The traveler that I once was...

has been replaced by the mom that I now am... And to be honest, I wouldn't have it any other way. However, I do miss the sand between my toes and the warmth of the sun in the middle of the long Iowa winters.... So, Matt and I decided to take the plunge and leave the kids (for the first time since Katherine's birth) and get away -- just the two of us. We were originally thinking a week in Hawaii or a cruise sounded like a fabulous idea, but things went down hill on my birthday. We went out for a nice dinner, had a great adult conversation, and fabulous drinks. At the end of the night, we looked at each other and both agreed that leaving for an entire week was out of the question. So we are going to turn it into a long weekend -- Wednesday to Sunday. We are leaving Feb 7th, and as of today, I have no plane tickets bought, no hotel booked -- actually, no destination picked out... I'm dragging my feet. My goal for the week is just to book something, and somewhere warm. If anyone has a great idea, let me know.

We spent most of yesterday recovering from the New Year's Eve party. It was a blast. Katherine and 5 other kids actually made it until 1:30. At the end of the night, her and I were sitting on the couch, and I said, "Katherine, honey, do you think you could carry Mommy home"? She thought for a second, and said in her sweet little voice, "Probably not Mommy, but I can hold you hand". Boy do I love that girl. She is the sweetest thing on earth (besides her brother). If I could bottle her up and keep her this age forever, I would...

For the first time this year we got a little bit of snow to stick on the ground. So Katherine got all bundled up and her and Matt made a snowman (which she named Frosty -- I know, I'm raising her to be REALLY original!! LOL) and made snow angels. She looked like one puffy pink marshmallow! She had an absolute blast!!

You're never going to believe this.... Last summer sometime, I had to cut Katherine's toenail. It was too long and had some dirt substance lurking beneath. She was really resisting, so I was trying to calmly talk her letting me cut her toe nail. Finally, I jokingly told her that there was so much dirt under her nail, a plant could grow. Fast forward to last night...... I'm getting ready for bed and Katherine tells me that she needs a band-aid. When I ask her what for, she says, "Look at this, Mommy" and gives me the finger -- literally. She had pulled her fingernail off because she "didn't want a plant".... OMG. This girl doesn't miss a trick. I was laughing to the point of tears. Tiffany, my neighbor who has her masters in education, tells me that you have to repeat something seven times before a child remembers. Not my child!!

Caleb this morning was so sweet. We were playing in the living room before Katherine woke up and he comes up to me and sits on my lap, yells "kiss" and puts his chubby little hands on my cheeks and gives me a wet, slobbery, loving kiss.

I feel blessed beyond measure. See, this is why the thought of leaving them for a whole week makes my heart hurt. Not sure I can do it.....