Archive for March, 2015

Serenity in March

Tuesday, March 31st, 2015

I had so much to write about our wonderful California trip that it got its own post… but Serenity’s post for this month is still long!  What a great month!

Queen Elizabeth

Queen Elizabeth

3/31

Serenity made up a song this morning =) “Fairies” There’s something magical going on, I feel a tingle of excitement in me/ Fairies please come down here, It’s ok I’m right here. It’s all riiiiiiight. Humm hummmm It was so much fun =) =) She’s really into reading the Rainbow Magic Fairy books right now. Thank goodness the library has them because she’s read as many as four in a single day.

 

March was a great month! We had game night at school. Serenity mostly spent it upstairs playing games with Daddy, although she did come down long enough for me to give her some money for pizza, and to play one game of Robot Turtles with Avalon and her family.

 

Game Night

Game Night

Serenity got to participate in the Drama Festival for the first time. She was Queen Elizabeth. She had her line memorized right away. “I am Queen Elizabeth. I was the first English Queen to rule without a husband.” We got to make her costume. We went online and researched Elizabethan clothing, and Serenity knew just what to do. She put on every single skirt she owned under a fancy dress to make it poof out enough like Queen Elizabeth’s did. =) I had bought some blue velour that I thought would make a cute Elsa dress the last time we were in California, so we turned it into a Renaissance dress. With some lace at the sleeves and a high fancy collar it looked just like something Queen Elizabeth would wear. And I got to learn all about supportasses, which is the wiring that holds up one of those crazy collars. Serenity didn’t want the ruff, she liked the collar better, and it was very fancy =) She also loved getting to wear a lot of Granny Hale’s jewelry the day of the play. So much fun! Her friends played other historical figures that the kids had studied this year, and Lillyan and Arjun were time travelers that used a Time Machine to visit. Serenity and DZ drew pictures of what they thought a time machine would look like, and I combined that with my plan to make the machine =) It used Donovan’s sit n spin as a giant gear that the kids could actually turn, plus antennae that Serenity thought of with copper wiring. And we printed a huge map of the world made out of gears and colored it. =) It worked great!

 

Queen Elizabeth and her friend Athena

Queen Elizabeth and her friend Athena.  She’s turning her head to show off her earrings, which were my favorite of Granny Hale’s as well =)  I wore them to school in 5th grade =)

Working on the time machine

Working on the time machine

The Time Machine =)

The Time Machine =)

Spring has finally arrived in Oklahoma! I got some new gardening tools for the kids. A couple of new trowels and a foot shovel that is just their size. Serenity celebrated by digging holes all over the yard and filling them with birdseed. The birds have been extremely happy. She did put a little in the birdfeeders too =) Then she and our neighbor, Karen, decided they should dig up the swamp next to our leaky hose to find lots of worms. It was like a robin buffet! And now the rule is if you dig a hole you have to fill it back in when you’re done with it =) The shovel came in handy for making our Sunflower House too!

 

New salvia, new purple watering can =)  They LOVE watering!

New salvia, new purple watering can =) They LOVE watering!

The kids discovered when I put the water timer back on that all they had to do to make a sprinkler was turn a little knob.  Now the backyard is even more of a swamp than when the faucet just leaked five gallons a day.

The kids discovered when I put the water timer back on that all they had to do to make a sprinkler was turn a little knob. Now the backyard is even more of a swamp than when the faucet just leaked five gallons a day.

Planting sunflower seeds and sweet pea seeds.  We got Lemon Queen, Skyscraper and Mammoth Russian sunflowers.

Planting sunflower seeds and sweet pea seeds. We got Lemon Queen, Skyscraper and Mammoth Russian sunflowers.

