Isn't it March?

This is not exactly what you want to wake up to on March 2nd!

Notice how high the snow is on the girls' picnic table. And it is still coming down.

Pete doing is favorite thing- shoveling snow!

Can you imagine how ready I am for some warm weather? It has been cold here since October!

At least it warmed up enough last week for the girls and I to drive down to Philly to go the zoo.  I met my friend Becky who moved to Philadelphia from San Antonio. Becky and I met at our church in SA. It is so great to hang out with someone from home!

The Philly zoo was great. I can't wait to go back in the Spring when all the rides are open.

 

The polar bear is on top of the rock.

This turtle was being a little friendly....

and this peacock was looking for someone to be friendly with.

But none of the girl peacocks seemed to be as impressed as we were by his beautiful feathers.

My poor Alli was not too happy that we were going to the zoo without her. She says she doesn't remember all the fun things she got to do before she started going to school five days a week. I am certain that I did more with her!

Here she is working on her piano lesson.

There is HOPE!

I did not realize just how depressing it looks outside until earlier today when Alli and I were going through some old photos. Seeing pictures of trees with leaves and grass that is green really gave me some hope! I think I forgot that NJ actually does get warm weather. And that we really do have a nice looking yard.

our pond today

our pond in the summer

side yard today (with Pete The Lumberjack and Kate The Great)

side yard in the summer

front yard today

front yard in the summer..........see, there is HOPE! It will start to warm up soon and the trees will get their leaves and the grass will turn green.

Now let me go sit in front of the fire and think happy green thoughts!!!!

Cold IS Relative

The other day, my great friend Shannan (AKA Sammy) wrote a post titled What is Cold Anyway. She wrote about cold weather being relative. And it is so true! Today the high was 42 degrees. I was really looking forward to 42 degrees. A forecaster on one of the local news channels called for "nice" weather for today. Two years ago, I would have thought 42 degrees was really cold. Two years ago, I would have dressed my daughter in a hat and heavy coat. And today, after going to church and feeling some relief from the bitter coldness, Katie comes home and changes into this

Yes, she is wearing flip flops and a leotard! A year and a half in the northeast will make 42 degrees nice!

Silly Girl!

*Don't worry! I did make her come back inside and put on some more clothes! If there wasn't snow on the ground, I might have let it fly.

My Doggies

Aren't they sweet? Dixie is in her favorite spot. She loves to cuddle up next to Maddie. And Maddie has become such a great sister to her! (And don't they really look like sisters with the same color of hair!) It has been great to see Maddie so active again. She and Dixie play all the time.

San Antonio

in one picture....margaritas and some good Mexican food!

I try to steer clear of super greasy fattening foods, but occasionally I will indulge! And especially since I do not live in SA, I took full advantage of going for a late night snack at Chacho's. Plus, I went for an hour long run with my cousin that day!

My First Trip

I am on my very first trip without Pete or the girls. So this is Pete's very first time to be parenting on his own. I already miss the girls and Pete. I kept looking behind me at the airport because it just did not feel right to not have kids in tow.  I had lunch by myself at the airport, read some of my book and watched a movie on the iPod. It was more down time than I have had in a long time! I am looking forward to some more stress-free time with my family here in San Antonio- and especially the warmer weather! And thank goodness I wasn't on the flight that landed in the Hudson River. 

Thank Goodness It Is January

It's been awhile!

I have been too busy recovering from the month of December!

Let's start from the beginning of the month- we returned home from our Thanksgiving vacation to a broken refrigerator. We picked up our new family pet and two days later she was taken to the vet where we were told she may not make it. After a four night stay at the vet's, Dixie, thankfully, came home. I came down with Strep throat. We celebrated Tori's fourth birthday, spent a lot of time at holiday parties and holiday programs. And, of course, there were endless hours spent on the web trying to find the perfect gifts. And before the month ended, we spent about 8 hours in our home without running water. Joe the plumber came out and took a big fat check from us and now we have a new well pump and running water. (No city water for us country folks!)

So, as much as I enjoy the Christmas season, I am so glad that it is January!

We did have a really great Christmas. We are so blessed to have great friends and neighbors and a great church. Every year Christmas gets more exciting for us. It is such a joy to celebrate with our girls and get a glimpse of Christmas through their eyes.

Here are some of my favorites of Christmas 2008.

going through their stockings

The girls loved their umbrellas that Santa left in their stockings. Alli is wearing her new "fashion" dress up outfit and roller blades. Tori is wearing her new Hello Kitty ear muffs and her princess dress that plays music. And Katie is wearing and has been wearing almost every day her new Ariel night gown.

make-up from MoMo

ready to bake in their new Easy Bake Oven

And the best news of 2009- Katie is POTTY TRAINED!!! For the first time in four years, we do not have to buy diapers!!!

It has been about a week and a half since we've switched to panties and she is doing so AWESOME! I was a little worried. I did not know if it was possible to get three easy potty trainers. But I did!!! Thank you LORD for easy potty trainers! YAY KATIE!!