Why didn't they have snow tubing back when I was a kid?

That is the question.

So much easier, cheaper, and less effort/pain than skiing or snowboarding. Kids as little as Eden can do it and enjoy it (the look on her face each time she went down was priceless). The adults loved it, too (though, I apparently did get an upper body workout, as my aching shoulders proved this morning). So much fun, I can't wait to do it again.

The whole weekend was great. Tubing was a blast, the kids loved the hotel pool and just being together with MaryBeth and family, and I couldn't have asked for a thing to be different.

We're definitely going to make this an annual trip.

My other star :D

I would be remiss if I didn't note down for the records what little Miss Eden has been up to, while her sister has been practicing dance moves and cheer routines. She is starting to read! It is amazing and somewhat unreal to watch, but she is definitely doing it. She can sound out and then recognize any three letter word, provided the vowel is the 'short' sound (e.g., "wet", "hat", "bug"). Four letter words seem to throw her off completely. For example, she can read "bum" but if I then write "bump"....she will do this: "Buh. Uh. Mmm. Ppp. Pum?"

She has become obsessed with reading, and wants to try to read everything. When Sadie is doing her homework, Eden begs for homework of her own. It is crazy! That girl, for all of the trouble she can give us (don't even get me started on what an ordeal it is to get her to settle down and go to sleep at night), is crazy smart.

My Star

Tomorrow night, Sadie makes her on stage debut as part of a group in the school's variety show. Her group is doing a dance routine to this oldie but goodie. We went and saw the dress rehearsal on Tuesday evening. It was adorable. Her group did really well, and although Sadie told me beforehand she was nervous, you never would have known it to see her up there. She was grinning from ear to ear and doing the routine perfectly. Of course, she loves her costume (OT cheer squad outfit), so I'm sure that was contributing to her huge smile.

I have to say that when she originally agreed to do this, I had my doubt as to whether or not she would a) really do it, and b) really enjoy it. I'm so happy to see that she has done both!

I am starting to look at a few summer activities for her, through the county park system, and I am thinking that she might really love one of the drama ones. I never would have pegged Sadie as a 'performer', but she obviously enjoys it. It is fun to see how their interests, talents, and abilities emerge.

Wish they all could be this good.

The weekend was just so good. I think we're on a two week streak here ;)

Friday, I volunteered in Sadie's classroom to help out with the Valentine's Day party. It was a lot of fun - I love seeing all the kids in their element. I'm so thankful that my job is flexible and close by so that running over for an hour or two is possible.

Saturday was lip synch rehearsal (the dress rehearsal is tomorrow night, and the show is on Friday!), then errands. Saturday night, we took the girls out for dinner to celebrate Valentine's Day. Honestly, it was the best VDay I've had in ages. We went to Old Man Rafferty's - Asbury Park was hopping, with all the stores open late and lots of people out and about. The girls were so excited to be going to a 'fancy' restaurant. The food was good, the atmosphere was great and the girls were on their best behavior. Who could ask for more? It ended up being a late night (for them), but it worked out ok.

Yesterday was go, go, go from the second I opened my eyes. We headed to Philly to squeak in a visit to the Please Touch museum before attending an afternoon birthday party nearby. The museum was really cool, though it was packed. It might have been more aptly called the Please Wait in Line museum. In any event, the girls loved it, and I had been wanting to get there, so it made sense to do it on a day when were headed that way anyway.

From there, we headed to Lyd and Stephen's to celebrate Sofia's first birthday party. I can't believe she is one already! It was a nice party and filled with pizza and cake, we loaded the girls in the car and I guess the food and the day wore them out, so they both slept most of the way home. Bliss!

We ended the weekend with a thrown together dinner, a bubble bath and two very sleepy kids. Utterly satisfying!

On the Horizon

We had a few springlike days over the past week or so, enough of them to make me feel like we'll soon be saying a (possibly protracted) goodbye to winter. Hallelujah! I'm really ready - the past two weeks cabin fever has really started to settle in.

The weather hasn't even been too terrible this winter, but winter here, when you have kids, is hard. Unlike Boston, there is no built-in 'winter activity infrastructure'. No children's museums within a reasonable distance to justify going to for a two hour visit, no amped up children's section in the library, and very few affordable indoor play spaces. In a way, I'd almost prefer that it snowed more often, as at least when it is snowy out, we can do stuff like this:

and this:

and this:

But the winter here in North Carolina coastal New Jersey very rarely blesses us with much in the way of snow. More often than not, it is rainy. Or just damp and cold and muddy. So, outdoor activities are limited.

