Pollllllllllllllllllly!

We enjoyed our annual visit from the Oregonian yesterday and it was such a treat.   We miss Polly SO MUCH!

The B-man took this pic on our walk into the restaurant:

And...I'm including this blurry pic to make Big D jealous of our mason jar dirt cake!   (And, Big D, we tried the wings, too, and they were sooooo good!)

Since I met loyal reader Karen I for our annual Christmas-break-lunch-date earlier in the day (this time: tapas!  yum!), suffice it to say that I should probably drink broth all day.

Which is why I'm taking the kids for donuts as soon as they get up.......   HA HA HA HA!

PS:  HAPPY BIRTHDAY to both my favorite brother and loyal reader Abbey!!!   And happy last day of 2014 to all!!

Filling the Room

Miss C's daddy has been bothered for quite a long time now that she was still sleeping in the crib/bed.  (Truth be told, I think it was more about there not being a place for him to lie down while reading nighttime books and less about her comfort because she totally was fine!)    As loyal reader Lindsay knows from sharing a room with me for 3 years, I tend to be on the "allergic to changing/moving furniture" side of things (LOVE YOU, LINDS!  Thanks for putting up with me!) so I haven't been in much of a hurry to upgrade.   Alas, the boy needed a Winter Break project so we went with bed expansion...

When we bought the crib in 2007, we went ahead and purchased the "adult rails conversion kit" to turn it into a full-sized bed.  Her room really isn't that big but, hey, we already had all the pieces.  So off we went to the local mattress shop to buy a mattress that got delivered yesterday.   I haven't even started wrapping my mind around bedding choices so she's going to be sleeping in some (new, overly pink) flannel sheets she picked out at Target in the meantime.   She seems to be pretty happy, though!

Hey, at least there's now a place off the floor for all her friends!

Next project (besides bedding):  figuring out how to cover/treat all the gnawing marks on what is now the footboard-- remember when Brooks was a puppy???

Post-Christmas Weekend

One of the prezzies unwrapped by Grammie and the kids on Thursday was an announcement of a Saturday adventure:   we all went to see 101 Dalmations at a local stage and were able to eat at B's beloved Cosi beforehand since there is still one open in that burg.   As much as I hate that it hasn't snowed here yet, I can't complain about the temps in the 50s-- it was a gorgeous day to walk around!

The girls at lunch:

(In case you're wondering why it's blurry-- the BG ended up in bed at 5:00 that night with a 102 degree fever so he was prob already a little shaky!)

The kiddies outside the theater:

Of course the gift store was the first thing inside the door-- ha!

Sunday morning, Grammie and I decided we'd go whole-hog on the "vacay" thing and take Miss C for some morning frozen yogurt when the place opened at 11.  She had been requesting all week for Grammie to go.   She probably wasn't expecting to get a lesson in getting every last drop!!

We take Grammie to the airport later today.  What fun we've had this week!   It hasn't seemed quite like normal Christmas happened since we've all been under a haze of fevers, coughing, and general fatigue (all except Sheils-- let's hope she stays strong!) but we've still managed to have a really good time!

Blerg II

We had a wonderful Christmas Day...except for the part that all the Kentobeans were under the weather. This happened at one point (and then again later in the day, as well):

Here's hoping we are back to full strength soon!

Merry Christmas!!

Taken yesterday afternoon before the kids sang at a church service:

Taken this morning at 7:08:

For all those who celebrate, may the peace and joy of Christ's birth surround you and yours today and forever!!

Blerg.

I don't have anything to show for our day yesterday because I spent most of it willing myself not to get sick.  I now have a pretty bad cough and generally feel less than good.  OF COURSE this would happen now.

I did semi-watch The Muppets' Christmas Carol with everybody last night so I can remind you, in the wise song lyrics of Bob Cratchit/ Kermit the Frog: "there's only one more sleep til Christmas"!

Merry Christmas Eve!!

Grammie's Here!!!

Lots of excited people around the house now that Grammie has arrived!   Of course, she might not have recognized her own grandchildren, what with their disguises:

I was just happy to snap the above pic to have something for today's blog post....but then it kept getting more and more entertaining.  How classically "3-year old girl" is this photo?

