Merry Christmas To All (take 2)

Merry Christmas -- Again!!!

So yesterday we had a great day celebrating Christmas with Mommy, Daddy, Noni, Grandpa, Oma and Uncle Jon. They all came down to our house on Christmas Eve and are spending a few days just hanging out and playing.

On Christmas Eve, Mommy, Erin, Noni, and Oma spent lots of the afternoon in the kitchen making yummy desserts. We made apple pie bars and gingerbread. It's not often that 4 generations get the chance to hang out a cook together. Later in the evening we went to Christmas Eve service (which Jeffrey managed to sleep through while being held by mommy - she even got up and sang in the choir with him asleep) and drove home the scenic way to see the lights. When we all got home Erin and Jeffrey scattered the reindeer food for Santa and Rudolph. Erin made sure to leave several cookies and some milk for Santa. She even wrote him a note:

Der Sata. I wat a pethsop (petshop). I luv you. Erin.



On Christmas morning, mommy was the first one up (to put the breakfast casserole into the oven). Jeffrey came down and joined her not long after. They read a few stories together and looked and the tree. Then Erin came on down and the festivities began. It was much fun running around and waking everyone up - especially Uncle Jon.


Before breakfast everyone opened up their stockings from Santa. Then after a great big breakfast (cheesy potato casserole, scrambled eggs, bacon and grapefruit) we dug into the presents. It was so much fun to watch the kids faces not only when they got to open a gift but when they got to see someone open one that they had chosen out all themselves. Santa brought Erin a great big new Pet House - "Just Like I Asked For in my Letter!!!" Santa brought Jeffrey a cool Little People Race Car set, but it didn't work well so mommy and grandpa exchanged it this morning for a different Little People set which has much less potential to "Not Working Mommy!!!" Jeffrey's favorite toy right now seems to be a Diego Tree House from Grandma and Grandpa. Very Cool. They also got little music boxes from their Oma that they completely adore.


Daddy got a bread book and some brew stuff (and managed somehow to give brew stuff to 2 other people too). Mommy got her new Nano that she had asked Santa.


So we spent the afternoon opening boxes, removing elastics from Little Pets, un-tying Diego toys, playing games, reading bread books, downloading music etc...


For dinner we had a ham with lots of different potatoes and squash. Our desserts from the day before went along just perfectly. What a great fun day!!!!

The Tree and Stockings

Santa's Cookies and Letter


Wake Up Uncle Jon!!!!

Helping Open Gifts

Jeffrey Helping Grandpa

Playing Pets with Uncle Jon

The Gang at Dinner

~~Merry Christmas~~

An Early Christmas Blogged about 2 weeks late (whoops)

Merry Christmas to All!!!!

We had a wonderful day yesterday celebrating a pretty cool Christmas. But first mommy must get off her lazy toosh and remark that we had a super fun morning celebrating Christmas with Grandma and Grandpa W. 2 weeks ago when they were visiting. Since then life had turned into the familiar Christmas whirlwind and mommy completely forgot to Blog about it. Our special morning included a nice pancake breakfast made by daddy.

Then we gathered around the tree and opened some gifts. The biggest hits were Jeffrey's "Red" Fire Truck and his Tractor Book, and Erin's marble run. The marble run continues to be the star of the show. For 2 weeks I've been tripping over marbles, repairing broken runs, helping to figure out a cool new one. Both Erin and Jeff totally LOVE it. I'm glad they are having so much fun with it.

After celebrating Christmas with Grandma and Grandpa they came into town to see Erin and Mommy in the Christmas Pageant play (the real reason for their trip to C'ville). We're so glad they could come down and celebrate with us.

Strike!!!

Or at least a few spares. We took the kids bowling today and all had a really great time. Back in October we won a family gift certificate for 2 hours of bowling at the local lanes. We've been waiting for a good time to do. Since Tom is taking this week off and Erin has 2 weeks of Winter break we decided this would be a good day to go. I'm really glad we had the prize because otherwise one of us would have had to go out and donate a kidney or something in order to afford a few hours of fun with the kids. Seriously. It would have been close to $60 for 2 hours for a family of 4....OMG.

Anyway the kids are familiar with bowling because of the Wii. Erin's pretty good at it. Jeffrey doesn't quite really get it yet. But he tries. We got there right as they opened (as Tom was advised to do when he called in the morning and a good thing too because it got pretty busy). Handed over our golden ticket, got 4 pairs of lovely shoes and headed off to lane 17.

