Aaaahhhh, WARM weather!

Well, it's finally warmer here but this post is about our wonderful trip out West! 3 days after the Steffens left in February, we boarded our own plane to go visit my dad and Marla in California. The weather was pure Heaven after sub zero temps and crazy winds and never-ending snow! We played outside LOTS, went to the beach, ate 'al fresco' in the back yard, walked Knott's Berry Farm with Peyton's CA cousins and grandparents, hit Disneyland for a day and a half....sigh, just wonderful. I have Part One of the pictures to enjoy....

I'm working on Part Two now and will get that up soon...really, I promise this time!

Valentine's Day Special Delivery!

Will and Peyton reunited....finally! February 14th we picked up a pretty special 'package' at the airport - the Steffen family! Will, Nic, Scott and Alex came all the way from warm Charlotte to visit us (in February???) here in Chicago! Peyton hadn't seen them since we moved Feb. 2008; I wasn't sure how Will and Peyton would respond to one another...but they picked up beautifully!

They arrived Sat. about lunch time and flew out Tues. about 4pm - we were busy, busy, busy all weekend. The time went by so quickly, as usual when special friends/family visit, that we (Nic and I) didn't get all our talking in...can you believe it? After they left I thought of things to tell her, show her...both of us thought 'why didn't just us girls go out for a cocktail or ice cream?'.

We tried some great new restaurants (some thanks to Diners, Drive-In's and Dives on The Food Network), visited Legoland Discovery Center, went downtown (braving the cold) to the Children's Museum, showed the family where Peyton takes ballet during her class, and played LOTS and LOTS! Will and Peyton played so well together and picked right back up where they left off, minus some of the tiffs they had!

Taking them back to the airport on Tues. was really hard, especially not knowing when we'll see them again. Not sure who was crying more, me or Peyton (I think it was me; she was really sad though). She talked about Will non-stop for days...thankfully we had the distraction of hopping our own airplane a few days later to visit Grandma and Granddaddy in CA...stay tuned for that next post soon! Thanks again to Will, Nic, Scot and Alex for coming to visit; we had a great time and miss you like crazy!

Princess for a Day!

Sunday, February 1, 2009

Peyton was invited to a Princess party by her good friend Kendall, at My Party Palace. What a fun, girly place it was! Pink and purple everywhere with lots of girly touches, even a chair shaped like a shoe! Peyton was in Girly Heaven! First the girls (6 total) picked out a Princess costume to wear, then got their makeup done and nails painted, followed by having their hair done! After modeling the 1st dress in full attire, Peyton and some of the other girls decided it was time to change to another costume. All 6 girls were in a 'fashion show', complete with tidbits about each girl (name, age, favorite color, favorite food, etc.). They danced to Disney Princess and Hannah Montana music and had a tea party, complete with tea (pink lemonade) and crumpets (birthday cake) in their own ceramic tea pot and cup & saucer. All the girls (and Moms!) had a great time...Peyton is already planning her "6 year old birthday" for My Party Palace, as she has plans for her 5 year old birthday at the beach (FL) with Popi and Grammie! Too funny the way she thinks and reasons....for which I'm grateful in this situation! Enjoy the Princess slideshow (if you put mouse over picture, it will show caption)-

Stay tuned for more updates...."Reunited and It Feels So Good" (Will and Peyton together again!) and "We escaped...for a little bit anyway" to California to see Grandma, Granddaddy, cousins, and WARMER WEATHER!!!!

Newsflash***

Newsflash***

Our daughter, Peyton - age 4.5, is growing up! You know your child is growing up when she chooses Zoey 101 (Disney channel) over cartoon Arthur (PBS)! I couldn't believe it! At the same time, she enjoys watching The Cheetah Girls dance and sing ("They're really good, Mommy, with some good moves"...oh my!) and has just recently gotten into Hannah Montana music (thanks to some of her little girlfriends here)....oh dear, what's next?

And to reinforce that she's growing up, just got notice that registration for Kindergarten is March 2...my baby is going to Kindergarten in less 7 mos.??? How did this all happen? She was just a newborn, almost too tiny (at 5 lbs. 8 oz.) to bring home from the hospital in her carseat, walking at 10 mos. and 2 days old, dancing at a Wiggles concert at 18 mos. and playing with her first baby doll, stopping naps altogether at 2.5 years and afraid to pee on the 'magic' toilets, going into her big girl bed at almost 3 and still wanting Mommy to hold her all the time!!!

I've already warned Robert (since Peyton's birth!) that he will need to take that morning off, to send our baby girl off to her very 1st day of Kindergarten...and to console me in the process!

Hotel Hines

Peyton and Robert watching the Michigan State Bowl Game on Jan. 1, 2009! ...and my 1st attempt at french braiding...Peyton's hair is long enough to do it!!!!
You could call us 'Hotel Hines', especially after this last 6 rounds of company in 6 weeks! Robert and I have always had lots of company since we moved in with one another some 10 years ago (WOW!). In our crammed, 2 bedroom apartment in Atlanta, we hosted many a visitor - friends from high school, college, his sisters with hubbies, and 3 sets of parents. In Charlotte, we hosted the same with the addition of Atlanta friends. And now, here in Chicago, we are hosting the same individuals, with the addition of our NC friends! Friends and neighbors are always saying, "Company again? - wow!".

