Grace in small things, March 17, 2017
- Birthday party prep with the kids...we played all the games I'm planning to make sure they worked and painted blue ribbons for prizes and a cat and ladybug tablecloth and welcome sign and I made a donkey for pin-the-tail and it's so cute and Zo wanted to make one too and copied my design, hers is super cute too, but she doesn't want any tails pinned on it, lol...
- Hard to go back to work after 2 days off but at least it was an easy few hours...
- Kids riding their bikes in the driveway and spacing out rocks to be racing cones, too cute...
- Reading a chapter of Winnie the Pooh before bed, I remember Winnie so well from my childhood, I had some records with the stories and I listened to them over and over and over...loving reading it to my kids. Also all of a sudden feeling like our days with the picture books we adore are a little numbered...they are starting to listen to chapter books which is so cool but how is it possible they are old enough for this...
- A margarita and warm blankets and shooting stars out on the porch with my wonderful husband...he's had a terribly tough work week and so I haven't seen much of him...so good to have an evening together...
XO
New red dress
Got a few new dresses for Sis from Amazon the other day...very reasonably priced and free shipping and so cute. Kid shopping is tough in Steamboat...there's a cute little boutique but it's so expensive and Walmart which I hate. Zo is getting so tall, she's outgrown practically everything. Fun to get her a few new things...
5th Birthday!
What a fun birthday we had with Grammy and Papa here and the kids showing them how they can ski and ice skate and swim and Grammy and Papa got to go up in the gondola and Sis rode down with them while Luke and I skied Why Not? and we all had lunch at Saddles and Luke was a little grumpy so when Sis and I went into City Market to get cake and ice cream she picked chocolate cake and blue-ish mint chocolate chip ice cream because she knew it would make her Bubby happy and the kids opened their gifts from each other first and hugs all around and Lincoln Logs and books (including Rude Cakes and Winnie the Pooh) and unicorn and moose stuffies and transformers and art supplies among a few other things and dinner all of us together...as Sis said: "Best birthday ever!"
XO
Taking a break while bike riding
The weather's been so warm that the core trail is clear, so crazy. We went bike riding and stick collection the other day (kids are learning about trees at preschool and are taking the request to bring in tree-related items seriously) and Luke found this bench to rest on and a snowbank so he could put up his feet lol...
XO
Preschool birthday
They had a little celebration for the kids birthday at preschool on Tuesday and Grammy and Papa were there and candles and cupcakes and "Happy Birthday" from their friends and a sining bear and big smiles all around...
XO
Grace in small things, March 13, 2017
- Birthday prep today...everything takes longer than I think it will but for once I've done a lot ahead of time and it all feels pretty relaxed. I keep thinking how incredibly grateful I am to have children, to be able to pick out and prettily wrap special things to make them happy, to write messages on cards and sign them "Mommy"...there were a lot of years when I didn't think I'd ever be able to do those things...so incredibly grateful to have Luke and Zo...
- Kids today telling me they are not getting married but instead they're going to live with each other and be best friends forever. I told them they can get married and still be best friends but they weren't having it. It's so cute how they love each other so much...
- Along the same lines, Luke got in trouble today and was in tears in Time Out and Sis came over and hugged him and comforted him until he stopped crying...
- Snuggling my kids until they fall asleep...loving having that time with them...
- Clean sheet night for me, yay...
XOXO
Ski weekend with Ms. Sandie
Great ski weekend with the kids and my mom's best friend Sandie...love her.
Saturday we spent almost the whole day on the mountain--the longest we've ever been out--and the kids are skiing blues (although they're definitely more comfortable on greens) and every chance they get they hit the little bumps on the side and they LOVE going into the trees...they are amazing...(and it's a little scary for Mommy, but I'm trying to keep them safe and at the same time not be a helicopter mom...)
Some runs we did: Why Not (of course), Right-o-Way, Spur Run, Sundial, Tomahawk, Quickdraw, Buckshot, Rendezvous Way, Broadway, Vagabond, Boulevard, Main Drag, Beeline, Arc, Betwixt, Eagle's Nest (which was really scary for Sis, but she did great), Giggle Gulch, Shortcut, 'Lil Rodeo...
Love being on the mountain with my sweeties...
XOXO
Grace in small things, March 9, 2017
- Last day of ski school with Steamboat Winter Sports Club...they do such a great job coaching and the kids are just loving it...it's been a great winter of lessons...
- Been a busy stretch with work but seeing some light at the end of the tunnel...
- Spring is in the air...
- Really enjoying putting the kids birthdays together...starting early has helped so much, not feeling crazed like I usually do...
- Kids are upstairs playing "Bedtime Superheros," which I hope translates into going to bed easily...
XOXO
Grace in small things, March 8, 2017
- It'a been a banner week for wildlife, with a beautiful red fox a few days ago and yesterday 2 huge moose at the bend in the road and also an eagle flying low and right above us before going into the ice rink for skating...
- Luke to Sis tonight: "That's ingenious!"
- Luke walked the dog with me earlier and picked up a couple small branches and some construction trash (little pieces of wood, plastic that I think help nails). He and his grandma made a craft out of it, this lovely little tree he's going to bring to preschool, where they are studying trees at the moment. I'm going to have to get a picture of it, it's so cool...
- Been taking longer than normal to put the kids down at night, sometimes staying with them until they fall asleep. Loving the extra snuggle time...
- Zo and I have started counting sheep as part of her bedtime routine, because she loves sheep so much, they are always white with grey around their face and black feet and they live in a meadow with a pink fence (of course). The number varies from about 20 to 50. I run them down her back and they jump the fence and we count and then they run some more. She likes me to make it tickle so I get the little squeals of laughter from her too...love...
XO
First allowance purchase
A couple months ago we started doing allowances with the kids, and our philosophy (I know some parents do it differently) was that they needed to earn it. Every day they have chores e.g. getting dressed, brushing teeth, feeding the dog, clearing their dishes, etc., and at the end of the week if they've done everything they get a small sum. Both kids have had their eye on something big and this week Zo finally had enough money to purchase the unicorn castle of her dreams. We all went with her and made a big deal about it, the clerk and the other people in the store so impressed she had saved and she is over the moon to finally have her unicorns, the sweetest thing, so proud of her.
XOXO