The Simplicity of a Box

Peek-a-boo!

Yesterday, I received some new pots and pans. My parent's gave them to me for my birthday (I know, it's a bit early, but I don't mind:)). I, of course, loved the pots and pans, but Cadence and Finn are in heaven with the boxes they came in. It's amazing how many things a simple box can be.

In addition to getting new pots and pans, yesterday, Finn got his hair cut. The hair stylist loved him. How could you not!? He is so cute and love-able. I might be a little bias. He does sit a nice and still for the stylist and isn't afraid of the scissors or clippers. Before getting his hair cut, though, I took him and Aria next door to get a doughnut at "Lamar's" while we waited for Fantastic Sam's to open. Cadence was already at preschool, so she couldn't join us. Finn picked out a vanilla frosted doughnut with sprinkles and pretty much just ate the top off. I had a coffee and Aria sat nicely while we waited. He's such a little man, I just love that little guy! Fantastic Sam's always reminds me of my mom, because she used to get her hair cut there when I was little.

Cadence designed and made this marching band hat all by herself with one of the cardboard dividers she found in the box. She said she learned about marching band hats from "Caillou".

Both Cadence and Finn have been entertaining themselves for hours with the rest of the boxes. They've also been creating a HUGE mess by moving toys in and out of the boxes, but never back into their original toy box. It is becoming quite the disaster, I mean, creative zone. I had to move to the kitchen so that the mess wasn't staring me right in the face, causing my stress levels to rise. They only get to be 2 and 4 once, even though I get to go through it several times :), and I need to allow them to be 2 and 4 year olds.

Now, I can gaze out the window into our peaceful backyard with the squirrels, trees and beautiful blue sky. Ahhh, peace.

A Welcomed Visitor

Today, we had a pleasant visit from my dad, aka "Crap-pa". I told Cadence he was coming last night and she was so excited. She immediately got out her paper and markers and drew him a picture, mostly of "Shepherd's sticks".

My dad made this awesome dress-up wardrobe for her to put all her dress-up clothes in. My initial idea was to just convert a cardboard box into a closet, which my dad took and improved upon. Cadence loved it! She went straight away to gather up all her dress-up clothes and hang

them in her new wardrobe.

He also brought me a sweet treat...apple crisp. Delicious! I love apple crisp. I can't wait until the summer when the kids and I can gather up our neighbors apples again and make apple pie bars. Yummy! His visit didn't end there, though. He took the kids and I out to a scrumptious lunch at Coopersmith's Pub and Brewery, in Old Town. They have my favorite burger there. There was a group next to us with a ton of kids. Two of the babies were 7 month old twins, a boy and a girl. They sure do eat well. They looked bigger than Aria. After that, we took a stroll around the square before heading back home. What a great day and visit! I love getting to see my dad, he's a great man!

Thanks, dad! We love you!

Happy Feet

I love these chubby little Hobbit feet! They're so squishy!

Like Mother Like Daughter

I dug this "April" doll out of one of my many childhood boxes we have stored in the garage. My Aunt Judy made this for me and I thought Cadence would enjoy playing with her. At first, she named her "Shoes", as in ballet shoes. Then, she renamed her "Judy" since I told her that my Aunt Judy made her for me.

She has this cute summery romper on, but I had put my preschool shirt on her. As I was taking this picture of my shirt, I noticed that the picture studio was the same company that took Cadence's preschool pictures this past year, Teddy Bear Portraits. Crazy! Cadence, of course, did not want to keep my shirt on "Judy". Oh well.:)

I used to put a brown wig on her and play hair salon (since her hair is yarn, I couldn't style it, which is why I put the wig on her). When I got older, she used to sit in my desk chair. I would move her when I sat to do my homework and then promptly return her to her seat when I was finished.

Finn has been fascinated by teeth lately. He's been talking about his own, asking to see mine, and pointing them out on various toys. I don't know why. Maybe it is because he has such a mouthful. Look at that cutie! What a handsome lad.

Aria on the move!

Watch out! She's mobile and she's coming to smother you with cuteness! Aria definitely loves crawling. Especially if it's to try and pull out electrical cords, eat dog food, or take a bath in Pugsley's water bowl. We're so proud! Don't worry grandmas, we are baby proofing the area!

