Just Plain Silly

Wow!  The first week of school was an incredibly easy transition for the kiddos.  I was a bit stressed out because my part time teaching gig started the same week.  But the kiddos - they did great!  This week.... well that is another story.  A bit more drama on the kiddos' side and Disco and I are still crazy busy just trying to keep up.  It really should slow down after this week is over.  So we are in "survival mode" for just a few more days. 

The good thing is that even with the busy weeks and transitions around here the kiddos still know how to have fun!  Disco deserves a dad of the year award for his patience as big sis' dance student.  And we have a grand time playing a household-wide game of hide and seek.  We laugh and laugh - especially because Disco is very creative and stumps us each time with his hiding places.  :)

Below you will find pictures of one of the silly things the kiddos dream up around our house.  And yes, they think these things up all by themselves... Love these kids!

Big Kid School 2012

Tonight we got everyone ready to return to school.  Forms are signed, bags are packed, lunches prepared, clothes set out, and kids in bed.  Little man fell right to sleep.  Big sis is a bit too excited and took longer to settle.  I have no doubt this week will be a little stressful as we all adjust to the new schedule.  But for now the house is quiet and we all anticipate a wonderful school year!  Little man has asked us all week "Is tomorrow a school day?" and he told me "I'm not even going to cry on my first day."  Can't say the same for his mommy....

Here are the kiddos in Disco's white shirt - we plan to take a picture each year to show how much they have grown.  Big sis has one from the night before Kindergarten and now 1st grade.  Little man's picture from the night before Pre-K is his first one.  Off we go!

The Night Before Kindergarten 2011

The Night Before 1st Grade 2012

The Night Before Pre-K 2012

Summer 2012

I didn't really intend to take another blogging break.  But it happened anyway.  Although I think it was for a really good reason - taking time for FUN!  This summer I was still facing a limited amount of vacation time after changing jobs in the spring.  So my supervisor was kind enough to let me work an adjusted work week for the majority of the summer - 4 long days at work with 3 day weekends.  It was a little tiring but worth the extra time with the kids and the ability to take weekend "mini-vacations."  So I went to Boston to visit my BFF from college, we took a trip to Dallas to visit friends, and then we took a trip to a condo at the lake.  We also had Uncle Scott visit us for a weekend.  And many "staycations" where all we did was lounge around the house or go swimming. 

This fall will be busy again because I agreed to teach another semester in addition to working the new job.  But I am going to take time to blog at least once a week.  Maybe I will try out a new format for my posts....At the very least I am not going to worry about "catching up" anymore.  The kiddos have plenty of memories documented on this blog.  And there will be more to come.  :)

Ka-Chow

I am just worn out with our schedule lately - fun activities and lots of work all at the same time.  And little man is about to drive us batty as he digs his heels in for the "troublesome threes" that are soon to arrive at our house (we are literally being hit over the head with glimpses of 3 already).  Needless to say I am not keeping up with blogging.  So I was searching for some posts that might have gotten "lost" in the shuffle and found this one I FORGOT to post this past Christmas.  I'm glad I found this video.  It made me smile today - enjoy!

Disco got a new "toy" during the after Christmas sales this year.  It was a remote control to turn on the Christmas lights.  Of course he couldn't just pack it away for next Christmas . . . so he taught the kiddos how to turn on the tree lights by "magic."  Disco taught them to use the word Ka-Chow because we are big fans of the movie Cars (especially Mater but Lightning McQueen is cool too).  I left the true ending to the video.  Usually I edit out the downward spiral and chaos but it just cracked me up that they were tussling over "lighting" the tree.  True sibling rivalry!

Frat House

This picture is for Uncle Scott.  Too bad we didn't get the frat guy and police officer we ran into that morning in the shot as well:

Mardi Gras

Big sis turns 5 years old in less than a week.  I can't believe how fast she is growing up!  This year her birthday is the Sunday before Fat Tuesday so we decided to have a Mardi Gras themed birthday party with her freinds.

Instead of putting money towards the birthday bash I've kept to a smaller b-day budget and we took a trip to a real Mardi Gras parade instead.  It was a really fun adventure with family and friends and I hope that big sis will enjoy the activities/crafts we have planned for her party since she saw the real thing.  Truthfully, I hope we can stick to themed b-day parties at parks or the house as long as possible.  It is more fun for me to plan and her birthday is so well timed for spring activities.

Here are the weekend pics.  We shopped, ate, played at a cool park, attended the parade, and visited uncle Scott's alma mater.  The road trip to Shreveport for the parades (which are a bit more family friendly than New Orleans) was just the right length for the kiddos.  Our trip was also a good reminder to take a "mini-vacation" every once in a while to recharge and spend extra time together as a family.  I hope we can do this trip with them again next year!

