The Liebers

Friday Fill-Ins

2012-01-27T08:37:00.002-05:00

1. It's time to get this Friday started, so we can get this week over with!
2. Rise and shine ... and don't forget the smiles!
3. I'm trying to get back into the habit of blogging and recording our family's memories.
4. "Mommy, are all Princesses' daddies kings?", that was the last funny comment I received.
5. Please send me a housekeeper--STAT!
6. I hope the people I work with like me, cause I'm in it for the long haul.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to hubby cooking dinner, tomorrow my plans include a birthday party for a friend and Sunday, I want to teach Children's Church and then spend the day with my family!

Thankful Thursdays

2012-01-26T16:30:00.001-05:00

Oh...Blogging. How I have missed you. I have been doing some work on the header and background here and I am mostly happy with it. I made it pink for Valentine's Day. Awwwww..... And of course there's no point in revamping the layout if I don't put some content here for people to read (hi Mom!!). Since today is Thursday, I thought I would post a Thankful Thursday to try and get me back on track.

I am infinitely thankful for my new job. I love what I do. I love the people I work with. I love helping the students who come in. I have a regular schedule, Monday through Friday, 8-5. I have an hour long lunch break that is just enough time to go home, eat lunch, run a load of laundry and sometimes even get dinner started. I have vacation time and sick days and personal days. I feel like things are just so much more consistent now. I am very thankful and truly blessed to have come across this job posting back in June.
My family is another thing I am thankful for. I had a good amount of time off at Christmas and we were able to travel a bit. We got to spend time with Ken's dad, brother and sister in law as well as my niece, Abby. I got to go home and see my parents and little brother. The kids and I also got to take a trip to my brother John's house and visit with him and Jessica and meet their dogs. Frances and Benjamin LOVED the dogs!! Henry was a little wary of them. He likes the idea of dogs; not so much the dogs themselves.

We are also in the process of trying to plan a family reunion with my dad's side of the family. We all got together two years ago in June and had a really great time. This time Benjamin would be along for the ride. We are looking at renting some cabins in a state park and hanging out together for a week. It sounds exciting and I can't wait to see everyone again!

In all honesty, things are good right now and it is pretty easy to say that I am thankful for everything. Things aren't perfect, but I don't really expect them to be. I just feel like I am in a good place right now. With my family, my kids, my job, all of it. I am a happy camper!! Except for those two grey hairs I discovered this month!!

Benjamin's 50 words

2012-01-25T10:03:00.001-05:00

I did this post with Henry when he was getting close to two, so I thought I should start one for Benjamin as well. His language has really taken off recently and he seems to be talking a lot! SO far he can say:

mama
dada
sissy (Frances)
bubba (Henry)
mee mee (himself)
keekee (Oscar)
cah (car, truck, etc,)
more
peez (please)
kang koo (thank you)
coo coo (choo choo train)
nah nigh (not nice)
bigh (bite-as in "the cat bit me")
num num (any kind of food, usually candy)
baf (bath)
jooooooose (juice or sippy cup)
nigh nigh (night night)
hi
bye bye
ummmm
noooooooo
huh huuuuh (for "yes")
mine
no (nose)
eye
ear
ball
Animal sound: RAWR!! (appropriate for a lion, bear, or tiger)
Animal sound: woof woof (for a dog)
Animal sound: mow mow (for a cat)

That's a pretty good list so far. I know I am forgetting some, so I will be back to add to it.

I am back to add:
   31. Buck (for a male deer--I am SO proud!)
   32. guk (truck)
   33. Animal sound: moooo (for a cow)
   34. binkg (binky)
   35. coooooo (cold)

A Plea to the Tooth Fairy

2012-01-19T10:22:00.000-05:00

The kids had a dentist appointment this week. This kids love going to the dentist! I know that sounds crazy, but the dentists at our dentist's office are both really great. One guy goes to our church and the other woman is just really friendly and sweet. The hygienists are awesome too! Unfortunately, their teeth don't look so great. :( Part of the problem is remembering to brush every night. Part of the problem is that their teeth are so squished together that it is very hard to clean between them. Even the hygienist had trouble with all her special dental tools. Henry is going to have to have some cavities filled in his back teeth. We also talked a bit about his thumb sucking habit. His bite and his teeth have been already been affected and we have been talking with him about quitting, but it's not as easy as just taking away a pacifier.
On the way home from the dentist, I talked with the kids bout being better about brushing and not eating so much candy and I told Henry that he was going to have to stop sucking his thumb. When we got home Frances and Henry went into the dining room while I was fixing dinner. They were very quiet, but I was thankful that I was able to get dinner ready without interruptions. After a quick dinner we got ready for bed and the kids got settled in for the night. Frances gave Henry something and he put it under his pillow. Being curious, I asked him what it was. Frances said it was a note for the tooth fairy.
I was tired and I didn't think much of it until I was lying in bed falling asleep myself. I jumped out of bed and crept into the kids' room. I slowly pulled the note out from under Henry's pillow. I was tucked inside a tooth ring Frances had gotten at the dentists' office. I unfolded it and found this:

