December 2012

December was a busy month. We started off with a holiday party for Doug's client. This was the third year we had gone and it's always a good time for the kids. Santa is there and gives a book from the Bookworm to each child with a bag of more goodies. They take family photos, have a coffee and hot chocolate bar and a fun photo booth. We enjoy getting the family photos and seeing some of the people Doug works with.

This year we did an advent calendar for the first time for the whole month of December. It was nice to get organized on what we were doing when, but it was hard to do it all. Some things we ended up not doing. One of my favorite things was taking the boys out to Village Pointe for hot chocolate and Christmas lights. We also had to stop at Scheels while there, of course.  We drove around for a bit after that and looked at lights in the neighborhoods. It was just me and the boys, which I liked.
The Elf on the Shelf visited us again this year. The boys LOVE the elf. They believe so whole heartedly in him and I love it. The elf had some new antics this year, like making snow angels, going fishing and turning the milk red. I was glad to see the elf go, so I did not have to come up with more ideas!

We made cookies, dipped pretzels, shopped, wrapped, attended Christmas programs, celebrated birthdays (Charlie turned 9 and my mom turned a year younger), endured a snow storm, attended ugly sweater parties and 5K runs, ran a lot, decorated gingerbread men, enjoyed Christmas with family, and New Year's with friends. It was a great month! I could go into detail, but it would take me forever! 

For Charlie's 9th birthday, we hung out during the day. We had our blueberry/lemon breakfast bundt cake. Charlie requests is every year. For dinner that night we picked up Charlie's friend Josh and met my parents and sister at Kobe's Steakhouse. We had a great meal and returned home to open gifts, have cake and let the boys play. 

One of my favorite things about December has been my running. I've been running 4-5 days a week and have shaved a minute off of my pace. I can now run hills at a 9 min/mile pace or sometimes better. I signed up for the Lincoln Half Marathon in May and hope to set a new personal record. I also met a new group of runners in December who have been the most awesome thing. We run a few days a week together and have been out to dinner as a group. They are a really positive group and I am so happy to have met them! I have gotten into trail running with Greg, my neighbor, and hope to participate in some trail runs with an Omaha trail running group! Omaha has an awesome running community!

November 2012

The highlight of November for me was Thanksgiving break. We had Wednesday through Sunday off of school. It was the first break in a long time and was much needed. The boys were home with me and  we had fun relaxing and hanging out at home. The weather was really nice, so we spent our first day off by hanging out outside with the neighbors and taking the dogs for a long walk to the park.

Of course, we had our Charlie Brown Thanksgiving feast while watching the show. The boys really like doing this. The love having popcorn, pretzels, toast and jelly beans for dinner.

My parents came over the day of Thanksgiving. It was nice and relaxing and quiet. Of course, I forgot to take pictures. Ugh.

The day after Thanksgiving is probably my favorite tradition of ours. We hang out and watch football. We then head downtown around 3:30 to get to the Durham to see Santa, the trains and see the tree lighting. There are a few arts and crafts activities there too. This has been the third or fourth year we've done this and they boys really look forward to it. This is the first year we have actually stayed for the tree lighting. It took forever, but when the tree was lit and the confetti fell, the boys loved it.
We then headed out to go for a carriage ride around downtown to see the lights. Next we hit the candy store and Christmas shop to pick out candy and ornaments. This year we stopped in a new toy store downtown called Le Wonderment, which was a lot of fun. We had dinner at Old Chicago and finally made it home by 10pm. It was a long afternoon and evening, but a ton of fun.
While at the Durham we looked at the Christmas tree exhibit with trees from around the world. Our favorite was the German tree and they have a tradition of hiding a pickle ornament somewhere in the tree for the children to find. So, we picked up a pickle ornament and started that this year, too. The boys have had a lot of fun with it.

The Elf on the Shelf also made his appearance on Thanksgiving. The boys were thrilled that Nick was back and he's been doing fun stuff ever since.

We decorated the tree and the boys got new fun winter hats!

October 2012

At the beginning of the month, both boys had field trips for school. Charlie went to Nebraska City to Arbor Lodge and Jack went to the zoo. They were both really excited and had a good time. The weekend before their field trips, we went to the boys' first NFL football game in KC. The Chiefs played the Ravens. We weren't sure how well the boys would like the game or pay attention. Turns out they LOVED it. They both sat and watched the entire game. Charlie cheered pretty loudly and Jack was quiet and Doug-like in his football watching. The Chiefs played the Ravens and Jack is (or was) a Ravens fan. He was glad they won. It was a low-scoring game (9-6) and no touchdowns were made. It was a beautiful fall day for the drive down and back. It was chilly, but not too chilly. We had beers, popcorn, peanuts and hot dogs. It was definitely the experience. They want to go to another game soon. In fact, that is what Charlie has asked for for his birthday. He would like to go to a Vikings game in December. It is obvious their dad's love of NFL football is transferring to them. Charlie knows a lot of the terminology, plays, teams, records, scores and player info. It's amazing how fast they suck it all in and remember it. Charlie loves to watch football with Doug and talk about how all the teams are doing. It's fun to watch. Jack is interested as well, but not quite as much yet, since he's still younger.

This month we also had conferences for the boys. They are both doing really well in school. Charlie loves math and science and Jack likes pretty much anything. Charlie really is enjoying learning about the writing process. In 3rd grade, they had to write a story about their favorite restaurant and Charlie wrote about Hooters. The teacher and I got a good laugh about that at conferences.

