Happy Valen"times" Day!

Happy Valentines (or as our kids call it "ValenTIMES" day) Day!

MP4 Video:

MOV (QuickTime) Video:

If all else fails...try YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRpKyzNiCzI (I think this will work!)

Twins

Cade: Daddy, we're dressed alike!

Jim: Yeah we look like twins.

Cade: Except I don't have all the hair like you do.

Jim: (laughing) Not yet little man, but you will someday.

TV Star

Cade's preschool took a field trip to the Science Center and made the local midday news! Channel 13 does the weather forecast from there every day. Wish we would have seen it!

Where are your glasses?

Jim: Cade, where are your glasses? (this is a daily question)

Cade: Uhh...I don't know. Oh yeah, I remember! They're hanging outside on the tree.

Our Hearts are Broken

After a six-month battle with cancer, we have lost my cousin Troy at the young age of 45. I am sad. I am angry. I'm in shock. And I feel helpless.

There will be a hole in our family that we won't be able to fill. The 4th of July will never be the same as he was our fireworks guru and our boat driver.

He was a GOOD guy...and we will miss him.

A few weeks ago, Cade asked me, "What do you do when you go up to heaven? Do you just lay in a cabin or something?" I told him, "Well you can lay in a cabin if you want to. In heaven, you can do whatever makes you happy." Later, when I told Cade that Troy had gone to heaven, one thing he said was, "now he's an angel." So we will picture our angel, Troy, up in heaven, doing what he loves...fishing, boating, jetskiing, playing volleyball, playing video games, watching Husker football games, hunting, and being reunited with loved ones...and he is smiling that beautiful smile.

Rest in peace my dear cousin. Thank you for your love, we will hold it close to our hearts always.

**When I picked Cade up at school today, he had painted this...

he told me, "it's Troy because he's an angel up in heaven now."**

Patch

Cade has been wearing his eye patch for a little over a month now. And at his check-up last weekend, we found out it is working! So the constant, "put your glasses on" is worth it. I think Jim said he went from 20/50 to 20/30, so hopefully one more month to get it to 20/20 and then one month to "lock it in." I believe that he will still have to wear glasses after the patching is complete though, so it's all a little confusing to me. Way to go Cade...we know it is not fun (try walking around with one eye covered sometime)....and we are so proud of you!!

Love Love Love Love Love

Love is...

I love when these two are getting along and playing together...so cute to hear Cade making his little sister giggle. And then the next minute they are fighting and Brecken is tattling on Cade, sometimes she's telling the truth, sometimes she's not. Cade probably gets blamed for a little more than he should and Brecken probably puts up with a little more than she should. And when Cade wants to give her good night hugs and kisses, she will often refuse...she does know how to push his buttons. But I know deep down the love is there. When they wake up in the morning, they always want to know where the other is and then they are so excited to see each other (for about 5 minutes). And when they are with other kids, Cade is always watching out for his sister.

We've been celebrating Valentine's Day for awhile now since Cade has his party at school last Thursday. We made Grandma Roberta's cupcakes to take to school. I still have not perfected the process but they turned out not only edible, but good!

Cade showing off the "surprise" inside.

They waited at least two weeks to open this package from Grandpa Steve & Nanna Celeste...they were so excited when the day finally arrived!

We spent today just hanging out at home...eating on our Valentine plates all day long!

Brecken is celebrating Valentine's Day tomorrow with her friends at Sue's and these are the Valentines she will be taking. She is very excited!

Cade took Toy Story valentines and chocolate to his friends at preschool. I chose Toy Story for him because I knew if I would have taken him the choice would have just been too overwhelming! And because every time we go in a store lately, he thinks he needs a new toy, so keeping him out of stores is just best right now! ; ) The teachers didn't want us to address the cards to the kids, just who they were from. Cade and I worked on it together and he probably would have wrote his name on all 32, but it was getting late so I helped (of course we procrastinated until the night before). He even sealed them with the sticker and taped the candy to them. It was fun to see him being so grown up, putting them all together. He actually made his own box at school, but this one came with his cards. When we were putting the cards together, he was bummed that he didn't get to keep one of his for himself. I said, "you don't give a Valentine to yourself silly!" Then when I picked him up, we had sent one extra and he was quick to tell me that he got to give himself a Valentine!

