Snow Day.... again!

What are the chances we would get two snow days in 1 week? Well, last Wednesday's was really a "cold" day since wind chills were -30's or so, but today it was the real thing. Since I don't work on Wednesday's it was awesome to have Jay home with us once again. We hoofed it to EVP for some caffeine and scones and to visit with Sara, Travis and Baby Jonas this morning. Bryn and Henry wanted to ride in the backpacks so it ended up becoming a pretty decent aerobic drill since the walk there is entirely uphill and neither one is a lightweight.

In case you don't recognize this picture, it's Finn, curled in his wintertime ball out in the snow!

This is Mount Lewis Ct. that Henry and Bryn are climbing. Shoveling is definitely becoming more of a workout since the piles tower over my head, but it makes a nice "mountain" as called by them both.


I could just eat those red cheeks up! The snow did finally stop and based on our calculations we got at least 10-11 inches. Gotta go join Jay in our last round of shoveling, right now. Adios.

The Curious George Extravaganza

Those who are regular blog followers know that there is a serious love affair with the monkey. Well, when Grandma and Grandpa arrived at our house this morning, they brought along a stuffed George with them and the world's best Curious George field trip began............

Yes, after loading the "monkeys" and stuffed monkey into the car they arrived at their first destination, UW Hospital. I'm sure they were hoping to see the dear Dr. Baker but they settled to visit my clinic and co-workers instead. Henry sang "Frosty the Snowman" to the nurses while holding George tight by his side.

Then off to the Fire Station # 4. I am attaching Karyl's email to me that described the visit.

"We went back to fire Station #4, across from Bucky's House, and parked at the stadium. A young firefighter (who had just bought the book "Curious George and the Firefighters" for his little one) saw us trucking across the street with George and the kids in tow, and knew right away what was up. The kids had a DELUXE tour...wait 'til you see the pictures. Tired them all out, and now George is napping (both donated an extra blanket for him to use) along with the kids. He's sleeping between them on the two soft chairs pushed together to make a "nest". Didn't want to get into an argument about who got to sleep with George."

Thanks firefighter Kevin!!!

Check out the spread George has!!

A day wouldn't be complete without one of Grandma and Grandpa's famous projects. A firetruck, of course!

Jay and I will NEVER be able to thank Karyl and Norbert enough for what they have given our children. Never. They not only supply them with fun field trips, cute projects and constant attention; they give them so much love, and endless supply of hugs, and memories that are priceless.

A rumor has it that next week they might re-enact three more Curious George books..... the library, the airport and/or the Children's Hospital.

One more time....

I keep telling people that as B and H get older, life just keeps getting better. And I honestly mean it. I think we owe this to their ever expanding vocabulary, their ability to enjoy each other's company (well, not all the time) and make use of the fact they have a twin, and their growing independence. The best is that they even try to please us every now and again by being a "good boy or good girl". All this lends itself to some fun together (at least when the weather cooperates) doing all sorts of outdoor stuff (I am SO excited for spring) . Even last year, we never lasted long doing anything since one of them usually was whining, wanting to be held, each running in separate directions, or just didn't want in on whatever it was we were doing, so it was more frustrating than fun. This past weekend we took advantage of sunny days and snow and sledded most of the weekend away. Those little buggers did get a couple rides up the hill but for most of time they hiked up themselves, occasionally falling along the way and needing some mitten repositioning. They tried out every sledding position, even laid on top of us as we careened down the hill. I think we had at least 5 "this is your last sled down" runs as neither one wanted to head home. Dinner didn't even seem to impress either one.

Henry getting a facefull of snow!!

They each had to take turns pushing us or themselves down the hill. We got a clip of Henry giving Bryn a small push forward. Is that really my little B girl, flying down the double decker hill?

"Maggie runs in circles"

Pretty accurate description given by Bryn before we headed down to the Shell to cheer on Maggie who was running the 3000. Not that she needed any yells from us! She cruised on the indoor track and made it look so effortless. We aren't that surprised at her achievements after all she did on J's cross country team, but it made us so proud to see what she has accomplished as a wonderful human being and a gifted athlete. Go Maggie!!

True to form, Bryn clapped every lap with a smile plastered on her face and Henry jumped every time that darn gun went off.

Tracy Chapman - The Promise

Today clinic wore me out, as it seems to do somedays. I left behind a sea of charts, scribbled notes and phone messages and closed the door. I stuck my earphones in each ear, feeling a sense of accomplishment but also longing to catch up with B, H and J. This song just happened to be playing on my Ipod and I just felt an overwhelming sense of calm. This is for all those we care so much about. Hope you feel the peace too in this crazy, chaotic world of ours.

Swim caps and goggles

Ever since Henry declared that he was going to spend the summer canoeing, we thought we better make sure he can float. So Jay went to work to find them some swimming lessons. After reading through the brochure we realized that they needed goggles and a swimcap. Seems a little silly for 2 year olds but rules are rules. Why does everything in Madison have to be so over the top? I mean, what happened to taking lessons at the neighborhood high school pool like I did when I was young? I swear, this city sometimes just seems a little ridiculous but we love it all the same. They will teach him how to float, right?

