Cute Patrick and Juliet on the park swings together.
Sometimes I tell Nathan that the boys need to go outside and play to run off energy and they can't just sit in the basement and play video games and then he takes videos like this to show me how much energy our boys use while playing video games.
Let us start this blog post with a Patrick story. I decided to take Patrick to run errands with me and we were specifically looking for Martinelli's sparkling cider for New Years Eve and it was surprisingly difficult to find it. Target didn't have any, they just had white grape and red grape sparkling beverages and we really wanted it to be sparkling apple juice because that is the best. Walgreens, no dice, so we went to Price Chopper. We found it there and I was pretty delighted, so we grabbed two bottles of it and I decided to get a big jug of regular apple cider on the way out as well. I was pretty loaded up because I hadn't gotten a cart or a basket in order to carry these items and Patrick wanted to help, so I let him hold the giant jug of apple cider because it was at least in a plastic container and the other items were glass, so if he dropped it and it got a crack it wouldn't be as big of a deal, right? Well, we went to the 15 item or fewer checkout line and I was delighted to run into Ms. Kathy, our favorite employee of the UPS store just around the corner. She chatted with us while waiting in the rather long line (the store was completely packed with people, I hadn't seen it this crowded since COVID hit) and Patrick passed the time by swinging the cider jug around him and showing Ms. Kathy how high he could hold it over his head and Kathy and I took turns cautioning him that he really needed to be more careful with it ... and then he swung it hard one more time and as he says "his hands were hot and slippery" and it went flying a couple feet and landed on the ground with a large thud. HUGE crack and huge amounts of cider come flying out of the jug. I move the jug on its side so at least the leak stopped happening, but it's amazing how far 3/4 of a gallon of cider can spread out. Store employees seemed blissfully unconcerned about the spill, I left Patrick with Ms. Kathy and ran over to tell an employee by the bakery who said "uh, maybe go tell them at customer service?" so I walk over to customer service and get to wait in another line. I pop out of the line to mention a giant spill to a cashier who also says, "Oh, you should go tell customer service." I continue to wait, while I can see the spill going for a big display of calendars. Luckily a manager walked up and asked if I had been helped and I said "I'm just trying to let you guys know that there is a giant spill and it's spreading fast." So she went to get someone and I walked back to Patrick and Ms. Kathy and we save the calendar display by moving it over a few feet. Thank goodness for Ms. Kathy, she stood there and chatted with Patrick while I was gone looking for help. I couldn't take him with me because it turns out he was soaked in apple cider from about the knees down from the splash as it hit the ground. A teenager came over with a few towels and a broom to clean up a mess and quickly realized she needed reinforcements. Three other employees ended up helping her clean up the giant mess, it easily spread over at least an 8x8 square foot area of the store, completely blocking off the area people kept trying to walk through. And they were so nice, they told Patrick that accidents happen and it was the best smelling mess they had ever cleaned up. I thanked them over and over again, I was more than a little embarrassed because although Patrick had dropped the cider, it was clearly my fault for handing it to him to hold. So I grabbed another cider when it was time to check out and told the checker to charge me for two - and he said not to worry about it, he has kids too and he just charged me for the one cider and the sparkling apple cider that we had come for. Price Chopper has won my undying love and loyalty, everyone went way above and beyond and was so nice. Sweet Patrick was worried I wouldn't want to take him shopping with me anymore and of course I do, I just may have to show better judgment about what I let him hold from now on.
And upon reflection, this was the shopping trip where he was trying to use two wrapping paper rolls as stilts at Target and he dropped the New Years glasses and broke them within two minutes of purchasing them and THEN I handed him a giant container of apple cider to hold ... this was clearly on me.
I've learned a few things at least. The boys could NOT calm down while kids were playing inside together after church one Sunday and Nathan and I were chatting with some other parents. So I booted them outside, despite their many protests, and the happy boys found a tree and climbed it.
But then, you know, Juliet begs to play with perler beads and I give in because how bad could it be? Beads all over is how bad it could be. Teeny tiny beads all over the kitchen floor.
I also let children go in to Juliet's crib to play with her right after she's woken up in the morning or after a nap and Patrick sometimes sees just how many toys he can fit in the crib.
This is what happens when I ask Juliet if I can have the last bite of her macaron. She shoves it in her mouth as quickly as she can and gives a naughty smile. Oh dear. Maybe I need to stop encouraging this kind of behavior?
Bradley has actually been the sweetest all this winter. Juliet loves reading with him.
And look at this champ cooking malt-o-meal and eggs simultaneously!
And doing a victory dance after beating Nathan at King of Tokyo, our new favorite game.
Cozy couch cuddles are always better with books. Juliet generally carries a pile around with her.
More reading time. She loves Bears in the Night, The Spooky Old Tree, and Go Dog Go right now.