Everything is much more automated than I remember it being. So we put our names in a little computer and even tried to set it up so that Erin and Jeff had bumpers and Tom and I didn't. That didn't quite work as the bumpers were more manual than that. But probably a good thing because Tom and I needed them just as much as the kids.

Erin has this really weird connection with bowling. It took 2 games on the Wii for her to get the idea. Took about 2 frames with a real ball (and bumpers) to catch on. She had her very own way of rolling the ball with some amazing spin, hitting each bumper at least twice, and then smacking the set of pins right in the kisser. She got her fair square of spares and even a strike I believe. Mommy only beat her by 7 pins in the first game.

Jeffrey had several methods. I'm sure there are several more dents in the lane than when we got there. He would just kinda toss the ball rather than roll it. It would then dribble down the lane and bump into a few pins. Then he tried a fascinating method of putting the ball on the floor and then pushing it from behind. Got a little more momentum that way, but was apparently not as fun. Finally he developed the true winner method. He'd grab the ball (6 lbs...forget about using the finger holes) run towards the lane, slide onto his knees/bum and let go of the ball down the lane, without crossing the foul line himself. Seriously one of the funniest things I've ever witnessed.

Of course where was the camera? Right here at home. Sitting right next to the computer. Oh well. Next time right? Maybe. We'll see if one of us wins the lottery first. Still it was a great time with lots of laughs and fun. I think we'll find a way to go back sometime.

Best Christmas Pageant

Well Erin and Mommy just wrapped another show. She's loving every minute of them now. This time she was a baby Angel in "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever." If you don't know the story it's a great one to look up. The crux is this bunch of hoodlums who take over the local Christmas pageant because they find out that snacks are served at rehearsals. They end up with all the big parts (Mary, Joseph, the Angel of the Lord, the Kings) and everyone is convinced it's going to be the worst pageant ever. In the end they add their own touch but bring people back in touch with some of the "real" meaning of Christmas and maybe how Mary and Joseph might have felt that amazing night.

Anyway I'm babbling. Erin and I had a ton of fun. She got to sing in 2 songs as well as all the pageant songs. She also had 2 lines. First was "When do we get our costumes" and second was "Can I be Little Bo Peep Miss Bradley." You can always count on Erin delivering her lines nice and loud and this year was no exception. She especially LOVED the Little Bo Peep line.

As always the last few weeks have been exhausting getting ready for the shows but we were lucky that Noni, Oma and Grandpa came down the first weekend and Grandma and Grandpa W. made it down the second weekend. It was the first time they'd got to see Erin in a show so that was pretty special.

Next up is Peter Pan in late April and early May. I think the 3 of us will be involved in that one -- and give Jeffrey another year or so before he makes his debut.

So here are some pictures and an little montage of Erin's parts from the show.

School Christmas Play

Jeffrey had his school Christmas play last Thursday. If you can't tell from the pictures - our little stinker was a skunk. Not sure why there was a skunk in the Christmas play, but there was. He did really well. Sang part of the first song and did some hand motions. He was also one of the only kids that had a line. It went something like "This is my song for Jesus....Pee Eww" (or however that would be spelled). He held his nose while saying it too. Of course we didn't know he was going to say anything so it didn't get recorded. Oh well. So here's a few pictures and a little video of the stinker. Sorry they are such poor quality. We seem to arrive too late to get a seat where we can actually get a decent picture.

Advent

It's that time for getting ready. Preparing the house and our hearts for Christmas. The fall play has certainly gotten Erin and I in the mood. If you don't know "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" you should check it out. The book and play are really great stories and will certainly warm your heart. Erin plays a baby angel and I'm one of the Church ladies. It's a lot of fun and I'll post some pictures and videos after next weekend.

We've also started getting the house ready. We got the tree over the weekend -- a good ole Boy Scout tree. It's gorgeous. On Saturday we brought the tree inside and then daddy and the kids put up the outside lights while I got the inside things out.

