Spring Break 2011

We had a great Spring Break in good ole St. Louis. No packing, no long car rides, no airports, no hotels...just good old fun! Monday we celebrated the fact that we had nothing to do. We spend the morning cleaning out my car (WAY overdue). The kids loved being able to play in the car while I vacuumed and scrubbed. Then we decided to try an industrial vacuum at the gas station. To our wonderful surprise they were doing major construction so I put the car in park, drank a Starbucks and let the kids watch the action. The weather was beautiful so after naps we played outside and enjoyed the weather.

The Home Depot worker driving Miss Daisy

Tuesday our field trip was to dad's office! The kids have never been to his office so we made the trip into Clayton to see where dad disappears to everyday. Matthew asked several times, "are we there yet?" and I continued to tell him that dad has to do this every day! They had so much fun at the office. Dad showed them the TV that comes up from a cabinet, all the special meeting rooms, the fire place, the copy room, the kitchen and of course his office. The kids enjoyed the field trip. Thankfully it was another nice day so after naps we were able to get some fresh air. My special field trip was a night out with the girls!

Molly was so excited and surprised to see dad!

Here comes the TV

Who's in charge?

Wednesday was our BIG field trip! Drew took the morning off and we headed to the zoo. We picked up Andrew's buddy Charlie on our way and had a blast. Of course our first stop was the train. Then we headed through the Rivers Edge to see Charlie's favorite, the rhinos, and Matthew's favorite, the elephants. Unfortunately the elephants weren't out which was a bummer but Matthew was ok with it once we told him we'd go back in a few weeks. Then we headed to the Children's Zoo and brushed some goats. Molly was hilarious with the goats. At first she was in shock, then she was intrigued by the boys who were brushing them, and finally she got up enough nerve to touch one! After the Children's zoo we grabbed a bite to eat and then headed up to see giraffes and cats with a nice construction show on our way. Drew had to run to work but the kids seemed to be having so much fun that I told them as long as the big boys could walk and no one melted down we could see a few more animals. That lasted about 5 minutes:) Andrew's legs hurt, Matthew needed a drink, and Molly needed a nap...of course Charlie was fine. I had to get gas on the way home and went for "cool" mom status and agreed to getting a car wash:) Thankfully we left when we did because by the time we got home the wind was crazy. That night we had 50mph winds....along with a cold front. We got our zoo day in just in time! The boys were so worn out that I had to wake both of them up from nap about 4:30 and neither of them would budge. Molly on the other hand got her 10 minute nap in the car and was bouncing off the walls all afternoon. Good thing she's so cute!

First train ride

Brushing the goats

The dump truck was dumping and LOUD

Trouble...

Thursday was low key and chilly! We took a trip to the library and then that evening Matthew had his first dentist appointment. I met Drew and he took Matthew while I came home with the other two. Unfortunately Matthew did not enjoy the dentist and by the time he got home I think he was over it but Drew was traumatized. I should have given Drew a heads up because Matthew is nothing like Andrew when it comes to doctors. Andrew thinks everything is fun and exciting while Matthew is more of a typical kid who does not like anything to do with doctors offices. Matthew has to have quite a bit of dental work done (not as much as Andrew did) which is never fun to hear. Drew and I spent the evening discussing the option of taking him to St. Johns and putting him under and having it all done at once or taking him to the dentist office for two separate visits. We've decided with option b and are praying that a little bit of bribery will help with the second appointment....I'll keep you posted.

Before...

After:(

Enjoying some library books

Friday we woke up to snow! We got the feel of going to Florida and Colorado all in the comfort of our own home:) One of the mom of twins from Andrew's class invited ALL the boys over to play (siblings included)! Everyone had a great time. The highlight for Andrew and Matthew was all of the Star Wars toys the twins had. I was the worst mom in the world when I told them it was time to leave. But I redeemed myself when they found out our special end of spring break dinner was going to be Dominos.

Pretending Molly's golf clubs are light sabers

Saturday we had a very nice lunch out with the kids. As soon as we walked in the door the snow began to fall...and fall...and fall...We ended up with about 5 inches by the end of the day. After dinner the kids got bundled and headed out to play in it. Poor Molly was so excited but ended up slipping on the playset and getting a fat lip. I think we need to start calling her bruiser.

My favorite picture!

So sad that our flowers are freezing

Before the fat lip

Fat lip

It was a great week!

Spring is in the Air

This is a story I hope to look back on and laugh. So Thursday (the 10th) early morning Andrew woke up with a fever. Knowing he wasn't going to school and the fact that I got NO sleep I thought it would be the perfect morning for a Starbucks run. I go out to start my car and my battery is COMPLETELY dead. A child decided leaving all the interior lights on was a good idea. Ok, it's the second day of lent, I can go without Starbucks so I make a cup of homemade coffee. Andrew is miserable and I just can't give him the attention he needs. Matthew is talking SO loud because he thinks that is the only way he can be heard and Molly is...getting a chair, pulling it up to the island and yes dumping.over.my.cup.of coffee!!! Did I mention that Drew had a work event and wouldn't be home until 10pm? He came home with the hopes of jumping my van but the battery was so dead he couldn't get it out of neutral.

