Festival of Trees

 This morning I was thinking how nice it would be to do fun Christmassy things this year with the kids.  Cailin is old enough now to get a real kick out of stuff like that, so I googled a quick search for local ideas and this weekend is the Festival of Trees!  I asked Cailin if she wanted to go and see Christmas trees.  She ran to get socks on (that means yes).  

There was so much to do and see at the venue.  It was pretty cost effective too, $20 for the whole afternoon, including souvenirs (including the priceless souvenir, see below).  I unloaded the jogging stroller and away we went.

The whole building is decked out in holiday splendor.  Cailin was so excited about the entrance booths because they had a snowman and candy canes on them.  Once inside the actual venue, she just stood with her mouth gaping and taking it all in.  It's absolutely beautiful and a child's Christmas dream come true.  The whole place is filled with trees of every shape, size and decoration scheme.  Giant snowflakes, twinkling lights and music.  There's booths painted like the North Pole, a gingerbread house display, mini shops, letter writing to Santa, and the man in red himself was there in person!  

We made a couple laps around all the booths and activities for Cailin to soak it all in.  We checked out the candy shoppe (and left just as quickly, everything looked delicious!) and wandered over to the Teddy Bear Hospital.  It's set up just like the NICU at the hospital with different activities at every station.  The 'nurses' were helping kids into doctor's coats for the 'rounds'.  Cailin wasn't brave enough to put a coat on.  She was extremely shy, but managed to drop my hand long enough to take a teddy bear's blood pressure and temperature:

 There was a big bear that had the "flu" and needed a cuddle and his temperature checked in both his mouth and armpit.  She wouldn't let go of my hand:

Carter was all snuggly in the stroller and did doze off here and there because it was naptime.  He liked the Teddy Bear Hospital too and was pretty friendly with the nurses.

We looked at the big decorated trees that were entered into the decorating contest.  There was some fantastic entries.  Cailin just looked and looked and looked.  So did Carter.  I wish I had gotten a picture of the trees.

Next we wandered over to the craft booth and decorated some gingerbread men:

Cailin had a riot and spooned so many sprinkles onto her cookie.  We made one up for Carter too.  At that point I figured we had been there long enough and everyone was feeling brave enough by now to ... MEET SANTA!  I would be wrong on that point, naturally.

I pulled Carter out of the stroller and smoothed his hair down.  Cailin immediately vaulted into his vacant spot and did up the seatbelt.  No way was she meeting Santa.  Santa is scary!  And forget a picture, she wasn't going anywhere near him.  We stood in line and I let her watch the proceedings without comment.  Carter was amazed by the blue trees nearby and told me lookit lookit! and pointed to so many things.

Finally it was our turn.  I told Cailin that Carter and I were going to have a picture done and she could come with us if she wanted, but that she didn't have to.  We would put the pic on Nana's fridge when we were done.  The 'no pressure' sales pitch worked.  She whipped off the seatbelt and joined us.  I put her on one knee and Santa took Carter.  Carter eyeballed Santa and put his blanket on his head and played peekaboo with him.  Then he lounged in Santa's arms and pulled his blanket up to his nose to fall asleep.  Santa had to keep pulling his blanket down so we could see Carter's face.  I held Cailin close and hoped she at least looked at the camera.  And hoped my lovely double chin would not be too visible, ha.  Santa asked Cailin what she wanted for Christmas.  Whenever we ask her, she replies with,  "A Christmas tree and lights." So I told him that.  He told me that Carter is an awfully friendly little guy and wished us a Merry Christmas.  On our way out of the photo area Cailin handed me a big booger.  Sometimes there isn't even words for that kind of thing.

While we waited for the picture to be printed, we wandered over to the super secret kid-only shopping booth.  It was super cute inside, and no adults allowed.  Well, Cailin wasn't going for that so I snuck in and hoped I would blend in.  Ha ha, I really didn't.  But Cailin found these lovely bells for her and Carter to ring:

The idea of that booth is for kids to go in and buy presents for their parents without them there.  Very cute idea, and the volunteers were so friendly and helpful.  The lady at the till laughed at me, "Hey, you're an adult!" She said it was okay to be there.

