New Year's Eve

I saw a fun idea of taking the decorations off of the Christmas tree the night before New Year's Eve, after the kids are asleep, and re-decorating it with streamers, etc. to make it a New Year's Eve tree.  Mine didn't turn out as cute as the one I saw, but it was festive enough for my kids. . . and pretty good for a last-minute trip to the Dollar Store.

I also have been gearing up to potty-train Sophia, and hoping that maybe potty-training Sophia might rub off of on Amelia.  And I had the thought that maybe I could use the newly decorated tree as potty-training incentives for Sophia. . . and maybe even Amelia.

This is how my day has gone so far.  Sophia was willing to sit on the potty this morning, but after a few minutes she started asking for her diaper.  So I put on her diaper and she promptly pees in it.  But I let Sophia pick a balloon from the tree for at least making an effort.  So I keep pumping her full of juice and water, but she won't sit on the potty again.  Instead, her diaper leaked while she was sitting on me, so we both had to change our clothes.  Meanwhile, Amelia still doesn't want anything to do with potty-training and Sophia refuses to sit on the potty again.  

Maybe 2014 will be our lucky year for potty-training.

So, this afternoon I told the girls that they could just take the decorations off the tree to play with them.  Amelia says to me "you mean we can take them off without sitting on the potty?" and when I answer "yes", she says to me "that is terrific!" and gives me a big hug.

And when one of the party horns didn't make any noise, I told her it was probably because I didn't spend very much money on them.  So Amelia says to me, "maybe you should spend more money on them next time".   Hhm?  I think I'm okay with noise makers that don't make much noise ;)

May your new year be filled with joy, laughter, and new adventures.  Happy New Year!

Christmas and the Aftermath

Christmas was a lovely day at our house.  Sophia woke up at 7:15a, but Amelia didn't get up until 7:45a.  We were just getting ready to wake her up when she got up on her own.

The girls loved Christmas.  Amelia was so excited playing with her new stuff, that she didn't want to eat anything, and didn't end up eating until lunch time.

• Santa doesn't bring much to our house, except for small toys and treats in our stockings.  But Sophia didn't even get to her stocking until almost 5pm.
• One of my sisters and a cousin posted a birthday wish to my Mom on Facebook.  When I saw it, I cried, and then Amelia saw me crying and wanted to know why.  I told her Christmas was also Grandma Joy's birthday.  So Amelia asked how we could get presents to her since she is in Heaven.  I told her maybe we could just be nice to each other; she didn't seem to think that was a fun idea.
• Amelia woke up crying early this morning because she had a "bad" dream that we had already taken down the Christmas tree.  I'm not ready for it to come down either
• And speaking of things I'm not ready for, I'm not ready to stop listening to Christmas music. Thank goodness for Pandora.
• Every year I think about going to get Christmas items on clearance at stores, but today while I was in a store, it was so congested and chaotic in that section of the store, I just had to walk away without buying anything.  The frenzy makes you feel like you need everything, but in reality, I probably need very little of what was there.

Christmas Eve

As a family with young children, we're slowly establishing traditions.  This year we decided to make sugar cookies on Christmas Eve, rather than gingerbread houses.  (I like to eat my work after spending so much time on it.)  The girls like to help bake and today was no exception.  But of course, the favorite part is licking the beaters.

Meanwhile, one of our neighbors that we just met at Thanksgiving, brought over treats for us and small snow globes for the girls.  My girls don't like regular candy canes (they're too "spicy"), but they loved the fruit flavored ones.

And the girls loved their snow globes, but unfortunately, Amelia broke her's before she'd had it an hour.  Thank goodness Daddy was able to pull out the broken glass and make it so that Amelia could just play with the globe, sans water and snowflakes.

After a full day of making the dough, chilling it, rolling it out, cutting out the shapes, and baking the cookies, it was finally time to frost and decorate them.  (I think there is a reason I don't make sugar cookies very often - they're so labor intensive.) 

Amelia did a great job frosting them.

And Sophia loved decorating them.

All in all, a successful, once-a-year project ;)  And after a very short Christmas Eve program of sorts, the girls are nestled all snug in their beds, while visions of Santa dance in their heads.  Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a Good Night.

The stockings were hung . . .

Finally!  The stockings are all hung by the chimney with care.

I started Sophia's stocking way back in February and finally finished it today.  Phew!  Just in time for Santa.

