The sleeping situation solved...

For many months, longer than we can remember or are willing to admit, we have been battling with Claire about bedtime. She did not want to go to bed when the boys did and she definitely would not go in her crib. We found our options were to either rock her to sleep for hours on end, which she still sometimes woke up from, or just let her "hang out" until we were ready to go to bed. In most cases, by then she was ready to crash. As you can imagine, we created a bedtime monster...and then to make matters worse, she started going to bed with us instead of her own bed because we were more desperate for sleep than she was!

After our spring break vacation week, we decided it was time to re-train the bedtime monster. After several failed attempts at SuperNanny solutions and stuck body parts in the gate at her door, we stumbled into an alternative solution.

Night 1: Brady upset by Claire being upset led to Daddy laying down with both of them in Brady's bed. They both went to sleep shortly after.

Day 2: Chris and I remembered that we did not have these bedtime battles with the boys when they transitioned to the big kid bed. Perhaps, the bottom bunk bed is magical!!

Night 2: Musical bed game began!! We asked Brady to go sleep in our bed, so that we could give Claire his bed temporarily. Claire only required a parent to lay down with her for about 10-15 minutes. After a couple hours, the music started back up for the kids to be moved to their proper bed.

Night 3-8: Musical beds is a nightly game with great success! Chris and I gained our evenings back!!

Night 9 forward: The game has changed. Brady has now decided that he will sleep on the top bunk with his brother and Claire can use his bed. For 3 nights now, they are all going to bed in the same bedroom at the same time and sleeping through the entire night.

Chris and I love the new sleeping situation! I have also officially concluded that Brady's bed is indeed a magic bed! As an added note, I find it quite interesting that here we are motivated to find a 4 bedroom home so that they each have their own bedroom and they have all piled in one room together! It's really sweet now, but I am sure it will change as they get older!

Connor's Girlfriend

Apparently for Connor, time does make the heart grow fonder. Last summer, Connor and another girl from summer school "claimed" each other as girlfriend and boyfriend. It was very cute to hear the reports from Brady and friends at school about the reported hand-holdings and several of the boys were on a hunt for their own girlfriend. At one point, there was even wedding plans being developed (for 20 years from now of course).  At the end of the summer, they had to part ways for the new school year and did not see each other again until December. During that time, Connor reported that she was still his girlfriend to Brady and apparently classmates.  When he finally saw her after a few months went by, he was very quick to remind her of their relationship.  Young love...so cute!

Over the last few months, they have had the opportunity to see each other more often during some fun activities and also for ice skating lessons. They are so cute together...I enjoy watching them grow up together and I hope they will be friends for a long time.

Reunion time...breakfast with Santa

How sweet that he chose this picture for his Christmas project!

Ice Skating fun!

Roller Skating Fun

IceMen Game

Icemen Game

In December, we had the opportunity to go to our first hockey game, played by our own Evansville IceMen in the D-Patrick suite at the Ford Center (thanks to my mom). The kids had such a great time that I put in a "special request" to my "contact at work" that I would love to go again in our suite.

In January, we were able to enjoy another great IceMen game along with some close friends (or should I say the boys close friends). The kids had a really good time enjoying each others company, the wonderful snacks, and the game. I love that we have a new family activity at a wonderful venue to add to our list!

Ice Skating Lessons

Chris and I like to allow the boys opportunities to try new activities; if nothing else to expose them to the activity so they aren't afraid. I remember the fear I had the first time I was asked to do something with my friends that I hadn't done before. Ice skating was the last activity that we decided to introduce to the boys. We had taken them ice-skating once and they seemed to enjoy it and Connor even became comfortable with working his way around the rink solo, so we thought that a 6 week lesson would be fun.

The lessons kicked off in mid-December with a break for the holidays and ended in late January. While the lessons weren't the typical ice-skating experience around the rink, it gave them the opportunity to learn the basics of navigating the ice. For 30 minutes, they worked their way from one side of the rink to the other learning how to skate frontwards, backwards, and squatting slightly. The first day also included a lesson on how to get up when you fall....I think I missed that lesson in my childhood based on my awkward attempt to recover when I fall!

