First time out in the Snow

We finally made it out in the snow. The kids of course have been begging - but it has been really cold - for mom anyway. For my birthday we went to mom and dad's for dinner and sledding. The kids went for an adventure walk and even found where a deer had slept. Madelyn was pretty funny, all she wanted to do was lay down and eat the snow. She got around pretty good - should be a fun winter!

Video of Madelyn playing in the snow.

Letters to Santa

The kids have been thinking long and hard about what they want from Santa this year. Collin has stuck with the Diego Backpack solid for over a month!! Keep in mind this is a toy designed for 2 year olds, but that is what he wants. On the other hand he wants his own computer so that he can play on his school website "whenever he wants". His list has been pretty consistent. Ella on the other hand changes her mind every time we go to the store. Last week she wanted Barbies, then it was puzzles, now a play pony. The only thing that has made her list every time is the Bakugan carrying case.

They have been a little skeptical this year about santa - they still totally believe in him, but they have been telling me that they know the santas that they see are not the "real" santa. Over the weekend the fire department came around collecting toys for kids, santa was riding along. They heard the sirens and went running to the window. They started yelling "the real santa, the real santa". Luckily I have bought so much stuff I was able to find something quick that they could donate. They went running out practically without shoes. By the time they got out there, santa was already 3 blocks down the street, so they really had to run. You should have heard how excited they were. When they finally caught up with santa they handed over their toy and then turned completely shy. They thought it was super funny that santa said "sorry for making you run". They were SO excited to have seen the REAL santa. I have no idea why they believed this was the real santa and none of the others!! But it reminds you how magical this time of year is!!

Decorating the Tree

We had a lot of fun decorating the tree this year. I was surprised how well the kids did. They did all the decorations - even the angel on top. They clumped a few together, but even Madelyn hung some by herself.

O Christmas Tree...O Christmas Tree!

Picking out the christmas tree this year went very smoothly. We picked out one of the first ones we found and were done in a matter of a half hour (a record for this family)! Collin and Ella didn't have a ton of interest in helping pick out the tree but had lots of fun running everywhere and hiding in the trees. They were really good helpers carrying the tree to the truck....or so Matt thought. He was impressed thinking he could really tell when the kids were helping - the tree was getting so much lighter....when in fact Collin and Ella were actually laying on the tree and Matt was dragging them. The tree was getting "lighter" when they let go and he was only pulling the tree... and not a tree, a 6 year old and a 4 year old!

Collin wrote this at school. He said his teacher helped them write My present....but he did the rest all by himself! He is talking about a Diego Rescue back pack that he really wants for Christmas.

"My present is big as a haf a char. Win I shack it it souns like a toys I thick it is a back pack"

I have no idea why he says it is as big as half a chair - what kind of random reference is that??

"Little Guys"

The other night at hockey Collin was having a really good night....skating hard, being aggresive, etc. Towards the end of the practice they were doing a drill where the kids made two lines at the center of the ice. The coach shot a puc down past the goal and the two kids had to race to it and then try to score. Collin was doing great....skating fast to the goal, getting the puc and even taking shots on the goal. However I noticed that while he was waiting in line he kept screwing around, twirling in circles, losing his balance and falling down. There were times when the whole line would go through and he was totally missing his turn. I figured he was just being lazy, or not paying attention, not wanting to skate, something like that. After practice I said "Collin you might want to try and stay in line better so you don't miss your turn". He said "but mom, at the end I was doing that on purpose so that I could skate against the "little guys" so I could get a goal"!! Apparantely my little "goodie two shoes" is growing up and figuring it out! Besides doesn't he realize he IS the little guy!!

Holidazzle Parade

We decided to hit the Holidazzle Parade early this year. It was super warm out, which was great, except apparently we were not the only people with this idea. The crowd was 3 to 4 people deep when we got there. We ended up sitting up on a rock statue so the kids could see. I think the kids had more fun climbing around on the rock than the actual parade. Ella was super excited when one of the elves gave her a high five! When the parade was over we asked which float was their favorite. Ella said the princess one (Cinderella and the Prince were the grand marshals), Collin said the police car at the beginning! All that work for a police car!! :)

Mousey

Just for the record, Ella still LOVES mousey and sleeps with him every night. To date, I don't think she has ever spent even one night away from him!

Hockey 2009

Well we are full swing into hockey for the year. Collin is on the Mite White 2 team. We were expecting insanity, but WBL hockey has surpassed even our craziest dreams and we're only in our first year, so I can't even imagine where we're headed. It seems like Collin spends more time on the ice than at home! He is having a lot of fun and improving already! Here are some video clips from the beginning of the season....Collin is in orange and number 77 (except the very last clip, after the goalie part, he is in a black jersey - taking his very first shot on goal in a scrimmage). He is learning to skate better, skate backwards, and use his "edges" - whatever the heck that means!! I guess I have some lingo to learn if I'm going to get this hockey mom thing down!!

P.S. Grandma says you have to be wearing the hockey photo pin to qualify as a "hockey mom"!

VIDEO....

Scary

Madelyn learned a new word last weekend - "scary".

We went to visit my grandma in her assisted living apartment. On our way out the kids wanted to ride the elevator - by themselves. The elevator literally goes down a half level to meet the wheelchair ramp around the corner. Matt didn't think it was a good idea. I thought, "what could happen, I mean where could they possibly go in this small apartment building". So they got in. I told Collin to push 1 - he said "we're already on 1", so I told him push "G" or "L" or something like that....he pushed a button and the door closed. I walked the 5 steps around the corner and waited for the elevator to open, of course it didn't. Matt walked down the ramp and pushed the button, the elevator came and opened - no kids! Well where else could they be? So I told Matt to go up to floor 2. He went up and came back - still no kids! A minute later I could hear Collin yelling "mommy", two little girls kind of crying, and a heavy door slam shut. I headed back to the elevator they had first got in and saw the door to the stairs. I opened it up and could hear Collin talking, Ella crying, and Madelyn repeating "scary, scary". Turns out "G" stands for garage - oops. They got off the elevator in the garage....got scared because they were lost. Collin saw the "exit" sign and decided to go there. That brought them to the stairs which they took up to the second level. When we were not there they got back on the elevator to level 1, got off and didn't see us. That's when I heard them and they were headed back into the stairway. At least they stuck together. Quite an adventure they had....Collin or Ella must have used the word "scared" or "scary" a lot because now everything for Madelyn is "scary". It is her new favorite word.