Snow "Fun"

I'm not sure what's going on with the weather here, but we had our biggest snowstorm of the year last Tuesday. For those who need help with the calendar, that was March 5. The good news about snow this late in the season is that it's gone in a few days. I was inspired by the snow and decided to pull out one of my OT tricks and have Brooke play in the shaving cream "snow".

 

 

While I was in the basement looking for the shaving cream I'd used with my students, Brooke stepped on a toy and cut her foot. Then, my little chip-off-the-old-block wasn't super excited to get her hands dirty. She eventually embraced it and we were having fun drawing in it when Miles woke up. I went up to get him, forgetting to remind Brooke not to touch her eyes. Cue the painful screams.

 

The poor thing. I rushed down to help her clean out her eyes (I would've taken a pic but she was genuinely in pain) and she said, "I don't think I like playing with shaving cream." We'll try it again after the emotional scars have healed.

When Matt got home, we all went outside for a bit to play in the snow. Miles wasn't too impressed. 

It wasn't the best packing snow, so Matt and Brooke's snowman became a snow "castle". Complete with carrot door and windows (not pictured).

Seriously, I'm ready for spring...

The Reveal

I mentioned that revealing to the kids that they were going to be at Disney together didn't go quite how we'd imagined. Brooke and I got to the hotel around 10:30 at night and the Timmerman kids (who are HARD sleepers) were already out. Obviously, Lexi was not happy to be woken up, regardless of who it was.

The next morning, she didn't even remember that we were there, so we had Brooke knock on the door again. It's hard to make out, but Lexi says, "My wish came true!" She told Tim and Krissi that at the fountain at Epcot the night before, she'd wished that Brooke could be there with her. Then when we were getting ready to leave the next day, she started crying and said, "I don't want Brooke to go. I should have made my wish sooner!" So sweet.

Disney- Yes, Again

When we took Brooke to Disney for one day last month, I was thinking about how much I was going to hate to have to wait a year-plus to go again. So, when Krissi told me that they were going, I asked if she'd mind if we tagged along. We had airline miles for the flight and were able to get a pretty good deal on our tickets and hotel, so after quite a bit of deliberation, I decided to take advantage of an opportunity that doesn't come around everyday.

We didn't tell either of the girls about the surprise. I think the "reveal" was a bit anti-climactic, but it was still fun to surprise them.

Brooke and I weren't even in Orlando for 48 hours and the Timmermans were on days 4 and 5 of their visit, so on paper this wasn't the best idea. There were some meltdowns, but overall I think everyone did well.

We made it to all 4 parks in our two days of being there and met tons of the characters, including some that I don't think Brooke even knew existed.

Lexi played the Beast in one of the attractions that had scared Brooke when we were there last time. This time she actually posed with Belle.

We consumed far too much junk food. But when it's shaped like Mickey's head, calories don't count, right?

We also got to see multiple shows. The kids loved the Disney Jr. show. Doc McStuffins, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse AND Princess Sofia?!? Heaven.

There was also a show with Mickey and the Princesses outside of Cinderella's castle. Brooke knew most of the songs from her Princess CD's. Does Disney know how to market, or what?

At Epcot, on our way to dinner with the Princesses.

The kids got to meet and pose with five different princesses. Brooke's pose in this picture is an indication of how exhausted she was. That dinner turned into a bit of a trainwreck for Brooke, which was ultimately my fault for stretching her so thinly.

We rode a bunch of rides that we didn't get to last time. Here's Brooke rocking out to a singing trash can (not pictured) in Tomorrowland.

She LOVED the teacups.

It was always fun when the girls could ride in the same car. Here they are on Dumbo.

We rode the water ride at Animal Kingdom FOUR times. And it wasn't that warm.

Watching the parade at Animal Kingdom.

On Barnstormer, Brooke's favorite ride. On the second morning, we asked each girl what their favorite part of the day before was. Brooke: "Playing with Lexi." Lexi: "Seeing Brooke." It's great that they love each other and all, but c'mon, can't we at least recognize the fact that we're at Disney World?

On the Magic Carpets. Which is essentially just like Dumbo...and about 5 other rides there. They loved it, though.

The end of our first day. One of those times that I really wish Brooke was good at falling asleep in places besides her bed.

Saying goodbye at the airport.

Again, it was a really special treat to be able to do this and I'm so glad that we took the opportunity to make the memories. Special thanks to Matt for encouraging us to go and to my awesome friend Katie for watching Miles during the days.

Girls' Trip!

I surprised Brooke with a trip for just she and I last week. She's already a Little Planner (not sure where she gets that?), so I didn't tell her about it until the week before. I only told her that we were going to go to Florida. She took this to mean that we were going to Grammie Deb and Grandpa's and asked if they would be there. I explained that we were actually going to be staying at a hotel. A few nights before, I asked her what she would think about the two of us going back to Disney World? She paused, thought about it, then smiled and said, "Yeah! That's a great idea!"

She had to make sure to buckle her entourage, which has expanded: Blankie, Baby, Baby Doll and Teddy.

She was such a good girl on both flights. In fact, she was complimented both times. Kind of made up for those looks that we got when she was melting down (multiple times) at Disney. It was so fun to have some extended time with just the two of us. She's such a special and funny little girl. Little did she know, we'd be meeting some of her favorite people down there...

11 Months

Miles was 11 months old on...Feb. 30? March 2? Not really sure how that works for February. Anyway, I mentioned this earlier, but he is officially mobile. I went to get him from his nap the other day and found him like this. I think we were both a little shocked that he had gone from lying to sitting on his own.

There's a nice cleavage shot for you (note to self: might be time to pack away that onesie). He's really into opening drawers and cabinets, so it looks like that baby-proofing kit is going to get some use after all. He's signing "more". He's trying lots of finger foods and hasn't hated anything yet. We're still working on him drinking out of/holding his own sippy cup. Unfortunately, it seems that he also inherited the bump-into-things gene. This isn't the best picture, but at one point he had three separate bruises on his forehead. He's taking his morning nap about half the time, which is actually nice as it allows us to do more. He's still super happy and easygoing, despite having his third ear infection this past week.

Here he is in action:

Snow Angels

After a mild winter of virtually no snow, we've gotten a fair amount of snow in the last few weeks.

Normally, I'm not a huge fan of the snow because it also means that it's cold, but I think that Brooke was beginning to think that snowmen and sledding were just things she read about in books, so it was fun to go out and play in it with her.

Grace and Tye came over one day a couple of weeks ago and they all had fun playing outside (even if they only lasted 20 minutes and it was bad "snowman snow"). The girls attempted snow angels.

Now that we've gotten our taste of snow, I'm ready for spring!