Monday, November 29, 2010

A Season of Traditions






It's sunny and warm outside today and for Iowa, I'm pretty sure that's not typical this time of year. There is no snow on the ground and the temperature remains at a comfortable and cool 45 degrees. I remember last year around this time, there were a couple feet of snow on the ground and we had already attempted to build a snowman. This year, it's been quite pleasant and nice to have a few extra days of dry weather and easy driving conditions. The weather was amazing last week and it was perfect weather for all the activities that we wanted and needed to get done.

Last week was Thanksgiving and we had a full week. We spent most of it at home, doing multiple loads of laundry and disinfecting everything in the house due to the stomach flu taking its toll on every member of our household. Poor little Simon was infected first and hard. He was getting sick every couple of minutes or so and this seemed to last for hours. This was Monday night. Tuesday was uneventful, but all of us were constantly questioning if we were feeling ill of just thinking about it too much. Wednesday night Ethan was sick. We then decided to postpone some of our extended family activities to Saturday morning and have Thanksgiving dinner at home which was very difficult for us. Thursday night, after the turkey dinner, Thomas was ill and then Friday, I got sick. It was a long week but needless to say, we still managed to fit in some family traditions that Thomas and I have been talking about establishing now while the boys are young.

We did decorate ginger bread houses and put up our Christmas tree. The boys loved opening all the ornaments and nowadays with all the lights and sounds ornaments, who needs gifts under the tree! The tree is like a magnet and we are doing our best to keep them from pulling the entire thing down. The boys spent over three hours the other morning helping Thomas put the Lionel train under the tree. They are mesmerized by the train and absolutely love pulling the lever by themselves. It's so fun to watch their eyes twinkle as they watch the tree and train underneath. It almost makes me feel like a kid again. Thomas did a great job putting up our Christmas lights on the exterior house. We are trying to figure out if we want to go LED or not. We both don't care for the look as much as the traditional but the saving and durability of the LED's might be worth sacrificing the look. We did end up buying a few for the front tree, but Thomas isn't sure they are staying. It's going to get pretty cold here soon that I don't think we'll do much about it. They will probably stay at least for this year.

Despite the illnesses that swept through our house, it was a fun week and I think the boys will look forward to Thanksgiving traditions next year based on the fun things we started this year.

Jennifer

Monday, November 15, 2010

Just an Update




So I believe this would be day 4 that the boys have been sleeping together in the same room. WIth only a few minor bumps in the road, we have decided that this could be permanent (at least more permanent than just a couple days). The frist night was a bit rough as they were both confused as to why I was singing to both of them at the same time and that when I left the room, things were different than usual. FOr Simon, he had so sleep with the door cracked open which has never happened. He has always had his room dark with no extra lights. As for Ethan, he had to adjust quickly to Simon's loud babbling and shouting as he has always needed a little time to settle down before he gets his thumb in his mouth to quiet down and sleep. So, they both had to compromise a bit, but that's the point! It's about sharing and understanding how we respect each others desire and need for sleep! It hasn't been easy for Thomas and I as they have been waking several times through the night for various different reasons (having to go potty, needing more blankets, awakening from the other siblings cough etc...) Thomas has been so understanding and gracious to help out at night. It's been working out well however we have felt recently that we are dealing with a newborn again simply because of the fact that we are waking more than before. I think that this will just take time but it's great to know that they actually like and get excited about falling asleep together. Overall I would say success!!! We did wake this morning to Ethan asking Simon if he could tell him a story around 5:45am. The story had to do with his disapproval of last nights dinner and something about his make believe dragon friends, Freddie and Eddie. I'm not sure how it went but Simon was not impressed. They both fell back asleep until 7am or at least were quiet until then. Ethan knows that he is not allowed to leave his bed until the numbers match on his alarm clock. I have blocked the minutes with the number 7 to prevent Ethan getting out of bed so early. It's been fun to listen in on their conversations. I'm sure they will get more and more animated as they grow up. =)

These are pictures from our family movie night. Ethan and Simon both LOVE popcorn and we watched Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin. Even though Halloween is over, Ethan couldn't wait to watch it. Simon wasn't too impressed but it was still a fun time! Ethan also made a snow globe at preschool today! He did such a great job and even though we had to bring it home and patch up a few leaky spots, the Xmas tree and snowman were placed perfectly! Way to go Ethan! Simon wasn't involved in the making of a snow globe, but he did create one big art project on his food tray and face with his slice of pie! We had some pie after lunch today and Simon loved mushing it with his hands. He oftentimes will decide that it's too much work to use a fork or spoon and takes the liberty to use his hands! I'm all about it! It makes for a great picture and less dishes! =) Fun Times!

