Charlotte Had Her First Haircut!

I'm feeling a little sad today, but I did it to myself. I finally broke down and had Charlotte get her first haircut. Other moms I talked to about hair said their daughter/s did get their hair cut until they were 3 or 4 years old. I would LOVE for Charlotte to have long pretty hair, but I can't imagine waiting that long to cut her hair. So I caved a little...I see pictures of cousin Casey with his haircut and he looks like a big kid now, so I figured it was time for Charlotte to get hers trimmed too. What I didn't realize was that a haircut came with some *major* attitude. I didn't know I was paying for that too...Can I get a refund?!

 She looks like this on an almost daily basis, when she doesn't let me pull her hair back. (It's adorbs when it's in a pony tail!) She woke up this morning and looked like she had been hit by a bus. That confirmed it - she need some work done on her bangs. 

 A good friend of mine has a sister who works as a hair dresser so I took Charlotte to her. I thought Charlotte would be okay sitting in the booster seat, but she was not having it. So I forgo-ed my first haircut pictures, caped up, and sat her on my lap. She did pretty good. She was *very* interested in what was going on around her so her head kept moving. But Dani got the job done :)

 And she's a little doll! I was hesitant to have her cut her curls off to even everything up, so I instead opted for her to trim them up a bit so I could still pull her hair into a pony tail when needed. 

There's my big girl! And in case you need a little laugh today, here is a video of her dancing. She loves to dance! I love to watch her - especially when she busts out something that looks like the chicken dance!

Hunter's 2nd Kiwi Crate Box

One of our Christmas gifts to the kids were monthly boxes. I heard from a former co-worker of mine that her boyfriend's son loved getting his Kiwi Crate every month. It's filled with different projects to do. Last month when I received theirs in the mail, I wrapped them and put them under the tree (only after I peeked inside first! Shhh!) There is a few different companies that do these sort of boxes, so I signed the kids up each with a different company to see which one I liked. JP gets a Citrus Lane box (HIGHLY recommend) and Charlotte has been getting a Bluum box. 

 In Hunter's first box, he received supplies to build a snowman out of boxes and some miscellaneous stuff to make a couple paper lanterns. He had fun with them, especially since his box came with a ball so he could knock his snowman down... This month's box was themed, "Let's Bake" and I was a little nervous how it would go over. Silly me! They sent along two small bags of "frosting," which was actually more like glue. As soon as he saw that, it was confirmed that it was a hit.

 And we immediately had to make the cake. There was foam pieces to glue together using the frosting and craft sticks to spread it around. I felt bad for JP because he couldn't help out since it was Hunter's project. JP received his box in the mail a few days ago and has been in love with his Plus-Plus blocks. (I ordered more for his upcoming birthday!)

 Hunter had so much fun frosting his cake. And there was frosting glue everywhere to show for it.

 His cake looked pretty decent until I told him I wanted to take a picture of him with it...then he started wrecking it. Hunter Hunter Hunter.....

Nanny was on her way home from Spokane and stopped in to surprise us all too!

I figure next Thursday (because it's early out day) we'll work on the other project in Hunter's box. I haven't decided which box I like best but when comparing Kiwi crate vs. Citrus Lane, I think I picked correctly for each kid. Hunter is a hands on kid whereas JP enjoys playing alone, so it works that Kiwi Crate is activity based whereas Citrus Lane is more product based. Bluum boxes are product based too. Charlotte has gotten a new book in each of her boxes, a Minnie Mouse (that she loves!) this month, and a weeble wobble owl (that she equally loves) and a few other miscellaneous things last month. 

Monkey Shiner Babblings

I'm on the toilet and inconsiderate JP comes busting into the bathroom.
J - Mom, I want to dig for dinosaur bones when I grow up.
M - Oh, so you want to be an archaeologist?
J - *looks down and whispers* Don't you mean a paleontologist?
M - What? Yes, that's what I said...
J - No you didn't.
M - How about you get out so I can poop alone this time?
J - UUGHH!

