The Plastic Easter Eggs -- aka the Best Decoration EVER!

We got out our Easter decorations this week and set them up around the house.  By far, the BEST decoration, if you ask any of the kids (including Jack!) is the bowl full of plastic eggs that I put in the living room.  Not a single hour day goes by that those eggs aren't taken out, split apart or hid throughout the house.  And every night, it becomes a game to gather all of the eggs back up and put them in the bowl for the next day.

I got a good laugh at how Sophia soon perfected the skill of picking up several at a time in her little hands.

A simple box -- big enough for a toddler -- and Jack filled it with eggs so that he could sit inside and begin opening each and every one.

And within minutes, Sophia joined in on the fun ...

... adding more eggs and then letting them "rain" down on Jack as she stood above him.

It wasn't long before the kids discovered that some of the eggs actually had candy in them; not all, but some.  And then it became a thrill to carefully sort through the bowl and find the eggs with the "goods" inside.  Sophia was especially skilled at this.

End of the Week Randoms

Samantha is so excited because she is now able to hold her cousin, Louie, and carry him around for a little while without our immediate fear of her dropping him.  This is done with close supervision, of course, but she is definitely proud of that accomplishment.

 

 

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It's no secret that Sophia is my go-to, regular kitchen assistant.  In fact, when she is frustrated or upset over something, I can usually just hand her an apron and a few minutes in the kitchen with me seems to erase any irritation that she was experiencing.  It is a calming activity for her.

I am now giving her more freedom in the kitchen -- allowing her to break eggs on her own, measure messy ingredients by herself and I am showing her how to properly (and safely) use a knife.  She is flourishing with those extra added responsibilities.

Starting simple with slicing grape tomatoes:

Basting chicken for dinner:

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The kids are all anxious for Spring and Summer to be here so that they can play outside for hours without end.  Sam is especially excited to be able to use the playground swings and slides.  And, there might be a little climbing involved too!

(Those poor snow-pants.  Sam took a major growth spurt in the middle of Winter and I didn't want to purchase new snow-pants with the season half-way over, so we made too with the pants, even if they were a little too short for her!).

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I love seeing all of my babies together in one place.  It always seems as though someone is in school or dance,and the moments of having them all doing the same thing at the same time are going to be fewer and farther between.  For now, I am cherishing those times.

Lunch at the little card-table, a rare and special treat:

Movie night, fresh out of their baths and in their pajamas/bathrobes:

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Sophia's birthday treat for her friends at school, cupcakes in an ice cream cone:

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Samantha had her first Daddy-Daughter Dance this year (on Sophia's birthday).  Steve and Samantha dressed up and went to dinner and then to the dance, while I took Sophia and Jack out to dinner (and ice cream!) for Sophia birthday.

Samantha is looking so grown-up to me these days:

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St. Patrick's Day 2015

St. Patrick's Day fell on a Tuesday this year, meaning that it was a school day and a rushed morning ... and also one of my nights to teach.  Regardless, I made sure to pull a few things together to make it special for the kids.

Every year, the kids have a St. Patrick's Day shirt of some sort to wear.  This year, they ended up with a couple of them and were able to wear them to school the day before. 

The day before St. Patrick's Day:

On the official holiday, I settled on a nice, green polo shirt for Jack, as he would get more use out of it for sure.  He was definitely handsome in it.

And these headbands?  Well, the girls have been sporting them for the last few years -- a gift from my mom when Sophia was only a year old!  The beads are from Steve's collection ... we must have 200 sets of them!  In fact, Samantha was able to take a strand to each one of the kids in her class this year at school.

For breakfast -- served in 15 minutes' time on a busy school morning -- the kids had green milk (Sophia was not a fan though!), green grapes and cinnamon rolls with green sprinkles.

And, of course, my assistant did more sampling than anything.

The most magical part though was the leprechaun footprints across the counter leading to a pot of "gold."  Yes, the girls woke up to find that a leprechaun left them chocolate gold coins in the night while they were sleeping.  Oooooh, it thrilled me to no end to listen to them chatter about that one!

While Sam was in school that day, Sophia helped me make a special snack for their dessert that night.  We made muddy buddies, which is so easy to let Sophia do all of the measuring, mixing and microwaving.  To make them festive, we added green M&Ms to the batch at the very end.

Measuring:

Mixing:

Pure happiness:

And then her little brother decided to hone in on the action; that, or he realized that she was done making the snack and wanted to sample!

All I know is that I am one lucky momma!

Jack is 22 Months Old

This last month seems to have flown right by for me, probably because February is a short month to begin with and then we spent the majority of the time celebrating birthdays and the onset of Spring here.

