Ben's Prayer

Ben does not like to repeat the same prayer day after day.  He likes to create his own using his own thoughts and emotions.  Tonight, this is what we got:

Dear Jesus,
Don't get on the cross anymore.  You'll get bad bo-bo's.
Amen.

Weather Report Station

What do you do when school is cancelled, it is pouring rain, and the kids are scared of the thunder?  

At our house, we built a weather report station.  Where just about every single toy in our house has been collected to help them report the weather on their mission to the moon.  

And we cuddle next to each other when the thunder gets really scary.  (Ben, despite the cheese smile for the camera, is TERRIFIED of thunder.  He gets a panicky look and runs to hide his head until he isn't scared anymore.)

And, a rainy day staple, we pull out the rice bins to create farms, monster truck rallies, and construction sites.

And, it is only 11:00...

A dainty princess

with a big, ugly black eye.

I got a call from the school telling me that Sophie had gotten a "bump" on the playground.  I was a little surprised because I always expect the bumps to be from Ben - not Sophie who is much more cautious.  But, when I found out what happened, it made a little more sense.

The two of them were playing together on the see-saw, Sophie decided to get off, Ben decided to do a big jump.  And, WHAM.  He seemed to be upset about hurting her and kept asking to "help her".  Unfortunately for Sophie, his help consisted of him trying to rub her black eye.  Never a dull moment around here...

  

Why I don't cook.

The reason I don't cook often is because while I am doing this:

they are doing this:

They were, literally, dripping in mud.  So, in addition to the pile of dishes, I got to wash them as well this morning.  :)

And for those curious, Pablo and I just got back from a great vacation in Monterey, CA.  I realized last week (when Ellen was starting to get VERY anxious about us leaving) that we haven't had a vacation without kids in 3.5 years.  And we haven't had vacation for just the two of us in 4 years.  Time goes fast and we were (past) due.

When we were trying to figure out where we wanted to go, I told Pablo I didn't care what coast or city.  My only criteria was a room with a view of the ocean and a fireplace.  He did a great job!  Here is the view from our window:

We spent a lot of time walking the coastal pathways.  The weather was perfect!

Thank you to everyone who helped watch the kids.  It was so nice to come back to a quiet, clean house with happy kids!

a short post.

A little glimpse of our weekend fun...  The kids had so much fun towing each other around.  

Ellen loves pretending that Sophie is her "baby".  It makes me laugh because there is only a 3 pound weight difference.  :)

The boys wanted to get in on the fun.  

And, just to make you jealous, soon I will be looking at this:

instead of hearing this:

Better late than never

The kids were going through the pantry, desperately searching for some small remainder of Christmas junk food and came across the Gingerbread Train kit.  I guess with all the holiday activities, we completely forgot about this little prize Ben found for us at the grocery store.  

As you can imagine, the gingerbread pieces were a little brittle and started cracking when Pablo tried to build it.  And the icing was the same consistency as glue that has begun to harden.  But, the kids were in heaven and said that it tasted perfect.  :)

Here they are with their sticky masterpiece.  

Nerds

Pablo and I decided not to really get each other anything for Christmas because our present to each other is our upcoming vacation for just the two of us.  But, I really wanted to put something under the tree for him so I tried to think of something that would be a surprise, something he would like, and inexpensive.  

I remember, years ago, trying out a scalp massager at one of the stores at the mall and thought it might be a winner.  Even if Pablo didn't like it, I would!  

So, Christmas Day came and this is what he opened up.  He gave me a weird look and I figured he wasn't all that impressed.

Until I opened up my present. 

 What can I say, we are nerds.  And no, we haven't discussed these products or seen a commercial for them.  I don't know if we should be thankful that we are on the same wavelength or scared that we are becoming more alike...