Pictures can lie

Don't believe everything you see in photos.

Despite the appearance of wintry family fun, this snow day excursion lasted only about a half-hour before Cary started whining incessantly that he was "coooooooold!"

Clair actually did enjoy the snow - eating it.

Re-purposing beach toys!

The wildlings are climbing the wall!

Despite Dean's sudden interest in my "crown books," he actually isn't quite ready to read "Game of Thrones."

This is how we found him this morning, after Lester came in to wake the boys up for school.

 Despite what Lester says, my eldest child does not look like Bruno Mars:

Similar hair maybe. But Bruno has way more coordination.

Despite Dean's severe side-eye at his friend Marcus, he actually was really jump-up-and-down excited that they both were wearing the same Batman pajamas for "Pajama Day" at school.

Not sure where Dean learned how to give such exemplary side-eye. Ahem.

See? Best Batman buds... (this photo you can believe!)

Showing my love with a green smoothie

Even though we couldn't readily see any evidence of the "mouth" part of Dean's hand, foot and mouth disease, our doctor could see postules forming in our baby boy's mouth and said his throat looked like it was raging. He said he was surprised Dean wasn't complaining that his throat was killing him.

And when friends told us about other kids who'd had HFM (thanks, LauraC for the shorthand) and had trouble eating or drinking, I worried about Dean. Maybe his recent (somewhat) loss of appetite  was because his mouth/throat was hurting him. Maybe he was STARVING!

So I did what I do best. I shopped!

I went to the grocery store after work to purchase the ingredients to make my version of a green smoothie. I figured a smoothie would be good for him because it is cool, easy to swallow, tasty and chock full of healthy stuff.

A snowstorm had just started brewing when I left the office, which usually means mayhem and mass consumption in the area grocery stores. But the grocery store on my way home is in the middle of the city, not the yuppie or hipster part, but the city-city part, so I was really surprised to get there and find that there was not a bag of fresh spinach to be found. The salad aisle was completely empty. Who buys up all the spinach, kale and spring mixes in a snowstorm? Wonders never cease.

So I had to buy frozen spinach, which was a bit of a bummer. But other than that, I was pretty happy with what I was able to pull together.

Here's what in it:

• Spinach
• Frozen fruit (mangoes, pineapple, strawberries, grapes, raspberries and blueberries)
• Plain Greek yogurt (and then one small peach yogurt cup from TJ's for a little added sweetness)
• A banana
• A little applesauce
• Two heaping scoops of vanilla ice cream
• Milk (to help with the blending process)

It turned out really, really good! And it's almost all non-acidic stuff (because I used milk and not orange juice or pineapple juice as a blending agent) so it should, in theory, not bother his mouth at all when he drinks it. And it was easy! I'm a green smoothie convert!

All the kids loved, loved it, but because nothing can ever go the way you envision it (new parents, write that down) Cary was the one who tried to inhale it like it was going out of style, and Dean lost interest when he realized I was essentially giving them treats, and so started whining for all manner of snacks to eat. And Lester probably drank the most of it.

Such is life.

Of course, post snowfall here, today's temperature has been around 13 to 17 degrees, with a wind chill that makes it feel closer to 5 to 10. So instead of ice cold smoothies, what I should be making for Dean is a nice hot soup, jam-packed with veggies and wheat germ or something.

But one step at a time, people. One step at a time.

"Snow" Day

The weather forecasters scared the living daylights out of everyone in the DMV this week about a storm that was supposed to hit yesterday, "burying" us under 6-10 inches of wet, heavy snow.

When I woke up in the morning yesterday, schools were closed, the federal government was closed, people were canceling meetings and my boys got so excited they ran and did this:

That's their snowboots on, over their footie pajamas. As they sit on my bed, watching "Yo Gabba Gabba!" With their snowboots on.

"Maybe later, when MiMi comes," I told them, because, despite the boys' earnest preparation, the Snowmergency hadn't started yet. There was nothing but a light dusting on the lawn and on the cars, and a lot of rain.

The meteorologists were still predicting a veritable blizzard, but I decided to go in to the office to get some work done that really required me to be at my desk, and not reclining with my bootleg laptop, in my PJs.

And all day long -- alllllll day long -- this is what it looked like outside my office door:

That's our minivan! And the skyline shot is one that is VERY Baltimore.

 See all that snow?!?!?!

No?

That's because there WASN'T ANY. Not even a flake. All day.

Poor kids.

The good news is, I anticipated that the weatherpeople were full of it and that the boys' exciting, fun-filled "snow day" would end up being a "no day," so I went to the store yesterday morning and bought Pillsbury Slice 'n Bake chocolate chip cookies for Michelle to make for them.

