It's Paczki Day

Happy Paczki Day! (pronounced poon-ch-key)

We started our day by taking Bryan to the Party Cake Shop to pick up some Paczki for the office. As we waited in the car for him, every couple of minutes there were people walking out with paczki by the dozen. It was hard to not ask them for one but I was able to keep myself busy by singing along with Gio's cd (and yes, he was in the car). Finally,after what seemed like hours, bryan arrived in slow motion with the golden donuts. Oh my, I just wanted to eat mine in the car right there but I thought I could have some self-respect and wait until I was able to pair it with a cup of coffee. I mean, what would bryan think if I dropped him off at the "T" with sugar and chocolate all over my face and the steering wheel?

I paired my chocolate-filled paczki with a cup of joe and Gio paired his with a sippy cup of milk. Like with most new foods, it took him a few tries before he became accustomed to the taste but he eventually took a few bites. I'm pretty sure it was the sweetness of the sugar-covered donut filled with jam that shocked him a bit. He still preferred the banana to the paczki so there is hope that he takes after Bryan after all. And, no, he did not eat an entire days worth of calories in one paczki but just had a few nibbles after I scraped off most of the sugar and the jam....Yes, Yes, family, I know I am just a terribly mean mother. Don't worry, I didn't let any of it go to waste!! I love living this quiet life in Pittsburgh with Bryan and John-Paul but today is a day that I wish I was closer to my family. Although Bryan enjoys a good paczki once a year, these are certainly things that I enjoy sharing with my sister.. We are so obsessed with maintaining our Polish traditions (err, primarily those that involve food) that we do not judge, yet we embrace, our love for a glorified donut (or six) on Fat Tuesday. I've also included a few pictures of John-Paul's romp in the snow yesterday. I made the mistake of dressing him in his coat, snowpants and mittens first before getting myself ready. I will only make this mistake once. I felt so bad for him but also found it just a little bit humourous that he had to work so hard to stand up on his own. He has mastered walking but that extra padding made it extra tough for him to move around. He kept holding his hand out for me to help him walk-it was precious. I was glad to have a fun little activity for us to do since we had no plans to leave the house yesterday. Unfortunately, by the time we were opening the garage, I realized how foolish this mom can be at times (most). I thought to myself 'is it really the best idea to take a little boy out in the snow who is just getting over a cold?' hmmm...probably not. So, here are a few pictures of our 2 1/2 minutes (seriously, that's it) playing in the snow and playing in the dining room-which was just as fun!

Happy early birthday to Maribeth---who, as luck would have it, celebrates her birthday on Ash Wednesday. So, Bets, go ahead, eat that extra paczki!