn. I even passed on my traditional snow cone because I was too sugared out.

You Should See The Other Guy

Everett versus a pint of blackberries.

Christmas Concert

Last year Trinity performed quite well in her CBS Christmas concert. This year, she was a mess. She sat down on the stage and refused to sing. In addition to that she was creaming at me to not take pictures and then threw her shoes. Much like her ballet recital, I was proud that she even got on stage.

Festival of Lights

I strapped a 25 pound toddler to my back while Eddie carried Trinity on his shoulders to catch a glimpse of Mickey Mouse light the Christmas lights on Michigan Avenue. We were late. We left the house in plenty of time but finding a place to park proved to be more difficult than previous years. We even tried to pretend we were eating at Ben Pao in order to use their valet but they were wiser than we thought. We headed into the loop and parked in an empty garage and headed east to the end of the parade over the river and Wacker.

We were able to see the heads of people and characters on the floats and that was about it. Eddie's neck was almost permanently damaged from Trinity sitting on it for 2 hours and I think I tore every muscle in my upper back from carrying Everett. However, we did have fun despite the intense pain. Although the parade view was mostly obstructed, we had a great view of the fireworks. Everett was in awe and Trinity enjoyed them as well after having to warm up to the noise.

There is Everett.

Walking...The Movie

Everett is on day 5 of taking steps. Each day he takes more steps, more often. I tried my best to capture a moment before nap time. I got a couple steps and him saying "hello" which is currently his favorite word...that and "Clarkie."

Fall Rub

I am trying to embrace this chilly weather with enthusiasm. I went back to my childhood roots and took Trinity on an adventure around the neighborhood looking for leafs. We had fun making patterns of them with crayons and delicate rubbing skills.

So Fresh and So Clean, Clean.

Eddie has recently introduced Trinity to the shower. He took a shower with her one day and wore his bathing suit in, for obvious reasons. Since then she *loves* the shower but thinks she has to wear her suit in. She insists on it.

U.J.

Everett and Uncle Jim (my brother...as if you couldn't tell!)

Last warm day

When the temps hit 60 degrees + on Nov. 5th, I made sure the kids made it to the park. It was first time I really let Everett explore all there was to see without worrying about dirty knees. I quickly realized how much different boys are from girls, at least my kids. Trinity was close to 2 before she attempted to climb up the stairs to the slides. Everett was up the stairs and head first down the slide in barely enough time for me to grab his ankles. I wish I caught a picture but then I would be blogging about another hospital visit.

A City That Works...

so quickly that I didn't have time to take a picture.
Last night I came home from a church event to find a nice surprise for me. We have lived in our condo for 5 years and have never had the "welcome to the neighborhood" greeting...until last night. I pulled up to the garage to find it tagged from the top to the bottom, left to right. I am not familiar with graffiti jargon so I have no idea what it said.
I got online at 10PM and found the info for Mayor Daley's Graffiti Busters. I called 311 immediately and put in a request. By the time I woke up this morning my garage was washed and freshly painted white. NICE!
Thank you Mayor Daley and Alderman Manny Flores!
On a side note our mailbox got a minor tag by "Ugz" last week. Within 24 hours, the Department of Sanitation was driving down the street, stopped, cleaned my mailbox with a rag and went on their way. I didn't even have time to call.

We Rocked the Vote!

We did it, Yay!!

I think it is no secret we are / were McCain / Palin supporters. Am I disappointed? Yes! Am I bitter and angry? no! I think certain Americans have been extremely disrespectful over the last couple years in regard to our president. I appreciate our right to our free speech but think people cross the line when slinging mud. I think that the best way to state your opinion is in the polls. I am happy that so many people stepped up and exercised that right. That is the best thing they could have done.

Although disappointed, I will respect our new president and be hopeful and optimistic until I have a good reason not to be. Reality is, in my lifetime there will be many presidents I didn't vote for.

Regardless of the outcome of the presidency, Christians are obliged to obey God by respecting government authority—the law and national and local leaders. Two of the apostles made this point in their letters.
"Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities," wrote the apostle Paul. "For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God" (Romans 13:1). This includes the payment of taxes and other obligations (verses 2-7).

Peter gave his readers the same instruction: "Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors ..." (1 Peter 2:13-14). We are also to "honor the king" or chief ruler (verse 17). Paul echoes Peter's instruction to Titus: "Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready to every good work, to speak evil of no one ..." (Titus 3:1-2).

Lastly, there is no doubt in my mind that God is in control of this entire election and country. For reasons only known to God, this is ultimately His will.

Halloween

Happy Pirate. Arrrrrrrr!

Cranky and sick pirate. :(

Strike a Pose

Midnight Circus

Yesterday (Sunday), we braved the 45 mph wind gusts and trotted to the loop to see the Midnight Circus with Auntie Abby and Aunt Arlene. I am not sure if I am more impressed with the acrobatics or the lack of frost bite from their little cute outfits.
We warmed up with soup at Macy's and did a bit of shopping. Perfect downtown day.

Check out Everett's smile in this picture. He *loved* this show. He didn't make a peep for the entire half hour. He sat there smiling and tapping his foot to the music.

Pumpkin Carving

Every year we carve pumpkins and every year my tired fingers and hands hurt. Do they make powered pumpkin carving tools?

We let Trinity picked the design. She picked the kitty cat. I did the small one with different shapes. Then, Trinity colored all over it as if it weren't pretty enough.We topped the night off with carmel dipped apple slices with an assortment of sprinkles.

Happy Birthday Veronica!

My good friend Veronica had a fabulous 40th birthday party complete with mariachis. It was prom theme which made for some interesting outfits. I guess we were considered the "classic prom" since we did not embrace the potential of such a fun evening. I blame the business of Everett's birthday and going on vacation. My creative juices were minimal. For some great pictures of the "fun" or "creative" crowd, look here. Otherwise, here is the night from my bird's eye view.

V & Me

Go Wildcats!

Eddie and Trinity celebrated Eddie's 10 year college reunion at the Northwestern football game.

Konow's Corn Maze

We took our annual trip to the burbs to go pumpkin picking...well, pick out a pumpkin and get some good photo opps. We got a recco from my friend Jill for a non-crowded, non-scary, super kid friendly pumpkin patch. We bundled up and headed down.

Trinity especially liked the corn kernel pit. We had to get Everett outta there quick because it was one big choking hazard for him.

The tractor ride was so fun that we did it twice despite the chilly air that was chapping our faces.

Sea World

The last leg of our trip included a drive to San Diego to do Sea World for the day. We started with the Shamu Show which was as good as I remembered as a kid. Trinity and I then fed the stingrays which was great and then we moved on to feed the dolphins. Trinity fed a dolphin named Beaker whom I believe she will be talking about for quite some time.

We did some other cool stuff like watching a 4-D Elmo Show. They have a great shark exhibit and a fantastic Wild Artic exhibit complete with penguins, walrus, polar bears, etc.

We wish we had more time to see San Diego but we rain out and were also not prepared for the 20 degree temperature swing that occurred while we were there. Coastal weather is much like Chicago's weather changes I guess.