February

February is shaping up to be pretty busy.  The Little Mermaid is the last weekend of the month so practices are in full swing.  Brit has to be in Hartselle three days a week for that and she's in Hartselle all day on Sundays.  I'm seriously thinking about moving there.

On Friday, Brit, Chan, Jake and Rho went to a dance in Cullman.  The Cullman High School jazz band preformed for a couple hours and refreshments were provided.  They met up with some of their other homeschooling friends and from what I hear, they all had a great time!

Sunday, Brit went to Winter Jam in Birmingham with her youth group, which includes Emily, who is her official concert buddy:)  She went with them last year and had a blast and was really excited about it!  From what she said, this year was no disappointment.  They had the 15 passenger church van and two other drivers so that's a pretty good size group.  She said it was packed and she screamed and sang so much she could barely speak when I went to pick her up :)  That's always the sign of a good concert.

Brit in her concert attire

Last night, we all met up at Dave and Suzette's to hang out for a bit, have cupcakes and ice cream to celebrate Chan's 16th birthday.  16?  It seems strange to me that our babies are growing up so quickly.  Dakota will be 13 next month and Brit will be 16 in August.  *sigh*  I need a moment...

We had planned on going to a Valentine's Day party tomorrow, but I'm thinking the weather is going to change those plans for us.  I hope that still happens or gets rescheduled.  Even though the Teen Scene plans events that are nearly two hours from here, we like hanging out with our friends!

Other things this month...birthdays!  Lots of birthdays.  I'm trying to plan a gathering for Max and Dad.  It's Max's 35th and Dad's 70th.  I hope something will work out so we can all get together :)

I'll believe it when I see it.

We had snow in the forecast for last night/this morning and all I kept saying is 'I'll believe it when I see it."  Well...I guess I believe it :)  We got about an inch to an inch in a half.  Bobby is stuck at work because the next shift can't make it in.  The guy does live about an hour from here, farther south so I don't know how much they got.  The roads are quite slick.

The kids are still in bed, but I'm going to wake them up soon to see if they want to play as this is a pretty rare occurrence.  

Lunch here

I dub yesterday's lunch here a success :)  We had lots of fun just hanging out, eating too much, laughing, talking about possible upcoming camping trips and being renamed by Ice Shivers.  I swear, Inde is the cutest 5 year old in the world!  Even Bailey got a name tag.

Look at your shoes! Everyone...except Dakota :)

Magic

and Minecraft

My Fluffpaw

Catching up and some ideas

Thursday was a long day.  A great day...just long.  The kids and I got going and left the house by 9:00.  I had a couple errands to take care of before heading out to Esther's.  Once there, we loaded into her van and went to Deb's house for a lunch/gathering/play day/chat-a-thon.  We had a really good time.  In fact, when it was time to leave to get the kids to dance class, the opted to miss class and stay there longer.  I did not take one picture.  I'm slacking, I tell ya.  I could hijack some off FB, but that seems like too much work right now.  Anyway, we ate lots of food and the kids played games, and walked down to the river.  D hung back with me since it was cool out.  Brit had a really good time, but I don't think Dakota enjoyed himself that much.  He wasn't interested in playing the card games the other kids were playing.  He just didn't have a niche that day.  But I think everyone feels like that now and then.  Then we headed back to Esther's, stopping at Subway for Dakota on the way, ate a bite at their house and headed off for play practice.  I also went to sit down in the papasan chair and it shifted on its base.  I fell in the floor and the seat flung into the wall, sending the huge window frame- picture frame into the floor.  Good times being me...

 In other news

I invited everyone over for lunch this Friday.  In the years we've been hanging out, we've gathered here MAYBE three or four times.  I just don't ever host, but I'm trying to make some changes.  I'm REALLY looking forward to it :)

We've been discussing changes and updates we want to make on the house.  This place does not reflect the people who live here and I think it's time it did.  First, I'm painting the kitchen.  What color, you ask?  I'm going with a color very similar to the paint I used in the camper.  I LOVE that color.  It's so happy and it will brighten that room up tremendously.  Brit sat in the floor and sketched out what she'd like to see in the den.  It involves orange paint and hanging chairs :)  I just want that to be a really cool room for the kids to hang out, read, create, be on the computer, play games and have a place to just be.  Dakota and Brit are both ready to update their bedrooms.  I'm also thinking about ripping the carpet up and trying my hand at painting the floor!  The carpet needs to go.  I know it contributes to breathing issues.  We'll see how that goes.  More research is needed.  

Okay, I think that's all I have for right now.  Peace!

COLD

The cold snap that hit most of the US was miserable.  We stayed home for a week, curled up in blankets with hot tea and hot chocolate.  But to have a little science fun, we took one of the coldest days and sprinkled some boiling water on it.  It was 12* with the wind chill putting us in the negatives.

