K's Home Party

The evening following K's Chuck E. Cheese's party, we had a home party with just family. She opened her presents from us throughout the day, and we made her wait until after dinner for the rest of her presents.

Her "spread"

Metallic Gel Pens from Auntie Sarah. She loves these.

Qwirkle from Grandma and Grandpa. She thinks we need to play this daily.

Her Baby Alive doll from Farmor and Farfar. She loves the daily feedings and changings.

She also received some clothes and other toys, all of which she is very happy with. Her cupcakes were the same ballerina-themed ones I did for her Chuck E. Cheese party. All I did for these was bake a chocolate cake, top it with dark chocolate ganache, and add a little ballerina. I just wasn't up for something more creative time-wise. These tasted great, and she was still happy with them.

Overall, K enjoyed a great birthday. She was full of smiles, which is the goal of a mother for her birthday girl. A happy daughter makes a happy mommy.

K's Seventh Birthday Party

We celebrated K's seventh birthday last Friday at a familiar location. Chuck E. Cheese's once again won our kid's vote for the birthday party venue. Games, pizza, tickets, and cheap prizes abounded as the guests celebrated K's birthday.



The birthday girl with her cupcake. On top was a pink ballerina and a number 7 candle.




K and one of her friends




The boys making some noise




K receiving her crown




Blowing out the candle




K receiving her medal




Dancing up front




K and Chuck E.




H enjoying the chocolate cupcake




K in the ticket blaster. She got over 300 tickets in there.




H enjoying himself on a ride




H on his favorite ride with my new friend, Vickie

This party was a little less chaotic than AJ's had been. We had no major meltdowns, and everyone left happy. I still don't care for the place, but my birthday girl was happy. In the end, I guess that is all that matters.

Remodeling: Part 3

Last week, we started to remodel our bathroom. We moved all of our personal items out of the bathroom, and we moved most of our daily necessities to another room for the duration of the project.

This bathroom sorely needed some change, and our plans include adding more light and opening up the space a bit.



The floor before: poorly laid stick-on tiles.

Looking toward the door: shower and toilet

Vanity before.

Vanity gutted

Looking into the bathroom: before

Looking into the bathroom: gutted

To add light, we plan on adding a bay window. This means knocking a hole through the side of our house.

A hole in the wall

Building the bay window

The difference is already fun to see. I can't wait until it is done.

Remodeling: Part 2

The bathroom and laundry room remodeling project is coming along, and I am pleased with how it looks.

Bathroom tub -- it is full of trash here, but it will be nice to have a tub in the boys' bathroom

Finished floor. I love it.

Bathroom. The toilet will be on this side.

Laundry room side.

Now we are waiting for the cabinets to come in so we can get those installed. Then we can put in the countertops, sinks, and faucets. While we wait, we are focusing on the master bathroom remodeling project.

Funky Hair Night

Last night at AWANAS, it was Funky Hair Night. I think my kids looked the part. The picture isn't great because dropping them off is always kind of chaotic. I was trying to get a quick picture without being in the way too much. There are just so many kids there. AJ had spikes (he wanted to be called a "spikasaurus", and K had a cone head.

A Visit from the Tooth Fairy

The prize

Last night, we experienced our first visit from the tooth fairy. K lost her first tooth yesterday, and she excitedly put it under her pillow in anticipation of the reward she would receive for such a feat. She was not disappointed. She found a dollar under her pillow this morning, and now she wants to lose all of her teeth. I told her that would come with time.



K happily showing off the new hole in her mouth



Remodeling: Part 1

We recently started to remodel part of our house. Our laundry room was part of a bathroom that the boys use, and it was a less-than-ideal situation. It was also outdated and poorly laid out. We decided to divide the room and use space in the adjoining hallway to expand both rooms.



Bathroom side before



Bathroom, mid-demolition. That linoleum was below a layer of tile.





Bathroom side with framing



New tile, before grout






Laundry room side before

 Today, the tile guys put the grout in, and tomorrow, the walls are supposed to be textured, then painted.

I am anxious for my washer and dryer to be hooked up again. My hampers are overflowing, and my kids have a way of creating more laundry than necessary. The good news is that I should have my laundry facilities available by the weekend.

About a week and a half into the project, I am pleased with the progress that has been made. The construction dust has been annoying, but the final product will be worth it. 

