(better than nothing right?)
had my first Relief Society enrichment night as a member of the committee. And I was the only member present that night so it was really kind of my idea and project. Way to debut. Tons of fun, great turn out for our mini-world tour with several sisters showcasing food and culture from places they've lived.
We spent a Saturday camping and canning with my parents. We joined them at their trailer at a campsite, arriving just in time for dinner and a movie night. Then the next morning Grammy and I set to work peeling and canning pears. Daddy chased after the girls and Papa assisted, playing with girls and running the canning stove. We canned pink pears (a family recipe/tradition) and for the first time, did apple pie filling. L loved helping me peel and core the apples with our fancy gagdet. All in all, the food in great and we had a ton of fun.
Husband's kid-sister was sworn in as a lawyer, having graduated, passed the bar and all the other hoops she had to jump through. We left the girls with a friend, attended the ceremony and went out for a celebratory lunch afterwards. Husband's brother's family is in the process of moving so his wife brought their two daughters (while Brother stayed home to pack). So we got a chance to cuddle and play with our nieces during the ceremony and lunch. Sweet baby C took awhile to warm up to all the new faces but eventually let me cuddle her and she feel asleep against me. :)
October was my turn to host bunko. So Daddy took the girls out for a little dinner date and had a movie popcorn night while we played downstairs. I love these amazing ladies and thoroughly enjoy our night out together.
For kid sister's birthday, we took her and Grandma out for a sushi dinner. Our crazy little minion girls were pretty good about trying new food and LOVED eating with chopsticks.
I usually don't get to stay and watch L's ballet class (juggling the other girls and errands at the same time). But I did stay to watch, just to see how she was doing. She makes me melt, so eager to impress her teacher and to make friends and still full of childlike impish-ness. She's fascinated by the barre and her reflection and easily distracted. (not any more so than the other kids, I just thought it was funny.) But when she is focused, she's amazing. Her positions and grace and pointed toes come so easily and naturally that watching her move is simply beautiful, even as young as she is.
We had a family party with Grandma's side of the family, pirate themed. So we dressed up, shared costumes with cousins' kids and had a blast. The girls loved running around with cousins, climbing trees and doing the climbing wall again. Grandma had some fun team activities for us, designing our pirate flag and building ships. We had a great, laid back bbq and lounged around chatting with cousins and catching up. L picked out our contribution for the snacks and we made pirate boats, filling clear cups with blue jello and fashioning a ship with an orange slice and flattened starburst candy for the sail. They were pretty cute and I was so proud of her creativity. A chose to bring goldfish crackers, half of which were promptly devoured by E.
We attended the ward Halloween party, dressing the girls in their Halloween costumes and taking our pumpkins to be carved. The big girls bounced around to the many carnival games while E clung to daddy. We love our new ward but there's still a lot of unfamiliar faces so we chatted casually and munched on the refreshments (we contributed pumpkin chocolate chip cookies that the girls helped me make). We set about carving our pumpkins. L and A did a great job, telling us exactly what they wanted and trying to do it themselves as much as they could. (E needed more help of course). And then we spent the night roasting the seeds in butter and salt (always a favorite).
We spent an evening up north attending one of our niece's birthday parties. We arrived late (due to our later church block) and joined the party downstairs. Much to their delight, the girls discovered the bounce house and went crazy, bouncing and playing happily. Eventually we settled them down to eat and watch as cousin opened her gifts. They were thrilled to see their cousins and ran off to play as much as they could while Daddy and me (mostly me) just lounged around talking with the other adults. I got to cuddle my newest nephew, about 9 months old. Instead of cake, the birthday girl chose cookies so as the variety of cookies made their rounds, I held a snickerdoodle, asking if he could have a little. Permission had barely escaped from his mom when he lunged for the cookie, snatched it up and shoved it in. His eyes doubled in size as he devoured it, dropping soggy chunks everywhere with all of us watching and laughing. so cute!