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Sharing a Room!



THe boys and I spent the afternoon cleaning, sorting and rearranging most of the upstairs today as we have made up our minds and decided to conduct a risky experiment. As of today at 3pm, the boys are sharing a room together. I don't know how this will work, especially after the long bedtime routine tonight because it took me about half an hour just to explain to Ethan how this was all going to work out. Like instead of screaming "Mama, Dada" first thing in the morning, he has to quietly whisper into the monitor and let us know that he is up. He was a little worried about how we were going to hear him through this little device so we checked it together several times. He would listen to me talk to him from his bed as he was listening in our bedroom. He had to tell Simon several times to lay down and that it was time to be quiet and go to bed. Simon was a bit confused himself especially because he has never had to sleep with the door cracked open. Ethan usually has a light on in his room but was willing to say that the crack in the door would suffice. I think we will give it a couple of days and go from there. I think after the initial getting used to it, they will love being together. They are such great buds during the day that I think it will be something that builds their connection and friendship with each other. If not either of these, I am hoping that they will keep each other company in the morning and stay in the room just a few minutes longer so that we can get just a few more minutes of sleep =). This is probably less likely, but maybe they'll surprise us. Needless to say, it was a fun afternoon and we shared quite a few laughs and funny stories together. The pictures are of where Ethan's bed used to be and we replaced it with his book shelf and puppet theatre. We converted his bedroom into a playroom/reading corner. I think he likes the new look!

Monday, November 8, 2010

Before and After



Thought I should post some before and after pics of the big boy haircut. It was pretty tough cutting all those curls, but it was definitely time. Like I said before, he looks so much more like Ethan and really much more like a boy. Too cute!

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Happy Halloween!





A couple nights ago, Thomas and I, along with his sister and parents, all took the kids trick or treating in Ames. Beggar's night is what they call it was on Friday night and Thomas' family was able to make it to enjoy the fun with us. It was so fun watching all the kids follow each other from house to house. Ethan dressed up as a dragon, Simon was a lion (Ethan's costume from last year) and Grace was a monkey. Simon only wore his hood half the time but Ethan loved every part of his costume! He's been looking forward to wearing it for weeks now. It's actually a costume sized for 4/5 year olds, so I'm hoping that it will be just as cool to him next year and we can make use of it for two years. Poor Simon will probably be everything Ethan has been in the past. It's ok because Simon really looks up to Ethan and is all about anything that Ethan gets excited about. They are buddies...most of the time. We walked north a couple of blocks and made sure to visit the our neighbors train, the singing pirates, and the scary house with spooky music playing. Ethan has a very vivid memory when it comes to trick or treating. He remembers all the houses where decorations were put up. He really takes after his dad and loves to be scared. It does backfire once in a while when he wakes up at night due to something frightening he saw or heard that day. Thomas is quick to reassure him that it's ok and he will always be safe. We had a great weekend with family and friends and were pretty exhausted going into the next week. Thomas has been putting in quite a few hours working on finishing the basement. His Dad has been helping with the electrical work this past weekend and I will post pictures of the lights once they are all in. This past Saturday, Mom and Dad Fawcett were in town (helping with the basement) and they took us all to the ISU vs Nebraska game. It was so much fun and even though ISU suffered a tough loss, it was a valiant effort and a great game to see. Ethan really enjoyed being so close on the hillside and SImon enjoyed eating a bowl of popcorn all by himself. He had a bit of a cold so no one really cared to share with him. It was a great time, beautiful weather and lots of new memories. The weather has been absolutely beautiful this fall and I almost feel ready for winter. I can't believe I'm saying this but really, the fall has been so nice that I feel ok about it getting real cold. It's November and I feel like it's going to happen pretty soon. I worked out in the garden today to prepare for the cold. We were all out together getting things put away and closed up for the months ahead. It's kind of sad to close up the sand box and put away all the outdoor toys but at the same time, we can't wait to open up the Christmas decorations and pick out our tree. I love the changing seasons! It's one of the best parts of living in Iowa! You can't get that in Cali!

Oh and when we were trick or treating with the boys, several people looked at Simon and said Oh, she is so cute! I said to Thomas that I thought it was time for a big boy hair cut. He agreed and so I cut the long hair off! He looks so much older and has received many compliments on his new hair cut. He looks great and even more like Ethan. You can definitely tell they are bothers. Too cute!