Back Yard Campout

Last weekend, we set up the tent in the back yard for a little campout with the kids. Timo set up the air mattresses and sleeping bags, and we got the kids tucked in as cozy as we could. They were excited at the prospect of sleeping outside, and it was hard to get them to settle down.

Once they were all in bed, Timo and I snuggled together on our side to watch a movie on his iPad 2. When the movie ended, we checked on the kids. H was squirming around, so we took him inside. We decided that I should sleep inside while Timo slept outside with the other two kids. AJ was sleeping well, but K got cold shortly after 2, and she sleepily stumbled inside to finish the night in the warm house. Timo followed shortly afterwards with AJ, and we finished the night in the comfort of our beds.

It was a fun idea that we would like to repeat, but next time, I think we will wait for a warmer evening.

AJ's Birthday Party with Friends

AJ wanted his birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's this year. The kids were excited about this evening, and we arrived at the restaurant in good spirits. Once we found our table, the kids headed off to play and spend their tokens before the pizza came. 

H in the train

 After playing for about an hour, the staff called the birthday kids and their guests up to sing and grab some free tickets.

Clapping with the music

 Finally, the pizza arrived, and everyone settled down to chow down.

K savoring her pizza

H and I. H has a mouthful of food.

Finally, it was cake time. AJ had received some Swedish car candy from Katarina, and he wanted to put them on his cake. After pondering this for a while, I came up with an easy solution. I got the chocolate cake I wanted, and he got the cars. It was a winning situation all around.

AJ's cake

Happy Birthday to you, AJ!

Since AJ was the birthday boy, he got a turn in the ticket blaster -- a chance to grab as many tickets as he could in 30 seconds.


AJ in the ticket blaster

 While AJ was in the ticket blaster, H finished off K's cake and started in on mine.

H loves chocolate like his Mommy does


 Finally, it was time to open presents.


AJ opening one of his presents

 AJ was extremely satisfied with his evening. We should have left a little earlier, though. As it got later, the kids started to get cranky. K has said she wants a birthday party there as well, but I think we shall look into other options before we agree to another chaotic evening.

Pumpkin Patch Perusal

Since Katarina was visiting last week, I decided she needed to have a common American experience of visiting a pumpkin patch in the fall. I heard about one through our homeschooling association, and I decided it would be a great place for the kids and my Swedish friend.

After getting ready for the morning, we headed out to meet some friends at the farm. This place is great because they have built so many buildings from different eras in history. Of course, we had to explore the various buildings first.

AJ and Katarina in the Viking ship

Inside the Viking "house"

K and Katarina by an old stagecoach

In addition to the buildings, they have a couple of different playgrounds where the kids can expend their energy.

K on the monkey bars

Some of the buildings house authentic relics of various ages and people groups.

The original Baby Björn ;)

Near one of the playgrounds was a room that housed a doll collection.

K and the doll collection. She really loved this part.

The farm also houses a variety of animals, including rabbits, geese, goats, ponies, and horses. The kids are allowed to hold and pet the numerous bunnies, and my kids took turns cuddling with the hopping hares.

K and her bunny friend

AJ cuddling with a bunny

H taking a turn holding a rabbit

Feeding the goats. I warned my kids that they will eat anything, and I had to rescue AJ's jacket from one of the goats.

After viewing all the animals, we walked over to the pumpkin patch. They had a hay ride for the schools who were visiting, but they also allowed us a short ride around the field.

An assortment of pumpkins they had displayed.



Katarina and our new friend





My boys with their friend as they walked toward the wagon full of hay.



The pumpkin patch

The kids all piled in a small wagon to go pick out their own pumpkins.

K with her pumpkin

AJ and his pumpkin. We made some pumpkin bread out of it. Yummy!

H and his pumpkin. He kept throwing it like a ball.

The three kiddos with their pumpkins

Katarina and a pumpkin



Our friend pulling the kids and their pumpkins back


After picking out the pumpkins, we decided it was time to head home. The kids really wanted to stay longer, but we needed to eat lunch, and K had her ballet lesson that afternoon.

We all thoroughly enjoyed our morning, and I think we will have to make this an annual tradition. We not only relished our time there, but now we also have tons of pumpkin to use for baking.