The Kilps Family

Sickies!

2012-02-11T20:25:00.000-05:00

Andy went to bed with an upset stomach on Saturday evening. He was up a couple of hours later getting sick. Super sick. This kept up all night, just about every hour. In his four-and-a-half years as a pastor, he's never had to call out sick on a Sunday - until last Sunday. And it wasn't just any Sunday. It was the Sunday of our church council meeting. This occurs once a year and is a pretty big deal. Andy usually presides over the meeting. Thankfully, we have very understanding Elders and Trustees. People stepped up and everything flowed nice and smoothly.

Later that evening, we had our own little Super Bowl party. Andy's stomach was still pretty queasy, so he didn't get to enjoy all of our tasty game snacks.

We weren't too interested in the teams playing in the Super Bowl this year, so to make it a little more interesting, we made it 'Boys' vs. 'Girls'. Bella kept score.

While Bella and I were technically rooting for the Giants, I did find myself pulling for the Patriots at the end. I think I'm just a sucker for the underdog - unless they're playing the Packers.

Curtis didn't sleep too well that night. He woke up in the morning with a fever. We laid pretty low on Monday.

Tuesday morning rolled around and Bella came into our room with a stomach ache. Pretty soon she was getting sick all over the floor. (Between her and Andy, it's a really great thing that we have hard wood floors up there). She stayed home from school that day and, with the exception of a warm bath, pretty much camped out on the couch.

Here she is post-bath and starting to feel a little better.

And a little silly too.

A couple of sick day essentials - a bowl nearby (just in case) and a special flower from Daddy.

Thankfully, Graydon and I made it through without getting sick.

By Wednesday, Bella was back to herself and ready to carry out some big-sister duties.

Just before Christmas, some friends from church showed up with a few big bins of Geotrax. Graydon loves to get all of the train stuff out and build new tracks - keeps him busy for quite a while. (Pardon the crack). :)

We are feeling the love over here and it was time to show it with some Valentine cookies.

Last September at 'Back to School' night, each of the parents in Bella's class signed up to help out in the classroom one day. I signed up for February 10th. At the time, I didn't know that this would end up being a special day. Turns out, it was the kids' 100th Day of School! All of the kindergarteners made hats with 100 objects attached (Bella used puzzle pieces).

I showed up at school just in time to watch the parade. (Blurry photo taken with my 2 megapixel camera phone).

There were so many creative hats. Very fun!

Part of their Show and Tell this week was to answer a worksheet of questions. Here's what Bella had to say:

I wish I had 100 "Littlest Pet Shops".
I wouldn't want 100 brothers.
I can make 100 cards.
I can eat 100 macaroni noodles.
I could never eat 100 chickens.
Having 100 teddy bears could really be a problem.
In 100 years, I hope that I can sew.
I can lift 100 little rocks in a bag.

I'm looking forward to a week of healthy people in my house!

Around the house. . .

2012-02-04T17:09:00.000-05:00

I entered the kitchen to find Curtis on the counter. He appears to have located our stash of Rice Krispie treats. My boys are such climbers!

Is Curtis ready for potty training? When Graydon goes to the bathroom, Curtis is starting to tag along and sit on the little potty. He is also beginning to let me know when he's poopy by saying "uh oh" and pointing to his diaper area.

I've stopped putting Graydon down for an afternoon nap because I want him to be super tired at bedtime so that he doesn't get out of bed. So far, so good. He stays in bed and is asleep within minutes. But on some days, he just needs that extra sleep in the afternoon. This was Monday.

And this was Thursday. My kids are usually not ones to fall asleep in places other than their beds, so he must have been extra tired.

Check out this little lady's smile! Bella lost her second tooth and she did it all by herself. Andy was out of town and I was in the living room with the boys while she did her wiggling and pulling. She sure is looking older!

This is a fairly common scene in our house. When Bella is working on her homework, the boys like to join in and do their work (coloring pictures) too. I think it's sweet that they give her company (though she is not always so appreciative). :)

Before Bella left for school one morning, she cut some yarn for herself and the boys to tuck into their pants. Tails! And when they went to the magical fairy, she would give them different color tails. I love a child's imagination.

While Graydon was in his jammies, I just had to get his picture. My mom bought these for him back when she was visiting in November. She said that after Graydon put them on he announced, "I'm a man!" Now he refers to these pajamas as his "mans". "I want to wear my mans!" He is going through a pajama phase, so he pretty much wants to wear these ALL of the time.

In addition to the pajamas, he is really pushing for his independence. He wants to do things himself from getting food out of the refrigerator to making his own chocolate milk. I remember this phase with Bella. Definitely a blessing and a curse.

And I guess he must be feeling more grown up these days. The other day he told me that he had something stuck in his beard!

Bella's school did an anti-bullying campaign. The kids drew pictures of their safe people: Dad, Mom, and Mrs. McGann (her teacher).

More painting! The kids love to do it and I love to display their work around the house.

I have these painted cardboard hearts hanging in front of our living room windows.

Bella adapted the project by using the paper towels that were meant for drying off her paint brush. She called these her "tie-dyes".

My little man brushing his teeth. This photo just screamed black and white to me.

Curtis had a big milestone this morning: his first haircut!

Here he is before. (I probably should have taken his picture anywhere but in front of a window. It's kind of hard to tell in this photo how shaggy his hair had gotten).

Kind of uncertain at first. . .

But the concern soon faded and he actually sat pretty still for the entire process.

I have to make a quick note about that green blanket. That one has become 'the blanket'. He chooses it over any other blanket and doesn't like to leave his crib without taking it with him.

And here he is all trimmed up! Where did my baby go?

And finally. . . I gave Bella some make-up that I wasn't using. She kept asking when she could put some on and I told her to wait for a day when we weren't going anywhere. That day came today. She wanted to do it all by herself. I left her alone and was expecting a clown face when she reappeared. Instead, this is what I saw:

Pretty tasteful. And then she wanted to wash it off right away. Phew! I'm glad that she's still content to be a little girl.

Opening up here. . .

2012-01-28T22:52:00.000-05:00

Before I get on with the photos, I feel like I need to be honest about the week that I've had. The photos will make it appear as though everything was happy and normal. It wasn't. I was an emotional mess this week. I had my first real battle with anxiety. It was awful. And scary. It started with me having difficulty sleeping for a few nights (as a result of obsessive over-thinking that I couldn't seem to turn off). I started to become anxious that I couldn't sleep and then anxious because I was anxious. Soon I felt anxious all of the time and I couldn't stop it. Then on Monday afternoon while driving the kids to a doctor appointment, the anxiety rose to panic. On the outside, I held it together, but it took all the strength I had to get through that appointment. Things got even worse that evening and I had a panic attack. Even when I could appear physically calm, that panic stayed with me for the next few days. I became afraid to leave the house because I associated being out with more panic. Then I would panic because I was afraid of becoming agoraphobic. It sounds a little dramatic, but this moved in me pretty fast. I've had several talks with friends and family who have shared similar experiences and I am learning some coping mechanisms.   I am also on a new journey toward battling some faulty thinking patterns that may have triggered some of this. I am hopeful for how I am going to grow through all of this, but I know I have a lot of work to do. Thankfully, I feel more and more normal with each day that passes. And I can leave the house. Victory!

Besides all of my inner turmoil, here's what else we've been up to this week:

Bella's 'Helping Hand'.

Bella is on her way toward earning her first Girl Scout badge. She made three 'Helping Hands' and placed them around the house after she did something helpful on her own initiative. On this particular Sunday morning, she made our bed.

Here are Graydon and Bella at their doctor appointments. Graydon didn't want to wear his gown. This is the appointment where I was pretty much freaking out inside. I took some photos of the kids with my cell phone. Partly because they looked so cute and partly because doing so helped redirect my focus.

Bella is now 45.5 inches tall and weighs 46 lbs. 4 oz. She's right in the middle for her percentiles. Graydon is 37 inches tall (23rd percentile) and 29 lbs. 4 oz. (35th percentile). No shots this time!

Curtis is really into shoes these days. Or boots. Or slippers. Or anything that he can put on his feet. I even caught him trying to put a doll shoe on one day. Silly Curtis.

Getting all set up for a movie night. Their choice: 'The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything'

Crafting in the afternoon. Paints, crayons, construction paper, sequins, ribbons, lace, etc. I pretty much dug out whatever random craft supplies I had and let the kids have at it.

Graydon and Curtis wanted to help out in the kitchen on Friday so I had them put the layer of potatoes into our dish. For those with our Brockhaus Family Cookbook, we made Grandpa Jim's Whiffenpoof. Yum!

And look who can drink out of a regular cup! He's really getting good at it now.

I am prayerfully looking forward to much more peace this week. Hope the same for all of you too!

Finally got our snow!

2012-01-22T18:36:00.000-05:00

Before I get to the snow, I've got some other photos to share.

And I'm just going to say it off the bat that after three weeks, I'm bagging the Project Life already. I'll probably still be taking photos most days anyway, but I'm finding that the format doesn't really work for me and it actually complicates the way I've been accustomed to blogging. So, back to things as normal.

Here we have Graydon showing off his sensitive side as he cares for one of Bella's babies.

Bella rescued her gingerbread house on its way to the garbage and brought it to the safety of her room only to have Curtis find it and turn it into his late morning snack.

The boys and I did some baking on Tuesday morning. I had some leftover Hershey kisses from Christmas, so we made some Peanut Butter Kiss cookies.

The recipe is simple:
1 cup of sugar (you can opt to divide this - which is what I did - into 1/3 c. white sugar, 1/3 c. brown sugar, and 1/3 c. confectioner's sugar)
1 cup of peanut butter
1 egg

Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees. It's a great recipe to make with kids!

Yummy! We ate them up so fast and now I want more.

Wednesday was a big day for Graydon. He got a big boy bed!!! I'm kind of embarrassed to admit that we waited so long. But the crib was working out so well. It was time though.

He's had four nights in it now and is doing great! Hasn't gotten out once yet. (Of course, I haven't been putting him down for a nap because I want him to be super tired at bedtime. Seems to be working).

Bella carved our names into the computer desk. Good thing it was already in a scuffed up condition!

Here is Graydon attempting to get chips out of the pantry. The quirkiness of this old house (old staircase turned into a pantry) definitely worked is his favor that day.