When you toss the water into the air, it creates a larger surface area, turning the water into small droplets.  If it's cold enough, the droplets freeze, turning them into a cloud of crystals before hitting the ground.  Pretty cool, huh?

Outside

On Saturday, while Brit and Dakota were both out, I went to the trail at Point Mallard.  I walked/jogged 5.5 miles.  It showed me just how out of shape I am and how far I have to go, BUT no matter how slow I am, I'm going faster than if I was sitting on the couch!

Esther invited me to walk a portion of the refuge with her and Matt on Sunday.  I went back and forth about it, and finally decided moving my sore muscles was the best thing I could do for myself.  It was a beautiful day and felt warmer than I thought it would.  I'm glad I went!  We even got in trouble for being on a non-public use area of the refuge.  This was not my fault...no matter what Esther says.

The Boy

Dakota had such a great time at Brick Fair!  I picked him up and chatted with Dave and Craig for a few minutes about the day.  I'm pretty sure the dads had fun, too :)  Once on the road back home, Dakota talked nonstop about everything they saw, built, touched, joked about, tasted...he was pumped!  When we got home, he showed me all of the pieces he bought, describing in depth about which gun would go best with which minifig, and played and played with his Legos for another two and a half hours. 

Dad and Rosie got him the DeLorean Lego kit for Christmas and we started putting it together last night.  We got about halfway finished and stopped so we could watch Back to the Future. He'll finish that up today.  It's looking pretty good and I really enjoy doing projects like that with him. 

Here are some other Lego projects he's been working on.  They are inspired by Dr. Who and Venturian Tale.  He's quite proud of them, wanting them photographed so I would put the pictures on FB and the blog :)

2014

Well, we're 10 days into the new year and I feel like I haven't accomplished much of anything.  I'm not about resolutions.  It seems like any time I put pressure on myself like that, I not only fail, but fail tremendously.  If you could find a picture of what self sabotage looks like, it would be of me.

That being said, I start this year weighing about 20 pounds less than last year.  I hope to see continued progress in that area.  I also REALLY want to challenge myself by participating in a Warrior Dash and/or Spartan Race this year.  The idea of an obstacle course race appeals to me greatly.  I put something out on FB about it and got more of a response than I anticipated!  It's going to be awesome to team up with friends, challenge ourselves and kick some ass this year :)

I also want to do a Color Run or Neon Vibe...or a copy cat race with a cheaper registration price.  Those look fun!

Let's see...Rosie's daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter visited from Israel and the kids and I went down to spend a day with them.  I like them SO much.  Max came for the day as well and we all ate and talked and laughed.  Good day :)

Britney is in The Little Mermaid and she had her first practice last night.  She's spending the day with Esther so her and Chan can go over some costume ideas.  The girls are Flotsam & Jetsam, which is kind of perfect.  Emily is Sebastian, which is also perfect.  They are going to have a blast with this one!  Anyway, they've given Brit and Chan creative leeway on their costumes and I can't wait to see what ideas they come up with.

Dakota is still in major Dr. Who and Minecraft crazed phase.  And Legos.  And playing the piano.  He's teaching himself how to play the Dr. Who theme song.  Last night when Dave picked Brit up, he invited Dakota to go to Brick Fair with them this Saturday.  We went last year and had a blast and he's very excited about going again!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve was quite a lazy day around here.  Bobby did go to the store for a few things, but other than that, we completely vegged out.  Before bed, we provided Santa with cookies and eggnog, I read Auntie Claus to the kids, and then Bobby read The Night Before Christmas.  While Bobby read, Britney mouthed the words and did an interpretive dance.  It was one of the funniest things EVER.  I wish I had videoed it.  YouTube gold right there!  Then we made hot chocolate, piled into the bed and watched Polar Express.  Well, Bobby and Dakota watched.  I felt horrible and crashed almost immediately.  Brit made a place in the floor and played DS.  Polar Express is not one of her favorite movies but she was nice enough to hang out with us.

Brit started waking people up at 6:00 this morning.  That's early, but I'll take it over the 4:00 they've poked me awake on Christmas morning before :)

Brit HUGGING her new laptop :)

Dakota showing off his new tablet

Brit made Dakota a coupon booklet good for things like days where he can talk about, play, watch, etc any Dr. Who and/or Minecraft related topic and she will listen, watch and play with him without complaint.  I don't expect these coupons to last long.

I got a turkey in the oven and took a shower.  I still feel sick, but better than I did last night.  Bobby went to bed since he had to work tonight.  Brit disappeared in her room for a really long time and thought she was asleep, but no...she was skyping with Chan.  She is SO freakin' happy about that laptop.  Way to go, Santa and Elisa :)

Dakota got the 7th season of Dr. Who so he watched a good chunk of those, played on the computer and lounged most of the day.  I made up some mashed potatoes, gravy, corn and brown and serve rolls.  I took a nap on the couch.  Bobby got up and we all ate and then I crashed in the bed again.  I'm telling you, I'm fighting something off.  Meh.  Anyway, the kids are happy and it was a quiet, all around nice Christmas.

