Never ceases to surprise....

Kate chose her outfit today and, as usual, it was ecelctic. It started with a nice purple dress and pink leggings, but then came her favorite part: the accessories. As I was doing laundry, she chose some of my green/blue socks (pulled up to her knees), a blue scarf and a winter hat that has bunny ears. She was rockin' it, I must say. It was only when I lifted her out of the car that I saw another addition: my underwear under her dress on top of her leggings....leopard print ones, at that!!

First snow of the year!

We had our first snowfall on Thursday night, and it wasn't just a skiff--it was about 4-5 inches! Kate woke up and was entirely shocked that there was snow in our yard AND in the park next door. She immediately insisted on going out to sled and ski in her pajamas and, although we told her we'd wait just a bit, she still went about stuffing her pajama-clad feet into her boots. She was seriously distraught when she wailed, "but I'm really hungry!!" She seemed to think it a huge injustice and inconvenience that her hunger was getting in the way of her snow plans. Once we got through breakfast, Kate & Will did indeed enjoy the snow...many times over the weekend. The park next door has a fantastic hill that was just the right size for sledding and for Kate to try out skiing. She started out on the little plastic skis which you put your own boots in, and then graduated to her real skis and boots. Of course, she insisted on barrelling down the hill "by myself!" She fell again and again, but it didn't really phase her and she kept wanting to "do it again!" By Sunday afternoon, she was making it down the hill on her own. Ryan and I were completely impressed! Will, too, enjoyed the first snow he's been in since he was too small last year. We went on endless rounds around the park, and every time the sled would stop, he'd sign "more." Naturally, HUGE tantrums ensued when it was time to go inside so, also naturally, we resorted to bribery of marshmallows (it started as hot chocolate with marshmallows until I realized we had no hot chocolate...). All in all, it was a great first snow....good thing since I'm sure we have about 6 months of snow ahead of us!

Thankful--Part 2

Today at school, Kate had a Thanksgiving "feast" (they even made butter--God, preschool teachers are brave!!) and made paper bag turkeys. On the turkey feathers, we wrote what they were thankful for. I asked Kate what she wanted to put on her feathers and she said, "I'm thankful for ponies, Metallica, Will, mommy and daddy...oh, and I'm really thankful for me, so I'd say that first." So, to recap, mommy and daddy are now making the list and are about as high up as we aspire to be since I don't think we'll ever top Kate herself, ponies, Metallica and Will!

To blog or not to blog...

Will thinks he's ready for school....

...anything to be like his big sis!

So, I completely love this blog because it's such a great recording for me of all the things I know I'll forget as Kate and Will grow, but I'm just not finding the time to do it lately. Starting to teach spin again, being out at Kate's school a lot coupled with Will & Kate being obsessed with using the computer themselves while I'm trying to type has just seemed to make keeping up with their activities tough. And then I feel guilty because I so want to keep up to date with all their doings, but then I feel like I spend time worrying about recording their events instead of just enjoying the events themselves. ANYWAY, this is all to say that I'm setting a once a week goal for myself...I'd love to do it more, but I'm going to shoot for that for now. I hope I get back to writing more, but I'm not sure life is going to get any less busy from here on out! With that said, here are a few "highlights" from the past few days.....As usual, the highlights around here are all about the things Kate says. Honestly, she cracks us up just about every minute of the day, especially now that she is going to preschool and has a whole new realm of things to talk about. A few days ago she had one of her best-ever remarks (although this will mortify here someday...) I was gone and, when I got home, Ryan said that Kate had said about the funniest thing he'd ever heard (warning: this is bathroom humor, as it so often is with a toddler): "Daddy, I have to go poo. And you'd better hurry because this volcano is about to erupt." She apparently said it so dead-pan that Ryan could have sworn she was trying to be a comedian. She has had an obsession with volcanoes lately after seeing one in a "Little Einsteins" episode, but we had no idea she could use the imagery so effectively!! Will is also starting to "talk" all the time--he has a lot to say and says it very adamently, but we're just not sure exactly what he's saying yet. He did say his first two-word phrase yesterday: "Car vroom" (which, really, sounded more like "Caaa broom," but I know what he meant.) As if we didn't have enough evidence already that he's a boy through and through, his main words now are: car, ball and dog. All the important bases to cover if you're a little boy, I guess. I can't wait for him to entertain us with his talking just like his sister!

The art of negotiation

Last time they visited the grocery store together, Kate convinced Ryan to buy some jelly beans. He had originally said no and, after giving in, claims that Kate proudly told him "you weren't supposed to buy those, but I got you to do it!" Yes, that's our little manipulator--geez, she's good at it. ANYWAY, at home a few days later, she kept asking me for some and, after giving in as well, I told her she could have 3 if she finished picking up the disaster that was our living room. She said, "how about 5?" I said, "how about 4?" and that's where we settled. She proceeded to clean SOME of the living room before telling me, "okay, I'm ready for my jelly beans." I informed her that she hadn't finished the job, to which she replied, "Oh, I know, I'll just have 3 jelly beans after all because that's all I want to clean." She was dead serious and, really, that's a tough one to beat! Never a dull moment around here with these two!

Trick or treat!

Yes, Halloween was Monday and it's now Friday so they're late, but here are some Halloween pics. Kate woke up on the morning of Halloween and informed me she was going to be "a bumblebee." She's mentioned many costumes, but that's the first I'd heard of bumblebee. Since we had neither an actual bumblebee costume nor any items of yellow clothing that could be turned into a bumblebee costume, I managed to talk her down to being a ladybug (only by promising she could be a bumblebee next year...or "tomorrow" as she put it). We had fun at the parade, but it's a distant memory now as we've had a busy week: THREE Hickory escapes from the backyard, a malfunctioning garage door that would either lock you in or out of the garage and, oh yes, Will's minor surgery (just a delayed circumcision which was suggested when he was born). But, it's finally Friday and with Hickory's escape route sealed, the garage door fixed and Will well on his way to being his usual self, it looks like we've made it!

It's Ladybug Girl!

Kate's own version of costume which she "made" while I was in the shower: my shoes, my belt, a tiara and wings. She claimed to be "a butterfly, but not one that flies because I have feet."

Ladybug fingernails

SUGAR!

Thankful

At school today, the kids did a project where they had to say something they were thankful for. When I came ot pick Kate up, the teacher said that she nearly fell off her chair laughing when Kate replied that she was thankful for "Metallica." Oh, it's true love for sure!