I've been lazy

So, I just realized that the last time I blogged was back in February. I really have no excuse. My girls are both in school leaving me 3 days to get things done. I need to get a better system going around here.

Since February we've been keeping quite busy. We decided to take the girls to Toronto Canada for spring break. Rob and I have never been so we thought we'd make it a family trip. We were brave road warriors and decided to drive the 8 hours (which really ended up taking 10!). Other than the occassional "stop slapping me Chloe" and the "get your suck fingers out of my face" It was definitely worth the trip. We had a lot of fun exploring the city of Toronto and the people were very friendly there. It reminded me of Chicago because they are along Lake Ontario which they refer to as the Harbour Front. We were able to explore this city and do all the sightseeing it had to offer. Of course, by the end of the trip we asked the girls what was the best memory and they said it was swimming in the hotel. If I would've known that earlier I would've said "screw the 8 hour drive, we'll book a hotel downtown that's 2 minutes away with a pool and call it a spring break vacay" Lesson learned.

We also made a quick pitstop over to Niagra Falls. It was beautiful. The weather was gorgeous and the falls was really quite amazing. Once I got over my fear of bridges we were able to cross over to the Canadian side and enjoy the view.

Sonoma Valley, CA

Wedding Party

Mary, Steve and Mom and Dad Pace

Sonoma Valley, CA

Mary and Steve's August Wedding

Leslie (Robert's sister), Bruce, Abby and Griffin

Mary, Steve, Kayla and Kelsey

Scott (Robert's brother), Paige, Pierce and Sloane

Mark (Robert's twin brother), Grace, Morganne,

Camille, Weston and Davin

My sister-in-law Mary got married back in August in beautiful Sonoma Valley, CA. The wedding was absolutely gorgeous. There's nothing quite like wine country. We were able to rent a house on top of this hill overlooking the vineyards. What a great escape from the hustle and bustle of the city.

It was also a great opportunity to spend some quality time with the Pace side. We are all spread throughout the states from Chicago, to Florida, Colorado, California and Washington! It's not often we get a chance to all be together so this was a great trip this past summer.

"Annie"

This past weekend Chloe and I were able to go see "Annie" on broadway. What a great show! We dragged my sister Patty along because I'm sure she would want all of you to know this but when she was 5 she would watch Annie everyday. No kidding. I thought taking her with would bring her full circle with Annie:>) I can't believe how talented those little girls are in the show. What a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon with Chloe.

Oh yeah, I just realized the purse I'm carrying is as big as me!

Do we look alike?

Okay, I totally feel like my girls look nothing like me. I have black hair, Chloe has brown,

I have brown eyes, Chloe has hazel, I have medium skin, Chloe has fair, I am a shorty and Chloe will be taller than me by the time she hits 10. Not to mention I always get asked "are they yours". Of course they are mine fool! Haven't you ever seen Amer-Asian kids before? I know I look young but I'm not 19!

Anyway, I look at pictures of the girls and they are getting soo big! I wish that I could just stop time. I told Ava the other day that I was sorry to inform her but she will not be having a birthday this year and she will have to stay 4. She said "okay mommy" Is that wrong of me? I just don't want her to grow up ever! I think I need to learn to let go...what do you think?

Oh yeah, shout out to my hubby for getting me a new camera for Christmas. I hope I'm better at posting pictures this year!

Christmas in Chicago

This year we decided to stay in Chicago for the holidays. It ended up being a good idea since we will be moving Jan. 31st. Keep your fingers crossed on that one. We really enjoy being in town because the city has soo much to offer during Christmas. The Hancock lights are red and green (we have a great view of that right out our front room), Macy's store front windows are decked out for Christmas, Christkindlmarket at Daley Plaza and who can forget our favorite the Museum of Science and Industry "Christmas trees around the world" display. We have made it our tradition to go every year and it always puts us in the Christmas spirit.

Our girls have been out of school and have another week at home with me. We are keeping busy with play dates, visiting museums, baking lots of cookies, movies and of course along with spending 24/7 with each other comes the regular fighting, screaming and pulling of hair. It's like WWF smackdown here. I know the girls are fighting when I hear from the other room someone shouting out "you little nasty" not sure where that one came from. They share a love/hate relationship but really it's love most of the time.

We spent Christmas eve here and decided to spend Christmas day with my family out in the suburbs. Robert worked on Christmas eve and we picked him up 1/2 a day and headed down to Hyde Park to the Museum of Science and Industry. We love going to the Christmas tree display every year. Such an amazing sight to see all the trees from around the world. It reminds me that Christmas is a holiday celebrated around the world. Everyone has their own culture and tradition but we all come together on that very special day. After that we had it all planned out to have dinner at Smith and Wollensky's for Christmas Eve but somehow we ended up at Rock 'n Roll McDonald's. At least that's a memory that will be treasured :>)

Christmas was spent with my family in the suburbs. We missed my sister Jean who is on a Russian Riveria cruise with her husband and my sister Dee who spent the holiday's in Wisconsin this year. We were able to spend some time with my parents and my brother John, my sister Patty and her boyfriend Ben. I am soo thankful to be near family and feel very lucky to have them so close. As this year will soon come to an end, I pause for a moment and reflect on all the many blessings in my life. I am grateful each day for all that I have and I feel truly blessed to be surrounded by wonderful family and friends. Cheers to a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!!!!