Water Park Photos

As I uploaded the photos we took on our shortened water park trip this weekend, I realized that we did not get very many, and the ones we did get aren't great. We don't have any photos of us in the water! The Grand Bear Resort at Starved Rock has an indoor amusement park, an arcade, and a water park. It also has a mini-golf course, which we obviously didn't do. I think this trip could be even more fun in the summer, when you could combine some of the activities at the resort with hiking, biking, etc. at Starved Rock.
Anyway, there are a few photos of the townhome we stayed in. You could stay in a hotel room or in a townhome, but the townhomes have kitchens, so we chose that and avoided the whole "Can you go back to the chef and find out what's in X for me?" which is always difficult at restaurants. We made all of our own food. The townhome was actually super nice. There was a fireplace downstairs, and a fireplace and whirlpool tub in the master bedroom. It wasn't just a big bathtub, it was an actual whirlpool in the room. The kids thought that was the most fun ever. It was very clean, but the kitchen was advertised as "fully stocked" which it definitely was not. There were glasses, bowls, plates, flatware and pots, but that was it. I thought the basics would be provided, but we didn't have things like a can opener, dish soap, coffee filters, etc. So, something to remember if we go back.
There are a few photos of us at the amusement park, which the kids really enjoyed. All of the rides were spinning rides, so I didn't have the easiest time with that. Even Kevin, who has an iron constitution, had to stop after a few. But we spent a good 90 minutes there and the kids went on everything a couple of times.
We went to the water park twice for about 90 minutes each time, but unfortunately have no photos of that! I think it's because one of us was always holding Isaac, and the other was in the water with the kids. We never had a free hand to take pictures.
There was also an arcade, which we didn't plan to go in, but after John started having asthma problems we felt bad for him and relented. The kids played some games and won a few prizes too. You can also see a wonderful shot of me busting out on Dance Dance Revolution. Another reason to get the Wii.