My little Daisy! It's cookie-selling time. She's so excited. This was the first thing she asked about when joining Girl Scouts.

Peeked into the living while the kids were watching Pink Panther and saw this. Why use the couch when there's a perfectly good laundry bin.

After Girl Scouts on Friday evening, Bella and I headed out for a girl's night. While we were at Target, Bella picked out a gift (Valentines for them to color) for Graydon and Curtis in the dollar section. On Saturday morning, she gave the boys the gift in this bag that she prepared.

And FINALLY. . . our snow!

I had no idea that it was supposed to snow. But early that morning, Bella announced it to everyone! Andy had a busy day ahead of him, so we pretty much got dressed, ate breakfast, and headed out.

Bella finally got to use her new snowboard.

And she's pretty good at it.

With only a few wipeouts. (Can't say the same for myself.)

Graydon really enjoyed the sled (or "boat" as he called it).

And Curtis was there too. He went on the sled a little, but mostly just wanted to watch.

Lastly, Bella finished her cat project that she (and I) worked on. This was a Christmas gift from Gaga and Papa. It is now proudly displayed on a shelf in her room.

Project Life: Week 2

2012-01-15T20:36:00.000-05:00

Sunday, January 8
Experimenting with a flashlight and slow shutter speed on my camera. I think this might be much more fun on the 4th of July with some sparklers.

Monday, January 9
Curtis had his 18 month check-up today. He now weighs 24 lbs. 7 oz. (29th percentile), is 33.5 inches tall (80th percentile) and has a head circumference of 20 in. (99th percentile). He received two shots: DPT and Polio. And guess what? He didn't cry AT ALL when he got the shots. Such a tough guy.

Tuesday, January 10
I sorted through our crayon containers and took out all of the broken pieces. Then we made new crayons in our old muffin tins.

Wednesday, January 11
We played outside all afternoon, taking advantage of the mild winter we've been having.

Thursday, January 12
Bella came home from school with this: her birthday poster. Each child drew a picture of themselves and on their birthday, the teacher has all of the other kids tell her something nice about the birthday kid and then writes it on the stars. Bella loved asking me what "so-and-so" said about her.

Jasmin: "She's my friend."
James: "She's nice."
Gabrielle: "She's really nice."
Michael: "She's a nice friend."
Grace: "She's beautiful."
Lauren: "She's funny."
Stephanie: "She's pretty."
Timmy: "I like her shoes."
Cassidy: "I like her name."
Trevor: "She's funny to me."
Gianni: "I like her clothes."
Mady: "She's pretty."
Harrison: "She's nice and friendly and I always play with her."
Andrew: "I like her pink shoes."
K.C.: "She plays with me."
Ella: "She's nice."
Rylee: "I like her clothes."
Kyle: "I like her shoes."
Gaby: "She's very nice."
Shayne: "She's nice."
Mrs. McGann: "I love how sweet and considerate Bella is with all of her classmates."

I think it's funny that all three shoe comments came from boys!

Friday, January 13
This is a place where I often find Curtis. He gets up without a problem and then sometimes forgets how to get down.

Saturday, January 14
Saturday morning fort building. This keeps them busy for quite some time.

Project Life: Week 1

2012-01-09T21:09:00.001-05:00

I'm jumping on the Project Life bandwagon. The premise is simple: take a photo everyday - all year long. There's more info about it here. Some folks end up making a big scrapbook of all their photos. I'm not sure if I'm going to commit to that. For now, I just plan on posting them to the ol' blog.

Here is my first week of Project Life:

Sunday, January 1 - After being awake until just before midnight on New Year's Eve, Graydon didn't make it much past 6:30pm on January 1st.

Monday, January 2 - Cousins on the steps at Grandma & Grandpa's house. Just prior to this photo, we heard lots of thumping and giggling coming from upstairs. Pretty sure they were having a dance party with Auntie Kristen.

Tuesday, January 3 - A lively game of Taboo! Dad really got into it!

Wednesday, January 4 - We spent all day on the road traveling back to New Jersey. Everyone was happy to get out of the car and relax in the hotel.

Thursday, January 5 - We finished our road trip, unpacked our bags, started laundry, put kids to bed, and finally relaxed on the couch with our choices of beverages and a new episode of Grey's Anatomy.

Friday, January 6 - Bella's first day back to school after nearly two weeks of being away.

Saturday, January 7 - Christmas decorations came down today and the kids loved dancing in all of the extra space.

Wisconsin!!!

2012-01-07T23:38:00.000-05:00

Our journeys in Wisconsin were cut a little short now that Bella is in school. But we still got in some quality family time, which is always a joy for us.

I've got tons of photos and I'm going to let them tell most of the story of our visit.

Grady-Boy turned three! We had a few birthday celebrations for him - starting with this joint party at PaPa and GaGa's house.

After a few days in Verona, we made our way to Kenosha. It was officially Graydon's birthday that day, so we met up for dinner at Red Robin to celebrate. After that, we had a little New Year's Eve party at my parents' house. Curtis went to bed early, but Graydon and Bella were up for some fun. Graydon just about made it to midnight, but fell asleep at 11:55pm.

I found this photo booth activity online and thought it would be fun to do with our family. The kids liked it the best, but even the adults got a little silly with it.

We are back, unpacked, grocery shopped, Christmas decoration downed (I know that's not a word), and happy to be in our own beds again. But we still miss everyone and can't wait until our next time together!

Happy Birthday Graydon!

2011-12-31T09:34:00.000-05:00

Graydon is three!

Tears formed in my eyes in the operating on the morning of December 31st, 2008 when the doctor said, "It's a boy!" Andy and I welcomed 2009 in the hospital with Anderson Cooper, Mountain Dew & Reese's Pieces, and our BRAND NEW SON!

And that brand new son is now three!

Graydon showed off his intelligence early on in the year by learning all of his letters and numbers. Shapes and colors shortly followed. And then his stubbornness shined through when we attempted potty training. He gets lots of time-outs for hitting Bella and Curtis but will then show his tender side by giving out random hugs and kisses. After rough sleeping habits as a baby, he has more than made up for it by being my champion napper - often three hours!

Graydon's list of favorites include: Diego, Dora, chicken nuggets, apples, "flying" (riding) bikes, baths, his froggy blanket, and the word "no".

To describe my feelings for him in one word, I'd have to say, "smitten". I can't seem to get enough of this little guy!

Happy Birthday Grady-Boy! We sure do love you!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-26T01:51:00.000-05:00

We had a wonderful Christmas celebration in our home.

But first, I want to backtrack to a few days before Christmas. Bella came home from school with this masterpiece.

I was pretty impressed. I don't think I've ever made a house that looked so good.

Cookie baking and decorating time:

It was Graydon's nap time. I really intended to put him down, but he got so excited about decorating cookies.

Bella has become an old pro at this. It's hard to tell my cookies apart from hers.

But I bet you'll never guess which cookie is Graydon's.

Although he had fun, in hindsight I'm thinking that I should have put him down for a nap. He was quite the bear that evening.

* * *

Christmas Eve

I think that Bella looked so beautiful all dressed up!

And she loved it!

I was able to take some photos of her while the boys were napping.

I ended up having to wake them up to go to church so I was only able to take two quick photos of my handsome little boys.

(Don't look too excited Graydon.)

All week, Bella had been practicing the words and tune to 'Away in a Manger'. She and another little girl sang it as a duet at the beginning of our Christmas Eve service. Here is a video of it. They did a great job!

I always look forward to getting a family photo on Christmas Eve.

After church, we let the kids open up one present before heading up to bed.

Pajamas for everyone!!!

* * *

Christmas morning:

"Happy Birthday Jesus!"

The first gift of the morning was actually opened by me. Bella couldn't wait for me to see what she made at school. I love my new votive!

Then it was the kids' turns.

I was super excited to find this little box of instruments. They are the first thing that Curtis gravitates toward when he's in the church nursery. Now he has his own cymbals, tambourine, triangle, maracas, and keyboard.

One of Bella's gifts was a jewelry box that you can decorate. She got to work right away.

A couple of days before Christmas, a church friend dropped off these beautiful, handmade stockings for the kids. To say that I love them is an understatement. I treasure them. Each stocking must have taken hours to make. I don't even think that this photo does them near the justice they deserve.

And here are my lovelies with their lovely stockings.

Christmas morning snuggles.

I call this his GQ pose.

After a couple of hours, Bella finished her jewelry box!

We enjoyed a breakfast of french toast, sausage, and pineapple and then it was off to church again. Tomorrow morning we heading back to Wisconsin for some more Christmas celebrating. Can't wait!!!

Christmas came a little early. . .

2011-12-18T22:17:00.000-05:00

A package from Aunt Bia arrived earlier this week. The kids were EXCITED!!!

They each got a toy, a book, and some clothes. They LOVED everything! Such a fun night.

The next day, Curtis showed some appreciation for Mommy's chili. He literally licked the plate clean.

And he's getting pretty good with his spoon (at least when he's eating something sticky like yogurt).

Today was the children's Christmas program at church. Bella delivered her lines perfectly! "We are little candles sending rays of light, telling all the people Christ is born tonight!"

Some church friends wrapped up a bunch of little gifts for the kids. Graydon opened up his and Curtis's gifts while I made lunch.

And here he is realizing that the presents were all gone.

Bella went out with a friend after church and came home with this pretty picture on her face.

One more week until Christmas!!!

A Christmas Tradition

2011-12-11T20:32:00.000-05:00

We keep this Advent Tree on an end table in our dining room. This is our third Christmas with it. I was in the first trimester of my pregnancy with Curtis when I made this and I still remember how nauseous I felt while painting these boxes. Totally worth it though! Each box contains a Hershey kiss for each kid as well as a slip of paper with a simple Christmas activity for us to do. The kids really look forward to opening a box each day.

