Saturday, November 21, 2009

Finally! The last birthday party!







We had Ella's birthday party with my family today. I tried to make a cake complete with fondant (you may recall that Ella's into it). It wasn't the most awesome thing ever but I think she enjoyed it all the same. I'll try to make it bigger and better for next year. For those of you who are interested--it was a vanilla bean cake with citrus frosting (lime and orange). The lighting is bad in the pictures but it was a lavender fondant with royal blue circles/flowers on the side and pink hearts on top.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Every little thing she does is magic...

Anyone recognize this chubby little baby??


I should try to come up with a list of the funny stuff you've done like I did for your brother but I find a list of things I don't understand about you to be more interesting...

I don't get...

...why you think vanilla foods are yummier than chocolate ones. You would take vanilla cake with vanilla frosting with a side of vanilla ice cream topped with marshmallow fluff over a candy bar any day hands down. You even balked when I tried to put Nutella on a peanut butter sandwich (who doesn't want a chocolate/pb sandwich?? Crazy kid!).
+
...why you wanna pretty-up the world constantly. WORLD BEAUTIFICATION IS NOT NECESSARY ALL THE TIME. There. I said it. Did you ever think that without ugly things the pretty things would look less pretty because we would all be desensitized to beauty? Yeah, I think I got you with that one, Kid.
+
...giving out gifts on YOUR birthday. You had me make 20 tissue paper flowers (in assorted colors) and 45 sugar cookies cut in the shape of an E for your entire kindergarten class so you could hand them out today. Seriously, E, its your birthday! People are supposed to give YOU presents. The worst part about it is that you've been looking forward to doing this for about 4 weeks (ever since you thought of the idea) and you practically skipped into school this morning with your trash bag full of flowers (I know it's not glamorous to carry a trash bag to school but it was raining and what the heck else do you do with nearly 2 dozen items that will disintegrate in water??) and Rubbermaid container full of cookies!
+
...how you're so insightful for such a young kid. Like the time when you told me I had a hard time holding things in my mind. Or like earlier this year when fellow kindergartener, Judy* tried to give Johnny a birthday picture which he promptly rejected and said "I don't want your picture, Judy." You stepped in and said "I think it's a pretty picture. I'll take it if Johnny doesn't want it." Ella saves the day and some hurt feelings.
+
...the complexity of your thought process. You've been student of the week this week. Long time blog readers understand that she's been looking forward to this for a while. She picked her buddy, Amy, to help her carry the lunch tub full of lunch boxes the first day (understandable) but then on the second day, she picked Joshua to help her carry it. I thought it was strange that she wouldn't pick another one of her friends. She doesn't really talk with Joshua or play with him at recess. The reason for her selection, you ask? She was thinking about it and he was the only person she could think of that no one had chosen yet and she thought it was time he had a turn.
+
...how one child can be so girly. You only want to dress yourself in dresses and skirts. When I want to punish you, I take away your ability to wear a dress for a day. Nothing like a good pair of jeans to straighten out your attitude. The only time you're not girly is when you're playing tackle football with your father and brother in the front yard.
+
...that your beverage of choice is water. Not chocolate milk, not juice, just water. Plain water.
+
...how you never ask for gifts. Even when we're going through the toy section of a store, you never say I WANT THIS, I WANT THAT!! You are always genuinely surprised and happy when you get gifts like you never even thought that you would be given anything. You've only asked for one thing for Christmas this year even though I can see that your little mind is churning with ideas.
+
...how you don't want to rock out with your Mom in the car. From you, I get a lot of "turn it down" "stop singing so loud" and "shouldn't you have at least one hand on the wheel instead of using both to play air guitar?" One time I got you to jam to Girls Just Wanna Have Fun and it was awesome! You liked quite a few more of Cyndi Lauper's songs so I'll close with one of her faves of mine (this would be the sappy part of my post, Tori and Mom).
Sometimes you picture me
I'm walking too far ahead
You're calling to me I can't hear
What you've said
Then you say, go slow
I fall behind
The second hand unwinds
.
If you're lost, you can look and you will find me
time after time
If you fall I will catch you, I'll be waiting
time after time


(*As always, names of children other than my own are changed for privacy sake.)

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

This is better...

Hope Natalie likes this one!

Diva

No love for Natty right now but I'll try again later.

Two of my fave old videos of Ella...

The top one is of an almost 2 year old Ella letting Jane chase a piece of yarn. The second one was made to send to Aunt Annie and Uncle Kevin the same day. So stinkin' cute in both!

The best part of the cake...


...had to be the black frosting that turns your tongues purplish black!

Cretaceous period, anyone?

Luke and his Stevie
I think someone was secretly helping his sister blow out candles.


We had the second of three birthday parties for the children last weekend (we did one a few weeks ago for just Luke and will be doing one again in a couple weeks for just Ella with just my family) with Aron's family.

Luke's been into dinosaurs lately so I made him a dinosaur shaped cake. He chose the color (so please don't hold it against me). The cake was so big I didn't have anything to put it on so I improvised with a giant wooden board covered with aluminum foil. Lindy made Ella a cake with flowers on it. 2 cakes and a giant amount of food--yum!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Last of the Halloween pix











We're having a hard time figuring out how to dress the kids for next year. Part of me says we should probably start letting them figure it out on their own but the other part of me says it's just too darn much fun picking a theme and dressing them accordingly. Ideas tossed around for next year include the following:




1.) Each of the kids will be dressed as the main character from fast food restaurants (Wendy of Wendy's, the Colonel of KFC, etc.) and the wagon would be fashioned to look like a big bucket of chicken or a Happy Meal box.




2.) The kids could be superheros (Wonderwoman, Superman, etc) and who knows what the wagon could be.


What do you all think? Take a moment to clickety click in my poll.

Ella's World Beautification 2009 edition







Oh Ella...you crack me up. You like to plan little touches of cuteness around the house that I wouldn't even think of (See also, Ella Beautification/World Dominance posts. Click on both Ella Beautification and World Dominance for flash backs to 2 previous posts).
Her latest efforts include assigned seating at our kitchen table (see also above). She also made a cute little bracelet for my Grandma (her G.G.) to wear.
*
Le sigh.
*
On a funnier note, she asked me yesterday if I could text Santa to tell him that she wanted more Strawberry Shortcake items for Christmas. I decided this was a good idea and we now have ALL of your fictitious gift giving folks on the texting hotline (you know, the E Bunny, the tooth fairy, etc.).

Sunday, November 01, 2009

I love you, little bunny


Get this wagon going!

Sure kids, I'll pull this wagon dressed up like the Mystery Machine with 25# of Velma, 45# of Daphne, 35# of Shaggy, and 55# of Freddy faster...if you want me to have a heart attack!

Oh Chase...say it ain't so...







What did your parents do to you, buddy? Oh yes, that's right...they made you be Velma for Halloween. Don't worry, though. Someday this will cost them a lot in therapy bills...then you will have your sweet, sweet revenge.