Christmas

Christmas

We had a great Christmas this year.  On Christmas Eve I made cinnamon rolls and sugar cookies.  I shouldn't say that I made them because I had three very helpful helpers.  The cookies for Santa turned out beautifully.  There were some with more sprinkles and icing than cookie but that's ok, Santa liked them just the same.  That evening we watched The Nativity and Mr. Kruger's Christmas then took a cinnamon roll over to our neighbor who doesn't get out much anymore.  The kids had been dying to open just one present all day so we let them open one from thier great grandparents.  They were thrilled with their gifts.  Shortly after it was off to bed.  They actually went quite easily. 

Christmas morning was exciting, although Katie couldn't have cared less about her presents.  All she wanted were the candy canes and M&Ms in her stocking.  The boys were busy dividng presents up between themselves not realizing they each had a separate "pile".  Later we went to Pueblo to have Christmas dinner with Dean's family and open some more presents. 

Saturday we drove down to the Valley to see my family.  We had a good dinner and opened a few more presents then played Family Feud on the Wii.  Dean, Katie and I left Sunday morning but the boys stayed for the week.  I'm starting to miss them.  I hope they're doing ok and Aaron and Tami too. 

Manicures and Fat lips

Sunday evening I walked into the family room and saw this (see left). It was so cute listening to Dean and Katie as he was painting her nails. Katie loves to have her nails painted. In fact when I was potty training her I used nail polish as a bribe. I would tell her to come sit on the potty while I painted her nails. It worked, she would sit and do her business while I painted her nails. Dean did a nice job. He had cotton balls, q-tips, the remover to fix any mistakes and best of all, my blow dryer to dry her nails so they wouldn't get messed up. Too bad she scratched the polish off one finger like an hour later. I was going to her an after picture and forgot.




This is my poor Eric. Today at recess he fell off the monkey bars. His left eye has a bruise on the outside and the lip speaks for itself. Ouch!! The school called Dean to let us know what happened and he came home with a sticker that said, "watch me, I bumped my head".
We put ice on it but it didn't do much good. I hope it looks better tomorrow because the third graders are performing their Christmas concert. He was practicing his songs so it didn't affect his singing ability.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Today I worked really hard taking down Thanksgiving decorations and cleaning the house before I put up the Christmas decorations.  My least favorite part of cleaning house is dusting.  There was a time when I dusted religously but these days I'm lucky to dust in between holidays.  I'm happy to say that the Christmas decorations are all up. 

We've always had a live tree but this year Dean's grandparents gave us their prelit artificial tree so we decided to give it a try.  I must say it was super easy to put up and I loved not having to string the lights.  I had gotten all of the ornaments out of the box and laid them on the floor when I got a call from my sister Robyn.  I went in the other room so I could talk without the noise of the kids.  By the time I was finished the kids had put almost every ornament on the tree.  It was so cute.  The oraments only went about half way up the tree and there were multiple ornaments on each branch.  In fact there were ornaments hanging on ornaments.  I did do some rearranging and it looks pretty good.

Wednesday night was our Relief Society Christmas dinner and tonight was our ward party.  Both were very nice and of course had good food.  I love to hear Christmas music and see the reinactment of our Savior's birth.  There's nothing like it to get yourself ready for Christmas.  Now all I have to do is wrap the gifts that I have and finish shopping for the rest.  I'm taking a half day off work to go shopping with Dean on Tuesday.  What could be better than taking off work to shop? 

Feelings of Gratitude

Thanksgiving is just around the corner and there are so many things to be thankful for.  I've been inspired by my friends on Facebook who are posting daily about what they are thankful for.  So here it goes, a short list of some of the things I'm thankful for (beginning with the very obvious and after that, no particular order)

My husband and children
Everyone in our families
My parents, who are serving a mission in MD
The gospel
A home that keeps us warm and safe
Food in the pantry
My new job
My calling in Primary
The good health of my family and myself
Friends
My dishwasher
The sweet prayers of my kids
Nature (but today I could have done without the cold and rain.  I was running around grocery shopping all day.)
The weekend
Funny movies
A good book

The list could go on and on.  I'm grateful I have so much to be thankful for.

Halloween

Here's a few pics of Halloween. The one of Katie in the bathtub was taken after she got into the face paint. She had the paint from head to toe.