What else have we been up to during February?

*went to cousin Lauren's 5th birthday party last Sunday at Jumpin' Jacks...the kids had soooo much fun! It has bounce houses and arcade games. Tears from Brecken when we had to leave and I think they were asleep before we got home.

*went shopping with my mom last Friday and then met up with the Cases, Jim, and the kids @ Joe's Crab Shack. That is such a great place to take kids. 1. It's loud. 2. There's a lot to look at. 3. There's entertainment - the wait staff dances every hour or so. 4. They have the cutest dessert ever...a crab-shaped rice krispies treat that comes in an artist's tray with a brush and 3 "paints" strawberry, caramel, and chocolate. 5. During warmer times, there's a playground outside.

*Took the kids swimming at the new YMCA for the first time last Saturday. We had a blast until they found poo in the pool and we had to get out for 20 minutes. This was a half hour before they closed. We moved over to the other pool but it was freezing cold.

*watching American Idol, a little of Biggest Loser, Survivor, the Office, the Vancouver Winter Olympics, and starting today the Amazing Race. I think maybe we are watching a little too much reality tv. Brecken knows Russel on Survivor and often asks to watch him, Cade asked me if Biggest Loser was the exercise show, and tonight Brecken said, "I'm going to Hollywood! And sing for Simon!" I've never met them, but my friend Jodi's cousins, the cowboys Jet and Cord McCoy, are on The Amazing Race so that is fun to watch.

*went to church last Sunday and have been going more often...we're hoping the kids improve each time! ; ) Do we get much out of it? No, we're too worried about making the kids behave, but hopefully by just going we are setting a good example for the kids?!

*had our own little Super Bowl party at home. I actually didn't see much of the game or the commercials because I was working on photos, but I was happy to see the Saints win and Drew Brees with his son...so precious!

*attended the funeral of a co-worker's son who was only 27 and lost his battle with cancer. I did not know him personally, but he and his wife's faith through everything will always be an inspiration to me and I think every person that was in attendance will look at their life and faith differently.

*as I write this, it's snowing again.

That's all for now!

XOXO

The Mysterious Disappearence of the Christmas Candy

When we go to Christmas @ Jim's parents, there is A LOT of Christmas candy made by Roberta, Amy, and Katie. Caramels (my personal favorite), divinity, fudge, peanut butter balls, oreo balls, pretzel/chocolate/pecan things, bon-bon things with hugs inside, cookies, I can't even begin to name them all, but they are all of course delicious and calorie-free (because it's Christmas).

When we left, Jim's mom gave us a little Gladware container of leftover candy that we put in the fridge when we got home. A few nights later, I got the container out of the fridge and set it on the counter because I was going to have some and wanted it to soften up a little. : ) I did some other stuff around the house and then it was time to put Cade to bed, so I went up and read books with him.

I came back down, looking forward to my treat, and noticed that the container was no longer on the counter. I thought Jim had put it back in the fridge and when I didn't find it there, I checked the freezer...nope, so then I thought he must have it with him on the couch. Before I could ask, he said," what did you do with the Christmas candy?" So then we were both confused, wondering what happened to the Christmas candy!

We went to bed and I was still just baffled by it. I even got out of bed and did a walk through of the house, mainly because I knew if it didn't get put in the fridge, part of them would be ruined. (Did I mention I really love this Christmas candy?) I even glanced around Cade's room and found nothing.

The next morning I was still determined to figure out what happened. So I asked Cade if he had taken the container of Grandma's Christmas candy somewhere. And he nonchalantly says, "oh yeah it's up in my bedroom in my drawer, not the drawers where my clothes are, but the other drawers where my hats are. I wanted to have some when I woke up."

