A month ago we thought it would be fun to participate in our annual block sale. For a number of months I had been collecting stuff in the basement that I wanted to get rid of. I sold some of the higher dollar items on Craigslist and started my "appliance fund," with my earnings. Throughout the months as I would collect items to get rid of, I would slowly notice a few items missing from my pile. Justin is definitely a keeper, (a Schaack trait), and if he thinks we may use something within the next 10 years, it's a keeper. (It took me a couple months to convince him that we REALLY didn't need the janitor-sized mop bucket with a mop handle, but no mop head).
Word spread that we were going to be participating in the garage sale and family members decided to bring a few things over hoping to make a little spending cash as well. It was a great deal of work setting up all the tables and organizing all the items, (although J and I both enjoy organizing so that part was quite fun, even if it meant staying up a little later than normal to get it all done).
A total of 6 houses on the street participated and we had the best weather with temps in the 70's and no rain. Friday morning I opened my garage door a little before 8 o'clock, walked down to the end of the block to put up one more sign and when I came back to my house, there were two ladies leaving my garage with items in their hands, (they had left money for me). Dang, some people are really into this garage sale thing! The entire Friday morning was very busy and we sold a lot of items. My dad and Uncle Willard helped as I did have to go into work for a few hours. I was thankful to have the help because things were busy and I would have had a hard time keeping up with everything. Some people bartered the prices a little bit, but for the most part, people paid the sticker price.
The afternoon, things slowed down a little bit and we just had a few people come by after 4:00. It was such a successful day, I decided to bake cookies and sell them along with lemonade the following day, knowing parents would likely be shopping with little ones.
Although Saturday wasn't as busy, we had a great time, sold a lot and made twice as much money as we thought we would. Between the four families, we made over $800 and no item sold for more than $50. Oh and that janitor mop bucket sold for $10 to a Hispanic gentleman the first morning of the sale :). Pretty impressive for our first garage sale. I may have to start checking out some garage sales for myself, because apparently for some people, this is a die hard hobby! My "appliance fund" has gradually grown and I'm hoping to do a little upgrading by this Fall. Although from previous posts, you know I am quite the saver so it wouldn't surprise me if that money sat around for a while...
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Reason # 287 Why I Love My...
...Mini Van:
There's a sentence I never, ever thought I would write! So when we heard the news we were expecting twins, one of the first things that went through my mind after holy crap, and how can I afford two more kids was, we need a bigger vehicle!
Many may know that Justin and I have been anti-mini van our entire lives. In fact, I'm sure it was discussed early on in our courtship, and luckily we both had the same opinion regarding these "soccer mom" vehicles. Needless to say, we were going to have two more added to our family and needed a way to transport our three kiddos.
We initially started looking at the Chevrolet Traverse, a crossover SUV. We both liked the look of it and the inside was spacious with an option of captain seats for the second row or a bench seat. We knew we would likely need to use the captain seats for the twins, meaning AJ would be in the third row. This left very little room in the "trunk" (is it still called a trunk in a mini van?). Anyway, shortly after checking out the Chevy Traverse, I was placed on bed rest, which made car shopping a lot more challenging.
So we decided to poll family and friends about their likes and dislikes of their SUVs vs mini vans. Both vehicles had their pros and cons that we had to sort out. Since I had a lot of free time on my hands, I did my research and we decided a mini van was the way to go.
We narrowed our options down quickly to the Toyota Sienna and the Honda Odyssey. Their specs were pretty similar as were their prices. We loved the sporty look of the new Odyssey so that swayed us. Justin test drove one on a Saturday, bringing it home so I could at least sit in it and check it out. I've never made a decision so quickly before, but realized I didn't have a lot of time to shop around :). We decided to go with it, but the most important thing was picking out the color. Screw bedrest, I'm going to the dealership myself to pick out the exterior and interior colors! I spent way too much time on my feet that day, but finally decided on a perfect combination. Of course, we had to have leather-can you imagine cleaning up after two toddlers? I love how easy leather is to clean and the look of it. By August, our garage occupied our new minivan (which we didn't drive until it was time to bring the babies home), and Justin's truck got demoted to outside.
