Birthday Fun

Staley's 7th birthday was fun, fun, fun.  It started the week-end before her birthday with a family brunch to celebrate Staley and Liam's 7th birthdays, as well as Evan's birthday.  Evan's birthday is the day after Staley and Liam's, so it generally gets lost in the shuffle.

Blowing out the candles in the birthday blueberry muffin.

There was brunch, playtime with cousins, and presents.

It was a fun way to start off the birthday celebrations.

On Staley's birthday, she enjoyed taking treats to school (Oreo balls). I enjoyed being her lunch date in the school cafeteria, and she thought it was great that I brought Subway for us to enjoy rather than having to choose either hot or cold lunch.  That evening she got to share her birthday dinner of choice (Daddy's cheeseburgers, grilled out in the very cold January weather) and dessert of choice (Oreo balls and Uncle Bob's Moosetracks ice cream) with both sets of grandparents.

What a loved little girl!

She opened a few more presents...

...including a very sweet book that Adelie made for her.  The book was all about Staley and included sentences like, "Staley is very sweet and kind.  She's my superstar."  And "She shares really good and she's really good at playing."  And "Staley is perfect to be my sister."  Love it!!

However, Staley's biggest present from us that evening was revealing her birthday activity.  I had informed Staley that instead of a birthday party this year, we would be doing a birthday activity.  So on her birthday, I used her secret code kit to write out a reveal in code that she had to solve.  And the secret birthday activity was...

A fun girl's trip up to Chicago to visit the American Girl Store!!

It was such a fun trip that I think it deserves its very own post.  So stay tuned...

Interview with a 7 Year Old

Favorite color: Coral
Favorite food: Daddy's cheeseburgers
Least favorite food:  Vegetables
Favorite restaurant:  Cornerstone, Pizza Hut, Culvers
Favorite dessert: Ice cream and oreo balls
Favorite toy: Haley and Grace (American Girl Dolls)
Favorite stuffed animal: Teddy (formerly known as Yellow Bear)
Favorite animal: Horse and kitten
Favorite game: Authors
Favorite movie: DC Superhero Girls, Boss Baby, Zootopia
Favorite sport/activity: Stage Kids
Favorite thing to do at home:  Play with Adelie, cook, sing
Favorite thing about school: Reading club
Favorite place to go:  Disneyworld
Favorite thing to do with Adelie: Play American Girl Dolls, do funny things
Favorite thing to do with Briggs: Read to him
Favorite thing to do with Mommy: Watch movies, cook, read books
Favorite thing to do with Daddy: Go fishing, do projects, read
Favorite book: all the frog princess books, Beezus and Ramona
Favorite princess:  Belle and Merida
Favorite superhero: Bumblebee because she finds a way to do everything even when she's losing her superpowers and is the size of a bumblebee
Favorite outfit:  My pink shirt and jeggings and matching outfits with my doll
Favorite pajamas: Brrrr and Dreams can come true
Favorite play you've been in:  The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

What are some things you're excited about doing when you're 7? Second grade and going to the American Girl Doll store in Chicago
What are you scared of? Broccoli because it's so disgusting.
What's the best thing about you? I was born first so I'm the big sister and I have the most responsibilities so that's pretty awesome.
What are you good at? I'm a really good cook, I'm a really good actress, and I'm a really good artist.
Who is your best friend? Reese, Adelie, Briggs
What do you want to be when you grow up?  I want to do something with babies, but I don't know what yet.

Happy Birthday, Staley!

My baby girl is 7 years old today.  How did that happen?

From the moment Staley was born, my world changed.  As a newborn infant, she began teaching me so much.  She taught me that I can have a fierce and unconditional love that supersedes any of my selfish desires, and that there is nothing I wouldn't do to love and protect my children.    She taught me that everything I thought I knew about parenting is a mere speck compared to everything I don't know about parenting.  She taught me that someone else's successes and failures can mean more to me than my own.  She taught me that I cannot be the mother I want to be all the time, but that she will continue to love me just the same.  And she taught me that life is sweeter...and better...and fuller...and happier with her in it.

Staley has been teaching me for 7 years, and I still  have so much more to learn.  But one thing I know for certain--I couldn't love this girl any more.

Happy birthday to my amazing baby girl!!!