Because all good snow days need warm chocolate chip cookies. Even when there's not actually any snow.

Post-Christmas photo post

Merry Christmas all!!!!

I just ran into work to fill out and fax my Flex spending forms (yes, I am still old school and use the fax machine). So I thought -- while I wait to get the confirmation that my forms have been received -- I'll catch up on reading friends' blogs and post a few pics from our lovely, lovely holiday.

Christmas Eve was so, so great. Lester took the boys to the Symphony of Lights (which they LOVED), and when they got home, they got into their PJs and had hot cocoa and cookies. 

Then we left cookies out for Santa (who is lactose intolerant, apparently).

Even though Clair fell asleep while the boys and Lester were on their way home from the Symphony of Lights, I managed to coax a sleepy pic out of her under the tree. I didn't get a Christmas Eve pic of all three of them, though, so that's a bummer.

She was SO tired, but she gave me a tiny little smile.

Handsome boys! Can you believe this is Christmas No. 3 for them?

In the morning, when the boys woke up, they came toddling into our room. We asked them, with great excitement: "Did Santa come?!" And they both shrugged and said, "No. He didn't." LOL.

So we had to tell them that you actually have to go downstairs and look under the tree. So off they scampered, and when they got to the middle of the stairs, Dean yelled, "Yes he did! He did come! Santa did come and he brought presents!" It was the cutest thing.

The boys got a kick out of Santa's bitemark.

Santa brought the boys Lincoln Logs and "professional people" for them to play with, lots of books, tin drums and stethoscopes. They really loved everything, but the drums were a huge hit. They marched around the house saying, "Marching band! Marching band!"

Dean is so serious about his music, yo.

Mommy and Daddy brought them cute little bath towels -- a green Dino for Cary and a blue sea creature for Dean. These were also a big hit. They clamor for bathtime so they can use them!

Clair's first ever Christmas present: Nesting blocks. She preferred the paper.

These two are twins, I swear.

We spent the morning reading and playing ...

Elephant and Piggie! Big hits! Also favorites: "A Sick Day for Amos McGee" and "Leonardo the Terrible Monster."  I think the book in my hands, though, is "I'll Teach My Dog 100 Words."

And then it was time for a nap, because Mommy and Daddy had to cook and get the house ready for dinner. Somehow, we talked ourselves into hosting Christmas dinner at our house for 11 people (16 if you count us!) Aye-yi-yi!

It actually turned out really nice. My sisters and their kids came, and so did my fabulous parents. Dad fell asleep on my floor. LOL.

Santa White and Mrs. Santa White

Clair was absolutely picture-perfect adorable in the dress that Lester picked out for her.

Seriously, doesn't she look like a Sugar Plum fairy?

And the boys had a blast running around with their cousins and performing a Christmas medley (Jingle Bells and We Miss You a Merry Christmas) for Nana and Granddad.

Nana built them a log cabin, and thank God she did, because Lester and I have no clue how to make those danged Lincoln logs work. How did Ma and Pa and Laura Ingalls do it?? Forreals. I could not have been a pioneer. We'd have been homeless.

These are two of the 12 "professional people" -- a farmer and a construction worker. The construction worker's a woman! And the doctor is too. And she's black! Love this set!!

Aunt Kadija bought Cary and Dean $2 Pez dispensers and they were hands-down the thing they were most excited about!  Everyone browbeat me into letting them eat two packs of that darn candy, so they were WIRED. I honestly have never seen them that bounce-off-the-walls energetic.

Dean was gregarious as ever, cracking everyone up, and Cary was right behind him, but we noticed that he was not quite himself. Both boys stayed up until 11 p.m.!! Craziness!

The next day, it snowed. It was freezing, but so beautiful, the boys just had to get out in it. So out they went to explore. Despite being frozen from head to toe, Lester had to drag them inside for a nap. They absolutely love, loved, loved playing in the snow.

"And after breakfast they went out together into the deep, deep snow." OK, the snow is not that deep. But this picture reminds me of Ezra Jack Keats' "The Snowy Day."

Back inside, though, Cary continued to be lethargic and cranky, and extremely moody. We both noted that he had been saying, on occasion, "I can't hear you," or "I can't hear Dean." So we made a doctor's appointment.

Turns out, my poor Carykins had a double ear infection! And a popped eardrum! No wonder he wasn't himself. Awwww. But he's on his meds now and is healing up well. I feel so bad for my sweetie. We had no idea.

We've got a few more days left of vacation and we're heading to New York for a few days a week from today. So I don't know when I'll get the chance to blog again.

Soooo -- happy holidays to all!! What a glorious time of the year!  LOVE it!