And Lily Makes Three

I've Moved!

2012-01-16T12:30:00.002-06:00

Www.fiveinfinland.blogspot.com

Finland Update

2011-12-12T21:34:00.000-06:00

In just a few short weeks, our family of five will take a plane to Helsinki, Finland where we will live for seven months. Rob received a scholarship to the University of Helsinki to take a closer look at the Finnish education system (one of the most successful in the world) in hopes of bringing some of their knowledge back to Chicago.

My boys will attend a Finnish public school where classes are taught in English, gym class includes learning to skate and kids call teachers by their first names.

And Lily and I? Well, since Finnish children don't start school until they are 7, Lily and I will become the family explorers--finding things during the week to share with the rest of the family on the weekend. (Of course, we'll have to do it all between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. while the sun is up!)

I am sure we are in for many, MANY new and interesting experiences!

Please share in our journey over at Five in Finland

Happy Birthday Lily!

2011-10-08T00:17:00.001-05:00

Our Lily is 5!

Soccer Season

2011-09-17T19:12:00.002-05:00

We have THREE soccer players this year!

While the boys are excited to be back on the field, Lily is not so sure. Mostly she just runs next to the child who has the ball. But at least she's right there in the mix and not off twirling or something.

Kids Triathalon

2011-09-13T13:38:00.001-05:00

We are so proud of Joey for completing his first triathalon. He started training in April and trained all summer long. Sadly, he had a fever and was really sick the whole week before the triathalon. We called the doctor and asked her what we should do...he had trained so long and the fever seemed to be really random. Some days barely there and other days as high as 104 degrees. She told us to ask him how he felt that morning and to make sure that he got plenty of water the night before, during and after the race. He did a great job and we are so proud!

We got up at 5:00 to get on the bus heading toward the lake by 6:30 a.m.

After getting body marked,

we headed to the lake. The first event is swimming and Joey was in the first wave.

Next up: biking. I can really tell in some of these photos that he was not his usual energetic self. This is one of those photos.

The final leg is the run.

Here he is crossing the finish line. Many kids got there and threw up or collapsed. (The first ones across the line.)

I'm pretty sure he was glad to be done with it, but he also said he wants to try again next year!

August...

2011-09-12T13:45:00.000-05:00

Do you ever wonder who wins those ENORMOUS stuffed toy prizes at carnivals, theme parks and county fairs?

Well wonder no more. That's Joey on the right (and his good friend Sam on the left). Three baseballs, 3 throws 3 clowns knocked down. Ding, ding, ding! Winner! And lest you think this is a fluke, he did the same thing last year. Now, he is the proud owner of a Scooby Doo doll that is bigger than he is and this lovely banana. Do I need to explain why I am a little bit excited that we will be in Finland next summer and will probably not have the time to go to Great America?

In many ways, this was a huge summer for Joey. He attended day camp and at the end got to help as a "junior counselor." He loved every minute of camp this year. They even took the kids to a YMCA sleep-away camp for a couple of nights.

These look like pretty posh accomodations compared to what I had at sleep-away camp, by the way. But again, he had a great time.

Joey also completed his first kids' triathalon this summer. I plan to document that in a seperate post.

As I write these blogs post about our summer, it seems as if we managed to cram a lot into our summer eventhough our mission was to save money for our upcoming trip to Finland. We did try to spend more time in our yard, at local parks and playgrounds, at the beach and at other places that don't have an entrance fee.

Millenium Park is always a hit with adults and kids. Honestly, the Bean (Cloudgate) has to be one of the best sculptures in the world...

At least it's one of my favorites!

And the Crown Fountain? Genius...

Bowling is almost free in the city during the summer....

water playgrounds are always free...

and bubbles are cheap if you make them from dishsoap you have on hand (but maybe not so cheap if your child uses the Costco gallon of dish soap you had in the basement for filling up the soap bottle on the sink every month or two...) Honestly, Joey spent hours making bubbles with his friends and siblings, but we seriously did go through 1 gallon of soap.

We had a great, end-of-year, last minute trip to the Michigan Dunes. Joey had had a fever for 6 days straight (including the day of the triathalon). He woke up the Monday before school started and said "I feel great!" We literally threw bathing suits and one towel into a bag and ran out the door to the dunes. Usually, I pack extra clothes, snacks, water bottles, toys, camera, books, ugh! No wonder why summer outing exhaust me. This time, we ran out the door with our suits and one towel and we had THE BEST TIME! it was a perfect day!

