THE Road Trip

Last Thursday I had this great idea that Noah should go to Grandpa and Grandma Randolph's for spring break. Two days didn't leave a lot of cheap options for airline tickets - especially when it would have included a ticket for someone to fly with him. So, with our computers handy, we set off to devise a Plan B - driving. Springfield, IL proved to be about halfway for both me and my mom and avoided I-70. (A BIG bonus in my book...) First plan was that we would leave early in the morning, hand off Noah around lunch and then head back home. It's only 5.5 hours. No problem, right? Then we wised-up a little and opted to spend the night. Christopher had to work so that left me and three kids to fend for ourselves. I got everyone fed, pottied, loaded, and underway. All was good until 35 miles in to it I HAD TO GO POTTY!!! So, we made stop #1 and all unloaded. I put Abby in the baby carrier and we all went. Abby thought that was pretty fun until we had to pick Benjamin up to wash his hands - she got a little squished. Back in the car and off again. Noah and Abby rode without making a peep. Benjamin would ride quietly about 30 minutes and then scream because he needed to get out of his seat. "I won't get out of the car, I just want to get down!" Good an argument as that was, I didn't fall for it. So, we just had to listen to him cry a lot. A lunch stop and another potty break along the way and we arrived in Springfield in time for dinner. Promised the boys if they were good I would take them swimming when we got back to the room. Got our suits on and realized I didn't remember seeing a sign for the pool. Checked the hotel book and sure enough - no pool. Oops! (Note to self, ALWAYS check that BEFORE promising your children swimming...) Thankfully Phineas & Ferb was on and they were not too upset with me. A good night's sleep and some yummy breakfast under our belt and we were back in the car again. Noah was sooooo excited to be going to Grandma's ALL BY HIMSELF. I tried to talk him out of it at the last minute but he would have none of it. He was going to Michigan and nothing was going to stop him. So, Abby, Benj and I headed back home alone. Sniff. Sniff. We made just one stop for lunch and potty and trucked on through. We were home about 3:30. Abby slept the last 25 minutes and Benjamin screamed the last three hours. Raise your hand if you were happy to be home..... And now it is Wednesday already. Just 5 more days until my baby comes home.... I can make it, right?

Oh, and want to see what you're missing out on by not travelling with us? Just a watch at this little version of "Crocodile Rock". Oh, and sorry about the crooked picture but I was driving down the highway, remember?

So, tell me. What is more surprising? That daddy let Noah go away for a week OR that I drove over 12.5 hours on the highway ALL BY MYSELF???

Fantastic Five!

Our sweet boy is FIVE! Seems like just yesterday I was hoping to be the lady who accidentally had her baby in the bathroom so I wouldn't have to actually deliver one. As you may already know, that didn't happen. Truth be told, I could not have been happier. If you have ever experienced childbirth, you can appreciate that there is truly nothing like it. And to think that most incredible experience was 1,825 days ago. Look at that number again. 1,825. Wow. That is a lot of days. Each with its own challenges and moments of immense joy. Those are too numerous to count. Looking at him now, it is kind of hard to believe he was ever a newborn. It seems as though he has been grown forever. (Thank goodness for pictures - our remembrances of long ago.) I realize I am making it sound like he is forty or something but five is such a BIG number! We have a lot of big changes coming this year. Not to get all depressing but it is true. So, I am feeling a little sentimental. Now I'll be the first to admit this kid can push my buttons like no one I have ever met, BUT his other moments warm my heart as no one else can. I love his hugs and kisses first thing in the morning and his, "So what are we going to do today, Mom?" I love that he loves Michigan (and Ludington) almost as much as his mom. I love to hear his giggles and hearing him make his brother and sister laugh so hard they can barely breathe. While I am usually unable to answer the majority of them, I love that he can ask questions all day long. I love that he loves books and is always willing to let me read to him. I love that he is always up for an adventure and is willing to go to Target with me daily - as long as we stop in the toy aisle. I love that he loves his daddy and follows him like a little puppy from the moment he walks in the door until he is forced to put his head on the pillow - usually in our bed. I love that he still sleeps with his nite-nite (and secretly hope that he always does). I love how he attaches himself to every new item that he gets whether it is wristbands, a keychain, or a new book. I love that he is so willing to forgive his mommy when she messes up. But most of all, I love that he is all ours. And while I hate every minute of his getting older, I love watching him grow up.

Now, enough of the mushiness, here is how we spent the day. Birthday party at school.

I have to include the video because I love that he had to sing along with his own birthday song. (It is kind of catchy, no? Who wouldn't want to sing? Sorry it starts out crooked, by the way. I kind of forgot I couldn't rotate it.) Next was opening birthday presents in the church parking lot before music class because we wanted to use it in the afternoon but daddy wanted to be present for the big opening.

