A Beautiful Weekend

After last weekend was a total wash-out, we made sure we took full advantage of the beautiful weather. On Saturday morning, we travelled up to Fishkill, NY to see our friends Lance and Lina. Jeff, Nicole and Cooper came for a visit, too. So, all together, we had 3 pregnant women, 2 toddlers, 3 dads-to-be, and one little dog (Max) who was completely intimidated by the 2 toddlers.

Shortly after arriving, we walked to the park in Lance & Lina's development. Cooper, being the daredevil boy that he is, liked to hurl himself down the slide at top speed. Meanwhile, Morgan preferred to use her feet as brakes and just enjoy the ride.

After we got back from the park, Morgan and Cooper spent the rest of the day giving Lance and Lina a taste of what their house will be like when they become parents. They raced around the house, opened and closed the door to the deck, and generally got themselves all tuckered out.

After all that excitement on Saturday, Morgan was ready for a quiet day at home on Sunday. We picked up some fresh sand and brought Morgan's sandbox out of the shed.

She spent about 2 hours making sandcastles, sand cupcakes, and (her personal favorite) sand all over her pants and feet.

Morgan the Green Monster

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, Morgan and Ariella made "Green Velvet" cupcakes (red velvet with green food coloring). Morgan, being the mischievous little Leprechaun that she is, decided it was more fun to eat all the decorations than to actually decorate the cupcakes. Yum!

Potty progress

Is there a light at the end of the tunnel? We hope so. Morgan took big steps toward being potty trained this week.

On Sunday night, she asked to pee in the potty (which usually means she'll sit on the potty and read books, but not pee). Instead, she pee'd like a champ.

We mentioned this to her teachers Monday morning. That night, Morgan's daily report card said that she had used the potty 4 times (including 2 poops, if you want to know all the gory details.) She came home wearing pull-ups that night, instead of the usual diapers.

This pattern continued all week, with only a few accidents. So on Friday, Ariella took Morgan to Target to pick up a second training potty for our downstairs bathroom. And, even better, Morgan got her first set of big girl underpants.

We're not sure if this will be it for diapers for Morgan. But after a couple months of off-and-on interest in the potty, she's looking like she's ready. Hooray!

Can the Cabbage Patch Kid predict the future?

On Christmas morning, Morgan got a Cabbage Patch Kid from Aunt Aimee & Co. When Morgan opened the package, the doll's adoption papers said the doll was a baby girl, born on July 6th. We thought, "Wow, that's really close to Ariella's due date... wouldn't it be funny if it's a girl on July 6th?"

Well, on Thursday night, we found out that part of the Cabbage Patch Kid's prediction is true... IT'S A GIRL.

(In the photo directly above, the baby is looking straight at the "camera". Her head is tilted sideways right in the center of the photo.)

So now we'll have to wait until July 6th to find out if the rest of the Cabbage Patch prediction comes true.

One thing is for sure, though. We will NOT be naming the baby "Ayla Carissa" like it says on the Cabbage Patch Kid's birth certificate. No way! Not happening!

Another winter weekend

Is it just us or has this been the longest winter ever?

It seems like we've been cooped up in the house forever. Luckily, last weekend the Coleman gang -- Aimee, Russ, Henry and Alex -- came for a visit, so we were all cooped up in the house together. (When Andy's parents found out we were all getting together, they decided to make the trip down from Connecticut to hang out, too. The more, the merrier)

Everyone arrived just as Morgan was waking up from her nap. Morgan was a little shy at first, but she quickly remembered, "Oh, that's right! I LOVE playing with Alex!"

Henry spent most of the afternoon acting like a typical pre-teen... he spent most of the day playing his DS, and then sleeping on the couch.

After an exciting afternoon with the whole family, it was time for some "thumb time" with Aunt Aimee.

Snowiest Winter Ever

It's official! This is the snowiest winter in the history of Philadelphia. (Keep in mind that Philly was founded in 1682, when dinosaurs and metalsmiths still roamed the earth... or something like that.)

We barely had time to dig ourselves out from Saturday's 27+ inches of snow. And even though we already had 6 more inches by morning, Morgan still managed to stock up on groceries at her "store". (She declared "I go shopping!" as soon as we got downstairs this morning.)

Once the pantry was stocked with emergency groceries, Morgan spent some time pulling all the cushions off the couch and bouncing around.

Andy and Ariella both stayed home today, which turned out to be a good idea. Around noon, the snow started falling even faster (we ended up getting another 12 inches or so). The entire city was shut down by mid-afternoon. Who knows how long it would have taken us to get home?

Unlike the the fluffy snow from the previous storms, this one dumped heavy, sticky snow -- bad for driving, worse for shoveling... but GREAT for making snowmen!

Making snowmen was the most fun Morgan has had in the snow this winter. She was very excited to put the carrot in the snowman's face, and put one of her hats on his head.

In fact, she liked making a snowman so much, she asked us to make him a friend! Sure, what the heck! After all, a winter like this only comes around here once every 428 years.

Superbowl Snow Day

After getting hit with a 26 inches of snow in December (the 2nd largest snowfall on record in the Philadelphia area), we thought Mother Nature had gotten it all out of her system. Nope. On Friday night and all day Saturday, we got pounded with 27.5 inches (the new 2nd largest snowfall on record in Philly).

Luckily, we learned our lesson in December and parked our cars at the end of driveway this time around. Although it still took several hours to get the cars dug out on Sunday morning.

After several hours of shoveling, Andy is looking forward watching the game, and enjoying pizza and wings. And Advil. Lots of Advil.

Before the snow started on Friday night, Morgan made sure she stocked up on (plastic) groceries.

Hmm... Where have I seen these photos before? Oh, that's right. We posted some just like it in December. (In the last 2 months, Morgan hasn't become any more fond of deep snow.)

The snow started falling pretty hard while we were clearing off the cars Saturday morning. So we retreated inside make Valentine's day treats.

How's this for a healthy snack? Melted chocolate, marshmallows, giant Rice Crispies and sweet hearts. (Okay, maybe it's not so healthy. But it's Valentine's Day, so whatever.)

Morgan thoroughly enjoyed licking the chocolate-covered spoon. On Sunday morning, she announced to us: "I need chocolate."