Spring Break: the El Paso Adventure

WE ARE ON SPRING BREAK!!  And somehow we all managed to go on a Spring Break adventure this year, but not all together.  Most of our family went to El Paso for a few days.  (I went to Oregon, that entry to follow). 

Brandon took the kids down to see his grandparents and his aunts.

There is a large group from this side of the family.  Brandon's Dad has seven sisters and one brother.  Not all of them stopped by to say "hi" but as you can see from the picture, but quite a few did.  Brandon has the kindest aunts and they try to come and see him when he visits, always paying special attention to the kids.

They had a great time playing with cousins (no matter what age you are there is someone to play with), eating yummy food, helping Great-Grandpa in the yard, and playing.  The weather was beautiful for them and they spent a lot of time outside.  It was really fun for them to spend the weekend there.

Kute Kate

Cheesy, I know.  But she really is so cute!

Here she is sitting on her new bed.  Her BIG girl bed.  With her antique fairy quilt.  This is a part of the plan to have her room look like a fairy garden.  Almost there!

And here she is getting ready to help me in the kitchen, wearing the new apron that I made her for Christmas.  She loves to help me bake.  Her favorite thing is to mix, she loves the mixer!

And since this picture she has done some special things...

These things... she calls them "Bee's" are gone.  Really.  No more.

One day she was crying because I could not find her favorite bee, a purple one.  I had had it.  She was starting to get these rashes under he bottom lip right where the bee covered her skin.  I was tired of them getting lost all time and all the stuff that come with it.  So I took this stuf called THUM

that I bought at Walmart a couple of years ago when I needed Josh to stop sucking his fingers.  I put it all over the part that she sucked on and gave them to her.  I had been talking about her giving up the bee and when I gave it to her I told her that I had found it, but that it was yucky.  She took it and put it her mouth and spit it out.  She didn't like the taste.  She carried it around and said that  it was yucky, but would not put it down.  She went to bed that night without it in her mouth, but in her pillowcase, just in case.  She asked for it a couple of times over the next couple of days, but when she did it went like this...

K: "Bee, Momma?"

M: "If you want it, you can have it, but it tastes yucky.  Do you want it?"

K:  "No, it's yucky. No bee Momma."

Now she never asks.  Success!

The other special thing, you ask?  She got her years pierced while on a daddy/daughter date.  Pictures to come.  But lets say this, so cute!

No more braces

Eric had his braces removed on February 16.  It was such a happy day for him!  His appointment was after school and so his "before" picture was done as he was walking out the door for the day.

And here he is after...

He loves not having braces!!  He looks great too!

He has a retainer that is helping to keep his teeth in place.  At night he wears a rubber band to give a little more support.

We still might need a "stage two".  Only time will tell.  We can hope that as he looses more teeth that his bottom teeth will fall into place eliminating the need for a second set of braces.  But no matter what happens, he looks great and the most important part, his jaw correction, is done!!

J's snowman

Josh had the chance to make another snowman for a class project.  Brandon helped him make it and it looks great.  But I am not biased or anything.

Trimmed down paper plates for the body, buttons for the eyes and the buttons, and chocolate chips for the mouth.  And lots and lots of glue.  Add a little fun boonding with Dad and son = a cute snowmen and a happy boy.

More crafts

Remember this super cute wreath that I made for my MIL?

Well, I made another one for my friend.

These are fun to make, so easy too.

Snow is falling all around...

Don't let our location fool you... Albuquerque gets more snow each winter than I remember getting each winter growing up in Lake Oswego, on average.  But this year, because of good ol' El Nino we are getting a bit more snow than usual.  Not that my kids have minded.

We have already had several small dustings of snow.  Two weeks ago we had had a good amount here at our house, but when we drove down off of our hill we discovered it hadn't snowed at all in the rest of the city.  That was really weird.  Then a few days after that we had another good snow that did get the entire city.

A few days before this picture was taken the boys spent time playing outside, but Kate slept through it all.  Thankfully we got another storm and she got the chance to play then  So this was her first snow day!

She loved it.  Her and Josh went out to enjoy the white stuff.  Eric is too old and too mature, at 10.  At least that is what he said.  He must have snowed out... his loss!

They built two snowmen, one each.  Of course Kate was lucky enough to have an awesome big brother to help her.  This is their Albuquerque snowmen, complete with the rocks and all.

Happy winter to you all.

KNOCK KNOCK

Katie has started to tell knock knock jokes.  It is the funniest thing. 

K:  knock knock

M: who's there?

K: toilet paper (because we are in the bathroom)

M: toilet paper who?

K: toilet paper roll roll roll ( rolling her arms like the wheels on the bus)

or

K:  knock knock

M: who's there

K: horsey

M:  horsey who?

K: horsey neigh neigh!

It is too funny to hear the things that she comes up with.  It is always an animal or something she sees in the room that she is in.  It is fun to hear her learning through her jokes.  The great thing is that her brothers enjoy participating in this as much as I do.  My silly little girl!