Gone fishin...

Well, yesterday Eriik decided at the last minute that since it wasn't going to rain like it was supposed to, that he would take Alec camping and fishing. This was a big part of Eriiks childhood, and something that he wants to continue with our kids. We only have a two man tent now, but plan on getting a bigger one so the whole family can go eventualy. When Alec found out, he was sooo excited! He said..."oh I've got to get all my stuff packed"! By"stuff" he meant toys. So, they headed out around 3:30. So then it was just Ava and I at home. We didn't do anything too exciting, but I did get a little extra time to play "dollies" with her which was fun, and we ate dinner outside and played outside till after dark since it was so warm. I can't believe it's February and it was in the 80's yesterday...but it went back to being cold today.

So, when I called them today around noon they were fishing and I asked Alec if he was having a good time, he said..."well...a fire bug got me last night on my hand" Eriik explained that it was a floating ember from the fire that landed on him, he said it didn't leave a mark, but it was enough to make Alec afraid of the fire for the rest of their adventure. They had a good time last night telling superhero stories and sleeping in the tent. But...then this morning when Alec woke up very early he was cold, and afraid of the "fire bugs", so he wanted to sit in the truck, and only came out to get some pancakes that Eriik made. (on a side note: he's now into making homemade buttermilk pancakes instead of sourdough becuase he killed the "starter"a while back...I think I like these better anyway!) Then it was time to go fishing so Alec took his batman fishing pole and went for it...he told me that the fish were eating the worms off without getting caught...but he said that the fishing was his favorite part of camping. I asked Eriik to take some pictures....he only took 3 pics, but at least one was pretty good.

Alec fishing at Dangerfield park this morning.

Ava playing outside last night with mommy.

She's getting so big...she wants to swing on the big girl swing now!

Crazy Sleeper--Nap Edition

Alec doesn't always take naps these days...but I do make him go in his room and have quiet play time. Yesterday, he decided to look at his books....guess they weren't too exciting! When I went in his room, this is the position I found him in...book in hand...sound asleep! See what I mean...we never know how we are going to find this little guy!

Crazy sleeper!

Alec is such a crazy sleeper! Every night before we go to bed we peek in his room, and almost every time Eriik has to move him out of some strange position and cover him back up. Most of the time we find him wedged between the bed and the wall and have to dig him out....or he is laying with his head at the opposite end of the bed. The other night Eriik came and got me to show me a new position that Alec had gotten himself into before falling sound asleep. His legs were flopped up over the guard rail...(that he obviously still needs for safety since he's all over the place)! It cracked me up, so I had to get a picture. And by the way....when he is asleep there is no waking this kid up!

My Happy Birthday!

Yesterday I turned 33. That doesn't feel so much older...it's all about the same till I get to 40 I think. Anyway....I had a pretty good day. One of the hilights was that when Alec woke up yesterday morning he came into the kitchen eyes still blinking away the sleepness and said..."Happy Birthday Mommy!!" and gave me a huge hug. I was so shocked that my little 4 year would remember to say that first thing after waking up...it was very sweet. Also, my husband surprised me by coming home from work and pulling paint samples out of his back pocket. He said that he is going to redo our master bathroom! I am so excited about this, because he had said that we were going to wait a few years before opening that can of worms....there is a lot of work that has to be done to update it. We have horrible wallpaper covering our bathroom and gold fixtures and it's been driving me nuts. It was the only room that I had a problem with when we bought the house. So...that was a very nice surprise! We all went out to eat and had a great time last night. There was a sweet little card from the kids with their voices recorded on it singing Happy Birthday...and Ava saying "Luv u". It was a good birthday. Oh...by the way, today I got sucked into facebook...like I have time for that...but it is so fun seeing all my old college buddies!

Crazy haired kids!

Last night was Crazy hair night at Awanas. I ended up catching Ava's stomach bug and was sick all day sunday, so this was all I could muster for his crazy hair...Alec thought it was pretty funny.

Ava wanted to join in on the fun, so her daddy gave her a crazy hairdo in the bathtub!

Alec's V-Day Now and Then!

