More pics from G & G2

Bathtub photos are always worth sharing right.

If you use your imagination they're snow blowers.

Ben really does like making people laugh.

Fun time with Grandma and Great-Grandma

Ben and Neil had Grandma & Great-Grandma come to visit this week. They seem to really enjoy this time. And why not. They come armed with new play things, undivided attention and abandoning of all house rules. He's one of the fun activities they brought with them: finger-jello and cookie cutters. They ate the whole pan in one sitting.

Keep meaning to get a picture of this

When ever Neil is hungry, tired, upset, pretty much anything - he resorts to his favorite friends... thumb and bellybutton. Given how often we see him do this I'm surprised we don't have many photos like this already.

Out and about

Today we went to the Chicago Children's Museum which is at Navy Pier. The boys had all kind of hands-on fun including driving ambulances & buses, playing construction worker, running a grocery store, digging up dinosaur bones and I think their favorite - playing with water. Despite the raincoats, Neil was soaked. (We'll remember to take extra clothes next time - or swimsuits.) We were extremely proud of how well behaved they were. We topped the outing off with Cheeseborger, Cheeseboger, Cheeseborger, no fries at the Billy Goat Tavern and then ice cream. Super fun, can't wait to do it again.

Sometimes their sweet...

Ben just chillin' in the kitchen.
Note the crossed legs - isn't that how you relax.

Neil with his favorite book Brown Bear, Brown Bear.
Yes, he finally had a haircut.

...and sometimes a double timeout is in order.

Birthday Tradition

Every year Brian takes me out to dinner for my birthday. Not the kind of 'Oh here's a break from the cooking' kind of thing, since we all know that's just not the case. Instead this is the kind of dinner that makes a ribbon of memories for us. Brian always has to keep the location a secret. Not every year has out done the past, but we always spend some of our evening reminiscing about the past experiences and where they rank. This year was our own personal top ten list and we managed to crack the top three. Last night was spent at Courtright's. It was nestled in a forest preserve providing a beautiful drive in given the snow we just had. It was still decorated with lights everything was a pretty glow. We had the chef's tasting menu which included five courses and wine pairings. To me it's fun being surprised by each course (also why I like the location to be secret). One of the courses was Foie Gras which is something neither of us has had before. Both of us could appreciate the pairings and how they complimented it, but neither of us would order it again. Brian was wowed by the venison course and I was by the scallop. I think we would both say the chef's puree's were exceptional, beet and celery which are not ingredients I would expect to impress. The sommelier gave Brian a second after dinner drink and he now has a new favorite instead of port, Banyuls. A very lovely experience to add to our ribbon of memories.

Snow fun

Look out snow bunnies - the snow hunks have arrived.

Here's a video of the boys helping Brian get the snow shoveled. The snow pants really hindered Neil's mobility.