We had a great time visiting with Aunt Gloria and the rest of the family. The kids are still talking about everyone, and Ricky's trampoline, and Aunt Gloria's pool & playroom! Of course we had a few hicups with sleeping in a strange place, but over all even that went well. We were so lucky that Aunt Gloria has enough space for everyone and even gave up her office so Abby had a quiet & private place to sleep. Hugs & kisses to you Aunt Gloria!!!! We enjoyed some family time with John Paul, Sylvie, Lucas & Annelyse as well as, David, Nikki, Ricky & Saiba. Aunt Gloria had the pleasure of experiencing what my life is like chasing the two monkeys around all day. Now she understands why it has taken me MONTHS to update our blog! I think she welcome the peace and quiet after we left. We ate lunch & dinner out most of the time, but Aunt Gloria made some awesome chili for dinner one night and pancakes for breakfast. CHeck out the picture of the enormous pancake. Not quite up to the Uncle Buck standards, but prety darn big in my book. And tastey too! The kids were awesome on the plane. Ben thought it was cool that he was served lunch on the plane. We received a lot of nice comments about how well behaved they were on the plane. I wish I could say that were that good all of the time, but lets face it, they are 3 & almost 2 years old (at the time of our trip). Aunt Gloria has the best pool ever. I did not get any pics of her pool because we swam later in the day into the evening and I was having too much fun myself. Beside water + kids + camera = not a good idea. If she'll lete us come back, we would love to make this a regular trip for our family. Terry doesn't have many little kids on his side, and we want the cousins to know each other, so that means we need to keep going back! Okay...onto the pictures.
This Easter we went over to Terry's brother's John's house after the Easter Bunny sent our kids on a scavenger hunt to find their baskets. Ben had a blast looking for his clues and finally finding their baskets in the coat/shoe closet. Kathy, I mean the Easter Bunny, hid baskets for the kids with some candy and a toy at their house as well. John III & MaKaela hide some eggs for our kids outside. The weather was really warm for April so the egg hunt outside was super fun and not a muddy mess, which makes mommy happy! Both kids loved exploring Aunt Kathy & Uncle John's house while mommy held her breath just waiting for them to break something. Luckily, nothing was destroyed! Here are some cute pics of our adorable kids!
Now onto my random thoughts to bring us up to speed: Ben finished preschool mid May which has allowed us to relax our schedule a bit. Kids are sleeping in later and going to bed at night later, but it all works out. We are able to have more playdates and check out new playgrounds. Terry took a slightly different position with GE which keeps him home more often. YAY!! My mom turned 75 years old this year! We had a little family get-together at our house.
Jan 17 2010
Here the kids are dancing to The Laurie Berkner Band. Nick Jr. has this little bit between shows call "Move to the Music" and they often play a little clip of her & the band (all of two more people). The kids love her music. This was actually part of the show Jack's Big Music Show which I dvr'd because they wanted me to play that song again, and again, and again, and again...you get the idea. They both love music.
Jan 18 2010
The room I visit 534,691 times a day...the Laundry Room! Not only to do laundry, but the recycling can is located next to the dryer, the brooms are here, garbage bags, extra paper towels, all cleaning supplies & the diaper bag. Terry & I had the cabinets added a few years ago and that was money well spent. Then I painted the room and last year I added the wall decals. It needs cleaned again because it often gets treated as a dumping ground.
Jan 19 2010
Ben's preschool sends home calendars with their projects for the day as well as the snack person. He likes knowing who is bringing the snack and if it is their birthday. See the 'B' with the circle? That means it is that child's birthday and usually means a sugary snack like cookies or brownies.
Jan 20 2010
What a nap! Look at that bed head! Ben was up first and after I got him cleaned up he went into Abby's room and woke her up and said to me, "Mommy, look at Abby's crazy hair!" Of course I had to grab the camera! My girl loves her sleep, just like her Mommy!
Jan 21 2010
Today was a "Sammy day". Which means, my mom had an appointment on a day that Sammy does not have school, so her mom brought her to me instead. Sammy is a very good girl, but she does not stop talking or bossing the kids around. Regardless, Ben loves having someone to play with so she keeps him busy. It warmed up today, so the kids went outside and where digging for "crystals" in the snowy mountains.
Jan 22 2010
While I still can do it since they are young I bath them together. So much easier for me. They love baths too. Although sometimes I feel like I should wear my bathing suit because I end up pretty wet in the process.
Jan 23 2010
My canvas came today. I had a $50 coupon for a website to turn a photograph into a picture. The hard part was deciding which photo to use. It is rare to have a picture with both kids looking at me. Abby was only there for a split second before she flipped herself back on her feet. Luckily I have a digital SLR that does not have that delay. Totally worth the money folks! I know it is not the best photo, but it captures the moment well. They loved playing in this little leaf pile in the front yard.
