Snow/Ice Day
We had a snow day last week for about 9 inches of snow and a lot of ice. Eric said he was more excited as an instructor than he was as a student to have a day off. We went on a skiing adventure around the neighborhood. I've become soft and cold-averse and so I was happy when most of it melted yesterday. Here are some pictures...

Obama Inauguration Part 2: Movie of the crowd
I figured out how to shorten one of our clips to share. Here is the end of the presidential oath and the cheering crowd. Eric goes a little spin-crazy with the camera but you can still get a feel for the number of people.

Inauguration 2009
I've been waiting to post these pictures in hope that Eric will add the commentary. He was out in the cold waiting in line earlier in the morning and met some awesome people. But as it has almost been a week I'll post the photos and hope that he can add comments later.
We were incredibly fortunate to attend the inauguration in DC. Our friends the McArthurs were given tickets and they shared with us.

The short story is that we (mostly Eric and Ted) waited in line for security for our section for over 4 hours and when it was evident that we were not going to get into our ticketed section in time we left the line in search of a place where we could watch on a jumbotron. Another section farther back on the mall was also having difficulties getting people through security fast enough and shortly after the ceremony started they took down the security for this section and let anyone in. We found a great spot where we could see and hear. I didn't realize until I saw pictures from the sky how many people we shared this moment with. 1.8 million packed along the 2 miles between the capital and Lincoln memorial is just crazy.
I really can't describe the emotions of the day. I think this is something that will take time to realize. I'm very humbled to be a part of it though. When I figure out how to use iMovie I'll post a video clip of all the people around us. It is very moving to see so many different people gathered together with so much joy and hope for the future. We even had nuns on one side of us!
After the inauguration we walked behind the capital to get to the metro. We happened to walk by just as the Bushes were leaving. We watched Executive One take off with the Bidens and Obamas waving goodbye.

Cadie and Kai stayed warm at the McArthur's home with a babysitter.

What a great day for this nation and the world. We pray that our new president will be guided as he leads this country.

Kitchen Help
Now if I can just teach her to do dishes!

Stud and his wife
Today is our 10 year wedding anniversary! Holy cow!
I don't have any digital wedding photos to share... but here are some new and old photos to celebrate.
This is crazy Eric preparing for his bike commute in Columbus on the coldest day of 2008:

And here is giddy Eric trying to keep his eyes open at the hospital just over a year ago:

What a stud!
Here is one of us in Hawaii a couple of years ago:

And the oldest digital photo I could find of the two of us - kayaking in Maine 2003:

Santa?

WARNING: if you are under 10 years old PLEASE do not read this post. It is really boring. I promise.
I'm taking a cue from my friend Kara B and throwing up a post that I hope will promote some discussion (maybe controversial?). I really would like to hear your opinions on this matter.
With Christmas coming up we have had many adults ask Cadie what Santa is bringing her and if she has been a good girl this year. Although she has no idea what they are talking about (she is 13 months old!) this is starting to worry me. Why so much Santa? Wouldn't it be great if we didn't have to deal with Santa at all?
I've started to think seriously about a Santa-free Christmas. But how to do this?
I have no problem explaining to Cadie that Santa represents the spirit of giving, the biggest roadblock that I see is how to keep her from explaining that to others kids.
So there you go - has anyone done this? Any suggestions? Am I totally crazy? Is it impossible?

My Little Monkey
Cadie picked up the sign for "monkey" this week. It is hilarious! For her birthday she got a stuffed monkey that she likes to wrestle with because it makes funny sounds. She kept calling it a dog (doing the dog sign) and we would correct her with the sign for monkey. Sunday she busted out the monkey sign and won't stop. Anything that she doesn't know the sign for is now a monkey. This morning I entered her room and she was running back and forth in her crib signing "monkey" and making monkey sounds. Eric and I both started laughing.
We started signing to Cadie at about 8 months and she picked up a few basic signs but wasn't totally into it. This past month though it seems she has really taken off. It is great to be able to communicate with her!
My favorite example of how great baby sign language can be is this story: We had been showing Cadie the sign for "bed" for a couple weeks every time we put her in her crib. One day I was sitting on the couch watching her play and she stopped, crawled into my lap and did the sign for "milk" and then the sign for "bed." I knew exactly what she wanted - no tantrums or waiting for fussy/cranky mode to kick in. It was time for a nap!
Here is the monkey sign (and the monkey wrestle) caught on video:

Turkey Day in Chicago
Thanks to the Brooks for a fun weekend in the windy city! Loved the food, loved the city, loved the lights at the zoo, and loved being with good friends. Cadie loved following McKinley everywhere.