Weekend Update

My first update is that my kitchen floor is now installed!!  Thanks to Dean and his brother Mark I no longer have carpet in my kitchen.  I love our new floor!  The color is awesome but now I really need to change the color of my cabinets.  I had forgotten how many times in one day the kitchen floor needs to be swept.  Having a dirty kitchen floor drives me crazy.  The carpet didn't show all of the crumbs and playdough and moon sand so vacuuming a couple of times a week was good enough for me.  Now I'll have to be more diligent at keeping the floor clean.  The kids love it too.  Katie and Charles have been sitting on the kitchen floor playing for a long time. 

Here is Charles, my foot model, showcasing our new kitchen floor. 

Next on the update agenda: Trunk or Treat.  Our ward trunk or treat party was last night.  The kids were very excited to finally get to wear their costumes.  Eric was an awesome Dracula.  Dean painted his face and I slicked his hair and sprayed it black.  Katie was afraid of him.  I couldn't get her to stand next to him for a picture.  Charles was going to be a skeleton until he found Commander Cody from Star Wars the Clone Wars. He was really excited about being a trooper until he saw Eric getting all made up. He was really jealous of Eric so he pouted for a long time.  I finally sprayed his hair black and Dean painted a scar on his face but he was still sad.  Katie didn't want to put her ballerina tutu on but when she did she started spinning around and dancing.  She loved it.  Everything was going great until the end.  I put Katie in the car to come home and she started coughing so hard she threw up.  Luckily she had a jacket on so her shirt didn't get yucky but her tutu wasn't so lucky.  Now I get to clean vomit out of tulle.  When we got home the boys had to shower to get all the paint and hair dye off.  I was worried for a while because the black wasn't coming out of their blond hair easily and the paint would NOT wash off.  Eventually we got them clean (mostly).  Eric still had a few black traces on his face for church.  I almost forgot this part of the story.  I had been cutting out pieces of poster board for teeth and fins to decorate our car as a shark.  I left the scissors out and Katie got hold of them.  I hadn't realized until I got on the floor to finish cutting and I found a huge lock of hair. She cut a huge chunk ofher  bangs off.  You can't really tell in the picture but her right side is bare and she has bangs on the left side.   

Just a little something fun

I really wanted to do silhouettes of my kids this year for Halloween. I saw a spread in some magazine about hanging silhouettes as part of the Halloween decorations and loved the idea.   I remember having them done in elementary school.  The teacher set up the overhead projector and we sat in a chair as still as we could while they traced our shadow.  I loved it and still do.  Saturday was such a cold, ugly day I decided to do it.  I did not have any of the proper supplies needed however.  I had Eric hold a flashlight while I traced Charles' silhouette and I awkwardly  held the flashlight while I traced Eric.  I didn't have black paper either so I grabbed my black permanent marker and colored in their silhouettes.  They turned out awesome.  Just don't look too closely because you can see the marker streaks a little bit.  I would really love to have one of Katie but Charles had a hard enough time being still so I know it's out of the question for Katie.

Right Time, Right Place

The cub scouts had a martial arts activity scheduled for this morning, but it was cancelled because of super icy roads and freezing cold temperatures. I got a call from one of the moms saying she talked to the instructor and told him how disappointed the kids were that it was cancelled. Somehow her son and Eric and Charles were invited to go into the studio for a free class and then have a free private lesson afterward AND they could get a one month free trial period. This includes up to three group classes a week PLUS one free private class a week. I was super excited and said sure, why not. When the class was over they handed the boys a uniform and belt. I asked how much and the lady said they could have them. She also said that the guy (I can't remember what they called him, not Sensei but something else) never gives classes for free nor do they give away uniforms. I guess this was our super, lucky day!! The boys have been "practicing" their moves on each other since we got home. Every once in a while I hear a little wince or whine from the other room. I'm hoping for no major injuries to either of them.

