The Burden Of A Tsunami Watchman

Jeff gives the kid's their nightly baths.

I find this, his most enduring quality. O.k. one of his most enduring qualities.

I have to admit bathtime is no funtime...most days.

One must be tsunami storm watcher, boxing ref, lifeguard, stern shrilly screamer, wet slippery seal/ child herder and animal hooded towel costume coordinator(they must be matching animals, of course).

Most evenings Jeff ascends from the depths of h...I mean the bathroom and looks defeated.

Two matching green frogs busting past him in a sprint for the hall yelling, "ribbit, ribbit, ribbit".

He is half soaked along with the floor. He smells of lavender Johnson & Johnson's soap which sorry to say, just doesn't smell the same on an adult or at least Jeff.

I love that he takes the burden of bathtime. Especially since I am busy doing(acting like) I have dishes or laundry to do.

Thank you tsunami watchman.

On another note, Fieldin tried to ride the bus today. He was equipped with his coat, knit cap, mini backpack and two cool kindergartner's in tow as we walked to the bus stop. He stayed in front of the pack constantly asking them "are you coming?" & "keep up". He waited in line for the bus with a delighted look on his face. He ignored those skeptics that tried to tell him"you have to be 5 to go to school" or "you are too small to climb the bus stairs". He ended up trying to make a break for the bus as the kids trudged on. Even though he gave poor doe eyes to the bus driver, it turns out he is too small to climb the bus steps. A sad day for pudger. We walked home, with him saying" mommy I ride bus, I go to school" In due time I told him. Once the backpack was dropped at the front door his Little People school bus was found and he played until thoughts of school were forgotten.. which was about 4 minutes.

More Griswald

A lazy Sunday.

Greta and I enjoyed watching Tangled at the theatre. It was wonderful. Greta dressed ALL up in party dress and glittery shoes. Hair curled and wearing Burts Bees lipcolor for "our date". I love dates with Greta. My Clark Griswald found some time to get outside for more decorating and we now own another Christmas inflatable...

Starting to deck the halls
Our newest inflatable and a trimmed front yard tree.

Putting out special family holiday artwork.

and stockings hung with ribbons saying"no peeking" and "don't open until Christmas".

We are still adjusting to Winter weather here. This year Jeff wore shorts, flip flops and a sweatshirt to decorate instead of the snow bibs he wore last year in Pullman. So strange. Nice, but strange.

It Took Less Than 12 Hours...

For this lil' Rascal to find wrapped Christmas presents. I admit I didn't hide them well but he found them first thing. Greta still hasn't seen them. Surprisingly, Fieldin, usually runs to his sister and shares any spy like info that is to their advantage and the two of them start scheming. This discovery must have been to huge, since he kept his finding to himself. Smart lad. After staring dumbfounded for a few seconds he found a play cell phone and called his friend Mickey Mouse for help. He described the wrapping paper to Mickey, which presents he thought were his..(Thomas and Goofy paper) and he needed "help!" Mickey must have had a prior engagement 'cause he never showed. Attempt #2 was dragging in his large garbage truck to climb up to the presents. "Too High" he grunted and headed back to the playroom. He returned with a play baby stroller which he called his "present cart". When we didn't fill it for him, he finally gave up and set up a nice tea party for himself(below).

"what that???" he said.
Enjoying a little peace and a tea party. After this, he set up a grocery store where everything cost $15,008.
We took the kids to a drive through Christmas light wonderland tonight. It was very cute and the kids loved it. They have some fun Holiday activities around here. While driving, Greta volunteered to help Fieldin write his letter to santa. What is he asking for? A real live penguin. "real live penguin, Greta! real live penguin" As my dad said, if you are going to dream, dream big. As for Greta, I have a feeling her letter will be 10 pages long, she is wishing very big this year!
On an unrelated note, Fieldin told me he is glad he is "called Fieldin, not Hans. I like Fieldin" I wonder what goes on in that two year old brain of his....

Gobble Gobble

Weather and traffic didn't cooperate with us this year. We really wanted to go to my dad's house for Thanksgiving but didn't make it. We were sad, especially the little ones. We hung around home instead and visited a neighbor's house in the evening for Pie Fest.

Watching Thanksgiving Charlie Brown...again!
Greta hanging under the tree after dinner.

Caught in the act!! Eating all the olives, on their fingers of course.

A game of pin the pilgrim hat on the turkey. Jeff's a little off the mark. I can't talk, I ended up in the hallway.

And a morning of the Macy's day parade. Fieldin loved it. Especially the Sesame Street float. Greta liked the dancing and Rockette's.

A Little Snow..

(Greta and her sweet friend made ornaments for our tree)
Our Skiff of snow. School was cancelled(don't laugh!) Thanks to rare snow memories from childhood, I guessed the skiff would melt in 2 hours. I got us out side early so we could enjoy it!

He was sooo excited"mommy SNOW!" "Get me dressed for SNOW!" "Wow"
He was too impatient to get his snow boots on, so we had to settle for his rain boots.

(Trying to make a snow man... me reminding them we weren't in Pullman anymore:)

So happy.

It's 9 p.m. and I am watching the Cougs win at basketball, so far(at least we can win at something :)) I hear lil' man, who should be in bed...ahem... shouting "awesome dunk!" "shoot the ball"..There is also alot of high fiving going on over there.. Sounds like he is learning alot from his daddy tonight.

Because Christmas Isn't For Shouting

Christmas is no time for shouting, time outs or broken glass, which is why we put up a tree that the kids can pull, poke, pinch...you get the picture. This year our Christmas theme is retro 50's.

We have lots of pastels, glitter and old fashioned ornaments on our tree. We even stuck fun small bells on the end of the limbs which the kids love. You can hear ding ding ding...through the house. Ornaments are made and attached to the tree, decorations are moved around, toys are placed within the limbs. Naps are taken under it...and best of all there is no stress. No worries of anyone getting hurt or anything getting broken.

Glitter birds, bells and antique wooden ornaments.

Glitter pointsettas, balls, stars and pine cones for extra sparkle.

And on an unrelated note. Here is a conversation going on behind me. Fieldin is standing on the kitchen bench eating applesauce and singing the WSU fight song happily. Then Greta starts to sing.

F: No sister!!! I sing.

G: Noo.. I can sing too.

F: Time out sister! I sing song.

He sings all day everyday. It melts my heart. I also love hearing them sing together but sometimes, they don't want to share the lime light. I live with divas.

A Little Flurry

We had a very short flurry of snow.

It didn't stick.

There is no sign of it anymore.

But it did happen, I saw it.

It was my first Oregon snow.

Light, wispy and lovely.

It only lasted a few minutes but

I hope it visits again.

A little reminder of our

past winters in Eastern WA

It is always fun to watch from inside a warm comfy house.

Not so fun to drive in as I remember too well.

Wait, more snow out the window again. Melting in the roads.

Off to bed for me. Will the snow globe still be around in the morning?

I want so badly to wake up the kids to share, but know it's a bad idea. Only if there wasn't school tomorrow... There is a skiff of snow collecting in the grass.

People told me it never snowed here. What a happy surprise!

If things are still like they were when I was younger, a little snow here means

most things shut down. I guess I will have to wait til' morning.

Be safe everyone. I know Washington got it's fair share today.