Tales from the Nuthouse

Back in mid-January, H1, H3, and I went to SC to visit Grandpa. H3 and I had visited back in November, but H1 couldn't go due to his work schedule. Grandpa said we needed to come again, with my hubby, so we planned this trip! I'm so glad we went. It was really good to see him again. He had a defribulator put in just after Christmas, and looks like he's doing really well. He's getting around a lot better than when H3 and I were there last. I've always enjoyed going down there, and I'm glad my family does too. Grandpa is lots of fun to talk with and I enjoy watching his interaction with H3. He has commented these last two trips about how energetic she is. I have to agree. I'm starting to think she may be related to the Energizer Bunny!


H3 loves climbing up on the green rocker sofa and perching on the edge!


Grandpa


H1 and H3


Staring out Grandpa's front window


This last week, I made animal crackers. They're a recipe my college roommate's mom gave me. She used to send them to me and Bethany at least a few times per semester. I love them! They're not sweet, but you can eat them with yogurt or honey. H3 likes them with honey.


Last Monday and Tuesday, H1 was off of school because we had 8 inches of snow and this area doesn't have the equipment to deal with any snow at all, much less that amount and an inch of ice. Since he had the time, he decided to make cinnamon rolls from scratch! They were amazing and the house smelled fabulous...I have to say "were", since they are gone now!



H3 walking in the snow a couple days later, with our neighbor's house in the background.


Walking with Daddy


Baby footprints


Happy baby!


All the first snow melted, and then in snowed a bit again yesterday. Initially, there were a couple inches on the ground, but since it rained the day before, it melted quickly. The sun came out today and it's almost gone now.


H3 at the last game of the basketball season. She really enjoys watching basketball. I have to keep that harness on her though, since she also likes running after the basketball! It's the cutest little backpack harness, and she wears it most of the time when we go out for walks.




This last month or so has been busy as always, but a lot of fun too. The week we got back from Grandpa's, I was called in to substitute at the high school for a couple days. We got to go to Virginia Beach and have dinner with a friend whom we hadn't seen in a while, and I spent a night and part of a day at the rescue squad. My next overnight there isn't for a couple weeks. I've been doing lots of organizing and baking, and working with H3 on some new activities. She is able to put shapes correctly into the corresponding holes in her red bucket how, and has also started signing "book", and "eat", adding those to her other signs of "more" and "all done". I'm trying to teach her to put together a wooden puzzle and her alphabet, but those are going to be a while in coming, I think!

I'm hoping to invite our landlord over pretty soon to ask about doing a few renovations. We would like to paint one of the bedrooms (the one we're moving H3 into later this spring), and we would like to replace the linoleum in the kitchen--it's really gross and wasn't installed properly to begin with. We'll pay for the paint for the bedroom, but I was going to ask for a discount in rent for a couple months for us to install the flooring. That way, he won't be paying full price to put it in and neither will we. The stuff I found looks really nice and would brighten it up a lot. I hope he'll let us do both! We'll have lived here for one year on April 1st, and I know this place looks a lot better than before we moved in, so maybe he'll say yes.

It's Superbowl Sunday, and I'm making homemade pizza and nachos for dinner. We're also having hot wings, but I'm not making those. They came in a bag! I like them, but not enough to learn how to make them. H1 makes them sometimes, but wasn't in the mood today. I made some brownies too, regular fudge for half and mint for the other half. H1 loves watching football, and H3 seems to like it too. I watch a few games per year, but am not an avid fan unless Green Bay is playing. I think I'm watching this game tonight for the Focus on the Family commercial about Tim Tebow and his mom's decision to carry him through pregnancy, even though doctor's advised her it was dangerous. I'm amazed and excited that CBS is carrying this commercial and looking forward to seeing it.

Off to make pizza dough!

~H2