Winter has Stolen my Sanity

I love winter, but I am beyond over it. We have spent far too much time cooped up inside the house for a family of people who thrive on activity and stimulation and it shows in everyone. Blair has perfected a high pitched scream, Colin has perfected the alligator roll across the couch, the dog has chased his tail more times than I can count and I have lessened the time it takes to go to my happy place by half. Between snow, frigid temperatures, ice and illness, it has been rough folks.

Of course we had Valentines to do! Colin had to make cards for his family, and also his friends at school. It took a solid two weeks and a few bribes to get these finished.

Blair and I met Colin at his school to go through all the Valentines from his friends. It was so cute watching him and of course Blair wanted to get in on the action too!

I love an excuse to celebrate, so I got the kids little gift bags for Valentine's Day. Blair loves her Dad's Xbox controller, so she got a little pretend one from Cupid. Colin really loves squishy balls, so he got one in his bag!

I even made a little card (with the kids' help) for Chris!

The weekend after V-Day, I headed to Cleveland for my cousin's baby shower. I just took Blair with me because Colin had his Winter Ball for school. It was a dance party and he loved it! Chris said he was doing his Michael Jackson moves and broke out some new ones too. And he sure looked handsome!

Here are some pictures are of the last scraps of creativity I had to entertain the kiddos inside. Lots of crafts...

Making trophies - it says "1st Place - Butterfly Race - Chris Kuriyama"

One day he told me he wanted to make some minions - so we did. I did the cutting, he did the drawing and gluing.

I needed some color on the window, so we colored on coffee filters and painted water to make suncatchers! 

Colin wanted to make a monster mask out of the empty graham cracker box so...we did! Carlo kept watch for the REAL monsters.

We did manage to get out some though, especially towards the end of the month. The kids have started swim classes on Monday nights, and Colin has a sports class on Tuesday mornings. We go to the Y twice a week so I can run and the kids can play. Blair also is down to only one nap a day, so she and I will have more opportunities to have some one-on-one time adventures.

Blair got to hang out with Eleanor at the library while I went to the dentist. Eleanor is 2 1/2 and very petite, and Blair is 1 and very tall. They are almost the same size!

We headed to the open gym we used to go to all the time with our friends Eleanor and Louis.

Colin's first sports class focused on soccer and volleyball! It was hard to get a snap of him that wasn't blurry.

Here's little saucy at a community playgroup while Colin was in school. It was fun to just spend time with her and not worry about what her brother was doing or where he was. Lots of kids though. Lots.

And of course, the go-to outside activity in the winter: sledding! Colin has no fear at all, and will just sled right down. We're still working on getting him to the side of the hill then hiking up, but that may end up being a lesson learned the hard way (someone plowing into him). And little Blair! She loves it. She laughs the whole way down and will scoot her butt and scream if she's in the sled but not moving. These kids I tell you!

The snow piles outside our house hardened enough to make super cool tunnels! It took awhile and lots of calories, but I finally made a three-way tunnel for Colin. After I was done he said "Mom I am so proud of this tunnel." We also managed to get Blair out and through the tunnel too! I was surprised she wasn't a little more hesitant to go through it than she was - these kids are not scared of much!

The days of the kids playing together without issues are coming to an end. Don't get me wrong, some days the get along like peas & carrots, but I am spending more time trying to help Colin find solutions to what is making him angry that don't involve punching or pushing his sister. For example, Colin is building something and Blair knocks it over. Solution: bring it somewhere she can't reach. He rarely (if ever) listens so it ends up being the same problems over & over again. 

Onto the kids!

Colin and I have really butt our heads these last few months. He's a lot like me, and needs to go do & see things, or the energy builds up and turns him into a raging lunatic. In a way, he almost regressed back to doing things he hadn't in awhile; spitting (gross!), he peed on the floor a few times, he will lick/eat something as a first instinct rather (like the door in the changing room at the Y, barf). Some of it I do attribute to him being out of the routine of school, but there have been lots of "what-the-%&!#-I'm-locking-myself-in-the-bathroom moments the last two months! On the positive side...

He is a really smart, funny and creative kid. He says the funniest things that knock you on your butt, but also keep you in check. His spirited, stubborn personality will serve him well as he grows up into adulthood, but it sure tests me now!

Will I ever get tired of his pictures?! The faces absolutely melt my heart. He's recently started to draw other objects (flower, brain flake, etc). I never want to get rid of any of his artwork, so I will have to become a hoarder. He also has a story about each drawing.

"Colin, why is Dad mad in this picture?" "Because he thinks you gave me too many snacks."

"Here is Grandma Karen with a huge booger in her nose."

"This is a baby boy for the baby party."

"These are some planets, that's me with headphones, and a grape with a face on it. And an 'm' for you mommy."

Colin has been loving his brain flakes and magnatiles lately. He likes building and telling very elaborate stories about what he has built. And he has that working face on!

Oh Blair. Getting so big every day. She is starting to say a few more words (hi, bye), and she finally has her top four teeth. Blair walks around smoothly and has now learned how much fun climbing can be! Luckily we only have the couch for her to climb on, but whenever I take her places I have to move a lot more than I did trying to make sure she doesn't bust her head open! She has learned how to hold a marker the way she's supposed to (as opposed to in a fist) as well - we're still working on coloring on paper only as you'll see below. She is also down to one nap per day, and for the most part sleeps through the night. We are staring down having to wean her from the pacifier, and have been slowly lessening the amount of time she has it. My two favorite things she does right now: before bed I hand her the stuffed animal, and she hugs it close to her; when she hugs you she also pats you with one hand (sidenote: Colin did this too, so I wonder if I/we pat them without realizing it?).

             

The personality on this one. Where her brother is fire, she's water. She is just a happy, easy going baby toddler, but if she is displeased she will not hesitate at all to let you know. The ladies who watch kids at the Y always compliment her, saying she's such an easy baby and is perfectly content just hanging out and entertaining herself. And the girl wears her emotions on her face!

She is full on into her mooching stage as well. If she sees food, you better be ready to share because she is relentless and will scream like a banshee if she doesn't have a taste. 

I found five pictures that sum up her personality pretty well: 

Too cool

Too silly (she does this a lot) and just like her mama 

 

Too sweet

 Too evil 

Too happy 

I'm hoping by the time I write the next blog I am looking out my window at a budding tree, some sunshine, some grass and - DARE I SAY - flowers?! Fingers crossed!