We've never regretted buying our family truckster and two brother-in-laws/sister-in-laws have purchased mini vans since us :), so others must have thought it was a good idea too. I love never worrying if we are going to have enough room for everything. In fact, we often over pack, but even when we do that, there is still room. It has survived two road trips to CO, with another in the plans for this month. All kids can actually climb into the van by themselves and love to play in there. Some times, we take out the middle console and let them hang out in the van (with their shoes off, of course). They love it. I never know what's going to be on when I actually turn the van on, (rear wiper, front windshield wiper, bright lights, hazard lights...) One rainy weekend day, we took the second and third rows out and they had a hay day. This was also a great opportunity to do some deep cleaning! I'm sure my vacuum sucked up at least half a box of Cheerios during the last deep cleaning.
So yes, there are many, many reasons why we are the proud owners of our mini van. Just don't go calling us soccer mom/dad!
There's a sentence I never, ever thought I would write! So when we heard the news we were expecting twins, one of the first things that went through my mind after holy crap, and how can I afford two more kids was, we need a bigger vehicle!
Many may know that Justin and I have been anti-mini van our entire lives. In fact, I'm sure it was discussed early on in our courtship, and luckily we both had the same opinion regarding these "soccer mom" vehicles. Needless to say, we were going to have two more added to our family and needed a way to transport our three kiddos.
We initially started looking at the Chevrolet Traverse, a crossover SUV. We both liked the look of it and the inside was spacious with an option of captain seats for the second row or a bench seat. We knew we would likely need to use the captain seats for the twins, meaning AJ would be in the third row. This left very little room in the "trunk" (is it still called a trunk in a mini van?). Anyway, shortly after checking out the Chevy Traverse, I was placed on bed rest, which made car shopping a lot more challenging.
So we decided to poll family and friends about their likes and dislikes of their SUVs vs mini vans. Both vehicles had their pros and cons that we had to sort out. Since I had a lot of free time on my hands, I did my research and we decided a mini van was the way to go.
We narrowed our options down quickly to the Toyota Sienna and the Honda Odyssey. Their specs were pretty similar as were their prices. We loved the sporty look of the new Odyssey so that swayed us. Justin test drove one on a Saturday, bringing it home so I could at least sit in it and check it out. I've never made a decision so quickly before, but realized I didn't have a lot of time to shop around :). We decided to go with it, but the most important thing was picking out the color. Screw bedrest, I'm going to the dealership myself to pick out the exterior and interior colors! I spent way too much time on my feet that day, but finally decided on a perfect combination. Of course, we had to have leather-can you imagine cleaning up after two toddlers? I love how easy leather is to clean and the look of it. By August, our garage occupied our new minivan (which we didn't drive until it was time to bring the babies home), and Justin's truck got demoted to outside.
We've never regretted buying our family truckster and two brother-in-laws/sister-in-laws have purchased mini vans since us :), so others must have thought it was a good idea too. I love never worrying if we are going to have enough room for everything. In fact, we often over pack, but even when we do that, there is still room. It has survived two road trips to CO, with another in the plans for this month. All kids can actually climb into the van by themselves and love to play in there. Some times, we take out the middle console and let them hang out in the van (with their shoes off, of course). They love it. I never know what's going to be on when I actually turn the van on, (rear wiper, front windshield wiper, bright lights, hazard lights...) One rainy weekend day, we took the second and third rows out and they had a hay day. This was also a great opportunity to do some deep cleaning! I'm sure my vacuum sucked up at least half a box of Cheerios during the last deep cleaning.
So yes, there are many, many reasons why we are the proud owners of our mini van. Just don't go calling us soccer mom/dad!
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
4 1/2 Year Old Adventures
So the activities have begun. Alena had her first soccer practice last week and I had no idea what to expect. We had anticipated going as a whole family but it was a little chilly and windy that day so I braved it alone with my little 4.5 year old. We drove the 1 mile there because we didn't want to be late, but I love that if we wanted to, we could walk to the soccer fields, (another plus about our location). As instructed we got there early and found the field where it looked like other 3-5 year olds were running around. Alena jumped right in playing with the other kids while we waited for the coach to show up. I was quite impressed at how well she was able to run, dribble the ball, and kick the ball. When it's nice outside, she likes to play soccer with a set of twin boys at school.