Sunday evening we trimmed the tree. The kids really got into it this year. They wanted Tom to pick them up so they could put their ornaments "up high". Erin just giggled. Jeffrey made it a game. Erin took a lot of time picking out the right branch for each ornament. Jeffrey preferred the method of weighing down one branch with as many ornaments as it could hold. After we had finished trimming the tree we took a few pictures sitting in front of it. Jeff didn't want to sit by himself or with his sister, but he was willing to take a few with mommy and daddy.

So we start our month of anticipation. Of questioning how many more days. And when is Santa coming? Of Advent calendars, trees, Christmas lights and music. I think this is my favorite month of the year - no matter how busy it gets (and boy oh boy does it get busy).

Best Kisses

Jeffrey and I have this cute little thing going about his giving "best kisses". He really does. They're the sweetest, cutest little kisses. It used to be that he'd give best kisses on the cheeks. Both of em. He'd take your face in his little hands and turn it so he can kiss one cheek, and then gently turn your head so he can reach the other cheek. Recently he has added a kiss right on the lips to the routine. Still a sweet little kiss. So the routine goes kiss one cheek, kiss next cheek, kiss lips. He now knows that he gives best kisses -- and he knows when to use them. When he's in trouble...."Wait mommy...best kisses...make it all better." At bedtime..."Best kisses night mommy" Just whenever..."Best kisses mommy." At the gym....."Best kisses...." Wait, at the gym? Yep that's right.

Jeffrey's best friend is a little boy at the gym. His mom and I must have the same daily routine because he's almost always there when we are. The two of them get really excited when they see each other. First thing Jeffrey does is look to see if his friend is there.

So last week both his mom and I were picking the kids up at the same time. They'd been playing together for about an hour. I told Jeff to say goodbye to his friend. He ran up to him to give him a hug - what I expected as that's how he's said bye for a while. Then I heard him say..."Wait (S) Best Kisses" I looked over and there he was. Hands on his face. Kiss one cheek. Kiss next cheek. Kiss squarely on the lips. His friend had no idea what to do. He kinda stood there. Then wiped his lips with the back of his sleeve. I looked at his mom, and politely apologized for Jeffrey's kisses. She just laughed. All the ladies who work at the gym thought it was adorable too. Still I think I might need to work on when "best kisses" are appropriate. Lesson one...best kisses are NOT for friends at the gym buddy.

I Want Pie

Isn't that what Thanksgiving is all about? At least in the 3-year old mind of one Jeffrey it is. But really it was a great week of spending time with family. We did miss those who couldn't join us (Love you Uncle Jon, Oma, and Uncle Jeff, Aunt Robyn and Rylie and Avery).

Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Katie, Uncle Bill and baby Will arrived late on Tuesday night so on Wednesday morning Erin and Jeffrey woke up to a special surprise. We hung around the house on Wednesday (mommy, grandma and Erin did run out for a few errands) and had a yummy slow-cooker dinner that night. The kids loved sitting on the floor and playing with baby Will. Jeffrey kept wanting to share his special blankie or his pandas. It was quite sweet. He even donated his room to the cause and spent the next few nights camped out on Erin's floor. Erin thought it looked like so much fun, she abandoned her bed and slept on the floor next to him.

Thursday Noni and Grandpa showed up. Grandpa brought his plate of cheese, pickles, olives and cheese to nibble on throughout the day. Noni brought the bestest sweet potatoes as always. Daddy smoked the turkey. After an initial mishap with the turkey (the smoker overheated and "crisped" the skin of the turkey) he got it all fixed and ended up with a perfect bird. Mommy took care of the ham, mashed potatoes, green beans and carrots. We all relaxed during the day and enjoyed a wonderful dinner together.

Of course all Jeffrey could think of was the pie. We bought one at Sams Club on Monday and he talked about it all week. Then on Thursday we finished dinner and the men cleaned up in the kitchen. Jeffrey immediately wanted his pie. We convinced him to wait a while by playing on the Wii, reading some stories etc... After every activity he'd say "I want pie" Eventually he got himself a nice big piece of apple pie.

Noni and Grandpa spent the night and on Friday we all lounged around the house (no Aunt Katie and Uncle Bill braved Black Friday). Erin spent part of the afternoon "babysitting" her cousin Will. She let him set on her lap and watch Monsters Inc. She played with toys with him and banged drums together. Later in the afternoon Grandma and Aunt Katie made lasagna for dinner. Mmmmm.

