It Was a Great Day for a Birthday...

When I have said my evening prayer,

And my clothes are folded on the chair,

And mother switches off the light,

I'll still be three years old tonight.

But, from the very break of day,

Before the children rise and play,

Before the greenness turns to gold,

Tomorrow, I'll be four years old.

Four kisses when I wake,

Four candles on my cake.

M. Meyerkort

Now, this was a great birthday...it was the first birthday where Ava Belle actually got it...none of it manufactured by myself...it was pure excitement from the moment her eyes opened and she jumped out of bed to show me how she'd grown over night, to the moment her head hit the pillow that evening and she asked if she would still be four in the morning and if that meant it would still be her birthday. It wasn't all about gifts, it wasn't all about 'me-firsts' (even though there was certainly a bit of both), it was simply all about celebrating her young and happy life. Her teacher did an exceptional job of helping us set the tone for her birthday....I stayed with her at school while a dear friend kept Emmett, and I think that was gift enough to each of us! We have very little time together without the company of her younger brother (not that I'm complaining - my 20 mo old is delightful, but, let me repeat...he is a 20 mo old boy) it was just really sweet to have an opportunity to soak each other up without much distraction. A special day for my special little girl.

Ava Belle requested Strawberry Cupcakes for her birthday party at school.....they were pretty yummy....

...but, a busy birthday meant there wasn't time to make a second cake for that evening...thank goodness Daddy saved the day with a store bought cake....my puritanical self gave in.......

...as you can see, she didn't care that it wasn't homemade...

she was so thrilled about the birthday song and all those candles....

Catching Up

It's been some time since my last post, and we have certainly been enjoying our fair share of adventures. We spent the entire month of February living in Washington, D.C. so that Paul could attend a series of lectures at Walter Reed hospital, basically a board prep course that all radiology residents take at this point in their training and it's always in D.C. My brother happens to live there too, so, it was GREAT fun visiting with him and his lovely girlfriend. We lived in McLean, VA in a house with our dear friends (who are, YES, still our dear friends after one month of living with our crazy family and nearly 50" of snow!) It has been a full end to winter and we are ready for spring. Already we have enjoyed a week of warm weather and are welcoming the spring with thoughts of our garden-to-be, Ava Belle's birthday, etc! I apologize that the pics are a little out of order....enjoy!

My sister and I on my birthday...

Always love it when my parents come to town! It's always full of laughter, food, wine and as my Dad says, "low quality time." For my birthday they gave me an amazing gift...a DYSON vacuum cleaner! Truly, it deserves a post of its own...after getting it I spent roughly 4 hours cleaning my house....I took a picture of all the dirt we were living in. Wow.

My sister, Alex, and I took the kids to the gardens one morning....

Alex has decided to become an Auburn Tiger! We are so excited, truly, I've never had more school spirit!

Monkey business in DC

Emmett, an enthusiastic tourist....

More monkey business, Super Hero style....

We had a crab boil at my brother's place, AB was really into the tools...

Enjoying some 'low quality' music along with our 'low quality time'

Fantastic Doll house in the American History Museum...complete with an attic full of furniture, tiny record players, etc....AB was mesmerized!

Of course, we had to get a picture of AB with her 'sparklies' alongside the original pair! Ruby slippers meet ruby slippers...

Quadrilla! Note to Grandparents: This would be a great gift!

Bowling! An absolute highlight of the trip!

We visited some friends of the Mettenburgs who lived outside of Charlottesville, VA...the children loved getting to play in the barn area...

Lastest fashions available at Eastern Market...the vendor insisted I take a careful look at myself....pretty sure I look even more like a cocker spaniel than I already do...

And, the 50" of snow that became our playground....

Ode to Cyanoacrylate

Super glue. Top glue. Glue your finger to ear glue. The stuff is magic for lots of reasons, but my favorite use (by far) is for repairing my poor fingers. Cold weather + heated home + day job as short-order chef = all these tiny cracks (or fissures) on my fingers. Tons of little tiny paper cuts that can hurt so badly I wake in the night with throbbing hands. Okay, you get my point. But, this stuff is amazing and here is how it works. I learned this trick from my Dad, who has been successfully gluing his fingers back together for years:

1) Wash and dry hands well.

2) Apply a small amount of super glue (purchased from any drug store or local hardware store) directly onto the sore.

3) Allow time to dry before attempting to resume daily activities. (i.e., caring for children, putting on gloves, etc.)*

4) Your sore will begin healing from the inside out and the discomfort just disappears. Brilliant!

*This is an important step. The other day as I was gluing four spots back together on one finger I rushed the process a bit and began making myself a cup of coffee. I inadvertently glued freshly ground espresso beans to my index finger. I wasn't able to remove them for a day, or so.

Super glue is also great for gluing those highly fashionable (yet, very choke-able and lose-able) barbie shoes onto Barbie's feet. Sorry this post doesn't include any pictures, purely informational.

Hop On Pop

When Paul gets home from night float, this is what happens. For as long as he can manage it......

He's such a good Daddy. We sure do miss him.

AB gently posing for a picture with her brother and cousin, Ann Edwards.

Ava Belle, 3.5 yrs old

Emmett, 17 mos

With any luck they'll have some of their Pap's musical talent. Or, at least they'll have some of his instruments.

My Mom knitted those precious matching sweaters...my Dad made the concertina...Paul and I made the kids.

I do realize that the last time I posted anything was during night float, back in June. Well, it's night float again and apparently it's the only time I have opportunity to post. This is Paul's last night float EVER! So, this may be my last post. Only kidding, I think. Anyway, it's been really cold here in Saint Louis. The low today was zero. Snow on the ground. Blistering winds. I find this sort of weather situation rather debilitating. Having lived in STL more than three years now, I am more capable of facing the cold than I once was, but there is nothing like facing the cold with two small children in tow. For instance, multiple layers. Easily takes us three times as long to get ready to leave the house with the sweaters, coats, hats, mittens, snow boots, etc. Yet, I'm considering the use of extra clothing in non-winter months as a general safety measure....it physically slows them down and opportunity for a 'prison break' becomes less likely. Actually, Ava Belle has been enjoying her new snow bib so much that she wears it all the time. All day at home, all day at school, you get the picture. If there is a chill in the air she insists upon wearing them. So, today we went to the mall to get a cookie. It was zero outside, forgive me. She picked out a lovely cookie iced with bright yellow and chocolate frosting, a lovely complement to her outfit. Anyway, we were walking through the mall and she said she needed to go potty....we finally got to the restroom and we began peeling layers off of her. I even brought an extra bag just to hold all of our winter accessories. When she was finished she came out and said, "Mommy, my clothes are wet." How did this happen? Well, she explained that maybe Emmett did it. This, by the way, is her current explanation for most situations where she feels her reputation, precious 3.5 yr old autonomy, or TV time might be in jeopardy. It was an accident. I didn't pull her clothes down enough and the rest is history. Luckily her short dress was spared and she was able to waltz around the mall (until we found some new panties) sporting her little dress, bare legs and bottom and her gigantic snow boots. She was delighted with herself. It was a cold walk to the car for her, but she managed...and so did I. Hope all is well with you all (if anyone even reads this thing). Happy New Year to you!