Connor quickly became comfortable on the ice and the teachers did a great job of introducing more "advanced" basics to him throughout the lessons. Brady hit a discouraging patch in the middle, but came around during the last two lessons. He was out in the middle of the ice rink making an effort and really listening to the teachers.

While I would like to think this is a new experience we can have as a family, Connor and I may be the only two most interested in this as a family activity.

Family Christmas Party 2011

Every year, my mom's side of the family gets together before Christmas for an annual Christmas party.   To mix things up this year, we decided to move the location to a Burdette Park Cabin.  This allowed homes to be freed up and everyone to have more room to visit.  It is always great to catch up with family, enjoy some yummy food, and watch the kids play with their cousins (1st and 2nd).  Definitely going on a diet after eating some of the goodies like maple syrup soaked pigs in a blanket!

The kids all open one gift brought by the parents and the adults participate in a Chinese gift exchange. As always, the gift exchange has an alcohol theme to it and it gets pretty crazy watching the alcohol change hands while the sensible (aka boring) gifts like tool kits, picture frames, and candles never get "stolen".  We gave the boys Lego books, Star Wars and Harry Potter) that kept them entertained for an extended time period. Claire was having fun running around and sharing popcorn with her 2nd cousin, Eli, who is a few months younger than she is.

...and it wouldn't be a family party without some added drama. That cut the party shorter than usual, but it was still a good time! Merry Christmas to all my family!

Meet Goldie and Yellow Toad

For some Sunday afternoon fun, we went to the Fall Festival Family day which is open for the kiddie rides only. We picked Mimi up along the way (in case we needed a token adult for any rides). As for rides, the rides didn't seem to hold up to the amusement park standard they have become accustomed to, so they got bored very quickly.

However, several of the games were also open and the kids couldn't resist the opportunity to beg for an opportunity to win a goldfish. "We've never had a fish before!" So Mimi remembering several years ago when Chris made the same statement and his Grandma Lois said something along the lines of "let him try...what are the chances", she decided it was time to reenact history. She purchased a bucket of balls for the kids to try to win their prized goldfish. The whole family was throwing for a chance...Connor pinged one in and then shortly after I pinged one in for Brady. What were the chances!!

Next stop on our way home was a trip to the Pet store to purchase the required equipment as the instructions on the bag said find a new home within 4 hours. At least this time, it was a daytime win as opposed to a late night win. Hopefully the fish, named Goldie and Yellow Toad, have a surviving chance. If not, we have a nice setup for a replacement.

Back to School Bash

A friend of the boys from Montessori had a back to school bash at his house shortly after school started. Several of the kids from Montessori and summer school were invited, so we knew quite a few of the kids and the parents. They had all kinds of activities set up for the kids, with the water slide being the most popular of the day. It was a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon and for the boys to see some of their friends from their old schools.

 

 

 

 

Burdette Park Family Reunion

Awhile back, a group of us decided that we needed to get the family together for a summer reunion where all the kids could run around while the adults visited. This Saturday, we had a gathering at Burdette Park at one of the shelter houses. It was the typical group that gathers at Christmas time with a few additional family members. The kids had the chance to play with their 1st cousins, their 2nd cousins, and some other distant cousins.  I think there was about 15 kids all together.  The day started out with a little thunderstorms, but turned out to be a great day later on.

The kids started out the day playing some board games and after the rain stopped, headed outdoors.  They had a blast traipsing through the creek and hillside and going on hikes with their oldest cousin, Shane.  They had a squirt gun fight and played on the nearby playground. They watched the adults playing horseshoes and cornhole.   Claire, bless her heart, wanted to be right there in on the action.  This time, we had to draw the line on her independence.  Luckily, we had a lot of volunteers to help with Claire.

It turned out to be a great day and will most likely be repeated again next year!

