February Randoms

Winter is in full swing, so we've had  a few indoor picnics lately. This one was with pretend food.

I want to mention the three dolls on the corner of the blanket. They're Brooke and Miles' "family" that they pretend with at least daily. Brooke is the mom (she's 40), Miles is the dad (he's 43), and they have Isabelle (10 or 11, depending on the day - a lot of times it's her birthday), Rose (5) and Baby Bubble Guppy (who is 1 and a boy). It's really fun and funny to watch them act out some of their scenarios with them. Miles generally just does what Brooke tells him.

We've also had some visitors. Here they are watching a movie with Zach and Wes.

Baby Bri came over for a couple hours the other day. The kids loved it.

I couldn't let Paige get too close as she was really into touching Bri's face. It made Paige really sad when Bri cried. So sweet.

Brooke sang her a song, of course.

While Miles watched and joined in intermittently.

Sometimes the cold weather is a fun excuse to hang around and be lazy. I think we're all going to be happy to see spring, though!

We're off to St. Louis this weekend, so between that and Matt's elaborate Valentine's Day plans for me, I'm sure I'll be back with a ton of pictures!

Look Out, Wisconsin!

Last weekend, we went to the Wisconsin Dells with our friends, the Bordners. I had never been before and I think we all had a lot of fun. We stayed in a suite and Miles, Brooke and Zach all slept in a room together. We thought they'd be exhausted after swimming all day and fall right asleep, but they ended up goofing off until almost 10 each night. That's what vacation is for, right?

Miles and Wes are really cute together. They don't talk to each other a ton, but seem to be on the same page with whatever they're playing.

Brooke and Zach are also very similar and have fun, too (they're together enough that they don't really have a choice, actually).

The water park was great. There were lots of small-to-medium slides that were good for Miles, and also some bigger, faster ones that Brooke loved. She has what I think is a healthy balance of adventure and caution. Neither Matt nor I was like that as a kid, so we're not really sure where that comes from. We'll take it, though.

One tube slide ended in a lazy river that she was also a big fan of. There was a family hot tub (gag) that she went in, too. When she got out, she said, "That was really relaxing." Guess she'd had a stressful week at preschool?

Miles is still in the getting-his-face-wet stage of swimming, so he liked the tube slide as long as Matt shielded his face when they hit the water.

Not the best photos, but you get the idea.

We swam Friday afternoon, Saturday morning, and Sunday morning. Brooke would have stayed at the water park all day, every day if we'd have let her.

Paige did great, too. She was content for me to hold her or to splash in the water at the water park and chilled in the suite with us the rest of the time. We stayed at Great Wolf Lodge, so the ears were a parting gift for each of the kids.

The resort also had a restaurant, ice cream shop and arcade that we took advantage of.

I don't want to know how much Matt spent attempting to beat the daily record on this game. He did eventually beat it, though. I was so proud.

We probably could have left the boys in this and gone to dinner. They loved it.

It was a great little getaway on a cold February weekend!

Grandma Audie's!

We went by Grandma Audie's for lunch the day before the big snowstorm. We were all happy to see her!

She and Paige had fun "talking."

And Brooke showed her her "pink computer."

This is a framer.

Aaaannd of course there were lots of tries before we got a decent shot of all three kids. Here are a couple outtakes. (I actually love each kids' different expression in the first one.)

Miles' Day at School

I've said it before, but I really love the preschool that our kids attend. Last spring, we were on the fence about sending Miles as he'd be the youngest in his class, but I really think that it's been good for him in so many facets. He's talking more, is more social, and is excited to go to school with his big sister (most days). And it's only for a few hours a week, which, let's be honest, is a nice break for me.

A couple of Wednesdays ago, it was my turn to be a reader in his class. Miles chose to bring in "Little Blue Truck Leads the Way." I also got to stay for snack afterward. He seemed to happy and proud to have me there. I loved it. It was so special to have time with just my little guy.

January Randoms

Things have settled down a bit around here, so we've had some time to enjoy our Christmas gifts, including press-on nails.

And Miles' "car". He's finally getting the hang of turning it without help.

Brooke, Mati and Lexi had a "Princess Picture" exchange and this was Brooke's pic.

A couple of weekends ago, Matt and I went on his company Awards Trip to South Beach. While we were there, we got some fun picture updates. Will and Jamie took Brooke to Oberweis, but she explained to us that she had to tell Miles that they just went to the "shopping store" so he wouldn't be sad.

She and Grammie Deb also met Aunt Jamie out for lunch one day.

 

Miles was on the tail-end of a stomach bug (that he shared with Paige and Grandpa Brian), but still had a little energy to be silly.

My sweet baby. Thanks again to Grammie Deb and Grandpa Brian for taking all three kids for three nights. It's no small feat and we REALLY appreciate it.

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this, but we joined a gym in December and got a month of free swim lessons for the kids, so we signed them up...for a month.

Miles has been kind of a stinker both times we've gone so far. He'll refuse to give the instructor high fives for the first 10 minutes or so. Last time, I saw the boy next to him ask him something and Miles shook his head "no". Then the boy yelled, "Hey Mom! He said he can't talk!" Usually by the last ten minutes or so, he's smiling and playing along.

That's Brooke in the purple. She has her swimming groove back and seems much more confident and comfortable in the water.

 

Paige is almost ready for real baths.

Which is good because Brooke has decided that she likes showers better so this guy has been lonely in the tub. All these milestones are so bittersweet to me.

Just today, they were playing house with the dolls (Isabelle, Rose and Baby Bubble Guppy, for those keeping track). Brooke was a wealth of knowledge, informing Miles that "Daddys can't feed babies from their body," and "Now you need to give me a kiss."

She was really excited to feed Paige, for about 5 bites.

I think he lasted two or three bites. It's still sweet to watch.

This girl's tummy finally seems to be feeling better. She had a little tooth pop out last Thursday. She's sleeping longer and longer at night. She'll be starting formula for a couple bottles a day this week, which I'm thinking might help her sleep longer. She's still a very happy and content baby most of the time. 

I love when they play together.

Until next time!