Thinking Inside the Box

We had a very nice weekend and I hope that you all did too! Friday night Scott went to see Larry the Cable Guy (who he loves) and I celebrated my birthday with my sister. It was fun, but weird because it was the first birthday celebration without Mandi.

Saturday was Valentine's Day and we started at a pancake breakfast at Paige and Shawn's. It was a cute idea and a fun way to spend the morning. Everyone had a great time and the food was yummy! That night, Scott and I had a big treat. Papa and Two offered to keep all the kids so Scott and I could go out. So, Scott and I went to dinner and a movie, got up Sunday and worked out, hit the grocery store...just normal weekend stuff but without kids so it was a treat! When we picked everyone up on Sunday, there were some tired kiddos but boy were they excited. Non-stop chatter about the evening's events (playground, dinner, ice cream, play dough, etc). They all had a wonderful time. I think Emma was the early bird. She got up with Mary around 5:30 a.m., which is so not like her. She slept for 4 hours Sunday afternoon! She was exhausted.

The highlight of the night out for Luke was (drumroll please....)he got a box! He loves it! We have our very own thinking box (straight from Pinky Dinky Doo!) We have drawn pictures and decorated it. We are storing all sorts of goodies in there (like Hamilton from Maggie & the Ferocious Beast), and lastly, it is a good hiding place. He woke up this morning and it was the first place he went. It is hilarious but he is so proud. Who knew the box would be the hit??

Jack had a great time just hanging out and watching the All Star game. He is easy.

Thanks to Papa and Two for a great night for everyone. I hope you have recuperated!

Love Is In The Air

Well, Valentines is almost here and let me tell you...we are feeling it at our house. Or rather, I am feeling it. Luke has to have homemade Valentines. And, those that know me well will tell you this is not my forte--craftiness. If only my former sister-in-law was still around. When Jack was young, she was around and always came up with the best and cutest ideas and loved doing crafts and art projects with him. I am great at planning it but really prefer someone else to implement my ideas.

Anyway, here is what I came up with. I had to cut out all these stinking hearts but they turned out pretty cute. Luke helped me glue and his favorite part was putting the eyes on. It's hard to tell by the pic but they are heart puppy dogs--everything is a heart. The note says "I Wuff You! Happy Valentine's Day." But as we are working, he tells me he would rather give his friends the Cars cards because those are "sooo cool". Fantastic. Cool they are but look at how cute these are. Hmm oh well. He is just excited to have a party and get candy.

Jack has his final Valentine party on Friday and Emma doesn't have one, but will take treats for her class. We got rid of Jack's Valentine box that we have used since K5 (the one Juhls made) because we thought no more parties. So, we are scrambling for a box. Jack really could care less about this but certainly has opinions on what I should do for his box. Hmmmm...So, tomorrow night, we will re-do his box as he has changed his mind on what we did first. I keep reminding him it is for a 20 minute party so let's not worry too much.

And, all this while Emma is so sick. Poor baby. On the way to school Tuesday I hear a lot of liquid and look back and poor girl is puking. This is a first for her so she was so confused. She's been very brave and has been much better today, but still a little lethargic and needy. Tonight we had a lot of energy so I am hoping she feels great tomorrow.

A Whirlwind Weekend

Man, what a weekend! We have been so busy but all with good stuff. Saturday, Ginny and Joe came up to see the boys play basketball and what fun it was. Luke's games are always entertaining and he did great! We left to go to lunch at Charlestons before Jack's game. As we were leaving, Luke walked into a rod iron post and really got his eye good. So, Ginny and Joe took Jack to his game, Emma went to Kristie's and Luke, Scott and I went to the after hours to have them figure out what to do with his eye. No stitches needed but boy does he have a shiner. It looked very painful but he was very brave. It was a fast and furious morning. We all got back to the house around 2pm and Luke had a birthday party at 4.

