Leotards

I've mentioned before how much Eli and Sadie love gymnastics. Well, if you're going to go to gymnastics, you better look the part. I found a couple of really cute leotards at Once Upon A Child for a steal so I bought them so Sadie could wear them to class. Here she is saying "ta-da".

The only problem with Sadie's new leotards is that Eli likes them A LOT. He wanted to wear them all the time. He'd put one on, run around and say, "let's wrestle". He couldn't figure out why Sadie could wear one to gymnastics, but he couldn't. (This decision came after a long discussion between mom and dad one evening about a child being two and doing what he wants to do versus social norms. It was hard because we've never told him before that something is considered "boy" or "girl" before. But, now he knows and he says it often that "Leotards are for girls".). So, after much search on e-bay for a reasonably priced unitard that was not pink, black velvet, or sparkly in any way, shape or form, we came up with this (this is Eli in his "wrestling stance"):

It's a little big, but it's not pink, velvety, or sparkly, it was cheap and as an added bonus it's Buckeye colors. Perfect! He wore it to gymnastics today and I think it made him jump higher.

Did You See the Latest Blog Feature?

There is a new feature on the blog. "Kids Say the Darndest Things" is down the right hand column under the links to Eli's and Sadie's favorite places. I'm not sure how often I'll update it. I guess it depends on what they say!!

Always Wear Your Rubbers...

...when you're splashing in puddles.

Sadie in action...

...and a smile.
Eli in action...
...and a smile.It was a very good day!

What To Do On A Snow Day??

Dance in the kitchen, of course. Enjoy!

I'm Not Trying to Slack...

...but can you believe that I did not take ONE picture last week? How can that be?? Maybe next week.

Outside Time and Art

When it's nice enough we go outside:

And when it's cold we create masterpieces!

Bathtime

I hesitate to post pictures of my disgusting bathtub, but I hope you're too busy looking at the kids to notice all of the black mold! The kids love their baths and bathtime is even more fun with bubbles!

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Cool hair, dude.

Gymnastics!!!

As promised, here are some pictures of Eli and Sadie at gymnastics. They go to Wendy's Gym and are in the ones and twos class so they are in the same class. It's basically independent free play, but there are obstacle courses, a rope swing, bars, a trampoline, a foam pit and some other fun stuff that is just supposed to introduce them to the equipment and learn a few skills. They have a great time and LOVE every moment. Dennis gets to come too because he doesn't have class on Wednesday mornings when the gymnastics class is and it's a good thing because I don't think I could keep up with them otherwise. Sorry the pictures are bad. Either the kids are too fast or the camera is too slow because we got a lot of pictures that looked like this:

The Search for the Perfect Pre-School

Eli's going to be 3 in the fall which means that we can send him to pre-school. We hemmed and hawed about this but decided that Eli would benefit greatly from spending some time with other kids and adults, being in a school environment (afterall almost every kid and adult he knows goes to school) and spending some time away from mom and dad. Eli's gotten pretty clingly lately especially after he watched Nemo (only up to the scene where Nemo was taken by the scuba-diver) and deemed it the scariest movie ever and now refuses to be in a different room then we are in. So, we're on a mission to find the perfect pre-school. I know it's a bit early but classes fill up fast especially the morning times at good schools. We started searching for schools that are within a very close driving distance from our house (yes, that was our only standard). Turns out that there are about a gazillion that are pretty close to our house so we had to narrow our search down to those that are close to our house and to those that were recommended by someone (who could be a perfect stranger). We visited three this week and have two more on our list. Eli seems to like them all. Sadie too, but I don't think she knows that she's not going to pre-school--at least not in Columbus, Ohio. I really didn't think that pre-schools could be so different, but we were surprised. We visited a very "hippie" school that allows lots creative and free play, but that seemed to be about all they had planned and well, we do that at home and it just didn't seem to be a good fit for this family. I really like things neat and orderly and clean and I love schedules and plans and this school just didn't seem to have that though I do wish that I could be more creative and laid-back and I want my kids to be that way, but I really want a school-like environment that has a set curriculum and follows standards and does progress reports. We found that in another school we visited. I really like this school because it is a school and the kids were learning and having fun and following rules and reading and writing. We also visited a Private Catholic school which we also really liked and perhaps like it more than the other one as it had a very family-like atmosphere, but tuition is a bit higher and classes are a bit shorter. Only two more to check out before final decision time. Hopefully, we'll know be next Friday!

I'm also hoping to get some pictures this week of Eli and Sadie at gymnastics, which they both love, love, love. Sadie can't get enough of the trampoline and Eli totally digs the foam pit. We practically had to drag Eli out of there, which is saying a lot because he's always ready to leave.