Summer...in review

2011-09-09T22:42:00.003-05:00

Yeah.

Apparently, after taking a photo a day for a few months, I really loose interest in taking pictures.

So here is a recap of the first half of our summer.

This summer...

we played (and watched) a LOT of baseball

went to camp

had a mini reunion with 4 of the 7 families we traveled to China with

watched (and marched in) a parade

climbed some fences

played on the beach

a lot...

spent time with our cousins

learned to row a boat

trained for a triathalon

became an official "Lake Monster"

relaxed...

made friends with some farm animals

checked out the Chicago skyline from one of the tallest buildings in the world

and that was just July...

Another baseball season behind us...

2011-08-04T20:44:00.004-05:00

I hate it when baseball season ends. I get a little wistful on the last day of the season.

This season was a bit difficult for Sam--he had a screamer for a coach, but Joey had a GREAT season.

I will really miss it next spring. On the other hand, Finnish baseball is interesting to watch!

Not sure if Joey is up for trying it out or not!

Strawberries mark the beginning of our summer

2011-06-16T21:20:00.002-05:00

Strawberry picking marks the unofficial start of summertime!

Buckingham Fountain

2011-06-07T23:20:00.003-05:00

One of my favorite childhood memories was always visiting Buckingham Fountain along the lake in "downtown" Chicago. I loved how the water would shoot high up into the sky and gently spray onlookers who were standing in just the right spot.

Now I love to take my own kids to see the fountain.

I love the fact that almost all of Chicago's lakeshore is accessible to the public (save 4 miles that preservationists are still trying to acquire...).

A new tradition that I have begun with my own family is an occassional summer visit to Chicago's Little Italy for a cup of Mario's Italian Lemonade.

This place is really quite a hole in the wall! But they make the most delicious Italian Lemonade and it's always packed!

Lily doesn't like anything that is fruit flavored (nor does she like fruit)! I think she was really bumming that we drove a bit out of our way for a treat and the treat was strawberry flavored!

Enjoying Spring

2011-06-05T21:52:00.001-05:00

140/365 The dog ate my library book...

2011-05-22T22:55:00.002-05:00

I never understood the old "the dog ate my homework" excuse until today. The dog ate Sam's library book. Sam thought his world would end. He wrote his sad little note..."sorry." Poor guy, it wasn't even his fault. For $11.00 we made his world right again...

136/365 Show and Tell Bag

2011-05-18T23:33:00.000-05:00

School's Out and I've got the Show and Tell bag!

135/365 Spring Concert

2011-05-17T22:32:00.000-05:00

129/365 Play date

2011-05-11T13:11:00.000-05:00

128/365 Drumming...

2011-05-10T13:04:00.000-05:00

...constant drumming. :-(

This drives me crazy, but it seems to release tension in my boy so I just let him go at it!

127/365 Dress

2011-05-09T13:02:00.000-05:00

126/365 Silhouette

2011-05-08T23:15:00.000-05:00

124/365

2011-05-06T14:30:00.000-05:00

123/365 Tommy the Bird

2011-05-05T00:20:00.000-05:00

Sam disappeared this morning for about 3 minutes. We were calling him and looking for him. It was time to walk out the door for school. We couldn't find him anywhere.

We finally found him in the backyard hunched down looking at a birdie on the sidewalk. He wanted to keep the birdie for a pet. He wanted to name the birdie Tommy. I'm pretty sure in the 3 minutes he shared with Tommy, he made lots of pet plans.

But Tommy was a featherless hatchling who must have fallen from his nest. He was kind of a dead birdie.

I put Tommy in a plastic bag to toss him in the trash can, but Sam asked me to "take care of him." I said I would bury him and place a tombstone on his grave.

Of course, the first thing he asked when he got home from school was "did you bury Tommy?" I fibbed a bit, because I had forgotten, and told him I was waiting for him so we could do it together.

Sam said it was "gross" and he didn't want to touch Tommy. So I conducted the burial with an audience of one. We placed the rock on his grave (the words on his tombstone are Sam's exact words).

After dinner, Sam said "I hope Tommy is okay." Rob and I feared momentarily that Sam didn't really grasp Tommy's....shall we say...situation?

Tommy has now been added to the litany of people in the "God Bless _____" prayer before bedtime. He comes after Izzy and before Grandma and Grandpa. Sorry Mom and Dad.