Finally the coach appeared, (a young Australian :)), and grouped the kids together, then divided them into two separate groups. Alena was easily the tallest girl and possibly the tallest of all the kids there. They spent their first practice working on different basic skills and playing a few games that 3-5 year olds would enjoy.
I am always so proud at how good of a listener AJ is. Her teachers have never had any trouble with her listening skills and I'm glad this skill seems to have carried over to sports, too. In fact, all of the girls were good listeners, but there were three boys who wouldn't give the coach the time of day. Multiple times the coach had to ask them to stop messing around and listen to him. I looked around to see where the parents of these boys were because if those were my sons, I would have pulled them aside myself and set them straight. Yet, as I looked around I saw parents chasing after younger siblings, playing on their phones and even one father reading a book. That explained a lot. I purposely left my phone in the car so I could focus on my daughter who kept looking over to the sidelines to make sure I was watching.
One of the doesn't-know-how-to-listen boys was messing around and somehow got a bloody nose. That was the end of his lesson.
Alena said she really enjoyed her first soccer practice and is anxious for her next one. She doesn't have any games this year d/t her age, but would next year if she wants to participate again. Although when we got back in the car after her practice, she told me she wanted to do t-ball this summer. I guess it's nice she wants to try a variety of sports and honestly, Justin and I wouldn't be too upset if soccer just wasn't her thing (as long as she tries volleyball and goes out for track :)).
In other 4 1/2 year old adventures, my first born is learning to read. It's is so fun watching her learn all of her letter sounds and start to put these sounds together to make words. Most of the words are 2 and 3 letter words, with a few 4 letter words, but it is still pretty impressive, especially since she won't be in kindergarten for another year and a half. She loves to write her letters and spends most of her "nap" time on the weekends, copying words from her books onto paper. We have to give a lot of credit to her daycare for helping her learn her letters and work on spelling/reading, (and as I have said a million times, we LOVE our daycare-it's worth every penny!). We had her 6 month conference today, and her teacher mentioned they had planned to move AJ up to the next reading group, but there are other students who will be going to kindergarten this coming Fall who they need to move up first, yet are behind AJ. Hopefully, the teachers will continue to challenge her and she won't be bored over the next year and a half.
Yep, we are two very proud parents!
Finally the coach appeared, (a young Australian :)), and grouped the kids together, then divided them into two separate groups. Alena was easily the tallest girl and possibly the tallest of all the kids there. They spent their first practice working on different basic skills and playing a few games that 3-5 year olds would enjoy.
I am always so proud at how good of a listener AJ is. Her teachers have never had any trouble with her listening skills and I'm glad this skill seems to have carried over to sports, too. In fact, all of the girls were good listeners, but there were three boys who wouldn't give the coach the time of day. Multiple times the coach had to ask them to stop messing around and listen to him. I looked around to see where the parents of these boys were because if those were my sons, I would have pulled them aside myself and set them straight. Yet, as I looked around I saw parents chasing after younger siblings, playing on their phones and even one father reading a book. That explained a lot. I purposely left my phone in the car so I could focus on my daughter who kept looking over to the sidelines to make sure I was watching.
One of the doesn't-know-how-to-listen boys was messing around and somehow got a bloody nose. That was the end of his lesson.
 |
| LW wanted to try out the soccer gear |
Alena said she really enjoyed her first soccer practice and is anxious for her next one. She doesn't have any games this year d/t her age, but would next year if she wants to participate again. Although when we got back in the car after her practice, she told me she wanted to do t-ball this summer. I guess it's nice she wants to try a variety of sports and honestly, Justin and I wouldn't be too upset if soccer just wasn't her thing (as long as she tries volleyball and goes out for track :)).
