Sunday Choir

Three out of the five Sundays in December have been singing days in Church for Alex.  He has missed out on some Sunday school because of it.  I love our Church for many reasons, one being there are many opportunities and ways to get involved.  This year I signed Alex up for a full year of Church choir.  They meet every Wednesday night for a half an hour to sing.  He loves going to class on Wednesday nights.  It is a lot of fun for him.

He does not love singing in Church on Sundays.  He isn't someone who loves to sing.  I wanted to get him out of his comfort zone a bit this year.  Not being able to be in a day preschool, I was nervous that Alex would get into an uncomfortable social setting during Kingergarden and not be able to figure it out.  I wanted to put him out there a bit.  He's doing fine socially in choir.  He doesn't like to sing.  He doesn't remember lyrics very well, and would rather be running and jumping, but he is so dang cute up there in Church! :)   

 

He often watches the girls around him for help.

One of the songs they sang today was Silent Night.  Instead of singing it; they signed it.  He watched the girl next to him to see how to sign it.  But, man, did my little guy try!  I am so proud of him for that.

Like I said, I am happy he tried.  Choir is finished at the end of May.  Alex is finished with choir now.  I definitely don't want him to quit things, but he doesn't know that yet.  Running to Prior Lake for a half hour class on Wednesday nights is too much.  

I think his face may say it all...

 Ahhh...Memories.

Downtown during the Holidays

Since Alex was a year old we have been attending the Macy's Santa Land display downtown each year.  There is something that feels like magic when I think of going downtown during the holidays season.  The hustle and bustle.  The lights.  The music.  The people.  I just love it.  

Like every other year, we headed up to the cities right after school.  Andy was off work that day and home with the boys.  He was so nice and woke up early to take myself and my mom to work.  He then got doughnuts with the boys and spent the rest of the day with them while I helped out on a field trip to see the movie, Lincoln.  Andy and the boys picked up my Dad and met us in Jordan right at 3:00.  As soon as we could leave, we were on the road.

We didn't have to wait in line at all and got to go right in.  We couldn't even get a picture of the four of us because Aiden kept turning around to see what was going on.  His reactions didn't change much when we got inside either.  He was running around "oohing" and "aahing" over the displays.  His eyes wide with amazement.  Alex loved showing his brother what was going and explaining to him what each display was all about.  It was fun to listen to them.

The boys were hungry and right after walking through the show we headed out to eat.  We found a newer restaurant that wasn't super expensive or fancy.  Okay...we were trying to go to Rock Bottom Brewery.  Andy had called earlier in the day to make a reservation.  They had said, "if you are coming at 5:30...you should be fine. Just come right in".  We got there and they were booked solid.  Next time..I guess we'll just make the reservation.  Anyway, the place we ended up at was just across the hall.  Nothing fancy, but decent food and right during happy hour.

The boys found some sun glasses in the diaper bag and got a little silly...

We lost track of time and ran to the Holidazzle parade at about 6:25 (it starts at 6:30).  We made it during the perfect time and found a perfect spot to sit.  Andy can't sit because of his leg and wanted to go inside to sit with my Dad to stay warm.  My mom and I sat on the curb with the boys and I am so glad we did.  We have watched from the skywalk before, but there is something so magical about being right there to see the parade in front of you.  

Alex liked the parade.  Aiden loved the parade.  Aiden waved at every single display that went by.  Screaming "Hello".  He even waved off his mittens a couple of times, but I wasn't about to lose anymore of those.

 It was freezing...they sure do have an awesome Grandma!

And, finally, Santa came!

Merry Christmas!

Gingerbread House

We have never done a Gingerbread house before.  Why, you ask?  Well...I am not good at those kinds of things.  I really like the end product; I just don't like the process.  You have to start it, let it sit for a full day and then decorate it.  I am not good enough to plan it out that far in advance.  

This year...I delegated the task to Andy.  He took it on as a challenge and I love that about him.  The boys absolutely enjoyed the process and I think they will definitely do it again. They could hardly wait until Andy was done putting the icing on the gingerbread pieces...

They both followed directions.  Andy told them how to put the candy pieces on the icing and how to get them to stick.  They listened!  (It's been a bit of a challenge lately).

They didn't want to be done with the project, but they were happy with the end product.

A fun, new thing for Andy and the boys.

SNOW!

Although I'm not a huge fan of it, last year was kind of a sad winter without much snow.  I was so excited for it this winter.  Excited to see the boys light up with excitement, to see them try to run in the big piles and stuffy gear, to try to catch snowflakes in their mouths, make lots of snow angels, go sledding, make forts and have snow ball fights.  Excited for their excitement. 

As soon as the first fall of snow came, we got on our stuff and headed outside.  It wasn't much and we couldn't do much, but it was still fun! 

Snowballs were a little difficult to construct, but boy did my little man try!

The next day is when we really got hit with snow.  Aiden came outside for about 5 minutes.  He hated the snow.  I tried sitting with him in the snow, pushing him around on the sled, going down the slide and just sitting on the step.  He hated it.  So, I caved and let him go inside with Andy.  Later.

Alex could have stayed out there all night.  We made a snowman, did some snow angels, had a snowball fight with the neighbor, and did some sledding.  The only reason we came in was because it was getting dark...

...and Daddy had made hot chocolate.

I can't wait for some more snow days!

The Tree

I love to decorate the house, the tree.  I love blaring the Christmas music, dancing around and putting up little reminders of Christmas at every turn.  My boys are loving it too.  I hope they love it forever.  Either way, they love it now and that makes me happy. 