122/365 Backlighting Take Three...

2011-05-03T13:57:00.001-05:00

My third attempt at my backlighting homework. Thank goodness the teacher extended the due date, because this kind of photo is just not my strong point!

Izzy got a bit interested in what Lily and I were doing. I also found out today that if Lily gets to hold the chocolate, or eat it while I am photographing her, things go much more smoothly. I think that's why the dog is sniffing her mouth--there's a chocolate in there!

121/365 One third

2011-05-02T13:44:00.001-05:00

I am one third of the way through my 365 project! For the past two weeks, I have thought about dropping it--there is so much going on in the spring. But, I'm going to try to stick it out!

I am taking a class in natural light photography and I have to admit, I have learned much more through the class than I have by taking a photo every day! (Today's photo is not a fine example of my learning!)

My kids are just so over being photographed. No amount of money, chocolate, extra screen time or other bribes seem to work anymore. I am thinking about bribing my friends kids next.

Backlighting assignment take 2: outdoors
Bribe: chocolate
Cooperative subject: not a chance...

120/365 Pout

2011-05-01T13:40:00.002-05:00

I have to laugh at how pathetic my first attempt at a backlit photo is. Not only is the focus and exposure bad, I just crack up looking at Lily's little pout. She did NOT want to sit for this photo (and I had even offered her a piece of her Easter candy!)

119/365 Spring has sprung...

2011-04-30T23:13:00.000-05:00

...at least for a day or two!

118/365 Opening Day

2011-04-29T22:36:00.000-05:00

It's opening day in our house!

117/365 Homeless lunches

2011-04-28T22:06:00.000-05:00

On the last Thursday of every month, we make lunches for homeless men and women who come to our church to receive a bag. It is a small act, but I love doing it. Here are our supplies for "lunch for the guys" as my kids say!

116/365 Sick Day

2011-04-27T17:16:00.001-05:00

Project 64--Pacific Blue

2011-04-25T15:40:00.003-05:00

Pacific Blue...who knew my son's shirt and eyes were Pacific Blue?

To see more Pacific Blue entries...hop on over to Project 64

112/365 Homework blooper

2011-04-23T12:25:00.001-05:00

I posted this already, but something happened to it...

110/365 Blue Sky?

2011-04-21T23:27:00.003-05:00

According to the forecasts...this is it...our ONE day of blue sky for our entire Spring Break.

We took advantage and headed out to one of our favorite playgrounds in Greek Town. It's got something for the little ones, the middle ones and the older ones too!

109/365 Spring Break

2011-04-20T23:01:00.001-05:00

What do you do when you stay home for Spring Break and the temperature continues to hover in the 40s for the FIFTH day straight???

Pack up the family, hop on the train and head to a ball game!

108/365 Spring Break and Magenta

2011-04-19T22:42:00.003-05:00

What do you do when you stay home for Spring Break and it's really rainy and barely 40 degrees outside?

Pretend you're on the beach and go have ice cream...

This is also my contribution for this week's color "magenta" over at Project 64.

To see more lovely photos, click the link:

107/365 Spring Break

2011-04-18T23:09:00.000-05:00

What do you do when you stay home for Spring Break and it's rainy outside and really, really cold?

Head to the library for some vacation reading...

105/365 Spring Break

2011-04-16T23:22:00.000-05:00

What do you do when you stay home for spring break and it's rainy and barely 50 degrees outside?

Play lots and lots of games...

104/365 Homework...

2011-04-15T20:43:00.001-05:00

My fourth (AND FINAL) attempt at my first Natural Light homework assignment...

There was A LOT and I mean A LOOOOOT of bribery going on in this house this week.... Notice how I bribed each child on a different day of the week? ; )

103/365 Natural Light...take 3!

2011-04-14T20:40:00.001-05:00

So on my third attempt at the Natural Light assignment, I learned that you can't place your child at a bright white table in front of the window with the light source wearing a white shirt...

102/365 Natural Light 101

2011-04-13T19:19:00.000-05:00

I'm taking a Natural Light class through Clickin Moms. I had to re-do my first assignment 4 times! This photo is not one of the ones I turned in--it is a bit out of focus and his bright blue eyes do not really show, nevertheless, it is my contribution as today's photo of the day...

101/365 Nature Center

2011-04-12T09:07:00.000-05:00

We took a short trip to the Nature Center today. We saw 8 deer, many red-winged blackbirds,a snake, and a nesting goose!

