Sledding

We haven't gotten the big storm yet. Noelle has had one full snow day and a few late starts but our top snow amount thus far this winter was probably somewhere between 3-4 inches. They are talking about February being rough, and we certainly have had some cold temperatures so we'll see. We are all set with 6 batches of freezer soup, sleds, boots, snow clothes, etc. so I say let it snow. Winter is a waste otherwise! But it would be great if it could do it enough that Bryan could also stay home! Here are the kids enjoying our one snowfall so far that was enough to do some sledding!

MLK Monday

Remember when I used to blog like 10-15 times a month? Yeah, pretty sure it is a distant memory never to return. Oh well! I am going to try to play a little catch up now.

First up, MLK Monday. Noelle and I spent some time talking about MLK before the holiday. This is something they have really discussed a good bit about in school this year and now that Noelle is 5 I feel like she really is starting to understand more about similarities, differences, justice, etc. I love the idea of using MLK as a day of service and hope that as Kellen gets a little older we can focus on that. We also will talk more and more about the world we live in. For now, it was nice to spend the day together, even if it was just the 3 of us as Bryan still had to go to work.

Kellen, Noelle, and I met Catherine and Avery at the science center to spend the morning learning and playing. It was fairly crowded, especially by the end of our visit, but we had a good time checking out the dinosaurs, playing in the kid room, watching the planetarium show, and exploring different physics concepts. We stayed for about three hours and when we got home Kellen actually took a nap for almost three hours, a sure sign that it was a successful excursion. Noelle rested for a short while and then asked to watch the science channel while she did her art. I love that girl!

My little paleontologists.

Electricity!

Opposing forces

And no visit to the kid room is complete without a chance to get soaked

Noelle liked pulling herself up on the pulleys

Kellen was perhaps a bit less excited.

Avery thought it was pretty cool

Playing some invisible strings

Maybe a little cooler than our marble run at home

I have no clue what this was but it looks cool.

Maybe Kellen is sharing some physics insights with Avery?

Pull! Kellen wasn't very helpful in trying to win the challenge.

 Thanks for sharing the holiday with us Catherine and Avery!

The Potty Wars

I think I am ready to declare our second child fully potty trained! Kellen is a stubborn one; in fact, he is well on his way to being the most stubborn in our family of four which is saying something! We tried potty training before the summer with the reward of "the big pool" looming over him and he could have cared less. In fact, he proceeded to pee on himself four times in 30 minutes and I am fairly sure it was just to make sure we knew how not in to our plan he was.

So I waited til he was 3. We weren't travelling or doing anything fancy for Thanksgiving so I decided that those 4 days at home were perfect. He turned 3 in October and we started talking up big kid underwear and being potty trained over Thanksgiving. We talked about a prize he could have when he finished being trained. And he wasn't having any of it.  He left daycare the Wednesday before Thanksgiving telling Rose that he would see her after the holiday and that he would have his diaper on. Uh oh.

We braced ourselves for the worst but proceeded anyways - I wasn't going to have the oldest kid ever in diapers! I bought m and m's as it is clear to me that the only thing that kid cares about more than being stubborn is sweets and we got out the underwear Thursday morning. And he put it on. Without screaming. We took him to the potty and he peed. And he proceeded to use the potty without really any problems for pee ever since. Sure, he has had a handful of accidents over the last seven weeks. But probably less than 10 ever. We skipped pull ups and from day three on he has been dry almost every night. In fact, he hasn't had a night time accident since the first week of December. And honestly, we don't even make him go potty. If he says no I don't need to, we believe him. He doesn't even go first thing in the morning and I let him lay in my bed - pretty trusting at 5:45 am! What a difference this experience is from our daughter who we still force in to the bathroom on a regular schedule!

Number two has been more challenging for Kel. For some reason, Kellen was terrified of going poop on the potty. But he also was disgusted to go in his underwear. And he clenched his legs together and cried the one time I suggested a pull up just to do his business. So he was holding it in for days at a time. And then going in his underwear, stripping it off, and requesting a shower. We offered a new dinosaur car if he went. No change. When he would get some in the potty we had a celebration. We talked about how it was awesome and not scary. Still it took us almost two months to get to where we are today where he is finally getting 100% in the potty. He uses his little potty for this and to pee first thing in the morning and otherwise stands. I am cool with this as it helps to keep my bathrooms cleaner it seems. I eagerly await the day we can get rid of the little potty altogether but Kel seems pretty sure he is going to fall in the big one when he sits so we either need to get the little seat attachment or wait awhile for that to happen.

All in all potty training with Kellen was pretty darn great. He was even dry on our drives to and from NC for Christmas and sleeping in the bed there with his sister. There's $40 back in to the budget every month!

Auto Show Adventure

Happy New Year everyone! I decided I am not going to really resolve anything specific this year but I am making efforts to make sure I am putting my family first this year.

Bryan and I had off from December 24th through January 4th and school and daycare were even closed so we have started the New Year with lots of family time. Last Friday we headed down to the Inner Harbor for the annual auto show. It was about 6 weeks earlier than usual this year, and had a few less entertaining extra events (Jeep, bring back your cool obstacle course!), but was still a good time as the kids and Bryan checked out dream cars, as well as some that are more practical for our family in the future. Ah, those days when car seats aren't taking up 90% of our backseats! Not that I want the kids to grow up fast but car seats are not my favorite thing, especially when it is cold, rainy, or I have a grumpy Kellen on my hands!

My kids like cars. A lot.

The yellow cars were the biggest hit for some reason. Kellen seriously sat and watched one rotate on a platform for 15 minutes straight.

Noelle checked out the cargo space in all the SUVs for Bryan.

