Snow-ish

We awoke to snow, sleet and ice on Saturday morning. The kids have had a grand time this weekend playing in the winter-y mess and enjoyed taking Seth's Christmas sled out for her maiden run. Would have been a little easier if there had been more snow, but Mike and the kids made due.


The fun activities this weekend included sledding, sliding on the ice, building a tiny snowman, having snowball fights, stomping in icy-cold water puddles, warming up by the fire, making pizza, making clay hearts, playing on the Wii, playing Uno and taking bubble baths. (Among other things, of course) Fun times!





The kids were ecstatic to learn on Sunday evening that school was canceled for Monday due to "uncertain road conditions". While it is always more fun to actually have SNOW on a snow day, we are finding ways to enjoy ourselves today and especially loved having a play day with our friends, Sam and Charlie!

Seth fought the floor and...

the floor won. And, just in time for school pictures.

It is the Little Things

Our kids can surely make us laugh.

Katey came downstairs over the weekend dressed like this:

She insisted that the skirt went well with the dress and tried to convince me to let her wear them both together. Not a chance!

Then, later that day we went to the mall. Seth had been begging for new shoes that tie since he was recently inducted into the "Shoe Tying Club" in Kindergarten. I had the kids' feet measured and sure enough, they had both outgrown their shoes. After a long time at the shoe store and many trips of running up and down the aisles to test out the "turbo" on the shoes (as Seth put it), they both ended up with velcro shoes. Go figure!

Speaking of "turbo"... Seth really liked the look of one pair of sneakers but said they felt heavy and didn't have any turbo in them, so he couldn't run very fast. Later in the weekend, he declared that the turbo comes from the orange dots on the bottom of his shoes. Who knew?!? He was ecstatic to learn and share with Mike that the turbo also kicks in when he rides his bike! Bet you are now wondering where you can get such an awesome pair of sneakers, right?

Well, here are the kids showing off their fancy footwear.


I should also mention that Seth LOVES shoes. He is his mother's son. (Seth tried to persuade me to get him 2 pair instead of one.) And, he exclaimed the next morning, "Mommy, I LOVE my new shoes!! Thank you so much for getting them for me!" Who knew it would be our son that would be picky about clothes and adore shoes? :-)

Finally, the last big laugh we got this weekend surrounded the changing of smoke detector batteries. Seth hates the sound of the smoke detectors and is frequently afraid they will randomly be set off. Mike started to change out the batteries and this was the position Seth assumed:

What you can't see here is that he is clinging to me like a monkey! His right arm is wrapped completely around my neck and he is using his right hand to plug his right ear. After battery #1 was changed, we relocated. Seth and I went into my bedroom and closed the door. Then into my bathroom and closed the door. Then into my closet and closed the door to drown out the sound. (Just in case you are wondering, we have had the conversation that in the event of the detectors actually going off, we get out of the house, not just hide in the closet. He asked to go outside but since it was raining, this was the next-best option.)

Oh, the irony...

Last April we spent Spring Break visiting with Uncle Brandon and Aunt Annie in the DC area. At the time, Katey was very into reading Ron Roy books and was working her way through The Capital Mysteries series. We had checked out the book Kidnapped At the Capital and she was very excited to read the mystery while we actually were in the Capital city! I know we shouldn't have taken a library book outside of the state, but we did...

As you might have guessed, we misplaced the book and had to report to the library that we lost it and pay the resulting fine.

Fast forward to a week and a half ago when we were visiting Uncle Brandon, Aunt Annie (and Baby Nate) again...in the Capital. We enjoyed a very nice weekend together and had loaded up the car to leave. As I was getting into the van I looked down and noticed a book between the front seats. You can imagine my surprise when I discovered it was the long-lost Kidnapped At the Capital!! It had been in the van the entire time, though we had searched (apparently almost) every square inch of the vehicle several times. I guess we just needed to return to the scene of the crime to discover the missing book. Lost...and found in the Capital. Oh, the irony!

Anything But Mediocre

Mike and I took the kids for another long car trip. I can't believe that we were all ready for this so soon after the infamous 24 hour drive to Ohio at Christmas, but the pull of seeing our new nephew, Nathan, and visiting with Mike's brother, Brandon, and his wife, Annie, was too great to pass up. And, since the kids had a 3 day weekend, off we went!

