Thursday, January 27, 2011

"Look, Mommy! It's Christmas!"

Last week, we got our first big snow. We had some snow a few weeks ago, but nothing to play in and enjoy. But, finally, last week, we got about 4 inches of snow.

Last year, Hannah hated the snow. I am talking crying-blubbering-please-don't-make-me-even-look-at-the-snow hated it. This year, however, totally different story. She saw the snow and immediately, "Look, Mommy! It's Christmas!" (Cut her some slack. Two of her past three Christmas mornings have been white ones!)

Emma loves the snow. She has always loved the snow. At 6am when we found out school was cancelled, she was begging to get bundled up and go play outside.

Travis and I finally got everyone dressed, even Catherine. (This was like a 30 minute ordeal too!) However, Catherine didn't like her snow suit, so I freed her from it and she stayed in with me. (Have I mentioned that I am not a snow fan either?)

Travis, Emma and Hannah all headed outside to play in the snow. They had so much fun! I ran out to snap a few pictures of them and ran back inside.

During Catherine's nap time, Travis took the girls to this huge hill and they went sledding. Hannah's first trip down, she flipped over and face planted into the snow. That was the end of her sledding. She just played and watched Emma. Emma, however, LOVED IT! The faster she went and the harder she crashed, the more she wanted to go again. They stayed until dusk and came home with little red noses and cheeks.

Here are some pics and a video. (Travis took the video on his iPhone and I cannot get it to rotate)







Thursday, January 20, 2011

AH HA!

As a Mommy, I think that life is full of those "Ah Ha!" parenting moments. I have them ALL.THE.TIME with the girls. You know what I am talking about, right?

Like the time Emma tried to stick a bobby pin the in an electrical outlet. "AH HA!" Time to cover all the outlets because my six year old has lost her marbles become very curious.

Or the first time Catherine told me "NO NO!" when I tried to change her diaper. "AH HA!" Time for this to become Daddy's job because my little cooperative girl has turned into an opinionated wiggle worm (and can run even the toughest out of a room with that diaper)!

Last night (at 12:46am, to be exact), I had another one of those moments. I was sound asleep. I am talking mouth open, drool on the pillow asleep. (I was even sleeping through Travis's snoring...which is a miracle!) All of the sudden, I feel this tap on my arm. I open my eyes and little Hannah is standing there. The conversation went like this:

Me: Hmmp?
Hannah: Mommy, I need to go potty.
Me: Ok...you know where the bathroom is, do you need help?
Hannah: No. (still standing there.)
Me: Ok then...just go potty.
Hannah: Ok.
(Goes to my bathroom, potties, comes out.)
Hannah: Mommy?
Me: Hmmm?
Hannah: I used all the toilet paper, so you might want to put some more on the roll
Me: I will in the morning.
Hannah: What if I need to go again and there's no toilet paper?
Me: I'll give you $5 if you go back to bed and don't get up until morning.
Hannah: COOL! (Runs and JUMPS back into her bed.)

I am sure, (if you are still reading this), you are wondering, "Where is the "AH HA" moment? ". Well, there are several.
  1. Remind the girls to potty BEFORE bed in hopes that someday I get to sleep all night again.
  2. Tell them that if they need to potty and don't need help, no need to wake Sleeping Beauty Mommy.
  3. Switch sides of the bed with Travis (in case they forget moment #2).
  4. Make sure there is an ample supply of toilet paper on the back of the potty to keep Hannah from worrying.
  5. My little "used-to-tee-tee-in-the-bed-or-need-help-going-potty" Hannah is turning into a big "I-can-do-it-myself-even-in-the-dark-without-tee-teeing-on-myself" girl.
After she scammpered back to bed, I laid there for a minute and thought about all this. It's hard to believe how independent she has become. I like to think this is because we did something right, instilled confidence in her and taught her how to be a functioning human being, (I mean...it couldn't possibly be because we both sleep like rocks and it was either do it yourself or drag Sleeping Beauty Mommy out of bed.)

I did end up getting up. I went to make sure she got back under her covers and to tell her I love her. Because after all, no matter how big they all get, I will always tuck them in (even if it means getting up in the middle of the night).

