Thursday, November 28, 2013

Theme Thursday - Thankful




Thankful to no longer be pregnant with this sweet (and of recent, gassy) bebe. Can't believe she's already 3.5 weeks old!



We have many reasons to be thankful today - I could write a book so you're stuck with M for now

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Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Turkey Cookies...

I totally rocked out the creative side of me to get these turkey cookies done for E's party. I mean totally. I have baking inspiration now people! I even made extra for R's class. 


The only thing I really changed from the recipe was I used baking gel for the eyes instead of a piece of candy. I was again reminded of my extreme dislike of candy corn - I am sure the 3 yr old won't care though

Happy (almost) Turkey Day y'all!




Saturday, November 23, 2013

Oh Why Not...

I am currently debating over two things right now...

1. Turkey Cookies - the more pressing issue

For some reason when I was super pregnant in September, I thought it would be a fantastic idea to sign up to help with E's Thanksgiving class party. {Clearly I was not thinking straight} so fortunately I am not in charge of the craft but most of the food items... Turkey cookies is a must, no? So here's what I got...


This recipe looks too easy not to give this a whirl and if I fail epically, I doubt the 3 yr olds will care and I can always default to the below cookies.  Candy corn and chocolate frosting... how hard could they be?


Now the question is can I find these in a store near me? (or Grammy is also on the hunt for them too)

2. M's stocking

Yes I know I have not finished Lee's stocking but E is already talking about M's stocking...


This is E's vote 


I really LOVE this one!

This is a possible contender

E only wants M to have the angel stocking because E wants that to be her stocking... NOT A CHANCE in the world. The gingerbread stocking is awesome! I would love it to be my stocking but I doubt I'll every get around to making a stocking for myself so I would do it for one of my kids. It is super complex. The snowmen stocking is good too... I think E might just win me over on the angel... Thoughts anyone?




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Friday, November 22, 2013

On the First Week of Advent... the Kibbe's Learned (dee-dee)

Okay so that title would be awesome if it played nicely off the 12 days of Christmas but anywho....

This week we completed our first Advent-en activity. Filling shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child. E understood that the stuff was going to kids who would not have a Christmas so A+ for that one. 

However when we dropped the shoeboxes off a lady asked and what's the best Christmas present of all? E - Candy? Okay so maybe we need a little tuning up in the Jesus is the most important gift department but hey one of two is not bad... 

We had a good time packing the boxes. E is now after a calculator for her birthday but I have a funny feeling John the Baptist might drop one in her stocking come January 6. : )

R did not really get it but PROUDLY carried her box to be dropped off. It was majorly cute. 

We have made it through the English verse of O Come Emmanuel on our sheet (I think we have 5 printed but I believe the is actually 7 verses to the song). Next up... Latin. Now time to really confuse the girls. Though E randomly shouts 'Kyrie Eleison' (Lord Have Mercy ~ in Greek) around the house some time so I have high hopes.

I was recently asked what Advent is... A. I love getting asked questions like this (ehem.... Nani) because it makes me have an insightful, sum-it-all-up-in-a-sentence-or-two answers OR B. I'll stumble through the answer because clearly I know the answer but maybe I just cannot explain it well - SO I'll be forced to dig a bit for a concise answer... 

This is what I got (from the CCC) Advent...


makes present this ancient expectancy of the Messiah, for by sharing in the long preparation for the Savior's first coming, the faithful renew their ardent desire for his second coming. Check out 522-524 for more deets : ) 


Advent is about preparing our hearts, minds, homes for the birth of Christ. 

It is the getting ready period. The world did not rejoice before the Nativity of the Son of God; it rejoiced when it happened which is why we won't light our tree until December 25. The world was in darkness before the Son of God came so our house will remain dark and we will celebrate on the feast and in the days and weeks after (as opposed to the days and weeks before : ) 

Still looking for a few things 

M was helping too...

