Playful Pup

This morning I looked out the window to discover big, fluffy flakes falling from the sky. This Winter has felt so long already and I am so over all of this crazy snow! Watching our wookie pup play in the white fluff helped me see a tiny bit of joy in it. While my boys beg me every day to get their bikes out of storage, at least someone in our family is still enjoying Winter.  

Easter Cupcakes

Before the kids left for school today they shared a brilliant idea for Easter cupcakes. "You could put mini eggs on the top and they would be like bird's nests!" So, this afternoon I mustered up all of my energy and whipped up a batch of my very favorite, fluffy, moist vanilla cupcakes. I piped some vanilla icing on the top and added some mini eggs. The kids were super excited when they walked in the door and smelled the aroma of fresh baked cupcakes. I may have eaten three...

Mr. Sun

Today was practically T-shirt weather. We are crossing our fingers for Spring! It was so nice to play with Mr. Sun this afternoon on the back deck.

The Bunny Banner

This week we got out the Easter banners and hung them in the kitchen. Time is just flying by and I can hardly keep up with things these days. 

Oliver is at such a super fun age! Some days I can feel the terrible two's around the  corner, and other days I just want to squeeze and hug him all day long. He is such a nut lately and we love his scrunchy nosed grins and funny faces. He is giggly and crazy and busy and all over the place.

Nap time is always a very welcomed rest for this tired mamma. We both use the time to recharge for the after school rush. I love staring at his lashes and admiring his chubby pink cheeks. It's a good thing he's cute!

Hot Water

After having no hot water since Sunday, the littles are thoroughly enjoying WARM baths tonight! Poor Mr. Stannix woke Sunday morning to a broken hot water heater while he was watching the littles. Nothing was open, so I called a plumber on Monday. They were able to come late afternoon and take a look at it. After discovering some bird remains and other unmentionable things in the bottom, they had no luck getting it working again. We had to order a new tank (thank goodness for savings), which they promised would be in the next day. At the end of the day they called and told us that they had just received the hot water tank and wouldn't be able to come until first thing the next day. Meanwhile we've been boiling the kettle for dishes, taking cold showers, and tucking our kids into bed all grubby at night. They didn't mind so much, it was like camping! One morning as I boiled the water for dishes, and used the tap water to rinse them, I noticed it was coming out warm! "Mike, you have to get in the shower RIGHT NOW! It's WARM!" I shouted. By some miracle it stayed hot long enough for Mr. Stannix to enjoy his first warm shower in days.

Ollie sat in his bath so long that he turned into a prune. He enjoyed every minute! 

The kids were squeaky clean at bedtime, and Joe's feet smelled so much better! We will never take hot water for granted again! 

Naptime Shenanigans

Oliver is such a busy boy these days. Even after a long walk around the block before lunch, he decided that he needed to rearrange his room before falling asleep. Apparently he likes his bed better in the middle of the room! 

We Made it!

We made it through another week! Gooey cinnamon buns to celebrate!

Fine Arts Afternoon

Today we did early naps and then took off to the school for their Fine Arts Afternoon. The choirs work so hard every year for festival season and I love that they set up a few rows of chairs for parents to drop in and see them perform at the school. 

The boys and I wandered around and checked out the art displays. Camilla's class had pictures of birds (hers is the purple one in the middle, top row). 

Hyrum's class did seals (his is somewhere on the right hand side if I remember correctly). 

By the time the first choir made their way into the gym, the little boys were already getting antsy. I gave them each a piece of bubble gum in hopes of making it through at least a few of the songs. Previous experience taught me that they hand out medals at the end of the performance and ask parents to come and present their child with the medal.

Hyrum got to play the sticks for "Who Built the Ark". He did such a great job keeping the beat. Joe sang along in the audience and hummed the tune for most of the afternoon afterwards. Just as Camilla's group came on stage, Ollie decided that he was done. I waved at her and then hustled my very loud boys out of the gym smiling through frustration. I had to wait until the end of Camilla's performance before going home, so we checked out the turtles at the front office, they soaked their shirts at the drinking fountain, and took liberties running down the halls despite my pleas for walking feet, and there may have been a wrestling match at the bottom of the ramp to the gym that just about did my patience in. When they had finished up their final song, I pasted a smile back on my face, walked up to my girly and put the medal over her head with a kiss. I told her how good she sang (from what I could hear in the hall). She hugged me tight and granted me understanding and forgiveness. Next year, I might get a babysitter!