Big Girl

Katie is officially a big girl . She has been potty trained for about a month now. I am ecstatic about that feat. Even though it was a long, hard process it seemed like it happened over night; one day she was having accidents and the next day she either told me she had to go or she went on her own. We started potty training a few weeks before she turned two and next month she'll be two and a half. There were many days when I thought she would never be out of diapers and now she is except for naps and bedtime. I feel so liberated from the constant trips to the potty trying to teach her that the potty is place to go. To top it all off , today is the first day in her new, big girl bed. While she was watching an episode of Scooby Doo I took her crib down and put up a twin bed. I've been asking her for weeks if she was ready for a bigger bed and she has always answered no. I decided to take matters into my own hands. To my surprise she didn't even care that her crib was gone. She climbed up on the bed, jumped around a few times then got down and ran off to play. When it was nap time all she wanted was the pillow she slept on in her crib and her favorite blue blanket. I know she was really tired but she didn't even get up once. I can only hope that bedtime will be as easy.

Random Updates

Okay, it's been a while since I've written something and my thoughts are a little random and scattered this morning. Friday was my 32nd birthday. This is the first birthday that I actually feel a little older, not that I think 32 is old by any means. The best part was that Dean surprised me with new flooring for our kitchen. Let me tell you the story of our kitchen. We moved into our house five years ago. The kitchen had carpet in it and we said that would be the first thing to go. Five years later we still have carpet. We've been talking for months about replacing the Berber carpet with something, anything. Anything would be better than carpet right? The big master plan is to knock out the wall between the kitchen and dining room and to put in hardwood floors in our new space. Well if it's taken us five years to get rid of the carpet who knows how long it will be before we do the big construction job. So back to the beginning. Dean bought me a new Brazilian Cherry laminate floor for the kitchen. I'm so excited for it to be installed I can hardly wait. The one problem is that the cabinets and the floor don't look the best together so my next project will be to refinish the cabinets. Hurray for birthdays! Before and after pictures will be coming soon.

So this story is really random but I thought it was so cute. Eric, Charles and I were driving in the car talking about getting married and how girls take their husbands last name. We were discussing people that we know and what their last names were before they got married. I told him that I was a Valentine then became a Crystal. The conversation moved on for a few more minutes and Eric looked at me with this face like he was trying really hard to remember something then asked, "so your last name used to be Thanksgiving or something?" I started laughing and he quickly corrected himself. Marcie Thanksgiving. Has a nice ring doesn't it?

Sunday was our Primary program in sacrament meeting. Those little children did such a great job. They sang their hearts out and were so cute saying their parts. We as a presidency were a little nervous because the two weeks prior there were so many kids gone. We ended up having about 45 kids. If a child wasn't there the teachers would pick a child to go say their part. It turned out so well. We combined sharing time and singing time and I did an object lesson on the prophet and the importance of watching General Conference to hear what the prophet has to tell us. Then we spread blankets on the floor and watched a movie from the Doctrine and Covenants and ate rice crispy treats. Ruth talked to them about prophets then we played a game. Primary was super fun. Thanks Ruth and Katie for helping me out.

For Grandma Kathy

Katie: "Can I go to grandma's?"
Mom: "No, we can't go to grandma's today."
Katie: "Please, I go to grandma's?"
Mom: "Why do you want to go to grandma's?"
Katie: "For 'cause I need to go to grandma's!"
Katie: "Let's go"

Balloon Glow

Click on image to see larger

click on image to see larger

Colorado Balloon Classic

This weekend I took Eric and Charles to the Colorado Balloon Classic. It's the largest hot air balloon festival in Colorado. I think I read that it has been going on since 1977. I heard on the news that there are 83 balloons there this year. Every Labor Day weekend there is an early ascension in the morning and the balloon glow in the evening. We missed the early ascension Saturday morning. By the time we arrived there was only one balloon left that was giving rides to kids with disabilities. We were lucky enough to see five parachuters from the Air Force Academy though. The pictures of the sky with trails of white or yellow smoke are the parachuters. We watched the plane circle above us and then saw the five of them jump. Later that evening we went back for the balloon glow. There weren't as many balloons in the evening. It is so awesome to see the balloons at night. We found a booth that sold rubber band shooters. Of course the boys had to have one. Eric brought his birthday money to buy his own. We found a place on the grass without too many people around so they boys could try out their new favorite toys. It wasn't long before we had to move back because there was a balloon being set up right in front of us. They are huge! It was exciting to see them being inflated and then to see them glow in the night sky was amazing. Eric and Charles loved the Energizer Bunny balloon. It was so huge. My picture is a little blurry but you cant tell it's the bunny. If you haven't been before I recommend it, just get there early because parking is a nightmare.