And in other non-news, today the girls were sitting on the floor, on top of the heat vent (their favorite place to sit), and Amelia asked me if I would take a picture of them.

. . . and then she wanted one of them with their mouths open, being silly.

The other day, we had a male deer come into our yard and Ken got this picture through the sliding glass door.

Another Random Post

• I bought a food scale a few months ago and every time I use it I get excited using it.  It's not super fancy, but I love it.
• Now that Sophia has learned how to talk, she often talks like a baby . . . and it drives me crazy.  Unfortunately, Amelia likes it and calls Sophia "my baby".
• Has anyone ever had success washing pillows?  I keep trying and wonder why I even try.  I washed Amelia and Sophia's sleeping pillows today . . . and I'm hoping that the increased lumpiness of the pillows doesn't increase their wakefulness in the middle of the night.
• A few weeks ago we had the missionaries over for dinner.  One of the missionaries asked me what I do for fun.  Sadly, I couldn't think of anything.
• Amelia is often constipated and after talking to her Dr, she suggested that maybe Amelia needed to eat more fiber.  While I tried to increase her fiber, I realized that probably the bigger problem is that Amelia barely drinks any fluid during the day.  I push fluids on her all the time, but she barely drinks 1-2 cups.
• Our Relief Society is doing a service exchange, rather than a gift/ornament exchange.  I think it's a great idea, but I'm stumped about what service I can/should offer.  How can you offer something without knowing what people need?
• Amelia is excited for Christmas, but I'm pretty sure she's just as excited for her birthday, 3 months away.

Christmas Tree

The day after Thanksgiving, we did our family tradition of going to a tree farm and picking out a Christmas tree.  Before we even got to the trees, Sophia had to stop and take the tractor for a "drive". 

Part 1 - the Hunt

Part 2 - the Find

Part 3 - Bringing it in

After Ken cut down our tree, the girls "helped" him pull it back to the pay station.

While we waited for Ken to get the tree measured, paid for, shaken and wrapped, the girls and I patted goats . . .

. . . and sat in Santa's sleigh - somebody forgot to tell them to smile ;)

Sophia wanted to go talk to Santa, but wasn't brave enough to sit on his lap.  She did wish him a Merry Christmas, however.  Amelia, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with Santa and stood crying behind me while Sophia talked to him.

Yesterday Ken did the hard part of setting up the tree and putting on the lights.  And today, the girls and I decorated the tree.  When I came in to start, I found that the girls had already put some ornaments on the tree.  Sophia's is the motorcycle ;)

After it was all finished, we took pictures next to the tree.

Yesterday I helped the girls put on lights and decorations on a little fake tree in our playroom.   They were so excited and loved helping put on the ornaments.  However, that evening when I went to put away toys with the girls, I found that Sophia had pulled all the ornaments off the tree and made 2 piles  - one of the ornaments and one with the hooks and tops of the ornaments.  Oye!  So, I was a little nervous to put the breakable ornaments on our tree, but so far so good. 

And after the tree decorating was finished, the girls sang their rendition of "Frosty the Snowman", in a rather rowdy, just their style, way.

Thanksgiving and More

Thanksgiving is a quiet affair at our house today . . . and I'm totally enjoying it.  Nothing on the agenda, no frantic cooking or house cleaning, a simple dinner planned and much to be thankful for.

• I am thankful for a loving husband who loves playing with our beautiful girls.  I am thankful for dry sunny weather, perfect for outdoor play (when bundled up, of course).

• I am thankful for a warm, safe home to live in.
• I am thankful for Ken's job that provides for all of our needs.
• I am thankful for the beauty of the world we live in, and for the wildlife in our yard, who add excitement and entertainment.  Today while playing outside, I saw this.  I'm pretty sure "jumpy squirrel" buried it for later, but the question is, "just where did he get it from?"

• I am thankful that 90% of my Christmas shopping was done before Thanksgiving, so that I can enjoy the Christmas season without the hectic pace of shopping. 
• But most importantly, I am thankful for good health, friends and family, and my Savior, Jesus Christ, from whom, all my blessing come.

Not Much Happening

We haven't been doing too much at our house lately, but every so often, I hear the beating of drums and realize Sophia is upstairs banging on Daddy's drums.  The other day I finally got a picture and video of it.

