Back in the Saddle

Madeleine in pink and Emily in brown for "Wacky Wednesday". The event was our first Wednesday back at school and helped get us back in the swing of things on a positive note. Obviously we wore pajamas to school, but we also wore each other's shoes and approximately 18 barrettes (each) to go with our sunglasses.

Dear blog readers, all four of you, I am writing this much-delayed post from the floor of the grocery store. I'm down here, rolling in laughter, after seeing a magazine cover on which two "celebrities" (apparently all that takes these days is selling your soul to certain cable networks) extol the virtues of new motherhood. According to the two young women (both reality show veterans) featured on the cover, having a new baby is a time of "bliss" and "romantic dates" with your partner. Pa ha!! One of the women's partners "even changes diapers". No way! Too bad the Nobel prizes were awarded before this information was made public. I wonder if this man also bathes and feeds himself. The clerk at the store seemed to feel having the money to hire a cook, trainer, housekeeper and nanny might make the transition to parenthood easier. While I agree, I also think the money on the line for lying about the experience may be a motivator as well. Call me a cynic, or staffless mother; many days they are one and the same.

Anyhow, I am beyond thankful we are closing in on the Madeleine and Emily's fifth birthdays.

This little nutcracker was given to me years ago as part of a secret pal Christmas exchange at the school where I taught. This year, my "helpers" customized him by adding all kinds of small wooden ornaments (and a gold chenille stem leftover from crafts) to him, and of course, looping the strings used to hang the ornaments beyond future disentanglement.

There was sobbing (Madeleine) and pleading (Emily) when I took down the Christmas decorations. I've never been one to get the urge to have the house back to "normal" ASAP, but for some reason - I was on it this year. As their bedroom was stripped of festive decorations and ornaments were packed away - we were promised we could soon decorate for Valentines Day.

It was suggested we had really nice memories from this year's Christmas and maybe just thinking about them would help us over the post-holiday blues. This suggestion met with about as much enthusiasm as my perception of the magazine cover about living with newborns. So, while we may not totally buy into it, we are going to recap anyway!

Part of the North Pole

Grandpa and Grandma bought tickets for all of us to go on a cruise on Lake Coeur d Alene to the North Pole. When we got to the North Pole, Santa came out on a dock and read the names of all of the good children on the boat. He read both of our names! He also read a few names of some of our friends at school - very exciting. However, Madeleine wanted to know why he didn't read the "bad kids" names and was told Santa doesn't believe in public humiliation.

Grandma, Emily, Madeleine and Grandpa looking over the bough of the boat while Santa reads the names....the girls' snowpants were bought on clearance and online last year - they are a bit long and can be worn until the girls are at least 11.

There was a shocking lack of snow in Spokane this year, which was basically okay with the adults and not-at-all-okay with Emily and Madeleine. So, Emily, Madeleine, Grandpa, Uncle Kyle and Melissa went up to Mount Spokane on the 23rd to go tubing on the tubing hill. It was a very sunny day and the hill was icing up a bit, which meant the tubes went rather quickly. Melissa went down once and that was plenty - she happily assumed the catcher position at the bottom of the hill for future runs. The other four members of the party made more trips. The girls liked going down the tubing hill, but the true joy, in their opinions, was riding the tow-rope back up.


Madeleine (green) and Emily (yellow) riding the tow-rope to the top of the tubing hill.

Grandpa and Madeleine coming down!

Madeleine

Emily

Emily and Uncle Kyle - Emily is showing off part of an icicle her uncle procured for her.

Madeleine, Emily and Uncle Kyle play in the snow

Madeleine and her icicle

After our winter weather adventures we drove back to the Land of 40 Degrees and participated in some traditional indoor activities. Each year our decorated cookies become less soggy (you don't really need to saturate the cookie with the food coloring "paint") and slightly more recognizable.

Emily (l) and Madeleine make sure Grandma handles the cookie cutter in an appropriate manner.

Emily painting a cookie.

Madeleine painting a cookie.

The day of the big dance finally arrived and it turns out Santa made it to Spokane this year - shocking. Madeleine and Emily had requested cameras, phones (have no idea where that one came from) and purses (with money - Madeleine contributed this idea). Santa doesn't seem to feel four-year-olds have a great need for phones, but he did bring cameras and purses. The purses were actually felt kits and the recipient got to sew the purse together, using yarn and plastic needles. The cameras are "real" and we have been hearing a lot of "smile!". We did remove all photos/movies of DVDs being played on the TV screen as we do not need pirating allegations.

Emily (left) and Madeleine

Aunt Chessy "helping" Madeleine sew her purse and Uncle Kyle "helping" Emily sew hers.

Several days before Christmas, Melissa and Uncle Paul were talking about a Snoopy snow cone machine they had when they were kids (The discussion was prompted by watching Madeleine and Emily eat the gray remnants of snow in Manito Park). Lo and behold, Santa brought a Snoopy snow cone machine to Uncle Paul so he could make snow cones with the girls. Proving, once again, that Santa knows all!!

In an effort to stave off the initial post-Christmas blues (The real case sets in when we get home and there are not a variety of adults and activities available to us.) we enrolled the girls in a class at Mobius Kids on December 28th. The class was "Penguins and Polar Bears Party" and seemed to be quite a hit. After the class, we stayed and played at the museum....our two youngsters were particularly interested in the stage and the costumes, tap shoes and bongo drums.

Madeleine in blue and Emily - wearing dresses/tutus over our jeans and playing the drums....sadly not in the picture are our tap shoes...

Emily Tigger and Madeleine Cow singing - at the top of our lungs for all to hear.