We walked around the venue a few more times to make sure we had done and seen everything.  It was then that the entertainment started on the stage.  Dancers came out and danced to neat music.  There was classic ballet, hip hop and modern.  Cailin was really impressed by them.  Then there was a number with lively and catchy music.  Cailin started dancing all over the place and had such a good time.  I got video of it.

The last place we visited was the mini Christmas tree area.  There were so many of these tiny and perfectly decorated trees.  Cailin's favorite was the Sesame Street one.  I liked one with owls on it.  There was every conceivable theme, from little plastic dinosaurs to a tree decked out with baby socks. I think we should decorate a little tree for Cailin's room to use as a nightlight.

I got them both back into their coats and ready to go outside.  Finally our picture was printed and I went to collect it with a dancing Cailin in tow and a sleeping Carter in the stroller.

Ready for it?

Seriously best five bucks I ever spent.  Carter is lounging and Cailin is about to pick her nose.  So that explains the booger.  Ew, ew, ew.  Yes, that's my princess.  This picture is now on our fridge and I will treasure it forever.  It will remind us of what a good day this was.

The day wasn't quite over yet.  Cailin knew there were sleigh rides and wanted to see the horses so badly.  I wasn't sure what to do with the stroller, but they let us put it on the wagon and take it with us.  Carter laughed going over bumps and then fell asleep.  Cailin enjoyed herself thoroughly, and I'm sure this was the favorite part of her day.  It was cold, but I wrapped Cailin in a blanket and Carter was toasty in his stroller.

I knew the driver, so he took us on a long ride around the park.  At night, they light up all the displays and it's so pretty to see.  It was still neat in the daylight.  There was a gentle snow falling, and frost on all the trees.  The horses were gentle and huge.  And gassy but no one will hold that against them.  Cailin didn't even comment when one pooped in front of her.

She asked me all sorts of questions about the horses and wanted them to neigh for her.  They didn't say anything at all, but they listen so well I was amazed.

It was peaceful listening to the horses' hooves clopping along and Cailin's sweet little voice exclaiming over all the wonders she was taking in.  Carter slept soundly.  When we got back to the building, she got out and petted the horses' noses and told them what good horsies they are.  She absolutely loved them.  I picked her up and held her close so she could get a good look at them.

Then because it was cold out, we went back inside and walked through the building to other side where the Jeep was parked.  Cailin didn't want to leave very badly.  Once we got home though, we broke out the gingerbread cookies and had a snack.

Carter was thrilled to get a cookie.  He called it a cracker and ate the entire thing.  He picked the sprinkles off and ate them and ooh'd and ahhh'd all over that cookie.  He was so tired he went to bed at 5pm.

Cailin ate only the head off her cookie and is saving the rest for later.  She opted for a whole wheat bagel instead.  Crazy kid!  She fell asleep on the couch and I woke her up as soon as I noticed.  I was so busy keeping Carter awake until 5 that I didn't know she had dozed off.

What a perfectly lovely day we had.  I want my kids to have the best Christmas memories of their childhoods and I think we can safely say this day will be one of them.

Look Who's Talking Now

My children have been amazing me with their language skills. Approximately every five minutes in their awake hours they drop linguistic bombs that both surprise and delight me.

Carter is talking nonstop now. He speaks a lovely Carterese most of the time, but lately it has been peppered with real words. Spoken clearly and in context.

He loves "P" words: papa, purple, paper, puppy and the ever effective, poop. I inadvertently taught him "poop" while changing his diaper. He spent the rest of the afternoon crawling around announcing "poop!" quite happily.

He was getting fussy in the pharmacy the other day so I was distracting him by pointing around and asking him what various things were. I was using an overly-cheerful-keep-the-baby-interested voice. "What's thaaaaat?" I crooned. Using the exact same tone and inflection, he replied, "I don't knoooow!"

At the till he realized that there was a nifty echo in that part of the store. After a couple test shrieks to perfect his pitch, he really let one whopper go, stopping abruptly to hear the resulting echo of his voice. Then his face lit up in an enormous grin, he laughed hysterically and did it again. The cashier leaned over to him and asked kindly, "What's the matter with you, pumpkin?" To which Carter replied, "I don't knooow!"

After a moment or two of silence, he decided to liven things up again by yelling, "DADDY!" at the top of his voice. He usually says 'dada'.

On the way to the parking lot he amused himself by yelling "No!" to all the passerby he came across. He's never said 'no' before.

