What does the fox say? {14 Days of Valentines: 2014 Edition}

When it comes to holiday gift-giving, I think everyone has their favorite time of year. When we lived in Kansas City and my husband had a job that allowed us more flexibility around the holidays, my mother-in-law loved to fill Christmas socks with special things that were unique to each of us. We'd open them on Christmas morning under her tree - showers not necessary, coffee a plus - little things that she'd picked up throughout the year.  These socks could include any number of items: socks (I know, the irony!), our favorite candy, a CD, small bottles of booze that you get on airplanes.  You never knew what you'd be surprised with on Christmas morning.  One year I got pajamas - honest to God, blue satin pj's stuffed into my Christmas sock.

Some people really like Easter, and I'll admit, I like to fill Easter baskets for my kid's, too - colored eggs, malted milk ball eggs, peeps and a hollow chocolate bunny, a kite (although we should all disregard the fact that Finn's kite still sits unopened in our coat closet...maybe this spring we'll get around to pulling that thing out. Or maybe I'll just re-gift it back to him at Easter this year.  He's 3, he'll never know and I'll have saved myself $5.).  Whatever the holiday - Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Arbor Day - I always give my kids a book.  I like to give books as gifts.  You can never have too many books.  Until, of course, you move and half your moving van is boxes of books and those boxes are really heavy and your husband threatens to burn them if you don't whittle down your "collection" only he uses words like: "hoarder" and "obsessive" and "certifiable."  You know, really hurtful words. 

Anyway...I like Valentine's Day. A lot. A really lot. I love to come up with an idea and then find a little gift for my small humans for each of the days leading up to Valentine's Day because I don't love them enough the rest of the year, apparently. 2012 was the inaugural year.  Finn had no idea what was going on, being 1-1/2 and all, but he drank his apple juice and ate his teddy grahams happily.  Abby thought it was pretty cool and was excited most mornings to see what her small gift was and then telling us over dinner how excited she was to get her small gift, so I like to think we coasted in with a win, especially since I flew by the seat of my pants that year. Then last year I felt as though I should take it up a notch.  I'm hopeful I didn't peak too soon, because last year was so much fun to plan. 

This year I struggled a bit and enlisted the help of my (somewhat non-creative) husband.  At first I thought maybe we'd do 14 days of Love Song lyrics, but scraped that idea when I realized the only songs Finn knows are Wagon Wheel and T-Swift's We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together. And also, my husband couldn't contribute any good love songs...a quick google search of Celine Dion is all it would have taken, obviously. Reference: Titanic theme song.  The Power of Love. Because You Loved Me. And about a million more chart toppers than Whitney ever had.

And then the light bulb went of in my otherwise dark mind.  Finn does know another song.  He knows that stupid fox song that is all the rage on YouTube. And it occurred to me that we could totally do that for a theme with all kinds of animals for each of our days.  And then it occurred to me that we could totally get a real dog for the "What does the dog say?" day. I almost peed my pants from canine-procurement-excitement. I looked on the world wide interwebs for the perfect addition to our family (one that didn't cost $1800; I knew my husband would throw up in his mouth if I suggested that dog. In its defense, it was cute and it came with "real genuine papers suitable for framing," so I guess that justified the cost.).  I made lists of doggy items needed. I even gave our new almost-dog a name! And then my husband said no and my hopes and dreams were burst like a hot dog in the microwave.  As it stands, he didn't say no-forever, he just said no-for-right-now; nobody wants to potty train a dog in Northern Minnesota in February.  Valid point, Mr. Hefter.  We shall wait until spring (maybe).

So here are this year's 14 Days of Valentine's (minus the climactic Get A Real Dog Day) in no particular order, because mostly, I still have to go to Target (and probably the Shopko) to procure a few extra items.

• Zebra: "Our love is not black and white, Valentine...it's read all over!" {books about love}
• Elephant:  "I"m nuts about you, Valentine!" {Peanut m&m's}
• Cow: "Will you be my mooost special Valentine?" {Chocolate milk for breakfast}
• Bear: "I love you beary much, Valentine!" {Teddy Grahams}
• Worm: "You wormed your way into my heart, Valentine!" {socks}
• Unicorn:  "Valentine, you make every day magical!" {Sprakly pencils & crayons}
• Chick: "Why did the chicken cross the road? To ask you to be mine, Valentine!" {chicken nuggets}
• Fish: "I'm hooked on you, Valentine!" {Goldfish crackers}
• Bee: "Just buzzed by to see if you'd be my honey, Valentine!" {Honey Nut Cheerios}
• Dog:  "What we have is puppy love, Valentine!" {Puppy Chow}
• Seahorse:  "Sea how much I love you, Valentine?" {bubble bath & body wash}
• Sheep: "You can count on me for sweet dreams, Valentine!" {new jammies}
• Moose:  "You make moosest days fabulous, Valentine!"  {Moose Tracks ice cream}
• Fox: "Happy Valentine's Day!" {new Valentine's Day shirts}

When it comes to holiday gift-giving, I think everyone has their favorite time of year. When we lived in Kansas City and my husband had a job that allowed us more flexibility around the holidays, my mother-in-law loved to fill Christmas socks with special things that were unique to each of us. We'd open them on Christmas morning under her tree - showers not necessary, coffee a plus - little things that she'd picked up throughout the year.  These socks could include any number of items: socks (I know, the irony!), our favorite candy, a CD, small bottles of booze that you get on airplanes.  You never knew what you'd be surprised with on Christmas morning.  One year I got pajamas - honest to God, blue satin pj's stuffed into my Christmas sock.

Some people really like Easter, and I'll admit, I like to fill Easter baskets for my kid's, too - colored eggs, malted milk ball eggs, peeps and a hollow chocolate bunny, a kite (although we should all disregard the fact that Finn's kite still sits unopened in our coat closet...maybe this spring we'll get around to pulling that thing out. Or maybe I'll just re-gift it back to him at Easter this year.  He's 3, he'll never know and I'll have saved myself $5.).  Whatever the holiday - Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Arbor Day - I always give my kids a book.  I like to give books as gifts.  You can never have too many books.  Until, of course, you move and half your moving van is boxes of books and those boxes are really heavy and your husband threatens to burn them if you don't whittle down your "collection" only he uses words like: "hoarder" and "obsessive" and "certifiable."  You know, really hurtful words. 

Anyway...I like Valentine's Day. A lot. A really lot. I love to come up with an idea and then find a little gift for my small humans for each of the days leading up to Valentine's Day because I don't love them enough the rest of the year, apparently. 2012 was the inaugural year.  Finn had no idea what was going on, being 1-1/2 and all, but he drank his apple juice and ate his teddy grahams happily.  Abby thought it was pretty cool and was excited most mornings to see what her small gift was and then telling us over dinner how excited she was to get her small gift, so I like to think we coasted in with a win, especially since I flew by the seat of my pants that year. Then last year I felt as though I should take it up a notch.  I'm hopeful I didn't peak too soon, because last year was so much fun to plan. 

This year I struggled a bit and enlisted the help of my (somewhat non-creative) husband.  At first I thought maybe we'd do 14 days of Love Song lyrics, but scraped that idea when I realized the only songs Finn knows are Wagon Wheel and T-Swift's We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together. And also, my husband couldn't contribute any good love songs...a quick google search of Celine Dion is all it would have taken, obviously. Reference: Titanic theme song.  The Power of Love. Because You Loved Me. And about a million more chart toppers than Whitney ever had.

And then the light bulb went of in my otherwise dark mind.  Finn does know another song.  He knows that stupid fox song that is all the rage on YouTube. And it occurred to me that we could totally do that for a theme with all kinds of animals for each of our days.  And then it occurred to me that we could totally get a real dog for the "What does the dog say?" day. I almost peed my pants from canine-procurement-excitement. I looked on the world wide interwebs for the perfect addition to our family (one that didn't cost $1800; I knew my husband would throw up in his mouth if I suggested that dog. In its defense, it was cute and it came with "real genuine papers suitable for framing," so I guess that justified the cost.).  I made lists of doggy items needed. I even gave our new almost-dog a name! And then my husband said no and my hopes and dreams were burst like a hot dog in the microwave.  As it stands, he didn't say no-forever, he just said no-for-right-now; nobody wants to potty train a dog in Northern Minnesota in February.  Valid point, Mr. Hefter.  We shall wait until spring (maybe).

So here are this year's 14 Days of Valentine's (minus the climactic Get A Real Dog Day) in no particular order, because mostly, I still have to go to Target (and probably the Shopko) to procure a few extra items.

• Zebra: "Our love is not black and white, Valentine...it's read all over!" {books about love}
• Elephant:  "I"m nuts about you, Valentine!" {Peanut m&m's}
• Cow: "Will you be my mooost special Valentine?" {Chocolate milk for breakfast}
• Bear: "I love you beary much, Valentine!" {Teddy Grahams}
• Worm: "You wormed your way into my heart, Valentine!" {socks}
• Unicorn:  "Valentine, you make every day magical!" {Sprakly pencils & crayons}
• Chick: "Why did the chicken cross the road? To ask you to be mine, Valentine!" {chicken nuggets}
• Fish: "I'm hooked on you, Valentine!" {Goldfish crackers}
• Bee: "Just buzzed by to see if you'd be my honey, Valentine!" {Honey Nut Cheerios}
• Dog:  "What we have is puppy love, Valentine!" {Puppy Chow}
• Seahorse:  "Sea how much I love you, Valentine?" {bubble bath & body wash}
• Sheep: "You can count on me for sweet dreams, Valentine!" {new jammies}
• Moose:  "You make moosest days fabulous, Valentine!"  {Moose Tracks ice cream}
• Fox: "Happy Valentine's Day!" {new Valentine's Day shirts}

Cold & snow & turkey & elves

We hosted Thanksgiving again this year - the 2nd year in a row - and we continued with the Turducken theme of last year.  Another theme that was repeated?  Snow.  And lots of it.  We picked people up from and dropped them off at the airport in snow.  About 20+ inches of snow in a two-day period.  And our snow blower is broken (who has a broken snow blower in Minnesota in December?!).  So, yes - shoveling the old-fashioned way was necessary!

It's common knowledge that I revoke my own license when the snow starts falling in earnest and this year is no different.  I can toodle around town a little bit once the roads have been cleared, but I get major-highway and hill anxiety if I have to do more than run to the grocery store.  So what possessed us to live in an are that gets a million zillion snowflakes a year?  Well, it is beautiful (from the warm confines of my home!).  And I love the summers here - not too hot, not too cool.  I'm like Goldilocks of the north land - it's mostly just right.

Anyway, as I dig through my pictures of the past week with my family I will share.  It was...epic.  So much food, 19 people for Thanksgiving dinner, a round of illness (not in any way related to the dinner), more hooch than you can shake a stick (or a beer can) at, pies that didn't get eaten and now sit in my freezer, Jac's first steps, birthday cake, maple ice cream, loads and loads and loads of laundry.  I am equal parts happy and exhausted and still picking myself up from the week.

Our elf, Reginald VanWinkle, made his appearance this week.  In spite of my planning and calendar, he was a few days late.  Not that it mattered too much, Finn doesn't even know the days of the week yet.  It's a more laid back year for RVW this year.  Last year he had a lot to do, which you can check out here and here.  This year he's more into hiding and snowball fights and reading.

I had big plans for preparing my kids for Christmas this year, but every good intention got over-taken by planning for Thanksgiving and now my energy level is spent.  We do have an Advent wreath this year, and we light a candle and read a little prayer at dinner time each night.  I did not do 24 Days of Christmas Books this year, in spite of the treasure trove of new books I found that I bought at the end of the season last year.  Instead I have them spread all over the coffee table in the living room so we can read them and look at the pictures whenever we want.  And Finn does so, often!  We've been taking advantage of the Christmas movies on Netflix and hot cocoa with marshmallows.