And then we realized B had disappeared.  C said he was in the bathroom, which I assumed meant he was actually using it.  But no-- he announced that he was "sitting in the sink."  What the heck?   No idea what that meant.

Oh, he actually was being literal.  HA HA HA HA HA

December is the Germiest Month

It became evident Saturday morning that Miss C's hacking cough and ceaselessly-dripping nose would cause my carefully constructed house of cards to crumble.  It would keep her (and thus, him) from being able to go to the "Parents' Night Out" at the local gym/fun place that was going to allow the BG and myself to escape for a restaurant stop and a holiday party that evening.  Had to cancel everything. Since the BG also had to work from 9-3 on Saturday, it's possible I had a bit of a pity party for myself that day.  It's also possible I ate all the homemade fudge.   ;-)

Sunday morning, we were awakened by the sounds of B heaving in the bathroom.  He was burning hot.  The kids never got out of their pajamas and laid around all day.  He actually never got sick again (hooray!) but fell asleep in two different places-- and he never naps anymore!

I found him in the above position (the bathroom floor) when I got home from running some errands and was concerned this meant he'd gotten sick again.  Turns out that, no, he just felt like lying down in there.  Costco memory foam bath mat for the win!

I haven't taken temps yet this morning but he feels quite cool and says he woke up during the night and realized he felt better.  Hoping that means his fever is gone, although he still has to stay home from school today.  Wonder if the office will believe me when I call to report an absence right before winter break??!

Fingers crossed for the germs to be on their way out.  I'm pretty much convinced I'll be coming down with the plague soon since I've so far managed to avoid it all.......hope not!!!

Festive Packaging

C's preschool class had a little party yesterday morning to mark the last day of school before Christmas break.  (FYI, the guys in this family still have school both Monday and Tuesday of next week!)   I took the event as an opportunity for her to wear one of the outfits I bought after Christmas not one but two years ago-- I mean, they gotta hit the larger size eventually, right?  Why not buy ahead when there's a bargain involved?!

She got lots of compliments on her ensemble but it actually wasn't the most festive she had been this week.  A few days earlier, she got all wrapped up:

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Throwback Thursday

Thought I'd take a look back at the history of matching Christmas pajamas...

2014

2013

2012

2011

Play Time

Monday morning, Miss C and I headed for a little adventure thanks to an Amazon Local deal that was expiring that day!  We had a 2-for-1 entry into a children's play center located in a very fun much-more-cosmopolitan area near here.    Once we got into that burg, there was a lot of construction so I bailed out and parked in a garage I had used before, even though it was several blocks away.  No matter-- we got to see a beautiful Christmas tree on our urban walk!

We also passed a fruit truck driver getting his wares organized and, when he heard me point it out to Miss C, he gave us two oranges!   Cityfied generosity for the win!

Although our admission was already paid for, we had the option of adding on any of these fun activities.  We chose two-- any guesses what they were??

Like many other such places, there were themed rooms all around the building with different activities.  C had a blast in all of them!  (Not pictured:  the live bunny and birds in the "pet shop" that were available for petting, the crafts room, Grandma's attic, the hangout room, etc):

 C and a little policeman boy did some sensory activities with ingredients in the bakery, too!

Okay, if you guessed "make candy lip balm"- you win!!   Here's the owner explaining the process:

Mixing up the Nerds that give the balm some "sparkle":

Stirring together the candy powder, vaseline, and vitamin E:

Of all the scents, she picked....

Showing off her homemade lip balm (there was also some lipstick added in for color):

Activity #2?   Decorate (and eat) your own cupcake.....duh!

After our playtime, we walked across the street to Trader Joe's which was a fabulous exercise in efficiency...except for the car being parked so far away.  But I hauled those bags of groceries in style just like an urbanista!

More Anne-centric Fun!

Picking up the story from yesterday's post...

After Anne got home to find crazy friends hiding in her house, we got down to the business of eating cupcakes and tomato pie.  (It's possible there were mimosas involved for the non-preggos, too!)  The original plan had been to go to Melting Pot for cheese & chocolate but that was foiled by its late opening time.  The next plan was to go to Cheesecake Factory for small plates but Emily had made us pedicure reservations at 2:30 and we just ran out of time.

