Sledding and Snow

It has been an unseasonably warm and snow-less Winter so far in Wisconsin. Don't get me wrong, I love the mild days, but I was also really looking forward to see the girls play in the snow and go sledding this year. It finally happened and we went to a sledding party after we got 6 inches of snow. Yes, it was so exciting to have a "big" snow in the forecast, friends of ours threw a party. Vaughn got to hang with Grandma for the morning as we felt we needed both hands free to make the best of the party, well and it was too cold for him to be out for as long as we were. We all had a blast, and we definitely got a workout pulling the girls up the hill.

The look like big marshmallows bundled up and squeezed into their car seats! Sydney and TaylorMom and BrookeSydBrookeGetting ready to go, Taylor looks excited! Not sure why I was smiling here, my calves were killing
The next day we were out playing again and we built this nicely shaped but oddly decorated snowman, pretzels for eyes and buttons and a mini carrot for the nose, I better be more prepared next time! And, yes we did have hot cocoa when we came in from the cold!

The Million Dollar Photo

I wasn't sure how many years it would be before I could get a picture with all four of our kids without adults holding them down. I am still in a little bit of shock this turned out! It all stated when Taylor decided she wanted to sit in the bin, of course her sisters followed. There is a lot of "monkey see monkey do" around this house.

It's like everyone always said, they grow up so fast...well, it is happening. These three little miracle babies are turning into little girls right before their Dad and my eyes. It too, is amazing because it seems like Vaughn is growing up so much faster than the girls did the first year. I know it is because the girls' births were so much more stressful and unusual, but how can he almost have 4 teeth and be getting closer to crawling. Yikes! That also means we are getting older which is weird to think about because aside from the no-so-fine lines that have appeared on my face in the last two years I feel quite good! Chris and are working out hard with P90X and trying to get back to better than pre-babies shape. Bring it on "mid-late" thirties we are not afraid of you!!!

The amount of talking is insane around here. Five word full sentences are commonplace and even Vaughn adds his two cents every now and again. I love to hear the girls have conversations together, they like to tell each other what to do a lot, especially little miss Syd! A few weeks ago we moved the girls into their booster chairs and moved the "tablesaurus" into the basement. Amazing the amount of space that is freed up in the dinette.

Sydney is constantly telling her sisters and Vaughn what to do. If I tell someone to do something she is there to repeat it. She is a really good listener and unless she gets in a "mood" to sit on the naughty chair, which happens occasionally, she is really helpful and well behaved. AND, she still loves her little brother the most. She is very polite, says bless you when someone sneezes, she tells me to be careful when I am standing on a chair or doing something out of the ordinary and she says excuse me when she burps or toots. She is super sweet and wants to do EVERYTHING herself. We hear a lot of "Sydney do it".
Modelesque Sydney


Brooke's new thing is to say "I don't think so" with a big smile and bit of sarcasm. It sort of cracks me up and she has got Taylor saying it these past few days. This little one has a lot of spunk to her and with that comes a bit of a temper. When she is disciplined at all or even told not to steal toys she gets mad and has started to have hit and kick tantrums. She usually does it super gentle and rarely actually hits or kicks anyone, but she still ends up on the naughty chair and then is back to her sweet little self.
Brooke continues to be a little goofball, she makes the funniest faces and LOVES to get reactions from everyone! Taylor seems to be the more serious one lately. She really loves to snuggle and seems to really think about things. She loves to be held and it hit me the other day that I was no longer holding onto a little baby, she is a long legged skinny boney little girl. Her emotions are very real and she is incredibly sensitive. She also seems to be the most aware of herself. That said she also loves to be super silly with her sisters, she makes sure everyone is involved and happy.

Mommy time while the others napped in their bedsThat is some serious multitasking!
She loves to smile for the cameraVaughn's top left front tooth has popped through which would explain the rough night a few nights ago. The right front is bulging and not far behind, how is this already happening??? I was not prepared for this yet. I was looking back to when the girls got teeth and they were 9 months, so this is unexpected in my mind, although very normal for term babies! Vaughn sits like a champ and is getting close to getting himself into a crawl position. He also pretty much insists on holding his own bottle and feeding himself. He simply refuses to eat sometimes if someone is holding him. The minute we lay him down he sucks it down! He is the happiest little guy and spends his days watching the antics of his sisters. He loves when they give him attention, I think that is evident in this clip!


This picture cracked me up because it is going to likely be the story of Vaughn's life. This was a present we just got around to opening from Christmas for Vaughn and the minute it was opened his sisters took over, you can see by the look on his face he is thrilled, all he wants is to use the hammer, and not a pink one!!!