Hanging the presents in the car

Telling R about it... She went shopping with Papa in a different cart


Finally starting to get this party started (Papa had JUST pulled in the driveway from Ohio when we first tried to start)

Okay... I could not find that soap! Now I think E slipped it into her box and my plan was to put one in R's too - glad I'm not going crazy!

Choosing some wrapping paper

Loving on the baby 


R losing interest

TAPE TAPE TAPE!

E's neatly packed box

Never using a box that does not have a pull off lid... AGAIN. R with the Scotch tape. This box required some seriously packing tape : ) 

When R gets bored, she goes for her cup

M listening to the pre-dinner time packing madness

Coloring a picture

And putting them in the boxes

Because a 3 yr old with a Sharpie is a BRILLIANT idea

Stickers = check

Making sure they won't fall off

Box stack


In the van, to be dropped off after school

Big boxes...



And she did not even drop it : ) 

And now for a slice of my favorite song of the season...

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel,
shall come to thee o Israel!

7 Quick Takes - Things I Love of Recent...


I have soooo many other cositas (things - people, en espanol, claramente) I would/need to post on but I just cannot help myself.. sorry no pics.







--- 1 ---

Kicking it back to Papa being first...

Love that we are on the same page about needing to simply (aka) not have 100 million puzzles and crayons and stuffed animals. Don't worry this policy would NEVER apply to his book collection : ) 



--- 2 ---

Love taking my girls to school (and M to work)

This week on "old MacDonald's farm" there was a quail and a truck... Clearly the truck goes vroom, vroom, vroom but a quail?!?!?!? Thank you preschool... So the conversation went like so...

Me- And on that farm he had a...
R - Cow!!!
Me - We already did cow (for the 10th time.. she loves cow)
E - Quail
Me - ... Ohh... what sound does a quail make?
E - Whistle
Me - Whistle? 
E - YES!
Me - Whistle, whistle, whistle

So I totally did not believe her so then I ask her teacher and in fact quails whistle using the feathery things on top of their heads... Who knew? 

--- 3 ---

Love listening to E talk to her 'friends' - the imaginary ones

E - {Something something something} Santa Claus
Me - Who are you talking to?
E - Oh my friends over here
Me - Who is Santa Claus?
E - Don't know...
Me - Me too
E - He's probably a saint or something
Me - No, no St. Nicholas is a saint
E - {Begins to list off things she is 'thinking' about giving St. Nicholas}

Can't imagine what else they talk about

--- 4 ---

Love listening to R and all her new words and phrase {that she SHOUTS}

Most favorite of all....

R - I love you
Me - I love you
R- I love you
Me - I love you too
R - I love you tooo
Me - I love you
R - I love you
Me - I love you tooo
R - I love you!!!!!

Her vocab has totally increased since M came home - or at least it seems like it has - but that does not stop her from screaming about stuff/everything...

--- 5 ---

I love that M's umbilical cordy thing FINALLY fell off

Seriously one of my least favorite parts of having a newborn is A. cleaning the cord with alcohol every night and B. Looking at the cord remnants. I have a memory of seeing my brother's cordy thing when he was a newborn so I have been scarred since I was 2.5 years old... 

--- 6 ---

I love that M is not (has not been) overly needy at night which means that I am able to get a good amount of sleep. 

It helps that we retire to our nursery quarters early... Lee claims we went to bed before 8 last night but I don't know if I 100% believe him. M will sleep for a good 3.5-4.5 hour first stretch and then up in 2-3 hours and then up every hour until 6:30 or 7. Totally manageable. 

I think the ambulance and firetruck at the neighbors house at 4:15 this morning kept me up longer than M did... Then we sleep in until 6:40... It was awesome. 


--- 7 ---

I love that we have such a great support system of family/friends/work/church/preschool that make our family go around. 

No one said raising a family was going to be easy, nor did we expect it to be, but we have been surrounded by people who love, support, challenge and help our family function and grow. It is truly amazing and we know we are very blessed



                                                  
For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!


