Holiday Season 2012

Well, here we are at the end of another Christmas season- it always blows by in a whirl wind of parties, cookies, presents and family events.
It began with a visit from Nana, Papa and Auntie Kristi before thanksgiving- Al dancing in the street, Hopie doing hair, and a trip to see the wild famous Rocketts- the perfect start to the season.








Then came the trees- one for them and one for me.






And what would Christmas be with out a visit to the MAC- for some Santa, gingerbread, and face painting.





















But wait, there's more!
The new Central library opened with Tuesday night pajama story time...





And of course- a Marak family sugar cookie tradition.





Then came the gifts. But often the box is even better than the loot. And other fun December times...






Bakugan toys...


Bikes...





First class on our trip to TX...






Night out with my cousins... With a 48 hour headache reminder.


And a trip to the Children's museum with Nonnie and Aunt Dedee.









Happy New Year!!!

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Potty charts

I wonder if the way my kids placed their stickers says anything about their personality?

Albert...



Hope...


Lets be honest, the only reason those stickers aren't all piled on to the top center and on the wall is due to mommy's suggestion that we use the rest of the sheet and not just one spot on the page for every sticker.

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October Events

I think this month takes the 'not-enough-hours-in-a-day' prize.  We have been jam packed with activities, trips, and milestones.
Albert started gymnastics last month and still loves it.  I have been holding my breath for the Monday when he says "I dont want to go..."  but it hasnt happened yet!  We signed him up for the next session and Hope is on the waiting list.  She stands in the 'big kid' gym the entire time and drools over the prospect of swinging on the bars some day soon.  I actually feel terrible because she wants to do it so bad, but the kid only class doesnt start until they are 3... until then she will have to oogle.

We went to Iowa, picked our final harvest from our garden and entertained the Iowa fam here at our loft as they came in so Abby and I could run the Rock n Roll half marathon.  I wish I had pictures of that, but we took none (didnt run with my phone) and to purchase on is $40- can you believe that?!

Hope is now using the potty!!  (for all purposes..., for a while we needed a diaper for the once a day occurence).  I cant believe it really.  One day her teacher stopped me and told me Hope was ready to wear underwear at school if I was ready to let her... really?!  This kid showed zero interest at home despite the fact that I had purchased a singing princess potty, a tinier potty for the real toilet (in case she would rather go there), sparkly butterfly stickers, as well as offered M&M's and any toy of her choice.  Unbeknownst to me she had been using the potty exclusively at school for 3 weeks.  Needless to say she will do it when she is ready, and she did.  (Though the second day I put her in panties at home she peed 4 times in a row on the floor, just to prove she was in charge.)

I also had the kids pictures taken by Sedura in st.louis and I love them.  She couldnt have captured the kids personalities any better...

A teaching moment

An almost nightly conversation occurs between Hope and Al as she tries to get me to come back in their room (now safely guarded by a gate!) by irritating her brother and messing with the night light.
Al- "Hope PLEASE put the night light back!"
Hope- "right day-er?"
Al- "yes"
Hope- "tank you bubba"
Al- "no Hope, I say 'thank you' and you say 'you're welcome'"
Hope- "tank you, welcome"
Al- "NO, I say 'thank you'"
Hope- "welcome"




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Al- 4 year stats

Al's 4 year stats are as follows:
Ht- 44.5 inches (99th percentile)
Wt- 40.5 lb (85th percentile)

He is super sweet, always wanting to do the right thing and not disappoint me or Beau which is comforting and heart-wrenching all at the same time. He is rambunctious and full of energy which makes life difficult and so fun. We had him tested for the gifted school involving an IQ test In which he achieved a score at the 95th percentile allowing him the opportunity to apply- so proud, though I know it is just him and his personality vs any work on my part.
Right now he loves to: make-believe, dress in super hero costumes, read all things super hero or transformers, talk about dinosaur species I have never heard of, make a gun out of ANYTHING (yesterday it was two truck magnets stuck together just so), build construction sites, dream about our next trip to Iowa to cut corn, wrestle with his friends, hang out with his cousins, Winnie and Rush, Griffin, Andrew, David and Kourash at school, and so much more I am forgetting now...

Looking forward to what this next year holds for my Bubba.




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Al's 4th Birthday: Construction Zone Ahead

Well, I started planning this WAY early this year because I wanted this particular spot at the park that fills up quick- and I got it!  And at the start of the summer construction was ALL Albert could talk about... however, as the summer wore on Spiderman, Batman and any possbible super hero you can name seeped into the picture, leaving the construction zone much less desirable-- of course, because this is what I had planned the bday party around!  BUT, it made a come back in the past couple of weeks--wheew-- thank you fickle toddler minds.  I mean, you should have seen this kid digging in the plant mulch with his trucks almost the entire party.. who is he kidding?

 

Jess made this sign for me (so sad this pic wont rotate!) and this is Al's bff Griffin

It was a great day.  I am so happy to have such a sweet baby...

A week of firsts

1. My baby is in a big girl bed- surrounded by pink sheets no less. Bubba on the top bunk and they love it- who would have thought a bed could be such a fascinating toy?



2. Hope said an un-prompted "I love you too mommy"- best words out of your child's mouth.

3. Why? At least that's what Hope wants to know. We have never heard such interest from her... And now we need to figure out how to silence the interrogation! Haha.




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Lanterns

I meant to post this last week...

I took the babies to the botanical gardens for the Chinese Lantern festival on Friday night. I had a 50/50 chance of success or disaster going by myself, so I drafted Kara and baby Rose to go with us. It turned out so well. They LOVED the dragon that blew steam and the lit up lanterns were beautiful!












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Beginning of summer 2012

No place like inside an excavator if you're a 3 year old boy who loves construction. When asked if he wants to own a construction company- Beau's always dreaming big- Al simply replies, no I'm going to be a "worker".



My college girlfriends get together every month for dinner. Love these nights- this one we decided it was time for another girls only lake trip!



My kids are eating impressively healthy this month, so I have to get pictures for later proof! The snap peas growing in our garden has sparked a new interest in this vegetable- I guess there is something about growing your own food that makes you want to eat it? And oddly enough they both love mint tea!



A rare picture together that actually turned out decent. If you haven't been there, you have to take your kids to Shaws Arboretum in Grays Summit.


Updates:
1. My new carpet


2. Hopie can count to 9! Which is surprising bc 1 month ago she couldnt put 2 words together- Go Girl!
3. Al has to get his tonsils out. :(
Here he is at the ENT. Turns out he has sleep apnea! Looks like it... Haha.


This week I have taken up boxing but am powering through the pain day by day. I find the more I work my sore-a** muscles, the better they feel. I can finally turn my neck- things are looking up ;).

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