All in all, it was quite an eventful trip to the pharmacy I'd say.

He's been saying 'thank you' for quite a while now. Whenever you hand him something, he replies with a cheerful thank you.

Other words used frequently: cookie, cracker, mama, nana, papa, truck, Bailey, Kelli, Cailin, Ry (my fault), go, dog, cow and more every day.

Cailin amazes me with her insight and inquisitiveness.

Last night she asked me where the sun goes at night. I told her it goes to sleep.

Cailin: Does the sun have a blanket?

Me: Yes, it uses a big cloud as a blanket.

Cailin: Does the sun get mad when his mommy makes him go to sleep when he's not tired?

Me (spying a Lesson Moment): No, the sun knows he has to go to bed like a good boy to get big and strong, just like you.

Cailin: I don't want to get big and strong! I want to stay little! I don't want to go to bed ever!

This morning I was carrying Carter while fending Bailey off my leg and walking behind Cailin. The stuffed Angry Bird in her arms chose that unfortunate moment to fly the coop, and she stopped and bent over to retrieve it. Lacking brake lights, I bumped into her, effectively kicking her in the bum and knocking her over at the same time. She stood up, brushed the hair off her face and told me, "Cut it out mom!" and went about her business. I was positive she would be more disgruntled about her mother kicking her down, but it was water off a duck's back. Then I closed Bailey's head in the cupboard about thirty seconds later. She wasn't quite as forgiving.

Cailin has also fully embraced the power of 'why'. Whenever I tell her to do something (or not to do something) she doesn't like, the "why?" gets rolled out for my amusement. She listens to my assessment and points out the loop holes. I was under the impression that she's too young to pick up on any inconsistencies, but she's proven me wrong a few times.

Cailin says stuff that is hilarious to me all the time:

While making Playdoh food: Your waffle will be done in a minute mom, don't panic. You need to stop your whining in my ears. (I blame Nana for this particular phrasing).

While playing down the hall: I need you to come here and see this mom, it will only take a minute okay? Don't give me trouble for playing in Kelli's bunk!

Cailin has also been completely potty trained, day AND night, for a while now. She will get up and use the potty in the night if she needs to, using a bubble bath bottle to flick the light switch on. Sometimes she feels the need to tell me if she did a number one or a number two (or heaven forbid, both) and that can never wait until morning for some reason. But hey, I'm okay with that.

Sub-zero Trick-or-Treating & Other Such Fun

 Happy Halloween!  It was decidedly cold and snowy here this year.  We've been really spoiled with the fantastic weather the last few years, so it was about due for a cold and snowy Halloween.  As our usual, we headed over to the Sorgens' for pizza and let the girls go wild.  We wrestled them into snowsuits, painted their faces and put costumes on over top.  There was much mind-changing, costume swapping and face paint fixing.  Cailin was supposed to be a skeleton (skelegon as she calls it), but changed her mind to be a fairy.  Olivia tossed her pretty pegasus costume and pink painted face to wear the skeleton suit and get her face painted white and black (and scary!).  It took some doing, but we got the girls dressed warmly with newly chosen costumes on.

At a fantastic and balmy -15'C we bundled up and headed out for some trick-or-treat action.  As a real treat, we had Kelli with us this year.  Cailin and Carter go absolutely nuts over her (so do I) and we had a great night.  Since it was so cold, we only made it around part of the cul-de-sac, but that was more than enough to get an almost full bag of candy each.  To make sure our own house stayed relatively trick-free while we were gone, I put out a large bowl of Tootsie Roll mix.  Surprisingly, when we came home, the bowl was empty.  I'm actually surprised the bowl didn't go too.

Kelli as Frankie Stein

Sub-zero Tinkerbell (with white scary face paint)

Halloween Parade at preschool

Carter didn't dress up this year, but sported a snazzy orange jack o'lantern shirt instead for both the preschool parade and Halloween.  He didn't say much when I put him in his snowsuit and wheeled him around in the jogging stroller either.  He will enjoy trick-or-treating next year though.  I can't wait to see him running around after his sister and her friends.