I took the three younger kids to go get Hurts Donuts on New Years Eve because Bradley wanted to stay home and read books. We were very impressed by their Christmas tree!
Juliet getting in some lunchtime rough housing with Nathan, it's one of her favorite things.
Patrick spent the night at my folks' house for New Years Eve and the rest of us had a bit of a party when we got back home.
Eleanor wanted this photo to be of just her and Daddy.
So it was.
Poor Bradley was feeling understandably displeased about literally being shoved out of a photo so he and I took cute photos together.
We popped popcorn and had fancy drinks, played loud music and danced around the kitchen. There were a few games and puzzles, and then I put Juliet to bed and we watched London fireworks shows from previous years on YouTube. Honestly it was my favorite New Years Eve ever,
Nathan fixed the glasses that Patrick had broken earlier that day so we got to wear them. Juliet was dazzled. It was also Juliet's favorite New Years Eve. Popcorn!!
Bradley got to use my Medieval Times goblet from way back in the day. Fancy drinks require fancy cups! The kids got raspberry lemonade, Nathan and I split a bottle of prosecco.
Puzzle time in front of the fireplace! Such a fun night. It's really neat to get to share these celebrations with our kids now that they're old enough.
And then the next morning - snow! Yes, we continue to play with snow in my favorite way, bringing it indoors so everyone can stay warm. Especially me. I like to be warm.
Grandma Colleen and Kerry braved the weather to come out for a visit. Lucky Grandma got to experience pop a shot with the boys. They're pretty impressive these days!
Kerry got loads of Juliet cuddles and got to read her a lot of books.
And Patrick went out to eat snow on the deck. Sigh.
There ended up being a ton of outside time, we got just the right amount of snow and it wasn't too cold out, it wasn't one of the times where it snowed and it was 10 degrees outside, so it was a lot of fun for everyone.
Patrick, no surprise, is a maniac on a sled.
The sledding hill was a big hit, especially when an older kid brought out little ramps in order to have a jump to go over.
Nathan went out there with my dad and Grandma Colleen and the three big kids, Juliet isn't quite ready for a big sledding hill.
Juliet woke up from her nap and lucky Kerry got some cuddles!
Grandma was rather relieved to get to come back inside for cozy time for the rest of the afternoon.
Reading time in the evening with Grandma.
We had Kerry and Patrick take a photo after a Gobblet Gobblers victory by Patrick.
Back outside the next day with Juliet this time! We weren't sure how she would feel about sledding. She LOVED it.
Everyone got a turn sledding with Juliet down the little hill in our backyard.
There was a lot of joy.
Daddy got in on some Juliet cuddles when he wasn't busy having a snowball fight with the boys.
Group picture with Grandma Colleen! Kerry was warm indoors, we didn't want to drag him outside for a photo op.
It's tough to see but Juliet insisted we build some tiny snowmen for her and she's standing by them.
The boys taking a break from a hardcore snowball battle with Daddy.
Someone told the baby it's a good idea to eat snow and she's ruined now.
That hunk of snow? She's working on eating it.
The bad influences.
The crew hanging out outdoors together.
Back indoors for a dance party with Grandma!
We put away the Christmas tree and put the train table in its place and all of a sudden the puzzles we keep stored under it were a big hit for Juliet.
Kerry playing a game with Bradley.
More reading time!
This picture is amazing. I call it, "Grandma Colleen's dream come true."
We decided that I would go solo with the big kids to church while Nathan and the other grown-ups stayed home with Juliet. It was the best church service ever for these kids, there was no childcare so they just sat together in the pews and worked on the cute children's bulletins together. But the thing best was the boys' love fest that took place. Patrick was standing on a pew and cuddling me during a song and then he reached out and started petting Bradley's head affectionately. Then he got down from the pew and stood in front of Bradley, hugging him and making direct eye contact. I got to witness Bradley melting and they just hugged and gazed into each other's eyes for a while because that's how these snuggly boys work. They came home and talked about how happy they were at church. Big hugs, it's all anyone needs it seems.
Meanwhile, Juliet and Grandma lego party!
That afternoon after Grandma Colleen and Kerry left, Eleanor had quite the playdate with Harper, our neighbor from across the street.
And the next day Nathan and I went to a store and bought a golf cart for the lake! We only got it about 4 months in advance of when we'll need, are we a little excited about lake time this summer??
And then in the evening. This happened. The boys started yelling Captain Underpants and dressed up accordingly. And the baby wanted to be like them so Eleanor helped her out. Why?? Why?
They were all very proud of themselves and they taught her to say "tra la la!" just like Captain Underpants.
Juliet has many tells for when it's time for her to go big potty so I thought maybe we'd try a little early potty training. She enjoyed getting to sit on the potty but there were no big girl results.
