Outside and Inside

Here is what 20 weeks looks like from the outside:

 

 

And here is what the view from the inside looks like:

 

 

And, yes, I know what you are asking.......pink or blue??

 

Well, this little darling was anything but cooperative, however, we were able to quickly catch this piece of evidence:

 

 

It is a GIRL!!!!

 

I was so convinced it was a boy, but we are missing a very crucial piece of equipment for that, so a girl it is!

 

Caroline Rose will be taking us from a family of 4 to a family of 5.

 

We are shocked, but excited to welcome another little diva! 

The Holiday Program

I love that Landon is coming up to the age where his Sunday School, preschool, etc. is doing a short little holiday program for Christmas.

 

Today, he had his first little program at school.

 

And even though it was just a little demo of the songs they like to sing in the morning and a couple Christmas tunes, I was front and center with the video camera.

 

Landon was front and center being Landon.....the boy who never fails to deliver on individual style.

 

So here is how this 15 minute "show" went down:

 

It all started with getting organized and ready....for Landon, that meant checking to see if his nasal canals were clear....

 

Then we moved on to a couple songs from class.  He was so not into the whole audience thing, but for the "fish song" he was proud to "help" his teacher.

 

And the songs continue....as does Landon and his own drum.

 

He really likes the shapes song...he is pretty specific about that red circle!

 

And finally, he gets into the Christmas spirit with some holiday classics....and jingle bells.

 

I am such a proud mom!!!  He may not have "performed" perfectly, but he sure was true to himself!!

And hats off to Ms. Martha for being so patient and kind with a "spirited" little boy like Landon!



Classic Activity

So when you are on your third snow day in a row, and your regular activities are all being cancelled, you have to be creative!

 

Otherwise, you have monsters on your hands!

 

So, we went with a classic activity today.....FORTS!!

 

As a kid, and even when I babysat the neighbor boys, I would take every blanket in the house and cover practically the whole living room.  We went for a bit of a smaller scale, but the result was the same....FUN! 

 

Although I still see some mischief in that face, I think we have curbed some of the naughtiness for a couple hours!



SNOW!!

Now that is more like it Duluth!!

 

We have had steady snow all day today and it is forecasted to pick up and continue all day tomorrow as well. 

 

That makes me soooo excited!!

 

Adam promptly got out to snow blow, only for it to continue and his efforts seem like they never happened.

 

But we had fun playing in it anyway!

 

Landon was the first to get to shoveling.....hopefully when he is 12, he will remember how much he liked doing this for free!!  Haha!

 

 

It took Avery a while to leave the garage, but eventually she made it out! 

 

 

This one was enjoying her first real snow!  You would think she was a puppy or something....

 

And by the way.....we finally got started on the outside lights!  I promised Adam that next year I would get something other than icicle lights....he hates them! 

 

Landon had been looking forward to snow for two reasons: 

1.  Riding on the snowmobile

2.  Making snow ice cream

We accomplished one of those tonight! 

 

It was a hit! 

 

If it keeps up like this, then tomorrow we could very likely be getting out the snowmobile!



It is (finally) beginning to look like winter!

I was a little nervous there for a while!  I thought we would have another year like the one before last.....we didn't get actual snow until February!!

 

But, last night, my wish for a winter with snow came true!!

 

I love the winter season, since it is so pretty and I get to decorate and go through the motions of the "holiday season". 

 

But, I must confess...I put up our tree a few days ago.

 

Normally, my rule is that I do not decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving, but I have good reason this year!

1.  Adam is working literally every day for over 2 weeks straight.  So, I either wait until a few days into December, or do it early.  I don't like to wait.

2.  We have gotten a real Christmas tree the past couple years (they smell soooo good!!), which is something Adam has to help with.  Again....his schedule meant I would have to wait. I don't like to wait.

3.  We had 2 options:  decorate early (makes me happy), or wait (since I don't like to wait, I would have done it myself......not a good idea while pregnant!).  So, Adam hauled everything in, moved all the furniture, and let me go to town!

4.  We aren't celebrating Thanksgiving until Saturday anyway, so by the time family came over to eat, it is still in the "proper time" to have my tree up.

 

Our neighbor came over to take a family pic for us too so we could order Christmas cards......reason #5 to justify the early decorating.  Since we never seemed to have everything working at the same time in one shot (eyes open, smiles, awkward hands, etc.) she had to take a couple pictures and merge them together.  Who would have thought such things could be done???  It turned out great!

 

See my pretty tree, by the way??  Love it!

 

The "kid's tree" is downstairs.  It is the pre-lit tree we have had for years that we put all the random ornaments on, not the themed red and gold that goes on my "pretty tree" upstairs.

 

Anyway, now that the inside looks like winter and holiday time, I am so glad the outside decided to catch up!

 

We don't have much snow, but it is enough to roll around and play in.

 

Avery likes to "wok" in it.

 

Landon races around to mow it! 

 

"Look mom, I am making myself in the snow!" 

 

He was so concerned when his sister touched the snow and didn't like the cold on her hands! 

 

Clearly the discomfort didn't last long....she was up and running in no time! 

 

Monkey see, monkey do... 

 

Landon liked to taste the snow (to see if it was ready to make ice cream) and then spit it like a camel.  Seriously, the stuff he comes up with!

