And the Birthday Fun Continues!

In all of the action of the past weeks, I forgot about AK's birthday celebration at school. We didn't have a big party this year; the circus and 2 rounds of family fun was sufficient.  But, she wanted to take a treat to school. I tried to convince her that individual ice cream cups (with those cute wooden spoons!) and sprinkles would be fun. Nope. She wanted those Harris Teeter sugar cookies with an inch of icing on top.  No amount of persuading could sway her vote.  Her daddy was on her side; she gets her icing loving genes from him.  So, I took the cookies on the Tuesday after her birthday.

  She got to choose a friend to sit by her, and of course, she chose Savannah. 

She truly loved being the star of the day and being sung to!

02-06-11 Birthday Fun!

At Inga and PaPa's house, we had yet another round of birthday celebrations.

Anna Kate is thrilled to be five...

...and Ben just enjoys being sung to!

Auntie Alicia celebrated with the best Red Velvet Cake ever!

All together, we celebrated 47 birthdays.  Here's to many, many more!

02-05-11 It's a Circus!

To celebrate all of the February birthdays, the Patton side of the family took a trip to the circus.  Of course, all of the usual jokes were made:  "Why go when you live in one?" et al.

The last time we went to the circus, Anna Kate was a week away from being three, and we thought she'd love it.  After fifteen minutes of circus, the french fries were gone, and she announced she was "done".  We suffered through the rest of it, and the animals made the second half worth staying for. 

This time, she waited until thirty minutes into the act before she asked if it was time to go home.  Evidently, the clown slapstick that does indeed go on and on is not what she comes to the circus for.  It's cotton candy and animals.  Once again, after the  animals appeared, she settled in to enjoy the show.  She and Emma enjoyed their respective cotton candy and sno cone while taking in the action.

Ben took turns with Ben and me walking the concourse during the first half, but he settled in with Uncle Stephen and others to enjoy the second half.  Through signs, he'll tell you that there were horses and elephants at the circus.

We enjoyed the preshow on the stage floor, and the girls even got to meet a clown.

The general consensus after the show was that the six adults likely enjoyed it more than the three kids!

01-04-11 Birthday boy

February 4. 
Ben's birthday.
So many thoughts about that day 2 years ago when he entered this world are running through my head.
So many memories of the past 2 years.
But, right now, I want to remember this morning. 
When he told me to turn off the kitchen light.
When he got angry when I told him no. 
How he moved the learning tower halfway across the kitchen so HE could turn off the light.
How he  cackled when I caught him in the act.
Happy Birthday, Big Boy.  I have a feeling that we're just at the beginning of our adventures together.

02-03-11 Trash or Treasure?

I'm always fascinated when I see on TV or in a magazine how someone has transformed a thrown away piece of furniture into something fantastic.  I like to think I'd be able to do the same, if only I came across something worth salvaging.  Well, here's my chance.  I bought this bed at Goodwill last week.  It was labeled queen sized, which we do need, but I knew it was  a full size when I saw it.
We don't need a full sized bed.
I bought it anyway.
Let's see if I can make it a treasure!

02-02-11 Playdate

On the way to school on Tuesday, Anna Kate announced, "I haven't seen Savannah in forEVER!"

So, I called Savannah's mom, and we arranged a playtime for Wednesday morning.  They played upstairs for the duration of Ben's speech therapy appointment, and then they came downstairs for some Fancy Nancy game time.  Let's just say that Anna Kate's room hasn't seen that much playing in a long, long time. 

They had a great time!

02-01-11 Reader

Each night after we read a chapter book together and say prayers, Anna Kate reads to her menagerie of animals in her bed (Fly Flock Peck, her bald eagle, is beside her tonight).
Each night I want to stand quietly outside her door and listen.  Tonight, she's reading the Bible. Our conversation went something like this:
AK - "I finished the Bible.  I think I'll start over with the New Testament.  The Old Testament has some scary [raises hands like a monster for emphasis] stories in it!"
Me - "Well, those are just stories that God wants us to know so we can learn from them."
AK (With an eyeroll) - "I KNOW, Mama.  I've read this Bible like a thousand times."
Carry on, then.  Carry on.

01-31-11 Rocks

(another picture from our trip to the Mountain House)

What is it about rocks and sticks and little boys? 
He would have stayed out all day long picking up sticks and playing with rocks if we had let him!

01-30-11 Marion Birthday, Part 2!

Ben has absolutely no idea what a birthday is, but he was certainly thrilled to have us sing to him.  He promptly demanded "more!" when the song ended.  He was also thrilled to have a cupcake and ice cream, both milk free, of course.

01-29-11 Marion Birthday!

Since Grandmama Marion is having back surgery in two weeks, we made a trip to the Mountain House to spend the day.  Birthdays are rapidly approaching, so we took cupcakes along to celebrate. Anna Kate had a ball playing lumberjack with James and Carter, as usual.

01-28-11 Missing Sis

Anna Kate went home with Inga last Friday afternoon, and we have missed her so much! It has been nice, however, to not have to say, "Anna Kate!  What happened?!?"  when Ben screams and cries. In fact, he hasn't screamed or cried at all since she left.  Hmmmm..... 
So, Ben hasn't missed the unwanted hugs, having his toys ripped from his hands, or having to play what she wants to play all of the time.
I haven't missed having to dress Giovanna (the Cabbage Patch Girl) in her ballet slippers, which are nearly impossible to tie.  I haven't missed the tooth brushing struggle.  I haven't missed the nightly "Go back to bed!" "But I have ONE thing to tell you!!" ritual. 
But, I have missed her giggle, her jokes, and her stories that always start with, "Well, you know, Mama...".
I have missed the spontaneous "I Love You!"s and the hugs.
I have missed reading Little House in the Big Woods each night as we snuggle before bed and say prayers.
I've missed my girl.  I'll be happy to have her back!