The Birthday Season

The birthday season has come and gone leaving us all a year older and wiser and a little plumper.  It seems to arrive every year only a day after the holiday pounds have been lost!

This year on top of the various parties we had a great time at Dunes Village where Chloe braved the waters and even went a couple of times on the water slide.  The first night we booked, Patrick and I stayed alone, and the kids headed back to Mimi's (and Grandpa's, I should mention) house after water play, pizza, and cake.  The second night they got to stay in the room, too!  They loved it.  They actually slept together on the couch bed after a latenight viewing of Cars. The next morning they got to pick out a muffin and juice at the onsite coffee shop, watch several shows that only come on cable, and then we headed to my old place of employment Build-a-Bear where Chloe made a blue (of course!) bear decked out in Hello Kitty jammies and Hello Kitty slippers.  She appropriately named it Hello Bear.   Afterwards we went to River City for burgers and fries, and headed back home.  Chloe had an absolutely wonderful time!

Check out the family cake Mom had made for the party.  I love how Chloe's name is on a fallen leaf since she is the only outlier with a fall birthday!

The Winter Highlight Reel

Winter is making it's final plea to stick around today, while all of us in the C household are longing for the warm breezes of spring.  Opportunities to take an evening walk around the lake and to visit a different park every day for a picnic lunch are just around the corner.  We simply cannot wait. 

Here are some of our favorite memories from winter:



Disney on Ice!  Grandma came up and treated us all to a very exciting night of family fun.  Despite Chloe's high fever and oncoming case of croup, she thoroughly enjoyed herself.  She still talks about all of our fun adventures that night!  We started the evening at Michaelangelo's, our local Friday night pizza place (serving a large 2 topping pizza for only $7.99 after 4pm and fountain drinks for $1!) and had our usual pizza and drinks.  The kids received special cups to kick off the night.  Then we headed to the pre-show where we got to meet Cinderella, admire all of the princess's gowns, and gaze into Mirror Mirror on the Wall.  The show was simply amazing.  The talent that it takes to skate and dance around while wearing large, ridiculous costumes astounds me.  The scenery was wonderful, too.  We saw Mickey and all of his friends, the cast from Cars, The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, and a grand finale with Tinkerbell.  After the show ended we finished off the night with a run to Krispy Kreme for some fresh hots, since we happened to be "in the neighborhood."

The girls and I with Cinderella.  Melissa screamed "I love you!" to her and received a very sweet "I love you, too!" and a blown kiss.

Tinkerbell. So cool.

This is the doll I made for Chloe for Christmas.  She named it Chloe and loved it to literal pieces.  I am now trying to learn to mend.  I didn't think the girls I made them for would love them so much! I envisioned shelf-sitting dolls!

 We tried to start new traditions of homemade gifts, baking parties, gingerbread houses, and advent.  For the first time, I think we can truly say we savored the season and worshipped Christ while looking forward to the celebration of His birth throughout the entire month. The kids also received fleece blankets made by Patrick and I during the evenings when they were asleep, and bikes from Craigslist.  They were absolutely thrilled with all of it.

Chloe and Dolly on Christmas morning

During our holiday travels, the kids got pretty much everything they wanted from all of the various grandparents.  Chloe began her My Little Pony collection thanks to generous gifts from Nana, and believe me, it has flourished!  The girl is nuts for Ponies!  She also received a laptop and a tiny vacuum cleaner that are played with daily.

This season we received three ocassions of snow much to Chloe's delight.  Every morning that she woke to find it outside of our front windows Chloe would exclaim, "He was right!  Mommy! The weather man was right!!"  She had much fun catching snowflakes on her tongue, eating snow cream, throwing snowballs at the boys, and making numerous snow angels.

Happy Halloween!

The Summer Highlight Reel

As promised, our summer in one post or less!

June

The Highlights: Our annual trip to Buckwheat Farms in Apex to pick strawberries.  Chloe still talks about the "funny goats" and the horses she got to pet and feed strawberries.

Taking an impromptu week-long beach week, just Mommy and the kids.  It happened to be the same week as the annual Forrest family beach week with Grandma Kepley, so we had a blast with Jillian and her whole family.  Chloe got to play with Ava, on the beach.  Chloe + Ava = BFF!

Our first trips to the pool with friends. 

Eating LOTS of "ice cream on a cone."  "Choclit on banilla, please.  That's my fav-rit!"

A short, yet special, get together with Nana and Ed at Ann and Dean's house.

Spending an entire week at Mimi and Grandpa's house.  Chloe couldn't wait for us to leave, and constantly asked, "Are you going to New York City now, Mommy?"  or "Go to New York City! See you next week!"  not stopping until we finally left.  The highlights of her week included going to the beach with Grandpa and riding a boogie board, and going to the pool with Mimi and riding a golf-cart.

The Lowlights- Going to the pool the first couple of times.  Chloe would hold so tightly to my arms while wrapping her entire body around mine, that I thought I would drown.

