chuck-e-cheese & stealing

yesterday, i hosted a tupperware party.  daddy decided he was going to take john out after dinner so that mommy could hang out with the ladies.  early in the morning daddy told john that if he was good they could do something special.  i suggested to john that maybe they could go to the movies.  john immediately said "i know.  we can go to chuck-e-cheese."  and then all day long that's all we heard about.  "mommy, have you ever been to chuck-e-cheese?  it's really cool!"  "daddy, we should go to chuck-e-cheese.  they have lots of games."  "basically, it's awesome."  all day long.  it started around 10 am and he didn't stop.  and then after dinner, he kept asking daddy when they were leaving to go to chuck-e-cheese.  don't worry.  daddy did end up taking him to chuck-e-cheese and john had a great time. 

this afternoon john was not listening, and we punished him by taking away his leapster.  daddy took it and kept the leapster next to him on the chair.  john then pouted and started mumbling under his breath about how he wanted to play his game and that it wasn't fair.  finally he got up and said "daddy, i want to talk to you about something."  his face was real serious and he was talking very softly.  "daddy, it's not nice to steal.  you just stealed my game.  that means you steal stuff.  you steal all the stuff that i have!"  it took a lot for daddy and i not to laugh at him.  we listened to his story and then daddy told him that he didn't steal the game, and that if john was a better listener he would get the game back.

babies

i think that gillian needs to work on her mothering skills.  she quite frequently puts her babies in the microwave of her little kitchen. 

yesterday i was super excited to find on of her babies in the sink.  i assumed that she was giving baby a bath. 

i was curious, so took a look around her kitchen.  the microwave was empty.  so was the cabinet under the sink.  unfortunately, i found another baby in the oven.  i personally think the best part is that she considerately gave baby a blanket.  you know, in case it got cold in the oven.

changing weather

i got to pick up the kids from school today.  there is nothing better than picking the kids up and having one come running towards you with open arms.  you get the biggest, longest hugs when you pick up the kids.  as i was hugging gillian and walking down the hallway at school i said i missed you gilly.  i looked over at john and he was pouting.  i said john whats the matter?  he says, "well i missed you too!"  aww my heart just melts.  then he says "no i just missed daddy!"  ouch.

in the car, i asked him what he did today.  he says "i don't know."  so i start suggesting things: did you have a snack?  did you play games?  did you read books?  did you play outside?  when i got to the last question, he says "mommy we had changing weather today!"  "mommy, did you know that it was raining, and then it was snowing and then it was sunny.  and then there was a rainbow on the other side of the school.  but only miss lissette saw it." 

dress shopping

tonight was a girls night out. gillian and i went to david's bridal to try on bridesmaid and flower girl dresses for aunt missy and uncle t's wedding. we met the girls at david's and started with dresses for mommy. gillian was a good girl. she patiently waited on a chair. she loved watching the girls walk around in the pretty dresses. after we decided on my dress, gillian got her turn. it was her first time in a changing room. she stood there in her diaper shrugging her shoulders as if to say "come on mom i'm ready for my dress!" gillian loved the dresses, but the second i would turn my back she would try to put her shoes on. i guess she needed shoes to complete her outfit. the outing was a success for the ladies, but we did not settle on a dress for gillian. luckily we are looking for something simple and comfortable. we have enough time before august to find one.

static electricity

last night we put the kids to bed. after about 20 minutes of being in his bed, john comes running into our room with a lightening mcqueen pillow. "did you know that my pillow lights up?" daddy and i looked at each other. i am pretty sure that the pillow is just a pillow, but maybe it glows in the dark. we tell john to turn off the light in our room. then john hands daddy the pillow and says "you gotta squeeze it real hard." daddy plays along and squeezes the pillow and nothing happens. so we send him to bed (he also turned our light back on and turned the fan on too).

about five minutes later, he comes running into our room again. this time h has his "johnny blanket" with him. "my blanket lights up too!" this time we didn't even humor him, we just sent him back to bed. daddy turns to me and says "is he awake?" unfortunately john talks and sometimes walks in his sleep (gets that from me). nope, not this time. our little guy was wide awake.

daddy and i discussed the possibilities of what he was seeing. we only came up with a few: glare from the neighbor's porch light, headlights or the hallway light. i went to check on the kids a few minutes later. i found john still awake. again he tried to tell me that the pillow lights up. as he was describing it, he sat up and there was a spark of static electricity. he said "see i told you it lights up!"

career path

daddy picked up the kids from school today. they started talking about school. john is in pre-k now and next year he will go to kindergarten. john asked about what grade came next. daddy explained all the grades thru college. daddy then said after college you get a job. john replies with "can i just stay in college?"

daddy quickly changed the subject to careers and all the fun jobs you can have. john can now explain what daddy does: "daddy puts people in jail if they break the rules." he can also explain what mommy does: "mommy makes sure all the money is in the right spot." he knows that poppy and uncle t sell cars. he also knows that uncle joe flies helicopters and "when he is flying he looks for dangerous stuff. like rocks on bridges." he learned that grandma and aunt betty are teachers. daddy and john also talked about other career opportunities such as: policeman, bus driver, truck driver, construction worker, soldier, iron worker, mechanic, doctor or firefighter. it is hard to say which career is most appealing to him, but i know he will succeed in anything he does.

playing outside in january?

this winter has been unseasonably warm.  we have been very lucky.  daddy & john put the christmas lights up on a warm day and daddy took them down on another warm day.  this saturday was gorgeous out.  gillian wasn't feeling well in the morning and after nap time, i found john and daddy outside.  gillian and i decided to join them.  i brought gillian's doll stroller out and john pulled out his various bikes. 


gilly and her baby

john on his bike



gillian only took a couple of laps around the driveway before she got bored with baby and decided to move onto bigger things. 

on the tricycle

on john's quad

she quickly realized that she can't pedal the trike, but she was able to use john's power wheel's quad.  luckily for mommy, the battery has not been charged for the quad since this summer.  so it wasn't going fast.  gillian wouldn't be afraid of it, but i wouldn't be able to catch her.  john was perfecting riding his bike.  he is getting really good at pedaling and is working on his steering.  we only had two crashes with the two of them.  that's not too bad. 

we also got out a couple of balls.  john found a soccer ball and a kick ball.  gilly found a tennis ball. 

no day outside riding bikes is complete without some sidewalk chalk.  i had john write his name out really big on the driveway. 

today was colder, not as nice as saturday.  daddy and john started working on their new project ~ a step stool for john to reach the fish tank.  i got john ready and put him in old ripped jeans, a sweatshirt and work boots.  he kinda looked a little like uncle t when he was all dressed. 

mini uncle t?

daddy had john set up with a very important mission.  his job was cutting.  and i think he did a pretty good job with it. 

not a bad weekend for the kids.  i am thankful that gillian is feeling better and eating again (a true sign that my little girl was sick).  we are truly lucky to be able to play outside on our bikes in the beginning of january!