Winfield Turns Three!

Driving his car through the cake.

He tried to blow out the candles but ended up spitting all over the cake instead. Wall-e!! He loves the character, but is scared of the movie.

I can't believe our little Win is growing up. We had a very quiet party for him - just us and Marriott's (minus Adam who was doing his Black Friday duty for Kohl's at 4 am and then off to work to report). We had car races with medals, cake, and Lightning McQueen decorations. He seemed so pleased with everything and so were we.

Win is sort of the glue in our family. He is Jack's favorite playmate, happy to oblige him in any kind of imagination. He is a buddy to Charles, always hugging, snuggling, and yes, smothering him. He is our agreeable and loving middle child who demands very little and always tells the truth. In answer to my, "who drew all over the wall?" he will cheerily say, "It was me!" I think Winfield sees the world very black and white - it's either right or it's wrong - and that is rather refreshing. I'm not saying he is not difficult at times. He is incredibly stubborn, but we can always count on a kiss or hug from Win and I think every family needs a snuggler like Winfield. (Anyone ever read "5 love languages?" Winfield would be 100% in the physical category). The other day he said to me, "Oh Mommy, your haircut is very beautiful!" I hadn't cut it, but it was so lovely to hear that from my own child. I love our Win.

Klode Park on Thanksgiving

Hands in pockets to keep warm.

Happy even when it's cold.

An artsy picture taken by my brother, Adam. Beautiful Lake Michigan.

Sweet Georgia Girl

In honor of Georgia's birthday, I posted a blog with pictures and tributes. I miss that wonderful girl. I'm still working on posting her singing, but the pictures are so great. Enjoy.
www.atributetogeorgia.blogspot.com

The Cengiz...oh we miss them!

I was looking through pictures so I could update this new site and found some great shots of our dear friends, the Cengiz family.  They are such a wonderful people and we miss them so very, very much!  Annie is the only girl that Jack agrees would be okay to play with since he "only plays with boys" now.  If only we lived closer.  Next summer won't be the same without them, willing at the drop of a hat to go sailing, no matter the temperature.  Tami, when you get sick of warm NC weather and living in your own house, feel free to move back to Milwaukee. We love you.

Our Little Fiddler

Jack has been taking Suzuki violin lessons since September and he had his first concert on Saturday. We were so proud of him as he marched up to the front row and took his place without hesitation. He has worked hard and practiced very religiously and I was as pleased as I could be.

Crispy Apples, Sticky Fingers

One of the best parts of living in the mid-west is the apple picking season. Autumn here is absolute heaven (okay, so is summer - don't ask about winter). I have great memories of picking apples when Christian and I were dating and Georgia was still with us. As was her habit, she walked the orchard balancing apples on her head. So, when I feel the fall weather, my thoughts always turn to the good old days in Indiana. Here we are trying to find the most tart apple. We made caramel apples later that night and got good and sticky.

Halloween

In our village Halloween is always celebrated on Sunday. As annoying as that is, it gives us yet another opportunity to teach our children what it means to be Mormon in Wisconsin while we sit out the trick-or-treating. Luckily for us, the ward has a Friday party so the boys get to wear their costumes and come home with plenty of candy. We did do round two of trick-or-treating on Halloween at the stores of the mall near-by. Christian was pretty happy about it since we came home with two water bottles from the Apple store. Jack is very into Star Wars even though he has only seen a twenty minute version of the first one. He wanted to be Anakin Skywalker, so what does Winfield want to dress up as? Also Anakin Skywalker. Unfortunately I didn't think ahead and the store was out of Yoda costumes for infants. Charles went as a Lion instead and got lots of happy comments from people. The boys ate all their candy (both times) in one sitting. So far, no damage has come of it.

Atlanta

Last month Christian took Jack to his parents' house in Atlanta to visit while his grandfather was in town, the grandfather who Jack is named after. It was a special time for our son to get to know his great-grandfather before he dies. Since I wasn't there (yes, the two little ones and I had a great time at home, or at least we survived), I can't give many details, except that they went to a Braves game, made a fort with a potato weapon of some kind, played Hungry, Hungry Hippos, and were appropriately spoiled.

Sweet Charles Screams it Out

Now that he is six months old Charles is supposed to sleep through the night, not wake up twice to nurse, or so the doctor informed me this week. So, dutifully we let him "cry it out" for an hour and a half last night and wow it was painful for everyone. Am I the only person whose marriage nearly ends after a night like that? I'm kidding, of course, but a tip to those who have never done this with a child - 3 am is NOT the best time to debate whether or not you have nursed the baby enough to merit the screaming, or if perhaps you should try it another night, or maybe he is still too young for this kind of torture. In the end, I won (it helps to be the source of food) and Christian went to read a book in the living room. I'll be praying mightily - again - that we don't have a repeat tonight. But, isn't he cute when he's asleep? That is Christian's "magic" position.

The Women Hit San Fran

An all-girls' weekend in San Francisco, hot fudge Sundae at Ghirardelli Square every night, perfectly blue skies, a full day of shopping, a chick flick, and loads of bonding...what more could a girl ask for? It was a fabulous trip, even if Charles did crash the party a few times! Here are pictures to prove it all really happened. The Blue Angels were practicing for their show that weekend and we got front row seats at Alcatraz. I love my sisters and that includes the sister-in-laws. I must be the luckiest girl to have such amazing women in my life! We really missed Emily, Cannon's wife, and of course Georgia. We had a good chuckle of her crazy sleeping habits. What a one-of-a-kind girl she is! I miss her. So, here's to another trip without men!! Charles, you're staying home next time.

Winter in Summer

Jack and Winfield decided to dress for cooler weather after watching Curious George play in the snow on TV. Little do they know what a long winter awaits them.

Ireland

The Amazing Rock of Cashel - our favorite ruins. The huge rock Christian is leaning against fell from the castle wall and they left it right where it landed.

Charles stole the hearts of every Italian woman in a tour group at the Rock of Cashel. They honestly followed me around and chattered in Italian "baby talk" to Charles' smiles.

A flat tire on a packed-to-the-gills-rental was NOT our idea of a good time, but the little thing made it across Ireland on the spare and we lived to tell about it.

Our hotel on our last night in the town of Kilkenny. It was called the Butler House and was gorgeous.

The Cliffs of Moher. What a breathtaking view!

Charles looking through a cell at Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin.

Christian had business in Dublin so I just had to go with him. We spent an amazing week driving all over the beautiful island and had all kinds of adventures including a flat tire, an unexpected surfing town (which led to a quck dip in the Atlantic and some great fish and chips), two close encounters with sheep, and great B&B’s. We were completely spoiled at the Dublin Ritz Carleton where Christian's conference was. We had our own hot tub on the balcony, a full kitchen and living room, and the most dreamy bed. I still think about that bed and wish I could transport it to Milwaukee. They also gave us a personal driver to take us around Dublin. Talk about swank! It was pretty amazing. After leaving the Ritz we were on our own buck and downgraded to a few mom and pop B&B's that were rather humerous, but memorable. Charles was an absolute dream and was also very popular with the Irish and European tourists. What a wonderful trip!