Here are our activities for this Christmas season:

Make a Christmas craft (we had a few of those seasonal dollar crafts from Jo-Ann's)
Attend the Christmas tree lighting ceremony at Wood Park
Make Christmas cards
Light the second candle in our Advent Wreath
Decorate the kitchen window for Christmas
Read the story of St. Nicholas and leave out shoes
Make confetti ornaments
Make peppermint hot chocolate (hot chocolate stirred with candy canes)
Do something nice for someone
Make handprint/footprint reindeer
Light the third candle in our Advent Wreath
Sing Christmas songs
Watch 'A Mickey Mouse Christmas Carol'
Read a special Christmas story
Go on a Christmas scavenger hunt around the house
Attend the Living Nativity in Mt. Laurel
Back and decorate Christmas cookies
Light our fourth Advent Candle
Complete a color-by-number Christmas tree
Pray for Tamene (the boy we sponsor through World Vision)
Watch 'A Charlie Brown Christmas'
Complete 'Mr. Snowman Mad Libs'
Read the Nativity story
Go to the Christmas Eve service at church
Light our Jesus candle and sing 'Happy Birthday' to Jesus!

Here are a couple of the crafts we've made:

And the boys painting

That's about all I have for photos. Sorry about that. Here is what I've been really busy with:

The majority of my free time has been spent crocheting away! My business is doing pretty well. So well that I had to temporarily put it on vacation so that I could complete my current orders and then have a little down time for Christmas and our trip back to Wisconsin. I'm down to my last twelve hats now so I am getting there!

I'll try to take more photos this week. :)

6th Birthday Festivities!

2011-12-05T12:13:00.000-05:00

Bella came downstairs to a dining room table filled with presents.

We let her open up one before getting ready for school.

She brought in birthday treats that day: chocolate covered pretzels!

After school, Auntie Jodi arranged for a surprise lunch at Five Guys! We showed up and Bella's lunch was waiting for her. The workers even sang 'Happy Birthday'! Bella loved it and couldn't believe that they knew her name. :)

We went from one thing right to another that day. Next stop: Sweet & Sassy where an almost six-year-old girl had an appointment to get her ears pierced.

I think she may have gotten a little nervous as the lady explained what they were going to do.

But before she knew it, they were done!

Check out those newly pierced ears!

Then it was time to get her nails done.

Meanwhile, Curtis was finding tons of things to get into.

He finally settled on a spot next to Bella and that seemed to work best for all of us.

Pretty nails!

She loved looking in the mirror that day.

We returned home, opened a few more presents, and before long we were off to another activity: Photos with Santa! My Moms Club had a fundraiser for Toys for Tots at our church. We brought in some toys and the kids sat with Santa. I don't have a digital file of the photo, but it turned out pretty cute despite Curtis's meltdown as we sat him on Mrs. Claus's lap. His face is a bit red, but he did manage to settle down before the photo was taken.

When the photos were done, we were off to dinner. Bella's choice: Wendy's. Not exactly what we were thinking, but it was the birthday girl's choice.

Here she is at exactly 6:52pm. We were getting out of the van and heading into Target where she picked out a new bike.

Here it is!

Andy started putting it together as soon as we got home.

The box provided some entertainment.

But soon Graydon was ready to help Daddy. He got his tools out and everything.

And finally, cake time! Bella wanted to light the candles herself this year.

We ended the night with some group video chatting with the Kilps family: Gaga and Papa in Wisconsin, the Meades in Minnesota, and Uncle Tom in Texas. Gotta love modern technology! Bella stayed up waaaaaay past her bedtime, but had such a fun time.

And the next day, she got to try out that new bike.

Here's the blurry action shot of her riding.

All in all, a day filled with celebration. Happy Birthday Bella!!!

Happy 6th Birthday Isabella!

2011-11-30T00:00:00.005-05:00

At 6:52 pm (Eastern time), Isabella will be an official six-year-old!

Here is a little written summary of Bella's highlights and milestones from this past year:

a birthday cupcake from Carlo's Bakery
ice skating for the first time
getting tonsils and adenoids removed
graduating from preschool
three separate trips to Wisconsin
several visits to the shore
going completely under water in the pool with no fear
seeing a circus performance
starting kindergarten
learning to ride a bike without training wheels
losing her first tooth
watching the Rockettes perform in New York City
joining the Girl Scouts

I love hanging out with Bella. Our conversations drift to so many things: from faith in God to what she had for snack at school that day. All in the same breath sometimes!

She is flourishing in school - both academically and socially. She loves going and learning and sharing with us what she's learning. She doesn't always appreciate when we have to correct her mistakes, but we're working on that.

Some of her favorite things to do are color, read, make jewelry, play with Barbies or her Leapster Explorer, and watch shows like Word Girl, Hello Kitty, and Horseland. She has several journals where she draws pictures and writes down any of the words that she knows.

Sometimes she likes to surprise us by cleaning the house. And we often get homemade cards with hearts, smiley faces, and the words, "I love you".

We sure love her too.

Last year, we spent her birthday in Connecticut. She received a Tinkerbell movie (The Great Fairy Rescue) and we watched it in our hotel that evening. This movie has become a favorite in our house and it only seemed fitting that the song from the movie would be the soundtrack to this past year of her life.

Here is Bella's 6th year in pictures!

Thanksgiving and beyond. . .

2011-11-28T15:55:00.000-05:00

I didn't take any pictures on Thanksgiving Day. But the memories are clear in my mind. Our family of five sitting at the table in our dining room. Our Thanksgiving feast before us. Bella saying our prayer. Graydon sharing what he's thankful for - the living room. Curtis chugging down the sparkling grape juice. Nothing to do that day but be with each other. Beautiful, perfect day.

When Friday arrived, it was time to deck our halls!

I take this same photo every year, but I just love it I guess.

We did what we could for one night and then completed the tree decorating the next morning.

I take my eyes off of Graydon for a minute and find him hiding behind the tree, snackig on an old gingerbread ornament.

Curtis hung one of his ornaments. (And then kept taking it back off).

Here's our tree!

And I took this bonus photo of the boys because, on this particular day, Bella dressed both of them! She even did Curtis's diaper! I'm pretty sure that Graydon is wearing Curtis's pants, but nobody cared. She's such a great helper!

Autumn Leaves are Falling Down

2011-11-22T10:23:00.000-05:00

I love beautiful fall days. And I love playing in the leaves.

So do our boys.

Graydon located some leaves that didn't belong in the parking lot.

So he brought them to a new home.

It took him a few trips.

After all of the hard work. . . time to play!

And eat?

Silly Graydon.

Super Fun Weekend

2011-11-14T17:23:00.000-05:00

My mom came into town late Thursday evening. That alone was a huge treat as Mr. Curtis was sooooo cranky from an ear infection and croup. I was very ready for a little break. My Mom watched the boys on Friday so that Andy and I could take Bella to New York City with some friends. We didn't take our camera (I didn't feel like carrying around my big camera in NYC) but we had our cell phone cameras and our friends took lots of photos on their digital camera. Once I get those, I'll try to upload them.

Here's Miss Bella on the Staten Island Ferry.

And then the subway.

Our destination: Radio City Music Hall! We went to see the Rockettes!!!

Awesome, awesome, awesome show! Bella was literally on the edge of her seat the entire time. She even went so far that she fell off!

After the show, we grabbed lunch and strolled around NYC for the afternoon. We hung out in Rockefeller Center, saw the Veteran's Day Parade on 5th Avenue, and played on the big piano at FAO Schwartz.

Very fun day!

On Saturday, we had an early birthday celebration for Bella.

She sure loves to be a birthday girl.

This birthday girl also had a pretty wiggly tooth.

After about a half hour of wiggling and yanking, Daddy finally just pulled it out.

And here is our Bella, minus one tooth.

And a small gift from the tooth fairy.

Tinkerbells, Gorillas, and Jack-O-Lanterns. . . Oh My!!!

2011-11-07T15:23:00.000-05:00

Halloween morning began at Bella's school with the kindergarten parade. So many cuties all dressed up!

Then came time for some good old-fashioned pumpkin carving.

And finally, Trick-or-Treating!!!

Well. . . technically we went to some friends' house first for a Halloween party and then went trick-or-treating in their neighborhood.

It was pretty dark by this point, so I didn't get too many photos.

The kids had a great night.

And I'm pretty sure that all of them woke up the next morning still buzzing from all of the sugar!

On two wheels!

2011-10-29T22:29:00.000-04:00

She tried. And fell. Her confidence broke a little bit.

That was a few months ago. But on Wednesday she was ready to try again.

And she did it!

Andy was outside with her and he got some cell phone footage of her second attempt at riding without the training wheels.

I came out just after and got the sweetest surprise of watching her ride her bike all the way across the field.

The boys took turns on their tricycle. (We really need to get them some bikes that are not pink or purple).

After another ten minutes of field riding, Bella was ready to take it to the parking lot. By this point she was riding as if she'd been doing it all along.

Curtis was pretty proud of his big sis.

And so are we!!!

Now we just need to convince her that it's time for a bigger bike.

AND, in case you were wondering about her outfit. . . it was Mismatch Clothes Day at school. OK!

Corn on the Cob

2011-10-28T10:09:00.000-04:00

Curtis approved!

Pumpkin Picking

2011-10-24T21:42:00.000-04:00

Our Sunday School group went pumpkin picking on Sunday afternoon.

We enjoyed a hayride.

And looked for the perfect pumpkin.

Graydon couldn't decide.

And Curtis was just happy to be outside.

Sneak Peak: A Pumpkin and Gorilla. My Moms Club Halloween party was on Friday. I can't resist a kid in a costume. So much cuteness!

Easy-Baking

2011-10-18T21:28:00.000-04:00

When Bella turned five, we had a pretty big birthday party for her. Lots of kids! The result? Lots of presents! I strategically hid a bunch of them in the attic and reintroduced them throughout the year. One Saturday morning, Bella went snooping around in the attic and came down with this Easy-Bake Microwave. At the sight of it, I knew that this was how we'd be spending our morning.

We began with the cakes - pouring and mixing and spooning out batter.

Graydon was getting a bit too involved for Bella's liking, so we occupied him with some Play-Doh.

Cook time: 30 seconds

And the result: the cutest, sweetest, littlest cakes.

She made them for Daddy. . . after sampling a little bit herself, of course.

***

I'm afraid that's all I have for pictures this week. But here's some other stuff that we've been up to:

Graydon is wearing underwear full-time while we're at home - though I'm not quite brave enough to take him out without a pull-up on just yet.
Curtis has molars in his mouth now
our wagon was stolen
a different wagon reappeared few days later
Bella had two playdates at two different friends' houses - without me
a stomach virus invaded our home affecting all of us except Graydon
Bella had picture day at school

And the big one which has pretty much occupied a lot of my free time these past couple of weeks is my new Etsy store!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/smookiedoo

I'm selling my crochet hats. This store is my plan for getting enough money to take our family to Disney World. After being open for just a few weeks, I've already reached 10% of my goal! So far so good!

