a list i won't lose

We made our list of things we wanted to do this winter (build snowman, make ornaments, etc)

Wrote each one on a circle of card stock

Glued a bunch of tiny clothespins onto a hoop

Clipped them up

 

Now whenever a fun day comes, one of the peeps gets to choose a circle and we do whatever it says

And we reattach it, word side up so we can remember all the fun things we've done.

The only thing is that you have to be ready to do which ever activity is chosen.  No backsies, right?

the barbarian

Sometimes I have to lure Dustin to the couch with a movie that I would never, ever choose.  Such was the case this weekend.  We watched Conan (aside from the gore, it was okay - we tend to do a lot of voice overs when we watch movies, so it makes it much more entertaining) and I played with buttons.  I was going for something that can hang low on the tree and is fairly sturdy since Baby A is likely to rip it off and whack it on the floor.

But until the tree is up, they'll just hang out on the curtains.  Happiness is a colorful house.

the mindless tasks of good nutrition

I have spent many minutes trying to estimate how many sections of grapefruit I will liberate during my tenure of parenthood.  Still have no idea.  Thousands, definitely.  Scoop scoop scoop.

snappy naps

There comes a time in everyone's life when taking naps is detrimental to sleeping at night.  Our girl is at that point.  She stays up until 9-10p if/when she gets an afternoon snooze.

And she loves her naps!  At lunch we usually talk about whatever we'll do and get done for the rest of the day.  Her eyes light up and she says, 'After lunch is nap time?'  And I say, 'Not today, crazy peep!  No more naps for you!  Yay!'  She isn't buying into the excitement yet.

Unfortunately, she also isn't quite at the quiet-time-for-two-hours-by-myself point.  This means I have to keep a super close eye on her, or I find her collapsed and snoozing away.  She sneaked quite a few last week when I was changing A's diaper, filling a glass of water, getting the mail, taking out the trash...she can be completely out in less than 2min - I've started watching the clock.

Hopefully one day [soon] she will in fact be ready for by-myself-quiet-time.  One day.

i like fiction

So we spent the first 7 years of marriage reading at night mostly by the light of table lamps, and then headlamps if one of us was sleeping.  Awesome, right?  Try it, it works.  But my parents, my wonderful parents who know me so well, got us reading lamps from Ikea last Christmas.  While I was preoccupied delivering that sweet Baby A in March, my dad spent an afternoon getting them all set up.  And they. are. fabulous!

That was so not the point.  But I do love those bed lamps from Ikea.  Get some!  The point is...I really don't like to read nonfiction.  I don't, in fact, often read anything other than stories.  And those I read in abundance - quickly and often.  But I keep feeling like I should be reading other stuff.  If I can read thousands of pages a month, it just seems like a portion of that should be spent on something...productive.  And I don't mean cookbooks.  They're like an instruction manual for domestic bliss, and therefore always necessary.

I also have this strict thing about only reading one book at a time.  And a thing about finishing a book unless it is so super bad that I just can't bear it (usually I can suffer through).  One of my greatest dilemmas with nonfiction is that it's always a lot to take in at once.  I just want to be entertained.  I might really want to know that a thirsty camel can drink 30 gallons of water in less than 15min*, but I don't want to know everything about camels in one night.  I don't think I ever want to know everything about camels.

But this strange thing is happening.  I have been reading 4 very interesting non novels.  And stranger still, I'm just interspersing them with my regular fiction.  What is happening?!  There is usually a 'to read' stack and a 'to return' pile, but right now my nightstand is all confused.

And on a fun literary note, this was one of my favorite books as a youngster.  We just got it from the library last week.  So great.  Though now I wonder if it somehow fostered my deep and abiding affection for ketchup.

* That was merely the first random fact that popped into my head.  I haven't actually read a book about camels.  Though maybe I should...

five

With a birthday falling on Thanksgiving this year, we celebrated with the traditional donut a day early.  He's already embarrassed when we sing to him ('You're making me crazy, P!  Stop that.').

 

Someone was s u p e r excited to be at the donut shop in his jammies.  And no, he isn't eating one - he's eating Cheerios.  C'mon.

a typical morning

fall leaves

The peeps did some painting recently.  Ever since That Day (you know, the one when our boy got all the paint out during quiet time and painted a bedroom), I don't really let them paint.  Ever.  I'd rather use glitter - and surely you understand that glitter is a major mess fest.

This summer I set up the easel in the backyard and they painted, having a wonderful, naked time.  That's right.  Naked.  S stayed dressed but P usually came back inside without her clothes, and with some very nice stripe work.  I guess even artists can be concerned with tan lines.

So we painted with q tips instead of brushes.  Leaves on trees for fall for them, but I used green because I like green trees and thought it would be entertaining to paint alongside S&P.  The idea was to put dots down for leaves.  They mostly followed the directions, except for the lines & whirls where he told me the leaves were dancing.

And then S made me a heart!  Swoon.  He'll be FIVE next week.  Gracious.

look ma, no hands

I expect him to balance spoons very well.

snowmen

Colorado snow is not easy to pack, and we don't really make snowmen very much.  But the peeps always want one, so they made these instead.

The idea was inspired by this little snowman-wearer.

cutting

While I have been busy with the scissors

Baby A has been working on a cutting all his own (& much more important).  He likes to grind his new top tooth on his bottom ones...hate that sound.

He was hanging upside down during this - I don't think his cheeks have ever looked this chubby!!

bread bears

Growing up, we had these wonderful family friends, the Hangstefers.  They have 6 kids, and a really great kitchen table (with a bench!) that I've been looking everywhere for and have yet to find.  But that's not the point.  And once we got snowed in at their house and ate lots and lots of potatoes.  That's not the point either.

I remember how their mom, Pat, would bake yummy bread.  And then with a nod to the kiddos, sometimes we got to shape some of the dough into our very own creations.  I think bears (and turtles?) were my favorite.

 

They're perfect with a sprinkle of cinnamon and a drop of honey.

showering shay

We had a little party this weekend for Shay, who had her fourth (!!) boy two weeks ago.  She's pretty much a pro at this baby thing.  Nursing while opening presents: multi-tasking at its finest.

 
Forget pics with little kids!  Apparently grown women can't take a picture together either.  Fun times.

hand turkeys & numbers

S&P made turkeys a few days ago.  You know, you trace their hand and then they glue dry stuff (corkscrews, lentils, cheerios, chow mien noodles, couscous, rice) all over it?  It was entertaining.  They added something they are thankful for - in case you can't read it, P chose shoes and S picked his puppy.

 

 And I've started the advent calendar!  Woo.

more of the white stuff

I wasn't particularly pleased (can't find the snow shovels ANYwhere, which makes sidewalk-clearing difficult) but since I am now old enough to keep up with weather forecasts, at least we realized it was coming.

So we woke up, made some muffins

 Drank some milk

Examined the boy's split lip (he fell over the side of his bunkbed while he was dinking around going to sleep)

 Took my butterfly outside

So that we could build Baby A a snowcave

 And then we played and played and played.