Valentine's Party

Time has been moving quickly since the new year, but it still feels like winter hibernation. Jack is signed up for spring baseball, which begins in about two weeks, and he will have his first piano recital: "Hush, little baby." Rylee sings it often,

Hush, little baby, don't say a word,
papa's going to buy you a milking bird.

Rylee also sings the ABC song. He's got all the letters, but the last line is the best,

Now I know my ABCs,
next time you'll want me to sing with you.

And there's the identification song:

My name is Ryree Bleicher.
This is my address.
Sixty Nine Zero Five...
in Albaquerque, NEW Mexico.

Rylee can tell you his full name and count to twenty. His vocabulary has really grown, he repeats everything, and points out everything when we drive around town. "Hey, there's another Starbucks," he'll say. He's full blown into a whiney stage, most often whining either for something with sugar and chocolate or about his clothes. He's particular about his shirts: short-sleeved, sports-themed t-shirts with numbers on them.

The boys play well together and often share and compromise. Jack can be a terrible teaser, though, but Rylee is growing a thicker skin for it.

The big thing this winter has been "the office." I don't know that I've written about it before, but Jackson created an office for himself, and then one for Rylee, in their bedroom. There's a work table, complete with the old and usually nonfunctioning computer. There are pictures, a desk lamp, and his baseball trophy. His art supplies, books, and other office supplies are meticulously organized. He bought a wall calendar, and is intent on constantly upgrading. He really wants a computer notebook for his birthday or an electric pencil sharpener. He takes tremendous pride in his room now.

The boys also got library cards, which they carry in their wallets. This is a big deal for them. Jack seems really interested in science books, and we've spent a lot of time on electrical generators (and atoms and electromagnetism), weather (lightening, tornadoes, and cold fronts), and geology (volcanoes, tectonic plates, and continental drift).

Here's another photo show. There's pictures of the kids on Superbowl Sunday, Jack's Valentine's Day party at school (Cyndi has been the party organizer for his class), and another meal at Bravo. You will remember that restaurant from the day after Thanksgiving with Janey. We had some errands last Saturday, which took us to the Nob Hill area. I drove to an Italian restaurant there, but it was closed for lunch on Saturday. So we went to the new Q uptown and the Italian restaurant there. We had another lazy, enjoyable supper there, followed by a little shopping for Cyndi while the boys and I hung out outside. Here's what I like about this restaurant:

1. Great price: $50, including wine, plus $10 for tip.
2. Really good menu. The kids shared bread, penne pasta and an ice cream sundae. There's a good choice of salads, soups, appetizers, pasta, sandwiches and specialties. We mix it up there more than usual and have several delicious courses.
3. I can get a good bottle of wine for $21! (I think a really good restaurant will find a way--be knowledgeable and creative enough--to put a good, inexpensive bottle of wine on their list. The newest trend in dining out in our little western town seems to be restaurants that are only serving $45-and-up bottles of (good but not extraordinary) California wine with $45-and-up slabs of grizzly and overcooked meat. Everything else is extra. The same wines were about $28 in a restaurant only a year ago. Recommended wines, of course, start at $90 a bottle. What's the markup now over wholesale? 400 percent? More? Wines have also overpriced themselves seemingly overnight, which should serve as a terrific boom for the specialty beer market. These restaurants are on my no return list. I'm looking for good restaurants with good wine and good will.)
4. A lovely room with nice table settings. (The bar looked like a fun place to eat, too.)
5. Good service. Relaxed, unhurried, and good natured.
6. They haven't yet given us a bad table just because we walk in with children.

The family has gone through a few colds, so Cyndi and I are resetting our half marathon from early March in Phoenix to mid June in Durango. Ariel's back in Alaska, of course. She's just sent in her resume for an Alaskan publication and is taking another journalism course while continuing her work through the New Mexico company. Temperatures are something like 40 below, but she and Chris are planning another ski trip this weekend. They head off to the mountains near Valdez, which sounds like a beautiful spot.

Today we had pancakes for breakfast. The boys cleaned upstairs. Cyndi ran 2 miles, and I revised our training schedule. I stayed home while everyone went to a movie at the $1 theater, and while Ry took a nap, Jack and I went to a batting cage down the street. This afternoon, the boys and I got haircuts and corndogs. So much for Pres Day.