In other 4 1/2 year old adventures, my first born is learning to read. It's is so fun watching her learn all of her letter sounds and start to put these sounds together to make words. Most of the words are 2 and 3 letter words, with a few 4 letter words, but it is still pretty impressive, especially since she won't be in kindergarten for another year and a half. She loves to write her letters and spends most of her "nap" time on the weekends, copying words from her books onto paper. We have to give a lot of credit to her daycare for helping her learn her letters and work on spelling/reading, (and as I have said a million times, we LOVE our daycare-it's worth every penny!). We had her 6 month conference today, and her teacher mentioned they had planned to move AJ up to the next reading group, but there are other students who will be going to kindergarten this coming Fall who they need to move up first, yet are behind AJ. Hopefully, the teachers will continue to challenge her and she won't be bored over the next year and a half.
Yep, we are two very proud parents!
Monday, April 21, 2014
Easter Fun
Easter is another one of my favorite holidays and I love following tradition. I'm not a huge fan of taking my kids to the mall to see some random person dressed up as a big stuffed bunny or weird Santa, but Alena wanted to visit the Easter Bunny so one rainy Sunday we ventured to the mall. Two out of three kids were content sitting on the bunny's lap, which I thought was a decent percentage. I didn't know the Easter bunny didn't talk though so AJ wasn't able to tell him/her what she wanted for Easter. All three enjoyed the train ride more than anything.
Dying eggs is another fun tradition that all three kids enjoyed this year. I may be a more creative next year and spend a little more money on the decorating kits because I'm just not impressed with the cheapo ones. I've also heard of using kool-aid to dye the eggs which would have been a great idea this year since Lauren kept wanting to put her colored egg in her mouth. I hate hard boiled eggs so I think Justin ate most of our dozen eggs, except for a few I was able to get the little ones to devour.
The weather Easter weekend was beautiful so we attended Urbandale's Easter egg hunt. They separated the older kids from those 4 and under and had eggs scattered at Walker Johnston Park. The hunt lasted about 30 seconds, but everyone had a great time. L was pretty proud of the one egg she gathered, C kept dumping his eggs out and recollecting them, and AJ enjoyed discovering what was inside each of her eggs, (she definitely needs to be more aggressive next year ).
We spent Saturday night in Ames to make it a little easier to get to the early church service. I love seeing all the little ones dressed up in their fancy dresses, nice dress shirts and shoes. Unfortunately, L threw up on her pretty sweater and dress on the car ride to church so she smelled like puke during the service, but otherwise everyone was well behaved. At the very end of service, L had had enough and was ready to get out of there so Justin took her to the back where many other little ones and daddies were playing. CW saw daddy leave and wanted to follow so Grandpa also got out of staying for the whole service! I'm sure that was planned :).
After church we went home to take a few pictures before everyone put on their play clothes and prepared the food for lunch. Of course, picture taking did not go well and Lauren was upset because she wanted the truck that her brother had. Good memories!
We enjoyed a delicious ham with yummy side dishes and two homemade pies. Pat and Willard joined us-it is so great they are back in Iowa. Besides a little wind, it was a beautiful day which was mostly spent outside, watching the kids play on the driveway and venture around the acreage. The adults even got to play some cards while the twins napped. AJ got the movie Frozen and a Frozen book from the Easter Bunny. She asked me how the Easter bunny knew she wanted the Frozen movie since she didn't tell him. Good point, Alena-guess we'll have to mail him a letter next year! Smarty pants! I love holidays!
Dying eggs is another fun tradition that all three kids enjoyed this year. I may be a more creative next year and spend a little more money on the decorating kits because I'm just not impressed with the cheapo ones. I've also heard of using kool-aid to dye the eggs which would have been a great idea this year since Lauren kept wanting to put her colored egg in her mouth. I hate hard boiled eggs so I think Justin ate most of our dozen eggs, except for a few I was able to get the little ones to devour.
The weather Easter weekend was beautiful so we attended Urbandale's Easter egg hunt. They separated the older kids from those 4 and under and had eggs scattered at Walker Johnston Park. The hunt lasted about 30 seconds, but everyone had a great time. L was pretty proud of the one egg she gathered, C kept dumping his eggs out and recollecting them, and AJ enjoyed discovering what was inside each of her eggs, (she definitely needs to be more aggressive next year ).
