Blizzard Blogging...

So January is almost over, and I haven't posted anything since we got home from our trip to California! OOPS! I don't have a lot to report. It's been business as usual here, for the most part. School and activities: scouts, basketball, dance, floor hockey, etc. And it's been cold, but we haven't had much snow. Until the past week, of course! We are in the midst of a blizzard ("Juno"), and all four of us are at home due to a state-mandated travel ban in effect. Only plow drivers and first responders are allowed to be on the roads right now. School has already been canceled for tomorrow, too. So we're just hunkering down, hanging out in our pajamas, staying warm by the fire and periodically going out to play in all the fluffy white powder that keeps falling. We have about two feet right now, more in the areas where it's drifted. But we haven't lost power and we have plenty of food, so we are perfectly content with having some mandated down time! And since the blizzard is fresh in my mind, I will just start with sharing pics from today, even if I need to go back and fill in the rest of the month afterwards.

And a video of our boy... All he wants to do is snowboard! And he's always asking me to take videos of him doing it. So, here you go... We had another storm this past Saturday, and the kids played out in it alllll morning that day and then a lot on Sunday. The temperature was right around 30, so it was very comfortable to be out in for a long time!

Back before the storm, on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the kids and I had a taste of the tropics... Maya had been begging to "drink from a coconut with a straw" for weeks, and I finally picked one up at the supermarket and drilled a hole in it. Niko was not a fan. Maya claimed to like it, but was done after a few sips. But she has stopped asking me about it now, so there you go!

Also this month... both kids had fun outdoor scout events that I have no pictures of! Maya went on a nature walk at a preserve, and Niko spent that entire same day with the Cub Scouts at one of their "Freeze Out" events at the local Boy Scout camp. They played in the snow, went on a hike, ate dinner, watched a movie, and then the older boys got to spend the night (not Niko). He had a blast, though! And a week prior to that, his scout pack had their annual "Autobahn" event, where the kids/dads made vehicles out of cardboard boxes. It was seriously cute!

Aside from these events, my photos from this month are mainly snapshots on my phone. Nothing out of the ordinary, just the kids being cute (as they can be, sometimes!). Here are just a few...

And I am sure there is more to report, but I'm tired and they just canceled school again for tomorrow... The kids have had playdates and birthday parties. We've dealt with some frozen (now thawed) pipes and drains... Life goes on. Is it Spring yet??

California Vacation, Part 4: The Journey Home

We woke up at 6am on our final day, knowing that we didn't need to leave until 7:30 and wanting to have a leisurely breakfast. We made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare, and said our goodbyes. We did get two jars of salsa confiscated while going through security, but that was our fault for forgetting to move them out of the carry-on. OOPS! Our flight was on time and uneventful. I even snapped a pic as we were boarding, since it was a smaller plane and we were outside.

We had a smooth landing in Denver, but the entire place looked like this. And it was snowing pretty hard...

So we spent a lot of hours there. More than planned. We had a big lunch. We went for walks. We bought snacks. We looked at the little birdies bouncing around inside.

Our flight got pushed later and later. Soon, it looked like this outside:

I admit, I was starting to feel like we might spend the night in the airport. With two small children. And yet all I could think of was, "My groceries are getting delivered in the morning and I have to be there or they'll charge me a penalty!" ha!! But finally, we boarded the plane. And then sat, and sat, and sat (for another hour, basically). Eventually, we made it up into the air. And then it was a bumpy flight pretty much the entire way back to Boston.

We landed right around 2am local time (so 11pm California time, which is what we'd become used to). We waited for our bags. And waited. And waited. And none of them showed up. Gus waited in line at the baggage counter, only to learn that two of our bags were still in Denver and one had mysteriously flown to Omaha. Go figure. But at least they were located. He gave them our address for delivery, we took our receipt and two horrid "loaner" carseats, and dragged two very tired children to the shuttle that would take us back to our car.