Such a happy boy pretty much all the time!
BATHTIME!!! It has always been something the girls enjoyed and had fun with. A few months ago Sydney had a short period when she wanted nothing to do with getting into the tub but with the patients of Daddy and a few one on one baths she was eased back into the fun that comes with bathing. Not really sure where that fear came from, but we are glad it was short lived. NOW, Brooke is hating the tub and I am 100% sure it is my fault. I had a bad mommy moment. It was a Tuesday night, after a LONG day, whining filled dinner and I was exhausted. We went up for a bath and all was good, then as we were about to get out of the tub Brooke stands up and there was a big poop sitting on the mat. My reaction was not anger and I did not yell at her at all, but I was frustrated and even though I did not get mad at her or say anything other than that it is important to tell Mommy if you have to poop when we are in the tub, she knew I was not thrilled and now is scared of taking a bath. All I could think about when it happened was how I had to get everyone out asap and rewash them and bleach the tub along with all the toys. Ugh! Poop in the tub totally stinks, literally but it is a reality with kiddos and now I feel terrible that I made her fearful of baths. Now, she is always looking behind her in the tub to see if there is poop. Yikes, poor little girl. We have started to get to the point of standing in the tub while the water is running and she seems ok as long as she is not sitting in the water but I have major guilt about this incident.

Taylor, Brooke, Sydney

Ugh, I am always blogging at night and whenever I talk about my kiddos or write about them it makes me want to go wake them and snuggle all night long...but I am a smarter woman than that! I do love my sleep!!!

Tantrum City

This is a good one! Not often do they all get involved at once, but this day they did and there is some good acting involved!

Haircuts

We broke down and decided our hair cutting abilities are not "cutting" it (hehehe). So, Chris took Sydney to a salon that turned out to be pretty creepy, but she desperately needed a trim. Brooke and Taylor went with me and Papa a few weeks later to Sport Clips.

Sydney
By the looks of it Syd is not thrilled and is probably a little creeped out by the whole environment. She was asked by the stylist if she wanted glitter in her hair to which she replied yes. The women proceeded to take a salt shaker like device and poured it on her head. What a mess!!! I think there still may be some stuck to her scalp permanently. I have a love hate relationship with glitter.

Taylor

Brooke
Sport clips was fine, the girls did great and were facing each other chatting during their cuts. Not sure what our next move in the hair cutting area will be.

Merry Merry Christmas 2011

Christmas 2011 was wonderful. I think it may be my favorite so far. We did what has now become tradition. Christmas Eve at my parents house with Chris's parents and this year my sister and brother in law came in from CA. Christmas Day we had at our house. The morning was hanging with Vaughn and the girls opening presents and then both families came for the afternoon. Chris's sister and Justo were in Bolivia spending the holidays with his family. Thinking back on it all makes me feel really warm and fuzzy inside, we all had such an enjoyable time!

The week before Christmas we had a little girls outing with Grandma while Grandpa hung back home with Vaughn. We went downtown to the US Bank Christmas display. It was huge and the girls got a kick out of it. And...what is an outing without lunch??? We went out for Mexican food where the girls all ate a ton of chips, rice, tortillas and as usual, Brooke and Taylor ate the salsa with a spoon. They love it and it was a really fun morning!
Taylor liked the candySydney
BrookeTaylorThis picture was not actually taken on Christmas, but I had to include it because it makes me laugh a little. Brooke spending time on the "naughty" chair at Busia and Papa's house:

Christmas Eve at Busia and Papa's house:

The girls loved the village that was displayed all over the house. They had a ball playing with the people and trees and were extremely gentle with all the little figures. They also loved their individually colored trees and also enjoyed talking about baby Vaughn's tree, his is gold. One of their favorite things to do at their house is to play piano. They were adorable singing jingle bells.

Brooke and Taylor playing with the village people
Grandma with Sydney and Taylor enjoying all the yummy snacksPapa being sillyUncle Eric and VaughnRick and me having a chatPiano time with Busia

Christmas morning it was just the six of us hanging out and the girls were testing out their new stocking stuffers bottles while Vaughn ate his. Brooke with the baskets
My beautiful sisterGreat pic of Papa and BusiaI have my hands fullTaylor modeling her new presents for Auntie AngAlways happy little buddyVaughn loving his new doggie from Grandma and GrandpaHappy as can be with PapaMmmm bottle with BusiaGrandpa making the tears go awayAgain, it was a fantastic Christmas with everyone. There were many generous gifts exchanged but the best part was being together and celebrating!
It's been awhile since Chris and I had a photo together!