Today Finn and I are going to make some sugar cookies for our religion kids tomorrow.  Abby's fighting a cold and stuffy nose, so she get's to stay far away from any food preparation/dishes because I do not want those germs spreading.  We've been listening the The Best Christmas song list ever (remember when mixed tapes/CDs were so cool to make?!).

I'm hopeful that some Santa cookies will put me in the Christmas spirit (and not the napping spirit!) because I still need to figure out some Christmas cards this afternoon and I found a paper mache ornament project that I think Finn would have fun with.  Honestly, though...the Christmas movies and couch are definitely calling my name...it is the weekend, after all!

We hosted Thanksgiving again this year - the 2nd year in a row - and we continued with the Turducken theme of last year.  Another theme that was repeated?  Snow.  And lots of it.  We picked people up from and dropped them off at the airport in snow.  About 20+ inches of snow in a two-day period.  And our snow blower is broken (who has a broken snow blower in Minnesota in December?!).  So, yes - shoveling the old-fashioned way was necessary!

It's common knowledge that I revoke my own license when the snow starts falling in earnest and this year is no different.  I can toodle around town a little bit once the roads have been cleared, but I get major-highway and hill anxiety if I have to do more than run to the grocery store.  So what possessed us to live in an are that gets a million zillion snowflakes a year?  Well, it is beautiful (from the warm confines of my home!).  And I love the summers here - not too hot, not too cool.  I'm like Goldilocks of the north land - it's mostly just right.

Anyway, as I dig through my pictures of the past week with my family I will share.  It was...epic.  So much food, 19 people for Thanksgiving dinner, a round of illness (not in any way related to the dinner), more hooch than you can shake a stick (or a beer can) at, pies that didn't get eaten and now sit in my freezer, Jac's first steps, birthday cake, maple ice cream, loads and loads and loads of laundry.  I am equal parts happy and exhausted and still picking myself up from the week.

Our elf, Reginald VanWinkle, made his appearance this week.  In spite of my planning and calendar, he was a few days late.  Not that it mattered too much, Finn doesn't even know the days of the week yet.  It's a more laid back year for RVW this year.  Last year he had a lot to do, which you can check out here and here.  This year he's more into hiding and snowball fights and reading.

I had big plans for preparing my kids for Christmas this year, but every good intention got over-taken by planning for Thanksgiving and now my energy level is spent.  We do have an Advent wreath this year, and we light a candle and read a little prayer at dinner time each night.  I did not do 24 Days of Christmas Books this year, in spite of the treasure trove of new books I found that I bought at the end of the season last year.  Instead I have them spread all over the coffee table in the living room so we can read them and look at the pictures whenever we want.  And Finn does so, often!  We've been taking advantage of the Christmas movies on Netflix and hot cocoa with marshmallows.

Today Finn and I are going to make some sugar cookies for our religion kids tomorrow.  Abby's fighting a cold and stuffy nose, so she get's to stay far away from any food preparation/dishes because I do not want those germs spreading.  We've been listening the The Best Christmas song list ever (remember when mixed tapes/CDs were so cool to make?!).

I'm hopeful that some Santa cookies will put me in the Christmas spirit (and not the napping spirit!) because I still need to figure out some Christmas cards this afternoon and I found a paper mache ornament project that I think Finn would have fun with.  Honestly, though...the Christmas movies and couch are definitely calling my name...it is the weekend, after all!

Autumn

Seemingly overnight the wind blew in and took with it the leaves from the trees and the light from the sky.  I almost feel as though we should be getting into jammies and brushing our teeth for bed by five o'clock.  I'm planning a lot of soup and I light candles by four o'clock to ward off the gathering darkness.

Autumn is my most and least favorite time of year.  I love the crispness and the squashes in the grocery store and the onset of comfort foods for dinner.  I love flannel sheets and warm slippers and the way my hands feel around a cup of hot coffee in the morning.  I do not love full-blown night time by six o'clock, even if it is a little easier to get my small human ready for bed.

Our fall so far:

Finn grew his own pumpkin in our garden this summer and has been asking every day since July when it was going to be time to carve his pumpkin.  We finally carved it the day before we left for Kansas City, but we lit it up a few times when we got home.  Finn wasn't too keen on the squishy insides but was insistent on it having an angry face.  He also had to write his name on his pumpkin, which these days is a lower-case i, followed by a backwards upper-case F.    

Finn wanted to be a fireman for Halloween this year.  When Uriah and I went out for our anniversary, we stopped at every costume store in Duluth looking for a fireman for our small human. We found one at Target, but it was sized 3+, which means it was made for kids much bigger than Finn.  I was lamenting the fact that Finn was swimming in his costume to my mother-in-law and she said said she saw a costume at Costco and she'd check to see if they still had it.  Sure enough, she had one waiting in a 3T size for Finn when we got there on Halloween.  He did not wear his mustache trick or treating, apparently it "tickled." Abby, of course, is too old to trick-or-treat, but she wanted to dress up anyway to hand out candy.  When you're 13, it's really just an excuse to wear a lot of very heavy make-up (I believe that she calls it "smokey eyes") and some super high heels and call yourself a vampire.  And then she was resistant to having her picture taken with the small-ish cousins.  Go figure.

Finally this fall we have begun the process of raking and raking and raking the leaves.  I've already done one round.   I have piles in the yard that need to be bagged and taken to the community composting site. And I end up raking each pile at least 15 times because it is just too tempting for Finn to run through! He looks so cute, though, I forgive him and re-rake.

Seemingly overnight the wind blew in and took with it the leaves from the trees and the light from the sky.  I almost feel as though we should be getting into jammies and brushing our teeth for bed by five o'clock.  I'm planning a lot of soup and I light candles by four o'clock to ward off the gathering darkness.

Autumn is my most and least favorite time of year.  I love the crispness and the squashes in the grocery store and the onset of comfort foods for dinner.  I love flannel sheets and warm slippers and the way my hands feel around a cup of hot coffee in the morning.  I do not love full-blown night time by six o'clock, even if it is a little easier to get my small human ready for bed.

Our fall so far:

Finn grew his own pumpkin in our garden this summer and has been asking every day since July when it was going to be time to carve his pumpkin.  We finally carved it the day before we left for Kansas City, but we lit it up a few times when we got home.  Finn wasn't too keen on the squishy insides but was insistent on it having an angry face.  He also had to write his name on his pumpkin, which these days is a lower-case i, followed by a backwards upper-case F.    

Finn wanted to be a fireman for Halloween this year.  When Uriah and I went out for our anniversary, we stopped at every costume store in Duluth looking for a fireman for our small human. We found one at Target, but it was sized 3+, which means it was made for kids much bigger than Finn.  I was lamenting the fact that Finn was swimming in his costume to my mother-in-law and she said said she saw a costume at Costco and she'd check to see if they still had it.  Sure enough, she had one waiting in a 3T size for Finn when we got there on Halloween.  He did not wear his mustache trick or treating, apparently it "tickled." Abby, of course, is too old to trick-or-treat, but she wanted to dress up anyway to hand out candy.  When you're 13, it's really just an excuse to wear a lot of very heavy make-up (I believe that she calls it "smokey eyes") and some super high heels and call yourself a vampire.  And then she was resistant to having her picture taken with the small-ish cousins.  Go figure.

Finally this fall we have begun the process of raking and raking and raking the leaves.  I've already done one round.   I have piles in the yard that need to be bagged and taken to the community composting site. And I end up raking each pile at least 15 times because it is just too tempting for Finn to run through! He looks so cute, though, I forgive him and re-rake.

Hello...hello...hhhheeelllloooo!

August was a brutal month of travelling for us.  We were away from our home more than we were in it - and we left Uriah behind more often than not.  Our one-day-a-week Family Funday that I had great expectations for fell off the map sometime in July and we never fully recovered.  

So here we are, school starts again tomorrow and the summer of great adventure is going to go down in Hefter Family History as the summer of mediocre adventure.  And lots of travel.  And lots of busyness.

We did not get to the Great Minnesota Get Together (aka: The Minnesota State Fair) but we did make an appearance at the Great Lake County Get Together (aka: The Lake County Fair).  We sampled the offerings of the beer garden, saw some chickens, let a baby cow lick our fingers, rode some kiddie rides and had mini-donuts.  

Abby lost her crap on the ride that drops you super fast.  We could hear her screaming the whole way down.  She begged to be able to meet her friends the following day - without parents - at the fair.  I guess this is what growing up means - more friend time, less family time.  We sent her off for the day with some money and the request to make good choices.  I guess that's all you can do. 

We took another mini-vacation to Leech Lake.  Uriah, of course, worked.  But we managed to get in a little family time on the "hontoon," as Finn calls it.  Lots of fishing - no catching.  Finn also learned to jump into the pool and even let me dunk his whole head under a couple of times...and by "let," I mean I just dunked him under a couple of times when I caught him.  He learned to hold his breath!  For as fearless as that boy is of the water, he needs to learn some basic swimming lessons soon!

Abby is awesome at being surly and 13.  She brought a friend along on our Leech Lake vacation and then promptly slept on the pontoon/fishing excursion.  Her friend, on the other hand, fished with Finn and Uriah.  My mom's advice is always to stick my tongue to the roof of my mouth; you can't say anything when you're busy keeping your tongue stuck up there and it avoids a lot of needless arguments.  I am getting awesome it and I remind myself daily that at some point she will grow out of this phase.  Please let me be delusional in thinking that it won't take her going to college for her to become human.  Teenagers...they think they know it all!

We had a bachelorette party for Sarah last weekend in southern Minnesota.  That area of Minnesota is so beautiful.  I should know, my pal Becca and I got lost walking on the bike trail for about 4 hours.  It's clear I learned nothing from my years as a Girl Scout.  No map.  No compass.  No idea where we were going.  We are poster-children for what not to do in the great outdoors.  Luckily we made our 10+ mile walk back to Sarah and she was only slightly annoyed that we left her sleeping in the tent.  Without a note. And with the car keys in my pocket.

School starts tomorrow for Abby.  I am very much looking forward to getting back into our routine and having some structure for our days.  Finn is still too young for pre-school, and, let's face it, I'm not ready for him to go even if he was old enough, but he was insistent that he get a back pack when we went back to school shopping last week.  He can wear it to the library, I guess.

Wedding week is upon us and then Uriah's parents are visiting and then it's our anniversary and my birthday.  And then, you know...it's Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas.  So, I'm really looking forward to January when the snows keep us home-bound for more than a few days at a time!

August was a brutal month of travelling for us.  We were away from our home more than we were in it - and we left Uriah behind more often than not.  Our one-day-a-week Family Funday that I had great expectations for fell off the map sometime in July and we never fully recovered.  

So here we are, school starts again tomorrow and the summer of great adventure is going to go down in Hefter Family History as the summer of mediocre adventure.  And lots of travel.  And lots of busyness.

We did not get to the Great Minnesota Get Together (aka: The Minnesota State Fair) but we did make an appearance at the Great Lake County Get Together (aka: The Lake County Fair).  We sampled the offerings of the beer garden, saw some chickens, let a baby cow lick our fingers, rode some kiddie rides and had mini-donuts.  

Abby lost her crap on the ride that drops you super fast.  We could hear her screaming the whole way down.  She begged to be able to meet her friends the following day - without parents - at the fair.  I guess this is what growing up means - more friend time, less family time.  We sent her off for the day with some money and the request to make good choices.  I guess that's all you can do. 

We took another mini-vacation to Leech Lake.  Uriah, of course, worked.  But we managed to get in a little family time on the "hontoon," as Finn calls it.  Lots of fishing - no catching.  Finn also learned to jump into the pool and even let me dunk his whole head under a couple of times...and by "let," I mean I just dunked him under a couple of times when I caught him.  He learned to hold his breath!  For as fearless as that boy is of the water, he needs to learn some basic swimming lessons soon!

