Half Birthday And Legos!

This past Saturday, Paprika turned 6 and a half years old.  It's also President's Day weekend and the start of Ski Week for our school (everyone has the whole week off to go skiing).  Since we're just staying home and not vay-kay-ing anywhere fabulous, I thought it would be fun to celebrate Paprika's special day...her half birthday.  :-)

On Friday, we went over to Paula's house to swim and Paprika was convinced it was a celebration in honor of her half birthday.  :-)  Paula warmed up the hot tub, so I got in with the three girls and they had a blast.  Daryle came over and the "grown up girls" had a great time socializing - win/win!

The swimming pool was freezing, but Paprika and Ginger wanted to swim anyway.  They kept "braving" the "icy" waters of the pool and then racing back to the hot-tub.  After an hour or two, Mr. M came home from work and came over to say hi.  As soon as I saw him, I handed Baby Violet off to him (she was a handful in the water!!!)- then he took her home and I stayed with Ginger and Paprika.

It was like a vacation just having the older two to watch - it's amazing what perspective can do for ya.

Anyhoo - I got to enjoy a glass of wine while the girls watched a Barney movie on Paula's enormous TV (I think they thought they were in a movie theater - haha).  And, that's right, not only did I break my Lenten fast of no sugar, I also had a glass of wine!  Yikes!  Ann says I was being overly ambitious and  should have just given up gluten for Lent.  Paula says that God wants us to be happy.

All I know is that the day I gave up sugar, the song:  I can't live if living is without you was going through my head all day.  I had a piece of Valentine's Day candy and it was like the skies parted and everything was sunny again. 

So, I am not giving up sugar or the occasional glass of wine.  I am so weak.  If I was ever in a torture situation, I would break immediately.  I realize my marathon sessions of Homeland are clouding my judgement...but I'm just saying.  I can't even go two days without chocolate.  Haha!





We spent a lot of time this weekend playing around the house, running little errands here and there, and just being low-key.  On Saturday night, we took the girls to Krispy Kreme for Paprika's Half Birthday treat.  It was either that or make her a half cake, so we went with the easier option.  Haha.

The girls also played a lot of Legos this weekend.  All these Legos are Mr. M's from his childhood.  We have a ton and I love that they are all mixed up randomly - the girls love to build with them, and I am always so excited by what they make.




Paprika (age 6 and newly 1/2) made this mobile home.  On Saturday morning she saw a Lego set at Target that was for a "Mobile Home" (I think it was the Girl Legos).  Anyway - she really wanted it, but when we told her she'd have to use her own money to buy it, she improvised and made this little house out of the Legos we already had. 

It's actually pretty sweet inside- she made furniture, etc. before she put the roof on it:




Ginger (age 3) made this "Bunk Bed House" - when I asked her what a Bunk Bed House was, she said it's a house ontop of another house - (I guess that would be an apartment or a duplex?).   We have a single story house, so it's funny to me that she notices this stuff.  When we're driving around town, she always asks me why certain houses are tall and some are short, etc.  She notices everything!

Here is her little creation she made.  I love the stairs and the little man!  :-)





Last night, the girls made a "fort" under the table - Ginger dragged the quilt off her bed into the kitchen, and then the girls brought their stuffed animals and dolls under the table.  They had such a great time playing (Paprika, too) - it was so cute to watch.  Then my camera ran out of batteries, but at least I got this picture:



Then, this morning while the girls were sleeping, I hung these maps (find them: here and here) in Ginger and Paprika's room as a surprise for them. 

They were so excited and surprised when they woke up.  Paprika loves listening to Story of the World, so I thought this would help her understand the geography mentioned in the series. 





Paprika and Ginger are both always talking about all the places they want to visit. Hopefully these maps will help them visualize and dream about their big voyages they want to take. Although, really, I want them to live with me forever, so I don't want to encourage wanderlust. What am I thinking? Haha.




So, that's the start of our little Ski Week at home!  :-)  I feel like we've been off school forever and it's only Monday afternoon!  Ha!

The End.

Disney With Dalia!