Needless to say, he loved it.

And last on activities for the day was dinner with the neighbors at T-Rex.

And here is another example of those crazy cupcakes making a big old mess. (Thanks for modeling, Claire!)

Totally a fun evening. Totally a fun day to celebrate our first born.

Happy Birthday, Noah! We love you!

Take a Good Look

at this sweet little face. The next time you see it, HE WILL BE 5!!!!!

Let the Celebrations Begin

It occurred to Noah at lunch on February 28 that the following day was MARCH. He jumped out of his seat, ran to the calendar, changed the page to March and started singing 'Happy Birthday to me...' And he has taken every opportunity since then to remind us that SOMEONE we know will be turning 5 very soon. Well, his month-long celebration kicked off last night when he had his friend Eric over for a Star Wars sleep over. When Noah decided he wanted another Star Wars party he was pretty certain we needed to do it all the exact same as we did last year.

Surprisingly, he was pretty receptive to the idea of something different.

I think we are pretty lucky that he loves sleep overs with Eric so much. He requested pigs-in-a-blanket which I could totally do. I included Jedi Juice and tried some homemade 'Light sabers'.

(Again, I am lucky that 5 yr olds - and younger - are pretty easy to please.) With a couple of different parties this year, I wanted to do something different in the way of cakes.

This time around was a cupcake tower complete with StarWars characters for each boy.

And can I just mention that I am ever amazed with the amount of mess a tiny little cupcake can make?

The boys did bouncing, bouncing, and more bouncing.

There was the inevitable LEGO-athon.

And, of course, presents.

Then it was time for THE event of the evening. We had told him all along that you had to be 5 to watch 'Star Wars'. Even though he never really put two and two together, we decided it was time. So daddy spent the last week having to watch the movie (Episode IV) to censor a 45 minute portion for the party. (Poor daddy, right?) He decided to start at the beginning. He had made a list of parts he wanted to edit out but had some VCR difficulties and had to just fast forward or cough really big at parts instead.*tag* (That means it is daddy's turn to take the reins.)
I don't know who was looking forward to the event more but I was pretty excited about it. As it happens I was essentially the same age as Noah when my Grandmother took me to the theater to see this movie. Noah didn't appear quite as excited as I might have expected but that might be in part due to the fact that Noah started asking about watching a Star Wars movie at dinner time. So the unveiling was pretty low key but it was finally underway. I read the opening intro to the Noah and Eric but I don't think they were all that interested in the plot. At this point I just sat back and watched to see how they reacted to the movie. It's hard to explain what happened. I'm not sure that Eric said anything the entire time, though I don't know that he actually watched all of it. (I think maybe he might have been underwhelmed by the 1970s special effects. Notice his expression in the video. It didn't change the whole time we watched the movie.) Noah on the other hand could not keep quiet.

At each major scene change he would ask what was happening. ""Is this when the Jawa's show up?" "Where are the Sand People?" A bit of background. While we had not yet let Noah watch any Star Wars up to this point we had listened to the soundtrack. A LOT! And while we listened to the sound track I was asked about every ten seconds, "What's happening now?". So I suppose I must have answered those questions with too much detail. Anyhow it was pretty cool to see him watch it. I think his favorite part had to have been when all of the droids were on display. He loves robots. Forty-five minutes of the original movie doesn't really get you that far necessarily. I ended the viewing just before they arrived at the Cantina. Too bad really, I know that the Cantina will probably be one of his favorite parts. Check back for Noah's review of the second installment of Star Wars - A New Hope. Surely the space battles will get him going, right?

One party down, two more to go...

Let's Have a Parade!

Well, I did not catch a Benjamin story this week but he has been doing a lot of parading. Daddy let the boys play on his trumpeta few nights this week and they just loved that. Luckily, Benjamin was just as happy to practice with the Barney trumpet in between practicing with daddy. Now check out this boy's marching skills....

Who's Bored?

Never a dull moment in this house... Can't find something fun to do? Make your own fun.
I caught Noah putting on this little show the other day. I don't know what he is saying either. It is just the idea of it that I appreciated. As I continued to watch, he did a few songs and even gave Batman a chance to get a word in. He didn't have much to say.

Here's Abs. She has no toys, apparently, so she has to make her own. Now, this was before Christmas. Maybe we have since fixed her toy deficiency.

Also from December... Here I thought she was just pleased with her ability to say my name. Not so much. She had been doing it for a few days and while I listened to her, I never really stopped to watch her. Make sure you watch her mouth closely.