100/365 Out of the Box - Burnt Sienna

2011-04-11T09:06:00.002-05:00

This is a close-up of a sculpture near my home. I LOVE the texture of this sculpture, but find it a bit hard to capture in a photo.

To see what others have captured for this week's burnt sienna theme, click on this link:

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99/365 Screens

2011-04-10T21:49:00.001-05:00

This picture frightens me...

98/365 Cousin

2011-04-09T23:13:00.000-05:00

Cousin Mila

She spilled all the Bananagram tiles on the floor and then proclaimed my living room to be MESSY!

She picked them all up though (with a little help from cousin Lily!)

97/365 - Rainy Day

2011-04-08T23:01:00.000-05:00

On the way to school in the rain...

95/365 - Denim

2011-04-06T21:44:00.002-05:00

94/365 Out of the Box - Spring Green

2011-04-05T14:29:00.001-05:00

I figured lots of people would be taking photos of lovely little shoots popping up in their yards, or spring flowers or tender grass.... However, as a "northerner," I had to be a bit more creative (I have yet to see much "spring green" in my outdoor world!)

I don't let my kids have soda very often. But they LOVE this bright green Mexican brand called Jaritos. I carried a piece of paper colored in "spring green" in my purse for a few days and realized while at the grocery store that this lemon lime flavor of Jaritos was a perfect match!

To see the other spring green entries, click here:

93/365 Here comes Peter Cottontail...

2011-04-04T21:45:00.000-05:00

My sweet little bunny!

92/365 Spring has Sprung!

2011-04-03T23:44:00.002-05:00

Spring has sprung and we spent many, many hours at the park today. It was overcast, but let's hear it for 50 degrees plus!

91/365 Jump!

2011-04-02T20:12:00.001-05:00

Another trip to Extreme Trampoline!

112/365 Blooper

2011-04-02T00:44:00.000-05:00

This photo is a homework blooper, but I really, really like it.

Sam saved for months to buy this little hippo he saw at Target. When he finally saved the money, Target no longer carried it.

Today, I found the hippo at our school rummage sale. He wanted me to take pictures of him with "Jack Hippo Jr.," but he was really preoccupied with a piece of dried skin on his lip.

I just love this little blue-eyed beauty...even if he can get a little crabby sometimes : )

90/365 Finland

2011-04-01T20:22:00.000-05:00

We're in Finland!

(April Fools.)

But we are waiting to hear any day now if life will take us to Finland (or England or South Africa) for 6 months come January 2012. The suspense is killing us!

Photo copyright by Jonik

89/365 Strawberries

2011-03-31T23:05:00.002-05:00

When I started this 365 project, I read somewhere that many days, you will realize at 9 p.m. that you haven't taken a photo yet and then it will be too dark inside to take a good photo, so you will end up with some photos that are less than inspired.

I feel like I have had MANY of those days...by the time my kids come home from school, it is too late to take photos of them (or they don't want photos taken of them)! So today was one of those days and this is my 365 offering...strawberries macerated for dessert for a special dinner with my dad.

88/365 She Does Windows

2011-03-29T22:13:00.000-05:00

Well I couldn't get up there, so what was I to do?

87/365 Out of the Box - Tickle Me Pink

2011-03-28T22:17:00.000-05:00

Tickle my heart and tickle me pink!

You can see the other entries for this weeks color at:

86/365 Maple syrup fest

2011-03-27T21:21:00.001-05:00

85/365 Earth Hour

2011-03-26T22:45:00.002-05:00

Sitting in total darkness, save a few candles and a fire in the fireplace, playing board games during Earth Hour 2011.

82/365 Spelling

2011-03-23T23:00:00.001-05:00

What does Lily do while I spend my time helping other children find and purchase books?

Apparently, she's learning to spell.

81/365 Book Fair

2011-03-22T23:12:00.003-05:00

This week, I'm volunteering at the school book fair. It's uplifting to see children get so excited about books--not so uplifting to see them spend $20+ on pencils, pens and erasers :0

It also makes me a bit sentimental to think about my children picking up a Kindle or a Nook instead of a book someday. I feel as if it is inevitable...

80/365 Out of the Box - Scarlet

2011-03-21T22:53:00.001-05:00

Like lavender, this is not the scarlet I would have expected. To me, scarlet is red--shocking red. But scarlet from the box of 64 crayons is an orangey-red.

Here is my contribution for scarlet!

