Quirky kids.

Warner's Cars scooter is definitely on his short list of favorite Christmas gifts received this year. Since we have snow on the ground, the scooter has been an indoor toy thus far, and I must say Warner has learned to maneuver it pretty well around the house. The funny part is how he often insists on riding the scooter from room to room, instead of walking there. For instance, he rode his scooter to the door this afternoon before we left to go to the library and grocery store. When we got home, he needed to go to the bathroom immediately, so he hopped on the scooter and "rode" it to the bathroom. The best part about this is that it's about 4 feet from the door to the bathroom.
As Warner was using the restroom and I was unloading groceries, Maren was hard at work mastering her new favorite skill: putting on shoes. She adores two specific pairs she owns - both black, with a strap. I think she likes them because they're easy to put on. So, after about 5 minutes she emerges from the basement with a very proud smile on her face ...
... and a different shoe on each foot. At least she got the right/left thing correct.
Warner is funny about getting his hands dirty. He's not so fond of it. So when I did a craft I saw in Family Fun magazine with the kids last week that involved homemade cornstarch glue, my sweet son was less than thrilled about the mess it created. Maren, on the other hand, loved the mess. However, Warner doesn't mind overlooking a mess when it involves baking. The kid can have brownie batter caked on his hands, arms, and face, and not be upset at all. I suppose the chocolate is worth the mess in his opinion. I tend to agree.

You might have noticed that my children are in there jammies in these pictures, once again. We wear our jammies a lot around here, especially in the winter. That's just how I roll, so my kids are forced to go along with it. Perhaps it's not the kids then who are quirky, but their mother, and all of my quirkiness is rubbing off on them. Poor kids. They don't stand a chance.

Pigtails

Yes, those are pigtails. I can hardly stand it. If I loved these kids any more, my heart would absolutely break in two.

For the birds

Warner and I made pine cone bird feeders last winter and it was a huge hit. Ever since the birds picked all of the seed from the peanut butter, Warner has been asking to make more. He was very concerned about the birds, telling me they were "really really hungry, Mommy!".
I finally found more pine cones at Kroger - on holiday clearance since they are cinnamon scented. I was a bit concerned about the cinnamon scent part, but the birds don't seem to care. As we trudged through the snow to hang the feeders on our birch out front, Warner told me: "the birds be so happy we give them food. They say: thank you, Warner and Maren. You're the best!".The birds have been very happy with the food. In fact, I'm pretty sure every bird in the Tri-state area has stopped by. I often find the kids with their noses pressed to the window, watching our winged friends. It's amazing how much fun they have observing them. Well, I'm not going to lie ... I enjoy it too.

Another sticker chart

It began with a meltdown at Kroger this week. Warner found two of the Disney/Pixar cars he wants for his collection - Snot Rod and Wingo - while we were grocery shopping. They were $6 each, and besides the fact that I was not willing to add $12 to our grocery bill, I thought this could be a teachable moment for our son.

I was about three seconds into my "you can't have everything you want" speech when he started crying. By the time we got to the checkout lane, he was screaming. At one point he was lying face down near the poor kid bagging our groceries, kicking his legs and flailing his arms. I couldn't make this up if I tried. I was so upset and embarrassed, between hissing "Warner, stop right now or I will ... (enter any number of threats you can imagine)" I kept looking around the store desperately, hoping no one was watching us, and wishing the dang cashier would hurry up with our order.

We made it home. And then Warner had the audacity to ask for Snot Rod and Wingo again that night, and the following morning. So, Kevin and I came up with a plan.
We bought Snot Rod, Wingo, DJ, and Boost. They are sitting on top of our refrigerator at this moment, waiting to be "earned". We have a new sticker chart on the fridge, with each of the cars listed on it. Warner earns one sticker for something Kevin or I decide (for instance, getting through Target without throwing a fit or staying in his room until 7am in the morning). Once he has five stickers, he gets one of the cars. He can also earn money for his piggy bank and pay us $.25 for one of the cars.

So far he has three stickers on his chart. Is this bribery, or a lesson we're teaching? I'm not sure. Where is the manual on parenting when you need it?

