Staycation Week

Jason took his first vacation in 7 months as we were all ready for that time together! He takes a test annually called the ABSITE so part of the week was dedicated to studying but compared to his normal schedule, it felt like he was home with us all week. He enjoyed getting to be in the pool with Ellie at swim lesson and see what a normal week is like for us.

Ellie and her blankie. Ellie is a fantastic sleeper to the point that we often wake her up to get Willem to school on time. We definitely hit the jackpot there!

Ellie leading us all in a round of this game Teacher Kevin plays in music class where you move your finger from the ground to pointing at the sky and as you move it up you sing higher and as you move your finger back to the ground, you sing lower. Ellie loves this game and plays it often. It seems to get a fun reaction out of us as well join in.

Typical drive to school in the mornings. With Dad in tow, we snapped a picture. Ellie loves facing forward now. We switched her from backwards facing a few weeks ago as it felt impossible to get her in the car seat anymore. She wants to be just like her brother. She still doesn't like that he has cup holders and she doesn't but we're working on her having one of his two. We'll see how that goes over.

Dad joining in on breakfast at school. Willem really enjoys eating at school in the mornings though we probably make it there twice a week. Breakfast starts at 7:45 and it has proven difficult to get us all up, dressed and ready and in the car by 7:30 much to Willem's avail. Willem's friends give Ellie the food they don't want so she can have what her brother's eating. It's so sweet to see how they all come up to her in the morning to say hi.

Julie's friend Arash gave Willem an Electronic activity set for Christmas. When I first saw it I thought it would probably be a couple of years before it was used but Willem is really into it. I am realizing I should have paid attention in Physics/Chemistry/whatever would have helped me with all of the Why questions I'm getting. Luckily, with Dad home they did quite a few of these projects. The book provides a map for which pieces go together to create everything from a radio to a light switch to an alarm or a fan. So far we've learned that it really is important to follow the directions and that many of the pieces only work one way, so if we put it in the opposite way, the project fails. Right now, I'm answering most questions, "that is an excellent question, lets look that up. Let's ask Dad when he is available". Luckily, during staycation week Dad took over and fun was had by all, even Ellie who joined in on the fun.

Finding Central Park in Scottsdale

At the end of Jason's staycation week we snuck away for a local vacation, just the two of us. We had heard about an art studio where you bring a bottle of wine and then a teacher guides you through how to paint a "masterpiece". The night we went we copied a local artists rendering of Central Park.

To show that we actually did create the painting:) The whole night was hilarious as we "coached" each other on how to properly render this painting. When one of us would get up for a snack, the other would "help" the other's painting. Anyway, we had a lot of fun and can't wait to find a place to hang up our new artwork.

Trampoline Fun

We have spent a ton of time lately outside on the trampoline. We end a lot of violin practices with Mom and Willem jump sessions and more than one family night has taken place on the trampoline. When we first set it up we worried it took up too much space but by far, we have enjoyed that space so much more in having a trampoline there. When people come over, Willem is always looking for fresh trampoline meat:)

Erica was in town for a weekend!! Of course, she had to meet the trampoline.

Ellie's getting into the trampoline frenzy as well. She's building up to a jump and during her turn she tries and tries. Right now it looks like she bends her knees a bit and then stands on her tippy toes. She grins as she shows us her jump. Then she asks Mom to jump holding her hands or holding her on my hip.

One night when Paw Paw and Gigi came over for dinner, Willem even convinced Paw Paw to join in the fun. Willem's personality so far is that of a rule follower. He definitely tests us but loves having boundaries. We (I) was worried about the dangers of a trampoline and especially about kids bouncing off the trampoline. One day we'll have an in ground one but for now, we have a magical octagon we jump in. Willem thinks it's cool and is quick to remind all of us when we bounce outside of that area.

Winter Break

With Willem going to preschool 5 mornings this year, we were ready to have a few weeks with the entire family at home. We enjoyed our slow mornings, the extra time to get together with friends and going to the Train Park and the Train Park again and again and again:)

We were due to host music class over break and although Teacher Kevin wasn't able to make it, we enjoyed an impromptu play date with friends. We're finding between Ellie taking two naps and Willem in school every morning, we aren't seeing friends as often as in the past. Music class is definitely a staple for us as a fun family night and a great time to catch up with friends.

Reese gave Willem a lesson on undressing and dressing baby dolls. Reese made it look deceiving simple.

Ellie is very into shoes. She loves trying on Jason and I's shoes and is now trying to put her own shoes on. When she wants to go outside, she grabs her shoes and then ours and brings them to us.

Train Park take 1. We love the train park. Willem loves playing in the museum, model area, general store and then riding the train. Ellie enjoys climbing on the trains as well and running away from Mom. She has no fear or need to see me so going to the train park with both of them was quite an adventure over break. Willem is to the age where he's helpful though so we had fun, though were quite exhausted by those outings.

Since we were going during the week, the diesel train was running, which Willem feels is very loud, therefore not a good train to ride. This particular day he declared he would not ride the train, as it was a diesel and is his policy. But after some pondering, he declared he would ride the train but only if he rode in the cattle car because it was the last passenger train from the caboose and therefore the furthest from the engine so it would be fairly quiet. I was nervous to have him in there alone but he did great. Jason later told me Willem had ridden in that car before. After the ride was over, Willem stated he would ride in the car from now on when a diesel was running. Problem solved.

Bath time is often special time with Grandma at the end of the day and the kids love it. Ellie is a fish in the water and loves being in there with her brother, most of the time. They both float on their backs in the tub and Willem uses that time to practice his spitting like a giraffe. They both warmed up to showering as well, which is more how Mom rolls, which is nice. Ellie didn't like the water in her face at first but forgets about it after a couple of minutes and is busy drawing on the glass and playing with her toys.

About every two weeks Willem and Jason or Erik build a new train track. It's fun to watch them work together as they all three have distinct ideas for the layout and come up with fun curves, bridges and multi-lane layouts so all of Willem's busy trains can run. Then when Mom is going crazy for the carpet to be vacuumed, before taking apart their creation, Willem insists we take a picture so he can remember how to build it again and then, the take down begins.

Overall we had a great Winter Break but were all needing to return to having a semblance of a routine by the time school started up again. 4 trips to the train park in 2 weeks did us in:)

New Years Eve

The Baldwins have a standing New Years Eve party and were gracious enough to invite us over again this year. It's nice to have friends with kids the same age as we all get where each other is at. A New Years Eve party that starts at 6 and everyone is in bed by 10:30 is perfect for us:) The kids go in PJ's and had a great time while the adults were able to have a good time as well.

Willem tends to end up in a dress when we play with Reese and is always extra interested in accessorizing for a few days after.

This look received the most smiles and laughs from the grandparents and neighbors. He was cracking us up.

And then our train man returned.

Ellie spent much of the evening shopping in Reese's closet. I can see her playing dress up with the big kids next year, but this year, she stuck to going thru Reese's shoes.

Last year we were home by 9:30, but this year we were nearing 10:30 and Jason and I managed to stay up long enough to see the ball drop(not even on New York time, but actual Arizona time).