(Oh, and I did not make this cake--this cake was made by the mom of one of Lily's friends.) I wish I could make a cake like this!

79/365 Bored

2011-03-20T21:43:00.000-05:00

Apparently, this is Lily's "I'm bored" face.

78/365 Basketball season ends

2011-03-19T23:05:00.000-05:00

And they were the team that won the most games!

77/365 - Tulips

2011-03-18T22:21:00.000-05:00

76/365 Rainbows

2011-03-17T23:02:00.001-05:00

They say there is a pot of gold at the end of every rainbow...we just found a cupcake at the end of our rainbow!

75/365 She's Got the Whole World in Her Hands

2011-03-16T20:04:00.001-05:00

74/365 A Girl's Best Friend

2011-03-15T23:05:00.002-05:00

When Lily gets home from preschool, Izzy jumps all over her, licks her and basically just gives her all kinds of love. Lily speaks to Izzy in her own version of "mother-ease--" a voice that is so high, it's almost out of the range of human hearing.

I just love the friendship these two have together. Today, Lily happily announced that she and Izzy were the only two adopted children in the house!

73/365 - Out of the Box - Plum

2011-03-14T22:58:00.004-05:00

This is a plum-colored pinwheel in action!

See the rest of the Plum entries at Project 64

72/365--Bingo!

2011-03-13T21:45:00.002-05:00

70/365--Cookies

2011-03-11T21:49:00.000-06:00

I'm so glad I can bake again with my kiddos!

69/365 Piano

2011-03-10T10:42:00.000-06:00

68/365 Lent

2011-03-09T21:27:00.002-06:00

Thank you to Kim at 3 Peanuts for sharing this idea for a Lenten Sacrifices jar. Each morning, the kids pick out something they can do that will make them a better person and bring them closer to God. Today, Sam picked "choose a toy that you can give to a child who doesn't have many toys." We make lunches for the homeless once a month, Sam decided he will take some of his little toys (from birthday parties and such) and put them in the lunches for "the guys" as we call them. I thought it was a sweet idea. It might just makes someone's day!

67/365 Out of the Box - White

2011-03-08T21:05:00.001-06:00

I took lots of fun white shots...then I saw that the added challenge was white on white!

66/365 Max and Ruby

2011-03-07T22:36:00.000-06:00

We enjoyed our three-day mid-winter escape to a waterpark resort, but let's face it, at some point, you need to get out of the water. We don't subscribe to cable at home, so my kids LOVE going to hotels to see the shows all of their friends talk about at school!

This time, however, we found the first Star Wars on t.v. and we all got engrossed in it as we (literally) tried to shake the water out of our ears. Lily, not so taken with Star Wars, watched an episode of Max and Ruby on our portable DVD player.

Within minutes, all three kids had drifted from Star Wars to Max and Ruby. And they stayed there until it was time to go to dinner.... Sometimes, a couple of cute little talking bunnies can really help you to relax!

65/365 Waterpark

2011-03-06T22:23:00.000-06:00

64/365 Guess where we are...

2011-03-05T21:39:00.000-06:00

63/365 Heads

2011-03-04T21:26:00.000-06:00

61/365 Dr. Suess

2011-03-02T21:32:00.004-06:00

Today is the birthday of Dr. Suess.

In this house, we LOVE Dr. Suess. We read a LOT of Dr. Suess books.

When I discovered that behind all the rhyming and silly words, many of his stories (usually the larger-sized books) contain lessons in social justice and personal growth, I started collecting them for my kids. Every Christmas, I buy a new book to add to our collection.

Most people know that "The Lorax" is a book about protecting the environment (Dr. Suess was SO ahead of his time!). And many students receive the book "Oh The Places You'll Go" at graduation time. We all know the story of the Grinch. And, of course, "Horton Hears a Who"teaches us that EVERY being matters.

But did you know that "Yertle the Turtle" is a story about freedom and dictatorship?

"Solla Sollew" helps us understand why it is important to love what you have and not always look for a a trouble-free life somewhere else.

And finally, "Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are?" well, the title sort of sums that one up.

Just tell yourself, Duckie,
you're really quite lucky!
Some people are much more...
oh ever so much more...
oh, muchly much-much more
unlucky than you!

60/365 Peace Corps

2011-03-01T23:24:00.004-06:00

Today, the United States Peace Corps turned 50.

I was a Peace Corps volunteer in Costa Rica 23 years ago.

