Feb. Misc.

Just a few February happenings in our household this year included...

100th Day of School

Cody and Jaden's 1st grade teachers encouraged the students to dress like they were 100 years old for their 100th Day of School. We borrowed most of our clothing items from my sister and her friend. I thought the boys looked just perfect! Honestly, I was a bit surprised that both boys were willing to dress up. Cody even let me put wrinkles on his forehead with eyeliner. :) You can't tell in the pics, but we sprayed their hair with silver/gray coloring as well.

Their teachers-- and even a library assistant-- really got into the dress-up too. What a fun way to celebrate!

Neighborhood Four Square

Lately, the boys have been VERY into playing four square. They've found that it's a little hard to play with just two players (or with Mommy when Adley's around), so it works out quite well when the neighbor boys come across the street to play too. On this occasion, even our neighbor boys' mom joined in! Mommy was on the sidelines, holding Adley and our neighbor's baby girl. :)

Mrs. Schaekel's Birthday

Jaden's teacher celebrated a birthday in February, so I organized a party for her similar to the one we planned for Cody's teacher last month. Several other moms helped bring food, we played a couple short games, and the students created an appreciation book for their teacher. The party was a bit crazy since Jaden has some active little boys in his class (see class picture below!), but all the students seemed to have a good time. And most of all, their teacher seemed to appreciate the celebration.

A Musical Rest

This month, the boys brought home a unique homework assignment from their music teacher. The classes were learning about various musical symbols, most especially a quarter rest. Their teacher asked the students to take a picture of themselves holding a picture of a quarter rest in a quiet place so they'd remember that the rest means to be quiet. Jaden chose to take the picture at the public library.

Cody wanted to take his picture in Adley's room with Adley pretending to take a nap. Adley, however, wasn't very excited about getting in her crib in the middle of the afternoon, even if it was just for a picture. So... we decided to improvise! Can you tell who's posing as Adley in the photo below?? :) We had a great time with this one!

Valentine Events

Celebrating Valentine's Day was great fun in our household this year! 

Valentine Playdate

We hosted a little party for Adley's playgroup friends. Aren't they all so precious? :)

We kicked off the party with a movement game. The kids walked around a circle pathway of heart cutouts with music playing in the background. When the music stopped, the kids had to find a heart and do whatever direction was written on the heart (act out an animal noise or movement, roll or twirl, hop up and down, etc.).

Then we ate some tasty Rice Krispie treats that my friend Sara made in the shape of hearts. So fun!

At the end of the party, the kids decorated valentine bags and then delivered valentines to each other's bags.

Checking out her valentine candy at the end of the party was definitely a highlight for Adley!

Making Valentine Boxes

On the first Saturday in February, I took Jaden to Home Depot for their monthly building project-- making a heart-shaped box. Poor Cody was home sick that morning, so we took an extra project home for him. I loved seeing how independent Jaden is with using all the tools to build this box.

We had talked about gifting this box to his teacher for Valentine's Day, so Jaden was excited to paint his box and make it look even fancier.

By the next weekend, Cody was feeling well enough to assemble his Valentine box at home. He, too, was very independent with the assembly.

The lid of these boxes twisted to the side to reveal a small compartment. What a fun little project!

For Valentine's Day, we filled each box with chocolate candy and had the boys present the gifts to their teachers. Cody and Jaden were very proud of their handmade Valentines!

Classroom Valentines

Writing out class valentines was a MUCH easier task this year now that Cody and Jaden have become more proficient with their spelling and handwriting. I basically just gave them their class lists, and the boys took off. They've never been able to complete all of the valentines in one sitting before this year. What a nice change!

We decided to print our own Christian themed Valentines this year. I let the boys select their favorites from some options I had found on Pinterest. Cody chose to give out Valentines that read, "God has made you so smartie" with some Smarties candies attached.

Jaden's valentines said, "There are many RAISINS why Jesus loves you." He attached a box of yogurt raisins--a snacktime favorite of his!-- to each valentine.

Valentine's Day Surprise

On Valentine's Day morning, Jaden and Cody found the kitchen table covered with hearts. On each heart, Jason and I had written things we love and appreciate about each boy. The boys seemed to enjoy reading these hearts during their morning breakfast. Grammy and Papa had also gifted the boys with Reeses hearts. They were particularly excited about these treats! :)

As we celebrate this fun holiday, we like reminding our kiddos that the reason we love others is because of the love that Jesus first gave us. We are so grateful for the unending, never failing love from our Heavenly Father!