M - What'd you do in art this week with Ms. Horning?
H - It's Ms. Horny!
M - Pretty sure it's Horning.
H - No, it's Horny!
M - Ms. Lubke wrote, "Ask about art with Ms. Horning." I'm pretty sure she knows the art teacher's name.
H - It's Ms. Horny, Mom! I said, Ms. Horny can you help me? And she did. It's Ms. Horny.
M - How about you just call her teacher then...

The boys made a tent in the living room last week. I was going to scare JP who was already inside, when Hunter started shouting at me. "No mom no! You're too fat! You're going to wreck it!" Thanks bud.

We went to Aunt Kim's house to watch the Oregon ducks play the other week. Some cheerleaders came on tv and we told the boys they were called cheerleaders. Hunter goes, "OOOOO" and everyone bust up laughing, obviously, he's a 6 year old boy. Later a commercial with Hooter's girls came on and Perry says, "Hunter those aren't cheerleaders." To which he replied, "Yes they are! They get you excited!" True I guess...hahaha!

J - Hahaha! Look! Charli has dandelion hair!

Date Night, Soupy Sundays, Running, Charlotte...And a PARTY!

Let's be honest, I've been doing a lot of nothing lately. And my blog shows it because I'm not here often anymore. I go through the day thinking, I should probably blog about this, and then I don't. I feel like I'm asleep at the wheel in my own life right now. No excitement, not much to look forward to, and that's not how I want to live, but it is what it is...

I am happy to report though that Monday night date night is a thing again! Perry and I have been doing this for at year (thank you Bachelor). It's to the point that all we have to say is, "Guess what day it is?" If they don't respond with "Soupy Sunday" (because that's a thing too, a great thing mind you!) they will follow it up with a lame-sounding, "date night...." It's one thing that Perry and I look forward to every week, even if it is just sitting on the couch watching "The Bachelor" on the television, digging into our ice cream, or Frosty from Wendy's if we're lucky! I feel like every morning either Hunter or JP checks the garbage to see what we did the night before too...it's kind of weird. "I see you guys had Frosties last night...", "I see you had popcorn last night...", "I see you were eating our candy last night..." Little spies...

But seriously, Soupy Sunday was probably one of my best ideas ever. Maybe it wasn't my idea, maybe it was one of my pinterest finds, but even still, it's one that I've implemented in our home. I think it started in the fall of '13, when I was already getting burnt out of cooking every stickin' night. After all, that was the year I became "just a" mom. Not that having soup changes me cooking all the time, but it's harder for Perry to mess up if he's in charge of it. If I'm speaking honestly... And it's so much easier to meal plan for! On pinterest I have boards labeled "Soupy Sunday," "Meatless Monday," and "Slow Cooker Wednesday." The other days I use, but aren't labeled as specific boards are, "Friday Favorites" and "Try-it Tuesdays". When I meal plan, all I have to do is pick at least one from each of the boards and I'm good to go for the week. We usually use the weekends to eat all the leftovers, if Perry didn't take them for lunch already. Meal planning made *so much* easier! Too bad it doesn't make shopping with kids easier...

In other news, yoga started up again the other week and I realized how tight my muscles are. Pathetic! I would really really really like to run a 5K this spring but I just can't get motivated to get into shape. I wish I had a gym partner to motivate me a bit... I have a treadmill in the basement but I feel like I would be more likely to use a gym because I'd have to pay for it, and leave the house. (What stay-at-home mom doesn't *want* to leave the house?!) I've been tossing around the idea of getting a membership at the YMCA, that way the kids can go to their childcare, and I don't have to worry about JP hopping on the back of the treadmill. (That almost happened...) But the only thing holding me back is the money aspect of it. Can I really justify spending and extra $70 a month when I could just work out at home? I've tried to run while pushing a stroller and having JP on his bike, but it just doesn't seem to work...STOP SLOWING DOWN IN FRONT OF ME! Someone is bound to get hurt and it's going to be Charlotte...