The day before Halloween, I made Oreo bat cupcakes for Cailin's preschool Halloween party.  I was under the impression that there would be time to dole out treats and to eat them during the party, but it was more of a 'put the treats in the bags over there, take pictures and then take your kid home' kind of a deal.  Next year I won't spend a lot of time on making an intricate treat since my (time-consuming-slaved-over) cupcakes were tossed unceremoniously into sandwich bags and smushed into the students' brown paper treat bags on a table in the lobby.  The whole ordeal was confused and crowded with parents and siblings that had no idea what was going on.  Cailin refused to dress up, but then changed her mind and participated in the parade when I walked with her.  I got some cute pictures and she got some delicious treats.  Win win!

When we got home from that hairy and stressful Halloween charade, it was time to start our own Halloween fun.  Ryan had picked up pumpkins for the kids and it was time to carve them.  I cut the tops off and put the pumpkins down on the floor for the kids to look at.  Cailin took one look at the pumpkin "guts" and recoiled back - "That's scary!" she exclaimed.  Carter crawled right up to his pumpkin, tossed the top off and dug right in with his spoon.  He also tried a lick of the innards here and there.  So did Bailey.

Cailin took about 30 seconds to be completely grossed out, then grabbed her spoon and joined in.  They had a lot of fun.  Carter took a bite of the rind and decided that it wasn't so edible.  Bailey did too.  She liked it much more than he did.

Cailin took the bowl of innards and made a salad out of it.  Once Carter and Bailey had politely tried her pumpkin salad, I carved faces into their pumpkins and lit them up.  Cailin loved them, but Carter was less than impressed with the finished product.  He much preferred to scoop.  Then it was bath time.  

Quiet winter day cookie building

Kelli was supposed to go back to Nana's the next day, but there was no way we were giving her back.  We had a quiet and relaxing day at home.  No more Halloween stuff, no preschool parties/parades, no more costumes, no more rushing or needing to be anywhere, no more candy.  Oh, wait, yes candy (let's not get carried away now!).  I packed away all the Halloween decor while Cailin wasn't looking.  Kelli did her school work and I made the girls sugar cookie dough to decorate.

Making a mutant snowman cookie

There was much giggling and enjoyment had while making cookies.  We had fun watching them bake too since the marshmallows puff up to impossible sizes when they get hot enough.  The kids have so much fun playing together.  Kelli is wonderful with them, and they love her to pieces.

Teaching Carter to scoot around on his back

We watched Halloween flavored (er, themed) movies, and laughed ourselves silly at "Night of the Living Carrots" - a short with the Aliens vs. Monsters crew and starring zombie carrots (it's much funnier than it sounds).  I let Cailin skip her Thursday class of preschool to recover from all the excitement of the week.  Honestly, I was so tired that the thought of driving her there and having to unclamp her arms from their death grip around my leg sounded like far too much exertion.  I might have to simply enroll her in the gym part for next semester, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there.

I've noticed recently that I haven't had the 'big' camera out in quite a while and have been taking all my pictures with my phone.  While it boasts a decent enough lens, I wanted to switch it up a bit.  I've been taking pics right, left and center for the last week or so with the Nikon.  It feels great to be back behind the lens and I got some fabulous pictures of the kids for upcoming Christmas-themed stuff.  They had a good time too, crawling around and making faces for me to capture.

While I was crawling around after them, I started to get a pain in my side.  This weird pain went from 'slightly annoying' to 'I may possibly be dying' in about three minutes.  It lasted for about ten minutes and then was suddenly gone, leaving only a slight ache in its wake.  It was the weirdest thing.  I stopped by the doctor on the following Monday and they told me I described passing a kidney stone.

Yep.  Kidney stone.  And after checking my urine (ew, too much information I know!) it was discovered I had a kidney infection.  So I got to go on antibiotics too, just days after the kids finished their respective rounds.  We've been sick in one way or another since September.  If that's not a good enough reason to pull your reluctant kid out of preschool....  Germs.  Ugh.

So that's my sob story of the week.  The actual infection didn't really cause me grief, but the pills to get me all better cause nasty headaches.

Frosted leaves with sunrise

 This morning I looked out the window to catch a glimpse of the sun peeking out from the clouds to shine on the frosted leaves of the tree in our backyard.  It was gorgeous, and I had to run out to get a picture of it.  The pictures I took simply don't do the scene justice.  Cailin and Kelli are at Nana's and Carter was sleeping so I stood in the yard and enjoyed the sunrise by myself.  Absolutely breathtaking.