Abby is awesome at being surly and 13.  She brought a friend along on our Leech Lake vacation and then promptly slept on the pontoon/fishing excursion.  Her friend, on the other hand, fished with Finn and Uriah.  My mom's advice is always to stick my tongue to the roof of my mouth; you can't say anything when you're busy keeping your tongue stuck up there and it avoids a lot of needless arguments.  I am getting awesome it and I remind myself daily that at some point she will grow out of this phase.  Please let me be delusional in thinking that it won't take her going to college for her to become human.  Teenagers...they think they know it all!

We had a bachelorette party for Sarah last weekend in southern Minnesota.  That area of Minnesota is so beautiful.  I should know, my pal Becca and I got lost walking on the bike trail for about 4 hours.  It's clear I learned nothing from my years as a Girl Scout.  No map.  No compass.  No idea where we were going.  We are poster-children for what not to do in the great outdoors.  Luckily we made our 10+ mile walk back to Sarah and she was only slightly annoyed that we left her sleeping in the tent.  Without a note. And with the car keys in my pocket.

School starts tomorrow for Abby.  I am very much looking forward to getting back into our routine and having some structure for our days.  Finn is still too young for pre-school, and, let's face it, I'm not ready for him to go even if he was old enough, but he was insistent that he get a back pack when we went back to school shopping last week.  He can wear it to the library, I guess.

Wedding week is upon us and then Uriah's parents are visiting and then it's our anniversary and my birthday.  And then, you know...it's Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas.  So, I'm really looking forward to January when the snows keep us home-bound for more than a few days at a time!

A family obsessed.

A few weeks ago I brought home a fire pit.  

Uriah and I had been talking about getting one pretty much all summer, although Uriah was convinced that he could make one for us out of bricks and crap he was going to buy at Home Depot.  With the loads of spare time he has in the summer, I was certain it would be 20 summers from now by the time the awesome fire pit of his dreams was complete, so when I found one on clearance at the ShopKo, I popped on it. 

We have been obsessed ever since.  We have a fire as often as we can - weather and wood permitting - and I 've been loading my kids up on s'mores, because I think s'mores are the official bed time snack of summer.  Most nights we have our bed time snack around the fire pit (grahams, mallows, chocolate...what an awesome way to go to bed!  Last night we experimented with Rolos and the metly-caramel/hot marshmallow combo was amazing!) and then Uriah and I sit outside and have grown up time until the embers are glowing and the mosquitoes force us inside.

We should have done this a long time ago...

A few weeks ago I brought home a fire pit.  

Uriah and I had been talking about getting one pretty much all summer, although Uriah was convinced that he could make one for us out of bricks and crap he was going to buy at Home Depot.  With the loads of spare time he has in the summer, I was certain it would be 20 summers from now by the time the awesome fire pit of his dreams was complete, so when I found one on clearance at the ShopKo, I popped on it. 

We have been obsessed ever since.  We have a fire as often as we can - weather and wood permitting - and I 've been loading my kids up on s'mores, because I think s'mores are the official bed time snack of summer.  Most nights we have our bed time snack around the fire pit (grahams, mallows, chocolate...what an awesome way to go to bed!  Last night we experimented with Rolos and the metly-caramel/hot marshmallow combo was amazing!) and then Uriah and I sit outside and have grown up time until the embers are glowing and the mosquitoes force us inside.

We should have done this a long time ago...

3 Bitty Birthday Parties

One of my friend's set it up for us to go strawberry picking at a local strawberry farm last week. We went early in the morning.  Happily, it had rained the night before, so there was a cool breeze, and we dominated those rows of strawberries.   Between my friend, Abby and a friend, and myself we managed to pick 16 ice cream pails of strawberries in about 2 hours.  Let me tell you, in case you were wondering, 8 pails of strawberries filled up my entire extra refrigerator as I sorted through them.  I should have weighed them.  Anyway, since then, I have been up to my elbows in strawberries, and feel as though I haven't had much time to devote to writing. Rest assured, I think about writing daily and the insane number of pictures from the last month hanging out on my hard drive taunts me as I make strawberry jelly and strawberry pie and strawberry ice cream.  I've put 5 gallon sized bags of whole frozen strawberries in my freezer and I'd really like to make some strawberry smoothies and strawberry shortcake.

Last night I finally sat down for an hour to sort through some of the pictures.  Holy goodness, there is a lot there.  More to come soon - and probably my mom's strawberry pie recipe, which I made for Uriah last weekend. This season is fleeting and I'm going to soak up as much as I can (both the strawberries and the boy!).

From Finn's 3 Bitty Birthday's last week | at home; with Grandma & Grandpa; with Auntie Sarah:

One of my friend's set it up for us to go strawberry picking at a local strawberry farm last week. We went early in the morning.  Happily, it had rained the night before, so there was a cool breeze, and we dominated those rows of strawberries.   Between my friend, Abby and a friend, and myself we managed to pick 16 ice cream pails of strawberries in about 2 hours.  Let me tell you, in case you were wondering, 8 pails of strawberries filled up my entire extra refrigerator as I sorted through them.  I should have weighed them.  Anyway, since then, I have been up to my elbows in strawberries, and feel as though I haven't had much time to devote to writing. Rest assured, I think about writing daily and the insane number of pictures from the last month hanging out on my hard drive taunts me as I make strawberry jelly and strawberry pie and strawberry ice cream.  I've put 5 gallon sized bags of whole frozen strawberries in my freezer and I'd really like to make some strawberry smoothies and strawberry shortcake.

Last night I finally sat down for an hour to sort through some of the pictures.  Holy goodness, there is a lot there.  More to come soon - and probably my mom's strawberry pie recipe, which I made for Uriah last weekend. This season is fleeting and I'm going to soak up as much as I can (both the strawberries and the boy!).

From Finn's 3 Bitty Birthday's last week | at home; with Grandma & Grandpa; with Auntie Sarah:

3 Years Old | {Birthday Interview}

Favorite Color:  Blue

Favorite Book:  Dinosaurs

Favorite Animal: Elephant

Favorite Food:  Peanut Butter & Jelly

Favorite Fruit:  Honeydew

Favorite Song: A Peanut Sat on a Railroad Track

Favorite Toy: Cars & Pick-ups

Favorite Show: Dinosaur Train 

Favorite thing to do with Dad: Play cars & trains

Favorite thing to do with Mom: Go to the railroad

He speaks in long sentences.  He knows Dinosaurs are extinct and he can identify and name a few.  He says "please" and "thank you," usually without being reminded.  He's polite and generous; he loves to give hugs and kisses.  He likes to boss his sister around.  He's almost mastered the potty.  He likes to play mechanic shop with his tricycles (which he pronounces "trike-a-cyle.").  He reminds me often that he "belongs to his dad."  He likes to go to the park and to the library and to the grocery store.  When I take my walk, he likes to get out of the stroller and run ahead of me.  He loves the water - bath, shower, lake, pool.  He asks for "healing kisses" and "healing lotion" when he gets a bump.  He loves books.  He likes to dance and he can quote parts of the movie Madagascar, which is wildly amusing.  When he plays, he's started changing his voice for different characters (if two cars are talking to each other, they have different voices.).  He's always asking what kind of cars we see (Ford, Chevy, Honda...) and he wants to know what every semi-truck is hauling and where they're going.  He loves to be outside.  His chore is to take the compost out to the bin, which he does happily and carefully; he also likes to help with the dishes.  If Abby has a chore to do, Finn wants to do it, too.  He doesn't like loud noises and if something is scary to him, he immediately covers his ears.  He loves to play play-dough and has recently discovered superheros (mostly Iron Man) and Uriah's old Transformers.  He tells me I'm pretty and he loves to help me cook in the kitchen.  

I have mixed emotions about this birthday.  Time is going so much quicker that I ever anticipated, and I knew it was going to go fast.  But this fast?  I count my blessings every day that we are together - me and this boy who made me a mom.  I am happiest when he is close by.  I love his independence.  I look forward to this next year of learning and growing and changing.

Happy 3rd Birthday to my Sweet Darling Lovey.

You are my sunshine.

Finn's Second Birthday here | Finn's First Birthday here | Finn's First Birthday Party here and here | Things I learned about pregnancy here and being a new mom here.

Favorite Color:  Blue

Favorite Book:  Dinosaurs

Favorite Animal: Elephant

Favorite Food:  Peanut Butter & Jelly

Favorite Fruit:  Honeydew

Favorite Song: A Peanut Sat on a Railroad Track

Favorite Toy: Cars & Pick-ups

Favorite Show: Dinosaur Train 

Favorite thing to do with Dad: Play cars & trains

Favorite thing to do with Mom: Go to the railroad

He speaks in long sentences.  He knows Dinosaurs are extinct and he can identify and name a few.  He says "please" and "thank you," usually without being reminded.  He's polite and generous; he loves to give hugs and kisses.  He likes to boss his sister around.  He's almost mastered the potty.  He likes to play mechanic shop with his tricycles (which he pronounces "trike-a-cyle.").  He reminds me often that he "belongs to his dad."  He likes to go to the park and to the library and to the grocery store.  When I take my walk, he likes to get out of the stroller and run ahead of me.  He loves the water - bath, shower, lake, pool.  He asks for "healing kisses" and "healing lotion" when he gets a bump.  He loves books.  He likes to dance and he can quote parts of the movie Madagascar, which is wildly amusing.  When he plays, he's started changing his voice for different characters (if two cars are talking to each other, they have different voices.).  He's always asking what kind of cars we see (Ford, Chevy, Honda...) and he wants to know what every semi-truck is hauling and where they're going.  He loves to be outside.  His chore is to take the compost out to the bin, which he does happily and carefully; he also likes to help with the dishes.  If Abby has a chore to do, Finn wants to do it, too.  He doesn't like loud noises and if something is scary to him, he immediately covers his ears.  He loves to play play-dough and has recently discovered superheros (mostly Iron Man) and Uriah's old Transformers.  He tells me I'm pretty and he loves to help me cook in the kitchen.  

I have mixed emotions about this birthday.  Time is going so much quicker that I ever anticipated, and I knew it was going to go fast.  But this fast?  I count my blessings every day that we are together - me and this boy who made me a mom.  I am happiest when he is close by.  I love his independence.  I look forward to this next year of learning and growing and changing.

Happy 3rd Birthday to my Sweet Darling Lovey.

You are my sunshine.

Finn's Second Birthday here | Finn's First Birthday here | Finn's First Birthday Party here and here | Things I learned about pregnancy here and being a new mom here.

On my mind today:

 I wish I had more for you...

But the truth is, this elongated winter that we are experiencing is truly taking a toll on my motivation, my cheery words and my ability to get things done in a timely manner.  Add to that the fact that I spent the past 6 weeks working temporarily in my hometown (well, 5 weeks really, there was a week break in there for a spring break trip to Kansas City) and this "spring that wasn't" has been exhausting.