The day we decided to head to our local swim store, Henry was having a very BAD day. We had several things on our agenda ,like trying to check out a preschool and he for some reason had to be carried the whole time while trying to hang on to Bryn. (the bruiser weighs well over 32 pounds!!) His attitude just kept deteriorating until we stepped foot in the swim shop. Must have been the racks of colorful swimwear that mellowed him out. They each got to pick out their own goggles and swim cap and wore them the rest of the afternoon.

And here they are at their first swimming lesson by themselves as we just sit and watch while crossing our fingers and holding our breath that neither one decides to get curious and fall forward into the water. They each had some difficulty keeping their attention on the teacher and we laughed as they took turns tickling each others toes and nosing around in Miss Amy's basket of toys.

Here is Henry practicing the back float, I gather, while Bryn takes notes.

You gotta get 'em started early.

Thursday's project with Grandma and Grandpa (yes, they do a project just about every day they come over!) of course involved making preparations for the big game Sunday. Notice the green and gold crayons in play on the poster too. When I got home from work they were fighting each other to get their coats off so they could walk me over to the poster and tell me all about the Packers. Bryn had to tell me that #25 is her buddy Ryan in case I didn't know. Jay asked the kiddos if they're excited to watch the game and Henry said " No...it's too scary...people are yelling". Then we reminded him that when he opened his broom he was yelling, and that sometimes people yell stuff when they get excited. Then he said "Ok...Yeah...GO PACKERS!".

When you gotta go.....

This is what you do when you have been in the car for 2 plus hours and your kid is screaming that he has to go potty. Screaming and crying so loud that even Bryn was a little concerned. Thank god the potty chairs were in the back of the car from our trip up north. We quickly found an exit and Jay unleashed him as fast as he could and sure enough that little dude had dry pants!!

Is Finn a good sport or what? As soon as Henry finished, daddy disposed of the evidence in a parking lot, and we were all hooked in and driving again, Bryn cried out that she had to do too! I must have asked her a dozen times if she could hold it till we found another exit. Like brother, like sister.

Just the words potty chair, freaked me out for a while. I couldn't imagine what I would do with two training kids and one of me. I mean, what do you do when out and about and one or both need to go? Just didn't sound like fun. We bought their chairs some time ago and at first they were more of a toy chair than anything else. They would use it of and on until this December when Bryn announced that she wanted to wear big girl underwear. That's what did it, the thought of wearing panties! Not to be left out, Henry agreed with his sis's idea and since then they have been training themselves and US. Plug for Baby Bjorn chairs, we love them!! Some days are great, some days not so great, as I throw another pair of wet pants down to our scary basement for a nice warm wash. Bryn pretty much has it down most of the time but Henry doesn't like to be asked to go and would rather decide on his own, which some days is a couple seconds too late. A great book (so far, we just have the boy version) is Once Upon a Potty by Alona Frankel. We borrowed it from my mom(don't think she will miss it too much) once we realized how much they love hearing about Joshua and his potty chair. Bryn was actually requesting that I find the Joshua book when we got to Green Bay. I had forgotten about the book and his name until she said "He goes poop in his diaper, mommy." How do they remember that stuff?

Sure enough Grandma Hinsa found some Curious George books too, even one with my name in it from long ago!

An unexpected snowfall was fun. I got to get outside to clear the snow from both the driveways and Bryn and Henry tromped around with Grandma and made a snowman since it was nice and sticky stuff. Apparantly the carrot almost didn't make it to the face of the snowman since it looked good enough to eat!

The best part of the trip was the fact they redeemed themselves from the Christmas trip! YEA!! We found some toys in the basement they hadn't played with for some time and they never stopped running, hopping or skating around the house all weekend. Their favorite, a tunnel we forgot about that they used to throw over themselves for a penquin, crawl inside for a caterpiller or they each took and end and did laps around the house!

We did manage to watch the game too. With all my yelling, Bryn figured that daddy was one of the guys with the green jerseys and gold helmets, not the one in a blaze orange hat watching from the stands.

Little chefs

Bryn and Henry made us some eats!! About time, don't ya think? With Jay's help, they spread out the dough, slathered on some olive oil and threw on all the toppings. Once we referred to them as chefs, Henry remembered that they are supposed to wear "chefs hats" so Jay went to work with a stapler and paper.

Yes, the hats are still in use. They even wore them to music class this week!

This just so happens to be Henry and Bryn's favorite book at the moment. If you haven't read it, make sure you have some time... it's a long one. I do take out the "pretty nurse" references (gotta give a little slack seeing it was first published in 1964). They are happy as long as we read one or two Curious George books at some point during the day but lately this wins for most requested. Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for keeping their bookshelf well supplied with George books.


Henry went so far as to tell us last night from his carseat. " Mommy, daddy I have a tummy ache. I need Dr. Baker and nurses. I need to go to hospital."

We responded with a "What is wrong Hen?"