First Post of the New Year

Hello everyone! John and Lucy are back at school, Ikey Boo is napping, and I am getting back into the groove of my daily routine. I've spent all morning catching up on things, so here's my "catching up" post.
I've given our blog address to several old friends during the holidays, so I hope that they will continue to check in and keep in touch with us throughout the year.
We didn't get our Christmas cards out this year, obviously. I did actually buy cards but that is as far as I got. I am OK with it, because sometimes you have to let things go like that. I could have stressed and been frustrated and stayed up late, etc. to get them out, or just let them go, which I did. The cool thing is, this blog has been more or less a record of our year, so I passed out the blog address to a bunch of folks who can go back and get a good idea of what we've been up to.
We had a fun Christmas. The kids' break started a day early, with a day off of school from an ice storm. We had bad weather for about 5 days, which forced us to cancel a much anticipated visit with the Yorks. That was the biggest bummer of the holiday. We also cancelled our trip to my Aunt's house on Christmas Eve, but at the last minute decided to brave it and drive up. I am so glad we did. I realized that morning if we didn't go, it would be the first time in my entire life that I didn't see my family on Christmas Eve. All families bicker and squabble and have issues, and ours has plenty, but something about being apart on Christmas Eve made me feel infinitely sad. We had our traditional polish pig-out and I do not regret a single bite. In fact I wish I had eaten even more ha ha! We only have that meal once a year (pork, sausage, dumplings, pierogis, green beans) and it really is a wonderful indulgence. The kids really enjoyed themselves and I know that my Aunt was really happy to have everyone together as well.
Santa made his way through the ice and snow and delivered his packages on Christmas morning to all the good little children at our home. My very favorite part of Christmas morning is the satisfaction of how well I know my kids. John and Lucy don't really write letters to Santa, and I don't just buy whatever is popular. I buy the exact things that I know they will love and it is a real thrill to see them open those packages. This year my biggest success was Transformers chess for John. He didn't even know that existed and about passed out when he realized that he not only had his own chess set (he loves to play chess), but the pieces were actually Transformer guys. The only downside to this is, I always get stuck being the Decepticons because he wants to be the good guys. :) Kevin really rocked it out with Lucy this year, the top gift being a computer game called "pet vet" where you are a vet and diagnose and treat people's pets, then take care of them in the pet hospital while they recover. I think Kevin found this at the store underneath a huge, neon flashing sign that said "LUCY MOORE" with an arrow on it. Could there be a more perfect gift for her? Even baby Isaac got some fun treats, although his tastes are less discriminating, somehow Santa knew he loves a bath and brought bath turtles that you shake and chew.
We had a nice visit in Freeport, although we missed the Grimes family Christmas gathering for the first time in ten years. Kevin and I were both really disappointed about this, but realize that as all the cousins get older, move around the country and have kids, it is impossible to coordinate everyone's schedules. We did see Grandma Dorothy and Grandpa Harvey, but missed everyone else. Luckily, it seems that the entire family will be able to make it on the Florida trip this year in March. It will end up being a family reunion of sorts and that is great.
Jenny and Sylvie spent a day with us, the kids had a morning at The Little Gym and we went (for at least a little while!) to Jason and Brandi's New Year's Eve party. Isaac did not realize that he was supposed to stay up until midnight, and instead fussed to leave at 7 PM. John stayed at the party with the Ashbrooks until 9 PM, when they were finally able to drag him away from the Wii. I made it until 11:30 PM, and fell asleep watching the Charlie Rose year in review. Woo! Party animals!!
Kimberly made us a wonderful dinner out at their home on Friday and this is so special to me. Making dinner for our family can be a real challenge and over the course of John's life only a few people have taken it on. Every time someone makes dinner for us and takes into account all of John's allergies, I don't forget it. Those thoughtful people (I know some of you are reading!) can be sure that I remember and can not thank you enough for it.
This past weekend we went to the indoor water park at Starved Rock. We intended to stay for 4 days, but ended up staying 2 instead. It was a lot of fun, but we felt that after 2 days we had done everything there plenty of times and wanted to end on a high note. Plus, John was having problems with his asthma, I believe brought on by the humidity in the water park. They keep it nice and warm in there, but the steam and humid air is very hard on asthma sufferers. John needed neb treatments through the night, and that was enough for us to say, let's just head home now. Since the trip was a Christmas gift from my family, we now have a little extra money to use on something special. We are trying to decide if we should save it toward our next trip to Disney World, or buy a Nintendo Wii. I know, you are all shocked that I want to buy video games for the kids! But here's the thing. Every day they get an hour of "screen time." They can watch TV or play on the computer. So if we had the Wii, that would just be another choice during screen time. Plus, I could definitely be a Guitar Hero champion. No, really. If I just practiced I could be really good. Hee hee!
That's our holiday in a nutshell. I will now resume my regularly scheduled postings.

Have a Super New Year

How I feel today... Can't wait for our mini-vacation to start :)

(John is about 4 and a half in this one)

Our Christmas Photos

I've had so little time to write blog posts with the kids on Christmas break, and all the activities of the holiday. I will get back to it once our daily routine returns to normal! For now, enjoy some of the photos from our Christmas celebrations.

Mom and Mike Christmas

Here are our favorite photos from Mom, Mike, Ed and Liz's visit on Sunday the 20th.

The value of a private school education

In the van this evening.

John: [something, something]...in the booty.
Kevin: (teasing him) In the baby socks?
John: No, the booty.
Kevin: What's the booty?
John: You know, the ass.

(Becky and Kevin doing everything we can to stifle uncontrollable laughter)

Kevin: Where did you hear that word?
John: [Boy X] at school told me it meant butt, and I could say it instead of butt.
Lucy: Plus, you say it.

The Civics Lessons Are Working

Playing doll house with Lucy, after lunch today.

Me: Let's all go to the movies!
Lucy: We can't, because the uncle is going to jail.
Me: Oh no! What did he do?
Lucy: He tried to get big gifts by giving away a special job.