Happy New Year!

2012 has been a great year, filled with lots of new friends and experiences-- our first full year living in Massachusetts! I've said it a lot, but we really do love it here. It was a huge change, but one that has been really good for us all. And 2013 promises to be even more exciting! Both kids start ice skating lessons this week. Nikos will start kindergarten (!!!!!), and Maya will be on her own at preschool for the first time. Not to mention everything else that we don't even know about it. It's going to be a good one. Happy New Year, everyone!

More snow fun! And Man vs. Driveway

Yup, it snowed last night-- probably another 5 inches. Crazy! This is more snow than we got TOTAL all last winter, and we've only just begun. As everyone keeps telling me, this is shaping up to be a "real" New England winter. Lots more snow than before. Which presents some new challenges, which I will get to soon enough. I am just glad we had a nice, mild "transitional" winter last year. We couldn't have timed it better if we'd tried!

Anyhow... We didn't really have any plans for the day, aside from clearing the driveway. But a local friend really wanted to go sledding, so I invited her and her kiddos over to enjoy our perfect slope! Seriously, we bought a house with the ultimate sledding hill. It is so cool to be able to just go out back and sled to our hearts' content! At any rate, she came over after lunch, and the kids had a great time. The four of them play together really well-- her kids are the same age, but switch the genders. Nikos and her daughter will be in the same grade, while Maya and her son will be together. Through all the same schools, too! A convenient friend to have, indeed!! Anyway, here are a few pictures from their snow adventures...

And one from when they came back in. These two love each other! I sense future blackmail material!! Perhaps in high school?

Meanwhile... Gus was working in the driveway. Allow me to back up a few days, to the last snowstorm. On Thursday morning, Gus had cleared the driveway before leaving for work. However, it was still snowing-- another two or so inches fell after he was done. I should have gone out and cleared it before he got home. Hindsight is 20/20! But I didn't, and figured it was shallow enough that driving on it wouldn't be a problem. Gus thought the same thing. No biggie. He drove on it on Thursday night, and again on Friday morning. And Friday afternoon was when I realized two things. One was that our driveway was now covered with hard-packed snow and ice. The second thing was that the forecast didn't include any temperatures that were above freezing, for as far ahead as I could see. Soooo... the ice had to go. And thus began the battle of Man vs. Driveway (or, in my case, Woman vs. Driveway).

I spent about 2.5 hours out there on Friday, shoveling and salting and chipping away at the mess. I got maybe a quarter of the driveway clear. It was 27 degrees, and I was SWEATING! It was a ton of work! I took a break at one point and did some research. I decided that we absolutely, positively NEEDED a chipper/scraper tool (this exact one). I was literally hacking away at the ice with a garden hoe. It was not very effective!

First thing yesterday morning, the four of us headed to the store in search of better equipment. We got a new shovel, a chipper/scraper thing, a salt spreader, and Gus got a pair of Yaktrax (impulse buy--they were on sale! They are very cool, though!). Then we came home, got the kids settled inside the house, and got to work. The chipper/scraper/whatever-you-call it tool was the BEST. Seriously, we should have just gotten two of those. It was still slow-going, but would have been impossible without that tool. By the time the snow started falling, we (mostly Gus!) had gotten this far... Remember, the entire driveway had been covered! And there was an icy snowbank at the end of the driveway from the plows going by!

When we woke up this morning, the driveway was completely covered-- but it was with light, powdery snow. Gus made quick work of it with the snowblower, and then set to work on removing the rest of the ice. And he did it! The sunny weather helped a bit, though today's high temperature was still only 26 degrees. He also cleared out the little parking pad we use to turn our cars around. It looks SO much better now! And I feel a lot less stranded, seeing as how my car doesn't have all-wheel drive OR snow tires!

The plan now is to just keep on top of the driveway-- and never drive on the snow, unless there are warmer temperatures in the immediate forecast! It just packs it down and turns it to solid ice. Which then, in turn, is VERY difficult to remove! Lesson learned! We are going to be pros by the time this winter is over. And also, I think we are going to be getting a lot of exercise. Not necessarily a bad thing!

Snoooooooooooow!!

It snowed, it snowed! We got about seven inches last night. And while the weather forecast had me afraid that it was going to rain all day and turn everything to slush-- it didn't! It was right around 32 degrees-- perfect for playing outside! We stayed out for a few hours in the morning, came in to eat lunch, and then went out for another few hours. We are wiped out! But in a good way. It was a ton of fun, and we should get some more this weekend. Woohoo!

