Category Archives: Locals

Jan 9

Afternoon at the Park

As Thade was leaving preschool today, his best friend’s Mom asked if we were planning on going to the park this afternoon… I thought that sounded like a great idea, and the weather was perfect for the kiddos to spend an afternoon out of the house. We decided to meet after lunch, and Thade and Dylan couldn’t wait to go!

All of the boys had a blast playing in the park and enjoying the unseasonably warm weather. Dylan was a little tired after spending the afternoon at the park, so I bet he takes an extra long nap today.

Jan 8

Monday’s at Ziggie’s

We have a new family tradition on Monday nights, and this is one that I am super happy about. When James comes home from work we gather up the kids, and then we are off to our new favorite restaurant Ziggie’s Cafe for dinner.

Ziggie’s Cafe opened recently, and the food is amazing. You can get breakfast anytime of the day, or night, and on Monday nights kids 12 and under get dinner for free. You do have to purchase an adult meal for every free kids meal, but it is well worth it!

My kids love their pancakes, and they are thrilled when they get to have Ziggie’s Cafe pancakes for dinner.

So far I’ve tried their Pork Chops and Pork Tenderloin, and both were so tasty. James loves their Club Sandwiches. By the time dinner is over we are too stuffed for dessert. I hope to one day go to Ziggie’s Cafe for Cheesecake and Coffee, maybe for a girl’s afternoon out… Their pies look pretty good too.

One of my favorite things about Ziggie’s Cafe is their itty bitty packets of Domino Sugar.

Domino Sugar is my favorite kind of sugar to cook with, and I was tickled with the notion of  tiny packets of Domino Sugar for coffee… I know it is silly, but it is the little things that make me happy.

We all are enjoying this new family tradition, and I’m enjoying the break from the kitchen. I can’t wait for next Monday!

Dec 15

Here Comes the Ice

Last night we were watching the weather closely, and hoping that it wouldn’t get too bad. Thade really wanted to go to our Church’s Christmas Program, and while we were getting ready to go the bad weather was way west of us. I bundled up the kiddos and we went to the program, James was going to call if the weather was starting to get worse.

The Christmas Program was a lot of fun, and both boys enjoyed all of the music. Thade was really excited, at the end of the program the Youth Pastor had all of the kiddos in the audience Preschool to High School age raise their hands so they could receive a treat bag full of candy. Thade was jumping up and down and shouting “I’m a preschooler, I love candy!” Then my phone rang…

James said that the weather was getting bad, and turning worse quickly. The winds were picking up again, and icy conditions were already on the way. I got all of the coats and hats on the kiddos and we were making our way outdoors, and then we heard something that we usually don’t hear in December, thunder… There were loud claps of thunder and bright flashes of lightning, the winds were blowing fast, all while tiny hail-like sleet fell. I carried Dylan and held on to Thade’s hand and we ventured outdoors in the bad weather. Dylan screamed as the tiny, stinging hail hit us, and Thade ran as quickly as he could.

We made it to the car, and we were all freezing. Earlier in the day the weather was warm and sunny, we even went outdoors and played. By nightfall it was a whole other story, the strong winds had blown in a cold front, which collided with the warm front, and it brought along freezing temps, and thunder sleet. We slowly made our way home on the icy streets, as the thunder and lightning continued. Both of the kiddos were really nervous, it is so rare that we get thunder and lightning in December.

I was hoping that the schools would be canceled today, but it just wasn’t icy enough out there. It is still awfully cold though, and I’ve got a frozen Hot water pipe in the kitchen today. Luckily, James is off work today. Thankfully he drove Thade to school today, and drove me to my errands, I’m a terrible snow driver. We are supposed to get another round of ice storms on Thursday, and I just hope that it doesn’t get too bad.

How is your weather today? Are you iced in too?

Dec 2

The Christmas Parade

Sunday night was the annual Christmas Parade downtown, and it was cold cold cold.

We found a pretty good spot though. It kept the kiddos out of the wind and out of the itty-bitty snowflakes too.

It was a balmy 34 degrees, so the kiddos huddled together under a fleece blanket, and waited patiently for the Parade to start.

There were several Christmas themed Floats, and horses pulling carriages too.

This year the parade moved along pretty quickly, everyone must have been really cold on the floats too.

After the parade we drove around town and looked at Christmas lights. Both of the boys are so excited about Christmas this year, they just can’t wait one minute longer.

This weekend there are lots of Christmas activites going on around town, and I hope to take the boys to a few of them… If the weather cooperates.

Nov 30

The First Snow

It is snowing here today, and Thade is thrilled. He loves the snow.

We have just a little snow, but I think it totally counts as the first snow of the season.

Tonight we are going to the Holiday Parade at 6:00 p.m., and it looks like it is going to be really really cold. This is one of my favorite parades. All of the Floats have Christmas Lights and many of the businesses and area Churches will be serving Hot Chocolate to keep everybody warm. Thade can’t wait to see Santa, and I can’t wait to get a few pictures of the merriment.