{ice, ice baby}

Brrr..... It's coooooold here! School is closed due to the ice. We got several inches of snow -- quickly -- and then that turned to rain/freezing rain/sleet/hail/more fun stuff. There are several inches of ice out there and lots of trees are down. We lost power for a few hours in the middle of the night, but it came back on before anyone woke up. Here's what it looks like outside:

{who said sundays were relaxing?}

It's 9:00 and we've all been awake for almost 3 hours. Gerard is done with hockey practice already. Morgan and I did our weekly grocery shopping. Gerard is going to work on some homework. I am on my second load of laundry. Now we can sit home and brace ourselves for the next winter storm that is due at any moment. Maybe then I can take a nap.

{shakin' their booties}

Gerard and Morgan dancing at the wedding:

{walking down the aisle}

Here's a quick video of the kids walking down the aisle at Elizabeth and Brandon's wedding.

{buzz}

MORGAN: Buzz Lightyear is like Grandpa Ian.
ME: Why, because they are both so strong?
MORGAN: No, because they both have no hair.

{a girl can dream....}

...can't she?



Oh, Tamron zoom, how I love you!

{hockey tournament}

I forgot to post pictures from Gerard's hockey tournament 2 weeks ago. It was a cross-ice tournament and Gerard's team won all three of their games. He was goalie for the first game and shut out the other team. To be fair, he didn't see many shots, but I was still one proud momma! You know how I feel about being the goalie's mom!

Morgan was a real trooper, hanging out with me in the stands for about 4 hours then going to dinner with sweaty hockey players and then sitting through a hockey game that night. She deserves the trophy!

{elizabeth and brandon}

This past weekend we traveled to NY for Elizabeth and Brandon's wedding. It was really nice seeing everyone again. The kids were in the wedding -- according to Morgan she was the "flower" and Gerard was the ring "bear". She had been DYING to wear her wedding dress and wedding shoes and she finally had her opportunity. Gerard wore a kilt!

Here they are at the church before the ceremony:

and walking down the aisle:

with the bride and groom and wedding party:

eating at the reception:

the toast:

the "flower":

the ring "bear":

the four of us:

Morgan with Aunt Sada:

Aunt Elizabeth and Uncle Brandon with Nani and Poppy:

cutting the cake:

Nani and her girls, Aunt Jo-Ann, Lauren and Jenny:

the four Gerards (nicely posed, and then the way they really look):

We wish Elizabeth and Brandon lots of love and happiness!

{happy valentine's day}

Well, we're back from Elizabeth's wedding and I hope to post pictures soon, but in the meantime, HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!

{Wee Deliver}

Well, the Steelers lost. What a bummer. What can ya do....

Anyway, Gerard's school has FINALLY started their Wee Deliver program. (Read about it IN THIS POST.) Since the 3rd graders are no longer at that school, the 2nd graders are running the program and they'll be sorting and delivering all the mail. If you'd like to mail anything to Gerard, e-mail me and I'll send you the address. He'd love to hear from you!

{some tidbits}

Morgan had her "star" day at school on Tuesday which meant she got to take Corduroy home again. And once again, Corduroy joined her at dance class. Here they are with Ms. Julia.

I made some more cookies for Sunday. I had better start practicing the Sabres symbol for the Stanley Cup. (Hey, a girl can dream, can't she?)

Last but not least, my parents just got back from Florida for my grandma's unveiling and for my dad's annual softball trip with the boys from Buffalo. When I told Gerard that Grandpa was playing softball in Florida he replied, "Cool! Grandpa made the travel team?!" (FYI: Their team name MOGS stands for Mostly Old Guys. Dad: Didn't that get changed to OGS?)

{snow days}

Well, the snow has come and gone. All in all we got about 15 inches or so. The worst of it came on Tuesday night so the kids had a snow day on Wednesday. It was all but done by noon on Wednesday, but they cancelled school again for Thursday because the roads weren't plowed yet. The kids had a ball and were pretty busy both days.

We baked cookies. The kids made Valentine's Day cookies and I made Steelers cookies for Sunday's game.

They played outside with all the kids in the neighborhood. Note: these kids are standing IN THE STREET. Can't you tell?

Then Gerard and some of the bigger kids when sledding into an unfinished foundation down the street. I didn't go, so I didn't get any pictures, but they were down there FOR HOURS. They went in the morning and then again after lunch and then we had to go get him before it got dark. As you may remember, Morgan is not a fan of sledding, so she opted to stay home and watch a movie.

Today was another nice day at home. Maddie, Abby and Savannah came over for lunch, Gerard did some homework, and then I took Morgan to dance class. She was thrilled to find out that dance wasn't cancelled! I was thrilled that the plow finally came down our street at about 3:00 so we could get to dance.

All in all, it was a nice few days, but I'll be doing a little happy dance tomorrow at about 8 AM when Gerard gets on the school bus. :)