Merry Christmas!

From our family to yours!

We had a lovely, laid-back day at home. The kids were spoiled rotten, but loved every single gift they received. Strike that-- Maya complained exactly once, about a sweater I got for her. She took one look at it, made a face, and threw it on the floor. At which point I told her I had picked that sweater out just for her because I thought she would like it, and how it hurt my feelings that she acted that way. Next thing I knew, she was at my side, telling me how much she loved it. And how she had always wanted one just like it, and that she loved me. Awwww!! She's a quick learner, that kid.

I took hardly any photos, since I preferred to just enjoy my time with my family. The snow was falling outside all morning, the fire in the pellet stove kept us all cozy, and we all stayed in our pajamas all day. We had French toast and strawberries for breakfast, and a yummy ham for dinner (with snowflake rolls, green beans, and scalloped potatoes). And pumpkin pie for dessert, of course!

I did get a few pics, though, which I will share here. Merry Christmas, everyone!

'Twas the Night Before Christmas...

And the kids were CRAZY hyper! They are actually nestled all snug in their beds now, but they could barely contain their excitement earlier. Maya asked me to leave her blinds open so she could look for Rudolph (and Santa's sleigh, obviously). Nikos tried to negotiate an earlier wake-up time (we said 7:00; he countered with 5:00. Not happening!). They can't wait to see what is under that tree. Can you tell?

(by the way, Nikos is holding a plate with cookies for Santa and a few carrots for the reindeer. Maya is holding a glass of milk.). Now Gus and I are just watching "It's a Wonderful Life" and waiting for the snow to start falling. Merry Christmas to all-- and to all, a good night! :)

White Christmas

Well, we still have a few days until Christmas. The shopping is done, the presents are wrapped, and the menu has been selected. All we need now is some snow on the ground! 

We've actually had snow the past few days. And it has been beautiful! Sadly, it never sticks around-- most of it melts on contact. But it was, in fact, snowing today, and we were feeling particularly festive. AND, since I just registered the kids for ice skating lessons last night, we thought it might be fun to go skating at an outdoor rink in the nearby city. The kids loved it!! It was freezing, though, with the temperature dropping down to around 27 degrees by the time we left. And there were times when it actually snowed on us pretty hard while we were there. As the only member of our family who does not own fleece- or flannel-lined jeans, I was dying! I should have worn my thermal pants underneath my jeans! Oh well. We didn't stay too long, because it was REALLY cold (for us). But I did get a few pictures, at least!

Then, at dinner time, we went out to one of our favorite restaurants and gorged ourselves silly. In lieu of a company Christmas party, Gus' company decided to reimburse everyone up to a certain amount to go out to a nice, family dinner. Such an awesome idea! So this dinner was on their dime, and we enjoyed every bite. Plus, the ambiance is just perfect... warm fires burning in the fireplaces, perched over a rushing stream, with unpretentious decor and a big, beautiful Christmas tree. It was perfect!

Rawr!!

As of today, the kids are on winter break! They both had a blast making gingerbread houses at preschool this morning, and some of their buddies (who normally attend on different days) were there, too. So it was a super fun day!

Nikos has been giving me a rough time getting ready in the mornings, though. I think it's just a control issue, since he is very happy and successful at preschool (I was informed the other day that he is one of the best "cutters" they have, hehe!). And it's really only been over the past two weeks. But I made him a deal yesterday: if he didn't give me trouble this morning, we could go to the science museum to see the new dinosaur exhibit. Guess who was a little angel when he woke up? :) Both kids loved it. And they thought it was especially funny that Siegfried the Stegosaurus had on a scarf and mittens. (Personally, I was just thrilled that he was moved closer to the building, as opposed to being way out across the parking lot. Since we ALWAYS have to visit him, no matter what!)

While we were looking at another exhibit inside, a hallway door opened and an employee came out, carrying a plastic wading pool. As we scooted to get out of her way, she invited us up to the second floor to watch her do an enrichment activity with their hedgehog. It was just us, plus one other little girl and her dad. So cool! We sat right up front and watched the little hedgehog run around looking for hidden grubs. Both kids really enjoyed it, and we learned a lot about hedgehogs. Good times!

