In honor of the snow

That keeps falling and falling and falling all over our spring. You know, the saying "April showers bring May flowers" has always meant RAIN showers to me.  I guess not in Colorado.  It's actually been an unseasonably snowy April here, but we're anticipating our 3rd or 4th snow storm of the month tomorrow and I'm bummed.  Especially since we bought Braves/Rockies tickets for tomorrow night!  But I'm grateful for the moisture and grateful for how quickly our snow cover melts off.  Having a snowstorm on Monday and then a comfortable park day (50-60 degrees) by Friday is not too bad.

But I digress...in honor of the "spring weather" I give you some sweet pictures of the boys after playing outside in the snow.  I love their tired, content, red-cheeked happiness.

Nico's Cute and Snow is Deep

While you might be expecting me to share tales of woe like what happened on Lake Shore Drive (truly harrowing)...



...the day progressed quite simply. The snow stopped. The sun came out. Nico and I went outside. We played and ate cake with friends in the inside tot lot to celebrate a little friend's birthday. (Have I ever mentioned the playroom in our building? That I love? It exists and I love it.) We had a super grumpy pre-dinner and a sweet, happy post-dinner. Kids went to bed. Ruby and Eva's dad, Cosme, came up to kid sit. Matt and I went on a quick evening walk. And voila. Snow day 2011 is come to a close.

And here are the pictures to prove it!













Count the snowdrifts!

























I love this series of pictures. The happy man and his snow.

























The serious man and his snow.













What a winner.













Layer of ice over playground grass.

























Poor car. Never saw it comin'.













Poor house. You used to be dark gray.













Cute hat. You were made by his mama. Who is now bragging.

























Yay Alabama! Matt saw this similarity...Nico just asked me to take a picture of his mittens.

























Snow + Kool Aid = A tasty winter treat! Thanks, Tracy.































Icy rail!













And now for the pictures of our evening stroll. To those of you who haven't come to our little neighborhood this might not be as exciting, but to those who have been hopefully you'll enjoy seeing some old (now snowy) haunts.













Diggers everywhere clearing up! (I have boys and have to point out all non-standard vehicles.)













Matt testing out his snow pants in the snow drift next to our car.













Hope the owners of this car don't have to drive anywhere soon. Eeeyikes.













And, whoah! What is this doing here?! Carnage in the snowstorm! We Hyde Park-ers like our snowstorms with a touch of evil. (We still wonder what that red substance was. I dared Matt to go smell it, but he wouldn't! Crazy.)













To the far right is the main street, which has been plowed. Matt is standing at the edge of the through street that is unplowed.













A view looking down said unplowed street.













Because of the crazy wind, the snow is only a few inches in some areas and up to 8 foot drifts (according to the university) in others. You can see the snow level increase down the sidewalk.













These are the snowed-in stairs to some spooky-ookie houses that always seem deserted.













I commented on their spooky-ookiness to Matt (who agreed) and then saw this. It's inhabited!!!













Also, here are the update pictures on the views from the last post. Snowier roof!













Snowier cars!













And so ends our snow day. Oh wait, just kidding! School is canceled for Matt and Jacob tomorrow! Woot woo! Things just keep getting better!

"Oh, this was the best day. It was like 35 degrees."

The title of this post was said by me, to Matt in complete sincerity. And it took a few moments after saying it for it to seem ridiculous. That being said, it is winter. Cold, snowy, dark, etc. Sunshine and warmth seem very far away. So, after months of the high being in the teens and twenties 35 degrees feels pretty amazing.

In the midst of winter we had some rain that washed the snow away and we made the most of it. (The next day it snowed...) It felt so good to bring boys and bikes outside. I dig the outside. And I frankly dig no snow. We have since had lots and lots of snow and played heartily in it, but to me this really was the best day.

Just Reading

A few weeks ago, when Jacob had his infamous stomach bug (the one Nicholas had had a few days before with minimal problems), I found the boys in Jacob's messy, messy room like this.

























I really like these two. Especially at these moments. Not so much during power struggles. Or tantrums. Or whining. Or fights over toys. Or brazen defiance. But here? Man, I really like them. It is oh so easy for me to not appreciate these moments when they come. They sneak up on me so quietly sometimes I just don't notice. Darling.

When Upon Life's Billows

I can't sleep tonight. I've got a lot of little and big things on my mind. Nothing too terrible, but I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by all of the moving parts in our life. From where will be be living during Matt's summer internship to how am I ever going to find the time and energy to clean the bathrooms...and just about everything in between. These worries are compounded by the gloom of a Chicago January and a frustrating lack of confidence I often feel during pregnancy.

Since I was just allowing all of my worries to tumble through my head as I listened to Matt's peaceful breathing I decided to really help myself sleep by getting up and checking my email! The best way to ease insomnia, right? In a twisted attempt at 3 AM productivity I decided to do a new post. I know I should be catching up on Christmas and well before that, but I couldn't resist these pictures.

These little boys are so darling, really even at their worst...which I've seen on occasion. I feel so fortunate to have them. And even though a good chunk of my worries are about them, that's OK with me. I'm grateful for their personalities, their lightheartedness and their love. I really have been given so much.





































Oh, and I'm grateful for this awesome face Jacob pulled when I asked him to get out of the shot so I could get one of Nicholas by himself. If you look closely you can see real tears welling up in his eyes.

Baby, It's Cold Outside

So, so, so, so, so, so cold.

So we bundle,


















and we blow dry.

Chicago's pretty

And I have a new reason for not blogging this week.

I'm a fairly hearty person (at least hearty enough to keep slogging along with the mom stuff while sick) but I was driven to my bed on Wednesday afternoon in a very dramatic and Victorian fashion. After 48 hours of chills, fever, cough, sleep, and staring off into the distance for long periods of time I emerged Friday. Still sick, but functional.

The boys got a milder version and so the three of us have been a sorry sight. Matt was able to care for the boys when I was at my worst. My worst being when I tried to open a bottle of juice and the exertion made the room grow dim and my head spin in danger of blacking out. For real.

I also haven't left my apartment since Wednesday at noon. Let's see if our coughing and fevers can make it a full week! Give me a few cats and I'm ready to stay in forever.

So, a recap:

1. Come visit us in Chicago and we'll take you to see the city from the Hancock observatory. Matt took me on a date there one evening and it was gorgeous. The day (as you can see) is pretty amazing too. Actually, we'll take you anywhere...just come visit!

2. Beware the flu. If it's been a while since you've truly had the flu then watch out. And while I definitely advocate the flu shot...it didn't work for me.