A Day

We have a new pet, well 4 new pets...fish! They are a little hard to spot in the picture, but they are small silver fish. After we've had them for a few weeks we will go get a few more, hopefully more colorful. I would like one of those little frogs, too, but they always seem to die. We'll see.

Cadence and Finn enjoy watching them, for little spurts, anyway.

Yesterday, and today actually, we had a dress-up tornado sweep through our house! Cadence likes to change in and out of costumes all day long. It exhausts me just watching her. My natural instinct wants her to clean the disaster area up, but I restrain myself. They are easy to clean up at the end of the day, and it is important for her to have that imaginative play. I just wish she could be imaginative in a tidy way.:)

This is Cadence as Wonder Girl and Pom Pom Girl (she made the names herself. What do you think, PomPom?).

I love these frequent squirrely visitors! I love watching them scamper up and down the trees. Most days, 3 or 4 of them will play tag (or other activities, which Brad witnessed with Finn. He told him they were just playing) in the trees. So fun! I left nuts out for them on our deck one day, but they snuck them away when I wasn't looking. Sneaky little critters. They make me think of "Sword in the Stone", when Merlin and Wart turn into squirrels and the pretty squirrel chases Wart all around while the fat lady squirrel chases Merlin. Great movie!

Here is my Strawberry Shortcake doll from when I was kid. I gave her to Cadence. She still smells like strawberries! Speaking of smells, I am baking Banana Bread right now for the College Bible Study tonight and it smells soooooo good.

Snow Day!

Today we had a beautiful snowfall! I love when the snowflakes fall so slow and calmly. Brad once told me this saying he heard from someone, "Big snow, small snow. Small snow, big snow." Meaning, if the flakes are big, there won't be much snow and vice versa. This is almost always true. Today we had small snow, big snow. So, after church and lunch, Finn headed down for his nap and Cadence suited up to go play outside. First, she rolled around in the snow in the backyard, stuck her tongue out to catch a few snowflakes, and tried a little bit of the snow. Then, she and Brad headed out front to shovel the driveway and walk. After they finished that task, Cadence, with the assistance of Brad, built her first snowman! He looked great! Brad said the snow was kind of dry, so it didn't stick together very well. This resulted in a bit of a shrunken head snowman, but he was cute. In the midst of snowman building, we had a visit from a girl scout who was selling cookies. I thought that was very smart on her part, because more people will be home when it's snowy out and they will feel sorry for the poor little girl walking around the neighborhood in the cold snow. It worked on us! We ordered some Samoas and Tagalongs. Hope you enjoyed your snowy day!

Happy Birthday Brad!

Yesterday, I threw a surprise party for Brad's 30th! It turned out great! His friend, Greggor, took him fishing and brought him back right on time for the surprise. All the party guests were so generous, loving and helpful. It was a great success and Brad had so much fun!

Here I am with my "To do" list for the party. I love a good list (or maybe 3 or 4 drafts and then a final list). More importantly, I love getting to check off an item on the list.

Most of our guests were from out of town and I was so thankful they all made the hour and a half trek to celebrate Brad.

What a sweet Bromance!

I was very happy that Mimi and Kevin pushed their flight back to Sunday and were able to make it before they moved overseas to London. We will miss them.

Janeah was a huge help to me in the kitchen. She helped me get organized and get all the food out.

My parents came up a little early and helped me get the party set up. Very appreciative.

Brad got a new wizards pipe from his mom and dad, but I forgot to take a picture of it. He was super excited about it!

Little Millie slept through the whole party, but she still joined in with a balloon on her wrist.

The kids had a great time running around the house playing together.

Finn was great at scaring the girls by being a monster and a dragon. They seemed to enjoy running away from him and he seemed to enjoy scaring them.

Clara decided she wanted her face to match her green outfit...and she succeeded.

Here are some of the party decorations.

I had a fun time making Brad's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cake. He said his favorite was Raphael. My dad helped by making his weapons and shaping his limbs, to make him look more intimidating.

What a wonderful night and an incredible man! I love you Brad!