I didn't get the memo...

For everyone that commented or decided it was best to keep it to themselves - THE REASON MY SON DID NOT HAVE SHOES ON TODAY WAS THAT I WAS UNAWARE THAT WE WERE NOW KEEPING ONE OF THEM IN THE CUP DRAWER!

Striiiiiiiiiiike

A few weeks ago, Ari and Noah went bowling with friends of theirs. Ever since, Ari has been asking Amelia to go bowling with him. He was very specific in his request, only himself, Amelia, Noah and myself could go. It might sound funny, but while we see each other every day, we actually have to make plans in order to do stuff with Ari and Noah. It is hard to get together because Noah goes to school every afternoon and Ari and Amelia go to school the same days, but Ari goes 9-10:30am and Amelia goes 9:30am-12:00pm! Yesterday, Amelia had a day off so we made a very simple plan. Bubbie would be with Noah while Ari was at school. I had my two kids and took them to the office with me. Becca had Ari at school. We would all meet at the bowling alley after Ari was done. Bubbie would go do her stuff, I would stay with the three kids, and Becca would take Leo and bring back lunch. Funny enough, it actually worked out as planned (a rarity in our family). Bowling with three kids is similar to watching paint dry, but they had a great time and that is all that matters.

Smiles for Zadie

Meat Eater

We were lucky enough to have Bubbie's brisket for dinner (again) tonight. Danny had his favorite, a brisket sandwich. Amelia had hers with "challah and honey" on the side. Leo and I decided to have ours straight up. Before I could even take a bit of mine, Leo had scarfed his down and was asking for more "brrrrrrrrrr", pointing to my plate. A piece here...another piece. It didn't take long before Leo had eaten the majority of my brisket. I went to the stove to get more, asking Leo if I could please share it with him this time. After Leo scarfed his brisket down, once again, he started crying and telling me he wanted to get out. I took him out of his highchair and all I hear is "brrrrrrr" as he waddles to the stove and points to the skillet with the brisket in it. How can you blame him?

It's about time...

About 5 years ago, Becca and her family moved to Mundelein...a few months later, we moved around the corner. About 3 years ago, Becca's family moved to Vernon Hills...I will let you take a guess as to where we live now. Many Saturdays in the summer have been spent at each other's houses and a day rarely goes by without us planning to meet or planning not to meet, but bumping into each other anyway. We have babysat for each other in the past, but usually when the kids were asleep. We decided a couple of months ago that we would take turns babysitting for each other so that we could actually leave the house and eat an entire meal in peace. Tonight was the first attempt and it has been so much fun. Of course, its almost 9:00pm and Leo is the only one asleep. Danny and Noah have been playing Playstation 2 NHL Hockey for almost 2 hours now and Amelia and Ari have been reading and just hanging out. I think this is going to be a long standing tradition!

Small Detour...

Amelia woke up yesterday with 102 fever and spent the majority of her day resting in bed, "mummified". Today she still has almost 103 temperature, but has perked up a bit. A week just isnt the same without a visit to Dr. Sherri. (Update: About 10 minutes before we had to get in the car, Amelia's fever went down and I almost didn't bring her in. At the Dr.'s office, she had a 97.5 fever and I was almost embarressed that I took her in...until the strep test came back positive.)

We're Baaaack...

Leo is back to himself and, to prove that, every one of these pictures is out of focus because I couldnt get him to sit still. For the last couple of weeks, Leo has been transforming from my little baby to a tiny big boy. He understands everything that is going on and makes sure that you are understanding what he wants and needs. Amelia and Leo have always been sweet together, but now you see a partnership forming - a troublesome twosome, if you will. One reason why I love our house is that the kitchen and bedrooms are on the same floor. When Leo was born, Amelia and I talked about how they would eventually be running back and forth while I made dinner - I just didn't think that time would be here so fast. Of course, every so often Amelia calls me to inform me - ever so calmly - that Leo is on top of something he isnt supposed to be...or more likely, that something is on top of him.

Poor Little Bugger

When you can hear your baby breathing from the next room - with the door shut - you know something isn't right. Leo has a bad case of croup (are there good cases?) and a high fever. He slept for pretty much the entire day, either on one of us or in his crib. The doctor said it lasts about 3 days, so, hopefully, by the end of tomorrow he will be back to our little Leo who laughs at his sister's silliness and wont sit still for a minute.

I need a vacation...

