Happy Birthday Papa!

Tonight we celebrated Papa's birthday at Texas Roadhouse!  We had a great time and the kids behaved really well - thank goodness!  Kate loved throwing peanuts on the floor, but instead of cracking them open and throwing down the shells, she just threw the entire peanut.  Oh well.  On our way out, we guessed the number of jellybeans in a jar for an Easter basket giveaway.  We asked Kate to pick three numbers and she did: 431.  Maybe we will win!

We hope you had a wonderful birthday Papa!  We love you!

Disney Jr Live!

Last night Kate and I had some girl time and went to see Disney Junior Live with Princess Sofia and Jake and the Neverland Pirates.  Mrs. Katie called me back in December to see if we would be interested in going with them.  It was a small fortune but well worth the money! We made plans to meet Mrs. Katie and Maddox at Moe's to eat a quick bite of dinner before the show started at 6:30.  

At dinner, Mrs. Katie gave Kate an adorable shirt for her to wear at the show and I can't thank her enough!  So cute! 

It was pouring rain last night, but we managed to get a fantastic meter parking spot right beside the Civic Center (for free)!  We got inside around 6:00 so it was a long 35 minutes for the kids before the show started.  Thankfully they have a short skit with Doc McStuffins to pass some of the time. 

The view from our seats!  

The floor was great but also a little challenging being able to see everything.  

The first part of the show was Princess Sofia with a special appearance by Cinderella! 

After a not so brief intermission (at least 20 minutes), the Jake and the Neverland Pirates show started.  Kate started crying at one point during intermission saying that Jake was never coming on.  Poor girl.  However, the wait was worth it because the show was fantastic.  Jake and the Neverland Pirates is one of Kate's favorite shows so it was the highlight of her night.  

 Peter Pan made a special appearance in this show!  And at the end when Jake and the Neverland Pirates found the treasure volcano, it exploded gold doubloons (confetti) all over the audience.  A great ending!

As soon as the show was over, Kate asked me if she could "watch another one?!" Needless to say she LOVED it.

Our group picture: Kendal and her grandma, Mrs. Brittany and Charlie, Mrs. Kristen, Mrs. Katie and Maddox, and Kate and I.

Who needs to go to Disney when Disney comes to us?!

Kate's New Chore Chart

We have had a difficult time lately with Kate and temper-tantrums.  Something simple like eating another bite of dinner, brushing her hair or even putting chap stick on her lips can quickly escalate out of control.  No amount of spankings, talking to her, threatening, or time out seem to work.  Most of the time she ends up screaming and crying for up to 20 minutes while we ignore her until she calms down.  I just thought the two and three years were challenging.  These spells don't happen all the time, but when they do - watch out.  

So...in an attempt to try something new, Gigi suggested we try a chore chart.  The goal is for Kate to get check marks every day in order to earn a toy (or special treat) at the end of the week.  Her chores are: get dressed, make her bed, brush teeth, pick up toys, help mom or dad (aka be a good girl), good report at school (sticker says parent's choice) and eat her dinner (we added that sticker later).   

Kate has been very excited about it but our first morning we failed miserably with not one, but two mega temper-tantrums before we even left for school.  Mornings like those suck every ounce of my energy.  I decided I wouldn't immediately tell her she lost her toy privilege because what would be her incentive for the rest of the week?  I recorded a small part of her temper-tantrum that morning and played it back for her on the way to school which upset her, but I think I got my point across.  Since Monday, the rest of the week has gone more smoothly so I hope this continues!

 

Horse Rides and Party Fun

Kate and Mason have had a fun-filled day today. This morning, my parents took them to the Azalea Festival at Espositos where there was a bounce house, pony rides and face painting.  Kate has been begging to ride a brown horse and today she got her wish.  Mom said she waited in line twice to ride the biggest horse there, Feather. 

 This afternoon, we were invited to Maddox's 4th Birthday Party at Truesdale Gym.  None of us had ever been to a party there before so we were excited to go and help Maddox celebrate! There were several different activities the kids could do: the foam pit, obstacle course and the trampoline.

 The birthday boy.

The group started off at the foam pit and  the kids took turns jumping and sliding in. 

The foam pit was one of my favorite places to play when I was a kid.

Tackling the obstacle course.

 Even Mason and Landon took a turn on the obstacle course, once the big kids moved on to the trampolines.

 Waiting patiently for their turn on the trampolines.

  Before the kids left the gym to go into the party room to have cake and open presents, all the kids ran underneath a giant parachute (aka the "birthday tent") and sang happy birthday as loud as they could to Maddox. So cute!

Happy Birthday Maddox!

 

Saturday Night Spend the Night

Last Saturday night, we invited Miller to spend the night with us!  Her big brother and sister were out of town with their grandparents so I jumped at the opportunity to get Miller all to myself and let her mommy and daddy have a kid-free night.  

Miller was the sweetest little thing and Mason wouldn't leave her side from the minute she arrived.  He got down on the floor with her, handed her toys and even brought me her burp cloth when her face was messy at dinner time.  I think he's in love.

When Mason woke up Sunday morning, he got the biggest smile on his face when he saw Miller was still there.  

 We had a great time!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I took a few pictures of my two little leprechauns in their St. Patrick's Day outfits - very cute if I say so myself!

This next picture isn't what I was going for, but I have to share it because the kid's expressions are priceless...

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

Audrey's 5th Birthday Party

Last Saturday, I took the kids to Audrey's 5th Birthday Party!  The weather was perfect and the kids had a great time dancing at Audrey's "Dance Party" themed birthday party.  As soon as the invitation came in the mail, Kate asked us every day if it was Audrey's party yet.  Kate picked out a Barbie pool and Barbie doll to give to Audrey and worked for an hour or so on her birthday card.  We went through four or five drafts before we ended up with the final product.  

 I teared up a little bit looking at her first written card.  So proud of her hard work! I have no idea what the drawing is at the top of the card but she was so excited about her drawing.

Audrey's party was so neat.  There was a bounce house on one side of the yard and a dance floor set up in the middle of the yard with DJ Ray Ray (Audrey's daddy) keeping the music going all afternoon. There was even a tattoo booth set up on the other side of the yard for the kids to get "inked".  So creative!

 This was the best picture I could get of the girls.  Audrey said "let's show off our tattoos" and this was the pose I got.

 Mason stayed close to me all afternoon while Kate was busy playing, jumping and dancing.  At one point, he ventured out on the dance floor when it was all clear to check out the fog machine.

You can work up a thirst dancing - or just standing on the dance floor.

 My little dancer.  She picked out her tutu skirt, cupcake shirt and pink glitter shoes to wear to Audrey's party.  It's just another reminder that's she's growing up fast.

We had a great time!  Happy 5th Birthday Audrey!