That convertible definitely doesn't fit two ginormous Britax car seats!

After the car show we walked around the harbor and then had lunch at Cheesecake Factory. We pretty much never go out to eat other than at the local pizza place where our kids are welcome to run a muck with the other kids at the store so were pleasantly surprised everyone behaved and even seemed to like what they ordered.

Inner Harbor Family Selfie. Not that you can see any of the water/boats/buildings behind us!

We thought about hitting the science center before we headed home but naps were calling our names as we try to finally fight off these nasty coughs/colds.

I have really enjoyed our family togetherness the past few days, but I am ready to get back to our regularly scheduled routines!

Ten Years Later

Look at those babies! December 30, 2004 was a gorgeous day in the high 60's. Not too shabby for the end of December in the Outer Banks! We said I Do on a Thursday afternoon which was a little weird, but so are we, and since all of our friends were in education and our family had off  it worked out just fine.

Here we are now. Ten years later. We bought a house. We got a dog. We made it through law school. Bryan got a job offer fall of his third year and we found out almost immediately after that we were pregnant with Noelle. In August 2009 we had our beautiful baby girl about two weeks after B sat for and passed the MD bar exam. Now we have two beautiful, not so little anymore, babies. We are on our second house together. Bryan got admitted to the DC bar as well and is working at his third firm. And JHU has been pretty good to me the whole ten year ride. I would say we are pretty darn blessed. 

How did we celebrate? Well, we did our big celebration early if you remember. Disney on our own for 4 days in August. Complete with dinner and a special surprise cake for dessert at California Grill. 

But we did celebrate the real thing in NC, although a day early so my family could watch the kids and we could drive home on our actual anniversary to get back to MD. We went out for an early dinner (yes, we are old) and then out for drinks and dessert. 

It has been a great ten years. Here's to many more!

Christmas 2014

We started our celebration of Jesus's birth with 4 pm mass on Christmas Eve. Actually it started with outfit fails for the kids. I thought Noelle's Christmas dress from last year would fit and it didn't. And Kellen's 3T outfit that he got for his birthday dwarfed him. Thank goodness his 24 month outfit fit and my mom had just given Noelle a snowflake dress! At church, the kids were pretty good considering we were there for almost two hours. After mass, we drove over to the Hollywood's to see our friends, eat some yummy food, and exchange gifts for the kids. It was a relaxing night and is a nice tradition, despite the absence of the Dobucki crew now that they are in Illinois.

The cutest reindeer ever :)

Not too shabby. At least everyone is looking!

Opening his book from the godparents

Noelle took this one. We look dorky but I love it anyways!

Christmas morning the kids awoke to see what Santa, mom and dad, Bryan's mom, and his grandmother had put/sent for under the tree. This was the first year where the kids really tore in to the presents. They wanted to open everything and then check things out instead of the whole lets open one thing and play with it method of our past Christmases. This actually served us well since we wanted to leave town by 11 to get to my parents for Christmas dinner. Santa came through with the scarf and yo-yo, and added in a toy for Kellen, umbrella for Noelle, and Elsa and Olaf hats for the kids. Mom and dad got the kids some books, CDs, and a few toys each, including a marble run to share which has been a big hit. Grandma added a sleeping bag and science stuff for Noelle and some Jake and Leapfrog games and Tot Clock for Kellen and great grandma sent an assortment of books, toys, and clothes. The kids even each got a watch each from my godmother. As always, the kids were very lucky and everyone was super generous.

Santa and lots of family members filled up the space around our tree!

The whole morning was kind of a blur. Literally.

Mom, Please.

Maddie got some treats. And we were in "her room" for about an hour straight which I guess she liked.

After a breakfast of leftover Christmas Eve brownie trifle and sausage (separate from one another, and yes, I had grand plans for something more impressive but that trifle couldn't go to waste!) we packed up and headed out of town for our NC Christmas. It was great to have Bryan be able to come with us this year and we made record time despite two bathroom breaks. Soon after we arrived, my mom served cream of crab soup, prime rib, baked tomatoes, green beans, potato casserole - all my favorite foods. It was an amazing meal and we are thankful they hosted us and saved the good stuff for Christmas Day so we could join them for dinner!

Then the kids opened even more presents. One of the biggest hits was probably Jake's Skull Rock. Unfortunately it speaks. Loudly. And we forgot to forget it in NC. But Kellen loves it so thanks Uncle Mike, I guess! We also got a zoo membership from my grandmother which we are excited to use in 2015! The kids got some other goodies also including two games - the classic Hungry Hungry Hippos and a Disney Find It/Candyland type game that were also big hits and a Jake puzzle which is perhaps the most loved gift of all.

The weather in NC was wonderful the first few days of our trip. We spent time outside walking on the beach, at Jockey's Ridge, hiking down by the canal, and checking out the walk through lights in Manteo at the Elizabethan Gardens. We also went to the local crazy lights house in Nags Head again this year. I got some lovely runs in, Maddie got lots of exercise, and it was so nice to forget the heavy jackets for a few days. The rain came in and brought the cold before we headed home but I guess that prepared us for the current frigid temperatures here in Maryland.

My loves before our dinner out. Daddy was home with his migraine.

Ready to ride through the lights.

The lights were pretty amazing. Even if my dad and brother won't admit it.

Noelle, Grandmom, and one of Frosty's friends.

Me and my little angel.

Kellen I think you are almost smiling. And looking at the camera.

Look mom, no coats!

My little ladies.

The Crazy Paulos house

Kellen liked it because there were trains.

But was sad when we had to leave those trains.

As always we had a fabulous Christmas season. We are so blessed and thankful for our friends and family. And hopefully our kids remember that Jesus in the reason for the season! Merry Christmas!