Ice Skating Fun!

For Thanksgiving this year, we went over to my parents' in Jackson, MS.  My brother and SIL just moved over there with their two adorable boys in September, so it was really exciting to be there to celebrate their first holiday in their new city.

 

And it was cold.

 

I'm not talking chilly, I'm talking bone-chilling cold.

 

So cold the lake near my parents house froze and we were all able to ice skate on it.

 

See?

 

 

Ok, kidding.  I think it would be another ice age before Jackson would actually get that cold! (But, seriously, it was near freezing and to me that is beyond cold!)

 

The Baptist hospital near their house had set up an ice rink and sledding doohicky.  We decided to try our hand at ice skating despite the fact that our only other skating experience had been an epic fail trying to teach them to roller skate.

 

My mom, SIL, and I took the little kids over there to check it out while the guys (including Jack who I'm pretty sure now thinks of himself as one of the guys) were golfing.

I wish I had a picture of the incline.  It was steep!!

 

After some sledding, we decided to try some skating.

It was somewhat challenging at times but a lot of fun!

 

 

So fun that we even went back over there later that evening so the boys could join us too!

 

 

Fire safety and stranger danger!

Jack's class visited the Fire Safety Village yesterday.

Aside from being educational for the whole family (yes, we now have a sound fire escape plan) it provided loads of entertainment as Jack recounted the day's events that evening.

First, Jack demonstrated the Heimlich maneuver. 

He did save Dad from chocking, however, if his hands had been about 2 inches lower, I think there would have been a whole other set of issues.

We also practiced stop, drop, and roll.  It's safe to say my children have rolling around on the ground down pat.

Then there's stranger danger. (I understand this is a serious subject, and we have taken steps to ensure our children are aware of what do to around strangers.  However, sometimes what they say is just downright funny.)

First Jack informed us what he would do if a stranger grabbed his arm; he would pull away.

Alex asked him if he would say anything while he was pulling away.

"Yes," Jack replied,  "I would say [and he makes grunting sounds like he's trying to pull away from someone]."

"Anything else?" asks Alex.

"Oh yeah," says Jack, "I probably just say 'NO STRANGER NO STRANGER!'"

On to the next scenario.

Me: Jack, what would happen if a stranger offered you candy to help him find something in the grocery store or something?

Jack: I would yell NO, STRANGER!

And the clincher...brought to you by Melody.

Jack, again, demonstrating how to pull away from a stranger and how to a kick a stranger.

Alex says, "Ok, guys, if a stranger is pulling at you and you have to kick him, kick him right here."

(I'm sure you can guess where he pointed...)

Melody looks at him and says, "So, basically, you want us to kick strangers in the nuts?"

What I Learned From Disney On Ice...

Last night, Melody and I went to Disney On Ice.  Just like the last time we went, it was magical!

 

And full of life lessons. Below are four important things I took away from my Disney experience.

1.  It is totally ok and normal to scream with excitement when you see a princess.  Melody and I both did.  And I may have gotten a little teary too.

2.  I want Jasmine's body.  Seriously, this chick is solid.

(You can't really see from the pictures, and she's upside down anyway, but believe me, I could see every single ab muscle.)

 

3. I want my life to be just like a Disney movie.  I already have my crown and everything.  See?

 

 

4.  I already have my Prince Charming. (Yes, I know I'm totally being cheesy here!)

 

(Picture from Father's Day, 2010)

I better go and do some sit-ups!

Touchdown!!!

My boys love Upward Flag Football.  This is Jack's 3rd year playing and Charlie's 1st.  It's a great organization that teaches Christ-like sportsmanship and still keeps score (which I think is an important part of teaching sportsmanship)!

 

Anyway, Jack has really developed a love of this game and plays hard and tough.

 

*Disclaimer: the pics aren't great. It was at night and I had to zoom in pretty far and they were taken with my iphone and not an actual camera.*

See? Check him out trying to psych out the other team here! The other guy couldn't even maintain eye contact! Ha!

 

Defense is generally Jack's favorite position to play. He is an awesome flag-puller.

 

But he has skill on offense too.  Last Friday night, he had his first touchdown of the season.  He caught the ball, fought hard against three opponents to make in into the end zone, and then scored!!

 

During the fall months, I shout "touchdown" pretty often...but this was the best time I've said it so far this year!! 

 

After the game was over, Alex and I walked over to where the team was gathered to de-brief and Jack ran up to me, threw his arms around me and said, "I got a touchdown!" 

