Dear Arianna, February 17, 2013

Dear Arianna,
    I am back to write today's letter.  I really have to thank Mommy for helping me write the daily letters to you.  I've been having to work on Saturdays and use up most of my Sunday afternoons and evenings on school, so it is good that Mommy can tell you all about our adventures together as a family.  I spent most of your Abuela's 60th Birthday party yesterday in front of my computer, updating my company's VMware hosts (yes, it's as tedious as it sound).  Luckily, we have a small house and my computer in in the corner of the dining room, so I wasn't away fro you all and I was able to eat my boneless buffalo wings one handed (with a fork), and didn't miss out on the cake and presents, either.

Waiting for lunch

    Today after church I think wanderlust took over in me after being stuck behind monitors for six days in a row, and it was a clear cold February day, so I drove us over to Ikea.  It was much busier than I thought it would be, but I guess in the cold Chicago winter, people want to get out and walk around somewhere.  We started off with lunch.  You and Mommy shared chicken strips, while I had Swedish meatballs.  You ate half of your chocolate cake, and left the frosting-less remains for me to munch on.  By taking care of the frosting yourself, you are no doubt helping Daddy keep his calorie count down.
    Another reason we went was to do some window shopping for new furniture.  Every time we have a get-together, we are reminded how we just don't have enough seating for people after we get up from the dining room table.  In fact, we don't have enough sitting for the three of us when we are home by ourselves.  We all like to lounge on our couch, but the couch that we have right now isn't so good for lounging, so we were on a mission to find a nice comfy couch that we can actually afford, hence going to Ikea instead of a place where the sales folks will follow you around like you have a target on your back.  You really have a thing for sofa beds and recliners, and made sure to try them all!

    Lounging around, all comfy-cozy

We like this chair in blue

    We actually did end up finding a couch and chairs that we like, and when we have the budget for them, we will come back and pick them up.  The couch has a built in chez at one end and a movable super-sized ottoman so that it can have four people lounging / laying down, while it still has room for two more people to sit.  We also found some wing chairs that we like which have high back and sides for resting your head while reading.  I think our living room will look nice and comfy once we have them in.  And with our five cats, we can really go for the removable slip covers to take care of all the spills, chills, and thrills that having five cats can do to our furniture.

Your future bed

    The other thing that we were window shopping for was a new bed for you.  We wanted you to choose it so that we can actually start getting you to sleep in your room.  We looked at all of the different options, and you liked this bed.  What you liked most about it is that it matches your dresser, and it has a pull-out bed underneath so your cousins have a place to sleep when they have their sleep overs.  You also told us that it would be good for you as you practice sleeping on your own.  You can sleep up top while Mommy or Daddy sleeps below until you get used to sleeping on your own.   You liked this bed so much that you started crying when another family was looking at it, until we explained that there was more than one for sale.
    After all that window shopping, we did pick up a few things.  You chose a new play rug that has a racetrack on it, we got some light bulbs for Mommy's lamp, new slip covers for our dining room chairs and you got a little wooden cobbler's table with a hammer and pegs.  I am pretty sure your Uncle Ron had the 1970's version of this when he was a little boy.  As we left the store, you got Mommy a cinnamon roll and you got yourself a vanilla frozen yogurt.  You even paid for it yourself.  I was very proud of you.
    After all of that adventure, we were pretty tired and headed home.  You kittens, as always, were happy to see you and when you went to take a nap on the couch, they quickly jumped up to take a nap with you.

Kitten love with Ian and Turlough

 

    The rest of the afternoon was pretty laid back.  After napping, I went to studying, Mommy went to writing your letter and whipping up some quick dinner, and you hammered away of your cobbler's bench until you got sleepy and headed up to bed with Mommy.  Now it's time for me to wind down and turn in myself.  You have no school tomorrow for President's Day, so I hope I remember to drive you to Titi Alma's house first without detouring to your school.

Love,
Daddy