Our family had a low-key weekend just enjoying each others' company. Annie (with the help of Brandon) treated us to authentic Korean cuisine. I would tell you the name of what we ate, but I'm not sure I remember...or could spell it correctly! We had a beef dish and a pork dish and the signature side of Kimchi. It was fabulous according to Mike and me. It was mediocre according to Katey. However, Katey felt that using chopsticks was awesome and they even prompted her to have leftovers of the "mediocre" meal the next day.



Brandon and Annie are doing well and functioning on small amounts of sleep. We appreciated them being willing to host us in the midst of changing sleeping schedules, midnight feedings and dirty diapers. Ahhh, the chaos of having an infant in the house. We were sad that baby Nate was very sleepy and a little grumpy on Saturday. But, Sunday and Monday we got to hold him, play with him and see his happy little face more. He is such a smart baby - he said "uncle" many times while Mike was holding him. You might think that was just a coincidence, but we know the truth! :-)

I can't remember what else Katey was referring to, but she described something else as mediocre this weekend. I think this is her new word of choice. Just so you know, Uncle Brandon and Aunt Annie, we think meeting Nate and seeing you all was anything BUT mediocre!

Mommy, I have an idea!

Katey is full of ideas. I mean really, really, really full of ideas. I am pretty sure we hear the phrase, "I have an idea" or "I have a GREAT idea" at least 3 times a day. And on the weekend we are talking more like 20 times a day - and that might not be an exaggeration!

There is one plan that Katey cooked up several months ago that came to fruition on Sunday evening (puns intended - HA!). Probably once a week, if not more, she explains in great detail how to make her version of Apple Cake and how wonderful it would taste. She even created a poster at school to proclaim the wonderfulness of the illusive Apple Cake.


Now, this is not a difficult recipe and I'm not sure why we haven't attempted it until now apart from the fact that I am a self-proclaimed mean Mommy (hee hee hee). So I promised Katey that we could make her beloved Apple Cake on Sunday evening. I didn't realize that I would not be home Sunday evening (see previous post on our anniversary surprise date night), but Emily was gracious enough to complete this recipe with Katey, thus launching her into the role of the greatest babysitter in history in our daughter's eyes. :) And, here is the finished product:



Now, you may be thinking, "That doesn't look like Apple Cake to me". Yeah. Basically, this is just apple wedges with powdered sugar frosting and sprinkles. Katey LOVED it! And, in case you, too, would like to taste this fruity goodness, here is the recipe, as written by Katey (who thinks she invented this concoction, but I am pretty sure we saw it in a magazine):

INGREDIENTS:
Apple
Water
Sugar
Sprinkles
2 bowls
Knife and cutting board

HOW TO MAKE IT:
Mix the water and sugar to get frosting
Put the frosting in a bowl
Cut apple into pieces
Dip each piece into frosting
Dip each piece into sprinkles

ENJOY!
*2 pieces per person*

12 Years

Mike and I celebrated our 12th anniversary yesterday! There was nothing specific planned and we had a pretty low-key weekend, but there were a few surprises.

We woke up Sunday morning to Katey climbing into bed with us. We were talking a little and I mentioned that it was Mommy and Daddy's anniversary. SWOOSH! Katey flew out of the bed and zoomed downstairs. We figured she was making a card and hoped that her plan, whatever it may be, didn't involve confetti. Mike and I were pleasantly surprised when Katey walked into our room with breakfast in bed for us! And, we were thankful that she carried the milk up separately from the Frosted Flakes (and no confetti was used).


Katey explained to us that the Fruit Loops on the top of the Frosted Flakes were in the shape of "Kissy Faces". This girl is so thoughtful!! We loved eating off the Strawberry Shortcake tray, too!

Bonus: The kids decided to join us by eating their breakfast on our floor!



So, Mike and I enjoyed our breakfast in bed then hit the ground running to get ready for church. Afterward we were planning to grab lunch at home but decided to head to Five Guys for lunch as a family instead. Romantic, right?! Exactly what we wanted to be doing!