It's that time of year again. . .

2011-10-07T23:10:00.000-04:00

for APPLE PICKING!!!!!

I love fall. And I love apples and pumpkins. And I love, love all of the desserts and drinks that come from these two things.

Apple picking is one of my favorite fall traditions.

And if any of you felt that I've been slacking on the pictures these past couple of weeks, this post will more than make up for that.

This photo was originally of just Bella and Curtis. At the last minute, Graydon jumped in and posed. So rare. If only Curtis had kept his eyes open. . .

Hayride! Andy had quite the time trying to keep Curtis still. He is a walking and climbing machine these days.

On to the picking. . .

Graydon nominated himself as keeper of the bag. No matter how heavy it got, he was determined to carry it.

Time for some apple pie!

So happy together!

2011-10-02T09:23:00.000-04:00

NINE years!!!!

1,000 Gifts continued. . .

#93. . . rainbow colors splashed in the sky from the sunset on what was a cloudy day

#94. . . my three children laughing hysterically around the dinner table

#95. . . September mornings at the park -- less hot, less crowded

#96. . . a tea party with Bella

#97. . . dinner with friends

#98. . . one-on-one time with Graydon - kind of rare for my middle child

#99. . . encouraging notes from friends

#100. . . our Aster plant is blooming

#101. . . fall decorations up all over the house

#102. . . a cool shower after a morning run on the treadmill

#103. . . the scent of pumpkin candles in the house

#104. . . seeing all of Curtis's teeth when he laughs

#105. . . making jack-o-lanterns out of construction paper with Bella

#106. . . laughter and tears over morning coffee with friends

#107. . . Curtis trying to feed Graydon his sippy cup

#108. . . Bella taking care of Graydon when he wasn't feeling well

#109. . . Graydon wanting to wear his dinosaur costume for days in a row -- so cute with that tail dragging behind

#110. . . listening to Bella read

#111. . . extra quiet time in the morning when all three kids slept in!

#112. . . 9 years of marriage!

#113. . . a husband who I love being with

Curtis walking!

2011-09-27T16:30:00.002-04:00

He took his first steps back in August, but crawling was still his preferred form of getting around. Until now. . .

Yay Curtis!!!

I was making dinner. . .

2011-09-25T14:24:00.000-04:00

. . . when I turned my head and saw this.

We appear to have a climber on our hands.

And this other little guy of ours has some big news. . .

Yesterday he pooped on the potty chair for the first time!!!!!! We all celebrated by jumping around and shouting hooray. Everyone got suckers - even Curtis. Andy wasn't home at the time so I took a picture and texted it to him. (Couldn't leave him out of the fun, right?) Definitely a happy moment in our house. No pee pee yet. But this new development has me daydreaming about a life with only one child in diapers.

What a lovely thought.

Shiny Happy People

2011-09-23T14:47:00.000-04:00

He took over my job. . .

2011-09-15T15:09:00.001-04:00

of cleaning crumbs out from between the couch cushions.

Such a sweet little helper.

1,000 Gifts. . .

#60. . . little fingerprints on the TV

#61. . . scented candles

#62. . . waking up earlier and not feeling tired

#63. . . reading bedtime stories to the kids

#64. . . a good sermon given by Andy

#65. . . Graydon sitting on the potty chair (still not going, but at least sitting now)

#66. . . meeting friends at the park for a playdate

#67. . . three new teeth growing in Curtis's mouth

#68. . . Bella's excitement about starting kindergarten

#69. . . Curtis going to sleep without crying

#70. . . having all three kids in the nursery at church

#71. . . Psalm 46

#72. . . tears at the bus stop - mine, not Bella's

#73. . . a new daily routine

#74. . . Curtis asleep in my arms - mouth open and paci dangling between his lips

#75. . . leftover pizza

#76. . . notes offering forgiveness

#77. . . the promise of peace

#78. . . singing praise songs with 10,000 other women

#79. . . driving in Philly and encountering no problems

#80. . . waking up on time even though I forgot to set my alarm

#81. . . laughing so hard at a comedian (Tim Hawkins) that my abs hurt!

$82. . . sweater weather

#83. . . three healthy children

#84. . . a beautiful new scarf

#85. . . the friendly check-out lady at the grocery store

#86. . . a sweet message from Bella written in my journal

#87. . . parenting magazines on my bedside table

#88. . . Graydon taking his carrot to bed with him

#89. . . the sound of crickets in the morning

#90. . . a morning walk with the boys

#91. . . Graydon kissing my 'boo-boos'

#92. . . searching around the house for 'M' words with Bella

First day of kindergarten

2011-09-14T13:47:00.000-04:00

I woke Bella up around 7am that morning. The first words out of her mouth were the same as every other summer morning: "What are we going to do today?" I just laughed at her. And she laughed too when she remembered that this was the day she had been counting down to for the past three weeks!

Her outfit had been laid out the night before. The one that was picked out over a month ago. She couldn't wait to put it on.

And she knew exactly how she wanted her hair. Two pony tails.

By 8am she was growing impatient. She wanted to get going! But she still had over a half hour until her bus would come.

So I just took more pictures.

And tried to capture some details that I don't want to forget.

When it was time to head out to the bus stop, we all went together.

My mommy-heart was so happy that she had some older church friends on the bus too. I knew they'd take care of her.

The sight of this had me feeling a little weak.

Not Bella though. See her blurry leg. . . she ran to that bus and was so eager to get on.

I saved my tears for this moment.

And then turned around and saw that Graydon had some tears of his own.

I thought it was so sweet that he was sad to see his sister leave. But then he kept crying out, "My turn! My turn!" I soon realized that he wanted to get on the bus too.

Curtis was still just waking up at this point.

Andy, the boys, and I walked back to the house, loaded up the van, and headed to school to meet Bella when she got off.

Here she is setting eyes on her new school for the first time.

And this sweet lady putting a nametag on her backpack is her teacher.

When all the kids were accounted for, they headed in and Bella began her first day of school.

We then made our way to the orientation in the library. They gave out a ton of information that I don't even remember. But what will forever stick in my mind is when the Guidance Counselor announced our kids as the class of 2024. I think the eyes of just about every mommy in the room began to fill with tears.

Thankfully, those were the last of my tears. Bella loves school, thinks riding the bus is the coolest thing, and is making some good friends.

Here is Bella, in her own words, after her first day of school.

Back to School Eve

2011-09-12T13:51:00.001-04:00

It was raining cats and dogs that morning, but I promised the kids Sidewalk Chalk Paint and I have to keep my promises.

After pounding my chalk bits into powder and mixing in some water, we were ready to paint.

It's a good thing we have a covered porch.

Curtis found his own ways to get involved.

Our final summer fun activity complete.

Later that evening, we celebrated a Back to School Night.

There were decorations.

Flowers and candles. (I envisioned just a cheap bouquet of carnations, but the least expensive flowers at the grocery store that day were these pink roses. Ended up working out perfectly for our pink-loving-lady).

Some back-to-school advice.

A crown that I made for her third birthday that she never wore and of course the 'You are Special' plate.

Bella chose the menu: spaghetti and meatballs. We toasted our kindergartener-to-be with sparkling grape juice.

And for dessert: Chocolate Cream Pie!

Soon enough is was time for pajamas, stories, and sleep.

After all, it was a SCHOOL NIGHT!!!

Writing a love letter to her daddy. . .

2011-09-05T09:00:00.000-04:00

On the dryer of all places!!!

Gotta love this thoughtful, silly girl.

1,000 Gifts. . .

#27. . . birthday cards in the mail -- stretching my birthday out just a little bit further

#28. . . simple recipes that turn out delicious

#29. . . pulling the boys in the wagon

#30. . . Bella pulling the boys in the wagon - while riding her bike!

#31. . . taking pictures with my cell phone camera

#32. . . the ever-expanding vocabulary of my two-year-old

#33. . . a box filled with getting-to-know-you questions

#34. . . a free photobook filled with family memories

#35. . . pretty toenails

#36. . . the healing power of a kiss from mommy

#37. . . flavored coffee creamer

#38. . . rocking my boys to sleep

#39. . . snuggling with Bella at night and talking about our day

#40. . . sweet rest after a long day

#41. . . the smell of clothes just out of the dryer

#42. . . the feel of clothes just out of the dryer

#43. . . Curtis's fluffy hair after bath time

#44. . . freshly bathed children

#45. . . riding bikes after dinner

#46. . . the morning sun painting pictures on our living room walls

#47. . . new school supplies

#48. . . coffee in the morning

#49. . . updating the blog with my smart phone

#50. . . a quiet morning

#51. . . one-on-one time with Bella while the boys nap

#52. . . Graydon's hand resting on mine

#53. . . Curtis saying "ma ma", "da da", and "uh-oh"

#54. . . an earlier bedtime routine for the kids

#55. . . a meal of plastic food made in Bella and Graydon's kitchen

#56. . . praying together as a family at dinner time

#57. . . Graydon *helping* with the dinner dishes

#58. . . Andy and the kids chasing each other around the house -- and all the laughter that goes along with it

#59. . . a refrigerator covered in artwork

At summer's end. . .

2011-09-04T21:29:00.000-04:00

I could ask where the time has gone, but I don't have to. It's all right in front of me.

These are the ways we spent our summer. There's just one activity left to do. Sidewalk Chalk Paint. All of those stubby chalk pieces will be broken down and made into something fun and new. We'll do that on Tuesday. Our last day of summer.

Wednesday is the kick start to a new school year. Bella's first school year. Lots of emotions are coming my way this week.

But I won't think about that for now. We still have two days of summer and there's still a little bit of fun to be had. Like this park. We went there for our first time and are surely going back.

Happy Labor Day!!!

One more week. . .

2011-08-31T09:53:00.001-04:00

Big sister duty

2011-08-30T16:25:00.001-04:00

Bella reads her Bible to Graydon. Love it when they get along so well!

1,000 Gifts

2011-08-29T13:37:00.000-04:00

It was the Christmas season.