Noni and Grandpa headed back home Friday night and Aunt Katie and Uncle Bill packed up Baby Will and left for home Saturday morning. On Saturday we headed to a movie and out to dinner with Grandma and Grandpa.

It was a wonderful weekend with lots of family around. Thanks to all those who were able to come share it with us and to those who we missed, we'll see you all soon we hope. Hugs and Kisses to all.

More Poop Stories

Have you noticed that there tends to be an inordinate amount of poop stories on the Blog? No. Maybe it's been a while. There's this one - Sigh Long Poopy Day . And this - I Don't Know if this Should Be Called Progress. Oh and we certainly can't forget Boys Will Be Boys I Guess

You get the idea....

So here's another wonderful story.

Jeffrey hasn't had an accident in quite a while. Aside from being wet in the mornings he's pretty much completely potty trained. Hooray. Yet yesterday whether he was angry at me (for making him take a nap when he was clearly overtired) or just so overtired he couldn't think straight I'm not sure.

What I do know is that about an hour after he laid down for his nap I heard him playing in the living room. Given how tired he'd seemed to be, I was surprised by his lack of long nap. I went up to check on him. He held his hands out to give me a hug. That's when I noticed.

His hands smelled totally like poop - and they were covered completely in poop. There also seems to be a little poop on his sweat shirt.

"What happened bud?"

"Ummmm...I poopie my undies. (big smile) But it's ok now!!!"

Leading him upstairs to clean his hands and shirt. "Well let's go get cleaned up kiddo."

While removing the soiled shirt I noticed it seemed that his pants had met with some poop along the way as well, and they were on backwards (hard to wear jeans backwards but my kids can do it).

"Lets get these off too"

What met my eyes was quite a nasty sight. Legs, socks, a pair of inside-out undies all covered in poop. Seriously I was in for much more than I bargained for.

"Woah!!!!! What happened?"

"Ummmm. I dunno." (standard response when he knows he's in trouble)

"Where are your other undies?" Asked while stripping him down and running the bathtub.

"Don't worry mommy. I put them in the laundry"

"Oh. Ugh." Toss boy into bathtub. Go reclaim most disgusting pair of undies ever seen. Immediately toss undies into garbage. No salvaging these.

While the little man splashed around in the tub I continued to follow my nose for other signs of Jeffrey's cleaning abilities. The doorknob to his closet was crusty, smears on his wall and a small splotch on the carpet. I've never seen quite a mess as this. Nasty, nasty nasty.

But boys clean, clothes wash, doorknobs can be disinfected and undies thrown away. I'm not sure if I should be proud of his initiative to clean up his mess or severely pissed that he didn't come to me for help. I can assure you that if there's a next time he's been informed that he's to come to mommy for some help before turning my upstairs into Poopville.

Field Trip Fun

Yesterday Erin had her first real big field trip. Back in October they took a short trip to the pumpkin patch. I would have gone along but I needed to pick Jeffrey up from school right in the middle of it. So I decided that Jeff and I would tag along for yesterday's trip. They were heading to a discovery Museum Amazement Square. Although quite a drive away I've always wanted to take the kids. And Museums (in case you all forgot that I used to work in a former life) really are my thing.

So I sent Erin off to school in a driving rain so she could ride the bus down with all her friends. Jeff and I went home, got ready to go made a few stops - including visiting the new Dunkin Donuts - and headed out to meet them. It was probably the worst day for driving we've had in months. The rain was a cold nasty driving rain. It was foggy and windy. No fun. The drive took about 90 minutes (long enough for Jeff to watch all of Meet the Robinsons).

Once we got to the Museum though we had a blast. They had a ton of stuff to do. I was the only non-chaperon parent with Erin's group. The chaperon with them had been recruited from the school that morning as the original one had gotten sick. So while not an official chaperon I certainly helped to corral the kids. They had lots of exploration time. Their favorite areas seemed to be a motion area with chutes/slides and golf balls, a bicycle race thing, a river with running water, and this great big 4-story climbing tower. Yeah try keeping tabs on kids once they get in there. There is also this really cool room with all glass walls. The kids can go in and paint all over the walls. It's messy but they all seem to love it. Jeff did great keeping up with sister, but not getting in her way.

The also got to sit in for a lesson on living on the farm. The kids talked about animals. Counted them. Voted and looked at the result graph. I noted while watching everyone that Jeff fit right in, in the middle of a bunch of Kindergartners. Boy...is he growing up or what?