We each have our own special box of ornaments.  I love going through them and remembering special life moments.  Such as a special dance routine, Halloween costume or engagement.  The boys are loving it also.  Alex opened his up and exclaimed, "Mom, do you remember when I was a cow for Halloween?"  Aiden just did a lot of "ooh" and "ahh" -ing.  He would run fast back and forth from the tree to his box.

I was nervous that they would be too rough with the ornaments or not enjoy the process like I do.  But, they did great.  They were so careful about handling them and about where each one went on the tree.

We brought out the rocking chair for a little picture.  They were so proud of the final product of the tree.  I don't think the lights have been off one time since we put the tree up. You only celebrate once a year, right?

Merry Christmas!

A Conversation with Alex

Like I said, my little guy recently had his golden birthday.  We definitely celebrated, but I thought it would be fun to a do a quick interview with him this year too.  Here are a few of Alex's responses:

My favorite food is…broccoli

My favorite sport to play is…baseball

The best show/movie is…Spiderman

The coolest person on Earth is…Daddy

My favorite thing to learn about is…Playing games

The thing I do the most awesomely is…Hunting on TV (He had just played Big Buck Hunter)

If I could go anywhere in the world, I would go to…the Waterpark

My favorite color is…Blue and Yellow

When I grow up, I am going to become a…Construction worker

My favorite song is…You Are My Sunshine/Jingle Bells

The book I am loving right now… "The Mine-o-Saur”

Three words that describe are…Imaginative, Busy, Creative (I summed up his responses into these three words)

When I was little, I used to…Sleep in a crib

My favorite season of the year is…Winter

The snack I like best is…M&Ms

One food that I really don’t like is…Guacamole

My best friend is…Carter (Mitchell and Ryan too)

If I had one wish it would be…to go to the beach

My best memory is…wrestling with Daddy

I am so looking forward to learning more about this little guy.  He fascinates me.

The Birth-Day

Alex's birthday fell on a Tuesday.  I am a Mom who is probably better off working for part of the year and that is why teaching is the perfect job for me.  But, that doesn't mean I don't have my moments where all I wish for is to be home with the boys and giving them my undivided attention.  I never thought I would take Alex's birthday off until the week before his birthday.  Being incredibly busy this year, I just felt like I needed to be with him, to make him feel special.  I went to my principal and explained to her how I felt.  She is so understanding and immediately told me I should request a personal day.  

I thought long and hard about what I wanted to do with my special little 4 year old.  I settled on Build-A-Bear.  Alex has lots of stuffed animals and a few special ones.  But, he doesn't have that one.  He loves to sleep with them each night.  Before heading to Build-A-Bear, we dropped Aiden off at daycare and headed to breakfast at IHop.  Alex quickly picked out the chocolate pancakes.  

After a delicious breakfast, which included ice cream from the waitress, we headed over to the Mall of America for the Build-A-Bear workshop.  We were the only ones there.  He was able to pick from a ton of different "skins".  But, knowing my little guy, he quickly ran over to the camouflage skin.  The lady helped Alex stuff his bear just to the right size and put a heart inside.  Alex then gave it a bath, combed its hair and made sure it was just perfect.  He tried telling me the bear needed an outfit, but I quickly explained that since he is camouflage he doesn't need an outfit.

We then headed over to Nickelodeon Universe and went on about 4 rides. After we exchanged a few gifts at Target and picked up Aiden at daycare. 

The boys watched an afternoon movie after naps before heading to evening preschool.

Happy birthday, buddy!

I love you.

The Golden Glove Party

Like I said, my golden glove player turned four on his golden birthday this year.  We had a great time celebrating at his big birthday party.  

Some of the Guse grandchildren were ready for the baseball pinata and Aiden loved the fresh popcorn. 

Andy grilled a whopping 48 brats and 36 hot dogs.  Needless to say, we had left overs for a while.  But, I never want to be the hostess to not have enough food.  So, I over prepare.

It was super fun that our friends, the Ritchie's, were able to attend.  They recently moved back from WA and we are so excited to have them around again! 

Early on in the evening, I started taking pictures of Alex with all the guests.  That quickly stopped as I started getting busier and busier.  Glad I got one of him with our good friends, the Hoppe's, though.

Meanwhile, in the garage, there was a party to be had.  I love our newly finished/heated garage.  It is very functional and really adds on a lot of space to our house.  Especially during these cold winters.  It allows us to be able to invite all of our family. 

The pinata was a hit!  Note to self: Do NOT fill it with suckers next time.  I grabbed whatever candy we had left from Halloween to fill it with.  It just happened to be suckers.  Which just happened to be all over our garage/house floor.  I went through the house and cleaned it with a fine tooth comb the next day.  Ick.

After the pinata, it was time for presents.  He is definitely one spoiled little boy!  He got lots of really special gifts.  But, none as special as the one Grandpa Johnson made for him. A baseball shelf that he absolutely loves.  I know it was a lot of work, but he will remember it forever.

While Alex was busy opening gifts, Aiden was busy putting them moves on Emily.  He was chasing her around trying to kiss her.  Oh my, my little man.

Alex and his grandparents

Earlier in the day, Cassie and my mom tried out a Pinterest idea I had found.  Dish up the ice cream ahead of time and place it in muffin tins in the freezer.  It was so quick and easy.  I would definitely do it again!

The Grandma's helped me clean up and boy, did it help!  I was so tired...

Before the night was over, we sugared the kids up on cotton candy.  Alex was not a big fan, but his cousins lived it up!  

And, of course, at a Johnson gathering a card game popped up!

I love having a close family that can help me make family gatherings that much more special.  

I love that Alex knows how much people love him and care about him.

I love that my little family is mine. They are growing and healthy babies.  

I am so thankful!