Catching Up

Last night we had intended to go to an art fair being held at Kristin's elementary school. At dinner time, Kristin told us her belly hurt. Since this is a common get out of eating dinner tactic for her, we told her that she couldn't have any treats at the art fair if she didn't eat all of her dinner. So she finished up, and then promptly threw up after washing her hands. Poor thing. Lot's of kids in both kindergarten and her daycare have been hit with the same bug. Fortunately, it didn't last long. There was nothing more to it and she woke up her normal self this morning and ate a huge breakfast. She just had to miss the art fair last night. :-(

Nothing too exciting for the kids today. Kristin did welll at her ice skating lessons. She looked for her friend Spencer in the class after hers but didn't see him. Spencer is in Kristin's kindergarten class. We saw him last week at the ice arena. After lessons, Kristin and I went to Quiznos for lunch.

Danelle and I got some tasks done today. Danelle pulled the dryer out and replaced the exhaust venting. She also took the back of the dryer off and vacuumed out the insides. She said it wasn't near as linty as she expected it to be. I spent the majority of the afternoon cutting the rest of the trim for the kitchen. We had the contractor do everything except for under the cabinets. The built-in cabinets were easy, since I only had to cut the trim to length with just 1 45 degree cross cut. The kitchen cabinets were not so much fun however. I had to cut down, or 'rip' the trim for height. I'm not sure my table saw is cut out for finish work. Oh well. I had set the saws up on the back patio and Kellen stood at the slider window and watched while the saw was going. He really seems to love tools. Since it took longer than expected, Danelle took the kids on a quick errand to ToysRUs to get the kids out of the house. Kristin will be going to a birthday party for a girl in kindergarten next weekend so they went shopping for a gift.

Later on, Kristin got out her plastic tools and tool belt. I wasn't quick enought to snap a picture when she was wearing it, but she let Kellen put it on later and he was a happy boy. When he uses the screwdriver he adds sound effects like my hand held battery powered driver. Very nice.

100 Days

Today was the 100th day of school for Kindergarten. Kristin's class celebrated by doing lots of things with 100 in it. They counted to 100, wrote the numbers to 100, drew 100 things you could eat, etc. They even got a goodie bags with 100 treats in it...Goldfish, marshmallows, gummy bears, etc.

Kristin also got to make her movie today at daycare. The movie was about a circus mystery. Kristin was the clown and her red nose goes missing. Evidently it went pretty well, but Kristin was camera shy and didn't want to talk. We are supposed to see the movie next week.

Aaron had a work day in Corvallis today, so he got home late (at least earlier that either of us expected). The kids were good for me though. Kellen loves to sweep the floor every night. We just have to watch him for the swinging broom. ;-) Kellen gave Aaron a big "DADDY" welcome home tonight. That is always nice.

Short Walk

Tonight we managed to squeek in a short walk around the block. We had enough light after dinner - the days are getting longer! Kellen helped me take the trash cans to the curb before we went inside. He kept pointing to the yard debri container like I should take it to the curb too. Never mind that there is nothing in it, dad!

Kristin continues to bring a new early reader book home from kindergarten every day. The book she brought home tonight had a little summary on the back - 133 words! And Kristin got them all.

The kids played fairly well together this evening - it was mostly quiet. The pictures are from yesterday. Choo Choo.

Choo Choo

Kellen decided to get out the wooden train set tonight. He was having lots of fun making choo choo sounds. Once I got the figure 8 track set up he enjoyed pushing the train along the track. Then he found how well the trains roll on the floor. So Aaron joined him for a little bit and the pushed the train back and forth.

Kristin had fun at daycare today. She made a silly wig today for her movie roll as a clown. Looks like red hair. She hasn't decided if she is going to wear the wig or the hat. Since they are talking about Hollywood this week, they made autograph books today. It is pretty neat and she got all her friends to sign it. Kristin signed it for Aaron, Kellen and I. So, Aaron and I signed next to Mommy and Daddy. :) Thursday is the 100th day of school for Kindergarten! Time flies.

What kind of sound does a vacuum make?

Danelle bought a Dirt Devil hand-held vacuum to use pick up crumbs from the new floor. Amazing how many crumbs a 5 year old and a 21 month old can make. Kellen likes the sound, at least from a distance. When he sees it on the counter he does his best impersonation. Over and over. And over. He is getting better at commnicating with words. He'll ask for ice - 'more ice' and he'll tell you when he wants to be tickled 'tickle?' He'll say 'yes' pretty well. He hangs on the 's' for a bit, but this is an improvement over not saying the 's' at all. You can always tell when he is saying no. No problem with the pronunciation, and he throws in a good head shake for good measure.

