Blankie Addict

I can't recall at what age Amelia required her yellow blanket. It seems like it's always been a comfort object for her. At 20 months, her blanket has become an appendage. She carries it with her around the house, in the car, outside, even while she eats breakfast. (I rarely let her take it in public places.) 

Unfortunately, her blanket gets filthy with food, leaves, etc. There's never really a good time to wash it since she always has it. Yesterday I washed all the blankets and Clifford. It was the single worst hour of Amelia's life. She screamed, cried, banged her hands on the dryer, and paced around the hallway and laundry room. I tried to console her but she kept running back to the washer and yelling.

An hour later, all was well again in Amelia's simple world.

Jackson Goes to the Dentist

This post is written from the perspective of Jesse, Jackson, and I.

Bonnie: I knew Jackson's doctor was going to ask if he had been to the dentist during the 4-year well check. Since he's never been, I felt like we should take him before his well check. Jesse called to schedule an appointment a few weeks ago, though there were none available. Jesse got a call yesterday saying there was a time available first thing the following morning. I showed Jackson several videos on YouTube that showed kids' first trips to the dentist. This video was the most informative and helpful. Jackson asked lots of questions and was fascinated.

Jesse: Jackson had his first dentist appointment scheduled for 7:20 this morning. He was excited to get up and get going. Our hygienist was exceptional and explained everything very clearly to Jackson. He had his teeth counted (he has 20), scraped, brushed, flossed, and lacquered with fluoride. Jackson was totally laid back and complacent the whole time. The hygienist let him pick out three items from the treasure box for being an exceptional patient.

Jackson: I watched Mickey Mouse on TV. The TV was up top attached to a string. There was a bright light. And I got to wear blue sunglasses with Mario. They count my teeth. I didn't have x-rays. I talked about the dentist to the cleaner. She said, "Are your teeth good or healthy or are there germs or do they fall out?" She said all those things.  They gave me floss, toothbrush, and toothpaste. They gave me car, tattoo, and bubbles.

Jackson already has his next appointment scheduled in September. We're all relieved that the first experience went so well!

Family Fun at the Park

Saturday afternoon was spent at the park. I love when our entire family can enjoy time together outside. We returned to my new favorite toddler playground. I stayed with the trio while Jesse accompanied Jackson on the larger playground.

I've mastered packing lunches and drinks for everyone in five minutes or less. I think our kids eat outside more often than inside.

The trio ran around, giggling and chasing one another. They walked the entire trial, whereas Jackson ended up in the stroller! Silly kids.

Seriously, could Amelia be any cuter? She has the sweetest little voice and laugh.

I asked Jesse to take a picture of me since I'm always the one taking the pictures. I assumed he would take one of me with the kids. Nope...

A husband and wife selfie in the parking lot had to suffice.

We drove around the neighborhoods, checking out houses for sale. We're in no position to move right now, but I think we'd both consider moving once I go back to work. I love the area where we live, just not our specific neighborhood. For now, it's fun fantasizing about different places and simply spending time together.

Easy Patriotic Cake

A good friend of mine was hosting a party to celebrate her husband becoming a US citizen. She wanted to make a red, white, and blue cake, but does not find baking as enjoyable as I do. The cake she wanted was simple so I volunteered to make it. The only challenge to the cake was getting a deep red and blue color for the layers. Rather than struggle to get the right color, I cheated and used these cake mixes for the red and blue.

I was impressed with the vibrant color!

To avoid tearing up the layers and getting crumbs in the icing, I always flip the layers upside down. It makes it much easier to spread the icing and creates a smooth surface.

The only reason I volunteered to make this cake was because it was a simple cake with white icing. I chose to add a basic border and star to continue to red, white, and blue theme. I also baked a dozen cupcakes since it was a large party.

Here's the fun reveal once the cake was sliced open.

What You've Missed

This digital family yearbook might cause me to go blind. I've lost count on how many hours I've spent sorting through over 10,000 pictures on my computer over the past few nights. I even bought eye drops to try and rejuvenate my dried out eyes. I look forward to receiving the latest yearbook. Then I will only have one more to complete to get caught up!

Here's what you've missed over the past few days:

• Spring is officially here, which means park playdates are required at least once a week.

• James, Amelia, and Maddie have eaten multiple meals in regular chairs (no booster). We're not quite ready to completely forego their high chairs, but they've done surprisingly well in big chairs. Unfortunately, Amelia and James like to stand up and tap dance on the chairs once their finished eating.

• Maddie is all attitude. Her favorite saying, complete with hand gestures, is, "Go!". Sometimes all I do is call her name and she just looks at me annoyed, extends her arm/gives me the hand, and tells me to go. She'd better get it out of her system now or we won't survive teen years.

• Another teenager joined youth group! Our little youth group has grown to include quite the diverse group. We now have teens from Mexico, Nigeria, China, and the US. (This picture does not include everyone.)

• One of the young ladies was the lead actress in her high school musical. Another member played in the orchestra. I took some of the youth to go see their show. (FYI, who knew Fame had so many sexual references?!) I am in awe of their talent and it was so fun for us to see each other in different roles.

• I am still attempting to cross off items from my 40 Bags in 40 Days list. Unfortunately, the remaining items are the most challenging. I know for a fact I won't be able to complete the list, but it's not for lack of trying. I'll update more on that in a separate post.

Another Yearbook Underway

Instead of blogging, I'll be sorting through thousands of photos to create another family yearbook. Now is the cheapest time to make a 100 page book.

See you in a few days...

St. Patrick's Day Plan B

Last St. Patrick's Day I tried to be all festive with a photo shoot and cooking Guinness beef stew and Irish soda bread. This year, I dressed the kids in green shirts and went about our day. James somehow ended up wearing the shirt I picked out for Jackson. It's a 3T, but he still looked cute.

Our big plans were to go to the museum to meet up with Jackson's former teachers and classmates. I learned via Facebook that his old school was having a field trip to the museum. Since Jackson didn't have school today and we go to the museum every week anyway, I let Jackson decide if he wanted to go. I didn't really want to go since I was hoping to avoid seeing the director for the rest of my life, but of course he wanted to go.

The first person we saw was his 2's teacher, followed up by his 3's teacher. I have such love and admiration for these two women. Jackson adores them and I'm certain the feelings are mutual. (The director was standing beside them, though she only offered a quiet, "hello" and nothing more.)

It was crowded but manageable. The trio were able to wander the entire time. Jackson was excited to say hello to his friends anytime he ran into them, but he mostly played with his siblings. They spent a considerable amount of time in the grocery store.

Outside of the craft area there were tables set up with experiments. The kids got to create green snow with water and some kind of magical powder. I was impressed with how encouraging the staff members were towards the trio's participation.

I packed a light lunch for the kids to eat. I planned to have picnic at the park across the street from the museum.  When we arrived, there was not a single parking space! I drove to another park on the other side of the railroad tracks. It was in a somewhat questionable area, beside an abandoned building. We were the only people there, which was nice after so much stimulation from the museum.

Like yesterday, the trio took their time eating. Jackson ate quickly before checking out the playground and rock wall.

Jackson proved to be a phenomenal big brother by waiting at the end of a big slide to catch each of his siblings. I sat at the top to help each toddler on the landing and make sure they didn't go the opposite direction which had a drop off.

We'll likely refer to this park as the "tennis court park" since we had the tennis courts all to ourselves. The court was completely fenced in, which meant the kids could safely run free. We had races and played peekaboo behind the net. I didn't bring any balls so Jackson and I threw his cup back and forth over the net.

I love when things work out better than planned!