Frances thought that if the tooth fairy brought Henry a pacifier that he would stop sucking his thumb. Awww! So sweet. But sorry, honey that's not how it works!!

10 Surefire Ways To Avoid Red Lights

2012-01-09T11:48:00.002-05:00

From my recent driving experience, I have learned that there are some absolutely foolproof ways to get "all greens" when you are out driving around town:

Receive a text that you want to read and /or respond to.
Get something in your eye that either stings or impairs your ability to see.
Be ahead of schedule for a meeting you don't want to go to.
Hear a loud "Uh-oh" from the backseat followed by silence (or the sound of something dripping).
Have a misbehaving child who needs "the eye."
Have a coughing or sneezing fit that leaves you breathless.
Have an itchy foot.
See someone you know driving next to you, but they won't turn and look at you, despite your mad waving.
Drop your map on the floor right before the next turn.
Try to hand someone in the backseat something, but drop it right where they can seat it but not reach it. And then they start screaming for it!

Momma Can't Dance

2012-01-05T21:57:00.000-05:00

I have posted some funny comments from the backseat and our evening commutes, but they have all involved Henry or Frances. Well, apparently, Benjamin now wants in on the fun. I had just the boys in the car with me and we were leaving the day care parking lot. I had turned the music down in the morning so it was relatively quiet in the van. I started whistling; something cheery. I don't remember specifically what the tune was. And then from the back seat...my sweet littlest one, yelling: "Nooooooo! Stooooooooo!" So I stopped whistling and said, "Benjamin, are telling Mommy to stop whistling?" And he responds: "Huh-huuuuh" Which is his way of saying "yes."
So, I stop whistling and turned on the radio. And then Henry started laughing uncontrollably.

Me: What is so funny back there!?!
Henry: Benjamin is dancin'!

So of course, I try to look in the rear-view mirror to see what is going on. I can barely see his little head moving (he is still rear-facing in his car seat). So for the ride home I left the music on and listened to Henry giggling.

Later after dinner, I was cleaning up in the kitchen and Benjamin came to visit me. I turned on some music and my iPad and he started grooving. He was bouncing up and down and waving his arms. It looked fun, so I joined in! Then he stopped and shook his little finger at me. "Noooo. Stoooooo." So I stopped dancing and then he continued on. Each time I tried to join in he would waggle his little finger and tell me to stop.

I made a loud hissing sound which is supposed to attract Ken's attention without alerting the kids to the fact that I am trying to point out something they are doing. (Because you know if I said, "Hey come here the kids are being cute." they would immediately stop.)

When Ken came in the kitchen, he saw Benjamin dancing. He said, "Are ya dancin', buddy?" And Benjamin said, "Huh-huuuuh." Then I showed Ken what would happen if I tried to dance, and Benjamin still got upset. But guess what happened when Ken started dancing!??! Nothing!! Benjamin just looked at him and kept right on grooving. Not fair!

But what really worries me is "What happens if all our kids learn their dance moves from Ken???"

From the Back Seat

2012-01-04T21:42:00.000-05:00

As I drive home in the evenings, I usually try to prepare the kids for what we will do when we get home. Usually I do this to preempt the "Can we watch TV?" discussion that I know will be coming. Typically I tell the kids what their chores will be and remind them about putting shoes and coats away. It is never a long conversation, but there are often groans when the assigned chores are announced. This is one of my favorite recent conversations:

Me: Tonight when we get home, Frances and Henry, you both have clothes to put away.

Henry (shouting): WHY DO WE ALWAYS HAVE CHORES?!?!

Me (after a brief time of reflection): Well, chores are important for you to learn how to be a responsible person.

Henry (after a brief silence): Oh. I thought they were just boring.