Kristin is excited for a project she is working on at daycare. Sounds like they are going to make a little movie. She is going to play a clown. She has a clown nose at home that she is going to bring in, and she picked out a hat to bring as well. From what I could get from her, the activity is part of a 'Hollywood' theme and she'll be making props and part of her costume at daycare.

Danelle and I must be too used to working 'on deadline' at our works. We spent some time this evening putting in a book order and filling out paperwork for Kristin to start a bank account through a program at her elementary school. Both are due tomorrow.

Blazers

This evening Danelle and I got to go to a Blazers game at the Rose Garden. We met an old friend there who now lives and works in southern Oregon that came up for the game. The kids went to Megan and Steve's house to play with Parker and Katie. Five hours to ourselves! They are too good to us!

It sounds like the kids had a great time. Kristin just loves Katie the springer spaniel. Kellen didn't want to leave when we went to pick them up.

Not much to the rest of teh day. Danelle and Kristin ran an errand early in the afternoon while Kellen was napping and I did a little work from home. This morning, I finished putting a child lock on one of the cabinets that Kellen likes to get into. I think this lock might actually hold up to Kellen. We'll see. It's one of the magnetic ones.

More Ice

Kellen's new phrase/request tonight was "more ice." It was great to see him put the two words together on his own! He likes to hold little ice chips in his hand. Tonight he ended up figuring out that he could eat the ice. He seemed to like that and asked for "more ice" a few times.

Today was a standard busy Saturday. The kids and I headed out this morning to the bread outlet and to the grocery store. Aaron got a little quiet time. : ) Aaron took Kristin to skating. Kristin ended up going the wrong way in a circle doing crossovers and fell. She landed on her wrist, and ended up in tears once she saw daddy. She is okay and got an ice pack for her wrist.

After nap we ran to 3 stores trying to figure out the trim issues in the kitchen. We found some options that might work. Other than that the kids played around the house the rest of the day.

FLOOR!

Not much else to say but we have our new floor! We really like it. Kristin was excited to come home and see it and gave it a thumbs up. We celebrated by having Red Robin for dinner.

The kids played tonight while we put the kitchen area back together. Kellen helped Aaron put the kick plate back on the dishwasher.

New Floor Prep

This evening was spent in preparation for tomorrow's floor project. The kids were very interested in watching me take the kick plate off the dishwasher and removing the existing transition thresholds between the kitchen and the living room. I let Kellen hold the battery powered screw driver to help me with that. He was pretty excited about that.

The kids also tag-teamed on taking apart their interlocking foam mat that we had set up in their art area. We probably won't put that back down when the floor is done.

Kristin had Karate lessons at daycare today and told me all about a guest instructor they had that was only one step away from a black belt. Kristin informs me that is a brown belt. I think she is growing to enjoy hockey more to because she kept me informed of the score of the Penguins game when I was working on the dishwasher. Of course when I'm not watching there is 3 goals in about 5 minutes. That's OK, the DVR comes in pretty handy that way.

Turn of the Screw

It's amazing what four well placed screws can do to quiet a squeeky floor. We decided to place the screws before we have the new floor placed over the top on Friday. It worked great. Kellen really enjoyed watching me work on it. At least, he was staring so intently, I thought he was interested. Turns out he was filling his breeches. Hopefully I didn't scare it out of him.

Kellen had been learning about Humpty Dumpty this week at daycare. He and Danelle enjoy singing the song. If Kellen is sitting on the couch when they sing, he'll fall backwards on to the cushion when humpty dumpty has his great fall.

Kristin seemed to really enjoy going to soccer at her school yesterday. We're going to see if we can get her enrolled in a spring program. Tonight she enjoyed testing the kitchen floor to see if she could get it to squeek. Then she asked me when I was going to fix the squeek in the hallway, and in the living room...

New Friends

Back to daycare and school today. Kristin and Kellen both got new friends in their respective classes at daycare today. Kellen's new friend is Johnny and Kristin's new friend is Christopher. Christopher is 5 but not in Kindergarten yet. They both seem to like their new friends.

Kristin had her last night of soccer practice at the school. Aaron took her this time so he could see her practice. Aaron said she did well and he was amazed at how well she did for only 3 classes. :) Kristin seems to be enjoying it.

Kristin enjoyed showing off her new shoes today. Kellen is learning about Humpty Dumpty and other nursery rhymes this week. We had fun playing Humpty Dumpty tonight.