This is a first. He's never fallen a sleep anywhere but his bed.

The next morning Drew had a breakfast meeting and came home with a new battery. I really had no place to go but could not stand the idea of being trapped! It was actually a nice day so the kids decided they wanted to take a wagon ride to the library. And yes, we looked like the Grizwalds because all 3 rode in the wagon. On the way home there we so many fights I ended up alternating between carrying Matthew or Molly. At least I got a workout in.

The excitement of the day! Dad changing a battery!

The Grizwalds

We laid low on Saturday because Andrew was getting over a virus and Matthew and Molly had colds. It was a beautiful day so we played outside most of the morning. When Drew got home from getting his haircut he decided he would try cutting the boys hair (they were over due). Well let's just say the boys didn't exactly cooperate and Drew isn't going to leave his current job to become a hair stylist. After lunch I had the special treat of going on one of my favorite trail runs. It was the perfect day for a run. I had also called a sitter Friday night to see if by chance she would be free Saturday so Drew and I could get out for a little bit. She was free! We were going to have her come right before bed time and put them to bed but we decided with the time change it would be better for her to come early and for us to come home early. We met another couple at a delicious Mexican restaurant and had so much fun that our plan didn't work out so well. Everyone was melting down when we got home but we had fun:).

Wish I was at the beach

Andrew looks thrilled!

EVEN MORE THRILLED!

Sunday, with the time change we went to mass later then ran a few errands. Andrew is about to start baseball so we got him a new bat and some other practice gear to get him prepared. Then we had a St. Patrick's day themed Sunday dinner. The kids were a little crabby because of the late night Saturday but thankfully grandma and poppa didn't mind.

Helping Poppa

To our surprise we woke up to A LOT of snow on Monday morning. It was still coming down when it was time for the boys to go to school but I didn't think to give myself extra time for the drive. Well traffic was horrible and the drive that usually takes me 20-25 minutes took an hour! Needless to say the boys were late but they thought it was cool that I had to walk them in. After naps I got every ones snow gear out, hopefully for the last time, and let them play outside.

HUGE flakes!

Luckily as the week went on it warmed up again and by Thursday, St. Patrick's Day, it was very warm and sunny! The kids woke up to some special treats from the leprechaun along with some green breakfast. As a special treat we went to chick fil a after school and had a picnic when we got home. After naps we had some fun outside play time and then I got a special treat and got to go out for drinks with a friend! Drew was kind of excited to watch some basketball while I was out (not nagging:).

What a nice Leprechaun!

Green Breakfast

Matthew showing Molly his bubbles

Andrew got a Lego Star Wars umbrella and would NOT put it down

Picnic time!

Saturday was a little chillier but not too bad. We had some good outside time. Then we went to a friend's house with the kids for dinner. We all had a great time eating pizza, playing, and talking. Molly's favorite part of course was their dog and guess what their dog's name is...Molly:) Even funnier than that, Molly was wearing black and white and the dog was black and white. I wish I had my camera.

Sunday was beautiful weather once again. After church (Molly fell off the pew and has a nice knot on her forehead), a full day of playing outside and naps we had the special honor of going to Baby Natalie's for dinner. From the second Matthew woke up in the morning he thought we were headed over there so I'm sure it was a long day for him. John and Christina were so kind to have us over and they wouldn't even let me bring dinner! The kids had a great time playing with all of Josie's toys and checking in on baby Natalie. The BEST part of the night was John and Christina asking me and Drew to be Natalie's God parents. We are SO honored!!!

Kind of see the knot

Great Dogs Uncle John

Josie you look AMAZING!

"Can I be the God-cousin?"

Welcome Baby Natalie!

Christina went in Monday morning to be induced. She was still 3 weeks away from her due date but since the baby was measuring small March 7 was the goal date for her. Christina has been a trooper during this pregnancy. She had to go in for appointments twice a week, was admitted to the hospital a few times and had 17 ultrasounds! That is no fun, especially with little miss Josie at home who doesn't understand what's going on.

On Monday, the baby handled labor beautifully. The heart rate was perfect even during contractions. I was able to go up to the hospital around 4, right after Christina got her epidural. Then the broke her water. John and I went down to the cafeteria around 6 to grab some dinner before the big night ahead. They were predicting Christina would have the baby before midnight. While we were eating John got a call that Christina was dialated to an 8 and the last two centimeters would go fast. Since they knew the baby was small they knew labor would be fast.

By 8 she was ready to push. I went to the waiting room with Christina's dad and two sisters while John and her mom stayed back. About 45 minutes later (it seemed like an eternity!) John came in and made the announcement....IT'S A GIRL!!!! All of our prayers were answered Natalie Marguerite was healthy as could be. She weighed 5 lbs 1 oz and was 18 in long. Once Christina and Natalie were ready we got to go meet her! Words can describe how cute she is so here are some pictures!

