Quote # 493

What does a duck say Benny?
B: "Quack, Quack, Where's my money?! Quack."

Looks like there is a duck mafia we are unaware of.

Day 2

It's day 2 of Snowmagedden in Seattle. We have about 6-7 inches and although they called for rain all day today, we have seen nothing but snow. It's been nice being home overall. School of course is closed and Sean has been taking sick days since he has a cold anyway. Highlights have included:

Homemade biscuits and jam by the fire
Gallons of hot cocoa
Reading in pj's during exceptionally long nap times
Watching the kids build their first snow man
Watching the snow fall, my favorite
Kitchen dance party
making a ridiculous amount of snowflakes to decorate with
We still have power when many we know are out! Yikes!

Lows:
Benny's whining nearly the whole time we played outside yesterday. He kept falling down and was like the little brother in The Christmas Story, stuck on his back.
Cabin.Fever.
Only having my coffee to drink. I'm a Starbucks fiend.
Trying to clean each room only to have it destroyed 30 min later.
No hot yoga for me (read: stress relief and weight control)
Gracie missing ballet tonight-luckily she doesn't know what day of the week it is

They say things should be back to normal tomorrow. Rain tonight and all that. I really wouldn't mind a day at work and I think the kids are over the snow for now.

Pictures:

On Family Days

We call the weekends "Family Days" because we don't have to go to work or daycare. The pace is slower and the house gets messier.

It's nice to have this 3 day weekend with snow. We are cuddled in and wiping runny noses anyway. There's a few things that happen on family days that I don't get to enjoy any other time of the week:

When Benny wakes up early Sean grabs him and brings him in bed with us. We get another half hour of dozing while he explores my face with his chubby toddler hands. In whispered tones we talk about silly things that we won't remember once the day gets going. It's the quietest I ever get to see this boy.

We spread out in the house and the kids find their own trouble to get into. While I brushed my hair, Tate put a receipt in the toaster and turned it on. Luckily, Sean smelled the smoke pretty quickly. Tate blamed Benny. We got to talk about fire safety and truth telling.

During nap time Sean and I read on the couch together and enjoy the silence, however long it lasts. When the first shout is heard (usually from Benny's room) we both pretend we don't hear it.

We stay in pajamas until lunchtime (if we have nowhere to go) and watch an entire movie.

During the week the kids will often ask us 'how many days till family day?' and I love that we are all counting down for these together.

Ballet Girl

Here is my very silly girl after her first class. Next to her is Lydia, a friend from church.
It started off rough with her clinging to me and then crying when the teacher took her hand and shut me out of the room. I was worrying about her for the next 27 minutes of class.

When she came out she was all smiles and SO excited to show me the heart stamp on her hand and a note from her teacher. She is in LOVE with "my teacher named Bethany." The note was a January tuition statement and information about the recital in June. She made us read it 5 times and then tape it above her bed. She showed me some moves with looked a lot like her yoga moves, but I was set straight, "THEY ARE BALLET MOVES!" I asked her if she danced with Lydia, "No, I just wanted to hold hands with my teacher named Bethany." I asked her if she saw the other girls dance, "I don't know, I just turned on the music with my teacher named Bethany."

From the sound of it, there wasn't a lot of independence this time around.

I am hopeful though. She is counting down the days to go back and I am trying to convince her not to hold Bethany's hands the whole class this time. She can't imagine that teacher doesn't love this as much as she does. :)

On a side note: Tate cried and missed her terribly. He made her a smoothie "all by himself' (with daddy) and saved it in the fridge for her. She came waltzing in and bragged all about her "ballet studio" and really rubbed it in. I didn't think 3 year olds knew how to do that. Note made.

Big Brother

He is really invested in teaching Benny new things. It's been fun to watch. Benny isn't at all potty trained yet, but he will try with Tater. As Tate said last night, "He tried 100 days, but he missed."

A New First

Gracie starts ballet tomorrow! Ok, it's pre-ballet, but STILL!

Tights and pink ballet shoes! Adorable recitals! Buns!

I am so excited!!!

We went to get shoes tonight and she hid behind me the entire time at the studio. I have a feeling she may cry tomorrow when I leave her in class. She says she feels 'very shy' about it. Her friend Lydia is in the class too, so I am hoping that helps a little. Really I don't care if she dances for a long time at all. I just need some legit tutu pictures to fulfill my mommy urges.

Tate has been crying that he doesn't get to come, but I really wanted to do something one on one. We never get to! Still his little face breaks my heart. "I want to go to balllyay!"

On a side note, he is currently standing next to me trying to convince be that his tummy is big enough to have a snack before dinner. He says there is room in the back for dinner if he takes up room in the front with a little snack. Seems like we negotiate a lot around here these days.

Wish us luck tomorrow! Pictures to come!

Magic Room Review

This is a Blog Her Book Club paid review of The Magic Room by Jeffery Zaslow. The opinions expressed here, however, are mine.

After being married going on 8 years it seems like forever since I was submerged into the world of weddings. This book was a bit about stirring up emotion and memories of my own wedding planning experience. The author strings together several stories of brides coming to a famous small town bridal salon to find their perfect dress. We get to look back at what has brought them to this point, love stories intermingled with personal tragedies and loss. We grieve for some and cheer on others. Woven throughout is the story of the Becker Bridal salon itself, a thriving family owned business passed down generation to generation. Overall, I enjoyed the book. I appreciated the author's honest look at how our culture has changed and pressured young women over the last several years. The women of Becker's have seen this first hand in the shift in clientele and family dynamics. Entitled and self-centered brides have replaced gracious and respectful daughters. Self-sufficient women buying their own gowns come in with a train of bridesmaids instead of younger girls seeking just to please their mothers. There's something to be said for this perspective given shows like Bridezillas and Say Yes to the Dress on TV now. Some women are fooled into thinking this is the way we want our brides now. It's a one woman show instead of a family event. Of course, there are exceptions and it was really sweet to read such stories in this book. I was touched by the four sisters who took vows of purity despite their parents worry. Not an easy task in this world. My husband and I were abstinent until marriage, so naturally I connected with their 'old-fashioned' notions about romance and honoring God this way.

Pitfalls in the book were with pacing, it felt slow and repetitious at times. I think it could have been about 50 pages shorter and said the same things. Also, the author seemed to shy away from any bold statements he wanted to make. It felt a little like he built cases for a belief, but stopped just short of standing behind them in the end. This left me feeling like the stories lacked some punch and he lacked some conclusions personally.

All in all, a slow, but enjoyable read. It was nice to get back inside the head of a bride and revisit such a special time in my life.

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