The sneaky little Christmas candy thief!

Our Snowy Christmas!

Merry Christmas! Some things I wanted to jot down so as to not forget!

1. Christmas Cookies! We spent some quality time making, frosting, and candy-coating cookies for Santa. It was hard for the kids to stop eating the cookie dough – memories of my childhood w/ Mom and Grandma Morse…

2. The snow! Yes, we always seem to want a white Christmas until it does 5-16 inches across the state (along with some pre-party ice/sleet)
3. Christmas Eve Mass – we got there early (45 minutes early) and got some pretty good seats. The kids did well throughout thanks to some good distractions packed by Mommy.

4. Christmas Eve Dinner – for the past three years we have made Grandma Swenson’s ham balls – delish.
5. Cade making sure we cleared the way for Santa to get in the house by moving any objects obstructing the fireplace.
6. Decals…not fun to put on!
7. The kids slept in until 7:45/8:00! Cade actually was up at 6:04, but went back to sleep in a make-shift bed next to ours! Good rest for mom and dad!
8. Excitement over all gifts from Santa

9. Glad to see cookies ate, Cade’s card was taken by Santa, and evidence left by Santa (a boot print) by the fireplace.
10. Breakfast – eggs, sausage and doughnuts. The kids ate great…I think mostly because we made them wait until after breakfast to open gifts from us!
11. Scooping the snow! We had to get out and clean the snow off for the four-wheelers. We managed to hold off until Noon, but these four-wheelers are not made for snow!
12. Lunch – we made ham-salad from remaining hamball meat…then started eating them only to find out the ham (we think) was not cooked… The nurse at Mercy thinks we will be ok…just watching for “turning stomachs”.
13. The barking dog (to the tune of jingle bells) – a gift from my boss is the most popular toy in the house…and the most annoying… ;-)
14. Breck wanting to put on her new elmo & zoe underwear…we put them on over her pants – pretty funny.

15. Trying to figure out plans for trying to head to Minden (will it happen?) in the snow…while trying to figure out what to have for dinner as we were not planning on being home Christmas Night!

I am sure there will be more to come, but I wanted to jot down a note from our day. It has been a nice family day. The kids have had their usual battles over toys, but they also have had some good times playing together. I am thankful for our family time this holiday. Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Santa Claus Comes Tonight!

And we are soooo excited!! We baked cookies for him this morning and will frost them tonight after we go to church. Cade asked for a 4-Wheeler and a Webkin. Brecken just stared at him in awe. When later asked what Santa was going to bring her, she would reply, "a candy kind!" (Because that's what he gave her when she saw him.) We're not sure though if these two ended up on the naughty list or the nice list...stay tuned!

Happy Halloween

We've packed a lot into this Halloween season: a trip to Living History Farms, Trunk-or-Treating at Cade's preschool church, a party at preschool for Cade, and trick-or-treating in our neighborhood on Beggar's Night. Cade chose to be a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle (this was a surprise, thought for sure he would want to be Batman), which turned out to be Leonardo and Brecken "chose" to be a Ladybug. I mainly chose it because it looked warm. I wasn't sure she would really want to wear a costume, but she loved it and would bring it to me periodically wanting to put it on. She really got into the trick-or-treating (and candy) too. She got the stomach flu about 2 days ago, so we were glad that she was feeling well enough to go. So even though the weather was less than cooperative, we have had a fun Halloween season!

Cousins

Because I don't want to forget...