The other surprise came when Mike told me that one of our favorite babysitters, Emily, would be arriving at the house in 10 minutes and we were going out! That meant I needed to change out of my Sunday afternoon sweatpants and sweatshirt and get ready to go. Thankfully, Emily is very go-with-the-flow and didn't seem to mind getting dinner for the kids or switching out laundry while we were gone (THANKS, Emily!).

Mike and I headed out, but didn't really have anywhere to go and weren't too hungry since we had a filling lunch. We enjoyed wandering some stores and eating an appetizer and dessert at Outback! It was a wonderful evening of fun and discussion and a great reminder of how much I adore spending time with my husband. The last 12 years has flown by and I am so very thankful for a wonderful husband who loves me and is a great father to our children and I'm looking forward to the next 12! God is good.

The Holidays...Take 2!

We returned home on the Sunday after Christmas and prepared for the arrival of the Averill family on Monday. The kids were super excited to be home and to spend time with Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Christy and Aunt Joanna. We were all sad that Uncle Brandon, Aunt Annie and baby Nate couldn't join us (but we hope to post about a fun trip to see them in a couple of weeks!).

The fam arrived before lunch so we spent the afternoon running an errand and hanging out and waiting for Mike to get home from work. After dinner we got to open Christmas presents - and Joanna got her birthday presents from us!! Mom A. made a beautiful lap quilt and matching pillow for Katey and enclosed a note so Katey knows what each of the blocks are called. I am sure she loves the quilt as she has slept with it every night since!

We had so much fun with the family. The highlights include:
Playing lots of games - including Balderdash (though we missed Brandon's whining about that one...love you, Brandon!)
Watching the Muppet Christmas Carol
Naps!
Family dinners
Mom's trip to her favorite quilting shop
Target!
Mike and Dad making several trips to Lowe's and putting up crown molding in the den...the only room in the house that will ever have molding, I am pretty sure
Laser Tag!!!
Secret Christmas gifts
Ringing in the New Year

We did introduce the kids to the fun and exciting game of Laser Tag. They loved it!! We had fun and found out that Jen is a great shot (high scorer on the team), but that Dad is a little better. Out of the 18 people playing, Dad held the highest score, followed by Jen. Next time...I'm coming after you, Dad!! :-)

But, the most fun of all were the secret gifts under the tree each morning. The kids would receive gifts with the tag saying they were from "Heart". While this thrilled Katey and Seth to no end, the mystery was making Katey crazy! The kids set up traps (of whoopie cushions under blankets) and had elaborate schemes to try and catch "The Culprit" as they liked to call him or her. They left notes and received notes in return. Katey even set up a ballot to see who we all thought "The Culprit" was. Much to her dismay, the highest vote-getter was Katey herself. :-)
Who left all the mystery gifts? We'll never tell!

We rang in 2010 at midnight with the kids. This was their first year to stay up for the big moment. Seth seemed to be a bit disappointed that the ball dropped on the TV, not in our yard, but Katey thought it was great to stay up so late and drink an orange juice toast from fancy glasses! I'm sure this is one New Year that she won't soon forget!

It was sad to see the Averill's leave on Friday afternoon, but I think the kids were a little relieved to be sleeping in their own beds. We did have a couple of rough days with "family detox" - getting used to not having so many people around to play with. And I know that Katey missed Aunt Jo a lot!

All in all, this holiday season was busy, crazy, fun and wonderful. Now that we have had a few days to settle in, we can't wait until we get to see everyone again. Family is a wonderful thing!

Aunt Joanna with the kiddos before Laser Tag

Grandma with the kids

Grandpa with the Crazies!

Aunt Christy, Seth, Aunt Joanna and Katey

The Holidays...Take 1!

Oh my, how time flies! I am planning to somehow fit 2 weeks worth of fun and excitement into 2 posts. I'll go chronologically and start with our time in Ohio with Jen's family.

Yes, it all began with the infamous 21 hour drive (see previous post for details). Not the greatest of starts, but things only got better from there, THANKFULLY! We spent a full week at Shannon and Jason's house (Jen's sister and brother-in-law) and had non-stop fun.