 

Talk about melting a mama's heart.

 

I hope he still does that when he's 16!

(Just kidding, Dad. I know you rolled your eyes when you read that!)

 

Way to go, Jack!!!

5

A week ago today, one of my very favorite little boys turned 5!

It's hard to believe this was 5 whole years ago. It seems like it was just yesterday! (It's also still hard to believe he was 8lbs 11oz at 37 weeks, but that's another story!)

 

We started the birthday celebration with a special treat at preschool.  He was so excited to wear the birthday crown and listen to Ms Dale tell a special story about him!

 

 

 

 We have been planning his birthday for the past three months...ever since his big brother had a birthday.

I have to admit, I'm actually glad it's finally over. I was getting tired of all the "Mom, for my birthday, can I..." comments!

 

Anyway, he finally decided on a soccer themed party. We made plans and sent out invitations.  And then he promptly changed his mind to a football themed party.

In the end, we stuck with the soccer theme but added some football fun in there too.

We were blessed with a beautiful fall day...perfect for a party at the park!

 

We tossed the football around some.

 

Jack led the kids in some soccer drills.

 

 

We opened presents ("Awesome!  Superhero legos!" was the comment here)

 

 

and had cupcakes.

 

 

What could be a better birthday?! (Here's the whole crew...minus a few little siblings who weren't keen on the idea of a picture.)

 

 

Oh, and we topped it off with dinner at Waffle House. 

Not the place I would have picked, but it wasn't my birthday.

 

After all this excitement, I'm glad we are birthday free until January!

A correction, an update, and a birthday

First the correction: I got a call from my dad the other day.  He called to comment on my recent post about our food issues.  He wanted to let me know that it was him and not my mom who thought of the list idea.  So, I now stand corrected.

 

However, unlike my mom or dad, I had the foresight to write the list down.  So, unlike my brothers and I, my children cannot claim different items on their list depending on what is being offered at meal times.

 

This leads me into my update:  I had told my children that every three months we would update our list.  So, we updated yesterday.  Here are their new lists.  As you can see, Charlie finally realized I was not going to force him to drink sweet tea and added actual food items on to his list.

Yes, I also think it's totally bizarre that he does not like French Fries.

 

And, finally, we had a birthday in the family!  Last Thursday, this handsome guy...

 

 

turned 5!!

 

 

 

A birthday party post will come soon, with lots and lots of pictures, but for now, this is all you get.

 

It's Monday, yo.



supper time battles

Is there a mom on the planet that hasn't experienced the supper time battles?

 

Y'all know what I'm talking about.  It's when you put anything that's not a chicken nugget, bagel bite, or waffle on their plate and they whine about it.

 

A few months ago, I pretty much reached my breaking point on this. I was over the whining. I was over the bribing them to try food. I was over just letting them not eat and then having to throw food away.

 

In one of my brief and rare moments of clarity, I remembered a trick my mom used with my brothers, who were also picky eaters.

 

Don't you love those moments when you realize your mom really does have all the answers!?

 

So, I sat down and let each child pick three foods they didn't like and I would never make them eat. 

 

 

 

It's interesting to see their lists.  Jack wrote his own; shepherd's pie, chicken divan, and microwave tacos.  There went two of my staples.  And I guess I'll have to stop being lazy and actually cook the quesadillas on the stove from now on.  Melody picked all fruit.  I think she was having an off day.  And Charlie just generally likes to eat (Clearly he gets that from me) and had to resort to beverages.

 

Let me tell you...this has worked like a charm.

 

I started kind of slow.  For the first week or two, I would always pair something new or previously disliked/rejected with a staple I knew they would eat.

 

At the beginning, there was a little whining and I would just say (sometimes more than once), "I'm sorry, but that's not on your list."

Yes, this took patience and, even more importantly, consistency.

 

Guess what eventually happened?

 

They stopped whining and now they just eat it.

 

Yep. Just like that.

 

Disclaimer: If it's a new food or something I knew they won't be crazy about, I will only put 2-4 bites on their plate.  This way it isn't overwhelming to them to have to eat a whole plateful of something.

 

Also, I let them update their lists every few months.  After all, their taste change and food choices change.  I'm not going to be serving up blackberries in the dead of winter, so it's silly for Melody to have something on her list that's not available anyway.

 

Have you experienced supper time battles in your house?

 

What have you found that works?