A rare father daughter pic

Best Buds :)

Poppers were quite entertaining -
little man was even able to get these
"fireworks" to pop!

Favorite little man action picture!

A new little friend

I don't know what they were begging for
but this picture cracked us up!

Mini-Reunion

My best friend from college came to visit recently.  It was a WONDERFUL mini-reunion!  I really miss having her nearby.  The last few years we have been unable to connect very often - busy schedules and family commitments as well as limited time/budget for traveling.  Oddly enough, the ability to text each other and skype has facilitated keeping up a little bit better lately.  Technology can be a quite useful!  ;).

Both Disco and I adore my best friend - and now we have had the chance to get to know her new hubby (whom we also adore).  The kiddos, well, some word that exaggerates the term adore would be the best way to describe their reaction to our friends.  The excitement and chaos from the kiddos during our skyping sessions is a treat as well.  Most of our time is spent laughing at silly children!

It feels like the weekend visit was so long ago already - which it isn't b/c it was just last weekend (February 19-20). But between little man's health issues and trying to keep up with a few deadlines at work it has been a busy time since then.  Here are some pics of our mini-reunion adventures at the river - can't wait to see our friends again soon!  BTW - I love that my wonderful hubby included jpgs of pictures with silly facial expressions.  Comedian.

Love this pic!

A little worn out

We had a wonderful weekend . . .the weather was beautiful and we visited all weekend with old friends.  I have plenty of pics to share later this week.  :)

But today I am feeling a little worn out.  I really think it is a combo of tiredness, sadness, and possibly illness.  The whole family is a little tired from the weekend.  It was too pretty to stay inside and we pushed the sleep boundaries because I didn't want to miss out on our limited time with my best friend from college.  It really was a great visit!  I also really missed my friend today.  We don't get to see each other very often and spending the weekend with her and her husband reminded me of really good times and a strong bond.  Both kiddos were also missing our friends and mommy and daddy today as they went back to their routine.

And finally, we are concerned that little man may have strep again.  He acted kind of funny Sunday night and his breath was stinky.  No fever today but we set up an appointment with the pediatrician Tuesday just in case.  This strep stuff is getting very old and is so distracting to me because it makes me anxious and worry.  I just want my baby to be healthy again.  I really hope we are worried for nothing - we will see tomorrow.

So now I am heading off to bed early.  All those chores I needed to do tonight will just have to wait.  I am hoping some extra zzz's will help kick start me back into a happier state of mind tomorrow . . .

Daddy-Daughter Dance

I was folding clothes and turned on some music to encourage the kiddos to do "dance party" with me while I worked.  Of course big sis got right into it.  A slower song came on and she yelled "dance with me!"  I turned around to respond and she had gotten her daddy out on the dance floor.  :).  All folding ceased so I could capture this sweet little 4 year old moment (which explains the large pile of clothes in the background of the video).  Before we know it this will be them during the father-daughter dance at her wedding:




Or maybe more like this:

Random Pictures

After all the snow postings I played catch up at work this week and each night we have enjoyed some fun spring-like weather either at the park or in the backyard.  I'm glad to be back to a regular schedule again. Although I have to admit I missed the kids randomly throughout each day at work. 

My creative juices are definitely limited by this point in the week.  So instead of documenting our activities I decided to pick out past cute pictures of the kiddos that make me smile.  Both of the following pics are from May 2009. 

Day 6

Happy Valentine's Day!  Today was the last day of extra time with the kiddos during our snow days and scheduled closings for school.  Big sis hung out with me while I worked from home while little man went to daycare.  In the afternoon big sis went to dance and Disco and I were able to join little man for his Valentine's Day party and some beautiful sunny afternoon playtime in the backyard.

We were also treated to some fun time with the grandparents today!  My time with big sis was going really well this morning - I worked while she watched the agreed upon Valentine's specials on TV and enjoyed some Valentine's crafts. Then she got bored (signs of which included a sudden onset of numerous questions and "momma" every 30 seconds).  Luckily, Gaga called about the same time big sis got bored and heard the desperation in my voice.  Gaga wanted to drop off Valentines for the kiddos anyway so she ended up taking big sis to a surprise lunch at McDonalds. 

Grandmother and Grandad called us Sunday night to tell us they were still in town and offered to watch the kiddos.  Disco and I decided to take them up on their offer and enjoy a Valentine's date night.  It was wonderful to have an unexpected Valentine's meal treat with my hubby,  We got to try an old Italian restaurant in town that we had never visited before tonight.  It was yummy!