Presents, Moe's, Fresh Market, The Galaxy of Lights and BAM

Keilee called Brit yesterday morning and invited her over for the day.  We had planned on Elisa coming over around 3:30 to do presents and go off on a secret mission.  Brit had a blast with Kei!  She came home giggly and exclaiming they had made crack!  Hahaha...of the candy variety :)  Elisa got here and soon Brit, then we opened presents.

Elisa loaded Dakota up with a huge assortment of Dr. Who items.  Talk about a happy kid!  Brit got make up and nail polish with pens so she can draw on her nails.  Pretty cool!  The rest of Brit's present will make an appearance tomorrow morning  ;)

Then we were off!  We headed to Huntsville and ate at Moe's.  Then we made a stop at Fresh Market and picked out candies and chocolate and coffee.  You know...all the main food groups :)

Then The Galaxy of Lights.  It's tradition around here to make a trip through the Botanical Gardens every Christmas.  However, we've NEVER gone this close to Christmas.  It was ridiculously crowded but we sang songs and laughed and had a great time :)  Elisa had never been before and I'm pretty sure she enjoyed it.

On our way back home, Dakota asked if we could go to Books A Million.  Earlier in the day, Bobby found Dakota's wallet and inside were two BAM gift cards and a Toys R Us gift card that were forgotten about!  Score!  So we made a stop at the house so Brit could pick up her money and were off to look around.  Dakota barely made it in the door and found the Minecraft and Dr Who displays.  He didn't get any farther in the store.  He picked out three Minecraft toys and bought those.  Brit still had a gift card too so she picked up Fiona and Cake figurines, a bracelet, a manga...and maybe something else. She was super happy about the manga.  It was one she had been reading free online and in mid read, they took it off the site.  Or the site completely was taken offline.  Something like that.  Anyway, she's a pretty darn happy kid too :)

We made it home and immediately made a pot of some of the new, fancy holiday blend coffee.  Yum!

Great day, yo!

Playing Catch Up

When I'm THIS far behind, it's difficult to catch up...but I'm going to try.  Let's see...

We had Thanksgiving at Dad's.  The only thing Rosie wanted me to bring was a green bean casserole.  I thought I'd try a new recipe so I searched online and decided on THIS one by Ree Drummond.  I was SO excited to make something new and it has tons of awesome reviews.  I woke up early and got to work and not that it's a difficult recipe, it is more work than I'm used to when throwing a green bean casserole together.  Well, it was good, but it wasn't as 'HOLY COW!  THIS IS AWESOME!' as I had hoped.  I mean, there's bacon in it.  That makes everything better.  Other than that slight disappointment, it was a wonderful day :)
 

 

Dakota woke up with a little cough.  The next night, I took the kids to the Christmas parade and by the time we left, his cough was so much worse and raspy and sounded like it hurt his throat.  You know that sound.  He coughed all night and by the next morning, that kid was SICK!  I took him to the doctor completely convinced he had a sinus infection.  I thought I could get him some antibiotics and he'd be feeling better in no time.  The doc checked him out and one look in his throat later, he asked me if I had looked in his throat.  No.  So I took a peak.  There were tiny blisters all over :(  That was a sure sign of...some word I can't pronounce...cold.  Viral.  Crap.  I hate when the kids are sick and there's nothing I can do to make them better.  We stocked up on orange juice and chicken noodle soup (just about the only thing he'll eat when he's sick) and just waited it out.  He was sick for over a week and a half :(

Christmas Parade

Brit landed the lead role in her church's Christmas play.  This was her first lead and she did an amazing job!  She was worried it wouldn't turn out well, but on the day of the performance, everyone nailed it :)  Emily and Chan were also in it and they did an awesome job as well.  Not that I'm surprised in the least.  These girls are so very talented.  Dad and Rosie came up to watch the play and support my girl.  I love that.  Really love that.

Brit had been fighting off getting sick and it was like as soon as the play was over, exhaustion set in.  She felt awful for a couple days too.  Coughing and achy.  More orange juice was administered.  Hopefully, this will be their only round with sickness this winter!

On the 21st, we went to Dad's to celebrate Christmas.  Dad made his authentic Italian roast beef sandwiches.  SO yummy!  Max made a freakin' ginormous fruit cake that was delicious.  I was in charge of...buying pre-made potato salad.  I don't think they liked my green bean casserole either!  Hahaha.  Oh well.  It was a wonderful day full of eating too much and taking a food induced nap.  The kids opened presents that they helped pick out and LOVE...seriously.  Brit got the coolest boots EVER.

Last night, the kids each opened a present early.  It was intended for Christmas eve, but last night worked out well.  They each got new pajamas, a movie, popcorn, hot chocolate and candy.  Fun night :)

This evening, we have a little surprise in store.  More on that later :)