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Thursday, November 21, 2013

Five Favs - Open to interpretation


Here's some written riddles (or not so riddles) of recent







1. This is what my Monday morning pulling out of the driveway looked like







2. This is how our Monday evening ended...

Anyone who does not already know what E penned, please try and guess. There are six words in this note and I think most of the letters from all six words are there... I will reveal the words next week - and give some explanation.



3. Hanging out at Nursing Mothers of Wilson

Because breastfeeding is not always easy and there are 10000000 things/questions that come up so talking to other moms about it makes what M has on much easier. (and seeing other older infants there totally made me want to soak up my time with my 2.5 week old : ) 

 


4. In 2018...

After our anniversary dinner Lee and I both filled this 5 questions for 5 years from now little survey I made. It is silly I know but we did not share our answers and signed the back of the envelope and threw it in the safe for a little comedy/competition on 11/1/18.



5. True Story  

So it has not happened yet but I am SURE that it will. I spilled some pumped milk when E was little and it brought tears to my eyes. Then I was over it but then the same thing happened with R. Third times a charm for not crying... I doubt it : )




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Monday, November 18, 2013

Overheard - I can't even try and summarize these in a single tagline

{while on a walk discussing what was on tap for the rest of the evening}

Papa - Chicky, how do you expect me to get anything done when you have all these people coming over?
Me - What things?
Papa - Its not like I can just sit down for 15 minutes and get into something and turn around and do something else
Me - What things?
Papa - Like write my book!

{okay now it is on the record that there is an inkling of hope my hubby will write a book - this makes me super happy}

Little baby = lots of visitors : ) A a different note, pretty good wrap job, no?

{as Lee is leaving the house telling everyone bye}
E - Papa, how come y'all didn't kiss lips when y'all squeezed?

{when coming down the stairs one morning}
E - Mama my eyes are dripping...
Me - Yes.. because you are crying!

Papa - E please don't play on the stair we don't want R to fall...
E - But Papa!
Papa - {goes to look at stair playing activity}
E - I'm having my wedding...

{playing tic-tac-toe)
E - I'm digging for Minnie's!


Me - R who do you want on your birthday cake
R - Ummm.... CUP!
Me - No, no... Elmo or Abby or Ariel?
R - Areeel....
Me - R, what color do you want on your cake?
R - Ummmmmmmmmmm... CUP!
Me - No, no... pink or purple?
E - Or yellow?
R - {blank stare}
Me - R, who do you want to come to your birthday party?
R - Ummm.... CUP!!!!
Me - You will have a cup at your party
Papa - Why not just get her a cake with a bunch of cups on it?

{with feet on couch and hands on coffee table}
E - Look at meeee... I'm a hip-a-saur!
{pretty sure a hip-a-saur is anything that does not touch the ground}

{while putting toothpaste on her toothbrush}
E - Joy to the world! Joy to the world!!! Let heav'n an nature sin... Let heav'n annnnn nature sin!!!!
Me - E, it's heaven and nature SING!
E - Joy to the world!

{on the way home from preschool}
E - Mama, when are we going to move back to the old house?
Me - Never
E - When I get married and I have a baby in my tummy then we can move to the old house because we'll need more room
Me - Doesn't that make your stomach turn?
Papa - Ummm... YES!

{this conversation happened in all of 5 seconds on our drive to school}
E - Mama when's Christmas time?
Me - it starts December 25.
E - December 25? Mama, where's there sprinkler house
Me - Right there
E - Mama are we going to the sticky bank?
Me - No, we don't have any money today
E - Are you going to earn some money today?
Me - Maybe a little...
E - So we can go to the sticker bank?
Me - On Friday.
E - On Fridaayyyyyyyyy

{in the chapel}

Me - R who are you thankful for today.
R - {blank stare}
Me - Are you thankful for anyone?
R - Ummmmm..... CUP!




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