Less entertaining: finally getting some of our "to do list" with Richmond addressed and crew works have been coming to finish projects as promised. We are generally unpacked, mostly organized (just don't look in the basement) and even decorating. I love our new house and so easily feel like it fits us perfectly. And we've continued classes and reading on my newest hobby: trading stocks. Making very slow progress but it's all fascinating. Husband has been traveling less lately and the girls are thrilled with all the Daddy time they've been getting. And my classes at the gym continue. I'm not teaching as much lately and trying to change my workout some. I'm running the Vegas Ragnar in a few weeks. I'm not running much lately, preferring kick, lifting and other cross-training activities. But with the race approaching, I'm trying to change my workouts to better prepare. I'm also team captain this time so I've been doing a lot of the planning and coordinating for our team.
The really fun part of this week has been having Husband's brother's wife in town with her two girls. They came over for a long playdate on Monday. We had to move our picnic indoors because it was so cold but the girls had a ton of fun playing together. We brought all of our Little People sets into the living room and they played well together for a long time. They colored, did puzzles and played with barbies until Grandma, Auntie L and Daddy showed up with pizza for dinner and a movie. We played with them again on Tuesday, meeting for lunch at McDonalds and then coming to play at the park by our new house. For dinner, everyone met at our favorite restaurant for Mexican food and face painting by our favorite clown, Soda Pop. I told the girls they had to choose something different than their usual butterfly and ladybug so L chose a zebra and A was a pink tiger. E let Soda Pop paint a butterfly on her hand and their cute cousin was a beautiful butterfly. And much to their delight, even Grandpa got his face painted as Curious George.
Today, while L was at school, I took A and E to the Library Storytime Halloween party. A wore her Rapunzel dress and E fit perfectly into a pink flower/fairy costume we have. Our storytime lady is amazing. L has always loved it and was really upset when she found out she couldn't go anymore (since she would be at school). A was only half interested and E spent the whole time climbing up and down the stairs when we attended last year. But after taking a summer off, being a little older and better at readying stories, the girls are loving it! We've been attending weekly for the last months and A watches intently, doing all the songs and actions and activities. E insists on sitting in my lap but engages for quite a lot as well. Today was the Halloween party with a guest author (Krystyn Crow) reading her own books and some Halloween festivities. It ran long so we didn't stay for games but they loved the stories. The same author was here last year. A and L had listened but I didn't realize how much they loved that book until a few weeks later, I heard them singing a song. It took me a few days before I realized it was from one of the books (Bedtime at the Swamp) and have looked for it ever since. So today, she had copies of the book available and A got to meet her and ask her to sign.
other Halloween and general misadventures to come...
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
quote of the day
Baby E is often called "Little Miss Echo". She echos and imitates and follows her sisters everywhere. But she also loves to be my echo, particularly when it means she's bossing around her sisters. So as I was addressing one of A's misbehavior, she was repeating me and it was not helpful. So I told her "You need to stop. Let me be the mom. You are not the mom." To which she replied (with ample sass), "I'm not the mom. I'm the dad!"
Friday, October 25, 2013
for immediate release...
Let it be known that our dear friend, Panda has disappeared. is hiding. entered retirement. (in my cedar chest.) Well loved, she served as faithful companion to a precious, impish little girl from her birth until shortly after her fourth birthday. The edges, carefully crocheted by Grammy and often pressed to this little girl's mouth in comfort have become soft and worn from many washings. The fabric, once strong and brightly colored, has faded and worn thin. With a steadily growing row of small holes bordering the edges, Panda slipped away quietly. Her absence has not gone unnoticed and she has been sorely missed. Fortunately, she is survived by her companion, Yellow, who once with similar condition underwent a risky reinforcement procedure and continues to accompany their little girl.
quote of the day
it actually started about two months ago but I thought it was a passing fancy, one time thing. But no, this in fact seems to have stuck.