Another Charles-ism

Tonight we had spaghetti for dinner. Eric and Charles said they were starving. Eric was eating his food really fast and was almost finished before any of us were half way through dinner. I said to Eric that he was going to town on his spaghetti. Now, Charles doesn't usually eat much, especially spaghetti but tonight he was eating well. He looked up from his plate and said to me, "I'm almost to town mom". When he had eaten all of his dinner he put his plate in the sink and came back over to me to announce that he "made it to town."

1st Day of School

Yesterday was the first day of school for Eric and Charles. They were both really excited to get back to school. They each have great teachers. We were thrilled to meet their new teachers and see their classrooms at the open house. Tuesday morning when I was taking their pictures Katie ran over to pose with them (she doesn't miss a photo opportunity). Charles went on a Safari hunt to find Ryan the Lion (the school mascot). He thought that was the coolest thing ever. Eric jumped back in the swing of things like he had never left for summer break. Let's just hope they're both this excited in a month or two.

Cooking With Charles

Today Charles wanted to make play dough. This is one of his favorite things to do. Every time we make it we have the color lesson. Red, yellow and blue are primary colors and when you mix two of them you get a new color but when you mix non-primary colors you get a yucky looking color. Charles got out the box of food coloring to choose which color or colors he wanted to use. He pulled out the green bottle and said, "I can't use this one right mom, because it's not a church color". My mind slowed for a second as I thought "church color"?? My back had been turned to him and when I turned around and saw the green bottle it clicked, he meant primary color. How cute is that. He ended up mixing yellow and blue to get green.
Here's the recipe for great play dough from Trish Kuffner's book The Preschooler's Busy Book.

Colored Playdough

1 c. water

1 T. vegetable oil

1/2 c. salt

1 T. cream of tartar

Food coloring

saucepan

1 c. flour

Combine water, oil, salt, cream of tartar, and food coloring in a saucepan and heat until warm. Remove from heat and add flour. Stir, then knead until smooth. Cream of Tartar makes this dough long-lasting--up to six months or longer--so resist the temptation to leave it out if you don't have it on hand. This dough should be stored in an airtight container or a ziplock bag. Do not regrigerate.

I make a half batch at a time (which makes about a baseball size chunk of playdough) then you can have two colors using one recipe.

Helen Hunt Falls

More Helen Hunt Falls

Saturday afternoon we decided to take a trip up to Helen Hunt Falls. It is so close to us and I've known about it for years but we've just never gone . The falls are located in North Cheyenne Canon Park. As you're driving there is a fork in the road and to the left is Seven Falls and to the right is Helen Hunt Falls. We haven't been to Seven Falls yet so I'm glad we started with the smaller ones first (and Helen Hunt Falls is free). The drive to the visitor's station was beautiful. So many trees and rock formations to look at. Once there the hike is short, easy and on an established trail which was perfect for Katie. Eric and Charles loved it and were constantly racing ahead of us. They couldn't wait to get to the top. When we first parked the car and got out there was a family in a creek below us panning for gold. By the time we climbed down the visitor's station was closed so we just walked down to throw rocks. We took tons of pictures and had a fun time.

24th of July Celebration

Pioneer Days

I have looked forward to Pioneer Days every summer since I can remember. As a kid it was soooo exciting. Growing up in such a small town, this was the highlight of the summer. There was so much to look forward to. My mom always bought me a new outfit to wear to the celebration. Aunts, Uncles and cousins came into town for reunions and if you were lucky you got to ride on a float. As I got a little older I rode my horse in the parade with our 4-H club and then rode in a rodeo. The community puts on a pageant portraying some aspect of our pioneer history. I remember being in it a few times growing up. It's non-stop fun from then on with a pancake breakfast, parade, program, barbecue, foot races and dances in the evening. If that wasn't fun and exciting enough there are two more days of celebrating in Manassa. I always loved Manassa's parade because it was so much longer than Sanford's and the floats were bigger and more elaborate. I'll always have fond memories of the celebration.

