Other Happenings

On Tuesday, the kids woke up in wonder and amazement because snow had fallen early in the morning.  From the moment they woke up at 7 a.m. they kept asking, "Mommy, when can we go out and play in it?"  I wiped my eyes of the sleep which was still in them, and slowly trudged to the coffee maker to have a much needed cup of coffee.  Thank goodness, Dad stepped in and took them out before it all melted.:)  There was only about 2 inches of snow on the ground, but it was enough to get my kids excited to go outside and play!!!:)

snowball fight!!!!

Building a snowman!

Jeremy and his huge snowball!

making a big snowman face:)

The snow was great packing snow and we made a snowman as big as the kids...yes, I finally went outside and played!!:)

 We also had to celebrate a few birthdays coming up in January.  Grandpa and Mary are having birthdays soon.:)



Happy Birthday!!!

My Aunt and uncle are staying in a hotel nearby with an INDOOR pool!!! The kids were too excited to take a dip and revisit a little bit of their "Nigeria roots" by taking a dip in the pool. We aren't used to all of this cold weather!!!:)

Just wanted to share a few other tidbits of what's happening around here.  We just never know what we'll be up to next!?;)

Gateway to the West

 Last night the fun of seeing our family continued when my aunt and uncle and Grandpa from Michigan drove down to see us.:)   It is always a time full of laughing and fun when everyone is together.:) 

 Today we headed off to Saint Louis to see the arch a.k.a. the Gateway to the west.  This monument was completed in  1965, it is a monument to the idea of Thomas Jefferson sending Louis and Clark off on their great expedition  to explore the great frontier.  That is all well and good, but the kids couldn't believe how big it was!!!  I came here when I was five with my parents and I was so excited for the kids to experience going up in the arch, too.:)


mom, Mary, Grandpa and the kids

  The museum at the foot of the arch is great for explaining the expansion into the west of North America.  there were so many neat exhibits  for the kids ( and adults) to look at which explained how the pioneers settled the frontier and about the lives of the native Americans.  It is definitely worth checking out!!:)


Small arch inside the museum




Native American exhibit with Mom and Mary




kids and Grandpa in front of a huge buffalo




Dad and the kids:)




Jeremy touching beaver skins which the Native Americans would trap












Of  course, we had to go on the tram to go up the 630 feet to the top of the arch.  I was feeling okay about it until they said it was the original tram which was built in 1965...then, I got a little nervous.  When I went up in the arch when I was five, I wasn't as worried about all the safety issues.;)


getting ready to get on the tram:)




Yes, the elevator is really that small..only 4 -5 five people can ride in it...it is not for anyone who is claustrophobic



Mom, Dad, and the kids at the top of the arch...we made it!!!! ( It took 4 minutes to get to the top)



Old capital building




"what's out there?"




Mom and Lizzy looking out




Mighty Mississippi




Uncle Dave and Jeremy:)



yep...it's really 630 feet up!!!

Today was so fun to get to experience the arch again.  It is neat to experience the arch through a child's eyes and now through my own adult eyes.  Some things seem very different...but the excitement of getting to the top is definitely the same.:)  The kids loved it an best of all, we got to experience it with dear members of our family!:)

Countdown to Christmas

We got back to Saint Louis on Wedneaday night and the next day, Guy and I went out to an early anniversary dinner ( he heads back to Lagos on Dec.26) to celebrate our 13th wedding anniversary!!!! Holy cow??!!! Has it really been that long already??  Mom and Dad were so sweet to give us a gift certificate (and babysit) to a great steak restairant in O'Fallon called Andria's.  If you are ever here, you really need to check this place out...the steaks and prime rib are awesome!!!:) ( After being in Nigeria for almost three years, I am really beginning to appreciate a nice steak).:)

almost 13 years!!!

Lizzy had to have a pic too!:)

On Friday, we went to the see the Nutcracker at the University of Missouri.  The kids were so excited to see the characters they met last week perform on stage!:)

ready to go!!!

Yay!!! Uncle Andrew is here!!:)



front row seats for the Nutcracker!!:)  It was the kids' first ballet ever, and they did great!!!:)



Then, dinner on the hill at Giovanni's:)  This restaurant was fantastic!!  

Only pic of all of us together:)  My brothers, Andrew and Greg were able to join us for Christmas!:)

Dad and me

all the siblings together:)

rare family pic:)

Then, Christmas eve came around:)  The guys all watched football:)

the uncles and Elizabeth ready for Christmas Eve mass:)

 

oops!!  this one was from Friday.....



 

My brothers decided to get into the real Christmas Spirit and make some homemade wassail:)




I have never seen Andrew cook anything!!!!:)



And wouldn't you know it???!!! Santa showed up!!!

Jeremy was on the "nice" list!:)

after sweating it out a little bit...Lizzy was on the "nice" list, too!:)

 even I was:)

enjoying some Christmas cheer!:)



putting together an early Christmas present:)



And, finally....Christmas morning!:)

Christmas overload??!!!



We are almost at the end of another wonderful Christmas seeing our families.  It is hard to believe another year has gone by.  We wish all of our family and friends a very merry and Happy Christmas and a wonderful New year!!!:)

We Blew in!

On Monday night, we "blew in" to the Windy City!  When our plane landed in Chicago, we hit the ground running!:)  All of Guy's family was waiting for us to arrive...and it's been a whirlwind of smiles, hugs, laughing and fun. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.:)

lizzy and aunt Pin and Uncle Robert

Grandpa can't fool me!!!

coloring with Aunt Conch

They look a lot alike, I can't believe it!!!:)

going to the movies with Grandma and Grandpa

we even survived the Chipmunks!!:)

the only snow we saw in Chicago!

One of Lizzy's new gifts...a play hair dryer..she fixed everyone's hair!

the kids had tons of presents to open!!!:)

"Thank you, Grandpa!"

The princess and Bumblebee...Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!!!

We brought a little bit of Nigeria with us:)

There was even a gift for Daddy:)

Today, our newest family member, Pin, cooked ( or we all cooked) a great Korean meal on her new Korean barbeque!   It was fantastic!!:)

the spread

Uncle Robert and Aunt Pin

We had a wonderful time with everyone from Guy's side of the family.  We don't get to see each other often, but there are always a lot of laughs to be had when we are together.:)  Thanks so much for everything!  The kids had a wonderful time being spoiled by their aunts and uncle and grandparents.  I'm sure it'll be summer before you know it and we'll be blowin' back in again!:)