So the best Valentine's Day presents - love from the grandparents!  Somehow the stars aligned today so that Disco and I got to work and have a much needed date sans kiddos.  Grandmother, Grandad, and Gaga more than deserve our love and thanks this Valentine's Day!  :)

A couple of pics that we took of little man as we were traveling from one activity to the next:


Little man couldn't wait to open his Valentine's.  He had
to stop on the front porch to open up his loot after school



















Little man was SO proud of the suckers
he found in his treat bag. 
He told us "One for me and one for big sis!"



Day 5

Day 5 of snow/school break days - a quick Sunday update.  It was a whirlwind day of church, play time, a cookie party (a mommy only event ;), backyard fun in the FABULOUS 60 degree weather (just a hint of snow left now), and a slumber party.  The kiddos actually were really well-behaved for the majority of the day.  Of course all those yummy cookies mommy brought home in the late afternoon were sure to help with the usual late day slump.  ;).  All in all it was a beautiful Sunday!

Day 3

This morning was a clean up kind of morning.  Clean up toys, clean up laundry, take a shower, clean up kids, etc. 

We also baked a Valentine's Day cake.  The kiddos did a great job buttering the pan, pouring in the ingredients, spreading the icing and tossing on the sprinkles.  It was one of the few times I really enjoyed the process of baking with both kiddos and we finally worked out who does what.  I think the best part was giving them enough space to work - we moved the baking operations to the dining room table.  Space made a real difference :)

Best part of our Day 3 adventures - Grandmother and Grandad took the kiddos for the afternoon.  Big sis and little man spent all morning describing to me all the things they would do at Grandmother's house (baking cookies were on top of both of the kiddos list).  The grandparent adventure meant that Disco and I could WORK again.  I would be happy to be a stay at home momma.  Or to work from home.  But trying to work from home WITH kids underfoot - not my ideal working situation.  Doable but not easy by any means.  Kudos to the women who attempt that scenario!

No pics from the day.  More tomorrow . . . we are visiting a neighborhood snow fort in the morning.  Should be fun :)

Day 2

Today's goals were to sleep late (didn't happen), work at least 4 hours to somewhat keep up with deadlines (check!), build a snowman (didn't happen), go sledding (check!), eat "junkfood" (ssshh!  the kids don't know that we disguise their lowfat/low salt/turkey/veggie/high fiber/healthier food options and call it a "treat." check!), make a second batch of snow ice cream and drink hot cocoa (ok, those really are junkfood options. check!), and trash the house (kids goal not mine. check!). 

Disco got to do a little home improvement project in the kitchen.  Thankfully he did not go ahead and cut a hole in our snow covered roof today.  ;)

Here are the day's activities in pictures.  Enjoy!




Actually a project we started on Day 1 and finished Day 2.
It really was a joint effort and probably my fav fridge
project based on the "togetherness" factor.  :)

 




















Played indoors all morning . . .



















. . . outdoors in the afternoon!
























Prepping the sledding slope.
Disco takes that task very seriously!

The slope!



A stick for thumping snow covered branches























Watch out - he is looking for targets!























Daddy started a belly sledding trend





I even joined in on the belly sledding . . .
I hope this pic reminds the kiddos that mommy
doesn't ALWAYS work during snow days ;)
























Little man decided to just take a seat during
 my lame attempt to start building a snowman























Tired of walking up the hill!























Bigger than life little man!  :)



Day 1

February 9th - ANOTHER snow day.  And this time we are getting a significant amount and it is definitely sticking around ;).  This past Sunday night we got snow and the roads were a little slick and slushy in our neighborhood on the way to school Monday morning.  But within 30 minutes of leaving the house it was melting fast.

Snow began falling this morning about 7am and everything was covered quickly.  At one point big sis looked out the window and told us "Hey the roads are white!  We are getting lots of it (snow).  I guess I must have wished too hard!"   Disco cleaned his car twice already and it is still covered in snow. 

Today begins 6 days in a row of big sis being out of school.  Two days for weather, two scheduled days of school closings, and two weekend days.  Not sure how we are going to spend all of this unexpected family time.  At least today I was able to work 3-4 hours so that some work projects are under control.  No worries, though about working too much.  We still hiked in the snow, played with neighbors, went sledding, and made some snow ice cream. 

Obligatory snow pics.  They aren't the greatest . . . all the falling snow ended up making the pictures taken with my little point and shoot camera fairly dark. 

Big sis loves "posing" for the camera lately



She was SO EXCITED about playing with
the neighborhood kids in the snow :)

Little man was covered in snow within the
first 30 secs of being outside.  This was
also Disco's second time to clean the car

Favorite activity - throwing "snowballs"

Chili dogs for lunch . . . with lots of extras.  We always have
chili when it snows :)