Like most people, the start of a new year inspires us to create and try to achieve new goals. I gave up making resolutions long ago, instead I think of a word or phrase to live by for the year. This year my word is discipline. Not discipline for my children, but for myself. Keeping myself on task, on schedule, and following through with what I say I will or will not do. This applies to all areas of my life. My relationships with family & friends, my home, my hobbies, my health, my blog (hee hee)...you get the idea. Along the same lines, I have created some daily goals for Ben. Being at home with the kids everyday gets monotonous and boring. In addition to the winter weather, we are all feeling cooped up, which leads to poor behavior from the kids and yelling from me. I don't like yelling, so I needed a new plan. Having been a preschool teacher while getting my Master's degree, I have learned a few tricks and decided to give one a try. The Marble Jar. I created a set of daily goals for Ben and at the end of the day he gets a marble for each goal he reached. At the end of the week he gets to cash in his marbles for special treats. His daily goals are: keeping his hands to himself, sitting at the table while eating, sharing toys, going to the potty, using an inside voice, and help cleaning up the toys. Pretty simple and things that we are always working on anyway. He has been respnding really well to the marble jar and I have not been yelling as much either. He still gets sent to his room if he makes the wrong choice and if he continuously did not live up to his goals throughout the day, then he does not get the marble. So far he averages four marbles per day out of a possible six. I made a jar for Abby too, but we don't do it with her...YET!
One of my goals related to my scrapbooking hobby is to take a picture of the day (POTD) and make an album. I decided to go with Project Life by Becky Higgens. Check out the link, it is awesome! I started taking my pictures on December 27th, but you can start it at any time. There have even been a day or two when I forgot to take a picture and I just took a picture of something that is a part of our everyday life to put in it's place. Something like my desk, the kids shoes lined up in the closet, the laundry room, the tea kettle on the stove, etc... you really can't do it wrong! This kit is so easy to use too. You only have to print your pictures and put them in the pockets. Now, I might get a bit crafty and embelish my title page and some of the other pages, but I don't have to! That is what is so awesome. It is so flexible. And no, I am not getting paid to share this information! I know many of my friends and family take pictures only to leave them filed on the computer or put in boxes (myself included). So, I will try to share my POTD's with you on a weekly basis! And with DISCIPLINE as my goal word for the year, I have my pics organized to date with the journaling! GO ME!
Jan 10 2010
Kids shoes are just so cute. I thought I enjoyed buying shoes for Ben, but now that Abby’s feet have gotten bigger…girls have a much better selection!
Jan 11 2010
Abby has discovered the joy of light switches. Too bad she is not so good at keeping her balance. She has taken a couple of good falls off these chairs lately.
Jan 12 2010
We just got our storm door installed. Hoping it will help with the cold drafts in the Winter and bring in the breeze in the Spring.
Jan 13, 2010
Abby was having a snack while I was unloading the dishwasher and Ben was in preschool. Not how I usually eat my snack but whatever!
Jan 14 2010
King of the Mountain! The kids love playing in the snow or “toe” as Ben calls it. This was a pretty big pile of snow by the overflow parking pads. He was also finding some good snow balls in it and making mini snowmen that would not stay together…so no picture.
Jan 15 2010
We went to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History today with some friends. This Vortex thing-a-ma-jig was a big hit. I think I put about $1.50 worth of coins into it.
Jan 16 2010
While at Costco, Terry spotted Coke in bottles and just had to get them. Of course Ben had to have a taste too!
I'll try to post the week of Jan 17-23 in a few days. If the pictures are not showing up,then I am experiencing more technical difficulties. I am trying a new photo hosting site and need to learn how to post them to the blog and in my "preview" I do not see them. However, I am hoping once I hit "publish" it will all work out. Terry might have to take a look at it once he is home and help me fix it! If they are there...then YAY me for figuring it all out!
I'm trying to play catch up here and although I have gotten a lot better at taking picture more regularly, I have not gotten better at posting! So this post is going back to end of Aug when we packed up and visited Rick & Cheri. We had a great time once we where there...but the drive in was TOURTURE!! Abby was not a good passenger at all. She cried most of the trip when she should have slept! Jimmy & Heather came in to see us too. We all went to Bland's Park on Saturday and basically watched Ben have fun on the rides. Abby actually went on a couple of rides too. We met Rick for lunch one day at the park near his job and there where so many ducks. The kids loved feeding the ducks and the ducks loved it too. As for the drive home...much better. Terry suggested we not give Abby a morning nap and I suggested we stop halfway at the outlet mall. Both proved to be good decisions and she slept, had a chance to get out of the car for a bit and was a much happier little passenger. Remember to click on the photos to view them in a larger size!!
