Grace's Princess Party



Eden got invited to a princess party for her preschool friend, Grace.  This is the first time she's been invited to a birthday party for someone that is not a cousin or a close family friend.   Usually, Parker and Lily are invited too, so she was so excited to go to a party by herself.  She carried the invitation around the house for several days after it came in the mail. 

 

Eden's been counting down the days until the party for a week and started asking me at seven o'clock this morning if it was times to go.  She couldn't wait to put on her princess dress and shoes. 

 

When we got to Grace's house, Eden was thrilled that her other preschool friend, Sara, was there too.  They made princess crowns and then ate a yummy lunch. 

Other highlights from the party included playing with balloons, playing in the castle, playing with the toys in Grace's room, and eating cake.  Eden also loved looking at Goldie, Grace's new fish that she got for her birthday.

It was a fun party and Eden enjoyed playing with her friends from preschool.  Happy Birthday, Grace!  We hope you had a fun day!

My Little Gymnast

The most exciting thing that has happened this month is that Eden started gymnastics! 

We went back and forth on whether or not we would let her try something like gymnastics.  She is so hit or miss with these types of things... she will either participate and love it or sit in the corner while she cries and hate it.  We wanted her to try an activity and see if she liked it but didn't want to pay money for her to cry every week and not want to go.

 

I called the gym and found out that we could do a trial class so we decided that would be the route we would choose.  If she hated the first class, we could reevaluate and think about what we would do next. 

 

We started talking with Eden about going to gymnastics a week before the actual class.  We picked an afternoon class so that she would not be overwhelmed with seeing bigger kids practicing at the same time.  She seemed very excited and asked every day how much longer it would be before she could go.  We bought her a cute leotard and tried to prepare her about what she would see and do in class.  We even drove by the gym and let her look inside so that she would know what it looked like.  Finally, we prayed!  A lot!  She can be so shy and I just didn't want her timid and shy personality to get in the way this time.   She has missed out on so many things in her life because of her fear to be looked at by others.

 

Last Monday was her first class and I am happy to report that she LOVED it!  As soon as we walked in the door, another little girl came over and started talking to Eden.  She immediately felt as ease with this little girl and when it was time to go into the gym, she walked in with no reservations.  She didn't even turn around to wave or tell me good bye. 

 

She stretched, jumped, flipped, walked on the balance beam and participated like she had been doing it her whole life.  I was so proud of her that she had finally overcome her fears and tried something new!

I have no idea what next Monday will bring.  Her shyness may rear it's ugly head again and she may refuse to participate, but I am thankful that the first day was a success!

 

The only drawback to the class is that it is right during Lily's nap.  She was sound asleep the minute we left the parking lot! 

UPDATE:  Eden had her second class yesterday and did GREAT!  She participated with so much confidence and excitement that I had to look and make sure that it was really her in the class.  After watching her yesterday, I'm pretty sure that the Olympics are not going to be in our future, but it doesn't matter as long as she gains some self confidence in this process. 



 

Catching Up

I realize that it's been two weeks since I've updated the blog, but I have several very good reasons why:
1) I've been working really hard on completing my 2012 blog book so that I can order it with the 20% off coupon that Blurb sent me last week
2) Cory and I are right in the middle of watching season two of Breaking Bad on Netflix and because of the content, we have to wait until after the kids are in bed at night (which is also when I usually work on my posts)
AND
3) January is off to a slow start with not a lot of things going on, which is nice for us but boring for the blog.

Here are a few things that we've been up to so far in 2013...

-Eden went for her four year checkup last week and, much to her dismay, got 4 shots. It wasn't fun- for her or me! She cried for a while and then became obsessed with talking about them. She would show them to me, ask me (and everyone else in the family) if I had even gotten a shot, wondered where I had gotten my shots (arm or leg) and asked if she would have to have any more shots.

A few days after her appointment, she was playing with the cars during nap time and I noticed the cars looked like this:

When I asked her about the cars, she informed me that the cars had to go to the doctor to get some shots.  Like I said...she was completely obsessed with them!

Little did she know that only one week later she was going to have to get another shot... her flu shot. Our pediatrician was out of them so we had to go to a local clinic for it and she was not happy when I told her. She made sure to protect her boo-boo by placing several band-aids on it!

-Cory and I enjoyed dinner at Del Frisco's with his coworkers.  It has been a long time since we've enjoyed a nice steak dinner and we ate way too much!

-Cory's aunt and uncle from California came to town to visit.  We only see them once every couple of years so it was great to have them over for dinner last week and catch up.

-Cold temperatures have kept us inside this month, but that doesn't mean we've stopped saving the world!  And I bet you didn't know that Spider-(Wo)Man wore high heels!!!  (Lily was shooting her web in this picture- priceless!)

January has been off to a slow start but I have a feeling that it will be picking up again soon!  I think I'll just continue to enjoy this slower pace while it lasts!

Children's Museum

Last week, Cory and Heath took the kids to the Children's Museum to see the Titanic exhibit.  Unfortunately, it was sold out when they got there but that didn't stop them from having fun! They enjoyed several of the children's exhibits and then went to see the movie Monsters, Inc. in 3D.  The kids all had a great time spending the day with their dads/uncles!

 

Happy New Year!

Welcome 2013! 

I love what the new year brings- a fresh start and a chance to think about ways to improve not only your life but the lives of those around you.  I'm not a New Year's resolution kind of person.  Why make a promise to yourself that you know you probably won't keep?  I feel like it's setting yourself up for failure right from the start and I just don't need that kind of pressure in my life. 

I do, however, like to think about things I can do to make myself a better person, wife, mother, daughter, or friend.  A few weeks ago, I came across this saying on Pinterest and I just can't seem to get it off my mind.

Wow!  That hit me hard!  There are so many times after a long, trying day with three little ones that I am out of patience and everything they do gets on my nerves.  It's days like this that I tend to be short with them.  I might raise my voice or say something that I regret as soon as it leaves my mouth. 

Since Parker has started kindergarten, I've noticed that the tone of voice he uses with me when he is tired or frustrated can be quite inappropriate at times.  I'm quick to blame the other kids in his class and assume that he hears them talking this way and is picking up on their bad habits.  That may be true to some extent but I feel like some of the blame lands back right on me.  I know that on those days when I am short with him, he internalizes my words and picks up on my impatient tone of voice. 

My goal this year is to be more aware of the way I am talking to my kids so that their inner voice is full of love, patience, kindness, and respect.  Because how can I expect them to show respect with their words if it is not being modeled for them every day? 

I know that I'm not going to suddenly become a perfect mother who never raises her voice at her kids.  There are some days that I get pushed to my limits by lunchtime (or maybe even mid morning snack!) and it is very hard for me to keep my cool when they are disrespectful or disobey for the fifth time in 10 minutes.  But I hope that if I can become more aware of my words and actions, there will be more positive and less negative for them to internalize.  In the end, my desire is for them to see Jesus in everything I say and do.  That's not too hard of a goal, is it?

Good luck with all of your goals and resolutions this year!  May 2013 be a wonderful year for all of us!