Quick Change

Talan and I went out yesterday without coats.  It was above 40 for some of the day.  Not so much today.  Just went out to play in the snow and clear the driveway.  It's very wet and very cold!

Sure made for some cute photos!

How Soon We Forget

Kevin and I work pretty hard to provide the kids with everything they want and need.  However, we run a pretty tight ship at home.  I've always expected a lot out of my kids but they are all things that are non-negotiable.  Things like kindness to others, respect, being well behaved, doing the best you can at school, etc.  We drill these lessons into them, Reese especially because she's not under our watch 24/7 like Talan is.  But when they leave the house it's up to them whether they follow the rules or not.  You just hope and pray that they do. 

Yesterday I received an email from Reese's teacher to inform me that she was disruptive at school several times yesterday (and that wasn't the first time).  I was so disappointed and quite frankly embarrassed.  She knew her actions were wrong and she also knew that there would be consequences.  In talking to her last night I can only think that she was acting out to gain the attention of her peers.  Her goal was to get a rise and a laugh out of classmates.  She did but it definitely wasn't worth it. 

My parents called last night to discuss it with her in private.  Sometimes it helps to talk to someone other than your parents and often times she will open up more when it's not Kevin or I.  My mom wanted to talk to her about a time that her Uncle Steve did something almost identical when he was the same age and how much trouble he got into.  That immediately brought back some memories of past trouble I had been in. 

Now this was when I was a couple of years older than Reese.  Sixth grade to be exact.  We have moved from Hawaii to Florida and I desperately wanted to fit in.  I would have done just about anything for a friend.....and I did.  I brought balloons to school on the day of a project I was to demonstrate using them.  When my project was over I invited a few girls into the bathroom where I filled the balloons with water and dropped them on unsuspecting kids in the stalls next to me.  I'm cringing as I type this but remember how funny it seemed at the time.  Of course it was reported, and I was sent to the office, and they called my parents, and I spent the next day sitting in the front office writing the Code of Conduct.  And that's not even the worst I did.  That came in the middle & high school years. 

That said, I understand that being a kid is tough.  I will continue to drill into her what's expected but I'll also try to remember that we all mess up every now and again.  Praying that today was a better day for her.

Next Food Network Star?

Today I made the mistake of calling Talan a "whiny behiney" (which was totally warranted because that's exactly what he was being).  In response he told me that I "ruined his whole heart".  Ouch....that hurts!  So minutes later when he asked if he could make his own lunch and asked me to film his "cooking show", I obviously obliged.  This is the result:



Cute = understatement

I Heart Them

I love holidays, even the ones that Hallmark invented.  Any excuse to decorate and put smiles on the kids' faces.  They woke up yesterday morning to heart shaped doughnuts and heart decorations.

And for lunch I surprised Reese with heart shaped sandwiches, some M&Ms and a big stack of love notes.

Poor Talan.  I scheduled his 4 year well check for that morning so for Valentine's Day he got a shot in each leg.  He's pretty tough and got over it fairly quickly.  He has definitely grown this past year.  He's up five pounds from last year and weighs 32 pounds, 6 ounces.  They said that he is 39.5" tall, up an inch and a half from last year but I watched her measure him and I'm certain he wasn't standing up straight so I'd guess that he is at least a half inch more than what was recorded.  Outside of a nasty cold that he's fighting he is doing great. 

Every Thursday we have breakfast for dinner.  We didn't want to break that tradition just because it was Valentine's Day.  So the kids had pink heart shaped pancakes, heart shaped cinnamon rolls, heart shaped bacon, and kiwi.  For Kevin and I it was eggs benedict.  You can't tell but the egg was in the shape of a heart, too.  I even made a heart out of the spinach. 

There were smiles all around so I think it's safe to say that I did okay!

Related?

Left - Me
Right - Reese

I definitely see the similarities!  It could almost be the same person in both photos.  When I showed it to Talan and asked who it was his answer was "Julia".  Well, I guess since people say that Reese and Talan look alike and when Talan and Julia are together that they look alike....it makes sense that Reese and Julia would look alike, right? 

Be Mine!

I have been sick for days.  And by sick I mean completely and utterly miserable.  It started coming on on Friday night.  I woke up Saturday and felt like I had been run over by a mack truck.  My head was pounding, my eyes were swollen, my throat felt as if I had swallowed a knife, and I honestly did not know a person was capable of blowing as much snot out of their nose as I had.  It's now Wednesday and I have had zero relief since waking up on Saturday morning.  I did finally go to the doctor yesterday and was diagnosed as having a sinus infection in addition to either pink eye or an infection in my eye caused by the sinus issues.  Either way, this blows (both literally and figuratively). 