Claire's Adventure Outdoors

What a beautiful Sunday morning! This was the first time that Claire has been let loose outside now that she is walking and we aren't in the midst of snow or flood seasons. It was fun watching her react to the grass and hang out with her brothers! Connor was the very protective big brother walking her around and redirecting her. Brady also had fun giving Claire a push in the baby swing.

Happy 1st Birthday Claire!

The Saturday after Claire's birthday, we had a birthday celebration with our family and close friends! It was an organized chaos as usual where the kids all run around playing from one end of the house to the other, the adults visit, and we all watch the guest of honor enjoy their day. At the beginning, a handful of the kids participated in an animal parade..they marched through the house showing off their animal of choice and making the animal sounds for Claire!

After the kids played for awhile, it was time for cake. Claire wasn't sure what to think about everyone surrounding her and singing Happy Birthday to her. However, she had no problems digging into her special cupcake! After devouring her cupcake, it was time for a quick bath and wardrobe change. That's normal, right!

After cake and clean up, it was time for presents! Claire received lots of help from her cousins and friends opening presents...towards the end, she was finally getting the hang of what it meant when you ripped the paper off. Yes, there is a toy behind there! Thank you everyone for sharing our special day with Claire...Happy 1st Birthday Sweetie!

Spring has arrived...

What a beautiful day today! While the original forecast predicted a skip and a hop past spring right into summer, it ended up being a great day of sunshine and perfect temps. After spending the afternoon at the Fun Fair, we had our first cookout of the season. Our friends, the Johnsons, came over for a visit. The kids all played on the playset and chased each other around and the adults even had the rare occasion to visit amongst themselves.

This was a great opportunity to introduce Claire to her swing...which she absolutely loved! She giggled and laughed! She was having so much fun...you know, she is one of the big kids now with her first birthday fast approaching!


Enjoy the picture and the video below...

Pile on Mommy....

Love it...Connor curled up with me first, then Claire tugged at my legs until she could join in and then of course, Brady needed to pile on. I'll take it while I can...and while they are still small enough!!

Date Night

Chris and I managed to score a date night out for Valentine's Day weekend...a free date night at that! We had a kid-free dinner at Biaggi's and then attended the Really Big Show and the Curtain-Call Reception after the show! I had a blast at the silent auction...love spending money for a good cause!

While we were out enjoying time together, the kids had a nice night with Mimi & Papa! Thanks for watching the kids, so we could enjoy an evening out!

Bowling Adventure

For good behavior after pictures in October, we decided to take the boys bowling for the first time. Well, technically the first time if you don't count a daycare field trip the kids took when they were three. It was so cute watching the boys try to figure out the different ways to hold the ball. Connor always tried to do it the proper way (as best he could), which usually landed in a thud and then a slow roll down the lane. Brady decided pretty quickly that he was going to do the granny role which resulted in a decent amount of pins knocked down and a strike or two.

 

 

 

 

Fall Festival

It's an annual tradition to head to the Fall Festival at least once during the week. In the last couple of years, the focus has moved from the food to letting the kids ride rides. This year, we purchased unlimited wrist bands for the boys since they had so much fun riding rides last year! I was the lucky parent of the four to also get the unlimited wrist band to ride with Brady when he needed an adult companion.

Working on best mom award and trying to ensure adequate daylight time, I picked the boys up early from school to head to the Fall Festival. We also met up with the boys' best friend, Carac and his mom. The dads joined us later in the evening. We spent the entire evening in the kiddie ride area with a parent occasionally disappearing to go grab some food. I felt like I spent the majority of my evening in a state of dizziness and I am pretty sure Chris paid some of the ride attendants to go extra long for better pictures of me!

The boys had a lot of fun riding as many rides as they could that evening, some more than once!

Fall Pictures 2010

As I mentioned in an earlier post, we made an attempt at family pics in the park on a fall Sunday afternoon...three kids and two adults does not make for a coordinated group photo. It was always one of them! Got some great personality shots though! Great example of their personalities...stubborn and bossy, defiant and defensive!