January 2017

Jason introduced the boys to Virtual Reality when we got home from Texas. They thought it was pretty cool.

Cooper

Tessa loves to dress up. And when she wears a necklace, she must wear ALL of her necklaces at once.

Trying on other people's shoes is one of her favorite things to do.

A little mini-me. ;)

We are not super consistent with Family Home Evening but the kids love it when we remember to do it. Their favorite lesson to teach is the Wise Man and the Foolish Man. I think it's because it was the very first FHE we did with them and so that is what they think FHE is all about now. Haha. Bennett insisted that he teach the lesson this week so I decided to record his rendition. Here is a typical FHE at our house:

I make a point of not forcing my kids to eat food they have tried and know they don't like. One reason is that the boys have a very strong gag reflex and will throw up their entire stomachs if they don't like a single bite of something. We are working on that... Another reason is they are my children and I know how my brain works: If I am forced to eat something that I really don't like, I loath it forever. I am stubborn like that.  So I thought I would try going against how I was raised and not make it a big deal if my kids didn't want to eat something.
If they don't want to eat something (like carrots or broccoli or even an entire meal), that is fine. But that is what we are eating and so they don't get anything to replace it with. They just go hungry. I give them the option to either eat what we are eating or get ready for bed. Sometimes they decide that they really are hungry, other times they prefer to just get their jammies on. And I support whichever decision they make.

One night we were eating Hobo Dinner Casserole with shredded carrots in it. The boys told me they didn't want to eat the carrots. I told them it was fine but I wasn't going to pick them out so they could eat around them if they wanted to. (They have never been a fan of carrots unless I can sneak them into a green smoothie.) After a few bites Bennett excitedly told me he ate a carrot and LIKED it! He then continued to devour the rest of the food on his plate. Cooper (pictured) was still skeptical but Bennett finally convinced him to try some carrots too. Cooper then proudly told me that HE liked carrots now too! Double win in one night.

The following night we had chicken and rice with broccoli. Bennett specifically asked for broccoli on top of his chicken and rice and he ate it all!! I think we might have had a break through and perhaps the boys will start eating some veggies now without putting them in squeeze packets or green smoothies!

My cousin Jenny and her son Declan were in town for the weekend so we met up with them and the Klippels at the Curiosity Museum.

Audrey and Tessa

Bennett

Cooper getting soaking wet

I was acting surprised with Bennett's "magic trick" so Bennett mimicked my expression.

Tessa trying to figure out how the hand puppets worked.

Bennett was a killer parrot that would attack Lily's puppet. He thought he was hilarious.

Bennett

After the museum we headed back to the Klippels' for dinner and gathering with more family. Jim and Ben just arrived from Washington to pick up some of Ben's things he left behind at his apartment. And Aubrey stopped by to say hi. This is the most of my cousins in one spot we have had in a while. So being my mother's daughter, I insisted we take a picture.

This is how Tessa sleeps every night. She must have her snuggle blanket, water, and her two babies tucked in with her.

And since I documented how Tessa sleeps, I thought it was only fair that I do so with the boys as well. Cooper on the top bunk, Bennett on the bottom. Recently Bennett has been saying that his room is scary at night so he insists that we keep the door nearly half open. I am not sure, but I wonder if he has been having bad dreams. He has never said that is he is, but I can't think of any other reason why his room is all of a sudden scary for him. Poor boy. I used to have pretty vivid nightmares when I was a kid as well so I can totally empathize. Except in my case, I couldn't have any open doors in the room. All closets, cupboards, doors, etc had to be completely shut. Anyway, hopefully he gets over this sooner rather than later. Or at least maybe he will learn to be able to control his dreams like I can because of my nightmares.

The boys love their new shirts and are convinced it makes them go super fast when they wear them. This morning they were running all over the house at top speed.

The kids got Magformers for Christmas and they are a big hit. All of us (including Jason and I) love to play with them. Tessa watched us carefully build fun creations so she loves to carefully make creations of her own. They end up just being a big heap but she is very protective of them. If anyone tries to take something from her heap without asking, she will have a melt down. If you ask nicely, she is usually very obliging.

I caught Bennett watching a show like this one day and it made me laugh.

Bennett: " I need to show Grandma how big and cool this is!"

He really wanted to Skype Grandma but she was working so I had to talk him into just taking a picture to send to her.

My sweet neighbor surprised me with some hand-crocheted (knitted??) items for Christmas. She gave me a headband/ear warmer, fingerless gloves, and a beanie. She also gave me a Harry Potter necklace. Tessa thought she would try on some of my gifts one night. I think she pulls them off well.

All three kids LOVE books. I could read to them for hours without them tiring of it. I think it's fantastic. I had just finished reading this book to them and Cooper asked if he could read it himself. I am always amazed how well they remember the words in the book without being able to actually read them. 

After not seeing Tessa for a while I thought I would check on her. This is how I found her. I promise I did not pose a single thing about this picture. I just love my little readers!

Snow. It has snowed every day for the last week and there is no end in sight. As beautiful as it is, I am getting sick of it. Especially since Jason takes the van to work when it snows because it is safer than the truck (which doesn't have 4-wheel drive) so we get stranded at the house. Super lame. Can it be Spring already?

Jason brought home some lemon juice for cooking and the boys thought it was like apple juice or any other type of sweet tasting juice. So Bennett asked to try some. Jason gave him a few drops on a spoon and Bennett promptly spit it out in the trash. Tessa then asked to try some and actually liked it! She takes after her lemon-loving aunt, Sarah. :)

So I really don't mind making dinner too much but the thing that I hate is coming up with dinner ideas. Jason decided to help me out and give me a list of things I could cook. It really has helped and he is happy because he actually gets to come home to food on the table. I have made everything on this list already though so he needs to make another list. ;)

Tessa has stepped up her game and now she makes vertical creations.