After our long day I took Erin with me home in the car because I had a meeting in the 'Ville. We were driving through Amherst and I asked the kids if they wanted to see where I used to work. Erin's immediate response was "You work mommy? Really? I didn't know that!!" "Well yes dear, I did have a previous life before you were around." "And YOU worked? Wow!!!" We did a drive-by just so I could prove to her that I wasn't lying. Clearly mommas don't work, and never did. Mommas are just mommas.

The Painting Room

Jumping Around in a Virtual Game

Playing with Lights and Colors

Of Dates and Rules

Erin's school held a Fall Festival last Friday evening. They had snacks and drinks, little games for the kids to play, a photo spot and some entertainment from the Principal (who I swear is like 10 years old....and Daddy in another body.)

Erin was really excited to go so we all went. While walking in we ran into a friend from preschool. Erin went to school with the older daughter and Jeffrey goes now with their younger daughter. They spent much of the evening playing together. Especially Jeffrey and his little friend. They ran around and goofed off. Played ring-around-the-rosie. Her dad mentioned that little did Jeffrey realize but Chloe certainly said that she and Jeffrey were on a date. Hey 3 1/2 why not start off young. I'm just glad they're good friends.

Erin did see a friend from her class. She and Jeff played a bowling game, and a pin-the-tail game. Then Erin decided she wanted to wait in line for the "beauty salon". They had a mom doing face painting, then paint their nails, putting on little tattoos and "gem" stickers. Even Jeff decided it would be fun to get his cheek painted - he picked a turtle.

One of the highlights of the night was the Principal's juggling act. He told a story that involved juggling all different types of objects (balls, clubs, sticks....) He made it interactive for the kids too. They really thought it was super funny. Then they had a big hula hoop contest. Everyone got awards just for playing.

They broke down into age groups. Preschoolers, kindergartners etc.... Jeffrey was off playing something else and missed his group. He showed up as Erin was getting her turn. I figured that he could just join her group - since enough people claim they look like twins anyway. Jeff wandered in, got a hoop and started playing. Erin...my little rule-follower immediately took offense. She walked up to the woman handing out the hoops and said quite loudly...HEY HE'S NOT IN KINDERGARTEN. HE'S IN PRESCHOOL. HE MISSED HIS TURN. HE CAN'T GO NOW. Then she went and took the hoop away from him. The teacher had no real choice but to tell him he missed his turn and couldn't play. Poor kiddo. He was crushed.

After that it was clearly time to call it a night. We said goodbye to friends and headed on home. It was a lot of fun to watch the kids really interact with other friends their own ages in an unstructured environment and just have fun.

Happy Halloween!!!

We certainly had a fun-filled Halloween. We started celebrating on Thursday with Jeff's preschool party and continued all day on Friday. Friday morning Jeff and I headed to the gym which was totally decked out with Halloween stuff and everyone there was in costume. Erin had her school party Friday and wore her Halloween shirt from Grandma (they weren't allowed to wear costumes).

When Erin got home, we took a few sunshiny pictures with their jack-o-lanterns. Then we piled everything and everyone into the car and headed in to town to trick-or-treat on the Lawn. Now this is more than a big deal. This is a huge deal. Generally there are several thousand people on the Lawn. Since the week had been so cold and dreary and Friday was finally a gorgeous and warmer day I decided we'd brave the crowds and head into town. The plan was meet up with Aunt Margaret, Uncle John and Baby JB3, hang out on the Lawn for an hour or so and then meet daddy for dinner.

I quickly realized that wasn't going to happen. We were a little late getting set off to the Lawn. By the time we were about 2-3 miles away it became apparent that the Lawn was going to be packed. It took us 45 minutes to travel those 3 miles. But we held out, found a spot in the parking garage and wandered over to meet with our friends. As I expected it was quite crowded with adorably clad individuals and hundreds of college students ready to supply my kiddos with endless supplies of sugar. Aside from a slight trample incident as Jeffrey was trying to get to Mr. Incredible we had a good time.

As I headed to the garage we called Daddy and made plans for dinner. Once we arrived at the garage I knew that was out the window. The line to get out of the garage reached all the way to the top floor. 45 minutes later (and 2 screaming children calling me mean mommy) we made our way through the gate of the parking garage. We headed straight to our friends to meet up for some trick-or-treating.

