Oh, Look, Mommy! Snow!!!

The Darbys finally experienced our first snow in Chicago. We have been thinking about this day for some time with all of our shopping for the proper coats and boots and scarves and spending way too much time at REI. The night of the first snow I had gone to bed early and was so happy when Clint woke me up to make me look out the window. I felt like a kid again.

We couldn't wait to show it to Mimi the next morning so we could see this:

I even set Mack in front of the window so he could watch for a while.

But he chewed on his hand instead.

I've learned that getting out of the house is going to take a bit more preparation than in the past. Just for a normal outing our regular clothes and a puffy coat will do, but for playtime . . . that's a different story.Last weekend Mimi got to meet Rudolph when several stores on Roscoe hosted fun activities for children. We even have a sweet little dance studio that just opened called Baby Take a Bow. Yes, Mimi will be starting ballet in January, and I'm so excited about the tutus. Or "toot toots" as she calls them.
It has been such a hassle to take the camera with me when we play in the snow, but I finally grabbed it one afternoon. Since we still have several months of this, I'm hoping the photos get a little better.It is absolutely freezing and windy as all get out, so what in the world do we do? This I am still trying to figure out, so any suggestions are welcome. Yesterday morning our sweet neighbors had us over for banana bread and lattes, and I love that we can see some fun tacky Christmas lights from their windows. We have watched Toy Story and Charlie Brown's Christmas and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (can you believe my neighbor AND my nanny have never seen this?!). Put my poor neighbor is from South Africa, and they don't even have a Santa Claus -- they call him Father Christmas. How awful is that? (Sorry, Wade.)

And this is what Mimi does while we watch Saturday morning cartoons. Seriously? And when I try to pull her finger out of her nose, she yells, "No, Mommy! They're my boogers!"
We have had dance parties -- Mack's really starting to like this -- and order take-out so we don't have to leave the house. We organized the coat closet, I updated my address list, and cut out some fabric to make new clothes for the kids. But I'm hoping we still find things to do throughout the winter.

Clint asked me last night if everything Mack wears is supposed to fit so tightly, or if he is just really fat. He he.

The snow is gorgeous. There is something so quiet and serene about taking Ruthie on a walk in the snow early on a weekend morning. And as long as the wind isn't blowing like crazy the cold is a bit refreshing. I like the hats and scarves and my fun new Wellies with thick fleece socks. And there is nothing better than sitting at my bar right now while everyone, including the dog, is taking a nap and see the snow falling outside the window behind the Christmas tree.

As many of you know, I started back to work on December 1. I went into this with mixed emotions. Should I not want to stay home with my children? But then I realized how frustrated I am not being able to get out of the house by myself, AND not to mention how bored I feel like Mimi is with me all day. I want both her and Mack to spend time with others, but there is no Mother's Day Out type of option in Chicago. I finally found out this has something to do with a city ordinance or codes or some sort of strict requirements that make it too difficult for churches to sponsor such a thing.

So after the first couple of days I began to feel better about my decision. I was excited to see the guys who trained me on our new product and to ride with someone else in Chicago last week. The first day out on my own was nuts because I was trying to find towns and villages I had never heard of in my life. And the traffic -- wowzers, it's a bit ridiculous. But I know work will get easier each day. Most importantly, I feel completely comfortable with the nanny, and Mimi loves her. If she leaves before Mimi wakes up from a late afternoon nap, then Mimi asks about her all night. Mimi tells me if they did something fun, and she also tells me if she gets in trouble, which I have to turn my head to laugh about. Mack loves pretty much everyone, so I don't have to worry about him. At the end of each day I can't wait to get home to play with my sweet babies, and they are just as excited to see me. If Clint has to stay late for work, it doesn't bother me much anymore. That means I get more time with the kiddos by myself. I suddenly feel more organized at home and I only spend my time doing things that need to be done. On Saturdays and Sundays we completely relax and try to do everything together as a family. When I stayed home I definitely had a big quantity of time with my babies, but now it's more about quality.