Monday, January 17, 2011

Weekend Wrap-up

This weekend was pretty low key in our house. But, we haven't had a "slow" weekend in quite a while, so it was a welcomed weekend.

(none of the pics of the girls are from this weekend. I never got out a camera. OOPS!)

Friday night, we went out to eat at one of our favorite Mexican Restaurants. Going out to eat with Catherine is getting SO difficult. She doesn't like sitting in her highchair, so we tried letting her sit in a booster hoping things would go better. It did not. She wanted down, dumped her rice all over the table, threw her fork on the floor and basically acting like a nut!



Needless to say, we walked out of there (after a very big tip left for the people who had to clean up after her) and I said "We are not taking her out to dinner again until she is THREE!" It's just a hard age with her when we try to go eat.

Saturday, the girls and I went shopping a little, (if that's what you even call it...we didn't buy a thing) and just played around the house. I let them paint some pictures, play dress up and I dressed and re-dressed American Girl Dolls until my fingers were bleeding.



Saturday night, I had a fun girls night with a great group of girls that I have gotten really close to over the past few months. We had a wonderful dinner. After dinner, we sat around drinking wine and just talking. Sometimes, its so nice to get away for a few hours and enjoy a night with friends.


Sunday was a day much like Saturday. It was semi-nice outside, so the girls played outside a little. Other than that, we just hung around the house. Even though the girls said it was "boring", Travis and I thought it was a nice relaxing weekend.

Friday, January 14, 2011

Inside Looking Out

A few days ago, the girls were DYING to go out and play in what little snow that actually fell in NWA. So, Travis bundled Emma and Hannah up and sent them out back. They were having a BLAST!

Poor Catherine couldn't go out, so she stood at the sliding glass doors staring longingly yelling, "NANA! MEMA! NANA! NANANANANAAAAA!". Emma and Hannah came over and did what any loving sisters would do: Threw a snowball at the back door right where Catherine's face was.

Enjoy the video of Catherine's reaction.

(Yes, we put her BACK up there and let them do it again. But, please keep in mind the door is closed people. Plus, I wouldn't have much content for this blog if I didn't laugh when stuff like this happens!)

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Fierce

This weekend, Claire, Emma's friend, FINALLY got to have her birthday party.

(It was scheduled before Christmas, but poor Claire ended up being sick. Then, with the Christmas hustle and bustle, there was no time.)

Claire had a Salon and Fashion Show Surprise Party. It was AMAZING! We really scared surprised Claire! After she recovered from the shock, it was time for make-overs!

Tara did wardrobe. Nicole did hair. Mandy did make-up. Rachel was the DJ and Kim served the girls punch (in champagne flutes) and snacks (chocolate covered strawberries).

After all the girls got make-overs, the fashion show began. They cranked up the music and each one modeled down the stairs and into a living room full of cheering Mommies. They were adorable!

(I actually was stunned at how grown up and beautiful they all looked. The teen years are going to be rough on this Mommy!)

I recorded the fashion shows, but those videos still need some work. I'll post those another time. For now, enjoy the pics. (Most were kidnapped from Tara's blog and facebook!)




























Monday, January 10, 2011

Dresses, PJs and Champagne

I am sure anyone who has kids or has ever had kids knows how HARD it is to get a baby sitter on New Year's Eve. Then, if you find one, you have to pay an arm and a leg because #1 it's NYE and #2 you are out LATE!

So, we skipped all that drama and decided it would be fun to spend it with the kids. We met the Brown's and the Herman's at Caraba's. It was craziness! We had 6 adults, 5 kids and 2 babies. Luckily, Rachel made reservations, because the place was PACKED!

We were all dressed up and enjoyed dinner. I chased Catherine through the restaurant and into the kitchen, so she and I had to go wait in the car for everyone to pay up. (Travis made the FATAL mistake of letting her out of her highchair!)

After dinner, we headed to The Brown's house to watch a football game, chat and let the kids play. Rachel got all the kids matching PJs and they were ADORABLE. So, after pictures in their dresses, they got comfy and watched a movie. Everyone (even the babies!) stayed awake until midnight.

We had a blast ringing in the new year with good friends! Cheers to the wonderful year ahead!