President's Day

In honor of having only one less President from Oregon than from Iowa, President's Day is a state holiday in Oregon. No kindergarten or daycare today, so the kids got to stay home with Daddy. I have a floating holiday I was saving for just such an occasion. Danelle had to work though. :-(

The kids kept me pretty busy. I got them out of the house to take the truck through a carwash. Kristin loves it - she goes with Danelle a lot. Kellen wasn't as enthused, though he didn't complain about it. He just had big wide eyes. I wondered what was going through his head. After that, we ventured out for a wagon ride up to the playground. We had the whole park to ourselves. After nap, we made it outside again to play in the yard. The kids played well together while I put a couple Pittsburgh Penguins decals on the truck that Danelle got me for Valentine's Day.

Danelle came home from work to a hero's welcome - from all three of us. They sure kept me on my toes all day.

The photos are from Kristin's party at kindergarten last Friday.

Trim

The old trim in the kitchen/great room came off today, thanks to Aaron! We are preparing for Friday's install of the new floor. Speaking of new flooring, the flooring is now in the living room to acclimate to the house temp and moisture. Aaron brought that in from the garage today. Kristin is all excited about the new floor, she says she can't wait to be up higher. Kellen will no longer fit under the bar... he will hit his head. :( It will also make things on the counter a little more accessible to Kellen. AHHH! We are looking forward to the new floor though.

While Aaron was taking up the trim Kristin and I ran to the library to return the books that were due and to pick up 8 new books. I got lucky on the new trim and did not need to do another coat of poly! So I put the trim away and got the car back in the garage. After Kellen's nap the kids and I went to get new shoes for them. Kristin found a pair of slip-on sneakers that are black and pink. She can't wait to show her friends. Kellen has been growing and has gone up a full size in shoes... not just a 1/2.

Tonight Kellen made me smile and laugh as I asked him where he put his washcloth. He srugged and said "where'd it go?" I echoed him and then he said "I don't know". :) Very cute... he hid it on the other side of the bathroom door. I smiled because he is starting to have more words and small conversations with us.

A Crossover Success

Darius Rucker and Faith Hill have nothing on Kristin, at least with this kind of crossover. Kristin has a different teacher for ice skating lessons this session. Something of a drill sargeant, but boy is Kristin improving. Today she really improved her crossovers.

This morning, for a Valentine's treat, we took the kid to Build-A-Bear Workshop. Kristin inspected all of the different choices before choosing a Panda Bear. Kellen got into it to. Danelle would hold up a bear. Kellen would say no and shake his head. Then she'd hold up a puppy. And Kellen would say no and shake his head. And so on. Until Danelle showed him the bright green froggy. Kristin stepped on the pedal that controls the bear-stuffing machine. Kellen tried, but it scared him and he crawled up Danelle's leg. They each chose the heart that went into the stuffy before they sewed it up. Then off to the 'bathing station' wher you give the new stuffies a bath. No water, it shoots air. Kristin is an old pro by now, but Kellen again wasn't so sure. Then off to pick an outfit. Kellen didn't want an outfit for his frog though. After that, we went to the birth certificate station and printed out birth certificates. All very official.

After nap, Danelle took the kids to get their haircuts. They both came home with balloons, which nicely compliment the Valentines balloons that Danelle had already given the kids.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Party Day

It was Valentine party day! Kristin had a party at Kindergarten this morning. I was in charge of the craft for the party. The kids made puppies, kitties and fish out of foam hearts they cut out. It was fun. The party was a hit and the kids were wired with sugar from cookies they got to decorate with frosting and M&M's. :) Kristin and all the kids had very full Valentine holders. They also played a couple of games and got to pull strings on a pinata at the end of the party.

In the afternoon, the kids had Valentine parties at daycare. Kellen's class was stamping the tablecloth (butcher paper) when I got there. Then they had circle time on the floor where the teacher read a book about love and the kids knew a lot of the words. They also sang "Skinamarinky-dinky-dink" (not sure I spelled that right). Kellen was pretty shy with me there but was doing some of the motions tonight at home. Aaron had class in Corvallis today, so unfortunately he was unable to make it to any of the parties. :(

We got the floor bought today and are looking forward to the install in a week!

She Likes to Talk

The kids enjoyed their spaghetti dinner and of course we had chocolate for dessert. Kellen was really into it. That's a combination of spaghetti sauce and chocolate drool on his face. After dinner, Kellen bounced between activities again. He's getting to be better and better at entertaining himself for a few minutes here and there. We played linoleum hockey for a bit. He had fund swinging the stick at the little puck by himself but seemed to enjoy it more when I helped him hold the stick and hit the puck. He would give a little devilish giggle.