Anyway, as of tomorrow, we are halfway through February, and spring does come a lot earlier here than we were used to in MA, so not too much longer to hold on, I suppose. On my way out the door this morning, I noticed that there were a couple of rogue blossoms on the pansies I had planted last fall. I'm sure they'll be shriveled up and dead after the cold weekend we're expected to have, but I like to think that maybe, just maybe, those pansies know something that we don't.

I'll take another, please.

Weekend, that is. It was such a good one that I would like to just bypass the workweek and head into another.

In keeping with my plan for the year, Friday night I met up with some friends of mine that I haven't seen in 18 years. No, that's not a typo. Eighteen years. It was a mini-reunion of the sleep away camp crew, and it was so great to connect again.

Yours truly, Suzanne and Elana.

Saturday, I took the girls out to lunch, and it was actually a lot of fun. Lots of giggles - definitely one of those times that you envision when you realize you're having a daughter and hope that you're getting a friend, if that makes sense. My girls can be such a trip sometimes. Then, Sadie and I dropped off Eden at home for her siesta and went to visit Aunt Leila. It was a good visit, and she has made so much progress in two weeks. I left feeling really proud of the work she is doing and hopeful that she is going to make a remarkable recovery.

The weather was gorgeous so after we got home, I took advantage and went for a run. I hadn't run outside since December and it was really, really cool to see how much progress I'd made since I last ran that route. I kicked that run's ass, I'm proud to say.

Saturday night we did a repeat of last weekend and held another 'family movie night', which the kids think is just the cat's meow. After we put the kids to bed, we did the cleaning for the week, and knocked out the laundry, mopping, bathrooms and even steam cleaned the carpets. I am so much calmer and happier when that stuff is taken care of. I wish I could just let it go and not worry about it, but I have accepted that I can't. Good thing for me, Evan has also accepted that I can't, and he pitches in and gets it done, too.

Yesterday was all about family. We had Evan's parents over for a bagel brunch, then hit a playground, then went to my parents house for dinner. I probably did too much eating, but that's life. I'm back on the wagon today. And, that's the rundown on the weekend. Hoping the week flies by and we can head into another one.

Proud!

Yes, my children are brilliant, adorable, gifted, clever, and all of those other things that every other parent in the world attributes to their own children, but let me say this - my child is a sweetheart! A letter came home from school the other day, letting us know that Sadie had been picked as one of the school's 'good citizens.' Good citizens are kind to others and respectful of themselves, their teachers and the school. As a reward for this, the principal was hosting a pizza party lunch for them and presenting them with certificates. Sadie's teacher had handwritten a note at the bottom of the letter mentioning how Sadie has shown such kindness to a new student who is having trouble adjusting.

My heart just about burst open with pride over this letter. I told Sadie that of all the things she could possibly do and be, being kind makes me the most proud.

She is really excited, too...and chose her outfit and hairdo today with extra care. I'm so happy that she is who/how she is, and thrilled that her school notices and rewards the good kids. Can't wait to hear about her big day today!

That was fast!

The weekend completely flew by. Obviously, it was a good one.

Friday night, Evan and I had a date night, which was much needed and much appreciated. We had an early dinner at Mike and Nellie's, then went to see "Slumdog Millionaire." It was nice to get out, and even better to be back home by 10pm.

Saturday, Evan took the girls to the mall for a bit so I could have some time to myself. I didn't do anything too exciting with my 'me' time, but it was still nice to have it. Saturday night we did a family movie night, which the kids loved. It is nice that they are getting old enough to watch movies that aren't painful for Evan and I to watch.

Oh, and Eden has started doing something that her six year old sister still hasn't managed - namely, waking up in the morning and quietly going to the fridge and getting her sippy of juice then heading into the TV room and watching TV and relaxing until everyone else wakes up. It is a beautiful thing. With her doing that and Sadie sleeping until 9 most weekend mornings, I'm starting to see some lazy weekend mornings of sleeping in in our near future, for the first time in 6 1/2 years.

Yesterday was a glorious day - sunny and almost 60 degrees. We decided to take advantage of the break in the weather and headed up to Holmdel Park. First, the girls wanted to 'skate' on the pond. We didn't bring skates, so they just did a lot of sliding around on their sneakers, but they still had fun. Then, we visited the animals and Longstreet Farm. We took a break for a picnic lunch in the sledding hill shelter, which had a nice roaring fire to enjoy, and then spent a couple of hours at the playground. The fresh air did us all good, and the kids were ecstatic once they got running.

We stopped by Carolyn and Kenny's for a visit to their SuperBowl party, and it took all of my willpower to stay away from the munchies table, but I did it. I also ran 2.8 miles yesterday, so it was a great day, in that respect.

We all slept like the dead last night (all that fresh air, I guess), so it seems like the week is getting off to a good start. More later....