Terrific Two!

I know I've shared this before, but I do not believe in "Terrible Twos". I love two-year-olds. Love them, love them, love them. Really, how could you not?

Two cute!

Two funny!

Two lovable!

Working on our Words

I finished reading "Simplicity Parenting". I will admit to skimming through some of it, but overall I loved what the authors had to say. I won't go into a whole critique of the book, but one big idea I took away was monitoring the words we say.

The author borrowed the idea from, if I understand right, the Buddhists. However, the book was quick to mention that all flavors of all faiths teach the same idea. The Buddhists just put it simply.

Are they true?

Are they kind?

Are they necessary?

Imagine a world where everyone tried to monitor their words based on those 3 simple rules.

Weekend Away

I think I've mentioned on here before that I'm not one of those moms who needs constant "me time" or really any sort of consistent "me time" for that matter. However, once in awhile I get to a point in my life, well, a point in my mood, when I "need to get out....now!!!!! Several weeks ago I had one of those moments and I just needed out. Problem was, there was no way I could get "out" at that particular moment in time. I'm not very good at scheduling my meltdowns and this one happened right before a major performance of my husbands. Oops. So, I decided to give myself something to look forward to. We tried to go see some dear friends 4 hours away, but a last minute decision was made not to and the weather confirmed that decision by being nasty. So I planned something that I had been wanting to plan ever since we moved here almost 4 year ago. A trip down to the Cities. And to add to the fun I called my favorite sister to see if she wanted to meet us there. And the rest, as they say (when they want to be completely predictable) is history! Here I am with my favorite sister at the Minnesota Children's Museum. A blonde and semi-red head..yeah, we are seldom taken for sisters. The lighting wasn't particularly fantastic and there must have been a "puffy-eye monster" lurking somewhere, but here's the one and only picture of the two of us that weekend.

My sister's youngest drawing a picture.

Veronica was not sure what the goat was doing on the roof, but Brett assured her that goats do indeed like to jump on the roof. That's Emma in the background riding a....uh...rooster, I think.

Cousins, minus the one that was at my feet not wanting to take a picture. So really, this picture should be called siblings + 1 cousin.

Lauren (who's 1 year older and a couple inches taller than Emma), Emma, and Gigi are posing with the cool headbands that Jocie made for them.

Doesn't she look cute and ready to swim? Oh yeah...him too. Only one of them went in the water, and it wasn't the redhead in the pink swimsuit.

Weekend recap: Children's Museum, Mall of America which of course included the American Girl Store, Legostore, Rainforest Cafe, we had ice cream for lunch because we couldn't find anywhere to eat in the food court and the sitdown restaurants were full, after walking what felt like 20 miles in one day we went back to the hotel and swam (I sat and watched my feet swell, that was a new experience), the kids watched a movie and the adults had a drink and chatted, we slept, woke up to a new 2-year-old, ate at the IHOP, went to Mass at our bishop's former parish (lovely!), and drove home. Turns out my sister headed to the zoo after breakfast...I always new she was the crazy one.

Needless to say, we had an absolute BLAST! It was great reconnecting with our niece and nephew and always fun seeing my sister.

Birthday Week

The new 2-year-old carrying the bag of fun she bought with her birthday money.

Modeling a jacket set she got from one set of grandparents and some bunny slippers she got from the other.

My two youngest (for now) have birthdays 4 days a part. Here's Gigi modeling next to the contraption we built together from some TRIO blocks she got for her birthday.

The big 5-year-old with her birthday cake. I went simple with the cake this year since Brett was out of town. The five is just pink sprinkles.

I've promised myself, and my lovely readers that I would spare them details of diapers/potty training accidents, etc. They may be a big part of my day, but a part that doesn't add to the joy of my readers. So, all I will mention on the topic is this. I wasn't planning on even starting the process with Veronica before the baby was born. I've done this plenty of times before to know that I did not want to be dealing with a newly potty-trained kid and a newborn at the same time. Well, in her way, which is the only way Veronica does things, she decided she wanted to use the potty the day before her birthday (which happened to be the day we were going on a whirlwind weekend away). Lovely. So, there ya have it.

Art

I'm not artistic. Not at all. My parents brought a picture I drew of a cabin and a tree and it looked great for a 4-year-old. I happened to be 11 when I drew it. Really, this isn't one of those topics where I'm looking for a "oh, I'm sure you do fine" response. Really, I'm awful. It's not my thing. Give me a script that someone else has written and I will get up on stage and perform it for you. Give me a song and I will sing it for you. Those are my "creativity". Not art.

My children happen to love art. My husband is a great artist. He can draw, he can paint, he can do it all. Luckily for the kids, they do stand a chance in the artistic world.

I was convinced awhile back that children need to be exposed to "real" art supplies. Not just Crayola and Roseart (I'm always suckered in with the sales and always regret the quality later), but real stuff. I was so convinced that I took myself to a craft store (scary place for a lady who doesn't "do" art) and purchased some high quality colored pencils, pastels, and water colors. I'm ashamed to say that they have sat in our "craft" box for almost a full year, plastic still on, seals untouched.

Today I decided enough is enough and I brought up all of the good quality stuff and let the kids at them. I showed them, in my limited way, how to use the materials and set them free. I had printed off some Valentine's color pages and also supplied blank white paper.

For 2 1/2 hours the kids sat at our table and created. Sometimes just coloring/painting in the lines, sometimes free-handing a picture, adding glitter where they saw fit, etc. They had a great time and I'm now left wondering what in the world took me so long to let them dive in.