Fast forward to present day. I still look forward to Pioneer Days because I get to go home and see old friends from school that I don't get to see very often and I'm still a fan of the parades. My kids love the parades, races and carnival. Although there is still fun and excitement it's different as a parent. Keeping track of the kids in the crowds is always fun and standing in long lines for hamburgers at the hamburger stand is equally enjoyable. The carefree days of being a kid and just enjoying everything available are long gone. I can still experience the festivities but I'm the one paying for tickets and over priced carnival food, putting on the sunscreen, packing chairs and drinks and diaper bags all over the place and dealing with melt downs from over tired children. In the end I guess it's all worth it, it must be because I keep coming back. Everyone had lots of fun this year. The kids loved the parades and all the candy that gets thrown their way. Eric and Charles could hardly wait to go to the carnival. Eric is adventurous and went on the hammer by himself. I tried to talk him out of it but decided to let him go. He didn't feel too good after that ride. Charles loved the Swinger and Katie couldn't get enough of the Carousel. I ran in a foot race which I haven't done in many years. I didn't' win but it was fun. We're already looking forward to next year.

As Seen On TV

Eric and Charles seem to get sucked into As Seen on TV infomercials. Lately they have shared some of their favorites that would surely make my life much easier and save a few dollars. The first is the Topsy Turvy tomato planter. Not only would I have many beautiful, ripe, delicious tomatoes, but I wouldn't have to do any more back breaking bending, digging or weeding. We wouldn't lose our tomatoes to spoilage on the ground either. Charles always reminds me of what a good idea this is.
The next brilliant product is the Touch N Brush. This is the hands free toothpaste dispenser. This is the product that Eric really thinks we should invest in. Besides being hands free it dispenses the perfect amount every time. It also uses every last bit of toothpaste, therefore saving me money. No more wasting that last little bit at the end of the tube.
Then there is Nutri System (admittedly, I have put on a few pounds since Katie was born and the boys have even told me that it looks like I might be having another baby). Eric thinks this would be good for me because I could eat what I want and still loose weight AND the food is delivered right to my door. How much better could it get?
The last item is more for them than for me and would keep them entertained for hours. Bendaroos, the magic wax super string. There is no glue, no stains and no mess (maybe that part is for me), they don't break and you can use them over and over again.
After reading this don't you agree that maybe this would make my life a little easier and think of the money I could save from the toothpaste!

Yummy Chicken

I found this recipe a while back in Cook's Country magazine. I'm not a huge chicken fan but this recipe is sooo good. I hadn't made it in a long time but decided to fix it last night. It looks fancy and tastes really good. You can taste all of the different flavors at some point during each bite. It would be a good dish to make for company. Here's the recipe. P.S. we added about 1/4 cup more chicken broth.

Chicken Cutlets with Bacon, Rosemary

and Lemon

5 slices bacon, chopped

1/4 cup all purpose flour

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed

salt and pepper

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter

4 cloves garlic, sliced thin

1 Tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1. Fry bacon in large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp, about 5 min. Transfer bacon to plate lined with paper towels. Spoon off all but 2 Tablespoons bacon fat.

2. Meanwhile, place flour in shallow dish. Season chicken with salt and pepper, dredge in flour, and shake off excess. Add butter to reserved bacon fat in skillet and high heat, swirling to melt butter. When foam subsides, reduce heat to medium-high and cook chicken until browned on both sides, 3-4 min. per side. Transfer to plate (leaving fat in skillet) and cover loosely with foil.

3. Reduce heat to medium and add garlic, rosemary, and pepper flakes. Cook until garlic is browned and crisp, about 2 min. Add broth and lemon juice, scrape up browned bits from bottom of skillet with wooden spoon, and simmer until slightly thickened, about 4 min.

4. Return chicken and bacon to pan and simmer, turning chicken once or twice, until sauce is thick and glossy, 2-3 min. Adjust seasonings and serve.

11 Years

On June 20th Dean and I celebrated our 11 year anniversary. Looking back, there have been a lot of changes over the years. Many ups and downs but more good times than bad. We got married in the Denver Temple. I was so excited (and sick). I think it was just nerves. My uncle, a pharmacist, was giving me tips on which medicines might help me feel better. It all turned out beautifully. We honeymooned at Disney World. The first day I about died because of the heat and humidity. It was a really fun trip. Three moves, three kids and a few career changes later we're still happy.
We got a babysitter to come a little earlier than our dinner and movie plans so we could spend time together and go shopping. Friday he came home from work early and surprised me with a gorgeous bouquet of flowers, purple and yellow like my wedding flowers, and a gift card. We had a wonderful night together.

