Wrapping Paper

For some reason, Emma was obsessed with this wrapping paper today. I picked it out at the store to wrap her birthday presents in and immediately she wanted to hold it. Mind you, it is a HUGE roll of wrapping paper. I tried putting it in the back of the cart, but she kept reaching for it and cried until I placed it across the front of the cart where she could hold on to it. When I had to pay for it, it was the same story, tears until the cashier handed it back. Since I couldn't hold the wrapping paper and her while I walked out to the car, I asked Kali to carry it and Emma started to cry again. I thought for sure she'd forget about it, but once we got in the car, she started crying harder and harder until Kali finally laid it on top of her. She stopped crying immediately. Then at home, she continued to play with it for a good twenty to thirty minutes longer. I have no idea why she was so obsessed with it, but it was pretty funny to watch.

GNI - Girls Night In

Girls Night In! With Josh gone on a scout camp, I decided to have a little fun with the girls. I've been wanting to do a sleepover in the basement for quite a while now and tonight felt like the perfect night to do it. We started the evening out with french toast for dinner. Then we did a bit of fingernail painting. After that, I managed to drag Kali's mattress down the stairs and set up a comfy sleeping place for all three girls. I, of course, would be taking the couch. We played the Wii, read books, and watched a movie. The girls loved it! Now I just worry that they'll be asking for this kind of a thing on a regular basis. However, based solely on the effort required to move the mattress, I won't be doing this very frequently.

Crazy Hair Day

This week is Spirit Week at school and today was Crazy Hair Day. Grandma Brown let the girls borrow her awesome wigs and they were a big hit. Kali said everyone wanted to try hers on, and Sadie said everyone kept saying how cute she was. They were also allowed to wear facial hair, hence the mustache and glasses and Sadie's teacher colored the green one on her face.

It's A Small World After All

Ashlyn has decided that she has a new favorite song, It's a Small World After All. We listen to it over and over again in the car, and she loves to sing to it at the top of her lungs. As a matter of fact, she insists that the song gets louder and louder and that's why she does it.

Sleepless Nights

This little turkey has made it hard to get a good night sleep the last few nights. She has figured out how to sit up on her own but for some reason can't figure out how to lay back down. Instead she cries and cries until we come in and lay her down. Unfortunately it's happening multiple times a night.

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day was a little different this year. Sadie got a random fever the day before so she had to miss out on all the fun. She was, however, a really good sport about it. I felt really bad and went ahead and finished her valentine box, the pig, anyway and sent her valentines to school with Kali. Thankfully her teacher was really thoughtful and collected a bag full of valentines from her classmates. She lit up when Kali brought them home for her.

Josh and I gave each of the girls a large sticker book where you put faces on people as well as a coupon for an ice cream date with Dad. Both were a big hit. The girls also got into the spirit of giving. Before I even said a single word to Kali that morning, she came up to me and said, "Happy Valentine's Day" and gave me that huge heart with the I Love You hand glued on it. Sadie also had a valentine prepared and had been talking about it all week long. Unfortunately, she couldn't find it on Valentine's Day. She was in tears, but I assured her it was okay and that it would eventually show up. Later in the day she informed me that she had a new valentine for Josh and I and that it was a hug. I thought that was very thoughtful of her. I did end up finding her valentine stashed away in a drawer in the playroom even though she insisted she had put it on her bed the night before. Who knows how it got there. Silly girl. We also worked on heart flowers earlier in the week to give to grandmas and grandpas and drove around to delivered them on Valentine's Day. I think it ended up being one of the girls' favorite parts about the day because I let them ring the doorbells and run. Ashlyn even participated this year and thought it was great. Now she wants to do that every time we go to visit grandmas and grandpas.

Kali also had a unique Valentine's Day because not only did she get the usual valentines, but one of the boys in her class gave her a special valentine too. It was a box full of candy and a card from him. She was very kind to him about it but said that he acted very shy after he gave her the box. I'm just glad that she's not old enough yet for me to need to be too concerned about it. Although, I do know that that particular boy isn't her only admirer. Earlier in the week all the kids in her class made valentines during art that they were supposed to give to a classmate. When I picked her up from school, her friend was saying that no one gave her a valentine but that Kali got valentines from all the boys. I didn't think much of it until I found her stash the next day at home. She got four or five from the boys in her class. I hope this isn't a sign of what's to come. If so, we're going to have our hands full.

Planet Play

We purchased the pass of all passes for our family this year and decided to take advantage of an opportunity to use them. We went to Planet Play and although we chose a super busy day and time to go, we at least got to play a game of miniature golf. It was fun to see the girls' personalities as we played. Kali was so concerned about getting the lowest number that her eight hits were often counted as four or less. Sadie didn't care so much for the number. As a matter of fact, she didn't seem concerned with any of the rules. She loved the holes that had obstacles because she'd get to use her hand to roll the ball where it needed to go. Ashlyn also loved the obstacles but she insisted on hitting the ball with her club even though she never used the right end and couldn't get to ball to go more than a couple of feet. She also quickly lost interested in the game and spent the majority of the time walking along the borders to see how well she could keep her balance.

Discovery Recital

Kali had her yearly discovery recital and this year she was in the "Kids Act Up" class. Her group acted out commercials for the performance. And although the commercials were pretty lame, Kali did an excellent job at putting a lot of drama into the short 30 seconds she was on stage. Her favorite part, however, was the surprise they saved for the end. They did the Gangnum Style dance.

11 Months Old

Emmalyn has hit a very fun stage. She's learning how to say things and her personality shows through. It's hard not to smile at some of the things she does. She likes to give hugs and usually pats you on the back while doing so. She has perfected the "Ah-Oh" and has started saying "Aa-aa" for "Ashy". One day she started saying "no, no, no" while shaking her finger. And although she still isn't crawling, she can spin circles in a sitting position super fast.