Where did February go?

Life has been really crazy around here. I have so much on my plate and not near enough time to do it all. Thankfully I have been able to get all of my commitments done but unfortunately my chores around the house have suffered. I finally came the conclusion that this new crazy is what my life as become and I need to find a way to get it all in. I don't see things changing anytime soon so I just have to find a way to fit it all in. I am not sure how but it is going to happen.

So what have we been up to? Madison has just finished her basketball season. She did an awesome job and really grew as a player. Kevin and I really enjoyed watching her play. She is a shy timid girl by nature so she struggles with getting aggressive on the court but boy when she does get aggressive nothing is stops her. One time in practice when they were scrimmaging, Madison went up to get a rebound and another girl was right there too. Madison fought so hard for the ball she pulled the other girl off the floor. It is always fun to watch her and I look forward to the many years that we have to watch her play. Madison also got to go skiing for the first time with her fifth grade class. I was very nervous to send her but I knew she was in great hands. She was excited to ski but really didn't know what to expect. Her two best friends were there and that made all the difference. She had a great time but isn't sure that she will go again. I told her that I didn't blame her. I really wanted to go us so I could get better pictures but life just did not allow for it. Oh well I did get a picture of Madison and some snow. I guess she is on her skies but we just can't see it.

Allison still has one more week of basketball and then hers will be over. 2nd grade basketball is just great. They are old enough that understand but coordination is still developing. Allison has done a great job and is really developing into a good ball player. Allison is the one in the red shorts stealing the ball.

Ashley has been just being Ashley. A few months ago she told me that I needed a new car and a new house. I ask her why and she said that our car needed a DVD player and we need a house with stairs. Well part of Ashley's wish has come true. We found a really great deal on a newer suburban then the one that we already had so we thought we should jump on it. Ashley now has her car with a DVD player. I really hope that her other wish comes true. The suburban was down in California by LA. Kevin and Allison flew down and brought the car back. Allison loved the adventure and couldn't believe all the cool places that she got to see. They had a layover in San Fransisco and LA before reaching there final destination of Inoykern, California. Allison got to see the Hollywood sign from the air and the Golden Gate Bridge. On the way home they drove through Las Vegas and Kevin took a detour down the strip so Allison could see all the lights and buildings.
They really had a great time and thankfully made it home safely.

This last week Kevin and I got to switch our roles for a few days. I got picked to be on a jury so I left every morning while Kevin was home sick with pneumonia getting the kids off to school. We both came to the conclusion that we like what we do and we don't need to switch. He goes crazy being stuck in the house all day and I just wished that I could stay home where I belong. I am OK never leaving the house.

We have really had a full month of February, I think March will be a little slower but who knows. The girls are really looking forward to there 3 week break that is coming up. I guess I am too. We get so much done on these breaks.

A lazy Sunday afternoon

I love Sunday's especially now that we have early church. I love having a day set aside to relax and enjoy my family. With Valentines around the corner the girls worked on the Valentine boxes and Valentines. It kept them busy all afternoon and they had a great time doing it.
Ashley was really excited because she gets to write her name on her Valentines for school. In this last month she has really got interested in writing her own name. One day she was just able to write the first three letters of her name so I started working with her on the rest of it. I wasn't sure where she had learned it but then I found out Capri(a family friend and Ashley's babysitter every Friday morning)had been helping her out with her name. She worked very hard on her Valentines and did a great job. I think she does a wonderful job on writing her name and she is so excited that she can do it. It is a work in progress but it sure is cute the way she writes it. I love watching her grow and progress.

Basketball Season is in full swing

I don't know if there is a term for a Basketball mom but boy there should be. Life at our house is crazy on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The only reason that I am not pulling my hair out is because I have Kevin. I know that I would not survive much of anything without his help. The girls practices on Tuesday overlap and then some of their games are at the same time also. It has been a juggling act but we have managed.