23 Months Old

At the beginning of January, Adley stood at the brink of two. In many ways, she seems so grown up for her age. She is talking up a storm and showing so much understanding about life. She is VERY independent, wanting to do everything by herself. Her current favorite phrase is "NO, MY do it!" She is definitely strong-willed and opinionated but yet has a wonderfully gentle and loving side as well. Adley is so dear to us, and we are so thankful for God's gift of her precious life!

A few details about Adley at 23 months:

PHYSICAL

• Loves collecting items in containers, dumping them out, and pouring them back in
• Started taking off her own diaper when she has to go potty and saying, "My too wet."
• Enjoys doing peg puzzles, especially the number puzzle

LANGUAGE

• Can sing along with some of the letters when we sing the ABC song
• Can count to 5
• Will say "tank you, Mommy" whenever I finish fixing her hair each morning
• Loves to identify which items of clothing, toys, water bottles, etc belong to which member of the family and is nearly always correct!

PLAYTIME/OTHER

• Definitely Daddy's little girl! Often cries when Mommy takes her out of Daddy's arms and will ALWAYS request Daddy for bedtime, bathtime, etc.
• Loves carrying around her purse that she received from Christmas and will stuff many items into it
• Enjoys opening up various drawers in the kitchen, reaching into them (even though she's not tall enough to see inside!), and will play with whatever she finds! Yikes!
• Became particularly attached to a special pair of pink sparkly dress shoes this month which she calls her "Minnie Shoes," since Minnie Mouse is pictured inside. Often will cry if we try to put other shoes on her.

• Loves sitting on the countertop to "help" with kitchen tasks or in the bathroom to watch Mommy and Daddy brush teeth
• Still very picky about many foods and will nearly always refuse to try any vegetable
• Loves whenever her shirt or jacket has a pocket so she can stuff her hands inside

Sneaking out of the aisle after church and ready to RUN!

A short interview with Adley:

Jan. Happenings

Here are a few miscellaneous photos from our family happenings in January:

Puzzle Mania

After receiving a few puzzles for Christmas, the boys went on a huge puzzle kick for at least 6 weeks. As soon as they would finish one large puzzle, they'd want to start on another. We borrowed a few puzzles from my sister and from our neighbors. I LOVED sitting down and working puzzles with them! Our dining room table seemed like it was constantly covered in puzzle pieces. The boys and I put together mostly 500 piece puzzles, but also completed two 300 piece puzzles and even tackled an 1000 piece one. All together, I think they assembled a dozen large puzzles before their interest turned to other activities.

Playtime

Getting ready to watch a Netflix show before lunch on a weekend is always a highlight of the day! :)

Our sports-loving boys have creative sports minds just like their Daddy. Cody and Jaden built their own field out of Magnatiles and "play" mock games using their football helmets. Often, they'll even set up a tournament bracket for their gameplay. This all provides hours of entertainment!

Missing Teeth

This month, Cody lost a top front tooth...

and then a short time later lost the second one. How fun to see his toothless smile!

Escape Room Adventures

All the adults from my side of the family got together one weekend this month to visit an escape room. The room that we tried was called Raiders of the Lost Art, and our main role was to find famous artwork that had gone missing and return it to its rightful place. We solved the mystery and escaped successfully. Such a fun experience!

Half-Birthday Celebration

At the end of the month, I organized a classroom party for Cody's teacher. Her birthday is in the summer, so we surprised her with a half birthday celebration. The kids loved it, and she seemed quite surprised too. Two other mom-friends from Cody's class helped me pull off the events.

While the class was at chapel, my friends and I snuck into their classroom to decorate. I had made a birthday banner at home that we hung up.

We decided to decorate half of the classroom with streamers and the other half with balloons.

My friend Kristy made 1/2 cookie treats for Cody's teacher and the kids. Yum!

We had gotten each child in the class to fill out a "I am Thankful for my teacher because..." page and assembled all of these into a binder. During the party, each child read some of their "thankful page" to Mrs. Griedl. They all wrote such sweet notes to her!

My friend Katie had cut party hats in half and decorated each one with a glittery 1/2 decoration. The hats looked so festive and stayed on surprisingly well for being only half a hat! It was a fun way to celebrate an awesome, beloved teacher!