In other news... I did a huge clean-out of the kids' playroom today, in preparation for the onslaught of new toys they will be receiving. I have a bunch of bags all set to donate. And you would think the kids would have noticed that there were some toys missing... but they haven't said a word! I guess that just proves that they had too many toys to begin with, haha!

Ice, Ice Everywhere!

I have to say, my new phone is probably at least partly to blame for my recent blog neglect... I'm just not on my laptop as much, now that I have an even smaller computer that fits in my purse. But, it's also a really busy time of year. It is what it is!

Anyway... We experienced another "Massachusetts first" two days ago: ICE! Sure, we had a few snow storms last year. But never an ice storm! This was crazy! It started on Sunday afternoon, as we were driving back from a holiday open house. I couldn't believe how many car accidents we passed on the freeway. Everyone appeared to be uninjured, but their cars had just slid off the road and ended up stuck in places they didn't belong. One car was straddling a guard rail (upright). I have no idea how it got up there! But yes. It was scary. And it was a very slow drive home, for obvious reasons!

The next morning, however, the entire world was encased in glassy ice. It was so beautiful! As soon as I finished my coffee, I threw on some warm clothing and my boots, and went out to take photos. Of course!

It took Gus a long time to get the ice off his windshield when he left for work in the morning, but he assured me that getting out of our driveway wasn't a problem. But... it was. As I learned after lunch, when I NEEDED to go to the grocery store...

I tried walking on the driveway, and quickly realized that it was one solid sheet of ice. I couldn't walk on it-- at all! So I thought I would be clever and throw some road salt down. Except it did absolutely nothing-- it was still below freezing, so the ice would melt and then re-freeze. Lesson number one! I loaded the kids into the car, anyway, and backed out of the garage very slowly. So far so good. We have a pad off to the side of our driveway that we use to turn around, so that we can go out onto the road head-first (since it's a busier road). I backed into that... and got stuck. In the middle of the sheet of ice. With both kids in the car. Joy!

Long story short, I got out of the car, walked along the side of the driveway (on the grass) up to the house, and then had to walk across it to get to the front door. That was where I ended up on all fours, with my butt up in the air. I'm sure I provided a good deal of entertainment to people driving by. I eventually managed to get the bag of salt and make it back to the car, where I piled it around each wheel until the ice was melted and slushy. And then, I managed to pull forward and get out of the driveway. The whole process took about half an hour, and was so stressful!!! The good news is that the roads were nice and clear. And the better news is that I was able to get back into the garage without too much excitement. But the best news of all was that it poured rain all night and washed it away. Goodbye, ice! For now, anyway... sigh...

New Phone!

So, yesterday was horrific. I don't really want to talk about it, except that the school in Connecticut was just two hours away. But really, it could have happened anywhere. I feel sick to my stomach as both a mom and a (former) teacher. And that is all I can say about it right now.

In completely unrelated news, I got a new phone yesterday... an android! I am finally joining the twenty-first century. This post is actually bring typed on said phone. We shall see if it works...

Finally, pics of my babies. I can't imagine never being able to cuddle with them again. It hurts my heart. :(

Still Alive!

Life is great, just hectic! This time of year is especially busy, between activities and shopping and all that good stuff. Here's a super quick recap of the main events since the last time I posted...

Last week, we went to Caryn's house and made gingerbread houses. The kids had a blast, as did the adults! If you remember, this playdate last year was our very first one in Massachusetts, and it was the first time I met Caryn in person. I had no idea our families would become such a good friends. I mean, we see her several times a week EVERY WEEK, haha!

And then we went back on Sunday to celebrate the second night of Hanukkah with them. Niko ended up being a superstar at spinning the dreidel! This was after he repeatedly told us he couldn't do it. I think he was trying to hustle everyone!

I've also been taking care of Christmas shopping, of course. I think I am officially done shopping for our family now, though things still keep popping up (dance class adopted a family, preschool is collecting canned food, my women's club is doing a toy drive, etc.). Lots of little things this time of year. I am also hosting a huge holiday party this weekend for the club I'm in... At least thirty people will be here. At least the house is looking good! :)

And that's it, for now. I feel like I've been incredibly busy, and I can't remember half of what's been going on. Oh, I talked to the post office about possibly getting a mailbox at the end of our driveway (as opposed to having to drive over to it), and it looks like it might be a possibility! It's not a huge thing, but I am very, very excited about it, haha! OH, and I've been working on turning the past two years of this blog into a book... I'm about six months in. sigh. Lots to do! I will try to post more this week!