Professor Pokey lives in the street lamp in front of the neighbor's house. I don't know why he's a professor. Or why he lives in a street lamp. But the girls run to him at least twice a week to visit him and ask him questions. They whisper their questions to him, pause to listen and run back happily, shouting goodbyes over their shoulder. Even Yellow has been to visit Professor Pokey many times.
So there you go.
Dear Professor Pokey,
If you do in fact, live in our street lamp, and are the all wise professor with power of influence, please tell my children to behave for their mom. She's tired. And that donuts don't constitute a healthy lunch. And that they can't wear flip flops in the winter. And to study hard in school. And to choose good friends. And most of all, that their mom loves them so much.
With sincere thanks,
Mom
Professor Pokey lives in the street lamp in front of the neighbor's house. I don't know why he's a professor. Or why he lives in a street lamp. But the girls run to him at least twice a week to visit him and ask him questions. They whisper their questions to him, pause to listen and run back happily, shouting goodbyes over their shoulder. Even Yellow has been to visit Professor Pokey many times.
So there you go.
Dear Professor Pokey,
If you do in fact, live in our street lamp, and are the all wise professor with power of influence, please tell my children to behave for their mom. She's tired. And that donuts don't constitute a healthy lunch. And that they can't wear flip flops in the winter. And to study hard in school. And to choose good friends. And most of all, that their mom loves them so much.
With sincere thanks,
Mom
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
clothes
more evidence that my kids are 1: getting big way too fast. and 2: each one as different as could be.
L lets me pick out her clothes each morning. Maybe just because she'd rather sleep another 5 minutes but really because she just does. Sometimes she'll make a special request but for the most part, I can lay out her clothes and she gets dressed.
Recently we have begun having those "talks" when she wanted to wear a spaghetti-strap dress without a shirt under or skirt without shorts or tights under. Fortunately, the cold weather is now on my side. But we recently had our first day of her 100% refusing to wear what I picked. And it just so happened to be picture day. After rejecting three of my suggestions, she picked out a dress I had buried in the back as one of my least favorites. And eventually, I gave up. If it really matters to her, then it should be her choice (it is just clothes after all. I'll pick my battles.) But did it have to be on picture day?
As for child #2, A has NEVER been so easy going about clothes. Most days I hold up two outfits and let her pick. And even then, she will sometimes come downstairs in something entirely different and not at all appropriate to the cold weather outside. She loves her shorts and skirts and with her long, naturally tan legs, she's just too cute and it makes me want to lock her up forever. Even at age 2 she wanted to pick out her own clothes (almost always skirts) and regularly tries to change clothes in the middle of the day. I always insist she change back, trying to cut down on the amount of laundry.
Our recent "growing up" moment with her was about shoes. She LOVES her flip flops. They're adorable little white sandals with brightly colored jewels adorning the straps. (fun back story: L found them in Target one day, hugging them and loving them. I said no and her crestfallen face was so heartbreaking as she quietly but obediently replaced the shoes on the shelf and followed me to the register that I knelt beside her and asked if she really wanted them. She looked at me with big eyes and nodded silently. So I told her yes. With a HUGE grin, she raced back to them, hugged them tightly and carried them all the way to the car. She wore them everyday until it got too cold. After being stored for two years, A received them and has loved them every bit as much.) Not near as white anymore, and badly scuffed on the toes, she wore them every day for the whole summer. Our October temperatures are in the 50-60s, and her heels hang off the edge of the rapidly-growing-too-small sandals so I dug out the box of shoes and found the next size of more weather-appropriate shoes. But to our surprise, she won't wear them. I'm not sure what prompts it more: that she really just loves the sandals or if she is rejecting sister's "hand me downs". So I took her shopping, hoping that if she picked them out, she would wear them and keep her feet warm. I tried to steer her towards something warm, an athletic style tennis shoes. But as always, she's her own person and chose something that suits her perfectly. They're more like a cross between keds and mary janes, pink and purple and sparkly and pretty dang cute.