First Reconciliation

2011-12-15T11:16:00.001-05:00

Frances had her First Reconciliation last night. I had a little chuckle because she woke up yesterday morning so excited about it! She had classes over the past month or so and learned about God's Laws (AKA 10 Commandments), the definition of sin and our need for forgiveness. She also had a chance to practice going to Confession and had a good giggle at some of the sins they got to pick out of the bag!
She tried explaining Confession to Henry, but he is a bit too young to understand. I tried explaining and didn't get much farther. Yesterday we had this conversation in the van on the way to pick up Frances:
Me: Henry, tonight is a special night for Frances. I want you to be on your best behavior.
Henry: What is Sissy doing?
Me: Tonight is when she has her First Reconciliation.
Henry: Is that when she talks to Fr. Tom?
Me: Yes. She will talk to Father about her sins. Do you know what a sin is?
Henry: No.
Me: Sins are the things we do that make God sad. Do you do things that make God sad?
Henry: No.
Me: Really? Are you sure??
Henry: {yelling} NO!!
Me: Did you know that yelling at your Mommy makes God sad?
Back seat of van: {crickets}

Anyway, we picked her up and grabbed a quick dinner. (This time we were running late through no fault of my own. This time. Honest!) The service was a nice one and very kid-friendly. Other people were allowed to come, but Fr. Tom catered to the kids who were confessing for the first time. They had the prayers written out on the handout (which was probably great for some of the adults, too. Ahem) and three stations just for the kids to start out at so they could go first. They even had the screen and kneeler out for the kids that wanted to try it that way. Of course, Frances did. Afterwards there was a nice cross necklace for each child. The priests blessed the crosses right after the absolution and the kids got to wear them home (or play Cat's Cradle with them while waiting for their Mommies to go to Confession).

From Drop Box

She was so happy after she came back to sit with me. I wanted to get a chance to chat with her more about the experience, but her brothers were being...um...they were being little boys. I did get to overhear her talking to a friend about it and apparently she was "kinda nervous" but once she got started it was "pretty fun."
So proud of you and the wonderful girl you are growing up to be, Frances!

From Drop Box

Photo Card

2011-11-30T13:56:00.001-05:00

Christmas Snapshots Christmas

Quick and easy: Christmas photo cards at Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

Florida, Part 4 (The ZOOOOOOOOO)

2011-11-12T17:08:00.000-05:00

On Saturday after the wedding, we decided to spend the day at the Naples Zoo. What a fun place!! Frances and Henry just loved all the animals and Benjamin screamed and cried every time we had to leave an exhibit to go to another one. Chuck said he thought Benjamin was going to climb over the fence to go live with the zebras!! He meowed at the lions and loved looking for moneys in the trees. I only took 237 pictures that day, so I will share a few of the best here.

Lions


Benjamin trying to move in with the lions.

Zebra


Benjamin trying to move in with the zebra

Monkey on island

Monkey on boat (and Benjamin...hahaha, I crack myself up!!)


Adorable sloth picture for Jessica

Alligator feeding time (Yes, that is the same guy who was just holding the sloth; No he did not feed a sloth to the alligator)


"He's not heavy; he's my brother."

They had young giraffes at this zoo. One of the keepers told me that they procure baby giraffes because they are much easier to transport that older (i.e. taller) giraffes. The zoo is raising money to help build a bigger, more permanent enclosure for their giraffes. For $5 you could purchase three lettuce leaves (!!!!!!) to feed to the giraffes. I went to the kiosk to buy some lettuce and took Frances and Henry with me. Since she was just getting ready to take a break so they could do a "creature feature" on the giraffes, she said, "Since you've got two kids I'll give you four pieces." She was trying to help me avoid an argument, so I didn't say anything. Thankfully Frances let Henry have the extra piece and everyone was happy!

Look at that tongue!!

They had a little playground near the entrance/exit with big concrete animals the kids could climb on. Benjamin was sleeping in the stroller at this point, though, so I only have the bigs.

Then we went home and played under the sink!

Florida, Part 3

2011-11-11T11:31:00.001-05:00

Hmmm? Where was I? That's right! After the day of splashing in the water with their clothes on, we decided it was best to take it easy the morning on the wedding. I didn't actually get any {good} pictures of the wedding because it was indoors and I wasn't supposed to use a flash. You will just have to take my word for it when I tell you that Christie was beautiful! And Brian looked pretty good, too.
I did manage to get some fun pictures of the kids' feet afterwards! {Hey, you do what you gotta do to entertain cranky kids in the car!!}

So then we drove to the reception. It was at a nice country club {You know, compared to all the country clubs I have ever been too!} We had a lovely meal and then ~~ate~~ wore some cake.

Well, that was Benjamin. That boy has never met a "num num" he didn't like!

I did finally manage to get a picture of Christie and all the kids.