We spent Saturday night in Ames to make it a little easier to get to the early church service. I love seeing all the little ones dressed up in their fancy dresses, nice dress shirts and shoes. Unfortunately, L threw up on her pretty sweater and dress on the car ride to church so she smelled like puke during the service, but otherwise everyone was well behaved. At the very end of service, L had had enough and was ready to get out of there so Justin took her to the back where many other little ones and daddies were playing. CW saw daddy leave and wanted to follow so Grandpa also got out of staying for the whole service! I'm sure that was planned :).
After church we went home to take a few pictures before everyone put on their play clothes and prepared the food for lunch. Of course, picture taking did not go well and Lauren was upset because she wanted the truck that her brother had. Good memories!
We enjoyed a delicious ham with yummy side dishes and two homemade pies. Pat and Willard joined us-it is so great they are back in Iowa. Besides a little wind, it was a beautiful day which was mostly spent outside, watching the kids play on the driveway and venture around the acreage. The adults even got to play some cards while the twins napped. AJ got the movie Frozen and a Frozen book from the Easter Bunny. She asked me how the Easter bunny knew she wanted the Frozen movie since she didn't tell him. Good point, Alena-guess we'll have to mail him a letter next year! Smarty pants! I love holidays!
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Last Sunday was beautiful, so we decided to make our first trip of 2014 to the Blank Park Zoo. We are so fortunate that Grandma and Papa buy us an annual pass each year because we love taking trips to the zoo, even if it is only for an hour.
Grandma and Papa met us there right after it opened to join in the fun. Unfortunately, I had to run a quick errand shortly after we got there after we realized one little missy forgot her shoes and was missing one sock. (Have I mentioned how difficult it is to remember EVERYTHING for a little outing, especially when you are rushing around like a crazy person, while two toddlers tug on your pants begging for you to hold them?).
Many others had the same idea as us during this beautiful day and the zoo was hopping! I wasn't sure how the twins would react to seeing all the animals. I have decided there are two types of toddler sight seers: Those who love to gawk at every exhibit for as long as possible, and those who barely look at the exhibits and are more interested in the "non-exhibits," (other zoo visitors, workers driving the gator throughout the zoo, or the child crying because he ran out of goat food). Alena is definitely the latter. She loves going to the zoo and seeing the animals, but we could probably walk through the entire zoo in 40 minutes and be done. The twins, we discovered are both oglers. They loved the zoo and couldn't get enough. DQ enjoyed pointing her little finger at every animal. We spent two hours there and didn't even see everything.
Another great thing about zoo days is the kids take a nice long nap after their adventures. Point for mom and dad! I'm sure we'll be back many, many times this spring, summer and fall!
Grandma and Papa met us there right after it opened to join in the fun. Unfortunately, I had to run a quick errand shortly after we got there after we realized one little missy forgot her shoes and was missing one sock. (Have I mentioned how difficult it is to remember EVERYTHING for a little outing, especially when you are rushing around like a crazy person, while two toddlers tug on your pants begging for you to hold them?).
Many others had the same idea as us during this beautiful day and the zoo was hopping! I wasn't sure how the twins would react to seeing all the animals. I have decided there are two types of toddler sight seers: Those who love to gawk at every exhibit for as long as possible, and those who barely look at the exhibits and are more interested in the "non-exhibits," (other zoo visitors, workers driving the gator throughout the zoo, or the child crying because he ran out of goat food). Alena is definitely the latter. She loves going to the zoo and seeing the animals, but we could probably walk through the entire zoo in 40 minutes and be done. The twins, we discovered are both oglers. They loved the zoo and couldn't get enough. DQ enjoyed pointing her little finger at every animal. We spent two hours there and didn't even see everything.
Another great thing about zoo days is the kids take a nice long nap after their adventures. Point for mom and dad! I'm sure we'll be back many, many times this spring, summer and fall!
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Twins-18 months
Looks like we better start planning your second birthday party soon! How is this possible already?