And lastly child #3. I boxed up all the summer clothes this week, with more than a twinge of sadness knowing my baby won't wear them again. She's getting so big! And more like A than L, she insists on picking her clothes every morning. I try letting her choose between two outfits but even then, she often rejects them both and drags something else out of the drawer. She has also recently mastered the art of stripping and frequently appears without her clothes. When asked about them, she holds up her hands and with a look of innocent wonder asks, "where 'go?" She's even begun hiding her pants, just so she can get a new outfit out of the drawer. I wouldn't let her get away with it except that she's actually really good at it and I often genuinely can't find her old clothes before we have to leave.
L lets me pick out her clothes each morning. Maybe just because she'd rather sleep another 5 minutes but really because she just does. Sometimes she'll make a special request but for the most part, I can lay out her clothes and she gets dressed.
Recently we have begun having those "talks" when she wanted to wear a spaghetti-strap dress without a shirt under or skirt without shorts or tights under. Fortunately, the cold weather is now on my side. But we recently had our first day of her 100% refusing to wear what I picked. And it just so happened to be picture day. After rejecting three of my suggestions, she picked out a dress I had buried in the back as one of my least favorites. And eventually, I gave up. If it really matters to her, then it should be her choice (it is just clothes after all. I'll pick my battles.) But did it have to be on picture day?
As for child #2, A has NEVER been so easy going about clothes. Most days I hold up two outfits and let her pick. And even then, she will sometimes come downstairs in something entirely different and not at all appropriate to the cold weather outside. She loves her shorts and skirts and with her long, naturally tan legs, she's just too cute and it makes me want to lock her up forever. Even at age 2 she wanted to pick out her own clothes (almost always skirts) and regularly tries to change clothes in the middle of the day. I always insist she change back, trying to cut down on the amount of laundry.
Our recent "growing up" moment with her was about shoes. She LOVES her flip flops. They're adorable little white sandals with brightly colored jewels adorning the straps. (fun back story: L found them in Target one day, hugging them and loving them. I said no and her crestfallen face was so heartbreaking as she quietly but obediently replaced the shoes on the shelf and followed me to the register that I knelt beside her and asked if she really wanted them. She looked at me with big eyes and nodded silently. So I told her yes. With a HUGE grin, she raced back to them, hugged them tightly and carried them all the way to the car. She wore them everyday until it got too cold. After being stored for two years, A received them and has loved them every bit as much.) Not near as white anymore, and badly scuffed on the toes, she wore them every day for the whole summer. Our October temperatures are in the 50-60s, and her heels hang off the edge of the rapidly-growing-too-small sandals so I dug out the box of shoes and found the next size of more weather-appropriate shoes. But to our surprise, she won't wear them. I'm not sure what prompts it more: that she really just loves the sandals or if she is rejecting sister's "hand me downs". So I took her shopping, hoping that if she picked them out, she would wear them and keep her feet warm. I tried to steer her towards something warm, an athletic style tennis shoes. But as always, she's her own person and chose something that suits her perfectly. They're more like a cross between keds and mary janes, pink and purple and sparkly and pretty dang cute.
And lastly child #3. I boxed up all the summer clothes this week, with more than a twinge of sadness knowing my baby won't wear them again. She's getting so big! And more like A than L, she insists on picking her clothes every morning. I try letting her choose between two outfits but even then, she often rejects them both and drags something else out of the drawer. She has also recently mastered the art of stripping and frequently appears without her clothes. When asked about them, she holds up her hands and with a look of innocent wonder asks, "where 'go?" She's even begun hiding her pants, just so she can get a new outfit out of the drawer. I wouldn't let her get away with it except that she's actually really good at it and I often genuinely can't find her old clothes before we have to leave.
