When the cat's away

Everyone I talked to asked me "how I was holding up" during the time Tim was gone. Of course, I missed him for all of the obvious reasons (and a bonus reason: I was way excited for him to see how much our new dish drainer holds), but I felt more on top of things while he was away. I was terribly lonely and have no desire to be a single mom, but it's nice to have a confidence boost handling the house and kids alone.

We had a busy weekend without dad because apparently "my husband is out of town and I have two small children to keep alive" is not a good excuse for missing class (I'm looking at you, Ustaath Mustafa). On Thursday, our friend Jessica came by with her boys to meet Atticus when his bus arrived from school. I came home to three playing kids in the middle of a crazy rainstorm. A few hours later, we even had thunder. Thunder... snow. It was bizarre. Unfortunately, the warm weather did not last and Friday brought with it freezing temperatures  and wind, wind, wind. All the water accumulated from the melting snow and rainstorm left the sidewalks a slippery mess and the snow brown and depressing. Atticus went to school and came home in time for babysitter Rachel to come over while I went to Arabic class for a bit. I came home, we ate dinner and the kids played around a bit while I was lazy and didn't get the schoolwork accomplished that I needed to (of course).

While I was attempting to get some Arabic HW done, the kids decided to throw flour everywhere. I then realized just how cheap our vacuum cleaner really is.

Saturday was a farmer's market at FUS with a delicious locally-sourced breakfast and crafts for the kids. We almost didn't go but Atticus wanted to get out of the house, which is weird for him so I went with it. We decided to make a day out of it, and hopped on the bus downtown to the International Festival at the Overture Center. We went to three shows including a Lithuanian dance, a Scottish dance, and a Afro-Caribbean duet. We ate lunch (polish kielbasas and tacos) watching a bluegrass band. After three hours at the Overture Center, we headed to the central library. It is a perfect space for kids to roam and there is plenty to keep them occupied, though my kids would stay perfectly content with just the books.

20 degrees and the sun is shining! We wandered up to FUS collecting sticks for an hour.

Atticus walked so slowly Tallulah fell asleep on the way there. At 9:30 am.
(this stroller bunting bag was a great purchase)

Afro-Caribbean duet. The kids loved this the most.

As luck would have it, we ran into our former neighbors who now live up in University Houses, and they have a minivan! Instead of taking the bus home, they took us home and it was the perfect ending to an exhausting day. We got home, ate microwaved baked potatoes for dinner, and went over to our South African friend's house to pick up some things they are leaving behind when they move back. The kids both fell asleep on the way home, though Atticus woke up on the way inside and insisted he was NOT tired so we read an American Girl book until he passed out. I got a little choked up when Marta dies of cholera...

Sunday was FUS and playtime with Donovan on the playground after. The two boys had a great time and did not seem to mind the cold and ice. Lulah fell asleep on the way home and we had a nice afternoon of quesadillas and Magic Tree House. The kids also did all of the dishes for me (minus sharp knives). Atticus did a decent job scrubbing, there were only a few items (the pancake batter bowl) that needed a quick do-over by me.

Potty-training Lu = no pants, ever.

Tim arrived home just in time for yet another week of tundra-like conditions. My top fantasy these days involves walking outside without ten minutes of dressing. The kids wear two shirts + sweater + coat on top and tights + fleece-lined jeans + snow pants on bottom, gloves, hat, and boots. I (and everyone else in Madison) am so. over. this. winter.