Before the girls grow up and go away to college, I wanted to post about our last little day-trip to Disneyland...two weeks ago today! :-)





I never ever ever like to set foot in Disneyland on a weekend (too crowded for me) - but my friend, Dalia and her family were visiting from Austin, Texas...and it was the only day Mr. M had off work to go.  So, we threw caution to the wind and braved Disneyland on a weekend! 

Truthfully, the crowds weren't too bad - if you're going to brave Disneyland on a Sunday, then late January is just the right time of year to do that.  :-)

I met Dalia in my online mommy group back in 2005 (!!!!) when we were both pregnant with our first babies - so we have known each other for 7 years now.  Since that time, many new babies have been born.  In this picture she is 30 weeks pregnant with her fourth gorgeous child.  I was so impressed she walked all through Disneyland 30+ weeks pregnant (often carrying a toddler on her hip). 

It's funny because when we got Dalia's holiday card in the mail, Paprika and Ginger both thought Dalia was me and wondered why I was posing with a different family.  :-)




Anyhoo, it was a really fun day.  We rode lots of rides we never go on (not for any specific reason - I guess we just have our "standards").  So, we mixed things up, and the girls were so happy to try new things and make new friends.  :-)





Later in the day, we had a little downtime at the Animation Studio - and Ginger and Violet rode in the double stroller for the first time ever together.  Since then, it's become their "thing" - and it's making school drop off easier for me.  I am still doing the "double Ergo" from time to time, but I see that phase passing.  I am more than happy to push them both in the stroller - it is saving me from carrying 60 pounds of "baby" with me everywhere.  ;-)



Great day at Disney with great people!  I can't wait to see Dalia again - the only thing I wish is that we'd been able to visit longer.  Gives me something to look forward to in the future, I guess!  :-)

Things They Say!

 I know everyone thinks their kids say the cutest things - and I'm no exception. Haha.  I  really want to remember the fun things they're saying now, so I thought I'd write a few down for keeps.

Here are the girls playing Ring Around The Rosey with Mr. M - they think it's the most fun thing EVER.  Can you see the glee in Baby Violet's face?!



Pretty much everything Ginger says right now is adorable.  She's three, so that kinda goes with the territory, right?  From the way she sings to the way she talks, I just want to bottle it all up.

We play Mr. Rogers CDs in the car.  It's Fred Rogers singing/playing piano, and the CDs are fantastic.  I grew up listening to them on vinyl, and so I knew I had to get them for my kids.  They are a bit hard to find (you have to buy them here) - but well, worth it!  We have every CD...and play them in rotation.  We also have our share of Raffi and we listen to the Classical XM station - but mostly, it's Fred Rogers - the one thing we can all agree on.  Haha.

Anyway, Ginger is so serious when she sings the Mr. Rogers songs.  She doesn't want anyone else to sing them.  One of my favorite things right now is looking in the rearview mirror and seeing her little face and hearing her sweet voice.

We also have lots of long talks and Ginger cracks me up every time.  She keeps telling me that we used to have a dog (before Daisy) named Yogurt.  She loved Yogurt, but he ran away and he was lost.  But not to worry, he found a new family and he is happy now.  She is always telling me little stories about Yogurt - and all the crazy tricks he used to pull.

Except of course, we've never had a dog named Yogurt!  Hahaha.



Another funny thing is that she is always telling me that Mr. M doesn't go to work - instead, every day he goes to a baseball game.  I think she really thinks he goes to a baseball game each day - but well, Mr. M has pretty much NEVER been to a baseball game in his whole life except for one Dodger's game 7 years ago!




One of my favorite things is listening to Paprika and Ginger talking when they think I can't hear them. Paprika is always so sweet to her little sisters.

Last week I overheard Ginger (age 3) tell Paprika (age 6) that Ginger wants to be the first "girl" president. Paprika said, "You can do that, Ginger. But you need to learn about Bills. You need to know what they stand for, and if they're good you can pass them. But if they're not, you must veto them. It's your duty."

Where does she come up with it? 

Another funny Ginger-ism is that she is always saying, "I want to go outside and feel the wind in my hair!"