{I didn't actually say you would get to see all the kids!}

Then we went back to the house to chill for the rest of the day!

Florida, Part 2

2011-11-09T16:10:00.016-05:00

We survived both flights and made it to Tampa. We collected our bags and met Christie and Brian near the bathrooms, which was a good place to be at that point in time since everyone needed a bathroom break. Carting luggage around was much easier with two extra sets of hands as well. We went over to the car rental kiosk and picked up our brand, spankin' new car that had about 12 miles on it! Then we drove out to Naples to the house that Chuck had rented for everyone. We had a nice master suite with a King sized bed for us and a crib for Benjamin. There was another room across the hall with a double and a twin that Frances and Henry shared and then another room with a double and twin that Dan and Nikki shared with Abby. Chuck had a master suite downstairs. There was a nice patio (technically a lanai in Florida-speak) and swimming pool out back. We asked the kids to take a nap and then afterwards we went swimming. Outside. In November!
Thursday morning we set out for a walk and ended up at the beach.

We were going to just walk on the beach and look at the water, but the kids had other plans!
At first the rule was to just get their feet wet. (Benjamin wanted absolutely nothing to do with the water OR sand at this point!)


The kids were being chased by the big scary "Papa-gator!"

Then the rule became something about trying to keep their clothes dry...

And then you really just have to ask yourself: "How many times are these kids going to get to go to Florida and play in the Gulf of Mexico??"

Benjamin finally consented to getting out of the stroller, as long as he didn't have to be anywhere near the water or sand!

The big boys enjoyed themselves too.

Ultimately, the questions of the day were: How long will soaking wet, too big shorts stay on? and How dirty/wet can we possibly get?

And Benjamin finally got into the sand!

In fact, he decided he loved sand so much he wanted to shampoo his hair...

...and eat SEVERAL handfuls!

Aunt Christie came down to meet us and run around for a bit.

Meanwhile, the boys had walked back to the house and picked up the cars, so when they arrived back at the beach, we attempted to remove as much sand as possible and head back to the house for food and naps. And don't worry, when I asked the rental car guys at the end of our trip whether they charged per grain or per pound for the sand, they told me it was complimentary!

Florida, Part 1

2011-11-09T15:47:00.047-05:00

All the bags are packed and we're ready to go! We drove down to Roanoke late Tuesday evening and met my parents at a hotel near the airport. We attempted to get everyone to bed by 8, but it didn't really work out because everyone was so excited! And then Ken and I were not really able to go to sleep at 8:00 but couldn't do anything else or we would wake up the kids!
Our flight left at 6:20 am, so we woke up around 4:00 and got ready. We piled some very sleepy (and slightly confused) kids into the van and headed off to the airport.

When we got to the airport, we unpacked the luggage and I went to check in while Ken went to park. We had quite a system for getting sleepy kids through the airport. It involved them each pulling their own suitcase. It was a good thing that there were so excited at this point! We got checked in and went through security and then we went to the gate to wait. My mom had packed us some breakfast that managed to make it through security despite that fact that, in a moment of utter stupidity, I told the security agent that I had "no idea what was in that bag, my mom packed it!" Luckily, it survived security and she had packed us apple juice and hard boiled eggs.

The kids looked out the windows and the planes on the tarmac and were very excited to see all the trucks that we had read about out there doing their jobs in the dark.

And of course, anything that got Henry excited made Benjamin excited too!

We finally boarded our flight and got to our seats in the back of the plane. Because of the size of this plane we were seated with Benjamin and me in front of Frances and Henry who were in front of Ken. Benjamin was nice and calm sitting in his carseat, so I am really glad we brought that instead of holding him in one of our laps.

I peeked through the seats quite a bit to check on Frances and Henry and tried explaining the take off procedure to them. Thankfully that was another topic that had been covered by one of our books (Here's to working in a library!!) All of us were rather excited for the takeoff and watching the lights out the windows. We got to watch the sun rise shortly after we took off. We also had fun playing with some stickers I had gotten from the clearance rack at Target.

Just as aside, Frances wore that mustache all the way across the Atlanta airport on our way to our connecting flight. She got quite a few strange looks, but I don't think she really noticed!
A nice man on our flight offered to take a family picture for us. Henry refused to cooperate and Benjamin was still buckled in, but it was a nice offer, anyway.

Stay tuned for part 2...