Yes, I did just mention eating cupcakes and tomato pie so, yes, we probably should've just skipped a restaurant outing.   But have you met us??!  We fully embraced the humor in our downward trajectory of restaurant plans and stormed into the local Applebee's, where we promptly ordered 5 fried appetizers and went to town.   The waitress suggested we come every Saturday night when they have specials so we're pondering making it a tradition...  ;-)

A few pics before we left the house:

We made T take the group shots and, after a couple, he asked if we wanted to do a "funny one".  Um...sure!!!   And I adore it:

Apparently we were too busy stuffing our faces at "lunch" for photos but here is evidence of the post-food pampering:

The Emilys were on the other side of the room!

All in all, it was a perfect day.   We gave Anne a bassinet that she'd been eyeing and some diapers as well.   Pretty sure she's completely ready to have a second kid now, right??!

One last note: it's such a special thing to walk in a house and see 3 pics of your kids on the fridge.   Old friends are the best friends for sure.  We love you, Annie Kate!

On the Road Again

Two back-to-back weekend visits with longtime Corning friends?  It's pretty much an embarrassment of riches...but I'll take it!!

Yesterday found me heading north once again, albeit in a car and in a more northeasterly direction, to get in on a surprise party to celebrate the impending arrival of baby #2 for Anne and Adam.  Since I was already going to be hitting the road, I proposed making a more nearby stop first-- the result of which was that I was knocking on Christy's door at 7:20 AM with Panera brekkie for all.   The reason?  I wanted to drop off some treats for Miss Olive who turned 2 yesterday and also to see Olive's "Nano" who is in town visiting from the Peach State.    We had a fun early-morning chat and I even got the birthday girl to give a snuggle and a smile:

I left there around 8:15 to drive onward and upward to a Park & Ride lot where I met up with two other of Anne's friends to pile in one car and continue the journey.  It's so fun to reunite with this same crew for every big milestone in Annie Kate's life!

When we arrived at Anne's house (after waiting for a heads-up text from Emily that they had departed for their surprise pre-natal massage appointments which came in the form of "The bird is leaving the nest" and cracked me up), we found this little cherub:

Emily and T had driven in the night before from NYC where they'd had a family birthday party and also where they stopped to bring us some very tasty treats:

 So pretty!

Emily brought this banner for us to repurpose after it made its inaugural presentation back in April of 2013:

Anne was COMPLETELY shocked!!   (Apparently, Emily had quite the time making up excuses for why they needed to get home quickly after the massages-- Anne kept coming up with suggestions for errands!):

I bet loyal reader Karen I recognizes immediately what Emily is cutting, but there were a bunch of neophytes in the room:

Apparently (cheeseless, served at room temp) Tomato Pie is a regional specialty-- check out the description here!

Saving the rest of the pics for tomorrow.....  :-)

Homebound

I got a call late Tuesday morning from C's preschool teacher to come get her.  She apparently was not acting like her usual social self and, when they took her temperature, they found she had a fever.

And....here it is Friday morning and it's still elevated.  She has a bit of a cough and some congestion but pretty much feels fine until the ibuprofen wears off and she gets a little whiny.  Gotta be some sort of cold virus that just has to work its way through.  Quite honestly, I'm preparing to get the plague since each family member that has gotten sick seems to have been hit progressively harder!  (B= bad cough, BG=sore throat and scratchy voice, now C with the fever)

I snapped this pathetic pic last eve:

But just go back and look at the gingerbread pj photos if this pic makes you sad-- she's really doing okay!!  (And when have I ever complained about forced laziness at home??!)

HAPPY FRIDAY!!

Gingerbread Twins

I wasn't going to go the Gymboree-matching pj route this year because I already have some Christmas sleepwear for Miss C bought on deep discount last year....but then I found these wonderful flannel button-downs for a wonderful sale + coupon price.   I finally got my act together yesterday and washed them so the kiddies could have their 2014 inaugural wear.

I know many of you saw this shot on FB last night.   B's moves crack me up:

Big smiles:

Really going with the crinkled-nose thing:

Finding a prop:

These last two I took without the flash so you could see that our tree is, in fact, lighted and glowing!

I love Christmas decorations!

(and the kids are pretty okay, too!)