double duty

this is what happens when both boys want to play with mommy but can't agree on what to play. love.

last chess tournament

we made it just in time for their first match of the day. we were so close that madelyn's coach had arranged a 'bye' for her. i had brought a lot of paperwork to do while they played since i didn't have to bring any other children with me. but i ended up sitting next to a mother i know who did not bring anything at all to do. needless to say, i got very little done.

madelyn's school came in 2nd place in her division. she was so excited to be asked to keep the trophy and give it to the principal on monday. she didn't have a great tournament, personally, but the trophy made it all better.

on our way out, we saw the posted rankings. mason and madelyn compete in the same division (at least this year), but mason clearly has a gift for chess. he is ranked 28 out of the 45 playing today and is one of the youngest.

chess has been such a great activity for both of them and they are both looking forward to playing again next year. love.

the close of basketball

mason was sad to see basketball end, but super happy to get a snack and a certificate. we didn't get to celebrate long because we were already late for their last chess tournament of the year. love.

"mix and match" spirit day

while mason usually doesn't like to participate, i was able to convince him to dress for "mix and match" spirit day. but then we had a difficult time finding clothes that didn't match! our boys' bottoms are usually neutrals. mason was able to get behind this outfit.

and he brought this gem home with him today. love.

mustache day

madelyn made her pearler bead mustache for this spirit day a while ago and was SO excited to finally share it with her classmates. she borrowed the mustache sweater from mason. love.

the boys think ruining a picture is so funny.

character champion

on our way out from chess club this afternoon we found madelyn's character champion picture in the hallway. because she came home injured the same day, i didn't really share about her "character champion award."

madelyn seems to always be chosen "character champion" in february. her teacher nominated her for the following character values: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship. and here is the reason she gave:

"madelyn is a wonderful role-model in our classroom. she is polite and kind to her teachers and classmates. she exhibits all of the ymca character champion traits on a daily basis. i can always count on her to come in with a smile on her face and ready to learn."

i think that madelyn was a little relived since mason had been awarded character champion a few months ago. when he got home from school she told him that they could walk in the parade together now!

we are so proud of all of our kids and happy when others recognize their sweet hearts too. love.

the end of volleyball season

tonight was the last night of madelyn's volleyball season. we were surprised (and madelyn delighted) to find that the girls got medals in the celebration when we were done tonight. on the way home, she even thanked me for making her try volleyball. she "kinda" liked it. (there is hope!) love.

star wars meet and greet

our grocery store offered a star wars meet and greet. we didn't have anything else going on and decided to take a walk up there. but then we found the trail still covered in snow where it was shady and the rest was very muddy. so we went home and drove up.

mason was the only one brave enough to actually have his picture taken.

they had everything decorated super cute. it was way more than i was expecting. even the kids who weren't brave enough for a picture still thought it was pretty cool. love.

basketball with friends

mason was super excited to be playing against his classmate today. henry is one of mason's best friends and one of his first classmates he met (during vbs before school started). what a surprise to find that they were covering each other and the same number! mason wasn't paying much attention to playing but was taking guarding henry very seriously. i love that he has such a great friend. love.

completely my daughter.

surprise date night

a few weeks ago i was walking during a weekly date with a friend and talking (how else are we to pass the time?). we talk about anything and everything during our hour and a half walk each week. i was telling her about how much matt has been working and that he and i were discussing hiring a babysitter just to get a little time together. she instantly replied, "you guys always have to pay for babysitters, let me watch them for you. which friday night do you want?" i almost fell over hearing such an immediate and generous offer!

i only told matt that he needed to be home by 4:30pm today. when he got home i told him to change into something comfortable. we were off to a "relaxation yoga" class and then dinner at a new-to-us sushi restaurant after getting showered up and dressed up in the clothes i had packed for us. just as matt was finishing up, my friend showed up with her two boys to babysit.

we didn't take any pictures, but the evening was wonderful. it was so restoring in every sense. love.

presidents' day

mason really loved his abraham lincoln hat/mask (the top of the hat is flopped back a little. love.

the best of times, the worst of times

madelyn was selected "character champion"...

...and injured her neck in such a way that she can't put her shoulder down.

madelyn got off of the bus crying. as best as i could figure out what happened, she had pulled a muscle in her neck. in a totally me like injury, she had whipped her head to the side celebrating a point scored for her team during volleyball at gym and essentially gave herself whiplash.

this was something difficult to gauge for severity. it was the end of the school day, so she might be dramatically tired crying, but she was clearly in extreme pain. the doctor's office couldn't get her in and told us to take her to urgent care or the er. i wasn't convinced that she needed medical attention, i had called more to find out if we should ice or heat her neck and what to watch for in case it was actually serious.

poor girl. we have her a little pain med and sent her to bed. she is so my daughter. love.

snow day

we were gifted the perfect snow day today! all of the snow fell last night, was enough to cancel school and it was going to be warm enough to play outside all day. look at all of that lovely, wet, sticking snow! 

we ate a leisurely breakfast and suited up to check out how much snow we actually had gotten last night. (poor daddy discovered that the snow blower wouldn't start - we haven't used it in so long - and had to shovel himself out to the road to get to work.) to pass the time the kids and i were outside, i shoveled the rest of the driveway before lunch. we had at least 6 inches and it was much deeper in other locations. i think it had blown a little where i measured with a ruler near the garage.

