My Crafty Side...

My craftiness is about non-existant.  LOVE everything I see others do but when it comes down to it, well, I don't have it in me to come up with crafty ideas and if I try and replicate someone else's crafty ideas they usually turn out a little....unusual.  Maybe because I let a 4 and 3 year old participate and they have a way of taking over???  Well, we can put the blame on them regardless :)

I mentioned it in my last post but this weekend we are headed to Memphis for the St. Jude's marathon to watch Russ run.  There are about 10-15 people from JL running and many are bringing their whole families.  Dinner reservations for Saturday night is for 45 people ranging from 1 - 50 years old!  It is bound to be an incredible experience. 

Anyways I'm sure I made some comment in passing to J about supporting daddy with "go daddy go" t-shirts or posters but I should have remembered she has a very focused memory and wouldn't you know it...we are not leaving the Lou without personalized t-shirts.

Cool.  Great idea J.  I'm on it...except there's nothing out there that I like.  And then I realized we are coming up to Christmas and J's birthday and we just don't have the $$ to throw around having shirts embroidered, especially if they are going to wear it for one special day.  Do It Myself????  Is it possible???  Well, I gave it a go and have to say I think they turned out pretty cute - and for less than $10 a shirt!

The girls are so proud of their daddy and I am so excited (and nervous) to take them to see such an amazing event.  Thousands of people running to support an incredible organization.  At the same time, how in the world am I going to explain this to my girls??  How to get across the *good* of St. Jude without exposing them to the *sadness* of cancer...with kids...and the fight for a cure??

We will do it. And they will be better for it. 

Thanksgiving Weekend

Wow...what a great holiday weekend!  Feel like there is still lots to get done but when I look back on the weekend, it was a whirlwind of productivity!

• Tuesday we spent the afternoon making Turkeys for everyone at our Thanksgiving dinner...turned out cute but lots of cutting for mom and lots of gluing for the girls.  Have to say I was pretty impressed that my big girls stayed focused on the project for 2 straight hours.  Never expected all the great help (note a hint of sarcasm??  the did great but well, they're 3 and 4.5)
• Wednesday the big girls went down to Grandma and Poppy's with the Barrett's.  Gotta say life with just one little stinker is pretty sweet  :)
• Thursday we headed down to Terre du Lac to meet up with the family and celebrate all we have to be thankful for.  We had a great day with the Cottle clan.
• Got a little Christmas shopping done late Thursday night and a bit Friday morning (online at night and not CRAZY early...just early enough to get some good deals :))
• Christmas tree and decorations up on Friday!!!!
• Saturday was Michigan v Ohio State day.  Bummer of a game but the girls had fun making signs for daddy.
• We also managed to fit in a little Tangled Friday afternoon.  E's first movie and she says she had fun.  Honestly, we had no idea what she was thinking - the kid was a statue for 1 hour and 52 minutes.  She was either completely enthralled or a deer in headlights.
• Sunday morning we joined St. Lucas UCC.  We are thrilled to become part of our new church family. 
• Outdoor lights up Sunday afternoon!
• Headed up to Jimmy's hockey game Sunday night hoping to see a great game....Turned out to not be a winner, but love our #6 Shark!!!

We've got a few days here in STL and later this week will be heading down to Memphis for the St. Jude Marathon.  Russ is going to have a great run, we are going to support an amazing cause and the girls are going to have a fun "mini holiday" at The Peabody! 

E's Quiet Time...

My little E decided over the summer that naps are completely unnecessary for a big girl like herself.  Not even 3 years old and they were completely boycotted?!?!  Why in the world would a person do that to herself?  Me...I would LOVE someone to tell me it was time to get in bed for a couple of hours each afternoon.  I'll give her one point...sure makes bedtime a lot easier :)  There were many a night this summer E fell asleep at the dinner table. 

We have moved on from that for the most part.  She has resolved herself (after a couple of really rough "quiet times") that she has to stay upstairs, in her room, quiet, for one hour.  And she does a pretty good job.  She waits for me to come get her most days, except eventually the lack of sleep catches up with her and there are days when she actually falls asleep.  **Yea!!  She will be well-rested and that stubborn little person that takes over my sweet child will disappear for another 4-5 days!**  But she's obstinate and will not admit defeat - which means she won't get in bed and fall asleep comfortably.  We have found her asleep lined up against the wall, in the upstairs hall, she's blocked her bedroom door by falling asleep in positions that prevent us from opening the door and today was the best one by far...the top stair.  Good thing she stayed still.  Rolling down the stairs would NOT have been a good way to wake up!!

So I go check on her tonight and, yep, sound asleep in the hallway...sweet dreams baby girl!!!