Snow Days

More snow! After the dusting we had earlier in the month, it was an exciting surprise to get a second, bigger snow this past week. The snow started on Sunday, the 16th and carried over into the MLK Holiday, totaling between 2-3 inches. Since we did not have to worry about work or school, we enjoyed a few lazy days at home. We made yummy food, played outside, had hot chocolate, and enjoyed movie nights piled in bed together. We dusted off the Wii and played a few games of Mario Kart, and I even tried to fit in some reading for grad school. I recently started another semester, and I am taking one class right now. This class will end in early March, and then I will begin a second class that will go through May. The snow days have been nice for getting some work done and getting some rest too. They are calling for more winter weather this coming weekend, so it may mean some more days at home with my crazy crew. 

Before the snow, we fit in a trip to the Science Center on Saturday. Also it was Spirit Week at the kids' preschool. I managed to capture photos from Crazy Hair Day and Dress like a Grandparent Day before the busy rush out the door in the morning. For Crazy Hair Day, it was no stretch for Eli, since he often wakes up with his hair every which-a-way. He has been doing very well with potty training. He continues to wear underwear throughout the day and then a diaper or Pull-up during nap and bedtime. One day, the teachers attempted a nap without a diaper...and it resulted in a big bag of wet clothes that afternoon, blanket and all. We are definitely not ready to make that change yet. For now, we will continue with our routine. When we were at the Science Center and at lunch afterwards, he even went in a public restroom - I was so proud of him. Enjoy these snapshots of our week! 

 

New Skills

January started with a sprinkling of snow. On the day that should have been our first day back at school, the kids and I were home due to the cancelling of school. We lost power in the early morning, so we headed over to Grammy and Grandpa's for a few hours. About an inch accumulated on the ground, but it didn't stay around long; most of it melted by the afternoon. Emmy was excited to build a snowman, and I told her that unfortunately we would have to wait for another snow day to do that.  

Our big girl continues to do new things and reach new milestones. She lost her second tooth this past Friday, the 7th. She was very excited as she showed Eli the new hole in her smile. We all cracked up at the look on his face. He seems to be saying "She is happy but her teeth are falling out...what is going on?!" The next morning, Emmy found four quarters from the Tooth Fairy under her pillow. 

Emmy had her first Upward basketball game on Saturday. She was excited to wear her jersey and have Daddy as her coach. There were a lot of smiles before tip-off...but after the game got underway, not so much. Emmy wasn't sure what to think of the running up and down the court. She tended to be anywhere the ball was NOT, or stuck next to Daddy as he tried to coach. We think that Emmy thought the game would be more like the practices: the drills and jumping jacks and everyone taking turns to shoot the ball. There are seven more weeks of practices and games. Hopefully we will see improvement by the end of the season.

While Emmy works on her basketball skills, Eli continues to work on his potty training. He had a successful first week back at school. On two different days, he was completely dry. On the other days, he only had one accident. His teachers have been great to reinforce the work we did over Christmas break. I am so proud of him!

A Savannah Anniversary and a Bowl Game

We ended 2021 on a high note with an anniversary getaway and a Wake bowl game. It was a quick but fun trip! We have been lucky to usually take a small trip each year for our anniversary. This year, we delayed planning a destination until we knew where Wake might be playing their bowl game. They had such a successful season that we knew a bowl game was likely; we just didn't know where. When it was announced that the Deacs would be playing in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, we started our planning. My dad had the suggestion of stopping through Savannah, and so we were able to add a new city to our anniversary list. We left on Wednesday, the 29th and arrived in Savannah around 4:30PM. There was a delay in checking in at the hotel, so we headed to an early dinner at the Savannah Seafood Shack on Broughton Street. I got the shrimp po' boy, and Boomer got the low country boil. We then made a quick stop back at the hotel to drop off our things and walked to River Street to meet up with our 7PM ghost trolley tour. The tour lasted an hour and a half, with two different stops and ongoing commentary from our tour guide. We both liked being on the trolley, and it was a fun and entertaining way to see the city. The tour ended back on River Street, and we finished off the evening with slushies from Wet Willy's: an Attitude Improvement for Boomer, and a Dreamsicle for me. Cheers to 11 years of marriage! :)

On Thursday, the temperatures were again mild, in the mid 70s, and I talked Boomer into going for a run before breakfast. We did a couple of miles and then went to Cafe M's on Bay Street. After walking around a bit more, we stopped for beignets at Huey's and enjoyed them at a park bench overlooking the river. Later that evening, we had a dinner reservation at Repeal 33. Beforehand, we stopped for an appetizer at Jazz'd, an underground tapas bar off of Barnard Street. We walked back along River Street and picked up a praline and some almond bark. At dinner, we shared each other's entrees: a ribeye with a twice baked potato and shrimp & grits - delicious! If you can't tell already, the food was definitely the highlight of the trip. We sure had a wonderful time in Savannah and hope to go back again soon. 

 

Our time in Savannah was short - barely 36 hours, but we enjoyed every minute. On Friday morning, we hit the road early to make the two hour drive south to Jacksonville. Kickoff for the game was at 11AM, and we wanted to be sure to arrive early. Luckily we had no trouble with traffic and were parked by 9AM. We walked around a bit and then went into the stadium. Wake was originally supposed to play the Aggies of Texas A&M, but a few days ago, in yet another twist in a year of twists, they withdrew. Rutgers was selected to play instead. Wake had a better record and was favored, but it was still a close first half. Wake pulled away after halftime and won comfortably 38-10. It was exciting to see a win! Go Deacs!

Our getaway would not have been possible without Grammy and Grandpa! My parents watched Emmy and Eli while we were gone, and judging from the photos, the kids didn't seem to miss us one bit. Grammy continued to work on potty training with Eli and had several successful attempts. Since returning home, I have noticed a difference - yay! While we have switched between standing and sitting, Eli seems to be more successful sitting down. He also likes to play with a toy or hold something in his hands while sitting. We continue to reward with a treat and with adding a sticker to his chart. I am so thankful to Grammy for helping Eli. He is becoming such a big boy. Grandpa sent these photos of Emmy and Eli watching a movie, with popcorn of course! 

We arrived home pretty late yesterday after driving home from Jacksonville. We had about an hour to spare before midnight. After unpacking, I watched the ball drop, and Boomer was already asleep. We had a pretty laidback New Years today. We walked up to the neighborhood park in the morning, and in the evening, we went over to my parents' for the traditional meal of pork and sauerkraut. We are glad to have one more day off before it's back to work and school on Monday. We've had a nice ending to 2021 and look forward to what is ahead in 2022!