So, to catch you (and me) up, here is where it's at - list style (my favorite):

• Abby had a school dance, wherein she asked a boy to go with her.  It was big news in this house.
• My mom bought her a dress and she wore heels (which she said were very uncomfortable, but that didn't stop her from wearing them).
• I think it's safe to say she had a really good time.
• I worked half a week for 5 weeks, 4 hours from home.
• Finn and I bunked in with my parents - which was awesome.  
• We left Uriah and Abby behind - which was not so awesome.
• Abby had a list each week before I left of chores to accomplish, Uriah's work schedule, dinner menu, etc.  She did an awesome job of staying on top of what she had to get done.
• She was so excited for me to leave - I think she had glamorous ideas of what it was going to mean for her (making dinner, taking care of the house, being a bit independent - the girl reads a lot and I think she imagined something much bigger than it turned out to be).
• It didn't take long for her to start wishing for me to be back home to stay.  I guess it's nice to know I'm needed and useful, even if it is just to make dinner and empty the dishwasher nightly.
• Finn went to daycare - and loved it (most days).  Some days he required a little extra nudge up the driveway.
• I had anxiety attacks for a week (or maybe more) about how he would do listening to someone else and would he miss me and would he play nice and share and would he be okay in a house with a dog (he did not like dogs - they made him uncomfortable, now he's pretty much a fan).  I should have known he'd be fine.
• The first day he could hardly wait to leave me.  The second day took some convincing.  The third day he cried.  And then he got used to the schedule.  A little clingy some mornings, couldn't get away from me fast enough others.  
• Grandma and Grandpa took turns picking him up in the afternoon.
• I am so grateful to have had them to help out with pick-ups and I know that they really loved the special one-on-one time they had with Finn before I got home.
• I also love living at home - my sheets smelled like my childhood.  I could totally be that girl who lives at home forever.

• Our trip to Kansas City fell at about the halfway point of my temporary job.
• It was a nice break and we'd been looking forward to it all winter.
• It snowed while we were in Kansas City and it did not feel like spring break at all.  I did not wear my flip-flops once.
• We learned that this is a trip that cannot be done in one shot (10 hours is too long for any of us to be in the car).  We stayed overnight half-way both going down and coming back up.  We will always do that.
• I made the small humans goody bags for the trip - little treats/things to do to break up the time spent in the car.  It was a decent first attempt; our next trip will have some changes.  Uriah was seriously sad I didn't make him one.
• The kids got some extra cousin-play time with all of their cousins.  
• I got some extra snuggle time with the baby.  So did Uriah...he held that baby more than I did!  
• The grandparents got to spoil the kids.
• Uriah and I got to have a morning to sneak back to our old neighborhood.
• Due to the snow, my plans to hit up the Kansas City Zoo were waylaid (maybe a trip this summer is in order, although I'm quite sure it would be just me and the two small humans).
• We went to Cabela's on our way through southern Minnesota instead, because it's like the zoo, except all of the animals are dead and stuffed and never, ever move.  Finn loved it.
• I finished out my working stint last week and was sad to leave it, just as I really seemed to be getting into my groove and balancing work and life.
• I am happy to not have the 4 hour commute twice a week, though.  My car is happy about that, too.
• I've been waiting for spring and in the meantime eschewing all forms of spring cleaning (well, I did do one closet yesterday and put away most of the winter stuff.  And then it snowed 3 inches last night.  Can't a girl get a break?!).
• I am anxious to get back into a really good walking routine.  I will even walk through puddles if I have to (and I can assure you, with the plethora of snow we have, melting will take some time and I will have to walk through puddles).
• Luckily Mother's Day usually means a new pair of shoes for me.  After some soggy, soggy walks, I will need them in a month or so.
• The weather forecast is for 60s next week...given the spring we've had, though, I will have to see it to believe it!

 I wish I had more for you...

But the truth is, this elongated winter that we are experiencing is truly taking a toll on my motivation, my cheery words and my ability to get things done in a timely manner.  Add to that the fact that I spent the past 6 weeks working temporarily in my hometown (well, 5 weeks really, there was a week break in there for a spring break trip to Kansas City) and this "spring that wasn't" has been exhausting.

So, to catch you (and me) up, here is where it's at - list style (my favorite):

• Abby had a school dance, wherein she asked a boy to go with her.  It was big news in this house.
• My mom bought her a dress and she wore heels (which she said were very uncomfortable, but that didn't stop her from wearing them).
• I think it's safe to say she had a really good time.
• I worked half a week for 5 weeks, 4 hours from home.
• Finn and I bunked in with my parents - which was awesome.  
• We left Uriah and Abby behind - which was not so awesome.
• Abby had a list each week before I left of chores to accomplish, Uriah's work schedule, dinner menu, etc.  She did an awesome job of staying on top of what she had to get done.
• She was so excited for me to leave - I think she had glamorous ideas of what it was going to mean for her (making dinner, taking care of the house, being a bit independent - the girl reads a lot and I think she imagined something much bigger than it turned out to be).
• It didn't take long for her to start wishing for me to be back home to stay.  I guess it's nice to know I'm needed and useful, even if it is just to make dinner and empty the dishwasher nightly.
• Finn went to daycare - and loved it (most days).  Some days he required a little extra nudge up the driveway.
• I had anxiety attacks for a week (or maybe more) about how he would do listening to someone else and would he miss me and would he play nice and share and would he be okay in a house with a dog (he did not like dogs - they made him uncomfortable, now he's pretty much a fan).  I should have known he'd be fine.
• The first day he could hardly wait to leave me.  The second day took some convincing.  The third day he cried.  And then he got used to the schedule.  A little clingy some mornings, couldn't get away from me fast enough others.  
• Grandma and Grandpa took turns picking him up in the afternoon.
• I am so grateful to have had them to help out with pick-ups and I know that they really loved the special one-on-one time they had with Finn before I got home.
• I also love living at home - my sheets smelled like my childhood.  I could totally be that girl who lives at home forever.

• Our trip to Kansas City fell at about the halfway point of my temporary job.
• It was a nice break and we'd been looking forward to it all winter.
• It snowed while we were in Kansas City and it did not feel like spring break at all.  I did not wear my flip-flops once.
• We learned that this is a trip that cannot be done in one shot (10 hours is too long for any of us to be in the car).  We stayed overnight half-way both going down and coming back up.  We will always do that.
• I made the small humans goody bags for the trip - little treats/things to do to break up the time spent in the car.  It was a decent first attempt; our next trip will have some changes.  Uriah was seriously sad I didn't make him one.
• The kids got some extra cousin-play time with all of their cousins.  
• I got some extra snuggle time with the baby.  So did Uriah...he held that baby more than I did!  
• The grandparents got to spoil the kids.
• Uriah and I got to have a morning to sneak back to our old neighborhood.
• Due to the snow, my plans to hit up the Kansas City Zoo were waylaid (maybe a trip this summer is in order, although I'm quite sure it would be just me and the two small humans).
• We went to Cabela's on our way through southern Minnesota instead, because it's like the zoo, except all of the animals are dead and stuffed and never, ever move.  Finn loved it.
• I finished out my working stint last week and was sad to leave it, just as I really seemed to be getting into my groove and balancing work and life.
• I am happy to not have the 4 hour commute twice a week, though.  My car is happy about that, too.
• I've been waiting for spring and in the meantime eschewing all forms of spring cleaning (well, I did do one closet yesterday and put away most of the winter stuff.  And then it snowed 3 inches last night.  Can't a girl get a break?!).
• I am anxious to get back into a really good walking routine.  I will even walk through puddles if I have to (and I can assure you, with the plethora of snow we have, melting will take some time and I will have to walk through puddles).
• Luckily Mother's Day usually means a new pair of shoes for me.  After some soggy, soggy walks, I will need them in a month or so.
• The weather forecast is for 60s next week...given the spring we've had, though, I will have to see it to believe it!

Keep calm.

People.  Easter is this weekend.

Are you kidding me?! I am ill-prepared this year.  My kids have nothing for their baskets.  In fact, I don't think I even have baskets (I may have tossed them when we moved).  We have dyed not a single egg.  They will probably be wearing rain boots to church because it is so melty outside.  I know this year my lack of preparedness has everything to do with the temporary job I took a few weeks ago and the fact that we just spent a week in Kansas City for spring break, but I need to get on this Easter train, and fast or someone will think the Easter Bunny hates him...

Here's my list for the next few days:

• Dye eggs.  We did this last year and I am never, ever straying again.  Ever.  Although this year we're going with traditional hard boiled eggs instead of hollowing out the shells and hiding them with surprises (because this year there are still one zillion inches of melty snow outside).
• Baskets.  Minimalist this year.  Books, chap stick, flip-flops rainboots.  No chocolate bunnies.  And no peeps (I hate those things) but maybe some Peeps Sugar Cookies.
• Buy some tulips.  Because nothing says spring like a vase of cheery tulips.

And that, my friends, is going to have to be plenty for this year.  Uriah will, of course, be working on Easter, and Finn and I will be making the trip to my parents on Sunday for a late Easter dinner and to start our work week again (did I mention my temporary job is 4 hours away?  Might that explain some of my fuzzy-headedness...and my inability to find time to blog regularly?!).

Happy weekend!  

People.  Easter is this weekend.

Are you kidding me?! I am ill-prepared this year.  My kids have nothing for their baskets.  In fact, I don't think I even have baskets (I may have tossed them when we moved).  We have dyed not a single egg.  They will probably be wearing rain boots to church because it is so melty outside.  I know this year my lack of preparedness has everything to do with the temporary job I took a few weeks ago and the fact that we just spent a week in Kansas City for spring break, but I need to get on this Easter train, and fast or someone will think the Easter Bunny hates him...

Here's my list for the next few days:

• Dye eggs.  We did this last year and I am never, ever straying again.  Ever.  Although this year we're going with traditional hard boiled eggs instead of hollowing out the shells and hiding them with surprises (because this year there are still one zillion inches of melty snow outside).
• Baskets.  Minimalist this year.  Books, chap stick, flip-flops rainboots.  No chocolate bunnies.  And no peeps (I hate those things) but maybe some Peeps Sugar Cookies.
• Buy some tulips.  Because nothing says spring like a vase of cheery tulips.

And that, my friends, is going to have to be plenty for this year.  Uriah will, of course, be working on Easter, and Finn and I will be making the trip to my parents on Sunday for a late Easter dinner and to start our work week again (did I mention my temporary job is 4 hours away?  Might that explain some of my fuzzy-headedness...and my inability to find time to blog regularly?!).

Happy weekend!  

Mighty Big Love

I have been loving these 14 Days of Valentine's.  All right, mostly, I've been loving them.  I tried to make them as simple as I could (sometimes I have mighty big ideas) and I tried to be as prepared as I could.  I'm sometimes a really huge a procrastinator (as evidenced by every single college paper I ever had to write).

I let Abby loose in the kitchen on Sunday afternoon in an attempt to practice giving up some control (me) and for some baking practice (Abby).  She made chocolate cupcakes and then I made pink and purple frosting for her and Finn to decorate their cupcakes with (Yes, I made the frosting.  I said I was practicing giving up some control).  It kept them busy during our 8 plus inches of snow storm.  Okay, so Finn ate more frosting than he actually used on his cupcakes and they both went a little overboard with the sprinkles, and Abby was right there with him, surreptitiously eating spoonfuls of frosting when she thought I wasn't looking.  And I wasn't looking because I was eating spoonfuls of frosting when they weren't looking.  It was good frosting.

Finn and I (mostly me) made Valentine's for his once-a-week preschool class.  Damn Pinterest for giving me holiday celebration ideas that my inner Martha Stewart feels an overwhelming need to act on (see every Elf on the Shelf idea that I had and 14 Day's of Valentine's for two years as evidence).  Let's all be thankful I decided to forego the 40 Days of Lent Countdown, since that really isn't so much of a celebration and actually would probably be considered a tad sacrilegious by some of the more devout.  I'll save my spring thing for Easter instead, since that actually is something to celebrate (complete with dyed Easter eggs, and this year, chocolate filled eggs made with real shells.  Because I want to, that's why.).

Happy Valentine's Eve (not a real holiday to celebrate, but I don't care!).

I have been loving these 14 Days of Valentine's.  All right, mostly, I've been loving them.  I tried to make them as simple as I could (sometimes I have mighty big ideas) and I tried to be as prepared as I could.  I'm sometimes a really huge a procrastinator (as evidenced by every single college paper I ever had to write).

