Cherry Blossoms

Aidan, Emmy and I went to see the Cherry Blossoms around the Tidal Basin this morning. The peak bloom is supposed to be from April 1 - 4 so I thought that if we went just before it would be nice but not so crowded. We got there around 9:30 so it was still a little cold but worth it because we got great parking and the tour buses had just started arriving so it wasn't too crowded. Aidan was much less impressed this year than last but he likes going to the monuments so he ended up having a good time. Emmy just likes getting out of the house so she had fun too. The cherry blossoms were beautiful although the light was a little flat - I wonder if they look prettier in afternoon light??

Playing Out Back

Today started out rainy and cold but was almost 80 degrees and sunny by dinner time! We had to get outside and play a little - even if there were huge muddy puddles in the backyard! The kids managed to stay pretty clean and had a good time running around. Brendan is away again - in Detroit for some recruiting events. Too bad they are having a snow storm while we are enjoying the sun!!!
I don't think Emmy has the mowing thing down quite yet!Aidan's new way of swinging:

Down By the River

This week has been mostly spent either waiting for our landlord to come and fix the sink in the downstairs bathroom - it's been two weeks since he took it apart and then left it like that - or dealing with the noise that he and the plumber made all day Thursday and Friday while they tried to fix it. The solution ended up involving taking a wall down in the basement. I'm not sure exactly what they did but the sink works well now - for the first time since we moved in almost 2 years ago - so I don't really care!

We needed to get out of the house Friday afternoon because the whole thing was starting to make me nuts - especially since it has rained a lot and we've been trapped inside! So during a break in the rain we went for a walk down by the Potomac. Everything is getting really green - thanks to the rain! The kids enjoyed chasing each other around and climbing up on the benches.

Back on the meds

Emmy is back on antibiotics - her 3rd round! :( This time they gave her Biaxin - hopefully it will finally clear up the ear that has evidently not responded to Amoxicillin or Augmentin! When I brought her in yesterday her eardrum was so swollen that the doctor said it was "nearly" burst - a day more or so and we would have had to deal with that! So child neglect and timing being what it is - we now have new drugs. She got her first dose last night and seemed much better this morning. This may also be thanks to the pain killing ear drops! So hopefully by tomorrow morning she will be back to her normal self - I'm not sure if I remember my sweet little Em - she has been a bear for so long. I am really looking forward to it!

Elmo's Mommy

Emmy loves Elmo. I think this is kind of funny since she doesn't really watch Sesame Street. She has a few stuffed Elmos stashed around the house but this fuzzy one is her favorite. She was putting him to bed on the kitchen floor this afternoon - it was too cute!!Tucking Elmo in:Night night kisses for Elmo:
Elmo all tucked in:

Stopping to Smell the Flowers

We are waiting for warm weather!! It has been sunny and in the 50's which is better than winter but not quite warm enough to be comfortable outside without a coat - Emmy decided she didn't want to wear her coat when we went outside this afternoon - she changed her mind after a few minutes! The daffodils have begun to bloom and the cherry blossoms in DC should be out next week. We can't wait until spring gets here - although I'm sure I will be complaining about the heat in no time!!

4 Years Old

We had Aidan's 4 year check up this morning because I thought he had to have shots - because that was what the hospital website said. Turns out this is the last round of boosters that he will get and they like to wait until he goes to Kindergarten. He was disappointed to not get the shots because he "wanted to practice being brave". What a funny kid!!!! Anyway - he is 37.5 lbs (50th percentile) and 42 inches tall (90th percentile). I guess it makes sense that all his pants are too short and too big in the waist!!!

"Happy" St. Patrick's Day

I tried - I really did. I just couldn't get these kids to smile today. I'm not sure what's going on with them. Emmy has been tired all the time - and hungry too - so maybe it's just a growth spurt. They have both been crying at the drop of a hat - which is unusual for them and makes me crazy!
Here are our "Happy" St. Patrick's Day pictures - you'd think a green feather boa would make anyone smile!I shouldn't be all doom and gloom because there were a few happier moments today. Emmy decided that she was going to climb to the top of the big slide all by herself and slide right on down. It's pretty steep so I stopped her from flying off of the end but she did the rest alone - just a reflection of her adventurous/independent personality!!The bikes were out at school this afternoon - Emmy loves being driven around and Aidan loves driving - it's a good combo!

Warm Weekend

It was so beautiful here this weekend - it got up into the high 70's! Definitely a weird week with snow in the beginning and summer at the end! We got outside and cleaned up the back yard so Aidan and Emmy could run around and play. Emmy LOVES the trampoline - she can't get enough. It exhausts her but she still insists on going on it. She points at the trampoline and says "boing boing!!" It is so cute! Needless to say - they have both slept very well after their workouts! They both also love driving around the backyard in the jeep. Aidan is good at steering and Emmy's head/neck are finally strong enough that she doesn't get whiplash every time the Jeep moves forward. She is very content to let Aidan drive her around - we'll see how long that lasts!

Fun at Preschool

Today was gorgeous! It was 76 degrees when Emmy and I went to pick Aidan up at school. We stayed and played on the playground since tomorrow is supposed to be cold and we might even get some snow on Friday morning!!! It was "blue day" at school - they have been studying the colors of the rainbow - so all the kids wore blue . They looked so cute with their color coordinated outfits!Emmy loves the little play house on the playground:

Brendan's Promotion

It's official - Brendan is now MAJ Cullinan! He had the promotion ceremony yesterday morning. Brendan's dad flew down which was really nice and the kids were excited to see him too!
General Byrne and Brendan just prior to promotion:Me "pinning" Brendan's new rank on. (It's velcro these days) Aidan told me he like my dress because I looked like a cow - can you even get a better compliment than that?Emmy sat on my lap for most of it but having Daddy only 2 feet away was too hard - she ended up running to him in the middle of his speech - Aidan followed quickly after.The cake I made for the breakfast afterwards - if anyone knows where to buy blue dye for chocolate that actually makes it blue (not turquoise) I'd love to know!

Still Stuck at Home

Aidan woke up sick this morning - yuck. There is nothing I hate worse than waking up out of a deep sleep to strip beds and wash sheets and comforters!! He stayed on the couch all morning, wasn't hungry and took a short nap around 3 pm. Just after 4 he came dashing out of his room looking completely healed. Miraculous - he ate dinner, didn't throw up and seemed to have a ton of energy. Hmm...still waiting for Emmy to wake up sick in the middle of the night tonight. We'll see how it goes. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that Brendan has been at a beautiful resort in British Columbia since Monday. He owes me - big time... :)

Snow Day!

We had snow today - finally! It seems funny that it waited until March to give us our first real snow but I'll take it at any time!! Snow is one of the things I miss the most from Massachusetts and Colorado. There is nothing quite like waking up to this:Brendan is on a trip to Canada for a few days. He left this morning - must have been before most of the snow because there was no "snow shadow" from his car. Aidan's school also got canceled although the roads are fine - they did a really good job plowing. So we are here - stuck in the house - Emmy's still recovering from her ear infections - we had to change antibiotics and try again. Many thanks to the lovely people at Pixar - Wall-E and Nemo have kept us sane!

More Snow Pictures

Here are a few more pictures from playing in the snow - it was REALLY cold so we didn't last long outside!Relaxing after the snow: