Ides of March

March began somewhat ominously with Norah coming down with the flu the first week, and then Justin and I catching it by the second. We were all miserable, and since babies take longer to get back to normal, the first two and a half weeks of the month were anything but fun. Things started looking up when, towards the middle of the month, my parents, brother and sister came in from out of town to visit during their spring break. While here they helped in crossing a bunch of things off our "to do" list, which included:

1. Fix a lamp that was broken 3 years ago. My dad is great at fixing electrical things, so this was right up his ally. This way we didn't have to go out and buy another one, and now we have more light in our dining room!
2. Childproof the kitchen and bathrooms. My brother Phillip helped accomplish this much needed task as Norah has been getting into everything!
3. Replace a ceiling fan that was about to fall down on our heads. Dad and Jeff worked on switching out the original fan as it had been improperly installed and was hanging by a wire. Literally. We now have a fan that has been installed correctly!
4. Replace electrical outlets throughout the house so that now we can actually use our outlets! What a crazy concept. It's wonderful to have things finally working thanks to Dad and Russell.
5. Go on a date. My parents babysat for us so that we could go on our first date since Justin was born. Up until now we had no opportunity to utilize a gift certificate my relatives out in California had provided us with months ago, and then we headed to a movie. It was strange not to have the babies with us, but we enjoyed ourselves immensely. It was a much needed chance for Jeff and I to refocus on ourselves....and completely taste our food.

Alyssa has been wanting to get more experience with babysitting, so she helped out a great deal with Norah and Justin. Norah loves her Aunt Alyssa (whom she calls Lyssie) and followed her everywhere. I would come out in the morning and find the two of them curled up on the couch, snacking on grapes and watching Jungle Book. She would help with meal time and bath time and any other time in between. She kept me company while I worked on laundry, dishes, and even helped with dinner. I think we wore her out, but we appreciate all the help she gave us!

We also spent one afternoon at their hotel pool playing. Norah was not as excited as she normally is when it comes to swimming and spent most of the time in her grandma's lap, trying to get Justin out of water. Justin loved it and was upset with us for taking him out. He was kicking like a dolphin, splashing enthusiastically, and couldn't have cared less when his face got wet!

We had a wonderful time and can't thank everyone enough for all the help they provided. It's always fun to get to spend time with them, but even better when we can accomplish tasks, eat awesome meals and go swimming.

Thank you so much!