I let Abby loose in the kitchen on Sunday afternoon in an attempt to practice giving up some control (me) and for some baking practice (Abby).  She made chocolate cupcakes and then I made pink and purple frosting for her and Finn to decorate their cupcakes with (Yes, I made the frosting.  I said I was practicing giving up some control).  It kept them busy during our 8 plus inches of snow storm.  Okay, so Finn ate more frosting than he actually used on his cupcakes and they both went a little overboard with the sprinkles, and Abby was right there with him, surreptitiously eating spoonfuls of frosting when she thought I wasn't looking.  And I wasn't looking because I was eating spoonfuls of frosting when they weren't looking.  It was good frosting.

Finn and I (mostly me) made Valentine's for his once-a-week preschool class.  Damn Pinterest for giving me holiday celebration ideas that my inner Martha Stewart feels an overwhelming need to act on (see every Elf on the Shelf idea that I had and 14 Day's of Valentine's for two years as evidence).  Let's all be thankful I decided to forego the 40 Days of Lent Countdown, since that really isn't so much of a celebration and actually would probably be considered a tad sacrilegious by some of the more devout.  I'll save my spring thing for Easter instead, since that actually is something to celebrate (complete with dyed Easter eggs, and this year, chocolate filled eggs made with real shells.  Because I want to, that's why.).

Happy Valentine's Eve (not a real holiday to celebrate, but I don't care!).

I love you like fat kids love cake {14 Days of Valentines}

I am kind of a lazy mom.  I like to do fun things for my small humans, but I sometimes mostly lack the follow-through to get it done.  I managed to pull off 24 days of Elf on the Shelf this past Christmas, thanks in part to the calendar I made when I was feeling really "Super-Mom-This-Is-Going-To-Be-SO-AWESOME-How-My-Kids-Will-Adore-Me" about it.  I lost steam half-way through but totally pulled it off for the big win at the end.  I'm classy like that.  And also, Uriah helped.

Last year I wanted to do 14 Days of Valentines, something small each morning when the kids woke up to let them know they are special and we love them.  They are special and we love them 365 days a year, but those days they get things like, dinner and, you know, electricity as tokens of our undying love for them.  Finn didn't get it last year (much like the our elf, Reginald VanWinkle this past Christmas) but it was fun for me and I've come to the realization lately that as long as whatever scheme I've cooked up for them is fun for me, I don't really care if they get the full meaning behind what I'm doing.  They will someday.  And then they will shout from the rooftops how great a childhood they had (now they're just annoyed that I make them shovel snow and pee in the potty, so I think that revelation of my awesomeness is a long way off.  I can wait.).

This year our 14 Days of Valentines theme (yes, there is a theme.  Martha Stweart is my Godmother.) is We Go Together like [fill in the blank here 14 times]...  and I must say, I think it's a genius move on my part.

Finn and I are headed to Duluth tomorrow because let's face it, it's already noon, so today is shot as far as heading into the big city goes, and I'm pretty sure most of what I want can't be procured at the ShopKo-Formerly-Pamida.  While I had this great idea a few weeks ago, I failed on the follow-through (big surprise) and now we are going to have scramble tomorrow to get our Valentine's printed and buy some stuff (like socks and underwear).

So even if our Valentine tomorrow shows up at dinner instead of breakfast, I'm happy and that's all that matters.  And 351 days of showing them love with running water will resume sooner than they think, anyway!

**EDIT:  My Dad emailed me earlier; I think he thought all those college dollars he spent were wasted money.  There are only 13 Valentines here because on Valentine's Day we go all Hallmark on our small humans and get them real, fancy cards.  I also get them a new shirt to wear on Valentine's Day - cheesy pink with hearts and sparkles and kitties and unicorns.  Finn's usually says "I love my Mommy," for obvious reasons.

I am kind of a lazy mom.  I like to do fun things for my small humans, but I sometimes mostly lack the follow-through to get it done.  I managed to pull off 24 days of Elf on the Shelf this past Christmas, thanks in part to the calendar I made when I was feeling really "Super-Mom-This-Is-Going-To-Be-SO-AWESOME-How-My-Kids-Will-Adore-Me" about it.  I lost steam half-way through but totally pulled it off for the big win at the end.  I'm classy like that.  And also, Uriah helped.

Last year I wanted to do 14 Days of Valentines, something small each morning when the kids woke up to let them know they are special and we love them.  They are special and we love them 365 days a year, but those days they get things like, dinner and, you know, electricity as tokens of our undying love for them.  Finn didn't get it last year (much like the our elf, Reginald VanWinkle this past Christmas) but it was fun for me and I've come to the realization lately that as long as whatever scheme I've cooked up for them is fun for me, I don't really care if they get the full meaning behind what I'm doing.  They will someday.  And then they will shout from the rooftops how great a childhood they had (now they're just annoyed that I make them shovel snow and pee in the potty, so I think that revelation of my awesomeness is a long way off.  I can wait.).

This year our 14 Days of Valentines theme (yes, there is a theme.  Martha Stweart is my Godmother.) is We Go Together like [fill in the blank here 14 times]...  and I must say, I think it's a genius move on my part.

Finn and I are headed to Duluth tomorrow because let's face it, it's already noon, so today is shot as far as heading into the big city goes, and I'm pretty sure most of what I want can't be procured at the ShopKo-Formerly-Pamida.  While I had this great idea a few weeks ago, I failed on the follow-through (big surprise) and now we are going to have scramble tomorrow to get our Valentine's printed and buy some stuff (like socks and underwear).

So even if our Valentine tomorrow shows up at dinner instead of breakfast, I'm happy and that's all that matters.  And 351 days of showing them love with running water will resume sooner than they think, anyway!

**EDIT:  My Dad emailed me earlier; I think he thought all those college dollars he spent were wasted money.  There are only 13 Valentines here because on Valentine's Day we go all Hallmark on our small humans and get them real, fancy cards.  I also get them a new shirt to wear on Valentine's Day - cheesy pink with hearts and sparkles and kitties and unicorns.  Finn's usually says "I love my Mommy," for obvious reasons.

All Elf-ed Up. {Elf on the Shelf: Days 1-12}

1. Reginald VanWinkle arrives with a letter from Santa and delicious (cheap, waxy) donuts.  He must be on a North Pole budget.  Finn kept telling me (read: yelling) that he was just looking!
2. RVW changes the milk in the refrigerator red and green.  I could not handle having an entire gallon of milk turned red or green, so they each got their own little cup and straw.  Abby couldn't find him all morning and was allegedly getting very annoyed.  We learned that red and green milk does, in fact, make tongues red and green.
3. Reginald inspects the Christmas stockings to ensure they will be fully functioning for Christmas morning goodies. 
4. Reginald lets all of the animals out of the barn.  He did give the sheep some snuggles, though.  Finn immediately relocated RVW back to the little Christmas tree so that he could play with the farm.  I didn't get on his case for touching the elf because he moved him and then didn't touch him again.
5. Reginald brings the Merry Madigascar movie - and proceeds to watch it with Gloria, Melman, and Alex (no zebras to be found in our house.).  We have now watched this movie 100,000 times.  Finn has taken to wishing people a Merry Julianuary.
6. Reginald fishes for goldfish crackers.  With an ice fishing pole and a very real hook.  I do not recommend using dangerous things with your elf, but we told Finn to look with his eyes, not with his fingers and nobody was impaled with a sharp hook.
7. Reginald makes an obstacle course out of aforementioned delicious, cheap donuts.  He borrowed Barbie's seldom-used motor scooter for his antics.
8. Reginald brings breakfast to be eaten out of new snowman cereal bowls.  He hung around all day and watched the initial Christmas cookie dough making.
9. Reginald makes a race track out of masking tape for Finn's cars.  I think that this was my favorite morning...Finn came downstairs looking for Reginald and he kept exclaiming  "He's playing cars with me, Mama!  He's playing cars with me!"  Also, I don't know why we didn't think to make him a race track with tape before.  He played with it for days (until we had to peel it up to wash the floor!).
10. Reginald hung out in the "B" of the Happy Birthday banner on Abby's birthday morning.  Again, Abby couldn't find him in the morning and told me she happened to glance up while she was eating her breakfast and there he was, staring at her.  She was kind of creeped out.
11. Reginald makes a snow angle in the flour.  It is not easy to get flour off of the felt suit the Reggie resides in.  As an added bonus, Finn loves to run his cars through the flour and make tracks, so the angel didn't last long and there was flour all over my kitchen.
12. Reginald brings some new Christmas books and reads with all of Finn's best friends.  The fun part was putting Finn to bed with Bear, Kitty-Kitty, Grover, and Nigel and then sneaking in there to untangle them from Finn's little arms and sneak them downstairs for story-time!  He was so excited that morning that all his friends were together reading about Santa!

1. Reginald VanWinkle arrives with a letter from Santa and delicious (cheap, waxy) donuts.  He must be on a North Pole budget.  Finn kept telling me (read: yelling) that he was just looking!
2. RVW changes the milk in the refrigerator red and green.  I could not handle having an entire gallon of milk turned red or green, so they each got their own little cup and straw.  Abby couldn't find him all morning and was allegedly getting very annoyed.  We learned that red and green milk does, in fact, make tongues red and green.
3. Reginald inspects the Christmas stockings to ensure they will be fully functioning for Christmas morning goodies. 
4. Reginald lets all of the animals out of the barn.  He did give the sheep some snuggles, though.  Finn immediately relocated RVW back to the little Christmas tree so that he could play with the farm.  I didn't get on his case for touching the elf because he moved him and then didn't touch him again.
5. Reginald brings the Merry Madigascar movie - and proceeds to watch it with Gloria, Melman, and Alex (no zebras to be found in our house.).  We have now watched this movie 100,000 times.  Finn has taken to wishing people a Merry Julianuary.
6. Reginald fishes for goldfish crackers.  With an ice fishing pole and a very real hook.  I do not recommend using dangerous things with your elf, but we told Finn to look with his eyes, not with his fingers and nobody was impaled with a sharp hook.
7. Reginald makes an obstacle course out of aforementioned delicious, cheap donuts.  He borrowed Barbie's seldom-used motor scooter for his antics.
8. Reginald brings breakfast to be eaten out of new snowman cereal bowls.  He hung around all day and watched the initial Christmas cookie dough making.
9. Reginald makes a race track out of masking tape for Finn's cars.  I think that this was my favorite morning...Finn came downstairs looking for Reginald and he kept exclaiming  "He's playing cars with me, Mama!  He's playing cars with me!"  Also, I don't know why we didn't think to make him a race track with tape before.  He played with it for days (until we had to peel it up to wash the floor!).
10. Reginald hung out in the "B" of the Happy Birthday banner on Abby's birthday morning.  Again, Abby couldn't find him in the morning and told me she happened to glance up while she was eating her breakfast and there he was, staring at her.  She was kind of creeped out.
11. Reginald makes a snow angle in the flour.  It is not easy to get flour off of the felt suit the Reggie resides in.  As an added bonus, Finn loves to run his cars through the flour and make tracks, so the angel didn't last long and there was flour all over my kitchen.
12. Reginald brings some new Christmas books and reads with all of Finn's best friends.  The fun part was putting Finn to bed with Bear, Kitty-Kitty, Grover, and Nigel and then sneaking in there to untangle them from Finn's little arms and sneak them downstairs for story-time!  He was so excited that morning that all his friends were together reading about Santa!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...or not.

{ 2010 | 2011 | 2012 }

We finally got around to decorating our tree last night.  You know, 6 days before Christmas.  Better late than never?  I've decided that we'll leave it up at least until January 6th (Little Christmas, when the Magi visit Baby Jesus) and we'll celebrate with three little presents for the kids to help them remember Christmas all year long.  What those three little presents will be, I'm not sure yet.  I have some ideas, though, and they did not come from Pinterest this time!