What a difference a day (and a year) makes!

Before I go any further, I can't believe that I forgot to mention our one year Massiversary! This past Saturday, December first, marked the one year anniversary of the kids and I waking up in our new house for the first time. It's been an amazing year, and we feel really lucky to call this beautiful place home. At some point, I will do another walk-through video of the house, just so you can see everything we've done in the past year!

But a single day can make a huge difference, too! Last time I posted, on Saturday night, it was soooooooo cold! It had been snowing all day and was in the low twenties (but felt even colder). So it was very odd to wake up the next morning and see that the outside temperature was already at 39 degrees! We made it to 50 degrees yesterday! All the snow on the ground? Gone. And today, at 8:42am, the temperature is already in the mid-forties. It feels like spring, only without the hints of greenery poking through. So weird! I think we will be playing outside today and taking advantage of this!

Yesterday, though, I was so thankful for the suddenly "warm" weather. We went back to the Festival of Trees, and the kids got to enjoy all the other activities. We rode on a horse-drawn carriage down Main Street, took a spin on an antique fire truck, and did some holiday crafts. The kids had a great opportunity to see Santa... but they wouldn't, as expected. Note to self, though: That event is the best place to see Santa, if we can ever convince them to do it! The setup they have is impressive, the lines are short, and the official photo is only $3! Much better than the mall!

Anyway, here are a few pics from the carriage ride. I took this one as the carriage was pulling up. Our ride!

And this was the view as we rode down Main Street. You should have seen the line of cars behind us, haha!

We ran into quite a few friends while we were there, including my buddy Miranda, who went on the carriage with us. She snapped a family photo for us-- a rare thing these days!

Anyway, it was a lot of fun, made all the more enjoyable by the non-freezing weather! Now that I know what the festival is all about, I plan to drag the kids to even more of the events next year. It's so cool!

Later on, we went to get more Christmas decorations for the outside of the house. I actually haven't seen them in the daylight yet, so I might need to go out and take a picture later! We got wreaths to hang on all the front windows of the house-- I bet it looks awesome! In the meantime, here's a picture from the front room last night. Between the toasty-warm pellet stove and the Christmas tree, this is my happy place! ahhhh...

Let It Snow!

When we woke up this morning, the ground was covered with a thin layer of powder, and big flakes were still falling steadily from the sky. It was so pretty! I expected to hear sleigh bells any minute! And, of course, I couldn't help myself. I bundled up and went out to take a few pictures. This was in the back yard:

And then I was admiring the snowflakes on the bumper of Gus' truck, so I ran in to grab my "poor man's" macro filters. I love snowflakes!!! This picture is spotty because of the metallic gray paint on the truck, but just look at how many little snowflakes there were. And they really are so unique! Awesome!!

A little while later, I decided I would go over to the post office to mail out our Christmas cards. But... my car wouldn't start. I took the truck instead, but when I got back, Gus and I talked about my car. It clearly needed a new battery, after failing to start twice in one week. We looked into it, and learned that AAA would come out to the house, test the battery (for free), and install a new one for a very reasonable price if it was necessary (as we knew it would be). So now my car has a new battery. Yay for not being stranded in the tundra!

After lunch, Gus needed to get a few things for his next business trip, so we took a family trip to the store. I got some more Christmas decorations-- hooray! One day, I will have enough to adequately decorate this beast of a house. We didn't have that many decorations to begin with, and our old house was a third of the size as this one. And the cold weather/snow really puts me in a festive mood. I needed more decorations!

On the way back, we stopped off at the Festival of Trees. This is quite an event in our town! I wish I had known about it last year! It began last night, with a bell-ringing concert at the church. I wanted to go, but was outvoted (sigh). And today, the library was opened up for the festival itself. Upstairs was where Santa and Mrs. Claus were set up, so kids could visit with them. There were elves, games, and assorted treats. None of which I got to look at very carefully, since the kids were dragging us away from there at full speed (they're both scared of Santa... sigh.). Downstairs, we looked at all of the Christmas trees and gingerbread houses that people had decorated. My friend, a baker who owns her own cake business, sculpted a bunch of cupcake ornaments for her tree. Another favorite was the "B.L.Tree," where all of the ornaments were large pieces of bacon, lettuce, or tomato (and the topper was a large B.L.T. sandwich). It was so funny! We also bought raffle tickets and entered to win six different baskets of goodies. So, we'll see!

