Vacation Hoops

Grandpa Groen didn't think twice about nailing this hoop to his living room wall, and Douwe puts any spherical object he can find into it. Jeff is glad to see Douwe take interest in his own favorite form of ballplay. Cousin Charlie spent a lot of time teaching Douwe how to slam dunk.

Merry Christmas!

THE LAMB
Little Lamb, who made thee?
Dost thou know who made thee?
Gave thee life & bid thee feed,
By the stream & o'er the mead;
Gave thee clothing of delight,
Softest clothing, wooly, bright;
Gave thee such a tender voice,
Making all the vales rejoice?

Little lamb, who made thee?
Dost thou know who made thee?


Little Lamb, I'll tell thee,
Little Lamb, I'll tell thee;
He is called by thy name,
For he calls himself a Lamb.
He is meek & he is mild;
He became a little child.
I a child & thou a lamb.
We are called by his name.

Little Lamb, God bless thee!
Little Lamb, God bless thee!

William Blake (1757-1827)

Pizzeria Groen-O

Jeff has been working on perfecting a homemade Chicago style pan pizza, inspired by a secret recipe from his friend Chad. We have been paying special attention to the contruction and flavor of deep dish pies at Sanfrantello's, Lou Malnati's and Pizzeria Uno. After a few tweaks with the dough prep, ingredient order, and sauce liquidity . . .he should be proud of his efforts.

On the evening of Christmas Day, Jeff put out a pair of pies that easily rivals any of our favorite Windy City products.
Now I'm going to try to contribute to the Pizzeria Groen-O experience with creating an antipasto salad that is as zesty, cold and satisfying as Aurelio's.

Visit with Steve

Steve's mom lets us invite Steve for some time with us about once a month, so today we had Steve spend the afternoon to play games. Fred and Anthony, his friends from the school by our house, came and filmed their own Lego star wars video and played games.

Field Trips

Douwe has taken a few field trips to Chicago's South Loop, where there is a play area called Room 2 Play set up for caregivers and kids to spend winter days indoors, but out of the house. This we find to be nicer for toddlers than a museum , because it is one room and Douwe can play pretty independently and look up and see me from anywhere in the space. It is beautiful and inviting and inspiring to be in such a place that is friendly and welcoming to curious little ones! We purchased a punch card good for 15 visits so we hope to come back often.

Eight years!

We spent an overnight this past weekend in the city to celebrate 8 years since our wedding day. This photo is in the courtyard of the church where we were married. The weather was cold and snowy and the streets were bustling with holiday shoppers, just like December 9, 2000.

Snow Adventures

I got this picture in the first minute I set Douwe in the snow. Before long, while I was shoveling the walks, he cried because he didn't like the snow, the snowsuit or anything about this outdoor excursion. After 10 minutes he tried following me down a slippery walk and fell and scraped his cheek on the ice. Even though it was still early morning, he promptly took a snooze when we went inside, probably to forget the whole unpleasant event.