All You Need Is Love

For me, Valentine's Day has always been a "do something nice for the people you love" day, not a "lets buy lots of crap" day. So, when February rolls around, I usually try to plan out some nice little goodies or treats for my family. Unfortunately, most of this year's plans involved my sewing machine, which was rendered inaccessible when the basement flooded. So, I decided to save those ideas for another occasion and I moved on to Plan B.

You can't go wrong with a Plan B that involves chocolate, so while Molly and Daddy were napping, Max and I did a little shopping together. Max loves to go anywhere and do anything, so he was totally thrilled to go shopping with Mama. We went to our favorite local grocery store (where we always end up buying too many things that aren't on our list) and stocked up on goodies. Max was such a good boy that he got to pick out a couple heart-shaped jelly doughnuts and some chocolate milk (to share with Molly when he got home). Max and Molly enjoyed helping me make cupcakes (and eating them!) and we had a nice, lazy day. It was so lazy, that I never got around to dressing Molly up in the cute red gingham dress I'd gotten for her (oops!).

On Max's last day of preschool this week, his class had a little Valentine's Day celebration. Max and I made some cute little valentines for him to pass out and he was all excited about them (they actually looked much cooler printed out). When I dropped him off, I helped him distribute the valentines in the little bags the kids had made -- Max was totally confused as to why he didn't need to put a valentine in HIS bag. By the time he got home from school, all he could talk about was all the "Balentines Hearts" and goodies he'd received. We put the goodies away for after-meal snacks and Max spent the rest of the afternoon begging for his "special red goodies" (which he was nice enough to share with his little sister).

After the Flood

After weeks of cold and snow, the sun finally came out and it warmed up a bit. It was nice to get a break from the freezing temperatures and get rid of some of the ice that has accumulated at the end of the driveway (thanks to the neighbor who has left his van on the street next to our driveway for the past six months). We decided to take advantage of the nice weather by taking Max and Molly shoe shopping and paying a visit to Grandma and Grandpa.

We had a nice outing. Molly's feet have grown TWO sizes since summer -- she went from a 6 1/2 wide to an 8 1/2. It seems that she's also outgrown her chubby baby feet and has inherited Mama's skinny feet. We had a hard time finding any shoes that would stay on her narrow heel. The only shoes that fit were a pair of lace ups -- I have a feeling I'm going to be missing that velcro. Max is now at an 11 1/2 wide -- at least he isn't an extra wide any more! His shoe selection was limited as well, but we eventually found a pair that fit and that I could stand. After we visited with Grandma and Grandpa, we drove by Dad's work to pick up a corned beef that a co-worker had purchased for him and then headed back home.

We made dinner, gave baths, and put the kids to bed. A little later in the evening, Dad went into the basement to get something and was surprised (and dismayed) to step off the bottom step and find himself standing in about an inch of water. It seems our sump pump hadn't been doing its job and the ENTIRE basement (most of which is carpeted and finished) was flooded. Ugh! We spent the rest of the evening carting things upstairs, calling the insurance company, and sucking up water with the shop vac.

The good news is that our insurance will cover the damage -- the bad news is that the entire carpet/pad had to be ripped out and discarded. The insurance company sent over the water cleanup folks on Sunday and they've spent the last two days ripping up carpet, sanitizing the floor, and drying everything out. Nothing important was damaged or lost and I guess this will force us to finally clean up and organize all the clutter that has accumulated in the basement. What fun!

Drat

I'm not sure we can handle six more weeks of winter ...

Sweet Words

Max has been overtired all weekend, probably because Molly's coughing and night time waking has been disturbing his sleep (Molly, thankfully, is finally on the mend). Max is a pill when he gets tired -- instead of slowing down, he turns into the Energizer Bunny. And, as if his constant motion and constant chatter isn't enough, he also loses his ability to listen and to mind. He will purposely go and do things he knows he isn't supposed to do -- it's like he can't help himself. Needless to say, it's a bit exhausting (for Mama).

But, in the midst of the aggravation, you can't help but love a boy who comes up to you, holds your hand, and says, "Mama, you're my BEST friend." I suppose we'll put off calling the gyspies for another day ...