Charlotte has become a real talker lately. And it's adorable. She loves the owl coat my aunt gave to her when she was first born. I thought this girl loved her blankets, but she's kind of taking this coat obsession to the next level. She insisted on wearing it for two days, and two nights straight. Any time when we're getting ready to go somewhere and I say, "Let's go get your coat," she'll by-pass the one standing near, sprint to her room, point, and start whining, "owl." Sometime she'll add the word coat in there too. And just like JP, she loves Ninja Turtles. (Damn it. That reminds me, JP is bringing Ninja Turtle Rice Krispy treats for snack tomorrow and I haven't made them yet...) JP gets a little too defensive when she sees a turtle, starts exclaiming, "turtle! turtle!" running for one of his ninjas... She says no to everything now too. Even if she does want it. "Do you want a drink?" "No," said while nodding her head. Anytime she starts singing at the table, Hunter and JP will ask, "Charli, are you singing my song?" and without missing a beat, she'll say "no." They think it's hilarious! Over the last few weeks, I've been trying to get her to tell me her name. Our conversations go something like this:
M - Charli, what's your name?
C - Nay?
M - Say "B"
C - B!!!
M - Charli, what's your name?
C - Nay.
M - No, say B
C - B!!
And then add a few more time repetitions. JP has been working on this with her too and he really gets fired up when she responds with Nay. She can't say Charli yet, and as of lately, everyone just calls her "B". JP is still convinced it's her middle name...it's not. But as of yesterday she *finally* got it! "Charli, what's your name?" "B!!!" as she starts clapping her hands! Yay!

Lastly before I wrap this post up (which is far longer than I had anticipated!), I'll share one more thing, mostly because it's out of the ordinary for us. Perry had people come over last Friday! I say people, because he's in the same boat as me - where's our friends?! Not that the people that came over aren't friends, but he's never seen them outside of work... Anyways he was invited to play poker with a former employee, but after the game fell through, he decided invite people over to our place instead. I don't know who was more surprised that people actually came over! It's sad that we're so used to getting baled on at the last minute. He was so cute to watch - he was nervous before they arrived, scrambling around to clean up the garage, picking-up stuff at the store, getting his beer pong table out...and then there was me. I had no idea who he invited to come over, but he invited me to come out to the garage to join them (he must have learned from his past mistakes!) and I can't tell you how nervous I was just to go out to my garage! When I did get up enough nerve to go out and say hello to everyone, no one was there yet... As timing would have it, I volunteered to fill in at the hotel again by picking up a couple breakfast shifts, and my first one was bright and early that next morning. I can't tell you how badly I really wanted to play a game or two of beer pong and just let loose. But I didn't. I refrained. Stayed out until 12am only to have to wake up at 3:30 to get ready for work. I would do it again in a heartbeat just to see how happy Perry was. I seriously don't know when the last time he really seemed happy. It's heartbreaking really...

A Snow Cave for the Kids

I don't think I can express how happy I am that school started up again last week. What was I thinking having three kids?! They wear me out! The time between Christmas and the start of school was hard on everyone this year. Perry and I both had colds, and to top it off, I worked a few night audit shifts at the hotel right as I was coming down with it. That was rough. I was exhausted! 

 But I wasn't the only one...We found Hunter sleeping on the stairs twice in the same week. The first night, the gate was closed so we were unable to open it to wake him up. A few nights later I found him here when I was going to get ready for bed. "I fell asleep on the stairs and I woke up in my bed!"

 Luckily over Christmas it snowed a bunch! Not quite like the year before, but enough for Perry to start building the boys a snow cave under their playset. It took them, no, it took Perry an entire day, plus some to gather snow from all over the yard. By the end of the day, the boys were able to go sledding down it. Charlotte went once and thought that was enough for her!

 Yesterday after church, Perry took the kids outside to actually start digging the cave out. Last Sunday night/Monday morning, we had freezing rain so there was a layer of ice on everything when I went to shovel Monday morning. That was rough! And then throughout the week everything thawed and froze multiple times, so the cave has snowy/ice walls. After a good hour of working on it yesterday though, Perry was able to dig a hole big enough for both of the boys to fit inside. 

