Anyway, we spent the last day of 2011 being very productive in our new house! Once I woke up and had everyone fed, I went about making my very-first-ever vasilopita. Vasilopita is a cake or bread (in this case, an orange sponge-type cake) that you eat on New Year's Day. There's a really specific way that you cut it, by first making the sign of the cross. And then you use a knife to score the top, designating each slice for a family member or important item (house, job, etc.) that you'd like to have good luck in the new year. Then you eat the slices. One will have a gold coin hidden inside, which is supposed to be extra lucky. Anyhow, Gus' mom has always made vasilopita for us, but she sent me the recipe the other day. I hope I did it right!
After that, it was work-work-work all day. Gus spent the majority of his day in the garage, finally sorting through the mountain of stuff. All the kids' outdoor toys went into the basement, and a ton of stuff went up to the attic for long-term storage. Our exercise equipment came inside, too, so our bedroom now boasts a little gym, haha! Our bedroom is really long, and it definitely has the space. So the elliptical and treadmill are now in there. And I got my exercise for the day by helping Gus wrestle them both up the stairs. Not fun!!
At any rate, the main things remaining in the garage now are Gus' tools (which will eventually move to the workshop we plan to build on the back corner of the property), my car, and the basics: trash/recycling bins, snow blower, backup generator, and lawn mower. It looks a thousand times better! Hallelujah!
While Gus was busy in the garage, the kids and I got to work on taking down all the Christmas decorations and getting them up into the attic. Our house is officially de-Christmased, which is both sad and somewhat freeing. Now we have to figure out what to do in the front room! The tree was the main attraction in there, but now there is literally not a single piece of furniture, other than the piano. I'm continuing to check CraigsList daily in hopes that I will find something "just right." But time will tell!
While we were cleaning, I also came across the solar system mobile kit that my parents got for Nikos. I thought it would be a fun project to do with the kids! Then I realized that the planets were completely unpainted. And, knowing that the mobile would be up in Nikos' room for a long time, combined with my Type A need for the colors to at least be somewhat scientifically accurate... I painted them all myself. And then completed the delicate task of hanging them all with the provided fishing line. All while two interested kiddos watched and commented on my every move, ha! The end result was pretty awesome, though, and they both spent a lot of time sitting in Nikos' room this afternoon, admiring his solar system. And the colors look good with his dark brown walls, which sort of gave me some ideas on how I want to decorate his "big boy room." I'm excited!
The rest of the afternoon, I cleaned, did laundry, and got Nikos' things ready for his first day of preschool on Tuesday. It should be a big week for us, since he's starting preschool and I'm also planning to start potty-training Maya. We have big, exciting things ahead of us in 2012. Now, let's just see if I can stay awake until midnight, haha (Gus is already asleep on the couch!).
Oh... and here are two more funny pictures I pulled on my camera today. Gus' parents gave the kids roller skates for Christmas. They are hilarious!!
Happy New Year, everyone!!!
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