Finn and I returned Monday from a whirl-wind trip to Kansas City where we spent time loving on the newest, teeny-tiniest member of our family.  We went with my youngest sister, and as she is gainfully employed, her time away is limited, so it was an incredibly fast weekend trip; I didn't get to do or see everyone and everything that I wanted to (next time, I promise!) but I did spend an inordinate amount of time holding that sweet smelling baby.  Finn travels like a champ (probably because we've been grooming him from week 2 of life to make the trip between Minnesota and Missouri).  I, however, am starting to feel the effects of 20 hours in the car in a 72-hour span.  And although I still have laundry galore all over my house and empty Christmas totes to take downstarirs and general straightening up to do, it was totally worth it.  I can confidently say that my new nephew is the cutest baby I have seen in two and a half years!  And my sister is amazing.  She is already an awesome mom and I feel really lucky to have been able to share that early time with her and her boys.

So now we have Christmas to prepare for.  A very small, quiet Christmas with just the 4 of us since Uriah has to work on Christmas day.  This is a novelty for us, we've had only one Christmas in our own house with just our little family in all the years that we've been together. The last time this happened was the Christmas before Finn was born; Kansas City had a huge snowstorm and we couldn't go anywhere.  It was awesome.  As much as I will miss my family this year (and I will! A bunch!) I'm very much looking forward to Christmas Eve mass at our church and dinner on our wedding china and staying up late with my husband to put together some awesome gifts and then waking up Christmas morning to find Santa has come!

Between now and then, though, we need to get rid of the laundry piles, go to the grocery store, finish making Christmas cookies and generally make our house less of a tornado and more of a welcoming Christmas retreat!  I'm going to get on that...pinkey swear.

Tomorrow I'm going to share with you the first 12 days of our Elf on the Shelf.  I did really good following my calendar at the beginning, but then we went to Kansas City and somehow I got a little lazy, so this last week has been a bit lame, but Finn still loves looking for Reginald every morning, even if he is only hanging from the chalk board with a naughty and nice list!

Happy Thursday, friends!
Only 5 days until Christmas!
Wishing for some snow here, but I'm quite certain we will have only a spotty-White Christmas!

And P.S. -  Can you even believe how big Finn has gotten in those Christmas tree pictures?  I can't (but then, I mostly live in denial!).  I think he should still be my teeny-tiny boy baby instead of the ball of energy that he has become!

And P.P.S - I just noticed that I never did finish/post Abby's Birthday Retrospective.  Saturday will be a day devoted to our teenager (my list of things to accomplish just got longer!).  I saw last night that she had the movie 13 Going on 30 in the DVD player and I had to smile!

{ 2010 | 2011 | 2012 }

We finally got around to decorating our tree last night.  You know, 6 days before Christmas.  Better late than never?  I've decided that we'll leave it up at least until January 6th (Little Christmas, when the Magi visit Baby Jesus) and we'll celebrate with three little presents for the kids to help them remember Christmas all year long.  What those three little presents will be, I'm not sure yet.  I have some ideas, though, and they did not come from Pinterest this time!

Finn and I returned Monday from a whirl-wind trip to Kansas City where we spent time loving on the newest, teeny-tiniest member of our family.  We went with my youngest sister, and as she is gainfully employed, her time away is limited, so it was an incredibly fast weekend trip; I didn't get to do or see everyone and everything that I wanted to (next time, I promise!) but I did spend an inordinate amount of time holding that sweet smelling baby.  Finn travels like a champ (probably because we've been grooming him from week 2 of life to make the trip between Minnesota and Missouri).  I, however, am starting to feel the effects of 20 hours in the car in a 72-hour span.  And although I still have laundry galore all over my house and empty Christmas totes to take downstarirs and general straightening up to do, it was totally worth it.  I can confidently say that my new nephew is the cutest baby I have seen in two and a half years!  And my sister is amazing.  She is already an awesome mom and I feel really lucky to have been able to share that early time with her and her boys.

So now we have Christmas to prepare for.  A very small, quiet Christmas with just the 4 of us since Uriah has to work on Christmas day.  This is a novelty for us, we've had only one Christmas in our own house with just our little family in all the years that we've been together. The last time this happened was the Christmas before Finn was born; Kansas City had a huge snowstorm and we couldn't go anywhere.  It was awesome.  As much as I will miss my family this year (and I will! A bunch!) I'm very much looking forward to Christmas Eve mass at our church and dinner on our wedding china and staying up late with my husband to put together some awesome gifts and then waking up Christmas morning to find Santa has come!

Between now and then, though, we need to get rid of the laundry piles, go to the grocery store, finish making Christmas cookies and generally make our house less of a tornado and more of a welcoming Christmas retreat!  I'm going to get on that...pinkey swear.

Tomorrow I'm going to share with you the first 12 days of our Elf on the Shelf.  I did really good following my calendar at the beginning, but then we went to Kansas City and somehow I got a little lazy, so this last week has been a bit lame, but Finn still loves looking for Reginald every morning, even if he is only hanging from the chalk board with a naughty and nice list!

Happy Thursday, friends!
Only 5 days until Christmas!
Wishing for some snow here, but I'm quite certain we will have only a spotty-White Christmas!

And P.S. -  Can you even believe how big Finn has gotten in those Christmas tree pictures?  I can't (but then, I mostly live in denial!).  I think he should still be my teeny-tiny boy baby instead of the ball of energy that he has become!

And P.P.S - I just noticed that I never did finish/post Abby's Birthday Retrospective.  Saturday will be a day devoted to our teenager (my list of things to accomplish just got longer!).  I saw last night that she had the movie 13 Going on 30 in the DVD player and I had to smile!

The Best Christmas {song list} ever.

Once, a long time ago, my sister and I found ourselves home alone for Christmas.  Our parents had headed south to celebrate in Kansas City, and I had to work around that holiday, so I didn't have the time off.  I'm not sure if Emily had to work, too, or if she just chose to stay back with me so I wouldn't be all alone (cue sad music here for poor me.).  At any rate, we had, quite possible the best Christmas ever*.  We pulled out the sofa bed in the living room and proceeded to watch every Christmas movie we owned.  We made steak and lobster for our Christmas dinner.  We did not get out of our jammies.

And we created, arguably,  the best Christmas mixed tape ever.  Okay, fine.  It was a CD - it was 2005 after all, but a mixed tape sounds so much better!  It is a CD that I look forward to pulling out every year, although this year it is starting to show some wear (some of the songs are skipping; I think the disk has been compromised   You can really cue the sad music here!) but we still listen to it; Finn and I dance to it almost every evening as we make dinner.

• Mele Kalikimaka - Bing Crosby
• Santa Baby - Ertha Kitt
• Oh, Holy Night - Celine Dion
• Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Jessica Simpson
• Merry Christmas/Cannon in D - Trans Siberian Orchestra
• Home for the Holidays - Perry Como
• Charlie Brown Christmas
• It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas - Bing Crosby
• Winter Wonderland - The Carpenters
• Baby It's Cold Outside - Zooey Deschanel & Leon Redbone
• Where are you Christmas - Faith Hill
• Merry Christmas, Darling - The Carpenters
• Hanukkah Song - Adam Sandler
• White Christmas - Home Alone version
• Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee
• All I want for Christmas is You - Mariah Carey
• White Christmas - Bing Crosby
• It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas - Alvin & the Chipmunks

Now, obviously some songs are repeated, but it's the entertainers that make the song - Alvin & the Chipmunks version of It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas is just as awesome as Bing's!  And I challenge you to judge Celine Dion's Oh, Holy Night.  I would add Dolly Parton's Hard Candy Christmas and I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas by Gayla Peevey.  

What's your favorite Christmas song?  Is there something you look forward to hearing every year that I can add to my play list?

And also, here are my kids, since I know some of you (side eye to my sister) only come here to see them.  They are weird.  I thought I'd share their weirdness with you to get you through the weekend.  

We're going to make some Christmas cookies, listen to our Christmas songs and hunker in for a big old-fashioned snowstorm that is (allegedly) headed our way this weekend.  Abby's birthday is Monday.  She's going to be thirteen.  You will probably find me hiding under my covers for the next 6 years, but only after I write about the previous 5 years that I've shared with her.  You can see it here on Monday - or, as Abby likes to call it - AbbyDay.



*This year might be the best Christmas ever if new Baby Cousin shows up before Jesus' big day...

Once, a long time ago, my sister and I found ourselves home alone for Christmas.  Our parents had headed south to celebrate in Kansas City, and I had to work around that holiday, so I didn't have the time off.  I'm not sure if Emily had to work, too, or if she just chose to stay back with me so I wouldn't be all alone (cue sad music here for poor me.).  At any rate, we had, quite possible the best Christmas ever*.  We pulled out the sofa bed in the living room and proceeded to watch every Christmas movie we owned.  We made steak and lobster for our Christmas dinner.  We did not get out of our jammies.

And we created, arguably,  the best Christmas mixed tape ever.  Okay, fine.  It was a CD - it was 2005 after all, but a mixed tape sounds so much better!  It is a CD that I look forward to pulling out every year, although this year it is starting to show some wear (some of the songs are skipping; I think the disk has been compromised   You can really cue the sad music here!) but we still listen to it; Finn and I dance to it almost every evening as we make dinner.

• Mele Kalikimaka - Bing Crosby
• Santa Baby - Ertha Kitt
• Oh, Holy Night - Celine Dion
• Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Jessica Simpson
• Merry Christmas/Cannon in D - Trans Siberian Orchestra
• Home for the Holidays - Perry Como
• Charlie Brown Christmas
• It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas - Bing Crosby
• Winter Wonderland - The Carpenters
• Baby It's Cold Outside - Zooey Deschanel & Leon Redbone
• Where are you Christmas - Faith Hill
• Merry Christmas, Darling - The Carpenters
• Hanukkah Song - Adam Sandler
• White Christmas - Home Alone version
• Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree - Brenda Lee
• All I want for Christmas is You - Mariah Carey
• White Christmas - Bing Crosby
• It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas - Alvin & the Chipmunks

Now, obviously some songs are repeated, but it's the entertainers that make the song - Alvin & the Chipmunks version of It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas is just as awesome as Bing's!  And I challenge you to judge Celine Dion's Oh, Holy Night.  I would add Dolly Parton's Hard Candy Christmas and I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas by Gayla Peevey.  

What's your favorite Christmas song?  Is there something you look forward to hearing every year that I can add to my play list?

And also, here are my kids, since I know some of you (side eye to my sister) only come here to see them.  They are weird.  I thought I'd share their weirdness with you to get you through the weekend.  

We're going to make some Christmas cookies, listen to our Christmas songs and hunker in for a big old-fashioned snowstorm that is (allegedly) headed our way this weekend.  Abby's birthday is Monday.  She's going to be thirteen.  You will probably find me hiding under my covers for the next 6 years, but only after I write about the previous 5 years that I've shared with her.  You can see it here on Monday - or, as Abby likes to call it - AbbyDay.



*This year might be the best Christmas ever if new Baby Cousin shows up before Jesus' big day...

Reginald VanWinkle: Resident Elf {Elf on the Shelf}

 We are all elfed up in this house.

True story: Uriah wanted to name our elf Babe Winkleman and Abby admitted that she would have named him Buddy (as in: Buddy the Elf, what's your favorite color Will Farrell fame?!).  Finn's choice when I asked him?  Thunderbolt.  Of all of them, Finn's name had the most potential, but I have a firm grip on reality and, obviously, control of this house, so we named him Reginald VanWinkle.  I call him RVDub.  The kids call him Reggie.