Yes, it was 70 degrees here this week, which always scares the crap out of me even though we were outside non-stop. January and seventy degrees in Ohio just shouldn't go together. But, the week before that it was cold and snowy and we took the kids sledding. Eli loves the groovy hat...

Happy New Year!

We spent New Years morning going to Franklin Park Conservatory to see the enchanted train exhibit. The kids loved seeing the train nestled in the exotic plants and they got to stamp their passport, which was probably more fun for me!

Feeding the koi is so much fun. They are some very hungry goldfish. I love how colorful the area is with the Chihuly glass rolling around in the water. It might be my favorite place in the conservatory, but it's tough to beat the desert plants that I'm so fond of.

It's getting really really hard for Sadie to stand still for a second which is why there isn't a train in this picture. Sadie just couldn't wait for it to come around again!

Sadie managed to find the only puddle in the place and she managed to fall into the puddle while she was splashing around. It turns out that the bathrooms do not have fans only paper towels so it was a very wet ride home for her!

Eli's New Bike

After bribing Eli with M&Ms (they work for everything) we finally convinced him to ride his bike. He did great. Riding a big boy bike is very different from riding a big wheel so he has to get used to not pushing backwards as he ends up putting on the brakes. And on his hot wheel the pedals are connected to the wheel so once he gets started the momentum keeps him going, but on the big boy bike he has to push quite hard to keep himself moving. But, as you can see, he's getting the hang of it already.

The Blog Gets a New Look for 2008

As you may have noticed, I have been playing around with some of bloggers fine options. There is the great new picture of the kids, a list of links to places that we love to frequent, and a new poll. I changed the colors awhile back to Scarlet and Gray in honor of The OSU Buckeyes. It may change again, but give me some feedback.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

I'm a little late at posting Christmas pics. but they're really not all that exciting. As I'm sure I've stated before, this was the first year that Dennis and I have not made it to North Dakota since we were married (a whole 5 years ago yesterday!). We greatly missed our families, but we did enjoy the peacefulness that comes with not traveling over the holidays. We ate Christmas Eve dinner before mass at 5:30 and opened presents as soon as we got home. We spent most of Christmas day in our pjs eating and playing and napping. It was splendid.
The kids got way too many presents which I guess is the American way. Eli got lots and lots of new games: Cariboo, Candyland Castle, Elefun, and Treasure Quest. He loves them all and wants to play them ALL THE TIME! Not that Dennis and I don't love games. It's just that Sadie is not quite ready for them so it ends up being a battle everytime. Sadie loves Elefun though. She just stands there, holding the net and laughing as the butterflies fly out of the elephants trunk, but she never catches any butterflies.
This was the year of the stuffed animal for Sadie. People must know how much I dislike stuffed animals. No, it's not that I don't like them, it's that I don't have the room for a gazillion stuffed animals. And now Sadie has about 50. Don't worry. We keep them caged in her crib and she sleeps on the floor.


Opening presents was a very serious job for Sadie. She really preferred playing in the paper and boxes.


Eli got the job of "gift opener" this year. He opened everyones presents and said, "Wow!", "That's nice." or "I like this." after opening every gift, even if it belonged to me or Dennis.

Santa Claus came and brougt Eli just what he asked for for Christmas-- a big boy bike. So, why isn't Eli sitting on the bike in this picture? Because, Eli will have nothing to do with the bike. He tells everyone he got a big boy bike and how much he likes it, but that's about as far as it goes.

Santa brought Sadie this way cool retro-kitchen. (Notice the stuffed animals falling out of the toy box in the background.)

"Don't send anymore stuffed animals. I have enough."

How To Make Cookies From A Kid's Perspecitve

It was one of those days that if I didn't find something to do I was going to go crazy. Eli and I had a bit of an argument over him pushing Sadie and to make the day better, I suggested to Eli that we make cookies. He said that he wanted to eat cookies and I had to tell him that it would be awhile before we got to the eating part, but it would be fun!

Here's how Eli makes cookies (from his point of view):
1. Go to the internet and pick out a recipe. Have your mom get all the ingredients together. Put on your apron and wait patiently while she measures out the ingredients so you can pour them into the bowl. Then, whenever you want turn the mixer on and off and change the speed to whatever you want. It is really fun to put it on high right after your mom adds the flour! Make your sister sit and watch telling her "No touch" the whole time.


2. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, put it in the fridge to chill, eat lunch and take a nap while dough chills.