Thank you, kind sir.

It is so nice. So very, very, very nice when the comment received at the grocery store is a compliment from a nice man waiting in line behind us. Thank you!

Do-over

A few things this morning:

1. I would love a do-over on my sleep last night. Wow! Quite a night! Pretty sure naptime will be needed early, but it isn't going to happen that way...bummer.

2. Very soon we will have both a 2-year-old and a 5-year-old in the house.

3. The almost 5-year-old is counting in "sleeps" to when we get to see some super fun cousins and way cool Aunt!

"Real Feel"

Brett and I have made a joke between ourselves wondering just who determines the "real feel" temps. that we often see below the actual temperature on the news or online. Is there some poor guy who they send out and say, "Okay, it's -6, but if you had to wager a guess how cold would you say it was?". The poor man, after turning blue, with his teeth chattering, manages to utter, "30 below!". "Alright boys! You heard him! -6 with a 'real feel' of -30! Those people in Wisconsin are going to love this one!"

So today the sun is bright and there are no clouds in sight which is why it is currently 6 below zero with a "real feel" of -30! I'm not complaining, I love the north. Eventually the beautiful sun will go away, the clouds will come back, and we'll be able to drag ourselves out of doors again. Eventually meaning June.

In the meantime I am thankful for the little "up" button on my thermostat and for kids who like to snuggle and keep me warm.

Post Game Daybook

For Today
February 7, 2011

Outside my window...Students are arriving for the day, the snow is "old" and the streets look brown and dirty. And it's cold.

I am thinking...about everything baby.

I am thankful for...a fun weekend with family and a regular, "normal" week ahead.

In our home school...We are using this pre-baby time to really get some good "book work" done. After baby I imagine we'll change things up a bit, learn how to be a family of 7, and take it a little slower.

In the kitchen...We have reminders of a fun superbowl party. There is also a yummy pot of chicken-rice soup waiting to be devoured for lunch and dinner today. A day without much food prep or clean-up is a happy day indeed.

I am wearing...some "comfy" blue pants, a yellow shirt, and a yellow and blue jacket. Comfort is the goal these days.

I am creating...a complete chore list to get these kids back on track.

I am going...to take it easy this week in anticipation of a fun-filled weekend.

I am reading..."Simplicity Parenting" by someone who seems to know what he's talking about, but I can't remember his name.

I am hoping and praying...for my Grandma Ruby, for a healthy end of pregnancy, and for all my friends who are expecting.

I am hearing...Aidan sweeping the dining room, the washing machine running, and the girls talking while they draw.

Around the house...We live in our house and it looks like it, but all in all it's straightened up and clean.

One of my favorite things...is the flexibility of home schooling. On mornings like this I am very thankful that I'm not waking kids up early and rushing them off to school. We were up late, and the kids woke up when they needed to, and now we will begin the day with semi-rested children.

A few plans for the rest of the week..Piano lessons today with daddy, Newman stuff tonight and tomorrow, a First Communion meeting for Emma on Wednesday, karate a couple of times, and a weekend of fun. Like I said a regular, "normal" week.

A picture of our weekend:

We're all Packer's fans around here.

It's Friday!

This week went by really, really fast. If the rest of my pregnancy goes this fast we will have our new little friend here in no time. Yay!

Some random thoughts for today:

-We are making green and yellow M&M cookies for the big game this weekend. That means we need green and yellow M&Ms. That means that the rest have to be separated from the green and yellow. A bowl would suffice for this task, but my mouth has been willing to sacrifice.

-We had a huge surprise Wednesday night and were visited by our favorite neighbor (Hi Dan!) who we thought was still in Florida.

-We are planning our first-ever trip down the Cities in about a week to meet my sister and her kids and celebrate the youngest two girls' birthdays together! Very exciting!

-9-year-old boys are fun! They are sometimes mouthy, almost all-the-time trying to be in charge, but just really, really fun. They are tall too. That's my 9-year-old on the far right. We now wear the same shoe size and it won't be long and I'll be looking my little man straight in the eyes.

- Veronica loves her bed. Her real bed. Not my/her bed. We moved her bed into Aidan's room and she says with pride, "My bed, Aya oom!" The relationship between the youngest (for now) and oldest is so precious.

- Me at 33 weeks. I appreciate all of my fb friends' comments about how tiny I am. Really, I do. I'm just not feelin' it. I have anywhere between 4 and 7 weeks to go and although I feel pretty good, I find myself sitting more often and really longing for the quiet of the night when I can put my feet up and not move for quite some time. I have a feeling that this baby is going to come earlier rather than later, but who knows. I've had my babies anywhere from 37 weeks to 39 weeks.
- Brett is mostly home this weekend. Yay!

-I made tater-tot casserole for the very first time in my life last night. I refused to use the "cream of junk" that it called for (you know because the tater tots themselves are so full of nutrition) so I made up my own recipe and it was a huge hit. Everyone, except Gianna, loved it. I'll call it a success. You can't please every one, and she said she liked it, just didn't love it.

- School today was a page of Math for Aidan and an expedition in the backyard, which actually means I sent the kids out to play because it is warm enough, it was snowing, and quite frankly, I can.

-I've been thinking about my Texas friends and hope they are staying safe and enjoying their little taste of winter.

Go Green Bean Packers!

Piggy Tails

Nevermind the coats that need to be hung up, or the recycling that was on the way outside, or the toolbox that was likewise on its way out the door. Let's focus on one thing. A toddler with pigtails!