 JP had far too much fun playing outside while Perry did all the hard work.

And then Hunter somehow lucked out and was able to eat his lunch inside the cave! And as I type, Hunter is out there beating it with a stick trying to get large snow chunks off of it to eat...

The last time Perry built a snow cave was 7 years ago, almost exactly! It was one of the first things Perry and I did together. We had intentions of sleeping in it, but we forgot to bring a tarp to lay down, so few hours in, the three of us were wet and cold. We packed up and hi-tailed it out of the woods in a matter of minutes. (We were paranoid about mountain lions!) 

Sledding at Nanny's

One of the great things about Nanny's and Papa's house is the hill the back yard. In the wintertime mind you, not the summer - excuse my language, but it's a bitch to mow. When there is snow on it however, it transforms into a wonderful sledding hill. Bonus points because there aren't any fences to stop them.

Why must all kids eat snow?!

 On Christmas, Robin and I took the boys out sledding for a little bit since it snowed a bunch on Christmas Eve.

 They each took turns going down with her. In this case, JP gave them a "good" push....

 ...and they crashed soon after. The other day, Hunter and JP went down together and managed to hit that tree, which is the only obstruction on the hill, and it's off to the left away from the main sledding part...

 Casey came out later sporting Charlotte's snowpants and boots. (A couple days later, JP managed to forget his coat at home when we went to Nanny's, and since he and Hunter wanted to go to the park, JP wore Casey's size 2T coat there...all about sharing!)

 Casey and his mom had fun on the hill.

 I'm not sure if Casey had fun with his dad though...

 Once they recovered from their first wreck, they made it to the bottom...

 ...but Casey fell out on the way up. Face in the snow...I wouldn't be happy about that either!

 Like I said Kile had fun!

 Before going back in, they let Casey go down alone. Sort of. Chris ran next to him for most of the way. And then I chased after him to stop him at the bottom...too distracted with the camera...

One of these days I'll send Charlotte down...

Christmas 2014 In Review

Christmas has already come and past. How did that happen? I didn't blog all month! Eeek! So with out more delay, here's a highlight of our Christmas this year.

We started Christmas a *little* early this year, mostly because I didn't want to haul all the presents to my parents house. How lazy is that? But seriously, the car was packed with presents already and I hadn't even loaded up the gifts Grandma dropped off for us. I somehow convinced Perry that we needed to open them at our house, plus a few other miscellaneous ones too. 

 Promptly after dinner on the 23rd, the boys changed in to their jammies and we all gathered in the living room to open a couple gifts. The first gift Charlotte opened was from some family friends and was a bath time tea set. I'm always sitting in the wrong spot with the camera, but it was the cutest thing when she opened it - her face lit up and she said, "OH" about 20 times while holding it. 

 JP opted to open the big box with his name on it and found a large tub of gears inside. One of the boys received gears, last year? the year before? and enjoyed playing with them, but it was a small set so fighting was kind of inevitable. In the past week they've had a bunch of fun build stuff with all the extra gears they now have.

 Hunter unwrapped his present from Grandma and was given a baseball pitching machine. (I tried it out in the house. I missed the first two pitches and Perry laughed at me. But I nailed the third pitch and hit a picture...) Perry assembled it and Charlotte's shopping cart while I met up with my sisters for drinks that evening. We had a wonderful time talking together while enjoying our fishbowls and "wellness" drinks!

 Before I was ready for it, Christmas Eve was here and the kids and I found ourselves hanging out at Nanny's all day waiting for Perry to finish up at work. Once he arrived Hunter and JP anxiously tracked Santa's whereabouts on Papa's phone (which was a map with a non-moving pin on Missoula). Uncle Chris's phone showed Santa in Europe when he arrived at the house. 

 Casey wasn't sure what to think when Santa came strolling in.

Charlotte clung to who ever would have her!

Even Hunter and JP were a bit hesitant, despite all the Santa encounters they've had this season. 