This past week, I have changed more sheets than our stateroom attendant did on the cruise. There has been diarrhea, bloody noses, and throw up and those are just what ended up on the sheets! There has been pish in all the wrong places, snot galore, and Leo may be setting a record for the most head-on collisions in a day's time. Maybe they are getting everything out (literally), so they are in their best form when Bubbie and Zadie come home. I sure as heck hope so.

Too exhausted after 10 days away with the kids to think of a cute title...

We got back late Sunday night after a wonderful "vacation" in Miami and the Caribbean. I have posted all 179 pictures on Google, but here are (some of) my favorites with a little commentary on a very memorable time with the kids and Danny.
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We stayed in Miami for a long weekend before heading out on our cruise. Since the Kohl Children's Museum wouldnt relocate for a few days, we had to settle for the Miami Children's Museum. Amelia did tell me that she prefers Kohl Museum and I am pretty sure it is because the Miami one is geared towards older kids. We did have a great time, nonetheless, even little Leo. To see the rest of the Museum pictures, go to http://picasaweb.google.com/dovalehw/Museum



After the museum, we hung around Miami a little - once we paid for parking, we refused to leave. See our pics at http://picasaweb.google.com/dovalehw/Miami

Just like at home, we rarely had a laugh together on the boat. I did manage to squeeze out a few (50?) smiles from the kids, however. Here are a couple of cute ones. The rest of them can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/dovalehw/Ship



Our first stop was San Juan. We weren't thrilled that we didn't dock until 2:00pm because that is prime napping time, but it did work out nicely when we got off the boat close to sunset. Danny had some fun testing out the nighttime functions on the camera and the kids loved all of the lights. The beautiful night shots and more can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/dovalehw/SanJuan

Next stop - St. Maarten. Danny and I have fond memories of our last time there, when Amelia was 10 months old. The heat was insane, but we had a fun time walking around and looking in the shops. I bought Amelia a beautiful handmade dress to wear on future cruises. It was cute to see Leo do the same things as his big sister and cousins before him - pass out cold from the heat and sleep through the water taxi and the entire walk back to the ship. All the pics, including Leo sleeping, can be found here http://picasaweb.google.com/dovalehw/StMaarten

St. Thomas was next and this was the port we were most looking forward to. A good friend's sister lives on the island. We had plans to meet at the old synagogue. Noone told us, of course, that you had to be on Survivor to be able to climb the hill leading to this gorgeous landmark. Good thing I am married to a hulk that can handle a double stroller like nobody's business. Here is Danny going for the gold on Synagogue Hill (it's really called that!). The rest of the island pics can be found here http://picasaweb.google.com/dovalehw/StThomas



We stopped in the Bahamas on Shabbat and just walked around for a little and went back to the ship for a very nice lunch in the dining room.

One of the nice things about this cruise was the Fisher Price playtime they had each morning. They had an infant hour and a toddler hour - we went to both. And, anyone who knows Amelia, knows that she was the star pupil. Amelia helped the leader, Jenicka, clean up all of the toys after each session. Leo was more interested in the piano and stage than any of the toys. It was interesting seeing him with other babies, something that is rare. Leo is intrigued by them and socializes in a really sweet way. The rest of the pics can be found at http://picasaweb.google.com/dovalehw/Playtime



When we finished eating and weren't trying to find something else to eat, we were having fun in our stateroom. Both kids slept in their own Pack N Play and Amelia spent the majority of her awake time in there as well. She had all of her dollies with her and whatever they needed - diapering, feeding, bedtime - she took care of them in her "crib". Leo spent his time walking back and forth, hiding under the vanity and pounding on the bathroom door while I was trying to take a shower in peace. See all the antics at http://picasaweb.google.com/dovalehw/Stateroom



Last on our itinerary was a lovely 8 hours at Miami International Airport. Intending on going stand-by, we got to the airport at 10:00am. After seeing that all flights were full, we decided it would be too expensive and not worth it to rent a car and drive around since our flight was 3:30pm and boarding with the kids and a car seat is never a quick process. Little did we know that Chicago weather had other plans and delayed our flight 2 hours and we didnt board until 5:45pm. We did have a ball at the airport, making lots of new friends and enjoying all of the running around space. Running around does make one tired, however. On that note...if any of our fellow passengers are reading this, I sincerely apologize for the hysterical screaming, offered to you in stereo, for the majority of the flight. Leo was nice enough t fall asleep sitting up as the plane landed. See our fun and new friends at http://picasaweb.google.com/dovalehw/Airportfun