Now, it had snowed for hours before we landed. It was pouring rain by the time we got there, though, so it was a horrible, slushy mess. We were soaked. We got in the car and began the hour-long drive home, only to find that the rain was turning to sleet, and the roads were very slippery. And in my little front-wheel-drive-only car... it was bad. Gus took it very slow and got us home safely, but we were both on edge. To the point where Gus suggested we buy snow tires for my car the very next day (something I'd been saying for a while, just for the record!!). Then, when we finally made it to our house at 4:15am, we couldn't get in the driveway. Of course. The plows had created a snowbank nearly a foot high of rock-hard, icy snow. So, we parked across the street while Gus walked over and shoveled out enough for us to get through. And we did. We were all asleep by 5am. And I was up at 8:30 to wait for the grocery delivery (which was AWESOME, by the way). It was a very, very long day!

Our suitcases arrived Monday afternoon, by the way. Everything made it back. And now we are getting right back into our old routine after having a fantastic two weeks visiting with family and old friends! :)

California Vacation, Part 3: Yiayia and Papou's House

SO... while we were technically at Gus' parents' house on December 26th and 27th, the wedding festivities meant that we weren't actually there very much. We did open presents before the wedding on the 27th, so here are a few pictures from that. Please be sure to admire Gus' new footie pajamas (I'm so embarrassed!!!).

Anyway, I'd say our visit here REALLY began on the 28th, the day after the wedding. That morning, Gus' parents and sister disappeared with the kiddos, haha! They went to lunch at the restaurant, and then to check out the Fun Zone in Newport (Balboa? Wherever it is). They ended up going out to dinner, too. So at that point, Gus and I decided to go out to dinner and a movie, too. And I have no pictures, but I DO have this video of Maya riding the "bull shark" at the Fun Zone. haha!!! Niko rode it, too, but I don't have his video. :) After they went to the Fun Zone, they decided to go to In-N-Out for dinner... And Gus and I decided to go to dinner and a movie. The next day we stayed close to home, for the most part, although Gus and I went to dinner and a movie (again! gotta get it in while we can!). And the NEXT day, the 30th, we got to meet some babies!

First, Gus' oldest friend, Min, happened to be in town visiting his own parents. So he and his wife came over with their one month old daughter, Emma. She was so sweet!

And then we piled into the car and drove up to Pasadena to see Mike and Steph. The last time we saw them was right after Maya was born-- I think she was literally just a few weeks old! So it had been over five years, which is crazy considering they were pretty much my closest college friends. But they had a baby girl in August, and we needed to meet her. Plus they bought a house not too long ago, and have basically gutted it and remodeled it, so we needed to check it out. The kids were very antsy and wiggly, and we probably stayed later than we should have, but it was so nice to hang out with them and meet little Ella!

The next day was New Year's Eve. We celebrated, and ALMOST made it to midnight. 11:40 was when they started to fall apart. SO CLOSE!

And the next day, we went out to lunch and then Theia, Yiayia and Papou took the kids to see a movie while Gus and I began preparing for our inevitable return to reality by buying airplane snacks and doing laundry. But once we were all back together, we ate a delicious dinner of souvlaki (Niko's favorite!) and then we got to cut the vasilopita! Magically, EACH kid happened to find a gold coin in their piece, thanks to Papou's special cutting technique. ;) They were very happy!

The next day, we did something we'd never done before-- we drove up to Pasadena to see the Rose Parade floats in person! They have them on display for two days after the parade, and you can just walk around and see them all up close. It was so cool! I took a ton of pictures, but here are a few highlights... The very first one is from the Rose Bowl, where we had to park the car. And where UCLA plays all their home football games, many of which I attended once upon a time. :)

Tired and hungry from all the walking, we went to dinner at this great little Italian place near Gus' parents' house. I had the gnocchi with vodka sauce, and it was probably the most delicious meal at a restaurant I've had in a long time. I wanted to lick the plate clean! I did take bread and soak up the extra sauce. It was SO. GOOD. I am devoting blog space to this meal, so you'd better believe me. I've actually thought about it several times since then, haha!