Summer Fun

There probably won't be a big summer vacation this year so I'm trying to do fun things at home. When we went to Sanford a few weeks ago we went to an indoor water park. The kids had a blast swimming with all of their cousins. A few days ago we went mini golfing. Eric had to wear a red golf shirt like Tiger. The boys played pretty well. Eric and Charles both got a hole in one on the same hole. Katie was my helper. She carried my putter in the beginning then would get my ball out of the cup for me. I don't know which they liked better playing golf or playing in the water and on the animals. Yesterday a bunch of moms and kids from church got together at America the Beautiful. We played in the fountain and at the playground. The fountain was so much fun. The playground is amazing. The equipment is really unusual. We spent hours playing yesterday.

Super 8: Birthday and Baptism

I spent the last couple of days finishing up birthday and baptism plans. Aaron and Tami and their kids came up Saturday night for Eric's baptism. My little guys were in heaven to have their cousins sleep at their house. It's such a treat when we have visitors. We had a nice dinner and reminisced about our childhoods. Sunday afternoon was Eric's baptism. I wanted to give the talk on baptism and the Holy Ghost but started having second thoughts when I saw all the people showing up. I thought it would be small with mostly family but we had a great turn out. My nerves always seem to get the best of me when I have to speak to a crowd. I did fine until the end and my emotions started getting the best of me. After Dean baptized Eric there was a definite spirit and glow about him. He truly did seem clean and pure. Tami played beautiful piano music while the boys changed. Aaron confirmed Eric and gave him a great blessing. The scout leader presented him with his scarf and book which made him really happy. I don't know that I'm ready for all this scout and Duty to God stuff that comes with having an eight year old. After the baptism we came back to our house for BBQ, cake and presents. We had such a good time with family from both sides. Thanks to everyone who came and helped you made Eric's day a special one.

Countdown to Eight

Eric turns eight on the fourteenth, which happens to be a Sunday, so we thought it would be perfect (and memorable) if he could be baptized on his birthday. We have been talking a lot about baptism over the last few weeks. Why do we get baptized? What do we have to do to get baptized? What is confirmation? And lots of other questions. We've been practicing the hold and dunk and talking about the interview with the bishop. Last night was his appointment so we took the whole family. Eric went in first to talk to the bishop. Charles waited pretty patiently during this time, then Dean and I were called in. Charles waited out in the foyer for us. I'm sure to him it seemed like Eric was in the bishop's office for a long time. When we walked out the door Charles hurried to Eric and asked, "Eric, is your hair wet?" How cute is that? He thought Eric was in there getting baptized. Dean and I couldn't hold in our laughter. After the interview we went to dinner then came home and watched Wipe Out. It was really funny. The kids thought it was so cool. They loved the slow motion and John Madden -like replays. Eric would be on that game show in a heart beat.

I spent the last week down in Sanford trying to help my parents finish getting their house and themselves ready to leave for their mission. Sometimes I wondered if we were more in the way than we were helpful but I'm happy that we were there. My boys love going down to play with their seldom seen cousins. In fact, Eric decided that we should move to Sanford so he could go to school with his cousins. We all got eaten up by the mosquitoes. Charles has twenty five bites on his back alone. One night we all went swimming at the Inn at the Rio Grande. The kids loved it even though the water was not exactly warm. For the next two days my boys begged to go back.
My mom and dad left this morning for the MTC. It was hard to see them go but I know they couldn't be going to a better place. Mom called tonight and they got a flat tire outside of Pagosa Springs. It set them back a few hours but they said two or three people stopped to help so we know they're being looked after. We're going to miss them! After they were set apart Charles started crying. In between sobs he said he was just going to miss grandad. I think at least one grand kid from every family had an emotional breakdown over the fact that grandma and grandad are gone.
Good luck mom and dad, we wish you the best and thanks for all you have done for us.

School's Out, Now What?

Today is the first day of summer break that we have had to just stay home and do fun things with no other plans. I decided that I had better hold "school" each morning after breakfast to help Eric remember what he learned in second grade and to get Charles ready for Kindergarten. Eric did a few Mad Minute math sheets. No problem getting him to do them because he really enjoys school. Now, trying to get Charles to play a game to help learn more letters and their sounds was a completely different story. He cried and threw a fit and said it was stupid. After trying several things to get him to come around having his brother be the teacher's helper did the trick. He's a smart kid but getting him to do school related stuff for me is like pulling teeth. Katie painted with watercolors (mostly on her face), then played with play dough (more licking, less playing) then joined us reviewing letters. Now they are running around pretending they are ghosts trying to scare Katie. She yells "boo!" at them and they run away. The noise level and energy level is definitely higher with everyone home but were having a good time (for now). Eric just came in and said there is nothing to do, at school there is always something fun to do. I guess I need to plan some fun things to fill our days.