tiny teeth
L announced to me that her tooth was loose and ready to fall out. I brush it off, assuring her that she was still too young for her teeth to fall out. She insisted, I insisted and then she countered with saying something about the tooth fairy coming to visit. Having discovered the reason behind her hope, I told her that if she pulls her tooth out before its ready, the tooth fairy can't come visit. So she asked how old she needs to be for the tooth fairy to visit. and then I realized that I actually don't know. So I told her I would find out. A few minutes later, I was Google-ing it on my phone and she burst out, "mom! did the tooth fairy text you?!" To which I wittingly answered, "uh...yeah, she texted me." Turn out, kids loose their teeth usually at age 5 but as early as 4! So once again, my little girl is bigger than I realized and ready to lose her teeth. So I told her that as soon as she was in kindergarten, the tooth fairy would be ready to visit. And sure enough, shortly after school started...
I walked in the door a few weeks ago and was greeted by a very excited little girl with a huge gap in her mouth and a giant grin. It fell out easily as she was eating. So we wrote a note to the tooth fairy and much to her delight, found a dollar under her pillow.
So her bottom left tooth went first, followed shortly by her top left tooth (just before picture day), giving her a rather lop-sided jack-o-lantern smile. This one has been loose for a few months, and was barely hanging in. Once the teeth were out, the new tooth was already visible and slowly peeking its way into place. And today, tooth #3 (bottom right) came out too. It wasn't as loose as the first two and may have had a little more help wiggling itself loose.
We also had our first dentist appointment. I took both of the big girls in for their first exam and cleaning. They did great. A bounced around curiously, asking questions and eager to know everything. L was a little more timid and quiet and happily zoned into a cartoon show during the cleaning. A reported no cavities, no loose teeth and no concerns. L was not so lucky. The dentist teased her about her loose teeth and found three cavities. So we returned the next day to take care of the "sugar bugs". She zoned in on the movie and our clever patient dentist was so good with her that she never saw the needle or even really understood what was required. She did great through the first two cavities and broke rather abruptly during the third, tensing, grabbing my hand and squirming. But she was good and made it to the end, earning her prizes and my praise for being such a good, patient kid.
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
stuff I missed lately:
We accepted callings in our new ward. Husband will be teaching youth Sunday School and I'm on the Enrichment Committee which is possibly everyone's favorite calling (planning a fun, social, uplifting activity each month for the women in the ward). We had a planning meeting last week and loving it, going to be so fun and a great way to get to know my neighbors.
One of my neighbors hosted a neighborhood girls night with food and games and what a blast! I didn't know anyone there when I first arrived but loved everyone I met. So fun!
Still moving in, unpacking and organizing. The office is now usable (but a disaster) and we slowly even started putting things up on the walls. Love this house, feeling really good about the decisions we made that brought us here, even despite some hiccups and frustrations with our builder to finish a few items.
Husband's mom's side of the family had a fabulous family reunion, hosted at Grandma's house. Husband and his dad roasted meat (Braza Grill style) for the delicious buffet and then husband and I ran the rock wall while the girls bounced around to all the activities she had prepared: trying on silly hats, hay bale roping, shooting tin cans, horse rides and their favorite: the bounce house. Then we had an auction with things various family members had donated: jars of canned salsa, family recipes of jam, crafts/decor/jewelry they had made and a few treasures that came from common ancestors that needed a new home. All the money will be used for future family reunions. I didn't know most of the family, only husband's cousins that we see occasionally but all of his mom's cousins and their kids were there too and it made quite a large gathering.
We had a garage sale, selling a bunch of stuff that we unpack and realized we didn't need. The kids thought it was a blast and were actually really helpful and willing when we sorted through toys, clothes, books, etc. They thought the sale itself was a grand adventure with all of our "visitors" and they each earned a little month to be spend on a new something special.
