February

Since it's officially February, I can officially say I survived the January Blues! Thank you all for your emails, comments, prayers and concern. I AM FINE. REALLY.

The weather has already changed for the better and the days feel a little longer. It's still super cold but when the cold is not soggy everyday, it's no bother! We really do appreciate the nice days a little more.

One of the reasons that I did not post again for so long is that Scott was away for 2 1/2 weeks travelling and I was in Mommy Survival Mode (not just January Survival Mode!). I am happy to report, he is home, his trips were productive and we are all well. (just FYI he went to Dubai, Abu Duabi, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Bangkok and Madrid!)

We are having a great weekend with Scott home. Yesterday, Scott took Christopher skiing at the indoor ski slope. We are headed to Austria to ski in 2 weeks and Captain Cautious Christopher, was feeling a little apprehensive. Scott wanted to take him one on one to remind him that he's a great skier with terrific control. They had a blast! Charlie and I headed to Edinburgh to watch Ethan's Rugby Match. I must say (even if I am a little biased) he is really good at that game! He loves it. He has no fear. Every time I looked up yesterday, he was in the scrum or taking down one of his opponents. This is not a game for tentative boys. They played well and won their match, 5-2. Notice the SUN in the pictures!

Notice he is on the outside of this scrum. I can't seem to lift my camera when he is in the thick of it because I am usually holding my breath to see him get up, get out of the middle or whatever the situation might be! But this gives you an idea of the physicality of the sport. They wear meadl studs (cleats) people. Again, not a game for the tenative. Those things leave a mark!

I just love to watch this game. Even though it's super rough and I worry about him getting hurt, I am fascinated by it and I want to learn the rules. I am still asking lots of questions to figure it out. Rugby has the pace of Basketball because the ball is always in play and is forever changing hands and directions. Ethan said it was GREAT FUN.

Yesterday afternoon, we headed to the Asian supermarket for ingredients to cook something from my new Wagamama cookbooks. (Remember, this is one of our favorite restaurants here. it's a Japanese Noodle house that serves fast, healthy, yummy food. The boys gave me their t-shirt and cookbooks for Christmas.) The market is an adventure itself with live seafood (even eels) and all kinds of things on the shelf that are unfamiliar. We bought all of our ingredients and a few more and then headed home to start our culinary adventure. With Scott and Ethan's help, I am happy to say that we were able to duplicate our favorite dish, Chili Chicken Ramen. Boy was it tasty!

We're off today to church, more Rugby, and then coffee and a cake with our babysitter and her mom! Life is GOOD!