 Since the little ones were so hesitant, Nanny helped them open their gifts from Santa. They both handled that pretty well. 

 But there was no way Casey was going to sit with him. I was surprised Charlotte sat as long as she did!

 And of course we had a family picture. I enjoy watching Chris tap Kile out of the way. Poor little Dylan was sleeping so they didn't want to get him out of the swing, but you can kind of see him!

 When Hunter was given his gift from Santa, he leaned over and whispered semi-quietly to him about how our elf, Skippy, was being naughty this year...So cute!

 They had a nice chat before Santa had to leave to deliver more presents. 

There was a lot of Papa Craig - Dylan time going on the whole evening. Both were so happy and comfortable! Especially my dad in his new chair!

 

 After Santa peaced out, we had dinner and went to mass. Before heading back up to Nanny's, we stopped back by our house to let Roxy out and words can't describe how upset the boys were. They just didn't understand why we had to go home when all of their presents were at the Missoula house. My family opens presents on Christmas eve, and Perry's family opens all the presents on Christmas day. Beings that it was already fairly late when we arrived back to the house, I made sure the kids opened their present with the jammies Perry picked out for them. They were so excited to rip it open! JP tore all the wrapping paper off and exclaimed, "YES! We got a box!" and was very disappointed when he opened it and found jammies, "Well that's not what I was expecting..." So before they opened more presents, I made them put their new jammies on.

 Usually when we have opened presents in the past, it's one person at a time opening it, but this year it seemed to be kind of a free for all. Like previous years, Hunter and JP were eager to help everyone open presents. I found out what I got before I opened it (because I'm the bookkeeper), but Perry got our moms together to help him pick out a new sewing machine for me. I would normally curse up a storm with my other, really basic, one. This one is ALL computerize. There's even a button you can push to cut your thread...

 Anyways...it was so much fun to spend time with my family and watch the excitement of all the kids. 

 Charlotte was pretty mellow the whole night. She loves the swing!

 Before bed time, the kids were treated to a story from Uncle Chris. They just love climbing on him!

 The lighting is really bad, but Perry and I made this serving tray for Kim and Julian. 

I'm so glad she likes it! Christmas stresses me out because I have such a hard time trying to decide what to give to people, so when I saw this idea, I put Perry to work!

 Even though we live just a few miles away, we opted to stay the night so my family could enjoy the excitement of the kids opening presents a bit more. 

 Charlotte wasn't too interested in opening gifts from her stocking, but she sure did look cute!

 Anything with a Ninja Turtle is the best thing in the whole world to JP. I wish I could get excited about shampoo!

 These light toys are always a hit with the kids!

 Little girls in pigtails! GAH! After all the presents were finally opened, I had to pack them up because Charlotte and Casey kept wondering around with stuff. But that was okay with me! The rest of the day was pretty laid back. We had dinner around 2 and scarfed down a delicious prime rib. I had to take a short nap afterwards though because I started feeling sick....Hooray for head colds...

 We did manage to play "that one game" (my dad never knew the name for it, but I'm pretty sure it's Five Crowns) with my dad before we went back home to see what Santa left for the kids there. 

 Santa didn't bring the green helicopters with remote controls, but instead dropped off a scooter for Hunter, a Ninja Turtle (who knew...) bike for JP, and part of a kitchen set for Charlotte. 

 Hunter is pretty convinced that our neighbor Judy is one of Santa's elves because she gave the kids each a helicopter (but not ones with remotes!) and they were thrilled with them! JP was equally thrilled when he opened up more TMNT stuff. 

 Gotta love Ninja Turtle! And let me say this, because I did that same darn thing last year and didn't learn from it. I always plan for the kids to wear the Christmas clothes, like Charlotte's pretty dress, on Christmas day. Why have I not learned to dressed them up on Christmas Eve?! We stay in our jammies what feels like all day, and just lounge around. Every stinking year! I made a point to get Charlotte dressed that afternoon...and I was so peeved about it!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas as well, and a Happy New Year!