2 + 1

Here's a video we took of Kola, the very first time we met him, two years and a day ago. The woman's voice you hear is his teacher, and the man showing him the blocks is the Dr. we brought from Kiev. Haricho = good; molodyez = good boy. Seems like a short but a long time ago! This week I need to get cracking on the annual report we provide to the Ukraine Consulate, but for now I'll just enjoy the moment.

This morning I said to Kola, "It's a miracle!" And he replied, "North aMiracle or South aMiracle?" He keeps us laughing and smiling;)

new life!

pennies from head'in


re-leaf


pad tie


kids, carp, and chihuly


a field of jewels


expecting an arrival


welcoming committee


our newest neighbors


We're all anxious for spring to settle in and lead us into summer. We've traded in the cords, boots, and down-filled outerwear for shorts, sandals, and light coats. No matter that most days barely achieve mid-60's. We'd rather shiver and huddle than take a step back towards winter. We've had our share of rainy days so we enjoyed spring infusion at the conservatory. There are more face and finger prints on the windows in the house as we watch new flowers come and go, nesting robins and jays, and new baby bunnies hurdle the tall grass in the yard.

Also new and exciting are our new neighbors across the street - twin 5 1/2-month-old boys adopted from Ethiopia. It brought up all kinds of memories for me, some aspects of our adventure I haven't thought about in quite a while. We look forward to getting to know these little guys!!

spring colors

X-treme coordination


The hunt


Easter booty


note the Blue Jay on G'pa's lap


orange and blue scrimmage


I-L-L-


I-N-I


We (especially Kola, my friend Kelly and I) were pretty excited to attend a free Illini scrimmage a couple weeks ago. It was a little chilly and hard to follow a non-continuous game, but it was interesting to see the team work on plays and Kola liked the tackles and the helmets. I figured my old boda was encrusted with peppermint schnapps, so i didn't bother unearthing it from the basement. The hot starbucks coffee kept me just as warm;)

On the topic of sports, I am thrilled to be a t-ball mom. I've been hooting and hollering at practices, you'd think it was a late september Cubs game (in a good year.) Ethan is a rookie on the blue jays, and since one started nesting in our yard a few days before we got our uniform, ethan was pretty jazzed about the pick. His favorite position seems to be catcher. He has a predictable area he can manage (see organization - top photo) and places the ball on the "T" before each play. What he really wanted to be was manager, but since his baseball resume is a bit light, this is the next best thing. He hangs back with the umpire, who holds the batter's bat for safety while Ethan ducks in and out. He doesn't wear a facemask, but he does get to wear the helmet. Since we've only had one game, there's been no play at the plate, but he did get three doubles his 1st time out. All would have been singles but for overthrows at first base. Another highlight for him is snack time - far better "goodies" than we have at home. Kola also gets some of the stash and a playdate with one of the player's 2nd grade sisters. Last week they were climbing trees;) Let me know if you're in the neighborhood and I'll send you a schedule! More photos to come, no doubt.

I'd be remiss if I didn't detail the top photo - where Ethan is lining up Metra schedules to match the Trouble board while wearing his CTA t-shirt. Trains continue to be an area of interest, which was pursued this week as we followed my brother's family's travels throughout Europe. He sent us emails of which cities they were visiting and we were able to study the Amsterdam trolley, bridges across Luxembourg, trains along the Rhine, and canal boats/ferries in a few of the cities. Such fun for both of us to travel vicariously - a few nights Ethan was carried way enough to skip Wheel of Fortune!

happy springing - more soon;)

xo b/s/e/k

What's new with you??

Homework deductions


Road construction


Captive audience


Storytelling apprenticeship


Letters to know


Room to grow


Great news on the career front. Kola has decided to abandon his plans to become a girl (Sara, in particular) and become a doctor. He will be "Dr. Joe" and will only give checkups and see how people are feeling, but not give shots. At first Ethan was worried. Previous plans have had them both working in the transportation field, so Ethan wanted to know if he and Kola could still be family if they have different jobs. The good news is yes, but explaining to him how or why Kola might change his name to Joe was a little trickier.

Their train hobbies persist and they managed to ride trains for 3 out of 4 days this week. The train is not always the most direct or convenient way to get where we're going, so sometimes I'm dropping the boys and sig off via car and picking them up on the other side. Other logistical challenges were Christmas, where they took the train and I drove the presents, and a potluck brunch, where I needed the car to transport the food. Ethan's binder of train maps and schedules from around the area and world is really fattening up, and some days he'll walk around the house with a timetable, letting me know what trains are entering and leaving various stations.

Recently, the boys had their 4 and 6 year checkups. Ethan came in at a towering 4' which floored me, since I started high school at 4'11". A few years ago my dad said he was glad that of the houses we shopped, we picked a victorian with high ceilings;)

I was very honored a few weeks ago to receive a Citizen's Achievement award from the Illinois Park and Recreation Association for the environmental work I've done in the past year-ish with our park district. I've just re-upped for another three years with the park district's citizen's advisory group and will work again this year as the chair for the Greening Advisory group. It's rewarding to see this venture grow as we continue to implement our environmental policy with the launch of a zero waste initiative and a park stewardship program this spring.