Bugs, Buses, and Buildings

2011-11-04T09:46:00.001-04:00

Henry is such a great car rider lately! I take the boys to preschool every morning on my way to work and we have some great conversations. Lately he is obsessed with the vehicles and buildings around us. Frances got him into looking for Bugs (as in Volkswagen Beetles) and most mornings on the way to school he says, "Let's look for Bugs, Momma." Thankfully there is usually one parked at the apartments we pass right before school, so he almost always gets to see at least one. Last night on the way to soccer practice we saw six! He was SOOO excited!

He also likes to point out the buses we pass. Since we drive right by part of campus there are at least three or four buses on our morning commute. He likes to ask about the different kinds of buses. He wants to know if the big yellow school buses are Sissy's and I have to read the numbers for him so he will know. He knows the big blue buses are for Mommy's work. He seems very disappointed every time I tell him that I don't ride those buses every day. I don't think he can comprehend why someone would have access to all those buses and just not ride them all day long!

Whenever we see any kind of work truck he wants to know what it is. When he was younger, I could answer "tractor" to every one of his questions. Not so anymore. Now he wants to know what kind of tractor. I have gotten pretty good and recognizing the difference between lots of construction vehicles. The things a Mom has to do!!

One other thing that Henry likes to point out every morning is the building where I work. We pass it on the way to school, and he always yells out, "Look, Mommy! It's your work!!"

What a fun (and educational) way to start the day!

Welcome to Toddlerhood!

2011-11-03T11:25:00.000-04:00

My little Benjamin is indeed still very little! We took him to the pediatrician for his 18-month check up last week and his height and weight are off the charts!! Actually, they are under the charts...as in he doesn't even reach the 5th percentile range! Not that I thought any of my children would be linebackers, but I would like to see him at least make it on to the chart.
Benjamin is not talking very much yet. He says a word that sounds like a combination of "momma" and "more" pretty frequently, but apparently some combination of Mommy and more is what makes him happy. He has a very quiet "jewsh" when he is thirsty (which is often). And his newest favorite word: NO! He answers "no" to everything. I picked the boys up at day care yesterday and Benjamin was hanging out in the infant room in an exersaucer (they were vacuuming). I knelt down in front of him and asked him if he was ready to go home. "Noooooooooo!" I really wish I had a picture of the face he makes when he says it! Then he swirled around in the exersaucer so he wasn't facing me. Stinker!! I asked him if he was hungry and he shook his head and said "nooooooo" again. So I said, "Do you want to just stay here tonight?" And that turkey looked over his shoulder and nodded his head!!!
Needless to say I did not leave him there. He yelled at me when I picked him up and was a grouch until I put him in his car seat and gave him his sippy cup.
In related news, Benjamin now likes to make animal noises. He knows what a cow says and what a dog says. He makes some different responses with other animals, but they are not recognizable to me. He also knows where his nose is and where his ears are. I love this stage, where it seems like they pick things up so quickly and like to show off!!

Halloween 2011

2011-10-31T23:46:00.001-04:00

This year for Halloween Frances wanted to be a cat. She actually created her own costume from things she already had. We did end up buying her a tail and ears, but the rest was her own creation.

Henry waffled back and forth about a couple of different things he wanted to be. He finally settled on a dog (big surprise, huh!?!)

And since cat and dog were already taken, I decided to make Benjamin a mouse.

Since Frances' costume was homemade, I bought a brown sweatsuit for Henry and a grey sweatsuit for Benjamin. I found some felt in the craft box and added some details with the hot glue gun. I think they turned out rather nice. And I spent more money on candy than I did on costumes!

We went out to visit Daddy at work for our first stop. I always get a little giggle about visiting Ken at work. I really wonder what people think about this lady dragging her three little kids with her into the liquor store!! Last night as I was getting Benjamin out of the van, the guy parked next to me made a comment about trick-or-treating at the liquor store. I laughed about it and commented, "When Daddy's gotta work, this is our only choice!" Incidentally, this might be my favorite Halloween picture this year:

Especially the way one ear is flopped backwards!!

After visiting Daddy, we went over to my work because the girls had asked earlier if we would stop by. They got some candy there and banged around on one of the computers before we headed over to Franklin Street to collect candy. We parked at a friend's house and walked down the street and back up. When we got back to the van, Frances said, "Where are we going next, Mommy?" Ummm..HOME?? She had enough energy to keep going, but her brothers were definitely spent (and so was her mom!)