Kristin was quite bubbly this evening. She told me all about her day and bounced from one story to the next on only the thinnest of segues. 'My friend Olivia had chicken pox and missed four days of school. We've been in school for 95 days. But not me, because I missed two week because of vacation. Can we go to Disneyworld?' And then she'd take a breath and be off again. It was actually quite entertaining. Just a little hard to keep up with. After bath I had to keep reminding her to get her PJs on. She was busy telling Danelle stories. After giving her the final warning she said 'but Dad I just like to talk!'.

The Power of Chocolate

We got some chocoate in the mail today. Thanks Oma! It was a big hit all around. We all had chocolate for dessert. Kellen wanted more, but he had had enough. After dinner a funny thing happened... no kids fighting. They were both very pleasant all evening and happy and giggling. Maybe chocolate really is a mood enhancer!

Kristin and I mostly hung out on the couch watching the hockey game. She also had some match box cars out to keep her occupied. She made up stories to tell me about each of the cars. Kellen and Danelle mostly hung out in the kitchen / great room area with Kellen bouncing from toy to toy and activity to activity.

In the photo, Kristin is sporting her new Dora ice skating themed jacket and checking out a princess themed magnetic set.

Soccer Take 2

Tonight Kristin had soccer practice again. She did better, but didn't pay too much attention to what her coaches were saying. It can be hard for a 5 year old to focus. She had fun though and that is the important part. This is a picture from last week. Sorry it is dark... I would need a lot more flash in the gym to get a good picture.

Kellen stayed home with Aaron while Kristin and I were out at soccer. Kellen got to play with Play-Doh, dot painters, stickers, and magic markers.

Oh yeah, we got snow today! We woke up to white, but it was slush on the roads. So there was school and no delays in the Portland Metro. :)

Valentine's Week

Kristin made us a Valentine today at her daycare, but we're not allowed to open it until Valentine's day. It's just sitting on the counter teasing us until then. She also did an art project where she was supposed to make up a new planet and draw it. She called her's Poke Planet. She did a good job drawing the planet and the Pokeman characters. Apparently the Pokeman cartoon is very popular with the kids in her daycare. I don't think we've ever watched it at home.

Danelle and Kristin practiced soccer catches and kicks for a few minutes tonight. Kristin has soccer lessons again tomorrow evening at the elementary school. She seems pretty in to it still.

Kellen is teething again. He did pretty good this evening though. He got out the Play Doh and played with that for awhile and then he and Danelle did some art with markers at the kids art table.

For now, Kellen pretty much has free reign access to the cabinet with the Play Doh. But he's taken an interest in taking everything out of the cabinet, so we'll probably get a child lock installed here in the next week or so. We're trying to find one that will stand up to Kellen's Brute force. The lock on the cereal cabinet is not match for a hungry Kellen.

Weekend Wrap-Up

Saturday morning Kristin started a new session of ice skating. It was busy as it was the first week and the park district is in on this session. Kristin did a good job of listening to her teacher though. Will Kristin and Aaron were out and once Kellen went down for a nap I got to staining the new trim for our kitchen area. We have decided on a new laminate floor and hope to have it installed in a couple of weeks. We need to get the trim read for install too.

Saturday evening we went over to the Arbuthnot's (Parker) house for dinner. They also had the Brothers' family over. It was a little crazy with 5 kids and one puppy, but we had fun. Kristin really liked playing with Katie, their puppy. Kristin is not generally a fan of dogs when we see them out and about, but she got comfortable with Katie and played with her for quite awhile. Aaron and I also got in a few Wii games... mostly Mario Kart.

Today we ran a few errands. I put a second coat of stain on the trim. Kellen had fun watching one of the squirrels in the back yard. The squirrel was grabbing lots of leaves in his mouth. Must be building a nest. Kristin helped me with the craft for her Kindergarten Valentine party. We tested out the craft to see what can be done in 15 mintues. I think I will be doing a little prep work so that there is one or two less steps for the kids. After dinner the kids both enjoyed watching the popcorn pop... and of course eatting the popcorn. :)

Errand Day

Today was a busy errand day for me. I did get to volunteer at Kristin's school today. That is always fun. Kristin got to go to an assembly today for a puppet show, so she wasn't in her room much while I was there. That is okay, she had a lot of fun at the assembly.

