Consider this...

This came home in Big Bro's newsletter from school today and I thought it was worth sharing.

"Watch your thoughts; they become words.
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character, it becomes your destiny."

Tot Talk

Conversation happening right now at the snack table between Little Sis and 4 year-old J.

J: Why are you putting your blue jacket on?
Sis: Cuz I am cold.
J: But why are you cold?
Sis: Cuz I didn't have my blue jacket on.
J: Oh.

Me: Giggles.

First Haircut

Little Sis had her first haircut on Friday. A very exciting event for little sis, and slightly traumatic for her daddy! She is 3 years 8 months old, so it was definitely time for a haircut. I had been trying to convince her of this for the past few months but up until a few weeks ago she was certain that cutting her hair would be the equivalent of becoming a boy. "But mama I don't want to cut my hair 'cuz I won't be a girl no more".
We went to a little shop that specializes in kids' cuts and she sat in a little jeep to get it done. She was very proud of how still she sat and is telling everyone "and I didn't even whine". It took the lady approximately 3 minutes to cut it so I did feel a little ripped off, but Little Sis got a special experience for her first cut. Little does she know that next time I will be taking matters into my own hands. Wonder how well that will go over.
Here she is... still a girl and looking more and more like a little lady than my baby.

MLKJ Day!

Big Bro had a part in the school assembly on Friday in honor of Martin Luther King Jr Day. He had his part memorized but was very nervous to be up on the stage in front of the rest of the school. You can not see him very well but can hear him (and his sister's encouraging words) fairly clearly!

Missed Photos

I wanted to share a couple of photo's I missed from the first part of the month.

Hubby and the kids built the snowmen on the 1st. Our Frosty has since melted. In fact we don't have any snow left on the ground now.
Here are a couple of photos of the gingerbread houses we built with the boys. I made them all from scratch this year. It was very time consuming but the kids had such a great time with them, making it totally worth it!

I'm Big Bro's Mom!

We went to Big Bro's reflection ceremony on Monday night. Oh, what a night! It is great when I excel at something but seeing my son do it was so much better. I could not have been more proud. He was thrilled as he got not only the ribbon and certificate I promised him but they also gave him his own little photo album and disposable camera to help prepare him for his next photo shoot!


Last night I had a meeting with one of my mothers groups and we were talking about how once you become a mother you loose your identity and become so-and-so's mom. The more I think about it though, the more I realize that there is nothing else I would rather be. I love being at his school and having the kids call me C's mom. I am so incredibly proud of him (and my daughter as well) that it is really an honor to be called their mother. I don't feel like I have lost my identity at all. I am still me and I still stand for the same things. I feel more like my identity has just been expanded. I'm sure this comes off as rather cheesy but I am really quite happy at where my life is at right now. (This could also be the result of reading "The Last Lecture" and remembering that time is finite and that we should really live in the moment.)

Sorry about the poor photo quality, hopefully I will be able to post some better ones soon. As you can see here Little Sis was pretty proud of her brother as well. He's sharing a chair with a little girl from his class and sitting two rows in front of hubby and me!

The Thorn

Big Bro did a Reflections project back in the fall. The Reflections Program is an arts recognition and achievement program for students sponsored by PTA. Big Bro grabbed the camera and took some great shots all by himself. We entered this one that he entitled "The Thorn". We just found out this week that he won in the photography division. Well technically there are 5 top winners in each division, but it is judged school district wide with many entries so that is still quite an achievement.
Big Bro wanted to know what he won. He was certain it would be a new toy! We explained that it was probably just a ribbon and certificate. Also his work will be put on display at a local high school on Monday evening and then it will go on to the State Reflections contest. He's pretty excited, and we are so proud.

Memories from 2008

As I created this small slide show of our past year I was reminded of all the wonderful memories we created. Though probably not the most exciting year, it has been a good year filled with new friends and fun adventures. Here's some of my favorite photos from the year. Enjoy.

Happy 2009!

New Year's Resolutions

I think New Year's Resolutions are somewhat silly. If there are things that you want to change, why wait until the new year rolls around to get it done. Sounds like procrastination to me.
However I am a bit of a procrastinator myself, therefore I tend to make resolutions each year regardless of the silliness factor.

This year I have the usually list, resulting from a holiday season of eating, sitting, eating, and more eating. So I will be getting my regular fitness routine back on track, watching what I eat and drinking more water. Hum, sounds like the list from last year and the year before that and the year before that...

I have come up with a new resolution this year though. I will stop being tardy! We are always late. I hate being late. I hate that rushed feeling. I hate yelling for everyone to hustle and getting angry because once again we are late and then feeling guilty because I got angry and yelled. I tend to blame our tardiness on the kids but truth be told this is more my issue than theirs. I have been juggling two kids out the door for years now. I should know how long it takes to get everyone ready and out the door. So I am going to add 10 minutes onto our departure routine. I have also heard of a timer trick, set the timer and when it goes off we leave the house regardless of our condition. Hmmm, may make for some interesting situations but I bet everyone would start taking me more seriously when I tell them it's time to go. One way or another we will be making it to our destinations this year on time.

There you have it, my resolutions in a timely fashion. A Happy New Year to you and best of luck with your own resolutions!