i got so hot shoveling that i had to take my winter coat off and shoveled for a bit in my tank top and snow bibs. i gave the garbage men quite a show. and just in case you ever wondered who would win a game of chicken between a garbage truck, a recycling truck and a snow blow; it's the snow plow. every time.

mason picked up this huge clump of snow to be a giant snowball. when i looked at this picture on the computer i realized that it was shaped like ohio!

maddux liked making a snow angel better in the deep snow.

we played for at least 3 hours before going in for lunch. i could barely use my arms and hands any more. that snow was heavy!

as soon as we finished up lunch, we suited back up to go outside and attempt a snowman.

madelyn was the only one with patience to make one and protected it with a small wall.

the boys worked on digging a "cave" into the snowplow pile. they made it large enough to fit all three of them.

i worked my way around the sidewalk and up to the front door with the shovel while the kids played for another 2 hours or so. i don't think we could have planned a better snow day! i am so glad that we at least got one this winter. love.

no school pajama day

we were all (well, not daddy in particular because he had to go to work) looking forward to a lazy day off from school today. these days are getting rarer and rarer and i treasure them more and more.

we had some pancakes and the kids snuggled together for a little pbs kids. after some snacks we suited up for some fun in the snow. the big kids haven't really gotten to play in the snow this year so they were super excited! not only that, but it was a little warmer and more fun to play outside.

manning had a little too much fun. i found him passed out in bed.

thankful for these precious days. love.

happy valentine's day!

we had a low key valentine's day. we gave each of the kids a new lego dimensions character with vehicle and a box of conversation hearts. matt gave me a day without cooking (well, i did cook breakfast). and i arranged a surprise date for next weekend.

we went to serve at church where the kids ministry staff had provided chocolate bars for all of the volunteers - yum. after church i suggested we try a new breakfast/lunch place where i met a friend for breakfast a few weeks ago and loved. it was a huge hit with our crew too! even better, the wait wasn't very long at all.

while the kids tested out their new dimension characters, matt and i snuck in a quick nap. a pretty perfect day with my loves.

star wars birthday party

mason went to one of his best buddy's star wars birthday party. the boys were crazy! and it only got crazier after they made light sabers with pool noodles and duct tape. it seems like mason has a really good group of friends from school. love.

good morning rainbow

we were surprised on this super cold early morning with a rainbow in front of the rising sun. it was really beautiful and made it almost worth freezing. almost.

we have been so spoiled this winter with warmth that when it does get normal cold, it is extra painful. the kids were all excited to be at the gym so early. even madelyn put down her book to shoot a few hoops.

i haven't taken much video of mason playing (i am just too busy watching). here are a couple of videos but none of him making his shot. he makes quite a few each week but i never caught one. the first video is a little long (3 minutes plus) but in the middle you see mason remember that they aren't allowed to steal the ball from the other team. also note how much taller he is than everyone else! love.

manning's got the joy in his heart

manning has been singing christmas carols daily so we were pretty pleased when he pick up a more seasonless option. he sings all of the time. love.

bigs' valentine parties

madelyn loved getting dressed up for a "red, pink and white" spirit day. she was even more excited for the party! what she and mason didn't know is that i had managed to work things out that i could help at both of their parties today! this is the first time i have ever been able to help with a party in madelyn's class - ever!

they knew that i was sending snacks for both parties (again, i signed up for the same option at each school to try and keep things from being too confusing). i made a fun candy coated "party popcorn" (super yummy and simple) and fruit cups with heart cut strawberries and blueberries.

first was madelyn's party. she was so surprised to see me in her classroom! it was so much fun to get to see her and the other familiar faces in her classroom. apparently, as the kids get older, it gets harder and harder to get volunteers - there were only 3 of us.

one of the best valentine boxes - a hot air balloon - super simple.

madelyn was excited to share her homemade valentines.

proof that i was actually with her during the school day!

the kids had a great time with the games, minute-to-win it style.

transferring m&ms with a straw

building conversation heart towers with chopsticks

bingo

snack time - the fruit was a surprise hit.

and then i was off to mason's school across town. i couldn't believe it when i saw that their parties didn't overlap and there was enough time to make the drive. seriously excited.

mason was pretty excited to see me too! although, he wasn't surprised because the kids with parents coming were picked at group leaders so he had already learned i was coming. i was really excited to put faces to all of the friends he talks about at home.

the kindergarteners worked around to each table station as groups.

what i hadn't really thought through was that mason's party went until 3:30 and madelyn's school got out at 3:20. thankfully, her bus doesn't get to our house until 3:45. i was just going to make it. while we waited the five minutes we beat her bus by, mason and i took a picture because i realized that we didn't get one in his classroom.

once we had madelyn buckled in we drove over to pick the little boys up from a friend's house. i had racked my brain for someone who did not yet have elementary schoolers and might be willing to watch both boys for a few hours this afternoon. i am just so thankful for the gift she gave me!

now it was time for the bigs to go through the spoils of their parties.

mason drew luke skywalker and darth radar fighting on his bag

these wooden mustache valentines were the hit of madelyn's party. the kids started 'wearing' them as soon as they could look in their boxes.

i was completely exhausted but totally happy to have been given the opportunity to spend time with the kids at school. i have waited so long! love.