From there, we zipped home and I got started on dinner. By the time we were done eating, it was time to leave again. We wanted to see the lighting of the town's official Christmas tree. It was SO COLD. I guess 25 degrees isn't that bad (it will get a lot colder than that, soon), but standing in it for half an hour was BRUTAL. I thought I was dressed warmly enough, but I wasn't. I should have opted for my snow gloves instead of my Isotoners, and I should have worn my thermal pants under my jeans. BRRR!!! But I was surprised at how many people were there, despite the weather. I mean, seriously... look at this picture. This was taken with the flash. I quickly learned that the flash wouldn't work, with all the tiny snowflakes/mist around us! These were invisible to the naked eye, by the way... but you could feel the ice in the air and on your face!

Finally, 15 minutes later than the scheduled time, they came out of the church (pictured on the right) and lit the tree. Hooray!

It was neat to be there, and the kids enjoyed it, but it was even MORE awesome to zip back to the car and try to warm up again! We drove home and promptly stood in front of the toasty pellet stove for a bit to defrost. Ahhh... I love that pellet stove. So, SO much! It really puts out an amazing amount of heat. Anyway... the kiddos went to bed shortly thereafter, and I wrapped Christmas presents. Now I'm drinking cocoa. It's the most wonderful time of the year!! It's also surreal to think that we were in California only a few days ago, haha! What a difference!

The Long Road Home

Wow. Yesterday was a really long day. I get tired just thinking about it!

Gus and I (and Gus' mom) were up at 4:30am to get ready and load the car. We woke the kids up, and were on the road by 5. We got to the airport in Long Beach a little bit before 6am, and were finally able to breathe once the bags were checked. The kids were so sleepy that they weren't much help. Carrying them in addition to all the luggage? Not so much fun! But we made it, and had a little time to relax before our flight left a little bit after 7.

But wait! There's more! We didn't have a direct flight coming back, so we had to fly to San Francisco first. That's only a one-hour flight, so it went by very quickly and without incident. Once we got off the plane at SFO, we started looking for the gate for our next flight... only to find that it was the very same gate we had just come out of. So... we saw very little of the airport! We were there for about two and a half hours. Everyone used the bathroom at some point, and the kids were highly entertained by the moving walkway (which I used as an opportunity to run them around a bit). Maya and I talked to another mom and her six-month-old baby girl, who Maya was infatuated with. It went by pretty quickly.

Then we got on the plane. The kids did great! About an hour into the flight, they both conked out...

Nikos slept for an hour, and Maya for closer to two. It was very peaceful. I watched a marathon of the show "Moonshiners" on the Discovery Channel (and kept watching it with one earbud in, even when she was awake). I had never heard of it before, but now I am sort of hooked. haha! I wonder what that stuff tastes like? Those guys sure get a lot of money for it!

We got into Boston right on time, and made our way down to the baggage claim. Gus was looking at his watch, and hoping our luggage would come out quickly so we could make the next bus. While we waited for the carousel to start moving, we asked the kids if they needed to use the bathroom. Nikos said yes, so he went. Maya didn't have to go. This all becomes relevant, trust me!

By some miracle, all three of our checked bags came out within the first few minutes. Hallelujah! We hauled booty over to the bus stop, where we learned that the bus hadn't come yet. Perfect! We were all set. And then... Maya had to go potty. Nooooooo!! I ran (literally. As fast as I could.) with her to the nearest bathroom, and ran back. I was sweating. And, of course, we missed the bus. Of course! I would like to say that it was no big deal, but I was tired. And MAD. But... we had no choice. We waited half an hour for the next one. It arrived a little after 8:30pm. I couldn't wait to get back to the bus station, get into our car, and go HOME!

The ride back to the station was uneventful. We got there, paid for our parking, and Gus went to pull the car up closer to the building (it was below freezing outside). Aaaand... the car wouldn't start. It was a combination of sitting for two weeks, combined with the cold temperatures. It just needed a jump start, but that meant waiting for a tow truck for 40 minutes. But it worked. We finally got home at 11pm. The kids went straight to bed, and I followed as soon as my body would let me. Longest day EVER!!!!

