Being a Responsible Mother

I forgot these two fellas at school the other day.

I took a nap, and slept right through my alarm!

I was only 20 minutes late, and they didn't care--frankly, they were excited to go into Extended Day for a bit.

They've made it clear, though, that they are never going to let me live it down.

Wise cracks all around!

Taking a Break from Party Prepping

Chalk Fest

Last weekend, Josh and I headed down to Old Town to cheer on the Wallace girls at Chalk Fest.

Josh Oliver happily plopped down with an icee in hand and acted as a roadblock!

I wish I came even remotely close to drawing as well as they do! All three of them are incredible!!

He Bought Her an Icee....

On Your Marks

The boys have joined the swim team this year!

It's a first for us.

We didn't know what to expect going in, but they are doing amazing and they absolutely love it! (Well, Henry almost threw in the towel until his favorite, cute girl joined the team, but that's another story!)

I'm so proud of all three of them!

These Kids...

There is no better way to spend a day then taking a road trip that involves seeing the Becker kids!!

Headed Across the Pond

A few years back--Henry says 4, I think 2,--Henry and Gran decided that they would go to England IF he saved up for his plane ticket.

Up until that point, Henry was a terrible saver. If he had a dollar, it had to be spent. It didn't matter if he spent it on himself or someone else, he just had to buy something. 

I figured there was no way they would ever go, but suddenly he started saving like crazy! 

He skipped toy presents in exchange for money, hoarded his allowances, and started dreaming of business ideas--my favorite was his 1st one, "Hunt 'n Stuff," a taxidermy service!

It was absolutely nuts how he did such an immediate 180 with his money!

Now, he has finally saved up enough for a ticket and HE'S GOING TO ENGLAND!!

May cannot get here soon enough!

--I offered the same deal to the other boys, but so far no one's really started saving. I wish one of them would bite because I really want to go somewhere.  I'm praying for New England!  Perhaps I need to start researching specifics to get them excited and on board!

The Aftermath of KU's Big Loss

Yesterday, as in the day after KU's tragic loss to WSU, Ben and I went to the sports store to get Josh a last minute birthday present and to finally get a front license plate for the Acadia--we are right on top of that to-do list!

Unfortunately, we had trouble finding all the KU gear in the massive sea of black and yellow.  When we did finally find them, the racks were all literally SHOVED IN THE CORNER.

On the plus side, we got a great discount on Josh's new hat!

The Giant Oreo

Josh Oliver turned 8 yesterday...and he had school!

We are always on Spring Break when his birthday rolls around, so this year was quite a treat for him!

I surprised him with a giant homemade oreo cake. It was made from a reject batch of dough so it looks better than it tastes, but he boys were impressed...and they still ate it! 

Happy Birthday, Ollie Boy!!

Taking Over the Empire

While Josh and I were busy binging on Netflix, the rest of the house used Spring Break as a round the clock "King's Empire" game-a-thon.

There have been endless discussions about cities, gems, allies, scheduled attacks.....it's all over my head. 

They keep trying to recruit me, but I resist at all costs.   

I already have plenty in my list of time-wasters!

For the Love of Netflix

Ollie and I powered through the entire season of "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" in just over a week.

Hilarious...and a bit pathetic on our part!

My next show to draw the boys into is "The Wonder Years".  I don't quite have them hooked yet, but a few more episodes and the deed will be done!

Josh's interpretation of what he looks like during a funny part of the show.  He's a faker!  

Getting Ready for Spring

Today is the day that we unbury ourselves from the winter.

The yard is mowed, leaves are cleaned up, garage is swept out and organized once again.  I've even put away our coats, although, I'm sure they'll reappear before all is said and done.

But, today, we are looking forward to spring and dreaming about summer!

The countdown is on!!

The Downside of Growing Up

I've made a new rule in the house.....You Wear It, You Wash It.

It was met with groans by all!

Fire 101

Nearly every day, Luke asks me if he can build a fire.

I am completely useless when it comes to the fireplace, so he always has to wait until Ben is around...and awake!

I'm sure he has a good idea about what he's doing, but I can't risk being the responsible adult in charge if something catches on fire.

One of these days he'll get cleared to fly solo.

We are both anxiously awaiting it!

One Last Hurrah

Today was the last day of Christmas Holiday.  

Our last day of sleeping in and wide open days.

So sad.

I figured we'd make the most of things, but we got a jump start on our regular routine and went to 7:30 Mass and then promptly came home and took naps and vegged out in front of the TV for the morning.

It was painfully clear that tomorrow is going to be a rough day for all of us night owls!

Catching up on some sleep before hitting the sledding hill

By afternoon, however, the fresh snow started calling our names!

Ben and I wimped out and only made a couple of trips down the hill each--it was super cold, plus I'm apparently still terrified of the dip in the hill after last years fiasco!--but the boys tore it up for about an hour.

After that it was back home for more lounging around.  I hoped to get a couple chapters in our book read, but nope.  I just couldn't find the energy.  Instead we watched Malcolm in the Middle--the boys favorite newly discovered show! 

It wasn't quite the day that I had planned, but, really, it was just what we needed.

Back to our routine in the morning...

At Least The Bathrooms Are Clean....

Judging by the state of my house, we all apparently went on a cleaning holiday once the boys were out of school.  

We've kept up with the essentials, but not much beyond that.

Today, however, I needed to get at least one clean space.

The boys were enlisted to get the basement picked up and the bathroom cleaned.  I lured them into my chores with a promise of Orange Leaf for a job well done.

The rest of the house is still a disaster, including the basement, but I've got not one, but two clean bathrooms!  I've decided to give myself until Monday, when we sadly say goodbye to our schedule free days, before I start really cracking down on the mess.

One more day left....I always hate sending them back to school.