We participated in the Superhero Challenge last weekend! The kids loved it! We got there early and had lots of time to play on the inflatables before the race. Serenity’s girl scout troop decided to donate a portion of their cookie sales to the child abuse network, so they got to present a check. They sold 7,700 boxes of cookies! Amazing! And they also had a booth to serve cookies to the racers. Serenity left the inflatables to help set that up without any hesitation, which made me very proud. =) The race itself had lots of challenges to test superhero skills, like hurdles, and crawling under lasers, stuff like that. And it ended at a giant inflatable obstacle course. The kids loved it!

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Serenity lost a tooth at school yesterday. Her teacher told me it was a tooth epidemic, at least four kids lost it that day! I think they were holding out to get the nifty box they give you at school.

Book Fair!  Serenity got a dozen chapter books and she read them all before Book Fair week was over.

Book Fair! Serenity got a dozen chapter books and she read them all before Book Fair week was over.

Cali Trip March 2015

Monday, March 30th, 2015

Our California Visit! March 2015

 

Our California visit was wonderful! It was full of all our favorite people, traditions and activities. =) The kids were amazing on the plane, even Maia. This was her first flight without nursing so I’m very grateful it went as well as it did. She sat by Eric and he used his natural airplane sleepiness to lull her to sleep on several occasions =) Sitting by Serenity and Donovan was so easy it was nearly like I was on vacation already! Everyone was overjoyed when we landed though and Ann and John arrived to take us home. We followed Maia around the house for the first few hours, but she really didn’t get into anything dangerous. Well, outside she tasted the gravel several times, but that finally got old after the first two days.

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Puzzles with Vanaema!

Puzzles with Vanaema!

Playing in the gravel =)

Playing in the gravel =)

Tri-Dominoes

Tri-Dominoes

Saturday was our 11th Epic Duels Tournament! I’m so grateful that so many friends still gather to play this with us, and this was an especially exciting year as Henry joined! And he did an amazing job with the Emperor, making it to 5th place his first year! I played one round with him, which was a little worrisome as I didn’t want to let him down =) I was impressed with how very well he plays the game. Eric won the tournament this year, which was a good thing as our children had their hearts set on the big prize this year, a set of Star Wars Angry Birds slingshots. DZ came by many times during the day to see if Eric and I were winning. They have had a blast with them!

 

Henry's First Epic Duels!!!

Henry’s First Epic Duels!!!

"Daddy, did you win me the slingshot yet?"

“Daddy, did you win me the slingshot yet?”

Aidan is such a good big brother!

Aidan is such a good big brother!

Evan and DZ are best buddies =)

Evan and DZ are best buddies =)

Pick up hugs!!!

Pick up hugs!!!

Evie is SUCH a cutie!!! =)  I love her little pose!

Evie is SUCH a cutie!!! =) I love her little pose!

Keep Away from Uncle Jack!!!

Keep Away from Uncle Jack!!!

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Is this how I play too?

Is this how I play too?

The winners!!!

The winners!!!

Good thing Daddy won these =)

Good thing Daddy won these =)

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Monday Ann and Eric took Serenity and DZ to the beach. That was the one activity Serenity asked to do while we were in California. They did love the beach, except for the moment when Serenity got knocked over by a wave. That terrified her, of course, and she has no desire to get near waves again for the time being. She may have told this story to the entire airplane as we were boarding our last flight home…

 

We got to take all the kids to Kona Kai to swim this visit. Even Maia! She was kind of confused by such a big bath I think, but she didn’t fuss a bit about it, and even smiled when she was swirled around in the water. Serenity and Donovan had lost a little of their swimming skills in the three months since they last swam, but they got the hang of things again by our second trip.

 

The kids adore playing in the yard in California. Not only is the weather beautiful, but Ann’s yard is so much fun. There is a big gravel area, lots of little nooks that are tucked away, paths to follow, oranges and lemon trees, and pretty flowers. Serenity made fairy houses and Donovan made tiger mountains. At one point during Epic Duels, she had Aidan keeping watch to make sure no uninvited people joined her around the side of the house where she’d built the fairy houses, and only a select few were allowed. They got to do a creek walk with Eric and Tina.