Kristin got to making up her Valentine cards for her friends in Kindergarten tonight and got them all done! She started the cards for her friends at daycare, but then got tired. We will finish those later. While Kristin was doing her cards, Kellen played with Play-Doh. I also found him a tape measure that was safe for him to play with (it is a sewing tape measure). He seemed to really enjoy it, especially when he figured out how to push the button and get the tape to recoil. :)

Fish Painting?

I must have jinxed the weather talking about how we've been able to see the moon. The clouds and rain are back today. We still had a comfortable temperature though.

Tonight we ate pizza from Papa Murphys. Usually the kids are fans of pizza, but not so much tonight. Kellen did a good job of eating his ham, but only after he dipped each piece in his milk.

After dinner, Kellen got out the Play Doh, and both kids actually stayed busy with that right up until bath time. Kristin likes to make pig faces with the orange Play Doh. The photo comes courtesy of daycare, where Kellen's class got to paint (real) frozen fish and then use the fish as a paint brush of sorts. Interesting. As long as fish fillet is not on the menu tomorrow. Looks like he had a blast.

Kristin told us that a guest teacher came to hear kindergarten class today to talk about feelings. We're guessing it was the guidance counselor, but we're not sure. At daycare she got to watch a move about '3 flies that went to the moon in a slow rocket'. I'm not familar with that one.

By the Light of the Moon

Kristin is learning about the moon at daycare this week. Her homework tonight was to look at the moon and then draw it's shape. We've had clear weather here for several days so we've actually been able to see the moon.

Kellen also likes pointing to and identifying the moon. He says 'mooo'. He was crabbing before dinner tonight and I carried him outside to look at the moon real quick and he calmed right down. When I picked the kids up from daycare, Kellen's group was having a water break. They are getting pretty good at drinking from little dixie cups - no lids! Tonight we gave him a small amount of milk in a tupperware cup without a lid and he did pretty good with it. He was very proud.

Kristin did some fun art projects today. She made Valentines for the family at daycare, and she brought home an art project from kindergarten that was kind of neat too. It's a ground hog on a stick, complete with his own shadow.

Soccer

Tonight Kristin got to go to a soccer practice at her school. She was so excited. After the initial shyness and not knowing much about soccer she got comfortable. One of the coaches helped her learn the basics and she picked up the concepts pretty quick. Don't get me wrong, she has a lot of learning to do. She did get pretty good at stopping and kicking the ball. She enjoyed telling Aaron all about it and showing him what she learned. She was all sweaty from running around and had lots of fun. She likely fell asleep quick tonight.

Kellen had a good day and is starting to get to go in the next room at daycare (Caterpillars) after breakfast for potty time! He is excited about it and gets to watch the boys in that class that are potty training and then he sits on the potty. Kellen is learning about ponds and pond life this week. His class finger painted a pond yesterday. Today they made frogs and turtles to add to the pond. Kellen loves art just like his sister.

Helper Kristin

This morning I took Kellen back to the dermatologist to talk more about the breakout on his face. We are going to the topical antibiotic cream that we used with Kristin when she had the same thing. Hopefully in two weeks we will be done with this. Kellen likes this doctor office... there is a waterfall on the wall in the waiting room, no shots, and he gets a sticker at the end. What more can you ask for?!

Kristin got to be a helper at Kindergarten and daycare today. At Kindergarten she got to be line leader and caboose. At daycare she got to push the food cart and hold doors open. She was excited about all this. I had Kristin read her nightly take home reader book to me tonight. She never ceases to amaze me on her reading skills. She is doing well and didn't need any help, she just sounds out the words (mostly names) that she doesn't know yet. It is fun to watch her learn all this.

Tonight we played with play-doh for awhile. Kellen actually got down when he was done. I thought he would be at the table until we told him it was time to be done.

Happy Birthday Poppa!

Happy Birthday Poppa! Kristin was excited to talk to Poppa on the phone and sing Happy Birthday to him too.

Today was mostly a catch-up day. Caught up with errands, laundry, and the like. Kristin finished her 'homework', which was a collage about Oregon. She colored it half green (the 'valley' side) and half brown (the high desery side). Then she colored some mountains on different paper, cut them out, and pasted them on the collage. She also added a photo of a tractor. She and Danelle added some text about us 'migrating' here as well.

The kids did some painting with the dot-paint markers after dinner. Boy did Kellen like that. He wasn't ready to be done. We had the Super Bowl on of course, and Kristin said from the beginning that she wanted the Pittsburgh Steelers to win. Danelle and I were rooting for the Cardinals because of Kurt Warner's Iowa connection. Kristin was briefly disapointed near the end of the game when the Cardinals went ahead, but... oh well, at least Kristin is happy.