The trick-or-treating was a blast. The adults put together the "wine wagon" (come on we got to have some fun too) and the kids ran from house to house. Our friend's son was the leader of the pack taking us all around the neighborhood. The kids literally ran from house to house with their candy buckets. For Erin the big deal wasn't really the candy, but more the ringing of the doorbell. She was obsessed with the doorbells. Mr. Jonathan led us around the neighborhood for about 2 hours. By the end, the kids buckets were overflowing with candy and in the "wine wagon". Not only were the buckets in the wagon.....Jeffrey was in the wagon. He was completely exhausted. Not even interested in going to doors any more. Luckily most of the wine had been consumed (4 adults - 2 hours....)

I don't think the kids have ever seen so much candy in one place. They're totally overwhelmed with it. At least there's enough extra that mommy and daddy can steal a piece or two or five and not have it noticed. So we had a busy day but a super fun one.

Happy Halloween every one!!!

Fun with Pumpkins and Hay

We've been getting into the fall spirit recently. We took a trip to a local harvest festival with some friends and last night we carved our pumpkins. The kids love the festival. They played in the nearby stream and climbed around on a mountain of hay. We picked out our pumpkins over the weekend and last night we carved them up. Erin had a lot of fun scooping out the guts and helping separate the seeds. My non-slimy man wasn't so sure about the guts, but did dig in at least once. Erin designed her pumpkin all on her own and helped mommy carve it. Jeffrey and daddy did his. Both wanted them to be spooky pumpkins -- I think we achieved that goal.

So here's some photos of the trip to the festival and pumpkin carving. I'll be back over the weekend with costume pictures.

Boys will be boys

That's how the saying goes. I've always really tried to refute it though, thinking "let's not pigeon-hole him." He's a loving, caring, sweet little boy. He adores his sister and his kitty (Mr. Drake) and spends at least 50% of the day within 2 feet of his beloved blankie. He gives the best hugs and kisses.

But there's just something in him that's not in Erin. This mischievous devilishness. The one who MUST dump out every toy in the play area and then decide it's time to watch a movie. He runs around and gets covered in mud in ways I never thought possible. Every toy can be turned into either a gun or a sword for "powing" or "poking" (I'm working on this, but I'm not getting through in the slightest). These past few days he's been verging on out of control. I never, ever remember Erin being like this. She had her moments certainly, but...

Boys will be boys I guess.


Erin has 2 fish in her room - Marlin and Teddy Bear. They are female betas and we keep them on her dresser in a little 1-gallon tank. Jeffrey loves to watch the fish. Yesterday afternoon he was fighting his nap in a way he generally doesn't fight it. He was up every 5 minutes for this or that. Pooped his pants. Ran downstairs to get a truck for his bed. Finally he quieted down. I was trying to get some work done in the basement, so I assumed he'd gone to sleep. Boy oh boy was I wrong.

When I went up to get him so we could go pick Erin up from the bus stop, I noticed his door was open and Erin's door was shut. Noise was coming from Erin's room. I peeked in there and he was cowering on her bed.

"What are you doing in here?"
"Ummmm...nothing?" Clearly stated as a question - What was I doing?

Mommy now noticing Erin's dresser is a mess looks more closely. The fish tank is totally disheveled. Lid all askew. Water everywhere. Little cave for fish lying on the floor. Fish water the color of....well sewage. Most disturbing, a little fishnet from the bathtub on the floor near the now mangled tank.

"Really. Nothing?"
"I was getting Erin's fishies in the bathtub net. See?"

(deep breath)(deep breath)(don't beat child)(not working)"Oh My God...what did you do?????" screamed certainly much too loudly.

"Got Erin's fishies see?"

Upon closer inspection I discovered 2 small fish hovering near the bottom of the tank, miraculously still alive.

Luckily for the boy, we had to head out to the bus stop to get Erin immediately and I had time to cool down. He did spend the rest of the afternoon in his room though after a long talk about NOT playing with Erin's fish because they are living things.

Fast Forward about 26 hours. Tom and I are cooking dinner and chatting. Erin is playing in the living room listening to Aaron Copeland music. I figure Jeffrey's playing her game with her. It suddenly dawns on me that Erin's not complaining enough for Jeff to be playing with her.

