Winter's Over

It's been over for a couple of weeks now I guess. I've been too distracted by the cold temperatures and chilling wind to notice. Anyway, I haven't said anything about this, even though I noticed a while ago. I didn't want to jinx anything. This winter was exponentially better than last as far as Sophia getting sick. Last winter, Sophia was in the doctor's office probably every ten days or two weeks. Our longest stretch of health was four days....seriously. So, even though Sophia had the burnt hand and stuff this winter, I'm just really grateful that our entire winter wasn't fraught with sick days and visits to the doctor's office. I would call that a big victory.

Now, on to allergy season!

The end of a very long week

Our week of spring break felt quite a bit longer than we thought it would, for the obvious reasons. However, we have had a great end to it and feel very grateful. On Friday, Erick and I took a day trip to St. Louis. We didn't talk about anything serious and just enjoyed each other's company and a beautiful day. I can't resist a good opportunity to use the timer, so here's my favorite shot of us.

Sophia has been as sweet as can be the entire week. I am just grateful that we have had some quality time together as a family to truly enjoy one another. The sweetness of that time is always increased by the reminder that life is short and you can't love or be loved too much.

Why I love Board Games and Candy

My dad's mother has always been Momo to me. During my summer visits as a child, we would play board games for hours and days on end. At the coffee table, on the porch or continued between. I always assumed the enjoyment was mutually great, but as an adult, I realize there was a great deal of patience involved, not to mention love. Somewhere along the line, another staple became m&m's. We'd eat them as we visited and get a few bags to carry home. Between the homemade donuts and the candy, I nurtured my natural love for sweets in Momo's house.

I described Popo in this earlier post when he passed away less than a year ago. After so many decades together, it was no wonder that Momo's heart was broken beyond repair without her partner. With each conversation after Popo's passing, it became more clear that her one desire was to be at home with Jesus and Popo. Selfishly, I wanted just a little longer. This week, I planned to take advantage of Mary's spring break by having her watch Sophia so I could take a trip to see Momo for a couple of days. We were both excited about the possibility, although she was disappointed that Sophia wouldn't join me. Every conversation started like this. Me: "How are you today?" Momo: "Oh, I'm okay. How's our little girl? What's she doing?" One of her favorite stories was about the time that we came to visit when Sophia was just learning to walk and how she toddled directly into Popo's waiting arms. It was a good memory for both Momo and Popo, and I plan to remind Sophia of how loved she was by her great grandparents.

I will make the trip to Illinois this week, but it won't be the one I planned. After having a stroke on Friday, Momo finally had her broken heart restored this morning. Now she is completely whole in the arms of Jesus. I wil miss her greatly, especially when I spot (and eat) a bag of her trademark m&m's.

Sweet Saturdays

Here is a video from our morning on Saturday. Sophia has tucked Erick in on the floor with all of her animals: Oso, Sam the Dog, Lulu and Rawr Rawr. This is one of her very favorite games, and of course we love to oblige because somewhere in the process, usually after a book and a song, the tucked-in gets about a nano-second of snuggling . . . entirely worth pretending to sleep.

God Bless the Irish

The Irish bring us lots of good things: Bono, Gabriel Byrne, Guiness, leprechauns, red hair, and the list goes on.

I just hope you're wearing green and dancing like heck.

Just Too Much

Here is Sophia testing out her new helmet and pads. She wanted a round one like Tony Hawk, instead of the usual bicycle helmet. So, we obliged.

I think she wanted a plain or boyish one, but she seemed pretty pleased with Dora once it was on. Please note, her pants are not that short, but they are being pulled up by the ever-so-stylish kneepads.

The skateboarding itself didn't last very long again, but she thought the helmet and pads would help keep her safe at the playground too.

Artistic Genius

I may be just a tad biased, but I happen to think this is a pretty good face, considering the artist is a mere 2 1/2 years old. . . . I'm just saying.

Friends

This weekend, we had a great visit with my college roommate and her family. Risha and Paul have 3-year-old Lilly and in November welcomed another beautiful girl named Nora.

Erick and I have always looked forward to our time with Paul and Risha, but Sophia has been young enough that she forgets from visit to visit. I have a pretty good feeling that Sophia will not be forgetting this particular visit for a very long time.

From the moment we arrived, she and Lilly were attached at the hip. Lilly welcomed Sophia with a crown and they started right in.

Saturday was a pleasant, although very windy, day. On a nice day, Sophia swings.

The girls also decided to go on a treasure hunt in the yard. Lilly liked helping Sophia all weekend. Here she is giving her some of her own treasures.

Isn't Lilly beautiful? All that curly hair!

When we came inside, they decided to practice posing. This picture makes me wish I had brown eyes. These two are going to be heartbreakers.

I can't do a post about the Gaines family without a picture of their newest beauty. Here is Nora in a giggly and chattery mood this morning.

It was a terrific visit and I am, as always, very grateful for old friends.

Communicating in a New Era

I am often amazed at the changes the Internet has made in our culture. It really is amazing. Of course it is both a source of pleasure and disappointment, as any other tool that is operated by people - some of whom are tools themselves.

Anyway, Sophia is already learning the pleasures of being connected. Here she is typing an email to Daddy.

Another Week

Here we are starting the first week of March. I can't decide if I'm amazed at how quickly or how slowly we arrived here. Either way, I am SO excited about the forecast for this week. Temps above 60 from Wednesday on? Woo hoo! Look for plenty of outdoor fun photos here at the end of the week.

With the current weather, we've been having lots of indoor fun. Hanging out with friends, playing, reading, watching movies - the usual winter diversions. I need to get to the store this week and buy some knee and elbow pads and a helmet for Sophia. I am sure she'll want to try the skateboard outside. She's still practicing her indoor technique, so I can only imagine how crazy it will get outside.

Anyway, hope everyone has a great week. Sorry our life is not more exciting.