Haha.

Last week, she saw a picture of Barack Obama and said, "Oh, that's our President...Barack Obama!" 

I was like:  How do you even know that???

Paprika is trying to teach Ginger how to read, and she is so patient with her. Everything was really quiet the other day, and I went into the kitchen and saw Paprika with a book trying to help Ginger sound out the letters. Paprika said: Ginger, I can teach you to read, but at some point, you're going to have to take responsibility. You're going to have to do it on your own. Don't be scared. I'll be here for you, but you've got to take these steps by yourself. No one can do it for you.

So now, every day, Paprika has been working with Ginger on her reading.  From teaching potty training to now reading, I'm outsourcing it all to Paprika. ;-) 





I can't wait for Violet to really start talking - I am sure she'll provide us with lots of little gems once she says more than:  Mama, Dada, AbuAbuAbujabu.  :-)

Happy Love Day!

Today was Sugar, HFCS, and Red Dye 40 Day at Paprika's school! Oh, yes, I mean Valentine's Day. The photo above is her Valentine's Day card -  it's funny because I had intended on giving pencils with hearts on them instead of candy. But then the pencils wouldn't fit - so I went with a lollipop. And when I got to Target to buy Lollipops, they were all out except for Blow Pops with Red Dye 40.

In case you don't know, Red Dye 40 is a food additive known to cause behavioral problems (especially in kids) and is banned in many countries.  It's in a lot of food (Doritos, Gatorade, and other red things we don't eat in our house).  Paprika hasn't had it in years because it caused meltdowns for her - and well, she won't really eat anything with it in it anymore (except for M&M's) because she's still a super selective eater.

So even though Red Dye 40 isn't allowed in my house (Ginger and Violet have never even had it) - I sent Paprika off to school with a box full of Red Dye 40 suckers.   Yea, I'm that mom - because I figure if you can't beat them, join them.  Right?  Haha.

So, she came home with her little Valentine's Day box brimming with treats - and the thing is, even though most are full of Red Dye 40, she won't eat them anyway (she only eats chocolate treats) - so we're good.  I just have to hide them from Ginger!  ;-)




Anyhoo- here is the little mailbox we made last weekend.  We spray painted a shoe box, then added glitter glue and some scrapbooking decals. 

I hear that you have to make a little mailbox every year, so I am tempted to keep this one!  It should last a few grades, right?




I am on my second day of my Lenten challenge.  Of course, Valentine's Day has to be Day TWO of giving up sugar.  How cruel, right?  I had a little gluten-free granola this morning (it had honey...not sugar, so technically not cheating) - but then I became consumed with wanting to eat the whole bag, so I had to bring the rest to Paula's house (she's gluten-free). 

I am not feeling spiritually enlightened.  If anything, I just want a big box of chocolate and a glass of red wine.  Haha!

Oh, and here's a photo of Paprika reading "Love Is Walking Hand In Hand" - it's my favorite book from childhood, and I have no idea where the original copy is, so I bought it on Ebay because it's out of print.  But I just found out they are doing a new printing of it.  Yay!!!  Here's the link to the new edition, which was just released!

Anyway, it was sweet to see Paprika reading my little "love" book to her sisters.  (Even if there are parts more inappropriate than I remember) ;-)




Happy Valentine's Day!!! 

The End.

Headache Cure - Lent Day One

It's the first day of Lent, and I decided to give up wheat (gluten), processed sugar, chocolate, white potatoes, and alcohol. So far, so good. Of course, it hasn't even been a day yet! Haha. I've never given up anything for Lent before, so I'm excited. :-)

My only withdrawal side effect so far is a horrible headache - I think that's the sugar withdrawal? Hopefully I'll be feeling clearer headed in a day or two. Fingers crossed.

These pictures make me smile.  When my Grandma (Grandma Mimi) came to visit, she gave the girls each their own Raggedy Ann doll. It's Violet's favorite doll and she loves to "feed" her. So sweet.

 



So, whenever I have a headache, I'll just look at these pictures and they'll make me feel better. Works every time. :-)