try not to smile. . .

I dare you! Just look at this face and try! I love this picture. It's my screen saver on my phone, and every time I see it, I smile. No matter what. I could just eat him up!

another snow day.

School is closed. Again. Looks like we'll be working on our Valentines and pulling out the tunnels! It's extremely wet outside with all the rain and melting snow, so I think we'll be staying inside and enjoying the memories of playing in the snow over the weekend!

this child.

This boy. He is beautiful both inside and out. He has a way of saying things that will just melt your heart when you are least expecting it. Last night, before bedtime, I told the boys I had a secret for them. First I told Rowan. Then Andy. I whispered, "I really, really love you!" Rowan kissed me. I expected Andy to tell me that it wasn't a secret at all. But instead, he told me, "That is the best kind of secret! Love is the most important present!"

He is so special. Anderson, I really, really love you.

a challenge: to myself

We sort of missed out on the New Year. It kinda came and went without the usual celebrating and self-assessment of years past because we were too sick to deal with it. So instead, we (okay, I) looked at February 1st as the start of our family's new year, and gave ourselves (that's me and Tom, right Tom?? right?) two weeks to make resolutions for ourselves/set some goals for the year ahead.

One of my new year's resolutions (one of the many -- as Tom can tell you, I am an avid resolution maker [as he can also tell you, he is not] -- I'm even more obsessed with the idea of making and tracking those resolutions since finishing Gretchen Rubin's book Happier at Home [her follow-up to The Happiness Project], you should totally read it -- but that's beside the point). So, let's start over. One of my new year's resolutions is to keep better track of the small moments of our lives so that we do not forget them. Yes, I like to track stuff. I already take a lot of photographs. I keep a line-a-day journal. But this space was supposed to be a place where I could post and share those photos with our family and friends. Sometimes the process is cumbersome and time consuming and I'll be first to admit that I have been slacking off.

So starting today, I am challenging myself to post something in this space every day for the next 100 days. I'm hoping by the time the challenge is over, it will have become something of a habit with its own rhythm in my day, so that I will continue to keep it up. Sort of like what they say happens with  exercising. . . only that has never happened for me. So hopefully this works better for me than a new gym membership! So here we go: a toast to keeping resolutions in the new year! Cheers!

brrrrrrrrr, it's cold!

You know who doesn't care? This guy.

Now, if you'll excuse me, someone has a birthday tomorrow, so we have a cake to bake!

a little update.

We are still here. Inside. Waiting to get better. We're painting by numbers, making treasure maps (Andy now knows North, South, East and West), doing lots of cutting with scissors (big hit), taking lots of medicine, listening to wayyyyyy to much Maroon 5, taking care of one another, and trying to rest up for what the next 11 months of the new year have in store. Because at this point, we're calling January a wash. . .

 How's your 2013 going?

Baby toupee

Remember this baby toupee video from SNL? Henry looks just like those babies, only his is allllllll real.

Then again, he did have his own hair montage at two weeks.

Can you spot Rowan?

After giving the babysitter a heart attack, she snapped these to show me what he did. . .

new year, new 'do

Happy New Year!

We are off to a slow start around here, but we are making resolutions, planning for what we hope the new year brings, and enjoying the moment as we move at a slower pace for the next few days. Lots of love to you and may 2013 be our best year yet!