Tuesday we took the kids to the hospital to meet their new cousin. They were SO excited! We didn't realize Pete and Jill were there with Kiersten and Kaitlyn and then my mom walked in shortly after us, it was a Benoist reunion. Christina was such a good sport about all the chaos. Thanks for being so welcoming and laid back about the situation Christina! Matthew surprised me most of all. He would not leave Natalie's side. While grandma was holding her he rubbed her legs and waited patiently until it was his turn to hold her. Then when she started crying as he was holding her and he didn't want to let her go.

Andrew didn't surprise me because he loves babies. He made Natalie a card before we went to the hospital and he asked me what he should say to his new cousin. I told him he could write "Welcome Natalie" or "I Love You" and he said, "How about, Welcome out of your mommy's belly Natalie". I told him that was perfect but then he realize that was a lot of words and decided to just write Welcome Natalie.

We sat Molly next to Natalie and the facial expressions were priceless. She wasn't sure what to think. I was telling her to say baby but she looked at me like I was crazy. Like, "Mom this does not look like my babies".

After our visit we headed to one of our favorite restaurants from when we used to live in that neck of the woods. Then headed home. As soon as we got home Matthew grabbed one of Molly's babies and started pretending it was Baby Nata wee. Natalie sure has a lot of fans for only being a few days old.

Recent Happenings

Drew's lease ran out on he Jetta so he bought a car that he can actually fit in a little better. The kids love anything that is out of the norm so they have had fun talking about dad's new car and he even let them sit in it one night we he got home from work.

We had fun with the Sunday dinner theme of Oscar Night. We made bow ties for the boys and Molly and I glammed it up with jewels and accessories. Then during Sunday dinner Josie and Molly found the dress up clothes and that was the ticket to Oscar night.

It was grandparent's day for Matthew and Andrew at school last week. Poppa was able to join Matthew in his classroom. I tried to get details from Matthew about the day but that wasn't so successful:) Luckily poppa was able to fill me in. They played play doh, painted a picture, played with tools and blocks and then ended with circle time as a class. My dad said Matthew was shy but great at going with the flow and "getting in there". Poppa seems to think Matthew has quite a following of girls too:)

Grandma graciously took a few hours off of school so she could go to Andrew's class the following day. She said it was a bit chaotic because there are a lot more kids in Andrew's class but it made Andrew's day. They made an aquarium together and then visited several of the centers. He asked grandma to read him a few books while he cuddled up to her.

Thanks mom and dad for taking time out of your busy schedules to make Grandparent's Day special for the boys.

Friday we took a field trip to our library and the boys decided they wanted to ride their scooters. Molly was in the double jogger and of course Matthew didn't last long. We made it about 100 yards from our house and he said he was tired. I hid his scooter behind a tree and put him in the stroller. Andrew lasted longer but as we got closer I grabbed his scooter and stuck him on the foot rest of the stroller. It was a fun adventure! (A few weeks earlier Andrew rode his bike up to the library and did amazing, I was so proud of him! We even stopped at the little ice cream shop by the library as a special treat because it was so nice out it felt like summer!)

This is Andrew's "All About Me" week at school. We made a poster over the weekend and he was able to share his favorite things with his class. He was very excited to be in the spot light.

Check Ups

Matthew and Molly had check ups when we got back from Houston.

Matthew's 3 year check up:

Weight:31 lbs...50%

Height:38in...75%

Matthew checked out great. Dr. Bob made my day twice when we were talking about Matthew. First of all he told me not to worry that he's not potty trained. He said boys are late and to not even attempt it until he's ready because he'll win. He told me once he decides he's ready I'll be able to potty train him in one day so not to force it. Great news! AND I told him that I needed some suggestions on getting rid of his pacifier and he told me not to worry about it. If it's just at night it's not a big deal. That SHOCKED me. I was sure we were about to begin the nightmare of weaning him from his addiction. Thank you Dr. Bob! Now when we take him to the dentist later this month I'm guessing I won't get the same answer...we'll see! Matthew was not happy about the 2 shots he had to get. The first one wasn't bad but the second was a booster and man that must have hurt. He was so MAD at me, "YOU'RE NOT MY MOM!!!" he told me once that one was over:( He recovered once the nurse showed him the animal crackers and I promised him a little truck from Target.

Molly 15 months:

Weight:21lbs... 25%

Height:31 3/4 in...90%

Head 45.2cm

Molly checked out great as well. My main concern with Molly was the reaction she had after her shots last time. Dr. Bob remembered every last detail and he told me to just hang out for about 20 minutes after her vaccinations so he could keep an eye on her. After her first shot she said, "Owww" and the the last two must have been painful because the real tears came. But luckily she didn't have any reactions so we were good to go!