11 year thoughts

I was doing dishes at the kitchen sink this week thinking about our 11 years of marriage when Michael walked in and said, "Hey mom, did you know that I get to go on my mission in 11 years?" I was stunned. If the next 11 years go as fast as the last 11 years have, our babies will be grown before we know it.

Happy anniversary sweetie. It's been an amazing 11 years.

Not again?!

Last time it was a toothbrush in the bidet.
This time Luke came and took my hand and when we started for the bathroom I knew there was something wrong.

Sure enough, he dropped his favorite bouncy ball in the toilet. I admit, I considered flushing it and telling him it was "all gone" just so I wouldn't have to do what I ended up doing anyway. Disgusting! Don't worry, the ball and my hand have been thoroughly disinfected.

What brings you joy?

My aunt just had a great post on her blog about what brings her joy and it got me thinking about the things that bring me joy. Here are just a few (in no particular order):

*Buying new shoes for our kids. I love to watch them during the whole process. Choosing the right pair, trying them on, and finally wearing the new shoes out of the store with their old shoes in the box because they can't wait to have them on.
*Dates with my sweetie.
*Singing songs in bed at night with the kids.
*Talking on the phone to family and friends when I'm feeling far from home.
*Christmas cards (especially cards that arrive in January--it makes the season last longer).
*Comments on my blog.
*The smell of our kids. Kissing those faces.
*Travelling (seeing something really old, learning more about cultures/history, or just swimming at the hotel with the kids).
*When Todd calls me from work.
*Watching Mary in her first ballet class today. Her smile is priceless.
*Mastering a new recipe.
*The smell of Europe.
*Going to the temple with Todd.
*Listening to the birds chirp in the morning as I wait for the bus with the boys.
*General Conference.
*Hearing people speak Italian.
*Reading a great book.

Enough about snow...

Just when I thought I could put the snow pants away because the snow was getting too old and crunchy to play in, it snowed again today. The school let the boys out early. They came home and headed straight for their snow pants.

But enough posts about snow. There are other things happening here too.

Take our sweet Mary for example. She reminds us often that she is 4 years old. She loves being 4. She loves going to school and she is becoming more and more independent. The other day she told me once again how old she is and I asked her what she likes best about being 4. Her response, "playing with my baby brother."

And Luke: Last night at bedtime I was rocking him and telling him about all the people that love him - mom, dad, siblings, etc. - when suddenly he pointed to the picture of Jesus on his wall and said, "theesith." Yes, Jesus does love him very much too.

UK weather update

*Church was cancelled today. It's still too dangerous to drive on the snow packed side roads.

*The boys school is going to try and open again tomorrow with revised bus routes to avoid some of the side routes.

*The grocery store shelves are empty. The delivery trucks have been unable to get through.

*Our trash is piling up. We haven't had a trash collector come in over a week.

*We've had a great time at home. I could get used to late night Yahtzee games with Todd, sleeping in, curling up with a book in my jammies in the middle of the day, and playing in the snow with our kids.

Snowed in- day 2

As expected, school was cancelled again today. However, Todd went in to work. That's one of the reasons I love that man so much--he's definitely dedicated. I probably would have used the fact that we can't get our car out of our street as grounds to work from home, but my honey put on his boots and hiked to the train station.

The sun came out today. That doesn't mean that the snow is melting. It is still below freezing. They say we will get more snow tonight and still more on Sunday. This is an interesting winter.

The kids and I had another fun day at home. We did puzzles, watched a movie, and played out in the snow. I love having the kids home from school. They are a lot of fun and they help entertain Luke.

Our kids playing out in the street :)

Luke and Mary filling their sand pails with snow.

The snowman that Benjamin and I built.

Christmas break returns

The kids went back to school and Todd went back to work on Monday and Tuesday, but the snow started to fall on Tuesday evening and it hasn't stopped since. We received a text this morning at 5:30am saying that school was cancelled due to the snow. Thankfully, Todd was able to work from home today, so our Christmas break is back.

According to our measurements, we had 6 inches of snow at 1pm. The forecast says we could be in for 3 or 4 more days like today. Don't worry mom. We have food, diapers, t.p., and plenty of hot chocolate, so we don't mind being snowed in.

Todd found a sled. He paid 12 pounds for it, but it was worth it. The kids had a blast today. Todd and the boys made a jump in the street, and they caught some serious air as they hit it coming down the hill.

Mary has finally decided that she likes the snow. She stayed out with us for an hour or more. It was a record for her. Here she is catching snowflakes on her tongue.

Dad, have you ever known anyone to FedEx a snow shovel? We could sure use one. I've never raked so much snow in my life :)

Christmas break

We made some great family memories over Christmas break. Besides staying up late, sleeping in and eating too much food, we decided last minute to take a road trip for a few days to see some of the sights of Wales and England that we haven't seen yet. 226 pictures later, here are some of my favorites:

This is Tintern Abbey in Southern Wales. It was founded in 1131 by Cistercian monks and developed into an influential religious center. The monastery was dissolved in 1536 (thanks to Henry VIII) and this is what remains today. The poet Wordsworth wrote a sonnet a few miles above Tintern Abbey. We were there at dusk and it was quite inspiring with the full moon and the fog that rolled in while we were there.

We loved the endless sheep and rolling hills of Wales.

While in Wales we stopped at one of the famous castles. This is Caernarfon castle where the investiture of Prince Charles as Prince of Wales took place in 1969. This castle was one of the homes of Edward I in the 1200's.

It was extremely cold and windy but very cool. I spent most of the time inside the castle with the little ones to keep warm while Todd and the boys explored the castle walls.

After our quick trip through Wales, we visited Northern England and saw the Preston England temple. It was beautiful.

Again, very cold and windy but the boys didn't mind.

While in Preston, we traveled around to some of our church's history sites in the area. It was a highlight of the trip for us.

The drive through the English countryside is breathtaking.

On our way home we stopped at the Chatsworth House in the Peak district (central England).

Pride & Prejudice fans might recognize this as Mr. Darcy's house in the movie. I couldn't help but kiss Mr. Stepan :)

"No more pictures!"

Tomorrow starts early again with work and school, but we are so grateful for the good times we had together over the break.