Mid-September, Ben started going to preschool on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays from 9-11:15 am. He LOVES it! Okay, some mornings are rushed trying to get everyone up and fed before flying out the door to get there on time and he fights going because he hasn't had time to play at all, but he does really love it. And so do I! Most days, Abby and I come home and hang out for 90 minutes, but other days we will do some shopping or go to the library or meet up with some friends. It is nice to only have one kid to schlep around sometimes.
The weather here the past couple of months has been strange. We had some really nice warm days thrown into the mix and I have tried to take advantage of each and every last one. One day it hit 75* and I decided to pack a lunch and go to the park. Abby & I drove to pick Ben up from school and then we went to Clague Park in Westlake. My kids had never been to this park, so that made it even more exciting. I remembered to pack my camera too and got some really cute shots to share. Luckily, we only had one oops moment while we were there. At one point, Ben was throwing what I thought were rocks into a puddle on the baseball field. I was chasing Abby and trying to keep her from walking through the puddles on the field. After a few minutes I realized that Ben was not throwing rocks, but instead he was throwing old goose poop! ACK! His hands were all green & white and I was so grossed out that I grabbed the baby wipes and hand sanitizer and cleaned him up before taking a picture. But I think you can create a mental picture all on your own! I guess things could have been much worse and he is a boy after all.
When we got home from the park, we saw that the farmer was harvesting the field that is directly behind our back yard. Ben loved watching the "big machines".
The beginning of October was really raining and just plain gross. We did not get much outside time at all. I like to take the kids to a nice farm for hayrides, pumpkin picking, all that fun & festive Fall activities, but the weather was not cooperative. So we just went to a nearby roadside stand for our pumpkins. Later, I went and picked up the corn stalk, hay bale & mums to finish the front porch display.
Now that Ben is in preschool we get to go to fun parades and parties and try to get good pics amongst the masses. It was craziness in this place. A sea of parents, grandparents and siblings all trying to get a glimpse of the kids in their costumes & singing songs. Poor Abby was stuck in her stroller and could not see a darn thing. I managed to get a couple of shots and I don't have any idea how the video turned out. Oh well...it is only preschool. I don't think Ben was singing anyway. Too many people and too over stimulating. But I did get to hear the songs as he was learning them. At least going to the parade I was able to learn the real words to the songs he was signing!
My mom came over for Trick-or-Treating again this year to pass out candy so Terry & I could both go out with the kids. Ben stayed out the whole time. Abby pushed the wagon around and just stared at people. I think I have gained 10 pounds due to the massive amounts of Halloween candy that I have consumed.
I've jumped in...
http://twitter.com/artsyknox
Look me up...Stacey Knox Banks
I have decided to join the ranks of Twitter and Facebook. I have been on Facebook for about a year now, but just joined Twitter today. I will still blog and share pictures. It just takes more time and I am running out of that these days!
We had a family cookout on Saturday, September 19th. Silly us, did not start taking any pictures until we broke out the cake and then I cut the cake before we sang happy birthday! Oh well. We had a party with his friends on his birthday the 22nd. Most of the families live right on our street and only a couple live right around the corner. We are so blessed to have so many good people in our lives. My friend Trish took some awesome pictures on Tuesday. I did remember to break out the camera as well, but she is much faster than I am at moving the pics off the camera, editing them and uploading. So thanks to Trish you all can see the fun we had on Ben's 3rd birthday!!
Ben's trip to Thmas the Tank Engine...here and gone.
Abby's 1st birthday...here and gone.
Summer fun...here and gone. Well almost gone!
We have been busy. Most of the time our days consist of hanging out at home, or close to home like at the library, mall, zoo... (click photo to enlarge)
In May, Terry & I took Ben to see Thomas the Tank Engine. That was a HUGE hit! It was nice for us to completely focus on him and soak in the fun with him. Thanks to my mom for watching Abby so we could enjoy this fun day with Ben. (click photo to enlarge)
Then in June, we celebrated Abby's 1st birthday. She had fun playing and opening presents, but wanted NOTHING to do with the cake! Now, she would be all over that cake! It was a wonderful day spent with our families.
Also in June, Terry & I had a garage sale. That was a lot of work!!! But in the end we sold quite a bit, however, we still have an area of the garage for donation. Some of the big baby items that did not sell at the garage sale, I have put on Craigslist and sold them there. I am a huge fan of Craigslist!
July, we headed to my sister Denise's house for th 4th. We did not go see any fireworks b/c Abby goes to bed too early, but watched a few in our back yard that were being relased at our local park. It is not the same at being there though.
PS: I just started using a new site to edit photos, so forgive me if the slide show or collages are not quite right. I'm still learning!
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