Balloon Ping Pong

We decided to make a fun game I saw on Pintrest. The kids loved it. We just took some popsicle sticks and taped them on some paper plates. Add some balloons and intant fun.
It was a fun day to start the day and get our juices flowing! :)

Chloe

I don't need to say anything more for the title of this post. "Chloe" says it all. She is quite the character and never ceases to amaze us.
I just had to get a shot of how she had me set her up after she had woken up from her nap.
This is her sitting in the big comfy chair eating her lunch. She had the remote and is not only watching a show on the TV, but has one going on my computer too.

They seem to grow up faster and faster!

More Verbal Treasures

Sam upon waking from his nap yesterday said,
"I'm just going to the bathroom. It's gonna be poop."

My conversation with Sam at scripture reading this morning:
Me: "Nephi is sharing his testimony with us. Do you have a testimony like Nephi?"
Sam: "I sure do. I have a testimony of trains!"

Quote of the Day

Church is quite the adventure these days. I know it's just the stage of our lives, but with sicknesses, naps, visiting other wards....consistency is not our friend. Chloe was still a little sick and not going to make it. James was fading fast too. So I looked at Seth and just said, "take them." He swept them away and Sam and I were left alone to sit in peace.
He looked up me and said, "Awwww. No more little bothers!" :)

Happy Valentine's Day

The kids woke up to fun Valentine's surprises in their mailboxes. They were so excited to "get mail". It was cute. They each couldn't wait to open up their boxes and see what they got.




We had a nice relaxing day. Seth was so sweet and gave me the best Valentine's gift ever....well 2 of them actually. He let me go to bed at 7:30. We have been so sick and they kids haven't been sleeping, which means I haven't been sleeping....so an early night was a dream come true.....
But the actual amazing Valentine's was ticket to WICKED! :) I am so excited. It's going to be great! :)

Seth's work was having a competition for the best treat brought to their work luncheon, so of course I pulled out all the stops. I made these amazing s'mores that were on a blog a follow. I topped them with little glitter hearts and let the goodness of the treat to all the work.

Needless to say, I won! :) Yeah. Free movie tickets....and I get to choose! :)

More Hockey

I know we talk about hockey a lot, but lets face it. It is a big part of our lives.
I just had to get some shots of James this last week. He was amazing. I love to see a skill "click". He has been off and on with his desires to play lately, and we aren't forcing him. So when he wanted to play we were all for it.
He was skating around better than he ever has before, shooting the puck (he even tried a back hander), and he even was able to stand up all by himself after falling. That's huge...not just as a skill, but for the saving of his dad's back! :)
Sometimes I don't know why we try and force our kids to do things. I know sometimes we have to help "encourage" them at times, but let's face it. When THEY decide to do something, that's when it gets done. I am grateful for this weeks reminder of that.

Camera Bandits

Sam and James just love taking pictures these days. They have learned how to use the camera on my phone and have been having a hay day taking pictures of whatever comes to mind. I mainly see the counter, the wall, their feet. Sam has ventured into shouting his trains. He is always so proud of them.
I just keep the ones I love. They mainly consist of the following: awkward shots of our faces. I love them.

Late Night Bubbles

We just had to bust out the bubble machine and have a fun time wearing ourselves out before bed tonight. Since it's been a little too cold for bubbles outside, we made do. Then we had a fun game of slipin' and slidin' all over the soapy floor.

Chopsticks

After a long day and Dad gone to class, sometimes dinner is long and hard. I decided to get the kids a little more excited about their Alfredo noodles. We broke out the chopsticks.
I was so fun to watch them try to eat. And contrary to popular belief I think they ate twice as much with those things instead of getting half as much.
I will definitely be using this trick again soon! :) And thing that makes our nights more fun is a-ok in our book.

Another Train Fair

Since we seem to be on a Train spree, we thought, why not? :)
This train show was amazing. It was held at the Southtowne Expo Center. They had displays, booths, a Thomas ride, a play area, food, and of course Lion Lionel was there! It was fun to see the sparkle in all the little boys eyes. They were almost as bright as their Grandpa's!:)
We had a great time. There were trains we didn't even know existed. Our favorite was the monorail system from Disneyland. It was so cute and vintage.
After the show we went next door to Joanna's for some yummy scones. They have trains that run around the ceiling above you while you eat. That just ended the day on a great note.

Theater Goin' Folk

Yes, that's me! :) My sweet husband got me season tickets to the Hale Center Theater with the understanding that he didn't have to go to all of them with me! :)
We went to our first play, The Game's a Foot, and had a great time. It wasn't quite what we expected, but still had a great time. They always put on a great show.
It was fun to have a great night out with my hubby doing something different than what we normally do.
We had to laugh at Seth's seat. He was on the eisle and there was literally NO floor in front of his chair for his feet and the pole was right in between his legs. We check it out. That is the ONE bad seat in the whole theater. Needless to say, we made sure we won't be sitting there again!:)

A Special Bond

Sam and his Grandpa M have a special bond. Trains. They both love them and could play with and look at and talk about trains all day long.
After the Model Train show Grandpa got some new trains. He brought one of those to show to Sam at McDonald's after hockey. I love the pictures I caught of the action because it is just so cute how excited Sam gets about trains.
I love seeing the relationship these two have.

Book Nook Upgrades

We have a space under our stairs that the kids like to play in. This week I decided it needed a little dressing up so after some fun pillows, some push lights, and a ledge for their books they were in business.
I would have done all of this a lot sooner if I would have known that it meant hours of self entertainment and happiness! :)
I have a few more plans for the space, but let's be real, who knows when I'll get around to them!:)

Drink Bandit

Chloe is my first child to like soda. And to say she likes it is a HUGE understatement. I found her hiding in our book nook under the stairs going cross-eyed from taking such long drags of drink through the straw. It was so funny. What a little ham....just like her dad!

Snow? Yea. I Think it Used to do That Here....

We rushed out this morning to play in the snow, because with the kind of winter we've had we weren't sure how long it would last....and we were right to do so, because by the afternoon it was gone.
The kids had a great time making snow angles, a snow-pile man, and they shoveled half the block. They need a little refining on their finishing skills, but the desire to serve and help was there! :)