The next birthday that we celebrate in our family will be Jack's birthday and the girls are excited to help me begin planning it.  It will have a Curious George theme (lots of yellow and red) to it, as Jack seems to love that little monkey so much.  And it seems so fitting because Jack is one curious little man.

Raising a boy is so much different than raising a girl, at least it has been for me.  Jack doesn't mean to be malicious, but he manages to keep me on my toes and test my patience on a regular basis.  He will climb on anything, he will throw anything that he has in his hands and he will push limits to the maximum.  But in between all of that, he will also cuddle with his momma and give hugs and kisses to anyone that asks.  And his smile?  I melt every time.

Jack loves the outdoors.  He would spent every minute of every day out there if he could.  And if he discovers that someone went outside and left him behind, he cries and screams at the backdoor.   The cold weather doesn't bother him one bit, and I suspect that the hotter temperatures this summer will not be problem either.

Even though the ambient temperatures are still cold here, we are trying to coax Spring to come by spending more time in the driveway doing "Spring-like" activities.  We brought out the bubbles and let the kids blow them into the blustery wind.  Jack, with his ever inquisitive mind, preferred to play with the jug instead.  That boy is always trying to figure out how something works.

Covered in mud and dirt ...  All boy.

The biggest milestone this month has been the transition of Jack out of the crib and into a "big boy bed."  We did this about 4 nights ago and opted to set him up on a mattress on the floor for right now.  This is what we did with Sophia (mostly because the beds that we ordered for the girls became back-ordered and we had already disassembled her crib).  The transition with Sophia went smoothly and we figured, even though we have a frame and a headboard for Jack, that we would start with the mattress on the floor first.  This would limit any falls out of his bed (and let's be honest -- he would be the type to climb out of bed regularly).

I took Jack to the store and let him pick out his own sheets ... he chose trucks (of course!).  He was so excited to be able to hold them on the way home!

Then, I washed them and put them on the mattress last Friday night.  We were planning to do it over the weekend, but Jack didn't have a good nap on Friday afternoon (read: no nap at all!) and we figured that he would be really tired and less likely to get up as many times in the night.

Tucking Jack in bed:

He really wasn't sure what to think of the pillow, as he had never slept on one before:

That first night was rough because he got up at least four times and Sophia got up three additional times (complaining about her legs hurting -- growing pains).  Needless to say, I was one tired momma the next morning.  But, over the next few days (naptime and bedtime), I worked on adjusting a few variables such as the nightlights, door, pillow, blankets and verbal instructions to stay in bed, and I think that we have improved the situation quite a bit.  We have also made a point to emphasize his "big boy bed" whenever we can. 

He still isn't too sure about the sheets and the extra blankets on his bed, but as long as he stays in there and sleeps, I am content with that.

I snapped this picture during his naptime one day:

Then, hopefully this summer, we can set up his bed and work on turning his bedroom into a "big boy room" for him.  It's going to be a BIG summer with potty-training and a bedroom makeover.  I can't wait!

Up from his nap, rested and happy to see his momma:

(He was actually standing in the doorway of the girls' room, as he likes to run in there right away when he gets up to see if they are still resting).

 Yes, we love this little boy so much ...

Is it Spring Yet?

We have a few teasing days of Springtime weather, prompting us to head outdoors and relish the "warmth."  It has certainly been a long winter here.

Now, when I say "warmth," it still means that coats (and hats and gloves) are necessary.  And the bubbles didn't last for long in the cold, but the kids certainly enjoyed their glimpse of the upcoming seasons.

And I enjoyed capturing a few pictures of them in the process.

Such concentration ...

And innocence ...

And this little man was more interested in how the cap fit back on the jug of bubbles.  He put it on and took it off no less than 439 times -- without actually spilling them.  Amazing.

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Touching the snow one last time before it finally melted away:

Trying out the tricycle for the first time:

(It is still a tad big for Jack, but by the middle of the summer, I predict that he will have mastered it)

Sam's bike needed a little tune-up (the pedal was loose) ...

And then she was ready to ride:

Sophia donned her helmet and took off like a wild woman:

And then the kids took a break to use sidewalk chalk, probably one of the most-used items in our Spring/Summer outside activity tote:

Last year, the girls were most interested in drawing pictures in the driveway, but this year, they began by writing their names:

Momma had to help Jack with his name, of course:

C'mon, Spring!!!  We're ready for you!

Sledding Fun

Hopefully in the next couple of weeks, the snow will start to disappear here -- after all, it IS March now.  In the meantime, we decided to take advantage of and go sledding in the backyard.  

 

 

Jack is fearless and is capable of going down in the hill in the sled by himself, but Steve wanted to join in on the fun:

Even this momma went down the hill a few times (smiling all the way!)

One tired little boy; sledding can be hard work!

All three of my little ones, going down the hill together.  Be still my heart!