Incidentally, I couldn't find my big plastic candy bowl that I usually set out on the porch, so I took two McDonald's buckets from last year and filled those with candy. We are not usually home when the majority of the trick-or-treaters are out, so I just leave the bucket on the front porch. It is actually pretty rare for us to get trick-or-treaters in our neighborhood, which is why we go a few blocks over. Anyway, when we got home, both buckets were empty (yeah!) so I refilled them and put them back out on the porch. I heard a few rustles out there while I was putting the kids to bed and then later when I was sitting on the couch. When Ken got home at 9:30 I asked him if there was any candy left in the bucket. "What buckets?" he says! Turns out somebody took not only the candy, but the buckets as well!! Well, the jokes on them-I was hoping to get rid of those things anyway!

And just in case you think Ken and I are no fun, we did dress up. We didn't get to spend any time together on Halloween, but we spent weeks planning our costumes and collecting pieces, so here we are:

Dr. Temperance Brennan of the Jeffersonian Institution and FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth. You can't see the "cocky" belt buckle I bought him, or the shoulder holster he was wearing, but I know they are there and that makes me happy!

Super Scary Sunday Supper

2011-10-30T23:35:00.001-04:00

Halloween is Monday, but we all have work and school, so I decided to cook up a Halloween meal on Sunday this year. I had a ton of fun getting everything ready, and it was a pretty well balanced dinner too.
We had: Mummy Dogs,

Witch's Fingers,

Monster Mouths,

Goblin Eyes,

Ghosts,

Zombie Brains (I forgot to take a picture of the steamed cauliflower, sorry), and Peek-a-Boo Brew.

That clock is wrong, btw, but it keeps getting unplugged and I refuse to keep setting it!

Frances LOVED it!!

Henry (who was over tired from lack of a nap) whined that he was "scared of his dinner," but finally acquiesced.

And Benjamin? Yeah, he was over tired from his lack of a nap as well. He licked the Nutella and white chocolate chips out of his Monster Mouth and then tried to throw the rest of his food around the room while screaming. I put him in his bed to chill out and he fell asleep (and slept through until morning!) GOOD TIMES!!!

**This stuff was all pretty easy to make. If you want any directions, just let me know!**

Halloween Snow?!!

2011-10-29T23:41:00.001-04:00

I really didn't want to believe all the hype I was seeing on Facebook and hearing from friends, but my denial didn't matter. We had a Halloween Snow!! It started late Friday night with some drizzle and freezing rain. By the time we work up Saturday morning, it was a Winter Wonderland. Except that it's still Fall!! And will be for another 7 weeks!
I frantically dug through all the winter boxes in the basement to find snowsuits and boots. Poor Benjamin didn't have anything I could find. I tried this, but he HATED it! He couldn't even move!! I only took one picture before he started BAWLING and I rescued him from it. We all laughed hysterically as I was trying to get it off. Is that wrong??

Once we all got suited up, we ventured outside to check things out. The bigs had a good time jumping in snow and throwing it at each other. They tried to build a snowman, but didn't have the patience to finish. They did enjoy playing hide and seek with the pumpkins on the picnic table that had ended up buried!

Benjamin just stood in one place and looked around. He dropped his pacifier a few times and cried until I picked it up for him. But basically he just stood there.

I noticed that our immediate neighbors on both sides lost some trees. We don't have anything in our yard that would be big enough to worry about, really. I did clean the snow off of our dogwood so it wouldn't break. Thankfully it looks like there was no housing damage done.


My neighbor's tree hit her house, but I don't think it broke anything.

After all that, we went inside to eat lunch and take naps. By the time the kids woke up the snow was mostly melted and we were left with just wet and cold.

The Things I Hear Every Day

2011-10-27T14:53:00.001-04:00

Children are creatures of habit and as such they tend to do and say the same things repeatedly. My children are quite typical in this. Sometimes it gets annoying, but honestly,. most of the time I just smile. I know that some day I won't hear those sweet little voices saying those sweet little phrases. Here's a sample I want to be sure to remember:

Henry (each morning as he gets dressed): Mommy, do I leave my underpants on??

Henry (while putting on his shoes): Are dees on the wrong feet? [I don't know why he always asks in the negative--Nine times out of ten he has them lined up correctly.]

Benjamin: Ball! Ball! BallBall! [Repeated ad naseum whenever he sees something round.]

Frances: Mommy, where does this go?? [Said while holding the same thing she asked about the day before]

And my personal favorite: Here's the back story. Every evening on the way home we pass a trendy clothing store downtown. There is a traffic light at the corner and we usually end up stopped right next to the display window. In the display window there are three outfits that are changed regularly and an old fashioned looking bike that is a permanent fixture.
Henry: Mommy, which one do you like?
Me: Ummm...I like the (fill in the blank) one.
Frances: I like the (completely different one from the one Mommy picked!) one.
Henry: I like the bike!
Frances (giggling): Henry! You always say that!!
Henry: And you always say that!
Everyone in the car dissolves into giggles!