My Baby Turned Two

Saturday my baby girl turned two! Didn't we just celebrate her first birthday? Time has gone by so fast it's unbelievable. She is such a sweet girl. She always gives lots of love and kisses. She is definitely her own person. Katie always keeps us busy. She has loved books forever, especially Five Little Monkeys. I love making my kids birthday cakes. Fourteen birthdays and only one store bought cake (Spider Man ice cream cake for Eric's fourth b-day). I always ask my kids what kind of cake they want and then try to make it. My cakes are far from professional looking but I kind of like it that way. Eric and Charles can remember almost all of their cakes. I've done some pretty cool Star Wars cakes and and a really cute blue dinosaur. Back to Five Little Monkeys. Katie loves this book so I decided to make her a Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed cake. The cake turned out differently than I had envisioned, but it was still cute. The pillows threw me off. I tried different things and ended up with Twinkies for pillows. They weren't my favorite but they worked the best. I couldn't find little toy monkeys to put on the cake so I bought a Barrel of Monkeys and dipped them in chocolate put a toothpick on the back and stuck them in like they were jumping. I decorated her cake Friday for the party on Saturday. When I was finished I put it up on the counter and while I wasn't looking she pulled a chair over, climbed up and put her fingers in it. Luckily she only got into the frosting and not the cake. Saturday we had a barbecue with the family for her birthday. Thank you to everyone for coming and for the adorable presents.

So Disgusting!

A few days ago the kids and I were playing outside. Charles found a ladybug and was letting it crawl on him while Katie investigated him/her. It soon flew away to their dismay. Katie loved it and since then every bug she sees is a ladybug. Here comes the unfortunate and disgusting part of this story. A day or so later Katie woke up screaming and crying. When Dean went to check on her (he's the only one who can get the kids back to sleep when they wake in the night) she kept saying, "ladybug pillow, ladybug pillow, on hand". We think that this was not a cute ladybug crawling on her pillow and hand but a nasty spider (this is where I cringe and shudder). In the morning when I went to get her out of bed she kept telling me about the "ladybug" in her bed. I'm so sorry baby!

This just happened today. It's a nice day so I left the sliding glass door open for fresh air and so Charles could come in and out without making too much noise. Motor, our cat, had come in earlier to eat and went back out. No big deal. Charles came in to play with his moon sand when I heard him tell Motor to go outside to eat. I went to see what was going on and there was Motor in the kitchen eating a poor, little, baby bird. I tried shooing him out hoping he would take his trophy with him but he wouldn't go. I had to put a plastic bad on my hand to pick up the bird and throw it outside, along with the cat.

Charles-isms

Charles says some pretty cute things. I'm trying to remember them so I'm going to write them.

One day he was coloring with scented markers. He opened the lemon scented one and started drawing. Soon he was rubbing his eyes. "Oh, man my eyes are sweating because of this marker". When I cut onions and my eyes start to water, I think of them as sweating and so does he.

"Mom, are witches real?"
No, they are not
"Yeah, they're just moms fooling around, right?"
That's right honey

We take Eric to school in the morning and Charles likes to roll the window down to yell goodbye to him.
"Dude, I just downloaded my window to talk to Eric."

He says these things so matter of factly, no humor intended. I love it.

Easter Traditions

For the last few years I have fallen off the family Easter traditions wagon. When I was a kid we always, always dyed eggs and my mom made this cute bunny cake. I think I've made the cake once or twice since my kids were born and we've only dyed eggs once. Dean's mom made Easter story cookies with Joe and Rusty when they were little. This year I thought it was time to get back on the wagon and do the things I did when I was a kid and to incorporate the Easter story cookies. I found the recipe online and it included scriptures to go along. We've already made the cake (and eaten all but one ear too) and we are going to make the cookies on Friday and dye eggs on Saturday. Here's the website with the recipe and instructions. http://www.allhomemadecookies.com/recipes/drop/easterstorycookies.htm