I stumbled upon a website about a six-year-old little girl. Battling brain cancer. I read her story and the pleas of her parents for prayer on her behalf. I prayed. Then I thought to myself. . . if that was me and I could have anything I wanted for Christmas, all I'd want is a healthy child. That is all I would ever want for the rest of my life. I'd never ask for anything else if I could just have that.

I entered back into my own reality with a huge dose of contentment. I have the very thing this family prays, dreams, and cries for. My family is healthy.

Our health is not something that I take for granted. But in that moment, I felt even more grateful. And we're not just healthy, we are happy. Our marriage is strong. We have a nice home. Loving family. Good friends. We are blessed. And I don't want to take any of it for granted.

But sometimes I do.

Each day unwraps many little gifts for me. And I miss them. I'm either not paying attention or I'm unaware.

Someone else felt the same way.

I haven't read her book, but I am ready to take on its challenge and make my own list of 1,000 gifts.

So here I go . . .

#1. . . the scent of fresh air filling our living room

#2. . . chubby legs taking their first steps

#3. . . our family portrait created with Bella's pencil and crayons

#4. . . birthday balloons and streamers still up in the living room

#5. . . Graydon sticking his popsicle stick in the gap between his front teeth

#6. . . music that calms my heart

#7. . . taking photographs through a new camera lens

#8. . . daily rain that gives me a rest from watering outdoor plants

#9. . . a flourishing Lantana plant

#10. . . feeling the earth tremble - a great reminder of Who is in control

#11. . . laughter from my children

#12. . . the bird camped outside our window for hours

#13. . . grilled cheese dinner by candlelight

#14. . . Graydon's mealtime prayer: counting from 1-13

#15. . . meeting a new friend

#16. . . a whole day free of schedules and commitments

#17. . . shelter from the storm

#18. . . talking for hours over dinner with girlfriends

#19. . . the names of my children on a necklace

#20. . . anticipated power outages that never came to be

#21. . . chocolate cupcakes with a chocolate chip cookie inside

#22. . . parents who are still married after 35 years!

#23. . . AA batteries on sale: a 20 pack for $2.99

#24. . . a morning nap on the couch after a night spent on the floor

#25. . . blue skies after days of gray

#26. . . roses that returned for their second bloom this summer

I'll be keeping my ongoing list in my personal journal and adding it here as often as can.

Maybe you should try it too?

Thirty-one

2011-08-24T19:47:00.000-04:00

My birthday celebration actually began the previous evening.

Bella stayed up late. I went to bed early.

Bella and Andy tucked me in that night. Extra rest for me and an opportunity for them to make all of the birthday preparations: finish my cake, wrap presents, and put up decorations.

I woke up at 6am on my birthday morning, wide awake thanks to my early night. The house was still and quiet.

I watched the sun meet the sky.

And enjoyed the fruit of Andy and Bella's labor from the night before.

While peace still filled the house, I sat and thought about this past year of my life. Ways I've grown. Areas I've been stretched. Lessons I'm learning. I am still very much a work in progress, but I like the person I am becoming. I am more and more comfortable in my own skin. It fills me with anticipation about how much better of a person I hope to be in the years to come. And that makes me look forward to getting older - even if it does come with a few extra lines around my eyes.

Soon kids were up and the morning took off.

Church time.

Lunch time. Andy prepared everything. And cleaned it all up. I didn't have to lift a finger.

And then I got presents!!! They spoiled me. My big gift was a new camera lens and accessories to go with it. If that wasn't enough, I also have an hour massage at a local spa coming my way. Andy went all out this year. . . and I enjoyed every bit of it.

A bit of rain dampened some outdoor plans. But we still took a little family drive and I got my free Starbucks birthday drink.

We came home for dinner. Pizza. Yum!

Two of the three kids were contained, so it seemed the perfect opportunity to get a picture with them.

Perfectly imperfect, I guess. I sure do love those silly kids and all the craziness that comes along with them.

And finally. . . cake time!

Chocolate on chocolate. Could it get any better?

I love birthdays. They are a great way to celebrate the life of someone we love.

And on this day, I felt very celebrated. :)

Enjoying my free drink...

2011-08-21T16:31:00.001-04:00

Happy birthday to me!

He put himself in time-out. . .

2011-08-20T14:47:00.001-04:00

and he wasn't even in trouble!

Lisa Leonard Giveaway

2011-08-20T14:17:00.000-04:00

I usually don't post stuff like this on my blog. But in doing so, this gives me an extra chance to win a $100 gift card to Lisa Leonard Designs.

I love her stuff and really want to get a necklace with my kids' names. It's a long shot and I usually don't win contests like this, (Well, except for storytime at the library when I was seven and my name was drawn out of a fish bowl of about 40 kids' names. The prize? A goldfish. I had that pet for three years). Anyway, I'm trying to up my chances here.

She has some beautiful stuff!

Stuff of life. . .

2011-08-19T16:36:00.001-04:00

The kids and I have been fighting colds since we returned from Wisconsin. At least I think mine is a cold. Could be allergies. Either way, I don't like it!

Our internet is running at a snail's pace. This seems to happen every few months. A storm, activity from a nearby business, or whatever the case may be ends up screwing with our wireless signal.

We've had a LOT of rain this week. It kind of feels like the sky is making up for all the rain we didn't get the rest of this summer.

It gives me a good excuse to be lazy.

Well, that and my cold.

Or allergies.

But things are looking up. My birthday is in two days and I received my first gift in the mail today! A new purse and wallet! I am not lying when I say that I've had the same purse since high school! This is quite a treat. Thanks again Mary!

And Curtis is thisclose to walking! He took his first couple of steps yesterday!

And you know I wouldn't do a post without photos. Here's a few pics from my phone.

Another Wisconsin adventure come and gone. . .

2011-08-13T16:52:00.000-04:00

Let's take a look at all the fun stuff we did!

After settling in for a day, my first visit was with my wonderful friend Jenn Flowers! Of course, I didn't take any pictures of the two of us together, but here is one of Curtis and Payton playing together.

Later that evening, we went to 'Concerts on the Square' in Madison.

The kids played a little 'Ring Around the Tree' while we paid for parking.

In case you're wondering why Graydon wasn't playing along. . .

And he remained that way until halfway through the concert!

I don't remember listening to much music, but we did have a nice time just hanging out.

The next morning it was off to the Circus World Museum!

Our first stop was the Big Top for a circus performance.

A few coins into the slot and music filled the room.

It was a bit too loud for Graydon's taste, however.

The next day (we're at Friday now), we threw a little surprise party for Andy's dad's 60th birthday. It was really a surprise for him since the big day isn't until October. But this was when we could all be together.

Grandpa and his grandkids (minus Curtis who was asleep). (And kind of half-minus Graydon since he was having a two-year-old moment).

Saturday came and it was Bass Family Reunion time.

Here's the whole group that showed up that day. It's a big family! And there were still plenty who were missing.

Here are those monkeys again.

Later that evening was pool time!

Our video camera is waterproof. Andy and Tom had some fun with it. I've got a lot of actual videos, but for now here are just a few of the still shots they took.

Bella just started getting comfortable with putting her head all the way under the water. . . and now she thinks doing so is the coolest thing ever!

Sunday came and the Meades left. Bella and I took off in the afternoon and met up in East Troy with my mom, Kristen, and Scott. I have some pictures from our time, but they are in my phone.

On Monday, we ventured out to Monroe to meet up with our friends, the Golacksons! We had a brief visit with Josh almost two years ago when he surprised Andy in our dining room. But we haven't seen Lindsey and the kids since Andy's ordination in July 2007! Back then we just had Bella and they just had Lily & Caedmon.

Here are all the kids today. (Well, last Monday. But you get the idea).

I should note that all of the kids were recently bathed in these pictures as they had just gotten in from playing outside in the rain. My kids are all wearing Golackson kids' clothes, which is why Curtis and Graydon are swimming in their outfits. I think they loved it though. :o)

Two peas in a pod. Bella and Lily all snuggled up and ready to watch their Barbie movie.

Graydon and Hadassah. I really think she was smiling as I took the picture and must have stopped just in time for the camera to miss it. She's still a cutie though.

Curtis already looking up to Vivianna!

And here are all eight kids! Lily is holding their newest little one, Olivet. She was 10 days old in this photo.

And Graydon is again being uncooperative for a picture. Like Josh said, there's always gotta be one.

Until next time, Golacksons!!!!

Monday came, and we played at the park.

Then it was ice cream time! And to make things even better, we had Culvers for dinner that evening. What a great way to cap off a Wisconsin trip.

I loved our time away. But now that we're back, there are just a few weeks left of summer and we've still got a lot of fun to pack in!

Passing time at the Bass Family Reunion

2011-08-06T16:41:00.002-04:00

Three little monkeys climbing in a tree.

My first mobile blog post

2011-08-04T21:53:00.003-04:00

I'm the new owner of a smart phone! This may just open up a whole new door of blogging.

A nature scavenger hunt

2011-07-31T13:07:00.000-04:00

I saw this idea a couple of months back and knew that I would do it. And I pretty much copied everything that she did, with the exception of taking my own photos of nature items. I would have just used hers, but our backyard didn't have all of the same things.

Bella was up to the challenge. The only items she needed help finding were the feather and a specific leaf. Which was actually just a weed. I could have done a whole hunt on the varieties of weeds we have growing back there.

The boys did their own share of exploring

And after about a half hour, all of our items had been located!

Tomorrow morning, we head out for Wisconsin! Which means that I have a lot of laundry/packing/cleaning ahead of me today. :)

The fort that Bella built

2011-07-28T23:08:00.000-04:00

THIS is what our living room has looked like for the past couple of days.

Here is the architect and builder of this masterpiece.

It is quite the fort that literally takes up our whole living room.

Graydon thinks that it's the greatest. You can't fake a smile as wide as that one.

There is plenty of room for three children (and even a parent).

I was tempted to take it down tonight, but Bella protested. One more day? Alright.

After all, this is the kind of stuff that childhood is made of.

A Beautiful Mess

2011-07-25T10:15:00.000-04:00

After a week of heat and drought, we got some much needed rain yesterday. Good thing I had some rainy day activities planned into our summer fun.

Yesterday's activity: Rock Painting!

I should have checked our paints beforehand. Many of them were all dried up.