Henry's Field Trip

2011-10-25T23:04:00.000-04:00

Henry's class had a field trip this week. They got to go to a local pumpkin patch to play and pick pumpkins. They have a big sandbox near the entrance that everyone loved.

They also had other games to play. This maze (below) had different colored hoses to step over. The instructions said to step over them in a specific order, but us chaperones couldn't figure it out!!

There are a bunch of these cutouts around as well. I have several years' worth of the kids pictures in various ones. I'll have to go searching for them!

Another perennial favorite is the junk orchestra. Lots of metal items are suspended from the frame above and there are sticks in the green bucket to hit them with. Amazingly enough, no children were harmed in the taking of this picture!

Being a farm, they of course have animals you can interact with. There are feed dispensers you can pay for, but this goat seemed pleased with the grass Henry offered.

We also got to watch a pig race. The girl in the green told her own version of "The Three Little Pigs" and had the kids join in on the repetitive parts. Then the pigs "raced" around the enclosure. I use quotations because out of the eight pigs that were supposed to race, only 3-4 of them actually run. The others just came off the starting blocks and started nibbling on grass and acorns.

The "best" part of the whole trip was when we got to ride a tractor up to the pumpkin patch and Henry spent 10 minutes looking for the perfect pumpkin, only to finally decide he didn't want a pumpkin after all! Stinker!!

Saturday Soccer Star

2011-10-22T21:53:00.000-04:00

Henry had another soccer game Saturday. He still acts like a cut up and falls down on purpose while running down the field (Thanks, Ryan!!) but we have managed to get him to go out onto the field and that is a huge accomplishment for us!!
It was also my week to bring snack, so I made the kids some spider web treats in honor of the upcoming holiday. They turned out pretty well, but they were kinds fragile and some of them broke before they could be served. Most of the kids didn't care because they could still eat the pieces. I plan on making them again this week for a snack.

Halloween Door Decoration

2011-10-16T16:04:00.003-04:00

The girls at work invited me to Pinterest--even though I told them not to! Because we all know that I don't need another internet addiction. So, of course, I ~~wasted~~ spent some time there looking at lots of fun pictures. [If you are unfamiliar with Pinterest, it is basically an online cork board. Anytime you are online and see something you like and want to remember for later, you can "pin it" and it will be saved to your board. Then you can go back later and see what you have pinned. You can also look at what other people have pinned for ideas of things you might like to try. People have boards for craft ideas, wedding ideas, recipes, books to read, and all kinds of other stuff.]

I also added this post to a Pinterest Challenge Link up over at YoungHouseLove, so check out all the other people who have decided to stop pinning and start doing!!

Anyway, I saw this cute wreath that was basically a wreath form wrapped with a black and white polka dotted ribbon and tied with an orange bow. Frances is always bugging me to decorate for all manner of holidays and Henry's soccer gave had been cancelled due to rain, so we headed out to the craft store. I bought our supplies and set up a craft station at my dining room table. I thought I would photograph the process, so someone else can try it out. We had a lot of fun!!

You will need:

Styrofoam wreath form (apparently you can also use that grey plumbing insulation that come in a roll, but I have never tried that!)
Ribbon--the amount you need will vary by the size of your wreath and the width of the ribbon.
Hot glue
Foam stickers (optional)


I think our wreaths are 12" across. We used two spools of the thin ribbon for each wreath.

First I glued one end of the ribbon to one flat side of the wreath. This is now the back side of the wreath. Then I wrapped the ribbon around, leaving space as I went. When I got all the way around to where I started, I glued the ribbon down on the same side and clipped the excess.

The I took a second, coordinating ribbon and wrapped it around the same way, filling in the spaces. I glued the ends of this ribbon in the same way that I glued the first one.

Then I gave the wreath to my 18-month old, who, with some help from his big sissy, put seasonal stickers on it.

I repeated the same process to make a green wreath for Henry, 4.

At 8, Frances was old enough to do her own. She had picked out purple spider ribbon for hers. Hers was not wrapped perfectly, but that wasn't my goal, so it didn't really matter. Plus, adding the stickers filled in the white spaces.

After all three wreaths were done, we took a quick lunch break...

Then I used some of our left over ribbon and and glued the wreaths together in sequence and hung them on the front door.

The kids all had a great time and were so proud of their contribution to our Fall decorations.