Allison is having a blast with her team. Two of her best friends are on the team and one of their dads is her coach so she is very comfortable. Kevin and I really enjoyed her first game. She had already sat through two of Madison's games so she was all geared up to play. She was all over the court and stealing the ball like crazy. It was really great to watch. This season for Madison is more serious then past years. Madison decided to try out for the AAU team instead of play non competitive YMCA. We were very excited when she made it because she tried out a week in a half after she got her appendix out. She was very bummed to find out that her best friend didn't make it but I think that it has helped Madison to learn to play with people that she doesn't know. Madison has two practices a week and then two games on Saturday. The second week of practice she had a little break down and informed me that he life was hectic and she just needed to relax. I felt bad that that is how she felt but now that she is used to her schedule she is doing better. She has had played four games so far and they have been pretty intense. Things are definitely different from last season but this is good for her since she loves playing and wants to keep this up.

Saying good bye to More Papa

This past week we traveled up to North Idaho for the funeral of Kevin's Grandpa. He passed away on January 20th. It had been awhile since we had seen him. We were just talking about how long it had been and were making plans to see him over spring break. I wish we would have been able to make it up to see him. We have some really fond memories of going to visit him. The first time we took Madison there she was a year in a half old. She was quite amazed that there were two grandpa's. She would look at Kevin's dad and say Papa then and at her great grandpa and say More Papa. We thought it was so cute and that is why we started calling him More Papa. We always had a lot of fun and made lots of great memories. Dick was a wonderful man and we will miss him greatly. The services were nice and I am grateful we were able to be there. Kevin's dad Bob and his two brothers Jim and Bruce.
Dick served during WWII so there was a 21 gun salute. I am very grateful that we were able to travel to the funeral. It was great to get together with family and celebrate such a wonderful life.

Sleep update

Three weeks ago we started to work through the issues that Ashley had with sleeping. I was just hoping that she would learn how to fall asleep on her own to start with and then we would deal with the other issues. She responded way better then I ever thought she would. She has not fought going to sleep except for once when Kevin put her to bed. When I ask her what the problem was she told me that Dad didn't read any stories to her. She likes her routine and she likes to stick to it. Kevin has learned his lesson and he makes sure that he never forgets story time anymore. I think her favorite part of this is her chart. The first thing that she does in the morning is put her sticker on.
The other thing we needed to work on was her staying in her bed all night long. I thought we would have to tackle one thing at a time but she surprised me and started sleeping in her bed the whole night the first night. She has kept up this trend and you would think that I would be well rested but that is not the case. I am having a hard time sleeping without all the interruptions.

I'm asleep mom

Bedtime around our house has been crazy since Ashley was born. I have babied her for along time because of dreams I used to have when she was a baby and so small. It has been very hard to get them out of my mind so she has pretty much ran bed time around here and went to bed on her own terms. Kevin and I have been discussing how we need to get her into a routine and lay the law down for awhile but we are just now getting around to it. We decided that the first of the year would be a great time to start. Tonight was the first night that I didn't have something going on and I could spend the time with her she needed before bed time. At 8:00 sharp we went into to her room and talked about her bedtime chart(She really responds to charts)then read 3 stories. I turned on her night light and left the room. She will get a sticker in the morning if she does not get out of bed. I am pleased to report that she did not get out of bed. She laid in bed and sang for awhile. Then about 10 minutes after I left she yelled out, "I'm asleep Mom". I was laughing so hard. I told her good job and that was the end of it. I hope this is how the rest of the nights go. Isn't she cute in her own bed.

A long week comes to an end.

Last week we had a lot going on and we made it through. Our week started out with a birthday party for the Allison. We kept it pretty simple but the kids had a lot of fun. We decorated little treasure boxes. The girls had a lot of fun making the boxes their own. Allison really had a great time with all of her friends.

Next we rung in a new year. The girls look forward to New Years Eve. A few years back we started to tradition of having finger food for dinner and then watching the Disney Channel to ring in the new year. The girls always have so much fun picking out what will be on the menu and then wait in anticipation for it all to be ready.

Finally our week ended with Allison's Baptism. We are very proud that Allison made the decision to get baptized. She was very excited especially for all the family and friends that came to share in her special day. Allison and Kevin before the baptism.

After the baptism we had dinner at our church so we could visit with everyone. We had a great time visiting with everyone. Allison had a blast playing with all of her cousins and friends. Allison had a wonderful day and loved that so many people came near and far to share with her on her special day.