Husband took the girls for their first rock climbing adventure! His parents' house is gorgeous, looking somewhat like an English manor and built of gray pot rock. The far side of the house is almost windowless and bolted as a climbing route. So we invested in a proper harness for the girls and Husband sent L up the wall of the tall, two story home. I wasn't there but heard she tore up it with excitement and agility very quickly. Then she turned around, panicked and refused to descend or even move for AN HOUR AND A HALF. Still not sure how he got her down in the end.
I attend a SEP with L's kindergarten teachers. They praised how helpful and sweet she is and showed me her test scores from assessment. The target was for students to know 60% of the material they were tested on and she scored 71% already. Overall, she's doing very well. She's making friends, she's excited about school and has recently begun bringing homework home regularly.
Homework and alarm clocks are new additions to our schedules but I think we are finally getting settled into our routines. But between school, ballet classes and whatever playdates we can fit in, the girls are regularly worn out and bedtime keep creeping earlier as we figure out what they need.
My little sister came to visit!! I got to pick her up from the airport and we had her all to ourselves for a whole night before taking her up to join the rest of the family for a the weekend. We ran a few errands, made her favorite cookies together and watched a movie. (except she was so worn out and is two time zones ahead so she slept through most of it). But the girls loved having her here and nearly smothered her with their energy and attention.
We finally organized the garage door enough to cut the cat door in and bring our cats over to the new house. They seemed to do fine at first but one of them wandered off to explore and hasn't found his way home yet. He's been gone for almost three days and the girls are breaking my heart, going outside to call for him and asking repeatedly when he'll come home.
I had my first experience volunteering in the classroom for L's school. Today was the "dia de la hispanidad" party so I attended to help with the crafts and snacks. They watched a cartoon about Columbus, decorated hats and made little rice crispy boats with a fruit roll up sail. A and E went with me and were remarkably well behaved and eager to participate with them.
onto more adventures...
**just in case you were worried, after three days Simba found his way home. Since, then, both cats have become content and extremely lazy, spending 99% of their time curled up in their bed napping.
One of my neighbors hosted a neighborhood girls night with food and games and what a blast! I didn't know anyone there when I first arrived but loved everyone I met. So fun!
Still moving in, unpacking and organizing. The office is now usable (but a disaster) and we slowly even started putting things up on the walls. Love this house, feeling really good about the decisions we made that brought us here, even despite some hiccups and frustrations with our builder to finish a few items.
Husband's mom's side of the family had a fabulous family reunion, hosted at Grandma's house. Husband and his dad roasted meat (Braza Grill style) for the delicious buffet and then husband and I ran the rock wall while the girls bounced around to all the activities she had prepared: trying on silly hats, hay bale roping, shooting tin cans, horse rides and their favorite: the bounce house. Then we had an auction with things various family members had donated: jars of canned salsa, family recipes of jam, crafts/decor/jewelry they had made and a few treasures that came from common ancestors that needed a new home. All the money will be used for future family reunions. I didn't know most of the family, only husband's cousins that we see occasionally but all of his mom's cousins and their kids were there too and it made quite a large gathering.
We had a garage sale, selling a bunch of stuff that we unpack and realized we didn't need. The kids thought it was a blast and were actually really helpful and willing when we sorted through toys, clothes, books, etc. They thought the sale itself was a grand adventure with all of our "visitors" and they each earned a little month to be spend on a new something special.
Husband took the girls for their first rock climbing adventure! His parents' house is gorgeous, looking somewhat like an English manor and built of gray pot rock. The far side of the house is almost windowless and bolted as a climbing route. So we invested in a proper harness for the girls and Husband sent L up the wall of the tall, two story home. I wasn't there but heard she tore up it with excitement and agility very quickly. Then she turned around, panicked and refused to descend or even move for AN HOUR AND A HALF. Still not sure how he got her down in the end.
I attend a SEP with L's kindergarten teachers. They praised how helpful and sweet she is and showed me her test scores from assessment. The target was for students to know 60% of the material they were tested on and she scored 71% already. Overall, she's doing very well. She's making friends, she's excited about school and has recently begun bringing homework home regularly.