Brecken:
*says, "Oh no...bummer" when something bad happens
*doesn't like having her hair washed, lies down on her back as soon as you start putting the soap in
*calls Cade, "Mo Doggy"
*loves to say a prayer (Cade's from preschool) before dinner...starts with "hold my hands" and then the only part she says is at the end "for our food...amen" and sounds like a little southern girl with the way she says "amen." She always wants to do it at least twice...sometimes it turns into "hold my hands" and then the singing of "how I wonder what you are" or "happy birthday"
*bedtime routine consists of reading 1-3 books and then singing songs until she's content with the number of times you have sung "twinkle, twinkle little star"
*she is getting good at reciting her abc's and 123's, although they usually aren't in order ; )
*she likes to roll her eyes back in her head when she's trying to get you to do something
*she recently started wanting to eat the lotion after her bath
*will sometimes cry when we drop her off at daycare, but usually is set on finding toys
*still likes to help unload the dishwasher
*is learning too many negative things from her big brother
*loves talking on the phone and gets mad when someone else is and she isn't
*is a great snuggler, cuddler, hugger, and kisser
*loves to look for tractors and water when we're in the car
*likes to help feed Wrigley
*calls her jacket her "life jacket"
*has started doing this high-pitched scream when she doesn't get her way...she can certainly make heads turn!

Cade:
*is still obsessed with playing with the neighbor kids...specifically Gavin and Cole
*doesn't like to go to preschool...says it's "kinda boring"
*learned to ride his bike without training wheels this summer!
*rolls his eyes when Brecken wants to say the prayer twice
*is getting better at his alphabet and numbers
*has a crazy good memory when it comes to anything non-school related ; )
*bedtime routine consists of a long drawn-out bathroom routine, reading 3 books, and laying with him until he falls asleep which means falling asleep yourself (this developed out of necessity for our sanity, but I really don't mind it (jim might disagree)...some day, some day...)
*loves motorcycles, 4-wheelers, and jetskis
*loves to sing Taylor Swift's "You Belong With Me."
*is constantly challenging the rules of "stay out of the street and don't go in your friends' houses" (yes I'm secretly glad it's getting colder!)
*is learning words and phrases that make me wonder where he is learning them
*calls Brecken "Shoobles"
*recently clasped his hands together and said, "Mom this is how you pray...and if you pray, then you'll have a baby in your tummy." What exactly are they teaching him at preschool?
*gives me glimpses of hope when he does sweet things like put all of Brecken's blankets and animals in her bed before she goes to sleep, tells her good night, shares his toys with her, and looks out for her around other kids

Go Clones!!!

I am not going to take a nap...

I am not going to take a nap, I am...not.......going...........to......take

Pedi Anyone?

This kid tests my patience at least 25 times a day...but then he does something hilarious and cute and it makes me realize why it's all worth it.

Brecken was napping, and Cade and I were resting...soon he left the room and I had forgotten that I had set my nail polish on the desk when I was cleaning out my purse, but even so, the thought never crossed my mind that he would attempt to use it. I realized after he had been quiet for quite some time that I needed to check on him and this is what I found...he was so proud. Then he asked me, "Mom is this blood?"

Oh and he somehow managed to not spill a drop!! If he had, I might not think this to be so funny.

Ouch

Cade took a major dive off of his bike Monday night...right into the sidewalk. I'm not sure who it was more traumatic for...him or me, but we're both slowly healing.

Take me out to the ball game

The neighbor kids were over last night for an intense game of baseball

Wrigley Watched from the outfield

A Couple Friday Funnies

Cade is familiar with Harry Potter because we have one or two of the movies and he has watched with Jim but I guess it's been awhile. Well a few weeks ago, the kids and I went to the library. Cade picked out some books while I chased Brecken around and picked up after her. Before we left, Cade saw the DVDs and wanted to pick one out so he's looking through them and all of a sudden yells out, "Hey Mom, they have Harry Peter!" I realize that some may not find that funny, but I personally had to stop myself from laughing out loud. Then later that night, I'm telling the story to Jim and Cade pipes in, "Yeah, they had lots of Harry Peters!"

My stepsister, Cindy, and her family were watching the movie "Guess Who" starring Ashton Kutcher. When Hope, her youngest daughter, who is 5, saw Ashton for the first time, she said, "Hey...I didn't know that Uncle Jim was in this movie!"

**Happy Friday!!**