I love, love, love this age! Their brains are like little sponges soaking up everything and learning new things daily. Their vocabulary is expanding and their individual personalities are shining.
Lauren: Since about 15 months of age, (soon after I told your pediatrician I was worried about your lack of words), your vocabulary started growing. You are a little chatterbox and will try to repeat nearly every word we say to you. Your big sister is always so proud of you when you say something she can understand. You continue to talk a lot with your facial expressions and your favorite word is "no." We had a few challenging weeks recently where you did not want to sit in your high chair and eat. Occasionally we would let you sit at the table like a big kid, but most of the time you just wanted to be held and spoon fed. We were beginning to wonder what was wrong, but we think your teeth were really bothering you. You refuse to wear a bib now, which means you usually get stripped down to your diaper for meals because your utensil skills are still not up to par (although getting much better). Now that you are 18 months old, Miss Molly offers you your milk without a lid on it. You've done so good drinking out of a big girl cup. (Your brother, not so much). You also sleep on a cot now at school-just another example that you are no longer a baby! We love your little personality and your sassiness. Your huge, squinty-eyed smiles continues, although now you have teeth, which you are so proud to show. You are so close at being able to jump and love to dance and high step to music. You love laying on AJ's bed reading bedtime stories together. A couple weekends ago we went swimming at a hotel-you loved the water, especially "jumping" off the side into mommy's arms. You remain just a little thing, who can still wear size 12 month clothes, although now the pants are too short for you so I'm putting you in 18 month clothes that you can barely keep up. A few weeks ago, it seemed like you were gaining on your brother's height advantage, but he must have had a growth spurt recently because he remains at least an inch taller than you. You still sleep with your stuffed bunny. (I had to cut the ears off because they were getting disgusting from you sucking on them). At first you weren't happy about it, but now you just suck on the bunny's nose. You also like to go to bed with your turtle that lights up and shines stars on the ceiling and wall. You are quite the mimicker. Miss Molly has lots of stories of you mimicking her during school. Many times Miss Molly will hold up her hand and say "Five more minutes," letting friends know that they are going to do something else soon. Apparently you like to hold your hand up too saying "five more min." I'm worried you are going to be our bossy child...
Caleb: A few weeks ago, I was really starting to worry about your vocabulary because you hadn't started saying any new words. You were the first to say some words, but after that your vocab never changed. All of a sudden you have started saying more and more. Sometimes you and Lauren will have your own little conversation in twin talk that no one understands but you two. It's pretty rare, but so adorable when it happens. You two are playing together more and more. I didn't think it was possible, but as you continue to get older, you become more and more boy. You can be destructive, pulling everything off the shelf before moving on to something else you can destroy. You love books and will sit down with a book and "read" out loud. If you could, you would stay outside forever. You love running around in the backyard, going on wagon rides and throwing balls around. It is going to be a fun summer! Lately you have started throwing little tantrums, where you will lay down, kicking and screaming if something doesn't go your way. We usually ignore you and it's over in 20 seconds. After that, you go on playing like nothing happened. You continue to be a great traveler (please teach your twin how to ride in the car without screaming). You are learning your colors in school and I'm not sure if purple is your favorite color or the only color you know how to say, but everything is purple! You still give the best hugs and slobbery kisses and are such a snuggler. We are so glad this hasn't changed!
We are looking forward to you learning more and more as the weeks go by and can't wait to have many fun adventures together this summer!
I love, love, love this age! Their brains are like little sponges soaking up everything and learning new things daily. Their vocabulary is expanding and their individual personalities are shining.