Even so, I love my kids so much that I once again did handmade valentines for both of their classrooms.  There is a plethora of resources available on the web.  I was able to find two free templates rather than having to recreate a brilliant idea that I came across like I normally do.  So that saved a little bit of time.  Here are the valentine's I did for Talan's class party which was this afternoon:

I was supposed to have volunteered at Reese's school for Jump Rope for Heart today.  I showed up and got kicked out because apparently I looked as sick as I felt.  Oh well.  I tried.  I was actually a bit relieved knowing that I still had to put together Reese's valentines when I got home.  I'm normally days ahead with these projects but I kept thinking I'd feel better and putting it off and before I knew it I was out of time.  Anyway, here are the valentines for Reese's class:

I'm sure the kids will all complain that iPhones are so 2012 and that they would rather have iPads....but I can't afford a box of candy that big for 30 kids so they can eat their little candy hearts and like 'em! 

In between cutting and pasting it was off to Talan's Valentine's Day party at his school.  Fortunately that one was only 15 minutes.  I'm so glad I sucked it up and went because if I hadn't I would have missed this:


My goodness he is cute!  And he was soooo excited that Kevin and I were there. 

I usually go all out on holidays.  I'm hoping these antibiotics magically kick in overnight so that I can pull it together tomorrow morning.  It won't be the same without heart shaped pancakes!  Wish me luck. 

Try, Try Again

Reese is bound and determined to sing the National Anthem at a Chicago Fire soccer game.  Last year she submitted a video audition and heard back late in the season.  They said that they had filled all of the spots but encouraged her to try again.  So, she had me record her singing again so that she could send them an email and give it another shot. 



Keep your fingers crossed for her.  Maybe this is her year.....or maybe she'll just have to give it another go next year.  Either way I don't see her giving up any time soon and for that I am so, so proud!  Get it baby girl!!!!!

He's Officially 4

It's hard to believe that this was taken four short years ago:

And one of my very favorites from February 5th, 2009 (the moment I first got to hold him in my arms):

Talan broke down his birthday into three different categories.  First was his "birthday party birthday", next was his "home birthday", and last up was his "school birthday".  Given that we like to drag out birthdays for a week we were happy to buy into his game plan. 

His birthday party birthday was on Sunday.  His home birthday was on his actual birthday, Tuesday.  So Tuesday morning he woke up to a decorated house and some family birthday gifts.  Needless to say he was thrilled and excited. 

He got some pretty cool stuff.  I shot a little video of him opening his gifts from Uncle Josh:


When school let out Talan and I went on a birthday shopping trip so that he could spend his gift card from Uncle Steve.  He decided on a special outfit to wear to his school birthday the next morning.  I think he did a stellar job! 

Afterwards we rushed out to have dinner at his restaurant of choice (Red Robin) so that we could rush over to the elementary school for the annual open house.  It was a busy, busy day. 

The next morning was the last of his birthday celebrations (boo!), his school birthday.  His teachers were waiting and ready to crown him when he got there:

Such an exciting week.  I am still having a hard time believing that at this time next year we will be prepping for Kindergarten.  Trying very hard to cherish every single moment.  Happy birthday to our darling little 4 year old boy.  We love you Talan August!

Talan's 4th Birthday Party

Today we celebrated Talan's 4th birthday.  He chose to have another bouncy house party but wanted it to be a rock star theme.  I spent Saturday preparing for the party.  I am not much of a baker but I gave the guitar cake my best shot and wasn't disappointed at how it turned out: 

And of course I had to run with the theme when it came to decorations and gift bags:

Last week I took Talan shopping and let him pick out his birthday outfit.  He did really well!  He chose red skinny jeans and he loved the peace sign patch on the shirt.  You can't be a rock start without tattoos so we tatted him up before leaving for his party:

He was so excited to be there and to greet all of his friends.  Thank goodness he is in school and invited his classmates....otherwise it would have been a gaggle of girls. He's quite the ladies man.

He loves his cousin, Julia, and was so happy to see her!

Fortunately we were able to pull the kids together for a quick group shot:

Kevin got in on the bouncy action:

This is Tessa, a girl he goes to school with.  He talks about her almost daily.  When she walked in, it may have been the cutest thing I've ever seen.  He lit up, his cheeks flushed, and he had the biggest smile!

It's a great set up.  They bounce in one half of the building for about 40 minutes and then move on to a second half with different bouncy houses for another 40 minutes.  Afterwards the party coordinator rounds them up to go to the party room for cake and pizza:

Reese with her cousins, Sophia & Olivia:

He loved sitting in the big chair when his friends sang happy birthday.  So sweet!

 

Afterwards he was told to stand on the chair to thank everyone for coming.  He gets so shy when all eyes are on him.  It was precious:

I think it's pretty safe to say that he had a good time.  His actual birthday is on Tuesday and he'll get to celebrate with his class on Wednesday so he is in for an exciting week.