My experience in Costa Rica changed me as a person forever. The lens through which I look at life is different.

As a newly-minted college graduate, I thought the people I would meet during my experience in Costa Rica would be different from me, my family and my friends. I wanted them to be different. I wanted to experience something radically different from the life I had experienced up until then.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered that we were much more alike than we were different. And that simple fact is what has changed me forever.

Today, I was invited to a 50th Anniversary Peace Corps house party. We ate dal from Nepal, dolma and brandy from Armenia and patacones from Costa Rica. We shared lots of stories about life in these three countries and life in the Democratic Republic of Congo. We laughed about our language slip-ups and cultural mis-steps.

As our hostess so eloquently summed it up at the end of the night, Peace Corps is simply one of the best things our government does!

59/365 Out of the Box - Lavender

2011-02-28T21:59:00.006-06:00

This isn't the lavender I remember, but I think I found the perfect match!

Poor baby got hit in the forehead with an iron gate and 2 hours later walked straight into a metal pole. You can still see the shadow of the bump on her forehead.

57/365 Face

2011-02-26T23:46:00.000-06:00

56/365 Train

2011-02-25T21:22:00.000-06:00

Playing Animal Train with her besties...

55/365 Lillies

2011-02-24T22:34:00.001-06:00

Feeling a bit uninspired these days...

54/365 More kitchen updates

2011-02-23T22:51:00.000-06:00

(These are for you Denise!)

When the kids first realized that the new kitchen would not be any bigger than it was before, they couldn't understand why in the world we would undertake a 4 month gut rehab of our old kitchen. To them the wallpaper-clad, gallery kitchen loaded with rotting wood cabinets and a leaky faucet from the 50s was beautiful. Slowly, they are beginning to enjoy our new kitchen.

It isn't any bigger--we still live in a 1950s, urban, brick Georgian house. But it sure is nice to have a dishwasher (after 2 years of hand-washing dishes), under cabinet lighting, a garbage disposal, etc.

Just can't wait until that range sitting in the middle of the kitchen is hooked up, we can take off the moving mats and enjoy our new cork floors and we can put our dishes into those nice big cabinets!

53/365 Mustache

2011-02-22T23:04:00.002-06:00

I have been slowly moving items into my newly rehabbed kitchen (there is still much to be done, but we can move things in to certain cabinets).

I was just washing and wiping and organizing when Joey popped a wax mustache into his mouth.

52/365 Out of the Box--Indigo

2011-02-21T22:25:00.004-06:00

This week's color at Project 64: Out of the Box is Indigo.

I bought this piece of pottery in North Carolina a few years ago. I was told it is an African Violet pot, but sadly, I'm not very good at growing plants. I tried growing a violet in this pot, but it died. I just like the pot with it's ruffled edges and it's deep indigo color. So I think I'll just leave it sitting on my table as is!

You can see other entries by clicking on the link below.

51/365 Faucet

2011-02-20T22:43:00.000-06:00

Progress!

50/365 Good Game

2011-02-19T22:13:00.003-06:00

This picture is really noisy and a bit blurry to boot, but I love the moment it captures--high fives and "good game"s all around. I especially love the random basketball that was let loose and captured in the foreground!

The final score was 18 to 6 :(

But Sam was so happy that they got on the board with 6! What a way to think positively!

49/365 Leapin' Lily

2011-02-18T22:19:00.001-06:00

48/365 100 Days

2011-02-17T21:35:00.006-06:00

No, it's only Day 48 of my Project 365, but we are nearing the 100th day of school. Sam's 1st "major" project is to glue 100 objects to a poster board and make a presentation to his class.

It was Sam's decision to use bottle caps as his 100 objects. I wondered about the appropriateness of sending my 7 year old to school with the evidence of 100 empty bottles of beer, but I got over it quickly as his heart was set on using bottle caps (and we had a little help with the consumption of said liquor).

Joey has never let me help or even sit near him when he is working on a project--he is fiercely independent. Actually, I didn't help much with this project either, but I got to sit next to Sam and watch and help when asked. I loved every minute of it and he did a fantastic job!

From the heart

2011-02-16T21:16:00.003-06:00

1 in 100 children are born with a congenital heart defect (CHD). CHDs cause more deaths in the first year of life than any other birth defect. There is no cure yet. Help spread awareness, increase funding and find a cure. Give blood and tell your pregnant friends and relatives to have their babies' oxygen levels checked at birth (not a standard test).