Lauren: Since about 15 months of age, (soon after I told your pediatrician I was worried about your lack of words), your vocabulary started growing. You are a little chatterbox and will try to repeat nearly every word we say to you. Your big sister is always so proud of you when you say something she can understand. You continue to talk a lot with your facial expressions and your favorite word is "no." We had a few challenging weeks recently where you did not want to sit in your high chair and eat. Occasionally we would let you sit at the table like a big kid, but most of the time you just wanted to be held and spoon fed. We were beginning to wonder what was wrong, but we think your teeth were really bothering you. You refuse to wear a bib now, which means you usually get stripped down to your diaper for meals because your utensil skills are still not up to par (although getting much better). Now that you are 18 months old, Miss Molly offers you your milk without a lid on it. You've done so good drinking out of a big girl cup. (Your brother, not so much). You also sleep on a cot now at school-just another example that you are no longer a baby! We love your little personality and your sassiness. Your huge, squinty-eyed smiles continues, although now you have teeth, which you are so proud to show. You are so close at being able to jump and love to dance and high step to music. You love laying on AJ's bed reading bedtime stories together. A couple weekends ago we went swimming at a hotel-you loved the water, especially "jumping" off the side into mommy's arms. You remain just a little thing, who can still wear size 12 month clothes, although now the pants are too short for you so I'm putting you in 18 month clothes that you can barely keep up. A few weeks ago, it seemed like you were gaining on your brother's height advantage, but he must have had a growth spurt recently because he remains at least an inch taller than you. You still sleep with your stuffed bunny. (I had to cut the ears off because they were getting disgusting from you sucking on them). At first you weren't happy about it, but now you just suck on the bunny's nose. You also like to go to bed with your turtle that lights up and shines stars on the ceiling and wall. You are quite the mimicker. Miss Molly has lots of stories of you mimicking her during school. Many times Miss Molly will hold up her hand and say "Five more minutes," letting friends know that they are going to do something else soon. Apparently you like to hold your hand up too saying "five more min." I'm worried you are going to be our bossy child...
Caleb: A few weeks ago, I was really starting to worry about your vocabulary because you hadn't started saying any new words. You were the first to say some words, but after that your vocab never changed. All of a sudden you have started saying more and more. Sometimes you and Lauren will have your own little conversation in twin talk that no one understands but you two. It's pretty rare, but so adorable when it happens. You two are playing together more and more. I didn't think it was possible, but as you continue to get older, you become more and more boy. You can be destructive, pulling everything off the shelf before moving on to something else you can destroy. You love books and will sit down with a book and "read" out loud. If you could, you would stay outside forever. You love running around in the backyard, going on wagon rides and throwing balls around. It is going to be a fun summer! Lately you have started throwing little tantrums, where you will lay down, kicking and screaming if something doesn't go your way. We usually ignore you and it's over in 20 seconds. After that, you go on playing like nothing happened. You continue to be a great traveler (please teach your twin how to ride in the car without screaming). You are learning your colors in school and I'm not sure if purple is your favorite color or the only color you know how to say, but everything is purple! You still give the best hugs and slobbery kisses and are such a snuggler. We are so glad this hasn't changed!
We are looking forward to you learning more and more as the weeks go by and can't wait to have many fun adventures together this summer!
Saturday, March 22, 2014
My Little Houdini's
Finally, Spring is here! I think many Iowans would agree that this was a very long, cold, depressing Winter. Recently, we have had some warm days, with temps in the 50's (which feels like a sauna compared to the single digits and negative wind chills we had the majority of the Winter). The kids have LOVED being able to get outside at school and at home, especially the twins. In fact, since they have had some freedom outside our house, they are constantly waiting at the door hoping to go outside.
Unfortunately, like most Iowa Springs, the temperature has been up and down, and recently we are on the downward slide again. Thus, it is again too chilly to spend much, if any time outside. Ha, try explaining that to two toddlers! Any opportunity they have to walk down the driveway or venture to the backyard they take. Taking them in and out of the van before and after school has become even more challenging. CW wants out of your arms the second you step into the garage and usually runs to the driveway, yelling "truck" while pointing at Justin's vehicle. After a couple minutes I am able to coax him back to the van with his previously slobbered on stuffed Mario.
This morning, Justin took Milo to the vet for a check up. (Our pre-diabetic cat needed another lab draw to check his blood sugar and an updated rabies vaccine). While he was gone, I spent the time getting three little ones out of their oatmeal covered jammies and into clothes. After successfully dressing one twin, I went upstairs to help AJ pick out some clothes. 9 times out of 10 when I head upstairs with Alena at least one of her siblings will follow up the stairs soon after. (The twins are so proud of the fact they can now "walk" up the stairs). After a couple minutes it was eerily quiet downstairs and I hadn't heard the sound of toddler chatter in Alena's room. I yelled downstairs, but got no reply. Uh oh!