 

And of course, Reese and Bailey had a grand time too.  I thought they were hilarious until they came in with snow balls stuck to every inch of their fur....then tried to sit on my couch!!! 

 

After we were good and rosy-cheeked, we were ready for hot chocolate and the Macy's Parade.

 

I love the holidays!!!

5 minutes

Every so often (other than when he is sick!) he will forget that he is the "big guy" and cuddle with his mamma like he is still my little baby boy.....

 

.....but only for 5 minutes!



If the Weather Says So....

Outside it is beginning to look like winter will be here soon, although it is a far cry from where we were last year. 

 

We have only had a couple days of flurries, and they never stick.

 

Tonight, it is very windy and cold, and the flurries have stuck to the deck just enough to be visible.

 

Seems to me it is the perfect night to get on the cozy jammies, make some hot chocolate, and enjoy a holiday favorite on the big screen!

 

Avery helped with the hot chocolate,

 

then joined Landon with Chex Mix and the "Polar Express". 

 

Yep, I think it is the perfect activity for a blustery night!  

 



A Soggy, Foggy Halloween

Living in Duluth, you always expect Halloween to fall in the time of year where it isn't quite snowing (yet!) but it isn't exactly warm.

 

So, you plan the costumes in order to put layers underneath or throughout so you don't have to cover it up with a winter coat. 

 

This year it wasn't the cold that really added to the "experience", it was the rain!

 

But no worries, these kids had been looking forward to Trick-or-Treating waaaaaay too long to let a few raindrops deter them!

 

We had Dusty the crop duster:

 

And a cute little kitty cat:

 

And off we went....no rain yet! 

 

Landon knew exactly what to do right away... 

 

It didn't take Avery long to figure it out either! 

 

Pretty soon we had to pull out the coats and hoods though!  Still not ready to give up, they went on their bundled way around the neighborhood!

 

Back at home a (slightly smudged) little kitty and an airplane checked out the loot and did a bit of snacking while they dried out. 

 

All in all, a good (albeit, wet) evening!

 

Happy Halloween!



Conehead

I know I shouldn't laugh (she just got spayed today), but sometimes you need a little humor!

 



Oh, come on......it's only been 6 weeks!

I know, I know.  I said I wouldn't drop the ball again and leave this hanging for so long, but I did.

 

Not that I write blogs so that everyone can "keep up", but because if I don't put things somewhere, I tend to forget.

 

We have had a pretty quiet last 6 weeks, relatively.

 

We found out we were expecting again, and then about 6 weeks ago I began spending a vast part of my days trying to keep my "cookies" down.

 

Hence some of my absenteeism. 

 

It can be a bit difficult to do fun things, let alone take a picture and write about it, when all you want to do is sleep and not throw up.

 

But, now I am 12 weeks and feeling much closer to human again!

Well, as human as you can feel with a fishbowl in your shirt!

 

So, that being said, I think I have accomplished quite a bit considering the "challenges" of late!

 

Thank goodness for my fantastic playgroup ladies, who plan playdates and then as soon as we get there, they take my kids for fun outside adventures while I veg and chat and snack!

 

Just a few weeks ago, we went to one house and picked apples from her apple trees.  Clearly that was a hit!!

 

And we did manage to get to the big Balloon Festival, even though the wind was too high for any balloons to inflate!

 

 

 

And we cannot forget a very special birthday!!  Landon is 4!!!!

 

For being as sick as I was, I have to say I put on a pretty good party for the big guy!

 

We started with a fun day at Adventure Zone on his actual birthday.

 

You know how those arcade places are usually huge rip offs??  You spend $20 and get 10 tickets from games that will buy you 2 Tootsie Rolls?  Well, we hit the jackpot!!  I put 50 cents in a "Wheel of Fortune" machine and happened to land on the big dollar space.  I got over 1400 tickets from that one play!!!  We made out like bandits on that game and a couple others! 

 

Here are *some* of the tickets we ended up with: 

 

We ended up with about 2800 so Landon was able to get something a step up from candy and temporary tattoos!  He loves the farm set!! 

 

Then the next day was the Big Party.

 

The theme:  Disney's "Planes"....his choice.

 

We started with a craft (I know......I did a craft!!!)

I had all this decorating stuff and the kids got to decorate their own little model airplanes.

 

These little planes were much more practical in my head than they were when it was time to assemble the planes!!  Each one came in a little box in 17 pieces.....tedious, maybe?? 

 

Good thing the craft was a hit! 

 

He was super excited about his Dusty cake, even if it was a little lopsided and far from professional-looking!! 

 

 

When it came time for presents, he only had eyes for Thomas.....the tank engine!  He eventually moved on! 

 

I always forget how much kids like to "help" the birthday kid open presents!  It was like the wall of children kept slowly creeping in! 

 

He got a big boy bike from us so he can ride around with the other neighborhood boys.  He was so excited, until he realized he can't reach the peddles yet. We are sure it will be fine next year when it is warm and he is a little bigger. 

 

Finally we wrapped it up with a piñata outside......bold move, I know!  There weren't any blindfolds and the bat was a hollow plastic one....trust me, it helped! 

 

So, after Birthday-palooza, we finally got our act together and decorated for the seasons.  I got the kids little pumpkins they could paint and then we carved a big pumpkin. 

 

I am not sure where there was more paint....the pumpkins or the kids!

 

Whew!! I am officially caught up, although there are no promises of staying that way....

 

I will do my best!