We our so very blessed and lucky to have so many friends (and our dear parents in TX, MI, and CA) that take time out of their busy schedules, spend their money, and make the effort to come see us - thank you to all. And please, Hotel Hines is always open; we LOVE the company...just call a day before to make sure we have "rooms available" (and that the house is clean!)! :o)

I have also included some pics with the start of the new year - Peyton with her teacher Mrs. Anweiler, her classmates Marissa and Sarah, Peyton sporting her new CA Hello Kitty outfit (quite sassy!), and last but not least, a silent video of one of our snow falls in early January (view from our deck off backyard). Enjoy!

Old Friends, Good Times, New Memories

Aunt Jenn reading to Vincent, Alex and Peyton before rest/nap time



Vincent, Sarah Kate and Peyton being silly!

Some of our oldest and dearest friends, the Andersons, came to see us in between Christmas and New Year's. Jenn and I go WAY back to the Disney college-program days (internship at Disney World). We met through one of my Disney roomies (thanks Dana!) back in Jan. 1994 and have been the best of friends since, even living together for a few years in Atlanta. We both started dating Robert and Glenn about the same time back in late '97/early '98 - the rest is history for both of us. Four kids later (3 for them and 1 for us), we all have a great time together - even our firsts, Vincent & Peyton, were born just 4 days apart!

They were here the 28th through the 1st and we were BUSY! The kids played wildly non-stop. We were hoping to go sledding but the rains a few days prior had other plans - NO snow! Monday Peyton and I took them to Gymquest, an open gym with big foam pits, swings, ropes, giant blow-up slides and climbing apparatuses, trampolines and such. Jenn and I were also able to sneak off to Party City this day while kids napped/rested. We stocked up on party favors for the upcomign New Year's party we were having on Wed.

Tuesday Robert was off and we headed into the city. We originally planned to go to Shedd Aquarium but quickly found out that the whales, penguins, and dolphins were 'on vacation' due to renovations....what? that's the whole reason to go to an aquarium - whales, dolphins, and penguins, OH MY! So we thought fast in the COLD and walked over to the Field Museum, where I was pleasantly pleased!

Four's a Crowd - Alex, Sarah Kate, Vincent & Peyton trying to stay warm!


The Hines take a photo with Sue, the T-REX...Peyton wasn't so sure!



There we found a great hands-on interactive lab for preschoolers. We met Mr. McFeely from Mister Roger's Neighborhood, who was there to read stories (great timing for us!) and pass out (FREE) signed books and tapes! We also got to see Sue, the infamous T-Rex, giant elephants, walk the world, visit the Caribbean (SIGH....), and see beautiful expensive gemstones from all over the world (Robert was digging this, you know!). With 4 kids age 4.5 to 14 mos., we didn't even see half of the place, but we all had a great time! From there, we headed to the Rainforest Cafe for a late lunch - always entertaining with great food!


Alex, Peyton and Vincent listening to Mr. McFeely reading; Below: Peyton with Mr. McFeely - quite the character!



Peyton in the Caribbean and Glenn 'walking around the world with the kids!



Alex and Peyton visiting the elephants at Rainforest Cafe~

Sarah Kate happy that she's finally eating - her favorite hobby!



Wed. the kids played most of the day while Glenn and Robert (when he got home about 1pm from work) worked on a major project in the master bedroom (thanks, Glenn; it looks GREAT!). Jenn helped me tidy up and prepare for the party, with another couple, the Campises, and their 2 kids. We know Chris and Tammy from Atlanta and have always remained close. Nice that we now live just an hour away and get to see them monthly. They, too, have a son Peyton's age, Connor; they play really well together (other son is Carter and he is 19 mos.).

The kids played and played from 5pm til about 9pm. The kids made their own pizzas for dinner, had their own countdown New Year's party, ate personalized cookies made by Peyton, had a PJ party and all read bedtime stories together. Finally, by 9:30pm, we had all 6 kids down and out (Connor even slept in Peyton's room for a sleepover!)! Then the 6 adults got to eat their dinner (scrumptius tenderloin, Robert!) and play, too! Nothing too crazy but very fun. 3 of the fuddy-duddies only made it to 12:10 am, while 3 of us (me, Chris & Tammy) made it to 1:30pm, complete with the giggles....that was me of course!

Kids playing Vincent's game of Hullabaloo~New Year's Eve

Eating their pizzas they made:

Making pizzas!


Celebrating the New Year (about 7:30pm)!

The finale PJ Party - 2 little ones already in bed asleep!


The Andersons were out of the house and on their way back to KY by 9:30am (before heading back to NC) and the Campises gone about 10:45am - what a great way to ring in the New Year - with dear old friends making new, fond memories!

Chris, Tammy, Robert, Jennifer with Glenn and Jenn in front seated

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

As usual, I'm behind - story of my life these days. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and I wish everyone healthy and happy wishes for the New Year!

December was a busy month for us (isn't each month?) with a visit from my Mom and JD (aka Grammie and Popi), Holiday parties, lots of sledding in the backyard and the neighbhood's BIG sledding hill, Breakfast with Santa at Robert's hotel (annual tradition he does for his employees and their kids), Peyton's show at dance class, a trip to MI for Christmas including meeting our Peyton's newest cousin Carson born 12.13.08, home to host the Andersons from NC (Jenn, Glenn, Vincent, Alex and Sarah Kate), and a big New Year's celebration with an additional couple and their kids (Chris, Tammy, Connor and Carter)! What a great time we all had! The following slide show represents some of the highlights from the past month or so - Enjoy!

Never a big fan of resolutions, I have 'decided' to make more of an effort in keeping up-to-date on our blog, sending/returning emails, making/returning phone calls, and such. I apologize to everyone for falling behind on my friend/family duties this last year; I aim to be better in the New Year - power of positive thinking, right??!!!