January 2010….it’s stinkin’ cold!

So I’ve always said I want to move to Canada. No one hates Canadians, right? Plus their cool, dry summers sound like a good deal weatherwise. But now I’m thinking maybe we should just buy a home in Canada for our summers and also a house in Florida for the winters. I don’t’ care if I was born and raised in the fields of IL, I’m certainly not attached to the weather around here. Trying to get chores done outside when the wind is blowing and the thermometer says 4 degrees is not my idea of a good time! Sure wish the cold air would have stayed further north the past couple of weeks. The furnace is working overtime and we’re hearing a lot of Nate mumbling to himself about how cold the house is. I think he’s glad to be back at work where it’s warm.

Other than the extreme freeze we’re experiencing, 2010 has entered the household with a bang. Christmas break was pretty restful. Christmas Eve was spent at St. Mary’s (Nate’s home parish) and we enjoyed Fr. Luke as the celebrant. Christmas day the kids let us sleep in until 8:00 and we ripped through the presents and then headed down to my grandma’s for lunch and more presents. After surviving a lot of people in one small, unbaby-proofed house, we then headed home for some naps and then my Christmas supper and presents with my parents that evening. Needless to say, Christmas day is always exhausting but we survived until bedtime and then enjoyed the rest of the weekend enjoying each other and playing with our new things.

New Years Even was quite a blast. For the first time in I don’t know how many years Nate and I actually stayed up to bring in 2010 with his extended family at his parent’s house. It was great fun spending time with all the cousins playing card games, eating, and getting a conversation in without interruption from kids! Definetly something the family should do every year!

Nate’s brother and sister were able to make it back home for the holidays and it was so much fun for us and the kids spending time with them. Not sure when we’re going to see Andrew again but Erin will be back periodically during some of her school breaks. Everyone misses having them around for sure.

Nate’s mission the past few days has been to figure out how we can add on more space to our house for not much $. Our main man Luis the architect came over and told us what we can and can’t do with our current house. We’re mainly looking to expand the living area/dining room so we can seat more people comfortably and add another bedroom and couple of bathrooms to accommodate 2 kids in each room and maybe some type of game room/fun area over the garage. Not to mention that we need all new windows, insulation, siding, plumbing, septic system…all that cheap stuff 🙂 Right now the plan is to start on this addition in two years.