And then, of course, Amelia wanted me to take a movie of her dancing . . . to the beat of a different drummer ;)

Just a Few Things

• My girls love Halloween candy as much as I do.  Sophia would eat it continually if I'd let her.  My rule is that you have to eat something healthy before eating the candy; consequently, Sophia didn't eat dinner last night because all she wanted was candy.  The Stubborn Two's are very evident at our house.
• I did something for the first time this last weekend.  I spent 2 1/2 days without my girls - the first time I've ever been separated from them for more than a few hours.  Turns out, it was much easier for me than it was for Ken ;)
• The day of my mom's funeral was beautiful.  This is a picture of the sunrise on the mountains in Cache Valley that day.  I couldn't help but think "oh how lovely is the morning" and marvel at the wonderful creations that have been made for us.

• Below is a picture of my Dad with my siblings, plus the indian foster student that lived at our house for 7 years.  The weather was warmer and dryer than it's been in WA for months, so I enjoyed soaking in the sun without needing a coat or jacket.

• When I came home from UT, I was so excited to see that the buds on my Christmas cactus had almost all opened up.  My mom loved to watch plants/flowers grow and bloom, and I inherited her enthusiasm.  This is a picture that Amelia took of Ken and Sophia.

Happy Halloween

For those of you who know me, you know I'm not a big Halloween fan . . . mostly because of the stress of coming up with costumes.  If I can come up with costumes, then I can enjoy the holiday . . . especially if there is a lot of candy involved.

So, I've been planning the girl's costumes since last year.  And they turned out just how I imagined they would . . . and even better, the girls were excited to wear them - Yeah!

Trunk or Treating was a success too . . . and even though this isn't a great picture, you can see my very elaborate costume ;)  Thanks again, Lisa, for the hat :)

Rest in Peace

Joy Irene Irish Thornley

Dec. 25, 1930 - Oct. 25, 2013

We love you and will miss you.

God be with you 'til we meet again.

Pumpkin Patch & Other Misc. News

• Ken had Monday off, so we headed to the Pumpkin Patch to pick out some pumpkins for Halloween.  Both girls had so much fun picking out "their" pumpkins, but ironically, we took pictures of everything, except of the girls with their pumpkins.  Here's a few of the good ones.

 Sophia is wondering why the reindeer aren't with Santa.

Just being silly . . .

• The other day I saw a recipe for pumpkin rice krispie treats.  They sounded so good, I couldn't wait to try them.  I hate it when something highly anticipated doesn't live up to my expectations.  The flavor was good, despite the dash of nutmeg I put in instead of a pinch, but the pumpkin puree made them kind of soggy and stale-like.  I think I'll just stick with traditional pumpkin treats, like muffins, cookies, and pie.
• The girls liked the pumpkin rice krispie treats, but since Sophia hates getting her hands sticky, she ate hers with a fork ;)
• About a week ago, I accidentally dropped one of my favorite sauce pans onto the floor.  I quickly inspected the wood floor to make sure it wasn't dented or anything, but didn't even bother to check the pan . . . until a few days later when I went to put the lid on the pan and noticed that the pan was dented.  Ken saved the day by fixing the dent so that I can still use my pan - yeah!
• In another week, Sophia will be 2.  Unbelievable!
• I started a counted-cross stitch Christmas stocking for Sophia back in February or so, thinking I'd have plenty of time to finish it.   But as we are only about 2 months away from Christmas, I'm hoping to have it done in time.
• Amelia is so excited for Halloween.  And I'm excited that my Thing 1 and Thing 2 costumes turned out so well . . . but more importantly, that the girls are excited to wear the costumes.
• The other morning when we were running errands in the fog, Amelia asked me if it was raining and I said no, "it's just foggy".  Amelia then turns to Sophia and says "that's when you have cereal and put too much milk on it.".  And then we had a mini-lesson on rhyming words ;)

It's Autumn Time

I'm not sure how Amelia learned about it, but she has been looking forward to jumping in a big pile of leaves for what seems like months.  Usually Ken rakes and/or blows the leaves while the girls are sleeping or with me, so Amelia hasn't been able to jump in them.  Today, I decided to help Ken . . . and therefore Amelia . . . by raking up some leaves in between rain showers.  Amelia was so excited.

 And of course, Sophia is happy to do whatever Amelia is excited about.

Their pattern of playing in the leaves is exactly the same as the way they play in puddles - they run back and forth laughing and having a great time.

Amelia tried to make a leaf angel.  I think she liked it, despite the wet leaves sticking in her hair.

 Sophia wanted to try it too, but almost as quickly wanted to get back up.