 

Serenity and DZ really enjoyed playing with their friends, and they even got to have some sleepovers! DZ spent the night at Evan’s house, and Eric stayed with him. He loved it! He and Evan are just adorable together. They hid themselves in Eric’s old room during Epic Duels for an hour at least, just playing. At the sleepover, they got to play Mario Kart and a bunch of wii carnival games. Evan loves driving off the road in Mario Kart and DZ agreed it was hilarious. The only thing DZ loved better than falling off was getting the bullet. Which was good, because he got behind a lot so he got to use the bullet a lot. “I’m a rocket!!!” I got to play with Marilyn for a bit too in her nursery. Her baby girl was due in just a week, so I got to help sort and fold tiny baby clothes =) Organizing and babies, two of my favorites! =)

 

Serenity stayed at Henry’s twice. She loves Henry and still plans to marry him (which causes Donovan a bit of consternation as he wants to marry her.) They are two peas in the pod! They played board games and told stories to each other a lot.   Serenity told me one of the stories they made up, which was titled “The Adventures of Poop and Fart” Evidently poop and fart begin in the toilet, but then they get flushed and they are stuck in a jail toilet! They escape the jail toilet and get into many more shenanigans. So we have definitely reached the potty humor age!

 

We played lots of fun games in Cali besides Epic Duels. The first day we played a new one for me, Time’s Up. It was an awesome charades game! There are three rounds. First, you play it like Taboo, where you can say anything that’s on the card to get them to answer. Then, you take the same pile of cards, and in the second round you can say only one word and act it out. Then in the third round, no talking. It was HILARIOUS. And it evidently it makes my husband’s clothes come up. Ask Eric for his Lady Godiva impression sometime. Love it!   Ann and John kept the kids one day so that we could enjoy time with Tina and Colen. We played more Time’s Up, and another new game called Quarriors. It’s a bit like Dominion except you build up a set of dice instead of a deck of cards. It’s an awesome game! Donovan played it too and loved it! Serenity played Thurn and Taxis for the first time, and stuck to it well in the first games we played. Not so much when we let her out of bed after bedtime, but she did like the game! Oh, Donovan also got to play his first game of Settlers with John. He adores board games so being with Far Far is especially fun =) Ann even tried Quarriors with him, and she played tridominoes with him too. Eric and I got amazing bridge hands this visit, which almost made up for the fact that we haven’t been practicing card games nearly enough. I could barely keep track of what was played. Maybe I’ll blame that on Maia forgetting how to sleep through the night… Yes, I think I will 😉

 

Quarriors

Quarriors

Legos

Legos

Puss N Boots

Puss N Boots

Reading in Swedish

Reading in Swedish

Serenity's getting pretty good with the camera =)

Serenity’s getting pretty good with the camera =)

15 months old!

15 months old!

Ann and Eric took the kids to Vasona Park one morning. It’s a beautiful walk and throwing stones in the lake is always fun.

 

Tina made us pancakes at her house before we left. Ann made them for us also with our favorite pea soup. Ooh, and her lemon curd is amazing.   I just love Swedish Pancakes! Donovan and Serenity love them too, they like to call them pancake burritos. On the way over they kept saying “Tina’s going to give us SUGAR!!!” And giggling maniacally. Delicious!

 

Evan's Birthday Party =)  Angry Birds and Pizza, perfect!

Evan’s Birthday Party =) Angry Birds and Pizza, perfect!

Swinging with Aunt Tina

Swinging with Aunt Tina

My new hat =)

My new hat =)

Maia can say "Mmmm!"

Maia can say “Mmmm!”

Las Palomas Park!  So much fun!!!

Las Palomas Park! So much fun!!!

Painting the grass

Painting the grass

Teal! =)

Teal! =)

So good on the plane =)

So good on the plane =)

 

 

Maia is 15 Months Old

Monday, March 23rd, 2015

 

Maia is 15 months old!