Reginald VanWinkle arrived Saturday morning on a small Christmas tree with a bag of the cheapest, most delicous powder sugar donuts and a letter from Santa explaining his duties.  I did a quick world wide interweb search for the best Santa letterhead and some ideas for the letter from Santa.  Turns out I didn't have to look very far because one of my friends is doing this with her girls, too, so I borrowed her letter - it was perfect for what I was looking for, a little bit of Christmas magic, a little bit of Jesus; I only had to tweak it a bit (when I added to the original letter it was 2 pages long; who would have thought I could be so wordy?  It needed to be narrowed down a bit and I edited it down to 1 page!).  So in addition to talking about Jesus being the biggest and best gift and reminding the small humans to be kind to each other and helping others, the letter also gave some of the Rules of the Elf.  For example, RVW watches all day long for good and bad behavior and reports directly to Santa every night and  you can't touch the elf or he loses his magic.  Finn kept yelling at me, "I'm not touching him, Mama!  I'm just talking to him!"  The elf moves every night and in the morning the small humans have to find where he is.  Some days he'll be doing mischievous things, like drinking our pancake syrup or hanging socks and undies on the Christmas tree.  Some days he's just in a new observation spot.

Yesterday morning, for example, he showed up in our refrigerator, having turned a glass of milk red and one green for Abby and Finn.  Abby claimed to have looked all over the house in the morning before giving up and going to the refrigerator to get the milk out for some cereal - and finding RVDub in the process.  Finn, of course, was pretty much told where to look, but he laughed when he opened the refrigerator to find Reggie just hanging out and chose to drink the green milk, leaving the red for Abby.  (Sidebar: Cursive handwriting is so hard!)

It's been well established that I like to be organized (and also I like to not have to think about where I'm going to move Reginald VanWinkle each night) so I made up an itinerary of where he's going to be each morning.  At least once a week he has a gift for the small humans, mittens or a new Christmas CD, but mostly he just does fun things.

I am looking forward to Reginald VanWinkle's Christmas season in our house.  I'll try to post some more pictures on the blog as we work through his itinerary, and I'll probably be posting  more of his super fun capers on Instagram (Do you do Instagram?  I love it.  It's my go-to for pictures these days because it's so easy and fun!) or if we're friends on Facebook, you'll probably see some pictures there, too.

Happy Monday, friends!  Finn and I are still stuck in the house again today trying to get rid of his hacking cough so that we can be healthy enough to head south when the new baby comes.  In the process, we are busy making this house merry and bright!

 We are all elfed up in this house.

True story: Uriah wanted to name our elf Babe Winkleman and Abby admitted that she would have named him Buddy (as in: Buddy the Elf, what's your favorite color Will Farrell fame?!).  Finn's choice when I asked him?  Thunderbolt.  Of all of them, Finn's name had the most potential, but I have a firm grip on reality and, obviously, control of this house, so we named him Reginald VanWinkle.  I call him RVDub.  The kids call him Reggie.

Reginald VanWinkle arrived Saturday morning on a small Christmas tree with a bag of the cheapest, most delicous powder sugar donuts and a letter from Santa explaining his duties.  I did a quick world wide interweb search for the best Santa letterhead and some ideas for the letter from Santa.  Turns out I didn't have to look very far because one of my friends is doing this with her girls, too, so I borrowed her letter - it was perfect for what I was looking for, a little bit of Christmas magic, a little bit of Jesus; I only had to tweak it a bit (when I added to the original letter it was 2 pages long; who would have thought I could be so wordy?  It needed to be narrowed down a bit and I edited it down to 1 page!).  So in addition to talking about Jesus being the biggest and best gift and reminding the small humans to be kind to each other and helping others, the letter also gave some of the Rules of the Elf.  For example, RVW watches all day long for good and bad behavior and reports directly to Santa every night and  you can't touch the elf or he loses his magic.  Finn kept yelling at me, "I'm not touching him, Mama!  I'm just talking to him!"  The elf moves every night and in the morning the small humans have to find where he is.  Some days he'll be doing mischievous things, like drinking our pancake syrup or hanging socks and undies on the Christmas tree.  Some days he's just in a new observation spot.

Yesterday morning, for example, he showed up in our refrigerator, having turned a glass of milk red and one green for Abby and Finn.  Abby claimed to have looked all over the house in the morning before giving up and going to the refrigerator to get the milk out for some cereal - and finding RVDub in the process.  Finn, of course, was pretty much told where to look, but he laughed when he opened the refrigerator to find Reggie just hanging out and chose to drink the green milk, leaving the red for Abby.  (Sidebar: Cursive handwriting is so hard!)

It's been well established that I like to be organized (and also I like to not have to think about where I'm going to move Reginald VanWinkle each night) so I made up an itinerary of where he's going to be each morning.  At least once a week he has a gift for the small humans, mittens or a new Christmas CD, but mostly he just does fun things.

I am looking forward to Reginald VanWinkle's Christmas season in our house.  I'll try to post some more pictures on the blog as we work through his itinerary, and I'll probably be posting  more of his super fun capers on Instagram (Do you do Instagram?  I love it.  It's my go-to for pictures these days because it's so easy and fun!) or if we're friends on Facebook, you'll probably see some pictures there, too.

Happy Monday, friends!  Finn and I are still stuck in the house again today trying to get rid of his hacking cough so that we can be healthy enough to head south when the new baby comes.  In the process, we are busy making this house merry and bright!

24 Days of Christmas Books

{ Titles are listed below. }

Last year I saw on Pinterest (of course) the idea to have 24 Christmas books to count down to Christmas.  The idea is that the books are wrapped under the tree and each night the small humans can open one book and we'll read that book for bedtime.  

Our Christmas books only come out at Christmas time, so at most, we read them once a year (some of the more favored books get read two or three times in the Christmas season.).  I have quite a stock-pile of Christmas books, some the kids have received as gifts, some I have collected over the years, and some came from my mom's Christmas book collection.  Last year I headed over to Barnes and Noble for their day after Christmas sale to supplement my supply for this year.  I stock-piled a few books at a deeply discounted price, which was awesome (because I'm cheap and I'm pretty sure our Library would frown upon me wrapping up their books and leaving them under my tree for the month of December.).  I did not buy 24 new books, although I easily could have, but I tucked the special new books away in our Christmas totes and proceeded not to think about them until I started digging around downstairs for some decorations last week.  And then I remembered my plan for this year!

Below is our list of books in no particular order:

1. Froggy's Best Christmas - Jonathan London
2. The Christmas Magic - Lauren Thompson
3. Huckleberry Hound and the Christmas Sleigh - Little Golden Book
4. Little Golden Book: Christmas Favorites
5. The Biggest, Most Beautiful Christmas Tree - Little Golden Book
6. The Last Straw - Fredrick H. Thury
7. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - Little Golden Book
8. Santa's Toy Shop - Little Golden Book
9. Jingle Bells - Little Golden Book
10. The Night Before Christmas - Jan Brett
11. The Littlest Elf - Brandi Dougherty
12. There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed A Bell - Lucille Colandro
13. How the Grinch Stole Christmas - Dr. Seuss
14. Mooseltoe - Margie Palatini
15. Christmas Trolls - Jan Brett
16. The Wild Christmas Reindeer - Jan Brett
17. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (movie version)
18. Olivia Helps with Christmas - Ian Falconer
19. A Cars Christmas
20. Bialosky's Christmas - Leslie McGuire
21. Bear Stays Up for Christmas - Karma Wilson
22. Room for a Little One - Martin Waddell
23. A Very Mater Christmas
24. The Christmas Baby - Marion Dane Bauer***

The kids always get a book in their Christmas stocking, so December 25th will find a new book for each of them.  This is clearly geared more towards Finneaus, but Abby likes to listen to bedtime stories occasionally,  too.  I have very fond memories of being read to as a child and later of reading the American Girl series to Abby when she was just a small girl.  My favorite time of the day these days is a snuggle and a book with Finn (and it happens often, not just at bedtime!).

There is something about being read to; I think reading out loud is my love language.  

Tomorrow our Elf on the Shelf pal, Reginald VanWinkle, will make his grand debut in the Hefter home, so I will share my calendar of Reginald VanWinkle's events and a few pictures of what I have planned for this season.  Hoping for a Christmas tree hunt this weekend and maybe some snow time outside on the trails if Finn is feeling better...enjoy your weekend!

***This is my most favorite book this holiday season; I can't read it without tearing up.  I will neither confirm nor deny that I cried in the middle of Barnes and Noble reading this.  Obviously with a new small human on the way in a few short weeks (not mine!) it is perfect for our family, so I sent it to my sister.  I believe that she cried, too, but she's pregnant, so her tears are expected.  If you happen to be at B&N, go to their children's section, pull it off the shelf, find a relatively private corner and proceed to have plenty of kleenex handy while you read.  Or maybe it's just me and I'm too emotional when it comes to babies, in which case, ignore the kleenex advice.

{ Titles are listed below. }

Last year I saw on Pinterest (of course) the idea to have 24 Christmas books to count down to Christmas.  The idea is that the books are wrapped under the tree and each night the small humans can open one book and we'll read that book for bedtime.  

Our Christmas books only come out at Christmas time, so at most, we read them once a year (some of the more favored books get read two or three times in the Christmas season.).  I have quite a stock-pile of Christmas books, some the kids have received as gifts, some I have collected over the years, and some came from my mom's Christmas book collection.  Last year I headed over to Barnes and Noble for their day after Christmas sale to supplement my supply for this year.  I stock-piled a few books at a deeply discounted price, which was awesome (because I'm cheap and I'm pretty sure our Library would frown upon me wrapping up their books and leaving them under my tree for the month of December.).  I did not buy 24 new books, although I easily could have, but I tucked the special new books away in our Christmas totes and proceeded not to think about them until I started digging around downstairs for some decorations last week.  And then I remembered my plan for this year!

Below is our list of books in no particular order:

1. Froggy's Best Christmas - Jonathan London
2. The Christmas Magic - Lauren Thompson
3. Huckleberry Hound and the Christmas Sleigh - Little Golden Book
4. Little Golden Book: Christmas Favorites
5. The Biggest, Most Beautiful Christmas Tree - Little Golden Book
6. The Last Straw - Fredrick H. Thury
7. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - Little Golden Book
8. Santa's Toy Shop - Little Golden Book
9. Jingle Bells - Little Golden Book
10. The Night Before Christmas - Jan Brett
11. The Littlest Elf - Brandi Dougherty
12. There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed A Bell - Lucille Colandro
13. How the Grinch Stole Christmas - Dr. Seuss
14. Mooseltoe - Margie Palatini
15. Christmas Trolls - Jan Brett
16. The Wild Christmas Reindeer - Jan Brett
17. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (movie version)
18. Olivia Helps with Christmas - Ian Falconer
19. A Cars Christmas
20. Bialosky's Christmas - Leslie McGuire
21. Bear Stays Up for Christmas - Karma Wilson
22. Room for a Little One - Martin Waddell
23. A Very Mater Christmas
24. The Christmas Baby - Marion Dane Bauer***

The kids always get a book in their Christmas stocking, so December 25th will find a new book for each of them.  This is clearly geared more towards Finneaus, but Abby likes to listen to bedtime stories occasionally,  too.  I have very fond memories of being read to as a child and later of reading the American Girl series to Abby when she was just a small girl.  My favorite time of the day these days is a snuggle and a book with Finn (and it happens often, not just at bedtime!).

There is something about being read to; I think reading out loud is my love language.  

Tomorrow our Elf on the Shelf pal, Reginald VanWinkle, will make his grand debut in the Hefter home, so I will share my calendar of Reginald VanWinkle's events and a few pictures of what I have planned for this season.  Hoping for a Christmas tree hunt this weekend and maybe some snow time outside on the trails if Finn is feeling better...enjoy your weekend!

***This is my most favorite book this holiday season; I can't read it without tearing up.  I will neither confirm nor deny that I cried in the middle of Barnes and Noble reading this.  Obviously with a new small human on the way in a few short weeks (not mine!) it is perfect for our family, so I sent it to my sister.  I believe that she cried, too, but she's pregnant, so her tears are expected.  If you happen to be at B&N, go to their children's section, pull it off the shelf, find a relatively private corner and proceed to have plenty of kleenex handy while you read.  Or maybe it's just me and I'm too emotional when it comes to babies, in which case, ignore the kleenex advice.