During the month of October, we continued our quest to redo the main floor of the house. This month we moved on to lighting and had every light in the house replaced. They also installed recessed lighting on the first floor, which I love. We moved our first floor set-up around a little and purchased some new rugs and furniture. It's looking really good and all we have left to do is the trim, doors, crown moulding and painting. We are almost there. Then I have a feeling we will move on to the 2nd floor and redo trim, doors and bathrooms. It's been fun watching the progress, but it's definitely a lot of work...and we aren't even doing any of the work. We are just watching and picking it out. Eeeek. Imagine if we did the work. I would die.

Let's see, what else for October. We went to Vala's to celebrate fall. We all love going to Vala's and usually spend about 5 hours there. This year we got to do some new things that we hadn't done before. The boys did the paintball and apple blasters. We went this year on a Friday night and decided that we really enjoy going at night. The boys loved going on the train ride and corn maze in the dark. We ate dinner there and sat by a fire with an older gentlemen who told us a story. He told Casey at the Bat by memory and was very animated. The boys sat and listened in awe. They loved the story and asked if there was more. Then we sat and talked with the man and as it turns out, he grew up in Council Bluffs not far from where I lived. Small world. It was a highlight of our visit this year.

The boys had a dress-up week at school to celebrate drug awareness. We had some interesting discussions about smoking and drugs. It's obvious they don't have a grasp on what drugs are yet....which is good.  One day was Hawaiian day and they both had grass skirts, hats and leis.

I turned 38 at the end of October. I was supposed to go to Minneapolis with some friends to run a half marathon, but I ended up staying home with the boys. I didn't want to spend my birthday away again, as I was gone last year too. The day was uneventful. I took the day off work but ended up taking Kiki into the vet for a small surgery. That wasn't fun and she wasn't happy. We also had a sick bearded dragon and I gave him warm baths and fed him crickets. By the time that was all over, I had time for a four-mile run and some coffee. We went to an early dinner at La Mesa and were in bed by 8:30. Whew, I am a party animal. The next day we did go to the neighbor's house for a party and had quite a few drinks and watched the football game. It was a good time.

And for Halloween! Charlie was a mummy this year and Jack was the grim reaper again. He wanted to wear the same costume as last year, so who was I to argue. What, save money and not have to shop for a new costume? Yes, sign me up. The boys' school had a costume parade and they had also decorated the entire school in the Candy Land theme. It was amazing and a surprise for the students. The entire inside had the little colored squares around the whole school. Each area of the school had a different theme and different decorations. All of the teachers and staff were dressed up as Candy Land characters. It was pretty cool and fun for the kids. After school that day, my mom and I picked up the boys and headed home to make chili and mummy hot dogs. I also made white pumpkin hot chocolate, which was amazing. We went trick or treating with some neighbor friends. The night was exhausting. The boys were out for over two hours. I think they need to have Halloween on a Friday night every year. The rest of the week I was so tired.

September 2012

Where did September go? It's on to October and we've been so busy, I don't see an end in sight. I don't ever remember feeling so busy and rushed. I don't like it.

At the beginning of September, Jack turned 7. I can't believe I have a 7 and 8 year old. It's seems impossible. Jack wanted a lizard of some sort for his birthday. Doug agreed. He needed to agree, because let's be honest! He would be the one to run to the pet store frequently to get crickets, etc. Doug and the boys did a lot of research and reading about which lizards were easier to care for, what they ate, how big they would get, etc. They took many trips to MANY pet stores in the area. They got pamphlets upon pamphlets, read them and put them in order of preference. It was very entertaining. Finally, they decided on the bearded dragon. And the bearded dragon for Jack needed a friend, because doesn't everyone? To solve that problem, Charlie bought one with his money. The boys have really enjoyed their dragons. I think Doug might enjoy them more. They are pretty cool little things. It's fun to watch them eat and bask in the heat lamp.
For Jack's birthday, we ate at a lot of restaurants to celebrate! We ate at Joe's Crab Shack one evening, Red Robin another and Kobe's Steakhouse the night of his actual birthday. My mom and Bob came for that dinner. The boys love the Japanese steakhouses.

For Jack's birthday party with friends, he chose to go to Skatedaze. They kids played in the Playdazium, ran around like crazy and then ate lots of pizza and cake. I thought this would be an easy party, but when you get 20 1st graders trapped in a little party room, nothing is easy. It was fun, though.

Mid-September I decided it would be fine to add a little more craziness to our household, so I volunteered to foster a little dog who needed a home. I figured we would help her find a new home and it would be fun. Well, as it turns out, most dogs are cute and I like cute dogs. So we have decided to keep her. The boys love her and so do I. Her name is Sasha and she's a little shih tzu daschund mix. She's an odd looking but really cute dog.

At the end of September, we went to the River City Rodeo for the first time. We had a blast and really enjoyed watching all of the events. The boys liked watching the other little kids riding on the sheep the best. Following the rodeo was the Jake Owen concert. It was a first for the boys and we all had fun.

The next day was Doug's 43rd birthday! Our weekend was so busy, it seems that poor Doug's birthday got a little over looked. Good thing he's a good sport. My sister was in town that weekend and along with that, the rodeo and a family get together on Doug's birthday, there wasn't time for much else. We spent Doug's birthday evening at my aunt and uncle's farm out in Underwood with my dad's family. We had a great time, good food, cake and beer! and the kids were able to run themselves ragged on the farm with my cousin's children. We sat outside, watched the sun set and spent the evening watching the Husker game. It was pretty nice! Maybe Doug's birthday wasn't so bad after all. Beer and football on a farm! 

On top of all the birthdays and other things, we had a BBQ with friends, attended a Powwow and are redoing all the lights in our house--adding can lighting on the first floor, new fixtures and all new lights upstairs. Phew, it's been fun around here.