Graydon painted three of the rocks; but when he started using himself as a canvas, I had to call it quits. This isn't the washable stuff!

Now we have some beautiful color added to our yard.

Benetti/Kreuser Family in New Jersey!

2011-07-20T16:33:00.001-04:00

*** Disclaimer: If any of you have already read Jodi & Aaron's blog, then many of these photos will be duplicates. Jodi was a much better picture-taker during this trip than I was and many of these photos came from her camera.

The Kreusers and Kristen arrived in the early evening on Saturday, July 10th. The kids hit it off right away. It was as if no time had passed since they'd last seen each other.

Aren't these two cute?

Sunday morning came and it was time for church.

We played at the park.

Watched Andy play softball.

Splashed in the pool.

Went hiking.

Ate ice cream (Ava's treat!)

Saw a movie in the theater (Charlotte's Web)

Jumped in the Jumpy House

Spent a day at the shore (Long Beach Island)

This was Curtis's first time in the ocean.

Rode ("Fly" - according to Graydon) bikes

Colored a lot!

Painted a little

The rest of the family (minus Jeff, Steph, Sydney, & Rose) arrived on Friday morning.

We celebrated Curtis's birthday

Spent the day in Philadelphia

Spent another day at the shore (Seaside Heights)

Here are some randoms from the trip:

"Parting is such sweet sorrow" ~ William Shakespeare

Such true words.

The Kreusers and Kristen left in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Everyone else left on Monday. I LOVE family time and was sad to see it come to an end. I MISS YOU ALL!!!

Until Christmas. . .

Festivities for the Fourth!

2011-07-07T21:58:00.000-04:00

The fun began at the shore on Sunday. Bella was in her element.

She didn't want to ever leave the beach.

Graydon does not appear to be the water child that Bella is. He never even got close to the water. But he did enjoy the sand: running in it, throwing it, and watching it slip through his fingers. Fascinating.

Curtis sat content in his stroller. I don't know what we'll do when he starts running around too!

Bella was upset to leave the beach until we mentioned the boardwalk and how it was just like the carnival we went to last month.

She literally had the time of her life on this roller coaster. She laughed and screamed in delight. It was really a joy just seeing her have so much fun.

We went out with some friends, so Bella had a ride buddy the whole time.

We found some rides for Graydon and even Curtis to go on too.

I got to be Graydon's ride buddy.

By the end of the day, everyone was pretty beat. This is Graydon about five minutes into our drive home.

The next morning (July 4th!), we attended our local 4th of July parade.

I realized on this day that I really enjoy parades. They are such a positive reason to gather a large group of people and a great way to show support for all of the local organizations.

I loved it! And I'm pretty sure the kids did too (well I know they at least enjoyed all the candy that was thrown at them!).

Except for this guy. No candy for him just yet. He didn't seem to mind though.

After the parade, we hit up an ice cream parlour.

And by that point, both boys were about to lose it. Home for naps!

Later in the evening, we had our little backyard picnic. I decorated a few bags at the last minute (got the idea from Tipjunkie.com). The contents are Pirates Booty, potato chips, and goldfish. Would you believe that the greasiest bag in the end contained the goldfish! Seriously. How could they beat potato chips?!

And dessert. I loved these!

I intended to get some photos from our picnic, but the bugs were driving me crazy. We didn't end up lasting too long out there. Oh well. Next year we'll be more prepared with citronella candles or something.

Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday weekend!

Curtis is ONE!

2011-07-05T11:08:00.000-04:00

Watch him grow right before your eyes!

We had a nice little family celebration for him last week.

I've been really drawn to this color scheme lately. Maybe because it just feels so summer-y.

The house just looks happy.

Our plans for a picnic at the park were derailed by a little bit of rain; so we relocated to Friendly's.

Curtis is becoming a squirmy worm in the restaurants. Can't seem to sit still! But he was the birthday boy so we cut him some slack.

Naps took up the majority of the afternoon and before long it was dinnertime. We made individual pizzas. Bella had the great idea of letting Curtis sample from each of us to see which he liked best.

He seemed most pleased with Graydon's plain cheese pizza.

The rain gave way to a beautiful day, so we took our party outside.

Our precious one-year-old!

It got pretty hot. I was a sweaty mess by this point. I desaturated the color in this one so that you can't tell. :)

The kids rode bikes around for a little while and Curtis took his usual seat in the wagon.

After I snapped those photos, I put away my camera and scooped up my little boy. As I held him in my arms, we swayed together for a minute or two in the church parking lot. He laid his head on my shoulder and I told him how much I loved him and how much joy it is to be his mom. It was a sweet moment from his first birthday that I will always treasure.

All of that bike-riding and frisbee throwing worked up some appetites. We were ready for cake!

Or should I say, cupcakes and cake pops.

I've seen these cute little cake pops around and I wanted to try making them. But since I've never done it before, I made a few cupcakes just in case it didn't turn out. But they did! I will be making them again.

A cupcake for the birthday boy.

The 'Happy Birthday' song was torturous for him. With that cupcake in front of him, he just wanted to dive in and not listen to a silly song.

And dive in, he did. Here's a little bit of his progression.

I feel like the pictures never really do justice to how much mess there really was.

But he LOVED it!

And we love him.

Bella's dance recital

2011-06-29T23:21:00.000-04:00

Saturday was the big day!

Look who's all glammed up. Here is Miss Bella in her tap costume.

They danced to 'Strange Things' from Toy Story. It was really cute.

Then we got her changed into her ballet costume.

I wanted to get some nice photos of her in this one too. The dressing room (aka. . . high school classroom) didn't give the best backdrops, but she came up with these poses all by herself.

And there they go again!

A little over four hours after it started, the recital was complete. It ended with a trophy presentation. After the trophy was awarded, one parent for each child was allowed to go up and give their little one some flowers. Andy was our representative. He gave Bella some beautiful pink roses.

A friendly mom took a photo of all three of us outside of the high school. (Graydon and Curtis were at home with a friend of ours).

Here is our little dancer - so excited to have another trophy to add to her collection.

Andy was in charge of the video camera this afternoon. Here is Bella's ballet dance.

Our baby boy is ONE!

2011-06-28T01:14:00.001-04:00

As each moment goes by, I find myself thinking back to one year ago. I remember each detail from my water breaking to heading out to the hospital. From changing into my hospital gown to getting wheeled to the OR. From getting my spinal to hearing my baby boy's first cry. I loved those first couple of days in the hospital when I really got to bond with Curtis. Those are precious memories that I will always treasure.

This past year has been filled with much joy. Curtis is a sweet little boy. He smiles when you smile. Laughs when you laugh. He loves to be outside or playing with toys (especially Graydon's toys - which Graydon is not too fond of). Carseats are not his favorite thing. Never have been. He says "ma ma" which either means "Mom" or "more". He also says "boo ba". A lot. I'm afraid that might mean "bootie butts", something that big sister and brother think is hilarious to say. He protests when I break his food into little pieces for him and yet doesn't have the teeth to eat many un-cut foods yet. This leads to frustration for both of us. But our snuggle times together more than make up for any of that.

We love this little guy so much and are very thankful for the gift of his life.

Happy 1st Birthday Curtis Michael!

Father's Day

2011-06-26T22:49:00.000-04:00

It was Andy's day. Father's Day! After church, the day was open to do whatever he wanted. And what did he choose to do?

Paint the house.

We are in the process of upping the curb appeal on our house. It currently looks like a boring ol' white box. But with a fresh coat of paint, black shudders, and a red door, it's going to get some personality.

Andy was pretty motivated to get going and I wasn't going to stand in his way.

The kids and I did try to do a few little things to make the day special.

They made him a crown that said "#1 Daddy".

We went out to dinner at Chili's that evening and Andy proudly wore his crown.

And our house is now power washed and painted. Shudders are ordered. And we're pretty close to choosing our red paint for the door.

Giving up a day of rest and relaxation for paint and sweat. . .

I guess Andy probably deserves a back rub.

Family fun in full effect

2011-06-18T10:55:00.000-04:00

Family Fun Activity #11: Make Popsicles

Done!

On Tuesday night, we planned to accomplish FFA#2: Go to the Carnival. Unfortunately, at the last minute the weather decided not to cooperate. Still in the mood for some quality family time, we improvised and went with FFA#34: Have a Family Movie Night.

Andy dropped Bella and I at the grocery store. We picked out a Red Box movie (Tangled) and bought a bunch of snacks.

We technically accomplished three family activities with this one: Family Movie Night, Camping in the Living Room (which is what this turned in to), and Eating Ice Cream Cones (one of the treats we bought). But I decided that each family fun time only counts for one activity, no matter what the overlap is. So this just counted as Family Movie Night.

We tried the carnival again the following night. This time the weather was perfect!

Bella made this slide one of her first stops. She loved it from last year and was eager to do it again.

Graydon went on a few rides this time.

The bumper boats were his favorite.

He went on them twice.

We met up with some friends and took turns accompanying the kids on rides.

I carried this little guy around most of the night.

I carried him last year too - just in my belly instead of my arms. I saw many very pregnant women at this carnival and it reminded me of myself last year at this time. I was about 37 weeks pregnant and definitely looking it. This year was easier.

The night ended with a ride on the carousel.

The carnival is done.

But we still have lots of summer fun to come!

Our Summer Fun Guide

2011-06-13T23:01:00.000-04:00

This is a view of our pantry door. It is loaded with lots of fun activities for us to do this summer. Before preschool was even out, I knew that I wanted to make the most of this summer. At the end of it, I'm going to send Bella off to kindergarten. When that time comes, I want to know that we really had fun together and enjoyed summer to its fullest. That's where this idea was born. Most things are very simple but are a way for us to really be intentional with our time. It really works for us for three great reasons:

I am very motivated by to-do lists. I am one of those people who will write down something that I've already done just so I can check it off. Knowing that I will be seeing this whenever I'm in the kitchen assures me that I will stay accountable to doing each of those activities.
On those afternoons when the kids are bored, I can easily look here for ideas.
When the summer ends and I wonder where all the time went, I will be able to look at the "DONE" side and get a quick recap of all the fun that we had.

It's already gotten great use. Just today, Bella asked me what "door activity" we were going to do.