I don't have anything on record for Benjamin. I'll have to try to get him to tell us a story this week. The problem will be getting him to keep it under the blogger time limit.

For Grandma

Grandma Bonnie sends Abs lots of cute clothes. (That's just one of a Grandma's many jobs, right?) I take lots of pictures but don't always remember to send them along. So here are the last few, Grandma. And you all can see my cute baby, too. You are welcome. First up, the Abby Cadabby outfit because, c'mon, who doesn't want a pretty pink fur coat with their name on it?

Abby has learned this little trick. When she says 'Cheese', she does this little cheer move. Love that baby belly! I had this great idea that if I turned the camera screen around so she could see herself, she might be more apt to let me take her picture. Didn't work out. Take two: The sweater skirt. Abs learned the joy of jumping on the furniture. Uh, yeah. WITH the tongue out, of course. Let the fun begin!

Teddy Bear Picnic

Friday was the much-anticipated Teddy Bear day at Noah's school. I didn't really understood all that it entailed, unfortunately, but it was a BIG day. His teddy bear got an invitation from the school to come and attend. We went through all our bears and he selected who he thought it would be the best guest, but at the last minute traded him in for Pooh bear. (That IS who he took last year after all... Will we ever be able to convince him that he can change things up a little?) So it turns out in addition to the picnic, they had a full on Teddy Bear Olympics. After coloring his torch, he had been telling us that he was going to do 'twirling' (which we finally convinced him was called 'curling') and the "super-fast ice sled (commonly referred to as 'luge'). We really thought we was just dreaming big, but no. They actually did these things. Apparently Pooh did also. We didn't get to see any of these things - hopefully the teachers took some good picures. It was daddy's Friday off, though, so he got to join us for the Teddy Bear Parade. All the kids brought in shoeboxes which they then decorated as their floats. All the rooms paraded around to "Teddy Bear Picnic".
I know I am nuts, but these kinds of things just make me so emotional. It is just too darn cute to see your kid being so darn cute. They are all so proud of their floats. And torches. And headbands. And medals. I just love it.

Your Attention, Please

Christopher and I are please to announce that we have completed a home project. Sure, we started it 4 years ago. Sure, we still need to paint the ceiling. Could you just let me have my moment here??!?! I decided on Friday that I was ready to take on the dining room. I never knew what exactly I wanted to do there and a few weeks ago an idea came to me. The kids seem to be at ages that we can leave them to themselves for longer stretches of time, so we took advantage of it. Only three trips to Home Depot! And now that we have one room done, it just makes me wish that we could finish the rest of the house. Let's see... 4 years for each project... 8 rooms left to do... Man, we shold be out of this house before we retire! Oh, and here is what Abby did while we painted. (FYI - we were just across the gate and she was in our sight at all times.) It's probbly going to take me all week to pick this mess up. Mostly because she can take stuff out faster than I can get it put back away.

He Loves His Books

Benjamin has always loved his books. From the very beginning he has loved to have us read with him. That said, he has also been pretty content to sit alone to flip through books when no one was available to read. The boys have a pretty well-stocked bookshelf in their bedroom. This has recently become a bit of a problem. See, Benj, for wahtever reason, has decided he no longer needs to go sleep before 11:00PM. Skipping naps regularly doesn't appear to be an option at this time as he can't stay awake until dinner without it. So, Noah usually goes to bed in our room and is asleep pretty quickly afterward. We put Benjamin to bed around 8:00 and usually see him downstairs three or so times, hear him in the bathroom a couple three times, and hear him getting in and out of bed a lot. When we go to move Noah back to his bed, IF Benjamin is actually asleep, we always have a big stack of books to reshelve. I guess last night he wanted to make sure we didn't leave him empty-handed, so to speak. The Little Mermaid. Every boy's favorite book, right? Funny little kid.

Let's Make Believe!

The boys have been dress-up fans for quite some time now. Well, this week, Abby got to try her hand at it. We got this puppy costume as a hand-me-down and it was too small for the boys to ever use but it was so cute I could never bear to part with it. So Benj went for Captain Hook.(Noah was at school so he could pick whatever he wanted.) Abby was digging through the box and I pulled out the hood and put it on her completely expecting she would cry and remove it immediately. She didn't. In fact, she started walking around meowing. (We're still working on the dog sound.) She loved twisting her head and watching the ears move. Eventually we got her panting. Still no barking but we will keep working on it. She did keep trying to call Noah on the Mickey Mouse phone. "Hi-whoa, Whoa-wah!" But she got upset that he wasn't answering and she would throw the phone. Most upsetting, however, was Benjamin stepping on her tail. Any guesses as to what Benjamin liked to do the best during dress-up time??? Un-hunh... Poor, Abs...