Homework and alarm clocks are new additions to our schedules but I think we are finally getting settled into our routines. But between school, ballet classes and whatever playdates we can fit in, the girls are regularly worn out and bedtime keep creeping earlier as we figure out what they need.
My little sister came to visit!! I got to pick her up from the airport and we had her all to ourselves for a whole night before taking her up to join the rest of the family for a the weekend. We ran a few errands, made her favorite cookies together and watched a movie. (except she was so worn out and is two time zones ahead so she slept through most of it). But the girls loved having her here and nearly smothered her with their energy and attention.
We finally organized the garage door enough to cut the cat door in and bring our cats over to the new house. They seemed to do fine at first but one of them wandered off to explore and hasn't found his way home yet. He's been gone for almost three days and the girls are breaking my heart, going outside to call for him and asking repeatedly when he'll come home.
I had my first experience volunteering in the classroom for L's school. Today was the "dia de la hispanidad" party so I attended to help with the crafts and snacks. They watched a cartoon about Columbus, decorated hats and made little rice crispy boats with a fruit roll up sail. A and E went with me and were remarkably well behaved and eager to participate with them.
onto more adventures...
**just in case you were worried, after three days Simba found his way home. Since, then, both cats have become content and extremely lazy, spending 99% of their time curled up in their bed napping.
Arrrgh!!
My parents plan a special "Grammy and Papa weekend" at least once every few months. Sometimes they're pretty casual, time with cousins, playing, a special family dinner. And sometimes they're more extravagant, themed and full of prepared activities.
This last weekend was one of my favorites yet. A few weeks ago, I picked up the mail and found a brown plastic bottle, addressed to us from Pirate Papa. First of all, how awesome that you can mail a plastic soda bottle? Inside was a treasure map/invitation to a pirate party weekend. So we picked out costumes (thrift store, borrowing from friends) and eagerly awaited.
We arrived Friday early evening at the campsite, pulled our little travel trailer in next to Grammy and Papa and set up camp. My siblings trickled in and everyone set up their sites as we watched pirate movies on an outdoor projection screen, gathered around the campfire as we feasted on s'mores and popcorn. Our tired kids went to bed easily and slept soundly as we hung around the campfire, chatting as adults and especially enjoying the company of my kid sister who had flown out for the weekend.
Saturday morning started with Barbarian waffles, waffle boats loaded with nutella, strawberries, bananas and topped with a pirate flag. We dressed in our costumes, we made and hung our family pirate flags behind each trailer (ours was a traditional black flag with a hot pink skull and cross bones) and decorated treasures chests. We played with bubbles (cannon ball bursting), made paper boats to float down the river, did a ring toss onto Hook's hook and more. The girls particularly loved when we split into two teams and did a relay race, each pirate racing along the path while using a hook to scoop up necklaces and rings for the team treasure chest. But the proclaimed favorite of the day was the war. We split into two teams and decorated our ships which were huge cardboard fronts staked into the ground. The cousins drew and the dads spraypainted, giggling and teasing. Then each pirate was given a slingshot and a supply of powdered sugar covered marshmallows as their ammo. So creative and such a blast. Another favorite of the day was the treasure hunt, following Pirate Papa's clues around the campground, leading to a huge pile of sawdust in which I had buried a stock of candy and school supplies. The 3 and under kids searched for 1 minute, collecting as many treasures as they could. Then the 4-6 year old kids had 45 seconds, after which the 7 and up had 30 seconds. We made it through three rounds of this before the adults teamed up to help, still finding treasures in the elusive sawdust. For lunch, my clever sisters made mermaid shells (mac and cheese shells) and cannonballs (meatballs) with fruit (shaped and decorated as boats). For dinner, Grammy and Papa did dutch oven chicken and potatoes, all themed and decorated. Once it was dark, we gathered around the campfire again for movies and campfire cones (treasure cones).