This was one of them: "Plant something"

A few weeks ago, we started with two apple seeds. We got them straight from one of the apples we ate.

Over the next few weeks, we let them germinate in a sealed plastic bag.

And they are now planted! One for the boys and one for the girls.

Apparently, it can take apple trees several years to ever bear fruit.

Not a task for the impatient, I guess.

Family photos did not make our Family Fun Guide, but it's definitely something that I've wanted to do. And now I can put a big ol' check on that one.

More photos to come. . .

The Graduate

2011-06-06T20:09:00.000-04:00

Saturday evening was the big event!

PRESCHOOL GRADUATION!!!

The program was so adorable. It was complete with Bible verses, songs, and of course receiving their graduation certificate. I videotaped a lot of the ceremony and included below is one of the songs followed by Bella receiving her certificate and gift bag.

(I apologize ahead of time for the shakiness. I was zoomed in pretty far and Graydon was squirmy in my lap, continually bumping my arm. I did the best I could).

There she is. Our preschool graduate!

And we made time for some post graduation cake.

Bella's teachers did above and beyond. Included in Bella's bag was the graduation certificate, a children's Bible, photo album filled with photos from the school year, and a slide show on DVD. Wonderful keepsakes.

I'm feeling emotional about Bella being done with school. I'm going to miss her teachers and chatting with the other parents before and after school. This was a great experience for Bella and I'm just feeling a little sad that it's over.

Bella's excited though. She's moving up to kindergarten!

Her last day of preschool

2011-06-03T08:54:00.000-04:00

Andy asked me if I wanted him to pick up Bella from school yesterday. "No way!" I said. This was her last day and I was feeling kind of sentimental about it.

I snapped this photo just as Mrs. Stouff called out Bella K.! This was the last time that I would pick her up from preschool.

After the kids get outside, they like to run around and play tag for a little while. Many of us parents lingered extra long this time. Our last time.

Bella was so excited that she got to take her name tag home. She also got to keep her crayon box and various pictures of herself that were used around the classroom.

Finishing up with preschool is kind of a big deal so she got to eat her dinner off the "You Are Special Today" plate last night.

And the celebration continued after dinner with a special treat: Rita's water ice! Bella's favorite.

Tomorrow, she will be an official preschool graduate.

Memorial Day

2011-05-30T22:31:00.000-04:00

Such a gloriously beautiful weekend we had. Lots of outdoor activity. Lots of family time.

And pool time! Just like last Memorial Day, we found ourselves at "Miss Nancy's" pool.

So much fun. And so hot!

I stayed out of the pool with Curtis and we went for a long walk. He's been having a rough day.

We spent a good three hours at the pool and came home for our own little cookout.

Our rose bushes are starting to bloom! Just in time for a last minute Memorial Day centerpiece.

We brought our food (and kids, evidently) out via this window that opens up from our porch to the living room. During the summer months, there is usually a giant air conditioning unit in there. We've been putting off installing it and are hoping to get a different one that can be used in the dining room (our current one is too big for those smaller windows). This beast blocks out so much sunlight into the living room and takes up valuable porch space. And it is so LOUD! Really drives me nuts. Not exactly sure if the dining room will work out, but for now we'll enjoy this open space, light, and accessibility.

Our cook-out feast.

After dinner, the kids played outside for a bit. Graydon didn't have any shoes on (he came out through the window, after all). We sent him inside to get his sandals and this is what he came out in. Stylin'. For sure.

This photo pretty much sums up Curtis's mood all day. Positively miserable. He's teething. He has a temperature. And I'm pretty sure a cold or allergies on top of it. He was so tired all day but rarely slept unless we were holding him. Any attempt to lay him down ended in defeat. Poor baby.

While we enjoyed this early summer day of fun and relaxation; we were mindful of the reason for this holiday. We took some time to honor the memory of the soldiers who fought in our nation's various wars and who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Freedom isn't free.

This upcoming week is Bella's last week of preschool which concludes with her graduation on Saturday.

I'm pretty sure I'm going to be a total mess.

A trip to the farmer's market. . .

2011-05-28T21:50:00.000-04:00

Photos by Bella. (With the obvious exception of any photo she might be in).

We've been making a concerted effort to eat more locally grown food. New Jersey is a great place to do that. It is known as the Garden State after all.

Freshly squeezed lemonade with a strawberry infusion. Delicious.

Graydon thinks so too.

We purchased some zucchini from a vendor and then ended up at a local farm stand for the rest of our produce.

This will probably become a Saturday ritual during these summer months.

Days like these. . .

2011-05-24T22:07:00.000-04:00

This one fell and skinned her knees.

This one is working on five new teeth.

And this one is just being a two-year-old.

It's been one of those days.

Wisconsin photos

2011-05-22T15:41:00.000-04:00

If I'm friends with you on Facebook, then you've already seen most of these photos. But, I do have a few in this mix that will be new to everyone.

One of our first nights in town, we went over to Jodi & Aaron's for some pizza.

"Uncle Suck!"

I'm not trying to be crude with that name. It just happens to be what my kids call Scott while they are learning to talk. Occasionally, it did come out as "Uncle Sock". But either way, this one has the potential to stick.

The kids enjoyed playing with their aunties!

And Bella worked on her shooting skills.

Her target? The fish tank.

On Saturday afternoon, some of us went to Monkey Joe's. That place was filled with bounce houses and slides. And PEOPLE! Definitely a popular hangout for the kiddos!

That place wore me out. And I wasn't the only one.

Later that evening: dinner at Mary's!

This little lady was one of our main reasons for the trip. We couldn't wait to meet our newest niece, Rose Lynn Benetti!

Here's a bunch of silly kids. This was the first night when all of the cousins were together. They are at such great ages to play together and it really is fun to watch. (And you never know just what they'll get in to).

The next day was Mother's Day!

Here is my mom with all seven of her kids! Can't remember the last time we were all together on Mother's Day.

We also took one of just the girls.

And of my mom with the grandkids.

Andy's parents came down for a visit too!

The weather was a bit chilly (Wisconsin hadn't yet received the memo that it's spring)! But the bounce house kept the kids pretty entertained.

Swings are always a good time too. . .

. . . especially for Bella now that she can do it all by herself!

More photo ops:

Ava came over while Jodi was working. She and Graydon played together a lot.

They played hard.

We were all so happy when the weather started to warm up!

But it cooled off just in time for us to go to a Brewers game.

We ended the trip with a big birthday celebration for Sydney and Ava.

Another Wisconsin trip for the memory books. I already can't wait for the next one! (Although I could do without the long road trip with three kids).

I thought I could leave without crying. . .

2011-05-15T22:34:00.000-04:00

and I almost did.

Until we pulled into the gas station on Wadsworth Road. Music from Bella's TinkerBell movie was just enough to push me over.

We enjoyed a wonderful week with family.

More photos from our trip to Wisconsin coming soon!

These three kids. . .

2011-05-01T23:24:00.000-04:00

Tears flowed from Bella last week when the rainbow painted on her cheek smeared off on the ride home. Not so this time. She went to the zoo with a family from church and got her whole face done. She even convinced me to let her sleep with it on. Silly girl.

Climbing up onto the counter to grab a banana. Proof. Graydon is truly my Monkey-Boy.

Ten months old! And he just cut his first tooth. Curtis is getting so big!!!

Tomorrow is packing day. We're heading out to Wisconsin on Tuesday morning for some fun family time. I can't wait!!!

Easter

2011-04-26T16:23:00.000-04:00

Easter Week:

Bella and Graydon picked up some branches from the yard and we worked on a little project. Easter egg nests! (I saw it in Family Fun magazine.) Lots of great ideas there.

On Saturday, we dyed our eggs.

I wrote our names on the boiled eggs with clear crayon just prior to dyeing them. Bella was amazed when her name magically appeared on an egg.

Our colorful eggs in their little homes.

Easter day:

Our church had its annual Sunday School program and Easter bonnet contest. I didn't get any photos from this since my hands were pretty full with Curtis. Here are their hats:

Bella's bonnet- she designed and made this herself. The only thing I did was hot glue some of the elements in the places where she told me to.

Graydon's crown - I envisioned him having a bigger role in the making of this, but after doing the tissue paper grass with me, he was done. So I got to put the foam stickers wherever I wanted.

And then he wouldn't wear it. I ended up giving it to another little boy who didn't have a hat to wear.

Curtis wore bunny ears.

Here's Bella and Curtis all dressed up.

I did not ignore my middle child. But an overly bright sun and uncooperative two-year-old made this the only photo I got of just him.

After our church service, we got a photo of the whole family.

And I couldn't let the day go by without a photo of the kids all dressed up. Ideally, I would have gotten these in the morning before church and before shirts got untucked and hair lost its curl. But I'm on my own on Sunday mornings and I barely got out the door in time as it was.

If you'll notice, Graydon has another owie. This time on his lip. His bump/bruise finally cleared up on his forehead and then he fell on the concrete while chasing a ball and scraped his lip. We had a few days for it to clear up a little.

I'm always happy to get a shot of smiling children, but I love the candid photos we took even more. They are so playful with each other.

After being such great kids, we went home, got comfortable and searched for Easter baskets. Bella found hers right away - in the bathtub. And she helped her brothers find theirs too.

We followed that up with a delicious lunch at the home of one of our church family's. It was a beautiful day to celebrate the greatest victory this world has ever seen.

He is risen!!!

Doctor appointments

2011-04-22T14:56:00.000-04:00

Graydon had a weight check. Normally, he shouldn't have to go back for a check-up until he turns three. But our little guy is a little guy and they want to monitor his weight. Unfortunately, he didn't gain any weight. In fact, he actually lost half a pound. I'm pretty sure that the weight loss was due to a stomach bug that he had last week and the subsequent loss of appetite that followed it. Still, we have to bring him back again in one month. If he fails to gain weight, then they're going to have to run a bunch of tests. I'm thinking that Andy should be at the next appointment. That way the docs can see the gene pool that we're working with here. Operation Beef-up Graydon has officially begun!

On another note, it turns out that Graydon has an infection in his left ear. That definitely explains a lot of the crankiness this week. He has been a bear. Amoxicillin to the rescue.