He replied, " They will make me feel better. I have puzzle in my tummy"


They both know I work at a hospital but they have way more faith in Dr. Baker and those pretty nurses than myself. Oh well.

Based on some recent conversations with my mom I feel I better set the record straight regarding our trip to GB for Christmas. Seems my mom has been asked by several friends how she survived the weekend based on my blog. Of course, my mom and dad had a wonderful time with us all and took their spells of bad behavior in stride as any grandparent would. I just wish they could have been better. Don't all parents feel that way?

1. Jay and I have been told we are a little crazy with what we expect from our children in terms of being polite, using manners and just being nice to each other and to the rest of the world. I know, they are only 2 1/2. Believe me, I know.

2. No, the weekend at my parents was not horrible the entire time, and it was much worse for us, the parents, than it was for anyone else. In my head, you are supposed to be on your best behavior for your relatives, right? Guess H and B didn't get that message.

3. Although it is tempting to only blog about how wonderful, smart, and cute our kids are, that isn't real and never what I intended when we started this blog. Although my children can make me so proud I could just about lose all cool, they also are pretty good at keeping it all in perspective.

I love Henry and Bryn and the fact that they aren't perfect. Neither am I. They have so much spunk, spirit and smiles and that is what keeps us all going. We are all in this together and they have managed to teach me more about motherhood than I ever imagined.

As Henry likes to ask me now when he does something nice.... "That make you happy mommy?" Yes Henry, you and B girl make me pretty darn happy. Love mommy

Trek to the pond

We have been living in a cloud now for the last couple days as the weather is warm and our 30 plus inches of snow is trying to melt so why not join the fog and head to the duck pond. We were joined by their friends Sam, Abbey and Kristi and they quickly paired together and off we went. I should have checked my watch along the way since it took us FOREVER to get there. There was snow to stamp on, puddles to wade in and sticks to be found along the path. Oh yeah, and trying to dodge the runners enjoying the warm weather. Thank goodness the bikers were staying at home or we really would have had a mess.

Henners and his pal Abbey running along.

Sam, tugging Bryn to keep it moving....

The boys decided to stand and stomp on the fading snow banks and the girls headed out!

Wish I had taken a nice shot of all the ducks. The spring fed pond is their winter hang out and they put on a show for us all. they loved to watch them dive into the water and were trying to imitate the "Quack".

Christmas...... take 3

Last weekend we crammed our car and headed north for the last of the family holidays. I could say that it was a weekend full of warm fuzzies but I'd be lying through my teeth. Bryn and especially Henry were at their worst and managed to make Jay and me feel like a couple of no-good parents. I lost count of how many time-outs Henry had but can't seem to erase the image of him peeing down his pants leg when he didn't get what he wanted. It was unreal. I have now been told by several friends that holidays and traveling can do that to kids but I guess until it happens to you, it's not believable. The contrast between sweet quiet cousin Liam and my screaming, crying, whining children was day and night (night being H and B).

For awhile we thought that we were watching them metamorphasize into those "bad kids" you always see in a grocery store, or playground. You know the ones you try to keep your kids away from. But as luck would have it, once we returned home we slowly saw our always energetic but also very thoughtful children re-emerge. Henry is now back to saying " No thank you" instead of the snotty "no" with an attitude. That is not to say that they are angels, as Jay will vouch for today( one face scratched and one arm bitten before 7:45am) but they are cuddly, spunky, and kissable once again.



Watching their cousin Liam open up a puzzle.

Henry checking out his doll complete with orange bib overalls, thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Hinsa!! Aunt Shannon and Uncle Bruce also made them some awesome dress up clothes of their own. In the above pic they are both wearing their capes and below Bryn is modeling her dress with the fun buttons! Thanks guys.

Liam and Henry trotting around the house. Henry not only has the cape but also LOVED the homemade tutu!

Thanks to Shannon for introducing the jump- on -the -Bilibo game with Bryn. We are still playing that one at home. Nice bilibo head Uncle Bruce!

Jay and Bruce attempted to make us a giant bonfire with 4 years worth of old Christmas trees but it was all for naught. I guess a December full of snow and ice on the needles can hamper the blaze. I did manage to go on two beautiful snowshoe hikes in the woods, one of which found me lost (my sense of direction has never been a selling point) but thanks to Finn who directed me home.

Only fitting that the one family picture we have is at the favorite local pizza place called Pie from the Sky. How does a thin crust, wood fired BLT, St. Matthews and Holy Moly sound? Do you sense the religious theme here (except for BLT)? It's in a converted church of all places.

Can you guess where we are? Freezing our tushies off at Lambeau field.

To my family..... sorry again for the noise. Thanks for all the gifts (too many) , food (too much) and letting us escape our children for a couple hours (ahhhhhhhhh).

Hanging with Richgels

Back in Madison for the holidays, our "uncle" Richgels from Portland jumped right in with the everyday world of raising the Littles, including acting as the reading pillow during the naptime reading of Curious George Goes to the Hospital. Thanks Richgels...Hope to see you again soon.