Well....yesterday was Alec's Valentines Day party at preschool. So, I wanted to share a pic or two. Anyway...tonight it's time for his daddy and I to celebrate. We were initially planning on dropping off the kids at the church because they are having free babysitting tonight (very cool)!! But unfortunately little Ava threw up last night, and although she's been doing good all day, has a little bit of the big D and I don't think other parent's would appreciate me sharing that with their kids. So, our friend Candi is going to watch the kids for a little tonight while we go out to dinner! Woohoo!!!! I'm sooo excited to get out of the house and have time alone with Eriik!!! Happy Valentine's Day (a little early)!

Here he is with the valentines that we made for kids in the hospital...he had a lot of fun putting on the stickers.

Here we are at his party yesterday.

And this was us at his valentine party last year when he had just turned 3. I love comparison pics! Although It does show my aging as well...which is not as fun.

This is another picture from last years party. He looked so much younger then! Look at that pouty little baby face. He was just sad because he hadn't gotten his candy yet!

Sippy Cup Snatching!

I was working out the other day and Ava was in the nursery they have at the facility (Alec was at preschool). They have great child care there, so I feel really good about leaving her there while I work out a little. They even have a surveillance camera and I can watch her playing on the screen while I walk on the treadmill!! I thought that was pretty cool technology, and so while I walked on the treadmill listening to my I POD, I watched Ava play.

I had let her keep her sippy cup with her because she had not drink much at all that morning. I realized as I watched that I was watching the sippy cup more than Ava. There have been a lot of sicknesses going around, and I'm a little paranoid. (Can any of you Mom's relate?) Anyway...I watched her put the sippy cup in the pretend microwave, take it out drop it on the floor, pick it back up stick it in her mouth. Then she left it on the table and went to the other side of the room. I was literally getting nervous over this! Then low and behold a runny nosed little girl came along...she sat right down in front of the sippy cup just looking at it while wiping the snot from her nose....I wanted to run down there and snatch it up! Of coarse she picked it up and drink to her little hearts content and wandered around the room with it. When Ava noticed her cup in the little girl's hands she started screaming (I could only see the scream, but can imagine how loud it was) The teacher came over took it out of the runny nosed child's hands and put it right into Ava's...without cleaning it off!!!!!! I think I may have said "NO!"out loud while walking on the treadmill. I actually reached out for the screen, like that was going to do something! OK...so I sound a little crazy...but please don't have me committed, I just want my little girl to stay healthy for once. Every time she gets a little cold she has this HORRIBLE sounding cough that makes everyone stare and glare. Now I realize that there are a million ways a child can catch a cold, and that the sippy swiping happens ALL the time, and it's really not that big of a deal. The truth is that I just don't want to see it when it happens! All this to say I may opt out of watching Ava play while I work out....it's much too stressful! :)

Thank you Poppy, Nanny and Me Ma

Mom (Me Ma), I wanted you to see a picture of Ava in the dress you got for her. She wore it to church this sunday and looked adorable in it! If your wondering why Ava is often holding a doll, or gadget in pictures...that's sometimes the only way we can get her to stand still and smile at the camera. It's like her little security blanket.

Also, we got the package from Nanny and Poppy today and I got a little clip of Alec and Ava after we opened it. They loved the musical valentine cards and walked around "playing" with them for a really long time! Sooo funny....it's the little things that can be so exciting to a kid. The clothes for the kids were absolutly adorable!!! Alec was trying on all his shirts saying "wow, this is cool"! You'll notice that Alec starts getting really loud in the video when I start to talk to Ava...he still wants all the attention!

Karate girl???

Alec's Karate classes have been making an impression on little Ava apparently. She goes with us every Monday to his Karate lesson and she never really seems to pay much attention. She just wanders around climbing on to the other mom's laps and tries to get them to read to her. But yesterday morning Alec was saying the Motto that they say before every class and I saw that she was trying to say some of it with him...so I gave her a little test, and she could at least finish the sentences. I was so surprised, because we have never tried to get her to say it....we don't even really practice it with Alec. So, today after my MOPS steering meeting we were out playing in the sand box and I got her to say it for the camera...kinda cute. In case you can't understand her...the motto goes:
Knowledge in the MIND
Strength in the BODY
Honesty in the HEART
To be a good PERSON
To make a good FRIEND (she forgets friend though...and just says "kerson" (person) again)


She also does great karate chops and says "Hi Ya"...but I couldn't get her to do that on camera. By the way...please excuse my annoying giggle....I hate hearing myself on videos!