Finding Beauty

 This morning we woke up to the most beautiful frost. Everything was adorned in white and sparkling in the morning sun. We are all finally adjusting to this crazy time change, and instead of having to drag the kids out of bed at 7:30am like I have the last few mornings, everyone was up shortly after six. The heat vents in the kitchen filled up quickly with children and blankets. They all huddled together and warmed up while I whipped up a batch of syrup and some french toast. After a rather late bedtime last night there were a few yawns and a few complainers. I glanced up to give a spiel on gratitude to a certain boy who was very ungrateful for his breakfast when I caught Ollie out of the corner of my eye holding his empty plate on the top of his head, syrup dripping down his face, grinning ear to ear. Funny, yes...but now "give the baby a bath" was added to my daily to-do's. 

 

 The little boys and I got ready for the day and then hopped in the van to grab some groceries. We were lucky enough to get out of the house before the sunshine melted away the gorgeous frost. Even though I am itching for Spring, I am grateful for the beauty that can be found in Winter. We took an extra long drive to the grocery store to admire the frosty trees, fences, and structures.

 The rest of my day was spent playing with the boys and making up pie crust! I love reasons to celebrate and today is Pi day (3.14), so of course, we had to eat pie. I started a butter crust for my first ever lemon meringue pie while the boys finished up their lunch.

 The two little boys had very short naps (partly thanks to the beaters whizzing in the kitchen while I made up the meringue).

 I was a little bit excited to pull this beauty out of the oven mid afternoon to cool. I couldn't wait to  dig into it with the littles after dinner!

 The filling for the chicken pot pies simmered on the stove all afternoon. I made two nice sized pies for dinner and they were delicious! I loved being able to use my Grandma's pie plates. They are well loved and well seasoned. It was great to have a few moments to think of her today. I miss her.

 After protesting his chicken pot pie for like an hour, Hyrum finally ate it so that he could get a slice of Lemon Meringue. He happily licked his plate clean and ate the leftover dessert that everyone else left behind. It makes me laugh so much watching him pack away food. I am already dreading the teen years with four hungry boys to feed! 

The warmer weather has been so inviting lately and we are enjoying some more outside time. It warms my heart to see the kids playing outside again with friends around the neighborhood. Yesterday the boys ran around the deck in sweatshirts and enjoyed a picnic on a blanket. Oliver is constantly begging to go outside. I spend most of my time lately dressing and undressing him as he is constantly in and out. The sun is so warm and wonderful and I can feel Spring right around the corner. Thanks to the extra fresh air and exercise the children practically fall into bed at days end.

Satisfying Cravings

 The sun is waking up earlier and earlier each day, making my mornings go so much smoother. There's something about daylight that just makes everything better. I was practically giddy when I opened the blinds to crystal covered trees glistening in the morning sun. As we drove to the grocery store I admired the beauty all around. If it has to be Winter, at least it can be pretty outside. The snow in the fields sparkled as the sun made it's way above the horizon. And since I couldn't exactly pull over every time I saw something sparkly, I took a mental picture and soaked it all up in the quiet of an early morning drive. 

 I made sure to pick up some raisins at the grocery store. We don't usually have any on hand because no body in this family even likes raisins. I have had the hugest craving for oatmeal raisin cookies for the last little while and today I was going to make them. By the early afternoon I had six loaves of bread ready for the oven and a cookie jar full of oatmeal raisin cookies.

 I ate so many I thought I'd be sick, but they were so darn good and helped curb the frustrations of the day. Although, it looks like eating them all will just be up to Ollie and I since no one else in this house likes them (the raisin thing).

 Ollie woke from his nap and went outside to play with Mr. Sun. It was a bit on the chilly side, but he hardly minded. When I figured he would be cold I opened the back door and called him in. He shook his head, turned around, and ran away as fast as his fluffy snow suit would allow him. He crawled, rolled, and walked through the snow for quite some time before he decided he was ready to come inside and warm up. He lives to be outside.

Last week I picked up some cotton in lovely Spring colors. I've been crocheting dish cloths when ever I have a spare moment, and I am in love with this new basket weave pattern. They are big, and thick, and elegant. There is something about using handmade items that I enjoy. I appreciate things more when I've put my own time into them. I admired them all day as I filled my mind with dreams of Spring.