Snow Much Fun

For the record, I am not a cold weather gal.  I don't care for snow.  I would be fine if our coldest days were 50 degrees.  And, if I'm being picky, I'd be fine if our hottest days were 85 degrees.  Obviously, Illinois and I are not the best of friends when it comes to weather.  But since I have kids who do enjoy a good snowy play day, I try to embrace it as much as I can.

We got snow on Christmas Eve, and 3 weeks later, it's still here.  That is because it has been FRIGID outside.  And since the temperature has been hanging out in the single digits, I have not taken the kids out to play in the snow.  (Refer to my first sentence.)  Today with the weather reaching a balmy 33 degrees, I decided I could brave the cold to accommodate the playing-in-the-snow request that my kids have been making for the past 3 weeks.

The 30 minutes it takes to get everyone bundled up and ready to head outside is a little more worth it now since we played outside for about an hour and a half.

Unlike last year, Briggs was able to walk around in the snow without falling down.  And, also unlike last year, when he did fall down, he didn't cry about it.  Winner, winner!!

We made a snowman.  (Well, mostly me.)  I pulled them around the backyard on a sled.  They had great fun sliding down our super slippery slide into a big snow pile.  And they used shovels and buckets to make snow castles.  All in all, it was big fun...and the best workout I've had in awhile.

We topped off our snowy fun with hot chocolate, cookies, and a warm play bath.

After the 30 minutes it took to get ready, the long time we spent outside, and the great fun the kids had playing in the bath, our morning flew by.  We had to rush to eat lunch and get Adelie to pre-school on time.

Now that we can cross snowy fun off our list for the winter, the snow is welcome to melt.  Maybe we can do this again one day next year.

This Girl

Staley is 5 days away from her 7th birthday.  Today she told me, "I can't decide what to wear today.  I don't want to look like I'm almost 7.  I want to look like I'm already 7."

I think she accomplished her goal.  She looks 7 to me.

Love this girl!

They Say...

This morning when Staley was getting ready for school, I told her to make sure to dress warm since it was going to be so cold.  I said, "It's -9 degrees out right now."  Staley asked, "What's the windshield?"
#windchill

Briggs doesn't say "my sisters."  He always says "the sisters."  As in "Are the sisters in their room?"  Or "What are the sisters doing?"
#notclaimingthem

Around Christmas, the kids loved to drive around town looking at the Christmas lights.  Or the "farkly (sparkly) lights", as Briggs called them.  All the kids had special requests for specific houses or lights they wanted to see as we were driving around.  One night, Briggs asked to go see the "projector robot."  We had no idea what he was talking about, but he was so insistent.  He said it was a robot that had colors in it's stomach.  When we told him we didn't know where it was, he said, "It's outside.  It's at a house."  When those very specific descriptions didn't help, he kept saying, "It's far ahead!  Go far ahead!"  Even with all his helpful directions, we couldn't find it.  We looked for the projector robot on multiple occasions with no success.  Finally, on Christmas Eve, we were driving around out by the lake and we passed a house.  Excitedly, Briggs shouted, "The projector robot!!!!"  In front of one house was an inflatable snow globe.  The snow globe had a projector that swirled different colors.  The top of the snow globe did look sort of like a robot head and the handles on the sides looked like robot arms...it really did look like a robot with swirly colors in it's stomach.
#Christmasmiracle

Hello 2018!

There are big ways to say good-bye to a great year.  Watching the ball drop in Times Square.  Going out with friends.  Hosting a big party.  Traveling.  But as I spent my New Year's Eve on the couch with my husband, I said good-bye to 2017 in my own way.  I cuddled with the man I love.  I savored the silence of my 3 soundly sleeping children.  I took the night off from folding laundry to just relax and reflect on how blessed my life is.  And even though I had to say my good-byes to 2017 around 11:30 (since I didn't quite make it to midnight), I am so appreciative for the healthy, happy, fun-filled year we had.

There are big ways to say hello to a new year.  Fun family outings.  Grand resolutions.  Races.  Polar plunges.  But we welcomed our new year with a warm, fun, lazy day at home (while the frigid negative degree weather stayed safely outside.)  We cuddled and read books together.   Stayed in our PJs all day.  Ate chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast so late that we just skipped lunch.  The kids played really nicely together.  I cleaned out and organized.  It was a perfect way to spend the first day of this new year.  And I resolve to enjoy many more of these kind of days in 2018...with the family that I love!

Happy New Year!!