Time to wash hands!
Juliet's giant baby Yoda stuffed toy from Uncle Daniel and Aunt Stephanie arrived a few days after New Year and there was great joy.
The boys got out Klask again and made it at least 10 minutes playing nicely before they started trying to destroy things.
I had a virtual board game night through the local library and had a blast trying out new games until Juliet insisted on joining me and also insisted on sticking a finger in her nose and leaving it there despite my efforts to pull it out. It was this for a solid 5-10 minutes. While I was on a Zoom call with video. Cool cool.
I went to the Wonderscope Children's Museum with a couple mom friends and had an amazing time with Juliet. It was a little overwhelming for her because there were a lot of kids there and a lot of different loud activities to check out and she's used to cozy time at home with siblings.
She liked it though! Everything was super fun and I'm definitely getting a membership!
How cute is Juliet in her little dresses and tights these days? It's my favorite part of winter with a little girl.
There were so many stations, we stayed there for two hours and could have lasted longer but I didn't want her to fall asleep on the way home.
Train station.
Painting station where you get to paint on the clear walls. I tried to run around to the other side of the wall to get a picture of her through it but Juliet was very upset when I did this and I had to run back. There was a fair amount of clinginess through this museum outing.
I didn't mind though, she was happy to try out anything as long as I was within arm's reach.
The water area was the runaway hit of the outing. Her little buddies Caroline and Cyrus were in this picture too. When we got home she kept telling Nathan, "Caroline! Splash!" because she was so excited about the water. Cyrus kind of did his own thing and ran around and caused chaos, he was very cute.
Juliet barely even got wet, parenting her after having toddler Patrick is a stark contrast.
Juliet loved the little play grocery store too.
And then back home to classy behavior. She's wearing two pairs of Patrick's underwear on top of her diaper here (at his request) and she's insisting on sitting on the counter while I make grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner.
Eleanor likes making little beds out of the ottoman for Juliet and Juliet likes it just as much.
Classic little people time! A friend asked me if Juliet loves the solo time she gets with me while the kids are at school. The answer is a definitive no. She's not sad while they're gone but she's certainly happier when they get back home. And the other day she hollered, "Ella! Ella!" while watching Eleanor walk into the building after we dropped them off at school in the morning.
We got a first ride in on the golf cart! So exciting!
There were seatbelts in the back and now there will be seat belts in the front too after Nathan gave Eleanor a ride after we did the whole family ride and she fell off. It was rather scary but she was okay and now we're getting another seat belt so it doesn't happen again.
Juliet adores her Grandma Kathy time and ditches me hard whenever we go over to their house for one of our Friday pizza dinners with grandparents.
Wild Juliet is a sight to behold.
Juliet bath times are increasingly exciting now that she has definite ideas of how she should be playing with her bath toys.
I'm telling her that she's being naughty and this is the response I got. Everyone should be terrified.
The boys have been working so hard with Nathan on their Pinewood Derby cars for cub scouts. Nathan is amazing, Bradley made a Sonic the Hedgehog car this year and Patrick make a Charmander car.
I put Juliet's little play kitchen under the pop a shot basketball hoop and when Patrick isn't playing basketball he's being talked into playing kitchen with a cute toddler.
Another fun Patrick story: I got a Facebook message from a kindergarten teacher I'm friends with, but she isn't Patrick's teacher this year. Apparently her daughter, a fellow kindergarten student, informed her mom and Patrick and Mabel were kissing at school. They would pull their masks down and kiss on the lips. Here's my conversation with Patrick:
Me: Patrick, have you been kissing Mabel at school?
Patrick (proudly): Yes!
Me: On the lips?
Patrick: Yes! We are in love.
Me (thinks about the type of person Patrick is): Have you been kissing anyone else?
Patrick: Marcus and Daniel!
Me: On the lips?
Patrick: No, they won't let me.
Pray for me. We're trying to encourage him to save his Mabel smooches for non school hours, I'm not sure how to handle dating etiquette in kindergarten.
Cozy morning reading crew.
Patrick has started basketball practices and it's all his hopes and dreams come true. He's not on the Stanley team, because apparently even if I sign my kid up in kindergarten we don't get to be on the school team, but it's a cute group of kids and honestly I like them getting to expand their friend circle a bit to kids from other schools. Also, a preschool friend is on Patrick's team and his father is an NFL lineman so the kid is a giant and we think Patrick's team will do pretty well.
Patrick looking pretty cute running a drill with his coach.
And in big news, Bradley scored his first basket during an official basketball game! He actually shot two regular baskets and made a free throw after being fouled. He was so thrilled and we're really proud of him. The whole team cheered and made a big fuss over him when he scored his baskets, he is in with the nicest group of kids.
