Snow, snow, and more snow

Snow - it just keeps on coming this year. I never thought that three little two year olds would love to be out in the snow so much, but boy do they have fun. This latest storm dumped about 15-16 inches on us today and we probably had 3-4 left from the last storm even after all the rain we got a few days ago. They did not want to come in even though we were out there for over an hour!!! They were having so much fun and it puts a big smile on my face to watch them!!!

This is the hill from all the shoveled snow at the end of our driveway (you can't even see the mailbox can you???)



Here's Tyler and Noah on the bottom to give you some perspective



Here's Dan standing next to that same pile



The kids made a "slide" down the snowbank (look right in the center of the picture and you'll see it)



Just a few random shots (as you can see, it was still snowing when we were out there)







Here you can see our poor little choo choo mailbox (sort of)

5 little monkeys plus several cold days= INDOOR FUN!

It's been very cold here in Chicago - VERY COLD. Temperatures were in the single digits for highs and below zero for lows! So, we've had to become a little creative in how we burn some energy out of the kids so they're not constantly bickering and fighting with one another (and us!!).

Click on the picture above to view the entire slideshow of Indoor Fun!!

All the dang toys under the sun

And they choose to play with my storage totes! Ugh!!!

Christmas with Nanee, Auntie Linda and Guncle Rich

For those of you who don't know, my mom is going through chemo and radiation therapy for rectal cancer right now. After losing my dad earlier this year, it was especially important to me to spend some quality time with my family and my mother. While I am sure she was not up for visitors (especially our crew), we surprised her on Christmas Eve and the kids definitely lived up to their name of the FAB FIVE... (be patient, it takes a moment to load)

Daddy, I hope you know....

The reality of my dad not being here this Christmas has hit me really hard today. I was doing okay up until today - the boys are out of school for a week and a half, Dan is home from work for the next week and a 1/2, shopping is done, blah blah blah....but there is no dad. There is no grandpa, there will be no grandpa here on Christmas morning to see my kid's happy faces. I already see the light of my dad fading from their memories and it breaks my heart. There will be no twinkle in his eye as the kid's wake him up, he won't be sitting there for hours helping get the damn presents out of their boxes and then spending even more hours playing with them until he can barely hold his eyes open anymore. He won't be here sitting in "his" chair flipping channels on our TV with the volume turned way too loud until the wee hours of the morning.

It sucks and I hate it. I don't want to struggle through Christmas without him. It's not fair. I do believe there is a reason God did this to our family, but I cannot begin to fathom what that could possibly be.

At least, I guess, it is helping me take my focus off of mom and her struggles - at least temporarily.

I am sorry to be such a downer. I really have been trying to struggle through it, but today, it all came crashing down around me.

Daddy, I hope you know how much you are missed, how much you touched our lives, how much it hurts to go on without you. I also hope you did not suffer and you went happy knowing we were coming to visit so soon.

I love you and miss you, daddy. Merry Christmas.