Sunday morning (following a very rough night with a stubborn baby who had refused to sleep), we meandered through breakfast (Captain Crunch, Marshmallow Mateys and muffins). The kids spent the morning playing with cousins, making up their own imagination games, watching pirate cartoons or coloring in their pirate coloring books. For lunch we grilled burgers and hot dogs before reluctantly breaking camp and heading home.
This last weekend was one of my favorites yet. A few weeks ago, I picked up the mail and found a brown plastic bottle, addressed to us from Pirate Papa. First of all, how awesome that you can mail a plastic soda bottle? Inside was a treasure map/invitation to a pirate party weekend. So we picked out costumes (thrift store, borrowing from friends) and eagerly awaited.
We arrived Friday early evening at the campsite, pulled our little travel trailer in next to Grammy and Papa and set up camp. My siblings trickled in and everyone set up their sites as we watched pirate movies on an outdoor projection screen, gathered around the campfire as we feasted on s'mores and popcorn. Our tired kids went to bed easily and slept soundly as we hung around the campfire, chatting as adults and especially enjoying the company of my kid sister who had flown out for the weekend.
Saturday morning started with Barbarian waffles, waffle boats loaded with nutella, strawberries, bananas and topped with a pirate flag. We dressed in our costumes, we made and hung our family pirate flags behind each trailer (ours was a traditional black flag with a hot pink skull and cross bones) and decorated treasures chests. We played with bubbles (cannon ball bursting), made paper boats to float down the river, did a ring toss onto Hook's hook and more. The girls particularly loved when we split into two teams and did a relay race, each pirate racing along the path while using a hook to scoop up necklaces and rings for the team treasure chest. But the proclaimed favorite of the day was the war. We split into two teams and decorated our ships which were huge cardboard fronts staked into the ground. The cousins drew and the dads spraypainted, giggling and teasing. Then each pirate was given a slingshot and a supply of powdered sugar covered marshmallows as their ammo. So creative and such a blast. Another favorite of the day was the treasure hunt, following Pirate Papa's clues around the campground, leading to a huge pile of sawdust in which I had buried a stock of candy and school supplies. The 3 and under kids searched for 1 minute, collecting as many treasures as they could. Then the 4-6 year old kids had 45 seconds, after which the 7 and up had 30 seconds. We made it through three rounds of this before the adults teamed up to help, still finding treasures in the elusive sawdust. For lunch, my clever sisters made mermaid shells (mac and cheese shells) and cannonballs (meatballs) with fruit (shaped and decorated as boats). For dinner, Grammy and Papa did dutch oven chicken and potatoes, all themed and decorated. Once it was dark, we gathered around the campfire again for movies and campfire cones (treasure cones).
Sunday morning (following a very rough night with a stubborn baby who had refused to sleep), we meandered through breakfast (Captain Crunch, Marshmallow Mateys and muffins). The kids spent the morning playing with cousins, making up their own imagination games, watching pirate cartoons or coloring in their pirate coloring books. For lunch we grilled burgers and hot dogs before reluctantly breaking camp and heading home.
growing pains
I ran into L's bus driver last night at the grocery store. We exchanged hellos and then he said he was glad he ran into me, he actually wanted to talk to me about something. With an impending sense of doom, I asked if everything was alright. He reassured me that L is a huge help on the bus, has even been asked to be the evacuation leader for her group (she's five and in kindergarten). And then trying not to laugh, however, they had to talk to her and ask her not to kiss the boys on the bus anymore.
seriously?!
sigh. so we had a chat about how kisses are special and saved for only someone that we really love. and then after proclamations of how much she loves boys, the rule has been changed to kisses are for mom, dad and grandparents only. until she's 25.
seriously?!
sigh. so we had a chat about how kisses are special and saved for only someone that we really love. and then after proclamations of how much she loves boys, the rule has been changed to kisses are for mom, dad and grandparents only. until she's 25.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)