This morning, I didn't know what to expect. But both kids were up and eating breakfast by 7:30. I had a ton of errands to run (like getting groceries), and was really hoping they would be able to make it to preschool. And they did! Not only that, but it was warm enough outside that they got to play on the snow-covered playground. Which is pretty awesome when you're a kid! This was the scene when I went to pick them up (Maya is on the far right in the background). Proof that Nikos had a blast-- and that we are DEFINITELY not in California anymore, haha!

Last Day

Gus' dad took the day off today, wanting to spend more time with the kids. We started off by going to the mall so the kids could ride the merry-go-round. It had been switched out to be Christmas-themed, and was right next to where Santa was set up. Have I mentioned that my children are terrified of Santa??? Yeah... It wasn't so bad, until Santa had some free time and stood right up against the rail as we went around in circles. The kids weren't fans! They did like the merry-go-round, though, especially Maya-- she rode it twice!

We went out to lunch at McDonald's, then drove to ANOTHER McDonald's that had a play area, since that's what the kids really wanted to do. I shudder thinking about the germs (ick!), but they both had nice long baths tonight. I think they have been appropriately disinfected. And they had a blast! They made fast friends with a little boy there, and had a great time. And Maya liked her ice cream cone. Everyone was happy!

Gus' sister came by after work again, and we all had dinner together. Gus and I packed the suitcases. We still have a few things to squeeze in there in the morning, and I reeeeeally hope it will all fit. I honestly don't know! We can always mail it, if it doesn't fit, but I am feeling optimistic. Tomorrow is a long day of travel for us-- please keep us (and our sanity) in your thoughts! It has been amazing to be back in California these past two weeks, but it will also be good to get back into our daily routine. And see our pets again!

Back in The O.C.

Sunday afternoon was a quiet one. We stayed home, and the kids played in the yard. Gus' sister came over shortly after we arrived, and stayed until the kids went to bed. It was fun, and uneventful!

The next day, we went to have lunch at Papou's restaurant-- a big hit, as always!

From there, we went to the nearby park, and then to the Fun Zone out at the end of the Balboa Peninsula.

Both kids had a great time playing the arcade games, especially skee ball!

And Gus wrote the ferris wheel with his favorite little girl!

Once Nikos had earned an adequate number of tickets for a "decent" prize (not the one he really wanted, but alas...) we took the ferry across to Balboa Island! I hadn't been there in a long time.

We walked around and checked out the crazy Christmas decorations, which were just starting to go up. The boat parade goes right by these houses, so they get all decked out. We all especially loved this one house-- and this was just one little piece of it! It was so elaborate!!

And that was pretty much our day! Gus' sister came by for dinner after she got off work, so the kids got more quality time with their theia. And Gus and I went to go see a movie. Fun!

Saturday and Sunday

So... I am on a blogging spree tonight... In my last post, I mentioned that my parents' house was very full, and that my brother and his wife were sleeping on the living room couch. This presented an interesting situation when all the kids (first ours, then Colton) woke up fairly early on Saturday morning. I could hear them through our bedroom wall, and I felt sorry for my parents. Usually, the kids go to the living room with my dad (who is also an early riser). But my parents had all three kids corralled in their bedroom with them (and without any toys!). So... I got up, went down to investigate, and found this. hahaha!!!

Eventually, they took over the living room. And I snapped the bottom picture, which reminded me of a very similar picture I took two years ago. Same spot on the couch... but they look so much older!

Anyway... it was a fun day! Our little family unit (me, Gus, and the kids) went to have brunch with Nikos' godparents, which was great. The kids were their hilarious, chatty selves, and it didn't hurt that they were spoiled with gifts (small ones, thankfully!). After brunch, we zipped back to my parents' house just minutes after my aunt and uncle arrived to visit. They had been invited for Thanksgiving, but already had plans. Instead, they came on Saturday to see us all. It was a fun visit, as always!

And SOMEONE was feeling especially silly in the evening. I love this little guy!!

------------------------------- Sunday morning was a quiet one. The kids played with their cousin, until he left, and then it was time for us to pack our bags and move on. The highlight was playing out in the back yard, especially when my mom started shaking the nectarine tree and making the leaves fall off. All three of them loved dancing around in it!

And, after dealing with one especially cranky Nikos, we were able to get a decent picture of all three kiddos together. It will do, right?

From that point, we drove back to Gus' parents' house for the remainder of our trip. Stay tuned!