Maia is 15 months old!

MMMM =)  I love her little nose crinkle when she says this =)

MMMM =) I love her little nose crinkle when she says this =)

 

3/23
Maia is 15 months old now and I let a whole month go by without journaling! Good thing I posted a lot to Facebook. We spent the last ten days in Cali so I’m a bit behind on her update, but I’m often behind with no excuse so I’ll just get to it =)

Maia repeats things at last! While we were in California Ann taught her to say “mmmm” M is the perfect sound for her since it starts Maia and Mama =) So when you say, “can you say Mmmm?” she will! This is the first thing she will actually repeat when asked. She does say several words, but only when it’s her own idea, not when asked to say it before this. She also learned the word “clog” from Tina, which she says when she’s tapping her shoes on the ground. Ironically, she can also say shoe, so two out of her 20 or so words involve footwear. Aunt Jennifer and Auntie Marilyn must be coaching her. 😉 Too bad she doesn’t really get to wear shoes…

Other words Maia says often: Dada, Bath, Berry, Cracker (interesting pronunciation…) DZ, Sis, Door, Boo! (book), Nigh-Night. She’s said Mama once or twice only so it’s a good thing she snuggles me a lot 😉

Maia will give me kisses when I ask for them! I love it =)

She loves exploring outside now! I really need to clean up the yard! She loved it in Ann’s yard in Cali!! I think she’ll get mad now if I don’t let her outside! And for the most part she stopped eating gravel so she learned a lot last week. =) She started putting it into buckets instead, which was adorable.

Ann and I went shopping together, which was SO much fun! We both like shopping for baby clothes =) She got Maia the cutest little hat and romper. I love that Maia has a few things that are just hers.

New outfit =)

New outfit =)

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Vanaema got this cutie a new hat =)

Vanaema got this cutie a new hat =)

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Maia was very happy to be home with her books this morning! I think she’s brought most of her favorites to me to read this morning. She definitely thought that I didn’t pack enough. She was getting restless yesterday while we were riding the train to get to our next plane. Since I didn’t want to put her down I started reciting some of her favorite books and she instantly relaxed into me to listen. Pajama Time works every time. =)

Maia’s favorite toys are the Magformers and Lego Duplos. She doesn’t really care for most soft toys, with the exception of the soft bunny that Abbey got her. And it has some really interesting textures on it. But most of the time she’s chewing on a book, Magformer, or lego person.

I took this picture because John was napping, but Maia wanted to go out the front door.  She stood by the front door clapping, then she'd run over to him on the couch, then she went back to the door to clap.  Too cute!  He would go exploring with her out the front door and she LOVED it!  =)

I took this picture because John was napping, but Maia wanted to go out the front door. She stood by the front door clapping, then she’d run over to him on the couch, then she went back to the door to clap. Too cute! He would go exploring with her out the front door and she LOVED it! =)

So happy to have her books back =)

So happy to have her books back =)

She loved climbing all over this park =)

She loved climbing all over this park =)

Vanaema reading to her in Swedish

Vanaema reading to her in Swedish

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Still tasting the gravel

Still tasting the gravel

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Reading Perry with Uncle Colen and Aunt Tina

Reading Perry with Uncle Colen and Aunt Tina

Doing puzzles with Vanaema.  She mostly eats the pieces but she did manage to get a couple in place!

Doing puzzles with Vanaema. She mostly eats the pieces but she did manage to get a couple in place!

What makes you think someone forgot to close the bathroom door?

What makes you think someone forgot to close the bathroom door?

Sleeping on the plane with Daddy =)  She was SO good on the plane!

Sleeping on the plane with Daddy =) She was SO good on the plane!

Chewing on a water bottle with two lego people as backup chew toys

Chewing on a water bottle with two lego people as backup chew toys

 

 

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“Cracker”

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