Laney is Two!

First we did presents- we put a little dab of peanut butter on each one and let Laney sniff it out!

She wasn't quite as thrilled about the new coat. 

The return of the silly hats!  

At one point Adam had six of them on his head.  How did I not get a picture of that? 

There's the shaggy little birthday pup!

What's that I smell??

It's a birthday pup cake!

They were out of cakes, so we opted for a celebration bone and two pup cakes instead. 

Which one.... which one...?

The bone was the winner!

What a fun night to celebrate our best pup. 

When Noah and I picked up Laney's birthday pup-cake we picked up a few treats for some of our dog friends, too.  

M- Let's count our favorite puppy friends.  Of course there's Laney... 

N- Laney is not a puppy friend!  She is a Member of our Family!

True that. 

Laney is absolutely a member of our family.  

She keeps a careful watch over the house 

and the yard at all times. 

Always, always watching.

She gets as close to the food as she possibly can.... 

but is wise enough to not jump up on the chairs or the table. 

We recently revoked an original rule that Laney is not allowed on our bed, and boy is she having fun with it!

She loves to burrow down into the pillows and roll all over them. 

And now we just have one more place to snuggle her sweet little fluffness!

Her current fluff level is just about out of control.

But that just ups the cuteness factor!!

She tolerates the peasants that she rules over, 

and when she turns on the cuteness she is irresistible!!

Laney keeps us moving, keeps us laughing, teaches us responsibility and how to care for others, reminds us to think outside ourselves, is SO incredibly soft, will never give up chasing squirrels (even though she is never going to catch one), loves us when we're sad, and is always so happy when we come home again.  

We all love our little Laney Bear!  She is definitely the best pup ever!!

January Dates

 One of our big 2021 goals is to have more intentional one-on-one dates, both as a couple and with the kids.  Rather than hope that we might actually hit that goal each month, we scheduled out all of the dates for the year- at least who would be going out with who.  First up was Emma and Daddy!

They picked a Hawaiian-themed donut shop and had a delicious time!

They took Cover Your Assets along, everyone's current favorite game.  Emma won twice!

Jason and I have the goal to go on two dates each month, and one of them has to be free.  This month Jason was in charge of the free date and he picked the Des Moines Art Center.  

We've been there once before as a family but it was quite nice to take the adult's perspective on it this time around, rather than the "no you really cannot touch anything" perspective. It was quiet and thought provoking and a perfectly lovely afternoon. 

And I was in charge of our second date, which could have cost money but didn't, somewhat to Jason's disappointment.  We both laughed when he suggested we use these dates to "see a Broadway show".... there are no theater performances happening right now!  Some day.  

Nope, I arranged a virtual game night with some of our favorite friends, which eventually morphed into an in-person game night with delicious treats and lots of laughs.  It was a fun night out, and gathering in person definitely isn't something we're doing very often at all these days. 

So bring on a year of dates!  Being all together all the time is a delight and occasionally a frustration, and taking some time out for dates is going to be a highlight of every month this year!

Happy Happenings

January is shaping up to be a quiet month around here.  Back to school, back to work, back to life, but all at home because so much of life is still virtual. 

Emma and Noah had their first Activity Days together- painting prayer rocks!

Adam dressed up the pup and the pig for National Dress Up Your Pet Day!

They were both thrilled.... 

And Saturday mornings mean a trip around the house for Tater Tot, which she is also always thrilled about. 

We went sledding with some new friends!

And we've enjoyed all of beauty outside our windows, from inside! 

And partially inside.  Who would have thought I'd ever have to shovel out the sunroom??

Noah and I made orange rolls!  We had a great conversation about the craziness that is yeast, and when they were done he didn't understand why they didn't look or taste exactly like the ones from the can.

Most days are just the same- school and work, but sometimes we shake it up by moving desks!

And playing lots of games. 

The occasional letter or package in the mail always makes our day!

Sunday styles have returned!

And if we're not all crazy by the time January is over, we'll be doing okay! 

-Isms

 L & E- You have to take her picture and put it on the blog.  And make sure that you say her full name- Lula Preminger California. 

N- I wonder when the next blog book will come out.  I can't wait to read all about the second half of 2020! 

*****

N, saying words that melt my heart- Mommy, why are you just the best mommy in the world?!

*****

N, while eating some green curry and red curry and debating over which one he liked more- The green is- ACK!!- there is definitely an aftertaste!!  

*****

Check out Daddy's corny new apron, a surprise gift from my Aunt Angelen! 

E- Daddy, you  make the best omelets. 

J, beaming- You know daddies love to hear things like that!

*****

M- Noah, you don't have to ask if you can get in our bed at night, just climb up the middle and let us keep sleeping!

N- Well I would have, but Daddy was blocking my way!

(Funny because 9 times out of 10 when Noah climbs into our bed I sleep right through it and Jason is the one who wakes up enough to get him settled in.  Sheesh I hope this phase of moving into a new house and not wanting to be 'alone' in the night doesn't last much longer. Yes, Adam and Noah do currently share a room with bunkbeds but that's not good enough for Noah because they 'can't see each other in the night'.)

*****

Adam finished his state quarters, with the help of Grandma and Auntie Jen Jen. 

A- How much is a completed state quarters collection worth? 

M- Twelve dollars and fifty cents.  Seems like it would be more, huh? 

A- Yeah, I don't think I'll spend it unless we really, really need some extra money. 

M- Deal. 

*****

Noah and Emma were playing Twister and having a hard time keeping track of right hand and left hand.  

M- Right hand.  That's your left hand.  You write with your right hand. 

N- Oh! Right and left!  Just like when I play the piano!

E- Noah, your right and left are always your right and left. 

*****

N, while we were driving home in the car- Hey! I think I lost my tooth. Like actually lost it! I can't find it!

M- Did you spit it out of your mouth? 

N- No. 

M- Did you swallow it? 

N- I think so! I think I swallowed it with a Raisel.

M- Okay.... well you can look in your poop to see if it's there in a few days.  Or you can just write a note to the tooth fairy and tell her that you lost it. 

The next morning, N- I just went to the bathroom, so.... (gestures meaningfully toward the toilet). 

M- Buddy, please just write a note to the tooth fairy explaining what happened. 

N- Okay!  

Flush!