Tuesday the kids were shocked to see our dear friends, Sara, Anna and Dayton Molendorp, arrive at Aunt Shannon's front door. Okay, they actually found them hiding in the living room, but they were surprised none-the-less. We got to spend a fun-filled day hanging out together and exchanging Christmas gifts. It was so wonderful to see the Molendorps (though we did miss Jon and Mike!) and I appreciated Sara making the 3+ hour drive and sacrificing a whole day around the busy holidays to join us.Mike and Mom arrived at the house Tuesday evening. We spent Wednesday hanging out and doing some last minute shopping. Mom, Shannon and I had a nice time wandering Target and sipping Starbucks together that day.

Thursday (Christmas Eve) we hung out at Jay and Kathy's house (Jason's parents) during the day, playing in the FREEZING COLD backyard on the zip line and tree house. Seth wasn't so sure about going down the zip line at first, but he eventually warmed up to the idea and loved it. Katey showed no fear from the beginning and couldn't get enough of it.

The adults had fun playing, too! Thanks to Jay, Mike and Jason for keeping the kids going for hours (I only lasted about 15 minutes in the cold). That evening we went to Erin and Puff's (Jason's sister and brother-in law) for dinner and to spend time with their family.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
The kids were super excited to wake up and find notes and gifts from Santa and lots of gifts from Mom and Dad, Aunts and Uncles and Grandparents.

(This is the plate the kids left for Santa and the reindeer)This is my 16 month old niece, Aubrey, apparently trying to wait up to see Santa Clause with Daddy, Jason. Notice the time on the clock is 11:10 PM!! Unfortunately, sleep was not a priority for Aubrey while we were at her house.

This is my niece, Gabriella, feeling a little silly. :-)

(This is what Santa left the kids)

After the unwrapping festivities, we headed back to Jay and Kathy's house for brunch and Christmas day fun with the Collins family. Kathy had prepared a SPREAD and we stuffed ourselves on biscuits and gravy, sausage, bacon, fruit, homemade cinnamon rolls, and scrambled eggs. When we all were finally able to roll ourselves away from the table, the kids opened more presents. Jay and Kathy (and Aunt Cora) were very sweet to include gifts for our kids and Katey is loving her candy ring maker while Seth loves his new pirate ship!
Now, this sounds like a great day, right? But it isn't even half over yet! Next on the list was Survivor/Amazing Race for the grown-up kids - Shannon, Jason, Erin, Puff, Mike and Jen. Kathy planned out adventures for us in the house. Girls vs. boys and we had to play some pool (Jen ruled!), find the # of items in a room, play a round of "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader", try some bizarre Norwegian spiked pudding (started out sweet but BURNED after it went down), sorted coins with gloves on and put on a talent show. I must say that the girls DOMINATED at this game, but the final round came down to luck and the boys won.
The last event of the day was the dice game. Instead of the adults exchanging gifts, the Collins family has a tradition of bringing small gifts, pre-wrapped, ranging from $1 to $20 in value. They play a dice game and everyone ends up with a varied # of gifts. When the game is done, everyone opens their treasures. Our big scores were a car washing kit and some $25 gift cards (Kathy likes to hide them in little gifts just for fun). Good times!

Our last event of the Ohio trip was spending Saturday at Grandma Brown's house with Jen's Dad and family. Grandma is an amazing cook and we all ooh and ahh and drool over her home-cookin'. This year did not disappoint (of course, no year ever has)! After we are all completely stuffed the kids open presents and the adults try to keep the chaos to a minimum, what with 10 kids running around! We had our share of crying, yelling, running, laughing, jumping and playing. Being with the cousins is always a fun time. It is especially fun for the grown-up cousins as we hadn't been all together for several years. We not only got to catch up with life in general, but Kim and Ron and I got to exchange "driving to Ohio on the I-77 WV turnpike on Saturday" stories. Bonus!

(Sorry, no pictures from then - I took my camera to Grandma's and never once pulled it out to use. Bad me!)

We headed home on Sunday - this time Jen made sure not to be in a car alone with the kids. I actually was with Mom the entire drive so we got to spend some nice time catching up and talking about our favorite (and not-so-favorite) parts of the trip.

Oh, and I can't let this post end without a big shout-out to my dad. As of December 26th he is officially a non-smoker for 2 weeks! He has smoked for 40 years. I am so proud of you, Dad! I know you can do it!!!