We managed to squeeze Juliet in her 12 month Seahawks dress for one last football game before the team broke Nathan's heart in their first playoff game.
Reading buddies! I rather enjoy the percentage of our photos that have a baby Yoda in them.
These kids don't know how to play away from each other, I keep encouraging them to play on their own in their rooms occasionally but when sibling time is so fun who can stay away?
Bedtime cuddles with Sookie. Bradley was so proud, although he still rarely pets the cats which I don't understand at all.
Standard Nathan morning these days. Juliet runs over and steals his food and yells for an Elmo show. Pretty adorable! Although Juliet yells for a lot of things these days. We have the kids take turns saying grace before meals, which has become difficult because Juliet often yells "my turn!" through their entire prayer. Then we turn to her and say, "Fine! It's your turn! You go ahead and pray Juliet." and then she smirks and makes silly faces at us. We've also started doing a new thing at family meals where we have a Bradley night or an Eleanor night, etc, and everyone goes around the table and asks a question to that person. Again, Juliet yells "my turn!" through everyone else's questions and then goes "blehhhh!" and makes a silly face when we turn to her and say "Fine! Ask your question!" Sighhhh. A lot of relying on cuteness around here.
One of Juliet's favorite things is sitting down by someone and flipping through a book, no other child was quite so dedicated to independent book time at such a young age.
Sometimes she even does it by Nathan while he's working. And yes, generally she puts a blanket over her legs first.
I took her to our standard museum for a fun outing this past week and I have to say, I love dressing up little girls. The top and the skirt were ones that I dressed Eleanor in a bunch.
I love that we go to a science museum and about 90% of the reason we go there is to have a tea party.
We generally get comments on how cute Juliet is and I agree with the people who tell me this every time. It's kind of hilarious when we go to a store and checkers a few rows over are trying to engage with Juliet and say hi to her and tell her she's cute because yes, she is and we all melt when she says "bye bye!" to her admiring fans.
Maybe it's all going to her head though. She's such an imp. Here she is hiding her milk from me and telling me it's all gone.
Now her spoon is hiding.
Now that's just plain naughty and she's so proud. Maybe it's a bad sign that I'll say "forbidden!" with a smile and a gleam in my eye and then she cackles with laughter and does whatever I've just said is forbidden.
Speaking of which, I sent her to the backseat of the car to pry a reading Bradley out of his seat after school one day (this kid and books) and she was delighted to sit in Patrick's seat and insisted Bradley sit in his and pretend to be driving with her and then I had to pry both of them out of their seats in order to get us inside and out of the cold garage.
Juliet really likes our Gobblet Gobblers tic tac toe game and I realized she would probably really like a peg board so I got them out and then Eleanor was the one who played with them a bunch. Oh well! I'm glad Eleanor enjoyed them at least!
Juliet demanding a group hug with her two of her favorite ladies.
And in big news, Juliet has been super whiny about going to sleep in her crib at night so we decided to start letting her sleep with Eleanor. Here is Patrick hanging out for during reading time.
There was a LOT of joy and excitement from both girls at bedtime.
And it went surprisingly well! Apparently Juliet demanded that Eleanor cuddle her and they both stayed awake until a bit past 9, which is quite late for Juliet, but they made it until 6:47 this morning with no problems in the night! I know the exact time they woke up because Eleanor informed me that Juliet woke her up by chanting "Ella! Ella" until Eleanor opened her eyes and said good morning to her.
Meanwhile, Bradley had a sleepover at Grandma and Grandpa's and when my dad tried to sneak in the room at 10PM to take a picture of Bradley's ridiculous stuffed toy situation he was greeted with a cheery, "Hi, Grandpa!" and he took this picture. Oh my. He did not sleep in the next morning, he got up bright and early and exercised with my parents, watched some shows, played a ton of board games, and ate a large amount of ice cream cake. No wonder he loves these sleepovers so much.
Patrick sleepovers are interesting times for all involved, sometimes he discovers that his bottom is itchy and it's an emergency (obviously) and so he has to sit in a bath and fuss until he discovers that he has to poop and a lot of concerned texts are sent my way and the kid manages to stay up 45 minutes past his bedtime. Or he tells my dad that he has a rough nail that needs to be trimmed and so my dad trims Patrick's thumb nail and Patrick says, "Thanks, that's the one that hurt my penis."
Although this is also the kid who got really excited when we were out at the library and discovered that they had The Wolf in Underpants, a really funny book.
Me: Patrick, I think they say bottom in that book.
Patrick: No, they say butt! Even better than bottom!
And in happy news, Bradley's mealworm is still alive and thriving under his devoted care. Yay. Every few days he runs upstairs with a giant chunk of apple and informs me that he's feeding it and I just hope that bug lives long enough for us to set it free in the spring.