3. Roll the dough out. Do not let your sister help. She might eat all of the dough.


4. Cut out the cookies using your favorite cookie cutters. Let your sister make ONE, but only with the cookie cutter that you don't like very much.

**We put sprinkles on our cookies before we baked them. Sprinkles are pretty boring, but mom didn't have any powdered sugar to make frosting which would have meant a trip to the store which normally wouldn't be a big deal as it's only a couple of blocks away, but dad was working and had the car which houses the double stroller in it's trunk. Mom just didn't feel like carrying me and Sadie and powdered sugar for 3 blocks especially when the wind is blowing at 50 miles an hour. AND she tells me that frosting is really messy (I love messes) and that no one really likes cookies with frosting on them anyways (I have other opinions.) I tell you, that woman is just plain old lazy!


5. Then you put them in the oven to bake. The hardest part is waiting for the cookies to cool off so you can eat them. It takes practically forever.


6. Eat them with a glass a milk. They're delicious.

My House Is A Mess and A Bonnet

I LOVE having a clean house that has everything picked up and is clutter free. It makes me happy. I sleep better, I am more comfortable, and I breathe easier. With that being said my house, since having kids, usually looks like this:


And this:


And this:

It drives me crazy. Want to come visit? (OK, I started cleaning up right after I took the picture because I can hardly stand it. I would say I pick up about 300 times a day...)

I've been working on this bonnet for weeks. Not that it was hard, but Christmas crafts came up and then my sewing machine was being fixed for another 3 weeks and then I had to bake and blah, blah, blah... I love it. Sadie hates it. Whatever.


Even Eli wanted to wear it. Check out this outfit. Eli picked it out. It's part of his "Big Boy" phase. You know, the I-don't-wear-diapers-I-sleep-in-a-big-boy-bed-I-can-dress-myself phase. I think he thought it matched. The shirt and pants are both green and both have stripes. Like father, like son.

Random...

Here are some random pictures from the past week.

Sadie: It's what's for dinner.


Getting rides in the laundry basket.


Our first snow of the season. (Sadie really really does not like the snow!)

Eli talking to Grandma.


Some other things that were not photographed this week: Eli peeing on the big boy potty instead of the potty chair (yea!) and a true test of Eli's potty skills as we traveled to Pittsburgh and Eli had NO ACCIDENTS the whole trip--not even in the car on the way (yea, yea, yea!!!). Me going completely insane with two crazy kids at the library. Sadie just could not stop pulling everything off the shelves or pulling the names out of the reserved books, and kicking her boots off every second and me carrying a baby, 2 bags, 3 coats, and a whole lot of books (at the time, I swore I was never going to the library again.). A trip to the doctor for Sadie's sinus infection and oozy eyes. Dennis and I going on a date for the first time in a long long time to see John Prine and getting lost a gazillion times in Pittsburgh (I tell you, that city does not have one straight street.). Eli telling Santa that he wanted a bike for Christmas, but refusing to sit on his lap for any length of time. AND one third year pharmacy student (and his wife and kids) checking off yet another finals week!! Bring on Christmas Vacation.

O, Christmas Tree

We went out early this morning searching for the perfect Christmas Tree. We walked over to the OSU Forestry Department's annual sale that's only a block away and we asked for the "skinniest, shortest, cheapest" tree they had and they did a great job meeting our requirements. Dennis carried the tree home and Eli still thought it was silly that we were going to put a big tree in our house. However, the first thing he said when he saw the tree set up was, "cool!" which is the first time that I've ever heard him say that before!

Sadie and I strung the lights while Eli was napping. Sadie is a great helper!

My tradition with the kids is to buy them each a new ornament each year that represents who they are or what they liked that particular year. I write their name and the year on the bottom of the ornament. So, when they grow up and leave home they can have a few ornaments to take with them to put on their tree. And I'm hoping that eventually they start looking forward to the ornament and reminisce about the ornaments as they put them on the tree. The each have a "Baby's first Christmas" ornament, and last year Eli got a train ornament. This year, I found a man selling these at the OSU football game and I thought that Eli and Sadie should have a Brutus Buckeye ornament to represent their time in OSU Family Housing. It's quite tacky, but they love it.

Eli was very into hanging the ornaments.

He was on a mission. No time to play, he just hung ornament after ornament.

Unlike her brother, Sadie played the whole time. She loved the balls.


After we told her "No!" for the fiftieth time, she tried to hide behind the tree to play with the balls.

Our very first real Christmas Tree. Isn't it pretty? Don't ask about Eli and the goggles. He just really wanted to wear them.

It's A Blurry Picture...

...Of Sadie in a Santa hat.

PS Only one more day of this blogging everyday business. Whew.