The rest of our evening was decidedly mundane. We bathed the kids, said goodbye to Gus' sister, packed our suitcases and laid out clothing for the morning. And that was that. We left early for the airport the next morning, but that whole adventure merits its own post. It's best that I just end this one on a happy note, haha!

California Vacation, Part 2: The Wedding

We had hardly been at Gus' parents' house for an hour when it was time to get ready for the rehearsal dinner. The groom is one of Niko's Godbrothers, and the groom's parents are our koumbari (wedding sponsors and Niko's Godparents). So, they are basically family to us. Both kids had been invited to be in the wedding, but Niko had staunchly refused. So it was just us and our little flower girl that went to the rehearsal, leaving Niko home to be spoiled by his yiayia and papou. He was thrilled, haha!

Anyway, off we went to St. Sophia's in Los Angeles, which is a gorgeous Greek Orthodox Cathedral. We went there for Easter services many years ago (before kids), and it has always stood out in my memory as one of my favorite churches. Our koumbara asked me to take pictures for her, so I did! Here are just a few...

Here they are, practicing the walk around the altar (three times). The guy walking behind them and holding the ribbon is the groom's brother, so Niko's other Godbrother. Both of our kids adore them!

Here comes the groom and his parents (our koumbari!)

And our favorite flower girl, with her new friend (And flower girl partner) Andrianna. Interesting fact: the last time I saw Andrianna, she was a little one-year-old running around my baby shower for Niko. Times have changed!

After the rehearsal, we moved on to a delicious dinner at the Palm Restaurant in downtown L.A. Maya sat with her new friend at the kids' table, where she ordered a glass of milk and was happy and can be. We visited with friends old and new, and really had a nice time! We left sometime after 9pm, and our happy little flower girl passed out almost immediately.

------------------------- The next day, all the kids in the wedding had orders to report to the hotel (the reception site) by 12:30pm. This meant we were up and dressed and out the door by 11. Our little flower girl was gorgeous in her white dress!

And we took a family picture, but Niko wasn't going to meet up with us until later in the day, so he was still in his pajamas. :-P

The next few hours were filled with lots of waiting around and picture-taking (not by me!). It wasn't too exciting, at least from our perspective! But we had sandwiches to eat and it was fine. Soon, it was time to head to the church!

I didn't take any pictures during the ceremony, happily enjoying my role as a guest. But Gus' sister filmed Maya doing her flower girl duties, which I was thankful for! Anyway, the ceremony was beautiful, and brought back all sorts of memories from nine and a half years ago. And then we were off to cocktail hour at the hotel-- the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. Very, very fancy. We took some family pictures in the lobby first:

And then we had drinks and appetizers (mini beef Wellingtons, among other goodies! yum!). Maya was punch-drunk. It had been a long day, but she was just happy to be there and sucking down some lemonade.

Then they opened the doors to the ballroom, and I got to SIT DOWN (yesssss!). I am so not meant to wear high heels. I was dying! But we took all kinds of pictures. Here I am with my hot date...

And a shot of the ballroom (if you look in the foreground, you can see Gus, his parents, his sister, and Niko... I think Maya was lining up outside for the bridal party entrance)

And the kids' table. We weren't sure if our kids would stay there, but they had fun! And they got fruit cups instead of scallops, and chicken strips instead of filet mignon... They were VERY happy about that!

The kids were served first, and Maya was soon asking us when the dancing would begin. We told her to go for it... and she did! She danced her little heart out! A ring bearer followed suit, and soon even Niko was out there showing off some break-dancing moves. It was AWESOME!

As the night went on and everyone finished eating, the adults took over the dance floor... there was a live Greek band and everything! VERY fun (and loud!!!).

At around that time, the Greek dessert tables opened up in the cocktail area, and we discovered the photo booth. Everyone went to the photo booth multiple times, with very entertaining results! And at around 10pm, we had two very exhausted kids on our hands. So we loaded up the cars and headed home. All in all, we had a LOT of fun, but the days filled with wedding events were VERY long for us. I eagerly awaited the rest of our vacation where I wouldn't have to wear high heels. :) And more on that later!