As Conversations Go...

Si: I want more chips

Me: no, not before dinner

Si: but I'm not hungry for dinner, I want chips

Me: but if you eat more chips you won't eat dinner

Si: but i want chips

Me: if you don't eat a good dinner you won't get big and strong

Si: but I am strong

Me: but you won't get big and strong like Daddy and Mason

Si: but I like being little

Me: I like you little too - have another chip.

hmm...he wins. again.

A few funnies

So, I've been cleaning out my closet in an effort to get our bedroom whipped into shape (and it's really coming along). Last night Silas was roaming around, going through stuff and walks out of the closet with a piece of the padding from a bathing suit top. He hands it to me say "Mommy, one of your booby things broke".

And Ella - she's been a pretty sweet girl lately - this picture that Melissa took will forever be one of my favorites...
Tonight she is also in my room as I am sorting through clothes and shoes. So sweetly she says to me "Mom, when I grow up we're going to be best friends" (and I, of course, think of this sweet picture and how wonderful it will be to have a daughter that worships me) - "And you're going to give me these shoes!" she demands as she is prancing around in a pair of my favorite summer heels. If that is what it takes - she can have them I guess (and I only paid $6.88 at Target for them).

One other thing that Ella says that is funny (and a sign that she watches too much TV...) She knows what time some of her favorite shows are on (Hannah Montana, iCarly) and so she'll ask "Is it 8 - 7 Central yet?"

I wish they had a way to implant a memory chip in the brain for all the little things that I want to remember forever...
digital of course so I could download and blog it.

Family Picture results

As I mentioned, Friday the 13th was family picture day and we went to the Franklin Park Conservatory. Our past-sitter turned photographer met us out there and while it wasn't smooth sailing with a non-napper-potty-training-3-year old, I am very pleased with the results.

A few of the shots

Silas decided he was about done with it all...

And a slideshow -



Thanks Melissa!!

Friday the 13th

Friday the 13th was Justin's birthday. We decided to celebrate a day early by taking the family out to dinner. We rarely go out to eat, especially with all of the kids but we had about 3 years' worth of Cameron Mitchell gift cards so we decided to go to the Ocean Club since all 3 kids like seafood.
I have to admit, I was nervous about it. The kids can be pure heathens, especially if they are tired and cranky. Much to our delight, they were great. It helped that there was music in the background and some after-work crowds gathered - so any elevated noise from our table went unnoticed. The manager even came over towards the end of dinner to tell us how good the kids were behaving.

Ella was diligent about keeping her napkin tucked into her shirt...

Si and Justin picking out what Si wanted for dinner -
he ended up with a cheeseburger

Mason getting loopy and wearing his napkin like a Dunce cap...
I guess if the shoe fits :-)

Friday the 13th was also family picture day - we met Melissa at the Franklin Park Conservatory and she snapped away while the kids ran around like wild children. Si wasn't in much of a smiley mood but that's okay because he was still adorable looking in his cute little sweater vest.
Here are a few pictures that I took while we were there...

Me and Ella in the mirror

Mas and Ella

Si and Ella still fascinated with the mirror

Si smiley after the pictures were all done!

Ella posing, as usual.

I ended up buying us a family membership to the Conservatory. They have so many special events, including the Blooms and Butterflies that I can't wait for the kids to see.

Our Valentine's Day was very low-key - we spent the day doing some much needed decluttering in our bedroom and cleaning up around the house. Not terribly romantic, but very needed and we both felt good about getting it done. Now we just have the rest of the house to tackle!! We did end up 2-kids short on V-Day (Ella and Mas spent the night with cousins). It felt likes the early days when we just had Mason...kinda quiet!

Webkinz

You know how kids generalize at the toddler developmental stage - all animals are "dogs" or every beverage is "wine"?

Well, anytime Silas wants to play on the computer he says he wants to play "webkinz" - that is what he calls all computer games and the internet. Apparently he's heard Ella ask to play with her (real) Webkinz games enough that it sank in.

It amazes me how good he is with the computer/mouse and Wii already. He showed me how to use the Wii controller the other day (I had never even picked one up until then).

In other news regarding Silas, he's been driving us NUTS because he will not wear long sleeve shirts. Even when it's Zero degrees outside. Well, I think I might have just figured out why... He's been watching a lot of Scooby Doo cartoons lately - and he just said to me "but Shaggy has short sleeves on". How do I explain that Shaggy is a cartoon character and therefore has no real threat of getting frostbite or pneumonia??

Silas news continued...(do I even have other kids?) - he is doing a fantastic job on the potty. He's wearing his new big-boy underwear with no issues but we are still doing a pull-up at night. Some mornings he wakes up dry, sometimes not. He has learned to use this potty thing to his benefit at night - he'll get out of bed to tell us he has to go potty...whether he really does or not...

Silas has been going around saying that he "lost a tooth" and then points to the gap between his teeth.

Mason is going to a school dance tonight. Lord help my burning eyes and nostrils as I drive him in a windows-rolled-up vehicle on the way to the dance. He's a little heavy-handed with his cologne these days.

Zo-Zo

February marks the month that we got our dog, Zoe - back in 1997, not long after we bought our first house. We really had no plans or intention of getting a dog...a kid was enough. But my Dad called one afternoon to say that someone at church had a litter of puppies that they were giving away and he thought Mason should have a dog (this coming from a man who is not fond of dogs, or animals in general). But every boy should have a dog, right?

So we went out to the farm and spent an evening looking at the dogs and going back and forth between which puppy we wanted (and which looked like the calmest that would cause us the least trouble).

We picked our puppy out and then the next day we went to the pet store to get a collar, food dishes and all the puppy essentials. We told Mason that he would get to name her. He thought long and hard while we were standing in line. His first choice was Black Dog. Not really a fitting name. We told him to try again. His 2nd choice was Zoe - he was very in to Sesame Street at the time. So, Zoe it was.

Mason had a puppy chair that he'd sit in to watch TV and was very attached to it.

But once we got Zoe home, she became very fond of it too...I think it reminded her of her mommy.
Mason and Zoe would sometimes fight over who got to sit in the chair. Eventually, Zoe won because it got too dog hairy and Mason would get covered when he sat in the chair.

She has been a wonderful, wonderful family pet. She loves the kids and protects us fiercely (until the bad guy rubs her belly).

She still patiently lets the kids sit on her...

Runs and plays with them...though she takes very long naps afterward now

And vies for their affection


Her nerves are shot these days (maybe I should slip her a glass of wine) - she is afraid of thunder now, and when the smoke detectors go off she shakes like a leaf. Her hearing isn't what it used to be - sometimes she doesn't bark at noises like she used to and then at other times, she imagines she hears things so she barks.

She's a good girl. I hope we have a lot of years left with her.

Winter Schminter....

This past week, I have had the song In the Bleak Mid-winter rolling through my head...

The kids missed 2 days of school, the roads were icy, snowy and slushy and pretty miserable.

The poor birdhouse was taking a beating...

And we really should have covered our deck furniture this year!

But on the bright-side...
it was handy for putting a quick chill on a bottle of wine.

Mason got bored at some point of being snowed in and decided to amuse himself by being tied up and seeing how long it took him to get out.
This was the most difficult (below). His escape time was 4 minutes and 31 seconds. Yes, he's an odd duck! And hopefully no one turns us in to Children's services!



Ella and Si did get outside for a bit and enjoyed the snow - but it was REALLY cold and I made them come in when Silas could no longer feel his cheeks.





It's fun to have some snow - but I am really ready for Spring and warmer weather!