We'd love to see and hear what's new with you. Thanks for checking in! xo b/s/e/k

Last days of lock down

Yummy Construction


Origami, Cats and Dogs


Mardi Party, German Style


R/R


R-n-R


kola expressing his sunny side


once known as serious tower, by ethan


The weather today broke like a fever, and it seems we've made it through winter without going crazy. Though, you might be a better judge of that than we are. These past few weeks, the boyz have been hesitant to go outside - a little finicky for the right conditions, like groundhogs who just aren't ready yet. I guess there was still a bit of a to-do list, including the gingerbread house we didn't get to before Christmas, art and train constructions, down days watching videos with their "friends"...Making the most of the great indoors before their attention is shifted outdoors.

Our train layouts were refreshed with some of the boyz birthday cash and a few toys they sold on craigslist. They took their $80 booty to the hobby shop and bought a Metra set and a freight engine. If they could, the boys would set up a gift registry there - they're already planning their Christmas wish list with more double decker passenger cars and CTA cars. For now, this is the first step on Ethan's career path, which he most recently reported as a train map maker, a train driver, and a train announcer. I think all that cross-"training" will ensure job security.

I also had the pleasure to visit Ethan's school to guide the kids in Art Appreciation - origami. It was such fun to be with his class and see the kids' discoveries from one fold to the next.

We met with Kola's teacher this week for his first conference, and it was such a pleasure to hear how well he's doing, writing his letters, being a good friend and listener, and making new discoveries. The teacher thinks he's beyond caught up for his age, and by the end of the meeting, I hadn't heard anything negative. One thing he can work on is sticking to one thing (puzzles, paintings, but no problem with cars or trains) a little longer, which she guesses will build with maturity. We're very proud of him for such a great report.

As the boyz get older and my focus shifts away from constant safety patrol, I'm noticing more things around me (I've heard this referred to as coming out of the toddler fog - or is it my new progressive lenses??) Today, after a year and a half, I found that the blog has spell check. Now I need to see if I have the capacity to remember to use it. I also noticed that our water heater doesn't have the insulated wrap we put on in previous houses. things that make ya go hmmmm....xo b/s/e/k

Under construction - (updated)

One less tooth to brush!


Lost in a sandwich, but found...1/25/09


Our kitchen re-do, complete with a new "handy gate system"


And now they are four and six.


Would you like dirt or pavement?


Alright already, cut the cake!


Kola wrapped up in a favorite gift.


Having the boyz birthdays a few weeks apart is great for gift and party sharing, but as I'm such a "celebrator" I realize that we've had a steady string of HBDs from early January through mid-February. We celebrated with two schools, 2 families x 2, neighbors and friends in various ways. So much so, that Kola regularly wears his birthday crown around the house singing "HBD to me." Now, he claims to be 10. And rightfully so. Which isn't just a tally of his celebrations, but also clocking time toward his goal of driving a firetruck. Kola also wants to be a girl, Sara in particular, so that won't get in his way - his previous aspiration was to be a raccoon, but in our state, they can't get driver's licenses (well, at least since the bribes to drive scandal got "cleaned up.")

The boys loved the presents, cake, and socializing. Ethan's favorite gifts, although when asked he says "all," seem to be the CTA t-shirt he took off once in two weeks so I could wash it in the bathtub (flat, to ensure the map doesn't peel off), and the Transit Maps of the World book. He also received pocket train maps of the Athens, Greece and Moscow train systems, from our neighbor who travelled there. Ethan has them protected in slipcovers in his train systems binder.

Kola loves his new rescue helicopter/police boat set and I can't tell you how in debt we are from the tickets we're receiving from those two enforcement vehicles. You also see above the new blanket he snuggles with every night - Aunt Lisa MADE it - a beautiful vehicles quilt, so he can sleep with vehicles all night long, without a scratch.

All-in-all it was a great haul, and a great time had by all! xo b/s/e/k

Strap on your party helmets, it's vacation time!

Returning from a long-distance skid across the lake


Waiting at the bus stop


Our snowshuttle


The Payoooooooooooooff!


Affectionately known as boomball


Triple, lutz?


Sig making tracks


Only hills slowed Kola's snow-jogging


Hooray! Kola's 4!


Ethan on a solo flight


Kola picking a snowball fight...


It's so telling that every year, Ethan starts his winter countdown that ends at Afterglow, with Christmas as a milestone but not the final destination. This is just a glimpse (let me know if you'd lke to see 115 more on snapfish!) of the outdoor fun we had with grandma and grandpa in WI near the U.P. border. Every day was a new adventure and the boyz never once complained of the cold. Could it be that they were fueled by cookies, birthday cake, hot chocolate, and grandma and grandpa's hugs, smiles, and book-reading? Returning from each activity, I'd peel off the boyz layers to find snow where snow should never be, chapped faces, and wetness wicking from every appendage. I was proud to see them walk 2.5 miles on a snowshoe trail, tube solo for the first time, try broomball (a.k.a. boomball) -- not discouraged by the falls, and have to be coaxed off the lake after an hour-long 0 degree skate. Funny how today, they complained about the cold trip from the house to the car.

We all made new discoveries - Sig learned how to play rummy royal, grandpa helped the boys find a trail of squirrel pee in the woods (in 44 years, I swear, I've never seen it), grandma shared her theories about why there would be a live fly in our cabin, and I learned the plural of Fez, among other things.

We all felt very lucky to have shared such a great trip and are counting down to our 2010 reservation! Now, we're all in party mode, sans helmets (though that might be a mistake) as we celebrate Ethan's 6th and Kola's 4th birthdays. Also, check for updates on Ethan's loose tooth! xo b/s/e/k