January

so it seems January is over already but I'm not really sure when that happened.

--One big accomplishment recently was all the progress we have made in designing our house.  No news on a ground breaking date but the design center was a ton of fun.  I loved getting to see all our choices start coming together.  We have very classic, traditional tastes and I think our home will turn out to be beautiful and intimate and inviting.  And in the meantime, I'm completely addicted to Pinterest and spend significant time researching decorating, designing, organizing and more.

--I spent a fun weekend at my parents house.  Husband stayed home to work and hunt but the girls and I had a blast.  We went shopping, watched movies and everyday, we went to play with cousins (and distract my 9 month pregnant sister in law).

--While staying at my mom's for the weekend, we had a special date with Butterfly.  She has been working hard at breaking her nail biting habit.  We've been lecturing, bribing, ignoring, etc.  and finally, we found something that worked.  Grammy promised that when the "white" was showing on all of her nails, that she would take her for a manicure.  So she earned that reward and got to go with Grammy, me and my sister in law to the nail salon.  Pedicures for the women and a manicure for the princess and it was a fantastic experience.  She went back and forth between wiggling and giggling with excitement and being a preciously sweet and graceful little lady, trying so hard to be grown up.  She picked a shimmery teal (which I also used so we could match).

--I had my monthly Bunco night.  Most of the group is from my old ward and neighborhood so it made me miss them immensely but it was wonderful to see them.  It was hosted next door to my old house and I couldn't help but to drive by slowly with little twinges of nostalgia.  But then I think about or new house and get so excited all over again.

--Husband and I went to our first dance class.  My AMAZING husband bought a series of dance classes for me for Christmas.  He admits to feeling like he's walked off a cliff.  He doesn't particularly like to dance, especially not with anyone watching.  So it was even more meaningful for him to choose something that I love and be willing to share it with me.  There were three couples (including us) plus the instructor and his wife.  We learned the foxtrot and managed to get the hang of it.  Since then we've attended a second class and began working on the cha-cha.  The hardest part for me is learning to let go and focus on being in tune to him well enough to follow his lead.  I really like the instructor, I like the atmosphere, and I LOVE getting to experience this with my smokin' hot, amazing husband.

--We celebrated husband's mom's birthday with a surprise birthday dinner.  She knew about going to dinner, she didn't know that we had invited extra guests along to celebrate with us.  So it was a great night and I think we truly did manage to surprise her despite some fumbling in planning.  All of the adults sat at a long table together with our little Lovely wiggling and giggling in her high chair from the end (she devoured the bread rolls!).  Butterfly and Ladybug had an adjacent table for just the two of them and played with the little activities I brought to entertain them.  They LOVED the dinner.  We went to Braza Grill and they caught on quickly to how the meat was served.  Ladybug ate four serving of rice (and really nothing else) but Butterfly eagerly tried each new meat that was brought to us, repeatedly exclaiming, "Excuse me, man! Can I have some too?!"  I think mom really enjoyed it and we presented her with a group gift.  I invited everyone to think of a word to describe mom and then we used those words to decorate the matte of a photo frame.  The intention was create a group card/token of affection/visual positive affirmation and it was fun to create.  It also let family and friends participate even if they couldn't attend.  and at the end of the evening, the girls discovered the dessert tray, promptly ordered half of the items but were happy to share with everyone else.  Lovely's favorite part of the evening was the brightly colored balloons.  She shrieked in delight, hitting them and watching the bounce.

--Husband's truck broke.  Seriously broke.  This is the green 97 Toyota T100 that we bought from his dad shortly after we were married.  It had significant body damage but worked great so we bought it, needing a second vehicle.  We never fixed the body damage, since we originally didn't think we would keep it for long and the repairs were costly.  And soon after, the transmission began to have trouble.  But somehow, this faithful friend kept going.  Husband drove it for SIX YEARS before the transmission finally gave out.  We debated fixing it but eventually decided to sell it and we bought husband a new(er) truck, a gold 2001 GMC Sierra, hereafter to be known as "Jaycee".

Other little tidbits:
--Butterfly tried out the new wii game she got for Christmas, a Disney Princess game.  We played as a team; I controlled the walking and she controlled the talking and magic casting.  She caught on pretty quick and we beat the game in a few days of playing.  Next time, she gets to try it all on her own.
--the flu made it rounds.  not fun.  end of story.
--The girls are doing great at preschool.  Butterfly is constantly surprising me with her recognition of new words.
--In ballet, they just began learning the new routines for their spring recitals.  Their "characters" are so clever and cute! I think it's a "Peter Pan" theme; Butterfly's class is little Indians (I think) and Ladybug's class are going to be skunks!  I hope they continue to enjoy it.  Ladybug loves ballet and loves going to class but her teacher and I agree that once it became "practice", she didn't enjoy it as much as just getting to dance.  Butterfly on the other hand, loves every moment of every chance she gets to dance.  I'm confident that this will continue to be a passion for her.
--Meanwhile, little Lovely is too young for dance classes but she doesn't let that stop her.  The moment she hears music, of any tempo, she stands up and sways and spins in circles.  I think she learned it from her sisters but now she doesn't need any prompting and is always the first to respond to a song this way.  It makes me melt!
--Grandpa bought a guitar for Butterfly.  It fits her perfectly, being a child-size and the guitar brand being the same as her middle name.  Since then, she's began her guitar lessons with Grandpa and she's been happy and eager to learn.
--We've been attending StoryTime at the library each week again.  The girls love it.  Even Lovely is getting better.  She used to wander the whole time, climbing the stairs and terrorizing the bookshelves. But lately, she (mostly) stays on my lap and we try to listen or ready books.  The big girls love it and eagerly sit in the front row, participating in every song and game and listening to the story.  Instead of staying at the library to do the craft or project each week, we bring it home.  Last week, each of the girls made an adorable octopus, to match the octopus from the story that day.  But this happened to be a tickling octopus so then they chased each other all over the house, tickling and giggling.
--Ladybug's surgery is on Friday to have her tonsils removed.  I know it will be good to get it over with but not looking forward to the experience.  Except for the frequent ice cream.