"Erin...where's your brother?"
"He's upstairs drinking water."
"Oh dear......(bad words here that Erin's sure to repeat in class on Monday) JEFFREY ANDERSON!!!!!!!"

Young boy is discovered not in the bathroom but in Erin's room....tube of toothpaste in hand. That's right. Toothpaste. He's squirting toothpaste into the fish tank. And then trying to rescue Marlin and Teddy Bear with the bathtub fish net. He's soaked. Dresser is soaked. Fish are completely traumatized.

After 2 swift slaps to his bottom (say what you want but clearly the lesson from 26 hours ago hadn't sunk in a bit) he's sent back to his room. Mommy's able to rescue Marlin and Teddy Bear. Fish tank is emptied and cleaned of all pasty pollutant. Fish are currently living in a small Tupperware on the kitchen counter and tank has been removed from Erin's room to the kitchen where it's slightly more Jeffrey proof.

I have no idea what got into him. What inspired him to torture the fish (with toothpaste even). There will be more discussions on treatment of living animals. More time outs. More slaps to the bottom (sad to say).

Boys will be boys I guess.

At Ye Olde Faire

We headed off to one of our favorite places this past weekend.....the Renaissance Fair. Tom and I have loved going to the Fair since we were dating and took the kids when we went 2 years ago. So this year we decided to make a big trip of it, drag along Noni, Grandpa and Uncle Jon (and it's not really dragging since they're the ones who discovered the one in MD).

Two years ago doesn't seem like such a long time, but Jeffrey was only 1 and barely aware of where we were. And Erin wasn't much more understanding about it either. This year was different. Both the kids were super excited about it. We talked about going to the fair for a week or so. On the drive to DC both kids kept talking about all the rides that would be there - I mean what's a fair without rides? So Tom and I tried explaining it to them, like they would be visiting a castle and see all kinds of cool shows and people dressed up. After the initial disappointment that no Roller Coasters would be involved in the trip they decided it might be fun after all.

This year everyone got all dressed up. Tom and I wore our costumes and Erin and Jeff had some as well. Jeffrey's got this cool knight costume and Erin has a sweet princess costume...but not a Disney princess. Think Lucy from Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe (or really Prince Caspian). The both LOVED being in their costumes. Right after we got there, someone from the fair walked up to Jeffrey took a little plastic gem out of her bag and handed it to him, declaring him the most regal knight in the realm that day. Let's say that's now a very beloved piece of plastic. Erin got lots of comments on her dress as well.

Erin headed straight for the face painting station. She really wanted her face painted and we decided to do it early before the lines got too long and so she could show it off all day. She picked out a unicorn and sat wonderfully still for the Maiden to paint it on her cheek. It looked fantastic.

There was a cool knighting ceremony for the kids. They got to get in line, fill out a card and get their name announced along with their "good deed" for being knighted. Jeff's good deed is that he helps feed the cats. Erin decided she picks up her toys (which is true when under duress). Then they got their names called out and got to sit on a pillow while the Queen knighted them with a real-fake sword. Very cool. And they both got little certificates introducing Knight Jeffrey and Dame Erin.

We spent much of the day just wandering around. We caught a few of the shows - A magician, a comedian we all like and some of the musical groups (there was this awesome drumming corps with a bagpipe guy that was just FANTASTIC). The kids like the music as it was really easy to get up and dance to.

We did do the fun kiddie stuff. There's a big wooden slide (as close to a roller coaster as they were gonna get) that they loved, a play area with a big wooden pirate ship, and free pony rides. Uncle Jon got to introduce them both to his favorite honey vendor and the kids are now officially addicted to honey.

The highlight of the day was certainly the bubble blowing station. I remembered from last time we went that you had to have your own bubble wand to blow bubbles (and Noni is a sucker so Erin has one) so I made sure to pack it. Both Erin and Jeff we able to blow some bubbles with the bubble fairies. At the end of the day we made one last stop. The fairy working at the station was very playful and blowing suds and bubbles everywhere. Both the kids thought that this was just awesome and were giggling and laughing with her. Erin was actually able to get some really nice bubbles blown too.

It was a really fun day and I'm glad we could share it with the kids and with Noni, Grandpa and Uncle Jon. The fact that the kids imaginations are wild enough for them to believe in fairies and princesses and castles makes it all the better.