This party was for his friend Lucy at the Little Doll House. I have not been here but what a cute place. Lucy's mom was nice enough to buy some pirate gear for the boys, but let me tell you, all the boys could care less and quickly threw on sequined dresses. Of course, Luke went to green and it was too cute. Remember--he is 3, so this is still cute:). They dressed up, did a fashion show, got his hair colored green with green gel, green nail polish...you name it. He had a great time and once I get some pics, I will have to post them becasue it was the most precious, innocent fun time.

Today, we had another party for our friend Katie who was turning 4. This was at a ranch as she loves horses. So, we threw on jeans, boots and cowboy hats, guns (for Luke) and headed out to the ranch. What a cute party! The kids got to brush a horse and then ride a horse. Too cute. Emma and Luke had a great time!

Then, we picked up Jack and headed out for a SuperBowl party. There were tons of kids playing in a great backyard and the adults were mostly inside. My kids all had a great time. Emma was not going to miss a beat and hung right in there with the big kids. We left about 7:30 and both kids were nodding off in the car. What a fun, busy weekend it was, but how lucky we are to have so many friends that include us on these fun outings!

Snow Days

Well, we survived the ice storm and three days of no school. I fared pretty well on my list:


Potty training- we are doing pretty good. Here's my problem, after being trapped, I needed out so I had to put a diaper on. We are doing good and there is not turning back but I did resort to a diaper here and there so I could escape the house. But, the good news is that now Emma doesn't want to put a diaper on so I feel we are on the home stretch. Jack did a great job on cleaning out his bookshelf, so I am pleased to have this done.


All this, plus some play-dough, coloring, dress up and we ventured out to go sledding (in big girl panties and all). My kids were so cute out in the snow. Jack was determined to shovel our front walk and driveway. This is great but we get a huge mound on our porch. He worked so hard and did a great job. I don't know that I have ever seen him work that hard at anything. He was so big. Luke and Emma really wanted a snowball fight but there was not as much snow as ice. So, we made snow angels and then went sledding at the park. I thought Emma would get cold first, but it was Luke. His snow pants were a bit too short and his poor legs were bright red and cold. He cried about 85% of the time and finally told me his legs were so cold. Poor guy! Nothing a little hot chocolate couldn't fix.

Thursday we ventured out to parent/teacher conferences for Luke and then on to Chuck E. Cheese. Luke has been begging to go because they are advertising on PBS all the time. So, we met some friends there and everyone had a great time. I think it measured up to Luke's expectations and then some. It was fun to see him playing with his friend and just having fun.

All this being said...we had a fun few days but were very greatful for the nice weather today! Sometimes the ice days are good for reminding us to slow down and enjoy the little things. We did a lot of that over the last few days!

Ice, Ice, Baby!

Why is it we keep getting ice? When I was growing up it was all snow. I am sure global warming is affecting that but I sure would like my kids to be able to play in a good snow! But, today we have ice so, the kids and I are all stuck in the house and I figure we may as well be somewhat productive. So, here is my list for things to attempt to get done in the next 48 hours:

1. Clean out the toy baskets all over this house. Why is it, my kids are always looking for the little Sonic toy that is buried at the bottom? I feel like every time I walk in a room, the basket is dumped over. Luke is pretty good at helping pick it up but this gets very old when you are here all day.

2. Clean off Jack's bookshelf- really, Jack is  going to clean off his bookshelf. It is a mess and there are books he has way outgrown on there that we need to give away. So, what a perfect chore for today.

3. Potty train Emma- this is a biggee. I think she is ready. We are going for it. We bought big girl panties yesterday. So far today, we are doing good. I figure if I can  keep at it for the next 48-72 hours, we should make it. You know, with boys, you don't really have to deal with toilet paper. Emma loves the paper! If this happens, that would mean no diapers at our house. Oh my!

4. Finish some work projects- I have a few work projects that are almost  done, but not quite. My goal is to mark them off my list while stuck at home. We'll see how that goes.

I'll keep you posted but hopefully we can get most of this done. How are you spending your icy day?