Having to leave Mimi's house to return to this prison we like to call "Home."  She still complains about not getting to live with Mimi forever.

July

The Highlights: An Old Fashioned Fourth of July Celebration in Apex.  Chloe liked the moon bounce, painting, water run, and playing Lucky Ducky the most.  She also particularly enjoyed her patriotic sno cone.  (I don't know why.  It was rank.)

Fireworks! Chloe loved our escapades to view the fireworks in the Wal-Mart parking lot (2 days in a row. Thank you, Mother Nature.), and enjoyed every second of the show.  She reminisced "Remember America's birthday party, Mommy?" for weeks afterward.

The church picnic on the future site of College Park Baptist Church!

Filling her picnic basket with our lunch nearly every day, and going to a park after my workout.  I would let her pick the park most days, and she would describe her desired locale, "how about the park with the climber in the sand?" or "how 'bout merry-go-round park?" or "let's go to park by water-lake!" or "let's go to the park with the bridge today!"

Watching the new ducklings grow from babies to "little girls" to "big girls" all in a month's time.

The Durham Bulls baseball game.  Patrick’s company has season tickets to the Bulls, and we got to go.  We got to watch the game from the 2nd row, just behind 1st base.  The kids had a blast. Chloe liked Wool E. Bull, the cartoons on the big screen, and the music more than the game. She really got into the YMCAing and clapping and rooting and such.  We were certain we would only stay for a short time, and were completely ok with that, but the kids loved it so much we got to stay until the fireworks!  This time we got to watch them close up! Chloe loved them, and was absolutely giddy while watching them.  She squealed with delight, and smiled so big I thought her face would break.

Going to the pool and JUMPING in with Melanie and the other big girls.  Un-be-lievable.  Truly.

AUGUST

The Highlights- Mama and Daddypa's surprise party.  Chloe loves nothing more than a birthday party.

Going to the Science and History Museums with Carrie, her bro, and her boys.  Tons of fun!  Chloe really liked the butterfly room this time.  She was especially thrilled with all of the big blue ones.  (Cause Blue's my favorite colorrrrrr!)

Tootie and Ally and a trip to Chuck E. Cheese.  Thanks to the constant commercials of the rat and all his promises of fun on PBSkids, Chloe has been begging to go for some time.  Thankfully, it didn't disappoint, and she had an awesome time! It helped (my nerves, especially) that there was only one other little boy there for the entire first hour of our outing.

Playing with Ally.  I was almost sad she doesn't have a big sister.  She just loved having Ally here to play with and talk with for the week.

A Mt. Airy trip complete with Pilot Mountain, Speedy Chef, and Tootie's house.  Chloe LOVED the mountain, and found a perfect rock to bring home and add to her collection.

A day in the old neighborhood.  Lunch at the old pizza place, a drive by the old house, playtime at the old park (which has been completely renovated and is incredible, I might add.  Figures.), and a sprinkled doughnut, hat, and balloon from the old Krispy Kreme.  In Chloe's words, "You're the goodest Mommy of the world, Mommy!  What a fun day! Thank you so much for the fun day, good Mommy! I love you!"

The lowlights- Tantrums, talking back, and intense anxiety when I leave her in the gym or church nursery.  It's tiring, sad, frustrating, and downright bizarre.  She would normally trade me for most anyone at our church in a heartbeat. Hopefully this will soon past.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Morning, 1 of 2

 

After homemade chocolate chip waffles and an interactive telling of the Christmas story, the kids tore into their three presents. Chloe got a chalkboard book, a hooded Dora towel, and a new set of lamps for her dollhouse (Eli wrecked all of the original ones.)  I almost wish we hadn't bought more stuff to open on the real Christmas morning at Mimi's house. They were more than happy with what they got today.

In their stockings they got candy canes, M&Ms, Pez, and a set of window markers. They had a blast decorating our sliding glass doors from top to bottom. I thought this was a pretty cool shot of the whole thing. Would have been cooler, but Eli wouldn't dare let his M&Ms loose, lest someone hijack them. We had a fabulous morning, went out for a lunch of eastern BBQ, and now not a creature is stirring, except me anyways. Peace at last.

DONE!

I'm D-O-N-E with all of my Christmas shopping! Well, almost done. There's a one certain Mimi who doesn't exactly have a present yet... but, more or less, I'm doing the happy happy done with the shopping and crowds dance!

Happy Trick or Treat

Little Pink Houses

Our Independence Day was lots of fun this year.  We spent the holiday plus a couple of more days in Shallotte, doing the whole tourist thing with t-shirts to prove it.  On the Fourth we had a massive cook-out topped off with the neighbors' really cool, illegal fireworks.  We did the tour of beaches (Ocean Isle, Holden, Mimi's yard), and the kids had different kinds of fun at all of them.  Our nights were stinkrotten, which made our days a little less wonderful, but there was still plenty of fun to go around.