First, a huge shout-out (people still say that, right?) and "Thank you!" to Grandy for the well-timed visit. What else could we have done those two days this week?
All of you probably now know the reason we needed her, or someone - and the reason Mom sat out our little outing after Grandy left this afternoon.
Dad and the kids went to the park outside Navy Pier for Snow Days Chicago, a weekend-long event with snow sculptures by teams from around the world, snowboard competitions involving kids, and dog sled racing demonstrations.
The kids, of course, were just as amused to play in the snow on the ground.
Don't worry, nobody was hurt in the making of this film!
Remember Levynn's performances at The Little Gym, back in January and June 2009? Lincoln's been enrolled there since September, and he ended it with a show of his own yesterday.
Today was back-to-school day for Levynn after the two-week-and-change vacation - and the first day of preschool for Lincoln!
He was feeling miserable last night, thanks to a cold that has hit he and Mom hardest (yes, there was a sick kid on the flight home, too!). But he was feeling great this morning - we got two thumbs up from him - and he was ready to go.
Afterward, his teacher couldn't believe that he hadn't been to school before. She called him "an old pro." It must be that sister of his!
And look what that sister had for homework tonight, a monster three-page cornucopia of math problems. Is she still in first grade or what? (Click on each photo for a better look.)
You may have heard that the John Hancock Center's 94th floor observatory, which many of you have visited, just opened an "ice" skating rink for public use.
Well, we also caught wind of a learn-to-skate program it was offering with Chicago Blackhawks-affiliated youth coaches - and we got the kids registered for the very first one this afternoon!
One of their friends, Zara, came along for the lesson, too, and they all had a great time.
(For the record, it's not ice. It's a synthetic XTRAICE surface, which Dad thinks looks and sounds just like our cutting board. But it's effectively the same as ice.)
Dad and the kids finally got on a plane to Boston late Wednesday, an hour before the airport closed for fog that cancelled a bunch of other departing flights, and guess what happened?
Levynn sat down in her seat, looked horrible, said her stomach hurt, and predictably (Mom just had this virus, after all) vomited on herself as the plane began its ascent.
Not the way you want to start a trip!
But Levynn recovered quickly - nearly half of these photos and videos were taken within 24 hours of the flight - and neither Dad nor Lincoln got sick, somehow or other.
So we got to play in the snow that kept us away for three days, first in a state park with Papa, Uncle Colin, Aunt Katey and their dog Brady on Thursday, and then for some sledding with Uncle Dan, Aunt Rachel, Uncle Andy and cousin Chloe at the elementary school down the street on Friday.
We also went to an indoor play place with Rachel and Chloe on Saturday, after we missed out on the Disney on Ice show and the Boston Children's Museum visit we had planned for earlier in the week when we were still stuck in Chicago.
And we ate, drank and were generally merry - but all without Mom, who was missed by more than just the three of us.
Brady loves to lick!
"Cheese!"
Santa Papa at work.
Go 'Cats! (No, not those 'Cats, Kentucky folks!)
Ice skates! (You'll see them put to use very, very soon.)