After I gathered up leaves in the garbage can, the girls liked helping me stomp down the leaves to make room for more leaves.  Sadly, by the time Ken gets home from work today, he won't even be able to tell I raked . . . except for the full garbage can of leaves.  Oh the joy of living surrounded by oak trees.

Photo Shoot

My friend, Pam, did a photo shoot for us.  We were blessed with perfect weather - overcast skies for better lighting and no rain.  The girls started out smiley, but Amelia didn't want to have her picture taken.  Despite that, Pam got some great photos of the girls.

Pam pointed out a hole in the ground, and next thing we knew, Sophia was digging in the hole.  Amazingly, her dress didn't get dirty . . . just her hands, which Pam got a perfect picture of before we cleaned it up.

I have this cool steamer trunk, which I thought would be great for the photo shoot.  But by this point, Amelia had really had enough of her picture taken . . . so she climbed in and didn't want to come out.

But Pam still got some great pictures of her ;)

Sophia was nothing but smiley for the photo shoot.

And this one shows what my mind was like prior to the photo shoot.  I got Sophia dressed that morning and as I was cleaning up her room, I couldn't figure out where her pajama bottoms were.  I looked everywhere and finally concluded that Ken or the girls must have put them somewhere.  And then half-way through the photo shoot, Pam captured this picture - proof that I am crazy.  In my sleep-deprived state, I had put Sophia's tights on top of her pajamas.

Amelia loves sticks and after collecting some throughout the morning, she wouldn't set them down.  I love that Pam got such great pictures of our girls, that reflect their character.

Thanks Pam for capturing the "magic" of our family.

Random Ramblings

• I'm still adjusting to neither of my girls taking naps, but I do have to say that no naps certainly makes bedtime easier and earlier . . . and it doesn't hurt that it's getting darker earlier now.
• A few weeks ago I noticed that my children were hardly watching TV.  My guess was that it was somehow connected with the sunny weather we were enjoying.  I'm thinking my hypothesis was correct; the rain started back up and when it's cloudy and raining, all my girls want to do is sit and watch TV.
• And now that we're watching more TV, what do we watch?  If Amelia gets to choose, we watch cooking shows on PBS - she loves them!
• I've had a cold the last few days, and yesterday I experienced something my mom has been dealing with every day for over a month now - I couldn't smell, so therefore, I couldn't taste anything.  It sure made eating boring.
• I have confirmed that I love living somewhere that has seasons.  I'm not necessarily looking forward to the rain for the next 6 months, but I am getting tired of my summer clothes and am looking forward to wearing something else.
• I've mentioned before that I hate shoe shopping.  I've been wearing the same black pumps for at least 8 years - I loved them - but they were completely worn out.  So I bucked up and went shoe shopping; found a new/used pair, threw out my old shoes, and then unfortunately realized that my new shoes were horrible.  Gave the shoes back to the discount store and resumed my hunt for new shoes.  Bought a pair online, but when I got them, they were too big.  Sent them back.  The hunt continues . . . and meanwhile, I'm shoeless in Olympia.  Ugh!
• I'm getting a jump start on Halloween and am making "Thing 1" and "Thing 2" costumes for Amelia and Sophia (I'll be the Cat in the Hat).  Ken thinks I should call Amelia's "Mine 1" and Sophia's "Me Too" because that's all they seem to say lately.
• We have this weird phenomenon at our house - the girls and I get little holes in our shirts right about the belt line.  I originally thought mine were from wearing belts - but I haven't been wearing belts lately and the girls don't wear belts and our shirts are still getting the little holes.
• Today when I went to the meat market, I had to do a double take at their Weekly Specials sign.  It read "lion roast, $2.99".  They often have exotic meat for sale, but I couldn't even imagine where they got lion from . . . and then I realized they meant to say "loin roast". 

Children's Museum

Ken had Monday off, so we headed to the Children's Museum for a few hours.  Amelia wanted to make a bouquet of flowers, but was sad that she couldn't take them with her.  I told her we'd take a picture of it, and take that home, but she wasn't as happy about that idea.

Sophia liked the ball that goes up in the tube, spins around in water, and then comes back down.

 The girls love to color, but Amelia did NOT want her picture taken.

Amelia wanted to dress up and get on the stage . . . but only stayed there long enough for a brief picture.

And Sophia loved the vacuum tube maze that projected balls and scarves out of the tubes.

And we ended our visit by taking a "family portrait".  (Left to right: Ken, Amelia, Sharon, & Sophia)