This is my friend Jane with her daughter Ramona just after she had surgery on her tiny little heart. Ramona has had 9 heart surgeries in her four years, but is still considered to be one of the lucky ones while she waits for a cure.

Help spread awareness.

46/365 Yarn

2011-02-15T22:44:00.003-06:00

This week's color from the color box is Indigo. I thought I would get a head start and look for this color at home. In the search for indigo, I started taking photos of this basket of yarn--not quite indigo, but still full of the jewel tones I love!

Project 64--Apricot

2011-02-15T10:16:00.002-06:00

Here is my contribution to Project 64 this week. The color is Apricot.

Our puppy, Izzy, is the product of an apricot poodle and a golden retriever. Today, she is almost completely white with apricot hints, but when she was a puppy, she was almost all apricot in color.

You can play along:

45/365 Red--I Heart Faces

2011-02-14T23:02:00.003-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

This week I'm participating in the "I Heart Faces" theme which is red.

To see other entries, just click this button:

44/365 Valentines

2011-02-13T21:10:00.002-06:00

Sam's marching machine men valentines.

43/365 Chapped Lips

2011-02-12T11:15:00.002-06:00

When I was a kid, I used to get horrible, awful, painful chapped lips. My dad used to call it "ring around the lips." Yes, it was really mean and obviously, I'm not over it :)

Sadly, Sam has inherited the propensity for chapped lips. And every time I look at him, I think to myself "ring around the lips!"

Poor guy.

42/365 Glasses

2011-02-11T21:17:00.003-06:00

I bought this cheap pair of reading glasses for myself at the dollar store the other day. When we got home, Lily kept putting them on and I kept asking her to take them off--she absolutely loved them and I was absolutely sure the "prescription" would ruin her eyesight for life!

I finally gave up the fight, popped out the lenses (not difficult when the glasses only cost a dollar to begin with) and let her claim them as her own. She has been wearing these glasses non-stop since then. I giggle every time I look at her!

Now I still need to buy another pair of "old lady" reading glasses for me!

41/365 Hearts

2011-02-10T21:41:00.000-06:00

Decorating for Valentine's Day

40/365 Jump

2011-02-09T21:50:00.003-06:00

I was working on Valentines Day projects today and had paper and stickers, glue and glitter spread out all over the dining room table.

Lily was in an adjacent room squealing with delight saying "I'm cracking myself up!" (only in Lily speak, it was more like "I'm tating myself up!"

I peeked in our play room and found her jumping on the couch having the time of her life:

39/365 Gray

2011-02-08T21:19:00.005-06:00

Today, I'm participating in Project 64 (a 64 week journey through a box of crayons!). I missed the first 4 colors, but I hope to play along for the rest of the box. This week's color is gray.

Thanks to a perfect birthday gift from my mom and dad, this year, I discovered felted wool mittens lined with fleece.

These are my son Sam's mittens.

I love felted wool mittens.

I heart them.

I can not stop talking about them to my friends.

I love them so much that after wearing them for the first few weeks of winter, I purchased two pairs for my daughter and a pair for my son. They keep your hands remarkably warm and toasty.

You can find your own felted wool, fleece-lined mittens on Etsy.

38/365

2011-02-07T22:41:00.002-06:00

This was supposed to be a photo that I was going to enter in the I Heart Faces weekly challenge ("hearts" this week). Besides the fact that it's really hard to find the hearts, it turned out just a bit too posed for my liking. I prefer the much more spontaneous shots of everyday life.

Nonetheless, I still sort of like this photo--it conveys girliness and silliness and yes, a touch of "Mom, are we done yet?"

37/365

2011-02-06T22:30:00.003-06:00

It's a Chicago tradition.

A uniquely Chicago tradition.

After every significant snowfall here in my hometown, Chicagoans dutifully shovel out a parking spot on the street and then they mark their territory with an old lawn chair, scrap lumber or, in the case of my elderly neighbor, an old air conditioner.

It's election time in Chicago. And the way things work here--there is no way any politician is going to speak out against saving parking spots on public roads.

And so, while this Chicago tradition is against the law, lawn chairs will be part of my daily landscape for the next several weeks.

Sigh.

36/365

2011-02-05T22:26:00.001-06:00

Birthday party fun!

34/365

2011-02-03T22:55:00.002-06:00

Snow Day #2

3 hour Monopoly Marathon