Curtis had a regular check-up. His stats are:

Weight: 19 lbs. 1 oz. (25th percentile)
Height: 29 and 1/8 inches (75-90th percentile)
Head circumference: 18.5 inches (90th percentile)

So it really is Curtis's big head that makes him look like a big baby. As you can see by his percentages, he is not tipping the scales too high either. But he is very healthy and developing just as he should. Two shots later (polio and hepatitis B) and we were out of there.

Bath time for Curtis!

2011-04-18T10:57:00.001-04:00

Curtis usually gets his baths in the tub, but I thought a sink bath might deter Bella and Graydon from wanting a bath too. I still bathe Curtis separately from Bella and Graydon because:

between the two of them and their toys, I'm not sure where Curtis would even fit
I can bathe Curtis in 10 miniutes whereas Bella and Graydon like to be in there for at least an hour (about 10 minutes for cleaning and the rest for playing).

Whenever I give Curtis a bath, I ALWAYS have two big kids whining and complaining that they want a bath too. This night was no exception even though we were at the kitchen sink. Bella quickly moved on, but Graydon was VERY unhappy that he couldn't get a bath.

And apparently the fact that Curtis was in the sink was not going to stop him. In true Graydon form, he pushed a chair up to the kitchen counter and climbed up.

First in were his hands.

And then his feet.

At least the whining and complaining had stopped. There's been a LOT of that from him this week.

He is a very determined little boy.

Here comes the sun!

2011-04-11T08:16:00.000-04:00

The weather is warming up.

It's nice to be outside to throw the ball around.

And go exploring in the yard.

Welcome Spring!

We are so ready for you.

Off he goes!

2011-04-03T17:41:00.000-04:00

Apparently food is a good motivator to get Curtis moving.

It's all fun until someone gets hurt

2011-04-02T13:31:00.000-04:00

Bella and Graydon's new thing is dancing in the living room. They put in their Worship Jamz cd, grab hands, and begin their hyped-up version of ring-around-the-rosie. This always ends with them purposefully falling to the ground, laughing hysterically.

One time, however, it didn't end that way.

Graydon ended up falling to the ground and smacking his head on the radiator. Within seconds, a goose-egg appeared on his forehead. It looked to me like a tumor coming out of his head. He, of course, was crying hysterically.

Most of the swelling is down now. This is how it looks a few days later. I really don't think that the camera does justice to how truly gnarly it looks.

But I guess he's not too worse for wear.

Nine months in. . .

2011-03-30T19:09:00.000-04:00

nine months out!

Curtis's biggest news is that he's starting to scoot all over the place. I'll try to get some video up soon. It's too cute. (At least this momma thinks so).

Somebody had a birthday this week!

2011-03-27T14:49:00.000-04:00

We celebrated Andy's 31 years of life and are thankful for each day with him.

Happy Birthday to an a wonderful husband and father.

As promised. . .

2011-03-23T20:02:00.000-04:00

I took some pictures of Curtis!

Eight months seems to be my magic age to get nice portraits of my kids.

It was a warm afternoon, Graydon was sleeping, Bella wanted to play outside, Curtis was in a good mood, etc. I decided to go for it. If this had been more planned, Curtis would have been wearing a nicer outfit. But since this was spontaneous and all of Curtis's clothes were in the bedroom where Graydon was sleeping, we had to make do. Such is the life of the third child.

I'm hoping to open up an Etsy shop in the next few months to sell crochet hats that I make. The money I make will go into our Disney World fund. Anyway, I wanted to get some photos of a couple of the hats. They are actually more Graydon-size hats, but he is less than cooperative with the camera lately (always).

Curtis isn't exactly mobile yet, so he really doesn't have a choice.

Doesn't he look like he's about to jump out from behind the tree to sneak attack someone with that stick.

You wouldn't believe the time I had trying to keep grass/dirt/twigs out of his mouth.

Two days later, I put up a black sheet in the kitchen to get these shots.

And here are my other two babies when they were eight months old.

Bella's was taken at JC Penney and Graydon at Portrait Innovations.

I'm just as pleased with mine.

And I love how much money I saved!

Artists at work

2011-03-18T14:42:00.000-04:00

This is all I have for photos this week. Sorry. I seem to have gotten out of the habit. I'll try to do better. I really want to get some nice photos taken of Curtis. Now that I've said it here, hopefully that will help keep me accountable to actually doing it.

T & A

2011-03-10T22:23:00.000-05:00

That's the doctor code for the procedure that Bella had done last week. Tonsil & Adenoid Removal. That's what Bella was in for. Her tonsils and adenoids were extremely swollen; negatively impacting her breathing - especially at night.

Here she is just before the surgery.

She's smiling in this picture. And I think it's the last smile that I saw for days.

When they took us back there, Bella got dressed in this get-up, chose a little toy (stuffed pink pig), and was given a cup of "silly juice". There was something in the juice that was supposed to relax Bella prior to the procedure. Based on its name, I thought it was going to make Bella act all goofy. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to work for her. She was just plain scared. Her tears broke my heart and I kind of lost it a little when they wheeled her away.

After about an hour in the waiting room, they called us back. The procedure was done. She was in the recovery room and just waking up. Again, this was not pleasant for her. There were more tears in her eyes and she kept saying, "I want to go home." She was also in a lot of pain at this point, so they added some morphine into her IV. Within minutes, she was back to sleep. We spent another two hours in the recovery area before being discharged.

That evening was not fun. Bella did not want to take her pain meds. We literally had to chase her and pin her down to give them to her. Oh boy. We also couldn't get her to drink anything - which was bad since we didn't want her to get dehydrated.

The next few days were up and down. She made her bed on the couch and took a lot of naps.

Meanwhile, my mom was in town to help out with everything. I managed to let a whole week go by without getting any pictures of her with the kids. Big bummer. Graydon had so much fun with "Gah-Ma". He was her little shadow. She has been gone for five days and he still asks me "Where Gah-Ma!" I know that he's going to be thrilled to see her again.

Monday morning rolled around and Bella was starting to perk up. This was now six days after the procedure. She wanted to go to school and we let her. This was the last day that she took any pain medicine.

She seems to be feeling much better now. She's eating and drinking just fine. I'm so glad to have my happy Bella back!

And she is breathing so much better!

Eight months old!

2011-02-28T22:32:00.000-05:00

This is what Curtis's new smile looks like.

Open up wide! I can't get enough of it.

This little guy is mad-teething lately. His gums still feel gummy, but there's definitely something in the works.

I found this cute owl idea here and decided to make one for my little teether.

He went to town.

Happy eight months, sweet boy!

Smarty pants

2011-02-25T16:24:00.000-05:00

A few months ago, Graydon learned the alphabet song. I was pleased enough that he knew all of the letters and the order they came in. The other day, he took it a step further. While reading a letter book, he started saying the letters before I got a chance to. He named each of them correctly except "G" and "X". I'm impressed!

Bella has been into "Knock knock' jokes lately. They go a little something like this:

Bella: "Knock knock!"
Me: "Who's there?"
Bella: "Window"
Me: "Window who?"
Bella: "Window - You forgot to look out your window last night"
Bella: (hysterical laughing)

Her Knock Knock jokes always follow the pattern of something that I forgot to do last night.

Well, Graydon came up with his own Knock Knock joke. I'll let him share it with you himself.

The counting is a pretty recent development as well.

So proud of this little guy!

Spring was in the air. . .

2011-02-22T22:43:00.000-05:00

but we did a very un-springy activity.

ICE SKATING!!!

We went to the outdoor River Rink at Penns Landing on Friday evening; the day when we reached a high of 68 degrees!

Daddy and Bella skated together all night.

Bella sustained a few falls, one that left her in tears. But she got right back out there and had a blast. At the end of the night, there were more tears - only this time because it was because she didn't want to leave.

I have a feeling we'll be back again.

"New beds"

2011-02-20T17:41:00.000-05:00

That's what they called these boxes and pillows. We did storytime "in bed" in the living room that evening.

I love the imagination of a five and two-year-old.

I heard crinkling coming from the kitchen. . .

2011-02-15T11:06:00.000-05:00

I went to investigate and found this:

I shouldn't have left the valentine candy on the counter.

All set for Valentine's Day

2011-02-13T16:36:00.000-05:00

I can't take credit for this idea. I found it here.

Bella wanted to incorporate a heart into the design, so ours looks a little different. And I printed mine at home instead of ordering pics. But the concept is still the same. And we accomplished it all - from start to finish - during Graydon's naptime.

Here are the teacher valentines. I learned this one from my mom way back when and it's come in handy many times throughout the years.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Baked with love

2011-02-12T21:49:00.000-05:00

I gave Bella the option: cake or cupcakes. We baked a special treat for Daddy while he was at a meeting all morning. I hoped that Bella would pick cupcakes so that we could enjoy a little treat without waiting for Daddy's return. No chance. The littla lady wanted a big cake.

I let Graydon snack on some frosting to keep him occupied (and away from the red hots that Bella was using for cake decorations). It all started out innocent enough.

But this is what happened to my freshly bathed boy.

The finished product.

Yum!

Super Bowl Champions!!!

2011-02-06T22:35:00.000-05:00

(Photo taken two weeks ago during play-off game).

Go Packers!!!

Seen around our house this week. . .

2011-02-05T22:25:00.000-05:00

A little girl trying to make our house a bit more Valentine-y

Two kids and their computers

A big sister trying to get her little brother to pose for a picture.

A little brother looking up to his big brother

An adorable baby boy

A little girl and her Daddy off to go sledding.

Hope you all had a great week!

Snow Day!

2011-02-01T09:02:00.000-05:00

I think the New Jersey folks might be getting a little upset about all of this Wisconsin weather that we are getting. When it comes to cold weather, I'd have to agree. But if it's SNOW - no complaints here. Especially on a snow day such as this. 8-10 inches of snow and weather above 30 degrees. Perfect! I even got a little hot while we played outside in all that white stuff.

From start to finish, Bella built this snowman all by herself. Isn't it cute!

The next one was a group effort.

Except for Curtis. He decided to nap this one out.

Ta da!

I love a good snow day.

Seven months old. . .

2011-01-28T21:56:00.000-05:00

. . . and looking like a 9-monther. At least that's what our pediatrician said.

Curtis at 7 months

We have a tall boy on our hands.

I don't know. To me, he doesn't look a day over six months. ;)

Curtis at 6 months

Or maybe I'm just in denial that my baby is growing up.