A Saturday in the Park

2011-10-15T21:46:00.002-04:00

One of the sad things about switching jobs, is that I don't get to see my friend, Stacey as often. We have both left the preschool and our kids don't go to school together, so we have to be more intentional about getting together. The hardest part of that for me is that I am such a homebody. I would much rather stay home than go out and do stuff. However, every time I get myself up and out of the house I have a good time. I really need to do that more often!!
Stacey wants to get more experience with taking pictures and the kids hadn't gotten together for a while, so she invited us out to the park to hang out. The kids run off together, like it hasn't been forever, and that warms my heart. Even Benjamin found his courage and took off on the play structure. (I actually lost him at one point because he was standing in the bend between one of the bridges and the slide platform. Slight panic attack!!)
They played on the structure and Stacey and I talked (and talked and talked...) Then we headed over to the bridge for some pictures.

The kids weren't feeling our artistic vision, so we didn't spend long there. Next we went over by the pond and found some leaves to play in, a table to sit at, and pond to ~~fall in~~ look at, and a tree to climb. We spent a while there playing with the kids, trying out cameras, and talking (and talking and talking...)

We also found a cool seat carved out of an old tree stump that made for some great photos, but at this point we were all getting tired, hungry, cold and cranky. We topped off our evening with a trip to McDonald's and then said good night.

We miss you guys! Let's do this more often!!

Movie Night

2011-10-14T23:21:00.000-04:00

The theater on campus offers movies on the big screen. They typically run movies the week before they come out on DVD to the general public. Admission is only $2.50 per person over 5 years old. They have this great old fashioned popcorn popper that they use and you can buy a cup of popcorn for fifty cents!! This week they were showing Cars 2 which none of us had seen. So on Friday, I picked the kids up from school and we rushed home for a quick dinner. Then they changed into their pajamas (including Benjamin with shoes over his footie pajamas. So cute!!) and we headed out. The movie started at 7, so I knew it would be past bedtime when we got out. We walked across campus to the theater and found ourselves some seats. Benjamin and Henry together are not heavy enough to hold down a theater seat!! Benjamin sat on my lap and Henry was able to situate himself where he wouldn't fall over. The movie started and the kids were enthralled!! Except Benjamin, who lasted about 45 minutes...or one popcorn cup...and passed out, fast asleep.

Frances LOVED the movie. She likes spies and adventure things, so it was right up her alley. Henry didn't like it as much "'cause there were bad guys." He did like the cars in it, but I think it was a bit too intense for him most of the time. Benjamin? Well, he slept peacefully!

After the movie, we walked back to the can and headed back home. The kids were tired and pretty much went straight to bed when we walked in the door. All in all it was a great night. And it only cost $6.50 for four of us and three cups of popcorn! We will definitely do this again!!

Literacy Night

2011-10-13T22:08:00.000-04:00

Frances' school is a Title 1 school which means they receive government funding for their reading instruction. Some of this money goes toward hiring reading coaches. Part of the caveat for accepting the money is reaching out to parents to encourage literacy within the whole family. Every year her school has a "literacy night." The kids learn poems and songs that go along with a theme and perform them for the parents. There is also a literacy activity afterwards for the kids and also the parents to participate in.

We have enjoyed going each year, but I admit I was a bit nervous about it this year. Ken had to work and I had all three kiddos by myself in the middle of a busy and tiring week. We had a talk in the van on the way over about staying in your seat, listening politely and staying with Mommy. It actually worked out pretty well. I also had some food with me for distraction, so that was a big help too!
The second graders recited the poem "Froggy Went A-Courtin'" and then sang a few verses of the song. Frances had two lines to recite. Other than going really fast (nerves?) she did well and flashed a huge grin after her turn was over.

After the children were done performing, the kids went off to the gym for literacy games while the parents visited stations set up by the teachers to learn more about helping kids learn to read at different ages and stages. Frances' principal told her to bring Henry with her, so I only had Benjamin to walk around with. I picked up some good info for all the ages, since were going to hit them all two more times.

When I went to the gym to pick up the bigs, they were playing a fishing game together. There were lots of cutout frogs with sight words written on them on the floor. Each frog had a paper clip on it and the kids had magnetic fishing rods. I told the kids they could each get one more turn. Frances fished out a word and read it. Then Henry fished out a word. I asked him what it said and he read it!! "It." Just like that! I was so proud!

We got our popsicles and headed home. I was a proud mama.

"Next to come in was a bumble bee; a banjo buckled on his knee. Next to come in was a nimble flea; who danced a jig for the bumble bee."