Fresh snow on the car was a perfect slate for…you decide. Vandals or a message from my favorite celebrity?

Heat lamps at the armitage el station, street in morning and some footprints in the snow.

Miles and Will were promoted to blue belts in karate.on Saturday! Way to go! Other test news this week is Liam has final exams. Good luck, Liam!

Miles slipped on the playground at school minutes before I got there to pick him up yesterday. He cut his chin and was in the office getting it wrapped up by the extremely proficient school secretary when I got there. “He needs stitches,” she said, and since she’s always right off we went to the hospital. Several hours later super brave miles got 3 stitches in his chin. He wasn’t in pain at any point, though this morning he said that it hurts to smile. And he’s disappointed that he isn’t allowed to wrestle with liam for a few days.…

This whole town has the winter shoe blues. At miles’s karate today I noticed these small silver pans on the floor by the shoe racks (no shoes allowed in the dojo). They are to catch all the little streams of water that flow from the shelves as snow melts off the shoes. The inside of our car is positively squishy with melted snow. Ick.

Readers may be familiar with a holiday tradition around here: the ultimate brunch gathering of a group of Jayhawks and their loved ones. While on a Chicago holiday visit from Denver, Eric, Amber, Will and Ben made their way from Palatine to Humboldt Park for the brunch, and Chicago residents Annette and Dave came over from Roscoe Village. The buffet-style brunch included chili with Annette’s delicious cornbread, Alaska smoked salmon (thank you, Debbie!), and two types of pierogi, homemade in Palatine. We love pierogi! Miles got out his whole hex bug collection to show Will and Ben, and they also…

We had a great time with friends eric, amber, will and ben in denver! Mmmmmm delicious lentil soup and great company. Also while in denver we checked out the art museum and the nature & science museum. Both museums are worth paying a visit (and tut tut to anyone who says otherwise!)

The winter storm rolled out of the area last night and we had clear skies and lots of visibility for our last day of skiing. Miles had lesson #4 with gary (who changed his name to gorilla) and liam, john and I tried a black slope and explored trails through the trees. Fun!