I sprinted down the stairs, slipping on the last stair, and looked at the door leading out to the garage. It wasn't shut tight, which was a dead give away that I had two escapees! I ran outside towards the end of the driveway and looked up and down the street. No sign of those rug rats. Then I ran to the back of the house and there is where I spotted them. CW was already at the shed, (he is so fast!), but LW was just getting into the grass in the backyard. So in my socks, I ran toward the shed, grabbing my 27 pound twin and hauled him back toward the house, while he screamed and tried to wiggle out of my arms. On the way, I picked up his sister, barefoot and shirtless, and got them inside hopefully before any neighbor noticed! Of course I had two very unhappy campers for a while as I ruined their escape plan and their "outside" time.
I've been trying to figure out who was the instigator of this plan: I can just picture it now. The two of them probably huddled together discussing the plan shortly after AJ and I went upstairs, (or perhaps they planned this days ago). I'm sure Lauren held the door open for Caleb, per his orders, while he quickly scampered down the garage stairs before taking off. I'm guessing Lauren knew that what she was doing was wrong, but decided to follow her brother anyway. I honestly think I saw a little remorse in her face when she was caught so I blame this incident on her brother. This is only the beginning.
Guess we learned our lesson-we're going to have to start locking our doors or possible invest in some door handle locks.
Unfortunately, like most Iowa Springs, the temperature has been up and down, and recently we are on the downward slide again. Thus, it is again too chilly to spend much, if any time outside. Ha, try explaining that to two toddlers! Any opportunity they have to walk down the driveway or venture to the backyard they take. Taking them in and out of the van before and after school has become even more challenging. CW wants out of your arms the second you step into the garage and usually runs to the driveway, yelling "truck" while pointing at Justin's vehicle. After a couple minutes I am able to coax him back to the van with his previously slobbered on stuffed Mario.
This morning, Justin took Milo to the vet for a check up. (Our pre-diabetic cat needed another lab draw to check his blood sugar and an updated rabies vaccine). While he was gone, I spent the time getting three little ones out of their oatmeal covered jammies and into clothes. After successfully dressing one twin, I went upstairs to help AJ pick out some clothes. 9 times out of 10 when I head upstairs with Alena at least one of her siblings will follow up the stairs soon after. (The twins are so proud of the fact they can now "walk" up the stairs). After a couple minutes it was eerily quiet downstairs and I hadn't heard the sound of toddler chatter in Alena's room. I yelled downstairs, but got no reply. Uh oh!
I sprinted down the stairs, slipping on the last stair, and looked at the door leading out to the garage. It wasn't shut tight, which was a dead give away that I had two escapees! I ran outside towards the end of the driveway and looked up and down the street. No sign of those rug rats. Then I ran to the back of the house and there is where I spotted them. CW was already at the shed, (he is so fast!), but LW was just getting into the grass in the backyard. So in my socks, I ran toward the shed, grabbing my 27 pound twin and hauled him back toward the house, while he screamed and tried to wiggle out of my arms. On the way, I picked up his sister, barefoot and shirtless, and got them inside hopefully before any neighbor noticed! Of course I had two very unhappy campers for a while as I ruined their escape plan and their "outside" time.
I've been trying to figure out who was the instigator of this plan: I can just picture it now. The two of them probably huddled together discussing the plan shortly after AJ and I went upstairs, (or perhaps they planned this days ago). I'm sure Lauren held the door open for Caleb, per his orders, while he quickly scampered down the garage stairs before taking off. I'm guessing Lauren knew that what she was doing was wrong, but decided to follow her brother anyway. I honestly think I saw a little remorse in her face when she was caught so I blame this incident on her brother. This is only the beginning.
Guess we learned our lesson-we're going to have to start locking our doors or possible invest in some door handle locks.
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