A Very Turducken Thanksgiving

The small humans and I enjoyed a very quite, uneventful, travel-less Thanksgiving Day. Uriah was out the door long before Abby made a morning appearance, but Finn and I were awake shortly after he left (such is the case when you have a creaky old house.).  We had breakfast and plotted and planned our day.  The sun peeked out early and the weather was somewhat warm, so after watching a bit of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on tv, Finn headed outside to play.  What I love most about this house is that he can play in the back yard and I can be in the kitchen and because of all of the windows, I can track his moves.  I also had the door open for awhile to let some of the fresh fall air in.

I had already spent most of the week preparing for Friday's festivities, and since I plan everything with lists and time tables, I was pretty well prepared on Thursday for what was to come on Friday. Uriah had de-boned the birds Wednesday night, I had casseroles prepared, bread dough proofing for dinner rolls, sweet potato sticky buns ready to go in the oven Friday morning so really, the only thing I had left to do Thursday was to make a pumpkin pie - I chose to veer away from the norm and made an Amaretto Pumpkin Pie with Almond Praline. I'm somewhat of a pie crust failure, although I've studied diligently at the knee of my mother; she is the queen of a light, flaky crust. Mine tend to be over-rolled and a bit gummy, so I took my time with it. I walked away a few times to play outside with Finn and it took me most of the morning to finish it off and bake it.

I surprised the small humans with build your own pizzas and the movie Brave Thursday night. And as we settled in to enjoy our dinner picnic-style in the living room with our movie, the first flakes began to fall.  It didn't take long for the back yard to be covered and the words to Winter Wonderland began to filter through my head. Unfortunately, my parents drive took them about an hour extra due to the crap roads, but they made it. Finn and I had just gone outside on a snowy adventure when they pulled into the driveway (read: Finn was dying to go outside into the snow and I could see that the sidewalk needed some serious shoveling done, hence the "adventure.").

Our family and friends arrived on Friday afternoon for the feast.  There was lots of snacking, lots of puppy dog kisses, a few baby melt-downs, and some family pictures taken in the snow.  There was a long drawn-out game of Monopoly between the tween crowd, Abby fell down the stairs - and remained unharmed, and Ginny the dog tried her hardest to make friends with Finn (he was having none of her adorableness and chose instead to be held.  By me.  A lot.).  Two 6-foot long tables surrounded by 14 chairs held the masses of food and people for dinner.  We all said what we were thankful for, which takes a minute when you have 9 adults, 3 tweens, and 2 toddlers.  I was - and still am - thankful for every person who happens to find themselves around my table at any time of the year, for plenty of food to eat, and for safe travels.

We pretty much ate everything; there was not much for leftovers, which is a good thing for my refrigerator (and my waist), but not so much when I really wanted a snack of mashed potatoes and gravy on Friday night (there were no potatoes leftover to snack on.  Or gravy.  I probably would have eaten the gravy with a spoon and no potatoes.).  For as much work as I though the turducken would be, it seemed to be no more time-consuming than doing a traditional turkey (which we've done in a brine before, and also takes preparing a few days in advance.).  I wanted to take more pictures but I don't even know what I was doing  - setting the table, probably, or holding Finn - and I turned around and it was in the oven, roasted and done.  It was pretty tasty and I would not be opposed to doing it again.

We did have leftovers of the turducken beast and let me assure you, it does make some mighty tasty turkey/duck/chicken/stuffing turnovers a few days later.  And my pastry crust was flaky.  And Uriah even made gravy for them.  I might still be dreaming of Turducken Turnovers.

I think I want to have Thanksgiving at my house every year for the next forever.  Whether our families will oblige remains to be seen.  But I love Thanksgiving and so I will cook for whomever wants to come to my house and eat at my table.

And also, I really (selfishly) loved not having to travel, because this is what a few hours difference will make:

Thursday at 11:49 am (L) | Thursday at 8:40 pm (R)

The small humans and I enjoyed a very quite, uneventful, travel-less Thanksgiving Day. Uriah was out the door long before Abby made a morning appearance, but Finn and I were awake shortly after he left (such is the case when you have a creaky old house.).  We had breakfast and plotted and planned our day.  The sun peeked out early and the weather was somewhat warm, so after watching a bit of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on tv, Finn headed outside to play.  What I love most about this house is that he can play in the back yard and I can be in the kitchen and because of all of the windows, I can track his moves.  I also had the door open for awhile to let some of the fresh fall air in.

I had already spent most of the week preparing for Friday's festivities, and since I plan everything with lists and time tables, I was pretty well prepared on Thursday for what was to come on Friday. Uriah had de-boned the birds Wednesday night, I had casseroles prepared, bread dough proofing for dinner rolls, sweet potato sticky buns ready to go in the oven Friday morning so really, the only thing I had left to do Thursday was to make a pumpkin pie - I chose to veer away from the norm and made an Amaretto Pumpkin Pie with Almond Praline. I'm somewhat of a pie crust failure, although I've studied diligently at the knee of my mother; she is the queen of a light, flaky crust. Mine tend to be over-rolled and a bit gummy, so I took my time with it. I walked away a few times to play outside with Finn and it took me most of the morning to finish it off and bake it.

I surprised the small humans with build your own pizzas and the movie Brave Thursday night. And as we settled in to enjoy our dinner picnic-style in the living room with our movie, the first flakes began to fall.  It didn't take long for the back yard to be covered and the words to Winter Wonderland began to filter through my head. Unfortunately, my parents drive took them about an hour extra due to the crap roads, but they made it. Finn and I had just gone outside on a snowy adventure when they pulled into the driveway (read: Finn was dying to go outside into the snow and I could see that the sidewalk needed some serious shoveling done, hence the "adventure.").

Our family and friends arrived on Friday afternoon for the feast.  There was lots of snacking, lots of puppy dog kisses, a few baby melt-downs, and some family pictures taken in the snow.  There was a long drawn-out game of Monopoly between the tween crowd, Abby fell down the stairs - and remained unharmed, and Ginny the dog tried her hardest to make friends with Finn (he was having none of her adorableness and chose instead to be held.  By me.  A lot.).  Two 6-foot long tables surrounded by 14 chairs held the masses of food and people for dinner.  We all said what we were thankful for, which takes a minute when you have 9 adults, 3 tweens, and 2 toddlers.  I was - and still am - thankful for every person who happens to find themselves around my table at any time of the year, for plenty of food to eat, and for safe travels.

We pretty much ate everything; there was not much for leftovers, which is a good thing for my refrigerator (and my waist), but not so much when I really wanted a snack of mashed potatoes and gravy on Friday night (there were no potatoes leftover to snack on.  Or gravy.  I probably would have eaten the gravy with a spoon and no potatoes.).  For as much work as I though the turducken would be, it seemed to be no more time-consuming than doing a traditional turkey (which we've done in a brine before, and also takes preparing a few days in advance.).  I wanted to take more pictures but I don't even know what I was doing  - setting the table, probably, or holding Finn - and I turned around and it was in the oven, roasted and done.  It was pretty tasty and I would not be opposed to doing it again.

We did have leftovers of the turducken beast and let me assure you, it does make some mighty tasty turkey/duck/chicken/stuffing turnovers a few days later.  And my pastry crust was flaky.  And Uriah even made gravy for them.  I might still be dreaming of Turducken Turnovers.

I think I want to have Thanksgiving at my house every year for the next forever.  Whether our families will oblige remains to be seen.  But I love Thanksgiving and so I will cook for whomever wants to come to my house and eat at my table.

And also, I really (selfishly) loved not having to travel, because this is what a few hours difference will make:

Thursday at 11:49 am (L) | Thursday at 8:40 pm (R)

Thankfuls

We are hosting Thanksgiving at our house this year.  A small gathering of Minnesota family on Friday since Uriah has to feed the masses on Thursday.  The small humans and I have big plans to watch movies and eat pizza on Thursday and I am actually looking forward to the quietness of Thursday as we gear up for Friday.  We tend to be a little over-zealous when it comes to entertaining, so Uriah is making a Turducken, which is a duck inside of a chicken inside of a turkey, layered with venison stuffing and roasted.  Each bird needs to be boned and the idea is that when you slice it, you'll have a layer of  of each bird.  I am not sure how one goes about boning a chicken, duck, and turkey; add to that the fact that Uriah threw out his back yesterday and is hobbling around like I did two summers ago, it's going to be an interesting weekend.  But we do nothing if we don't do it big.  If I have my wits about me, and my camera, I will blog about it next week - the turducken, not the hobbling; although I will probably have stories about that, too!

Anyway...things I am thankful for this year: another year with Uriah (and Finn and Abby, too), family - and soon a new member niece or nephew to make family gatherings a little bigger, a new beginning, having an over-all healthy family, Minnesota and Lake Superior and hikes and walks and runs, positive steps toward potty training and a little boy who's not such a baby anymore, the men and women who have served our country and those who continue to do so, nap time, books and hot coffee and cozy slippers, being home.

I had the lofty attainable goal of loosing 8 pounds by Thanksgiving and I didn't quite make it (I blame the martinis and daylight savings time and my own unambitious ways), but I did lose a little bit of weight, so I will mark that as a success. I've been almost a year on WW, and in that time I've managed to maintain a 25 pound weight loss (give or take a couple of pounds in either direction)  I am very thankful for that.  I've recently found that counting calories has its place, too.  It's a balance and I'm trying to remember that some days are easier that others and sometimes I just need to make it easier for myself.

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend!  May you eat until you are content, enjoy family and friends, and save room for pie (or, with the demise of Hostess, perhaps a non-traditional Twinkie Cake?!  I might just have to add it to my already gigantic weekend menu...).

We are hosting Thanksgiving at our house this year.  A small gathering of Minnesota family on Friday since Uriah has to feed the masses on Thursday.  The small humans and I have big plans to watch movies and eat pizza on Thursday and I am actually looking forward to the quietness of Thursday as we gear up for Friday.  We tend to be a little over-zealous when it comes to entertaining, so Uriah is making a Turducken, which is a duck inside of a chicken inside of a turkey, layered with venison stuffing and roasted.  Each bird needs to be boned and the idea is that when you slice it, you'll have a layer of  of each bird.  I am not sure how one goes about boning a chicken, duck, and turkey; add to that the fact that Uriah threw out his back yesterday and is hobbling around like I did two summers ago, it's going to be an interesting weekend.  But we do nothing if we don't do it big.  If I have my wits about me, and my camera, I will blog about it next week - the turducken, not the hobbling; although I will probably have stories about that, too!

Anyway...things I am thankful for this year: another year with Uriah (and Finn and Abby, too), family - and soon a new member niece or nephew to make family gatherings a little bigger, a new beginning, having an over-all healthy family, Minnesota and Lake Superior and hikes and walks and runs, positive steps toward potty training and a little boy who's not such a baby anymore, the men and women who have served our country and those who continue to do so, nap time, books and hot coffee and cozy slippers, being home.

I had the lofty attainable goal of loosing 8 pounds by Thanksgiving and I didn't quite make it (I blame the martinis and daylight savings time and my own unambitious ways), but I did lose a little bit of weight, so I will mark that as a success. I've been almost a year on WW, and in that time I've managed to maintain a 25 pound weight loss (give or take a couple of pounds in either direction)  I am very thankful for that.  I've recently found that counting calories has its place, too.  It's a balance and I'm trying to remember that some days are easier that others and sometimes I just need to make it easier for myself.

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend!  May you eat until you are content, enjoy family and friends, and save room for pie (or, with the demise of Hostess, perhaps a non-traditional Twinkie Cake?!  I might just have to add it to my already gigantic weekend menu...).