Preparing for Christmas

I'll admit it, I strongly dislike putting up Christmas decorations.  Growing up I loved doing it with my mom and my grandma, but as the mom, I don't care for it because I don't like putting it all out and then cleaning it all up.  It just seems like so much work just to take down.  We only started putting ornaments on the tree a few years ago when the kids got old enough to notice. 

While I have that mind frame about decorations, I wouldn't trade the time I have to put them up with my kids.  They love it and their joy and excitement makes it worth it for me.  It was nice to decorate as a family and while I pulled out ornaments to make them "tree ready," and Kris serves as the programmable ladder to lift them to those hard to reach areas.  I'm so glad he's so strong.

 

Counting by 2's

Kyson is determined to shoot his star into outer space.  He's been practicing and just passed off counting to 200 by 2s. I'm so stinking proud of the boy!

Kodi's Christmas Program

Working at Challenger definitely has its benefits.  One significant perk is that the school will send a substitute to my class so I can attend my children's programs.  As a parent, that is a huge bonus.  Unfortunately, there was a glitch in their scheduling and a substitute came to relieve me late.  I missed a few of the songs in Kodi's program, which was extremely disappointing to me.  However, Kodi cried or just sat there through most of it after I walked in.

I loved what I saw of the program, but Kodi is still perplexing.  I don't know if she expects to get attention for her behaviors because it doesn't work.  I usually just ignore her when she does that.  I was able to talk to her after though, which was nice.  Santa also made an appearance for the kids and gave them candy canes.  I don't know how much she loved it - she was too into her "sadness" to pay much attention.

Challenger is a great school for my kids and I'm so grateful that they're there this year.  What they are providing for my children is invaluable. 

In the pictures of the class, Kodi is the second to the end on the left on the front row.

 

 

Bug Hunting Officials

For as long as I can remember, Kyson has loved bugs.  That love for bugs has now influenced his litter sister.  She seems to love bugs too and the two together are quite the bug-loving duo.  Because Kyson has so much big stuff, the two geared up to go bug hunting.  When they came downstairs with all their gear, I had to take a picture.  At least there is never a dull moment as a parent.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving this year was great.  We had more people than we normally do because Chelsie, Carol, and Danny came.  Since we went to Bear Lake last summer, things have been wonderful between all the family members. But I wanted to do something unique for the holiday since we don't do a whole lot.

We ate dinner as a family and it was a gorgeous meal that tasted really good.  After that we went downstairs and watched slides from when we were younger.  I really enjoy seeing the old pictures, but I have to admit, everyone perks up the most when one of the kids is in the picture, instead of it being scenery or things happening before we were born.

We had the second course of Thanksgiving and then went outside for some classic Thanksgiving fun - a piñata.  Nothing says peace between Natives and Pilgrims like a piñata.  Unfortunately, my camera doesn't take pictures well in the dark, but the piñata was broken by the third person - Danny.  Kodi went first, Kyson went second, and Danny went third, and that was it.  I think the kids enjoyed it a lot, but I think they would live to have had more turns hitting it. 

Holidays with the family seem to be getting better and better and I'm grateful for a family that still gets together in this world where the family takes second place to so many things.

Swimming Lessons

I'm trying to get the kids to be fluent swimmers since we spend so much time at Bear Lake.  I think it's important for safety reasons and it gives the kids more exposure to other sports.  Kyson has done swim lessons before, but nothing for a long time.  I had him tested before registering him and he skipped a level from just going to the pool and playing around.  It's been great for him.  He really  seems to love swimming.  We'll see what happens with him and swimming.

Kodi, on the other hand, has been able to cross off another sport from her list of possibilities.  She cried every day, every class.  her teacher was a good sport and I'm grateful there are people out there who are willing to put up with crazy children like mine.

Counting by 10's

Even though Kyson just made it into the 200 Club, he's already counting to 200 by 10's.  So exciting!  The kid won't stop until he shoots his star into outer space!