Park City

We left for Park City Utah the Monday after Christmas and returned the following Saturday. Our trip got off to a good start in Warner's opinion with our first stop at the airport being Cinnabon.The flights there and back were a bit rough. To save money, we flew out of Dayton ... and had a layover. Ugh. We've vowed to never do that again.
My parents were waiting for us when we arrived in Salt Lake City. We spent one night in Salt Lake, then drove to the mountains to the condo we stayed in.
When we arrived, Warner asked: "why did Bobbie get a new condo?" In his mind my parents now have two places - one at the lake and one in the mountains. He also thought we got a new car - the one we rented. He kept asking why we didn't have our van anymore.The first day we didn't do any skiing, just sledding. Our condo was a ski in/ski out, so we sledded down the trail nearest to us. The skiers didn't seem to mind.Warner loved the snow. Although we left snow on the ground in Cincinnati, there was much more in Utah - it was up to Warner's waist. Then, we got about 12 more inches during our stay. Kevin and I skied/snow boarded together two days. It was just like the old days (pre-kids), and we enjoyed it so much. My parents were wonderful and took turns watching the kids at the condo while we played.Although you can't tell, that's Kevin behind all of that clothing. It was really cold.
View from the top. Between the view and the powder, it was an amazing skiing experience. I now see why they say the best snow is in Utah. While we skied, Warner went to ski school. It was the cutest thing I've ever seen. He was excited to go, and spent 6+ hours there. We stopped to watch him for a few minutes in the afternoon. Hopefully he wasn't too embarrassed by us (and me snapping hundreds of photos).
Going down the "hill" with his instructor, Cody.
Arms out for balance.And, he's down. Skis can be so awkward.
Riding up the magic carpet to the top of the hill. After we picked him up from ski school, we went to the lodge for hot chocolate. As we were walking, Warner said: "Mommy, I like this place. I like this place a lot". Melt my heart.My boys.
And then he crashed. Skiing all day+no nap=sleeping boy on the way back home.
At this point, you may be wondering how Maren held up during the trip. She received her grandparents' undivided attention, was fed whatever she wanted, and was allowed to run around the condo like a crazy child for 5 days. She had a blast. Notice the chocolate on her face in this picture.Our final night in Utah was magical. We rode in a horse-drawn sleigh up the mountain to a restaurant for dinner. Here are the kids with my parents before our ride. You can sort of see the horses in the background.The ride was about 20 minutes. It was really cold (8 below, to be exact) but we were bundled up and the sleigh had big blankets for us. We sang "Jingle Bells" as we rode - Warner and I had been working on the song for this occasion for a while.Dinner was in a rustic cabin, complete with two huge fireplaces and twinkling lights hanging everywhere. They served us hot cider and hot chocolate as soon as we walked through the door. It was seriously the neatest thing I've done in a long time.Maren enjoyed the night as much as Warner. She clapped and squealed in delight at the horses and danced as we sang on the sleigh ride. To say our trip was a wonderful way to spend Christmas with my parents is a huge understatement. We had a blast. I hope we get to do it again soon (hint! Mom and Dad!).

Merry Christmas!

Our Christmas festivities spanned a few weeks this year. First, we traveled to Somerset to celebrate with Kevin's family and returned late Christmas Eve. We had a wonderful time, even though it was a quick visit. The kids enjoyed playing with their cousins, the gifts, and the food.Warner's favorite was probably a tie between this shake and go Lightning McQueen car and Mac the truck (also from Cars) that carries a smaller Lightning McQueen (or "Lighting A-Keen" as Warner pronounces it).
Maren's favorite is this Thomas train that follows the flashlight, and also a shake and go car she received. I wonder if she'll ever like girl toys as much as boy ones.The kids woke up to gifts from Santa on Christmas morning. Warner's wish list from Santa included a Cars fishing pole (we're not 100% sure where this came from since we don't fish, but whatever), a Cars scooter, and Bertie the Bus for his train set. He must have been good this year, because Santa brought all three gifts.Maren got three gifts from Santa as well, including a Thomas the Train tent/tunnel combo. She thinks it's pretty amazing. However, she was equally impressed with the juice box in her stocking. Pure juice that has not been watered down is apparently a big treat around here.
Bob the tomato and Larry the cucumber stuffed animals were another hit with Maren.We had a relaxing Christmas Day. Mostly the kids played with their new toys while Kevin and I tried to find places in our home for all of the new stuff. Talk about a challenge. We will be donating a lot of old toys to charity soon. We left Monday for our ski trip to Utah ... more on that later!