Santa Lucia VII

Happy St. Lucy's day! This year definitely had to be the easy route. We are running on empty with our darling boy coming two weeks into the school year and all that entails, as well as a week of school concerts and dance demonstrations on top of the normal hustle and bustle. Daniel grabbed two cans of orange rolls to reshape (they look like the traditional lussekatters, but definitely aren't, obviously). The girls bounced out of bed and brought the rolls in to Mlada's room. She didn't budge, even when we sang. ha! She was excited when she woke up about an hour later to see that her sisters had left her some rolls, and insisted that we light the candles and sing for each roll. Jude celebrated by getting a good stare down in with the tree lights.

St. Lucy, pray for us!

Quotables #9

C: The good kind of ghosts are raccoon ghosts.

 C: I'm going to get a bite of guac before I go potty to get my hands dirty.

 C: I love you daddy.
 D: I love you too! You're a very good girl.
 C: And you're kind of mean sometimes.

 C: If I had a measuring tape, I would use it to measure my love for you.

C: My neck keeps growling.

 C: I saw the pancakes and I sniffed out the bacon.

 C: You know what I like about my mom?
What?
 C: The whipped cream!

Want to sleep?
 M: “Maybe tomorrow.

 M: I’m not upSET. I’m fusterated!

 C: " wonder where the spider is going… Maybe Africa? Maybe the library!

M: I wish a bird could eat my tongue.

 C: Mommy, if you die, I hope Daddy marries me. (cue explanation on why that can't happen) Okay, then, I’ll find a fancy man, because I’m fancy.

 C: Anni, will you be sleeping beauty?
 A: No, my finger hurts too much to prick it on a spinning wheel.

 M: I’ll be safe, I won’t stab my sister anymore!

Why there's no Week 2-6...

I was all gung-ho about doing another Project 365, and then a whole lot of reality, nausea, exhaustion, and excitement that couldn't be translated into creative energy hit, and here we are.

Project 365 | 2018 | Week 1

(a little advent and) Christmas

Ah, we start with the cranky Mlada from Gaudete Sunday. Were they all matching? Yep. Was Mlada happy about it? Apparently not. #shestartedthetwosearly

With Daniel off to see the new Star Wars with a friend, we trekked off to Boulder to visit a friend and have a coffee date.

Then there was decorating the tree (we rotate a bit on when this gets done, as my family always waited until Christmas Eve, and Daniel's did it earlier in the month).

Finally, finally, just a couple days before Christmas, we got some snow! It felt perfect to roll into Christmas Day with snow on the ground.

And, as my girls all know, with snow comes hot chocolate.

There was lots and lots of reading. Anni loved being out of school and having as much time as she wanted to read (though chores still existed much to her chagrin).

We also decided to dive into cookie baking (gingerbread). On the whole, we had a blast, but as anything with toddlers, we ran into some rough waters when one sister wanted to share the chair with the other.

We decided to try Polar Express while the cookies baked, and, honestly, the girls spent more time concerned or stressed than enjoying it, so I don't think it was quite a check in the win column.

Then came Christmas! I didn't get a photo of all three girls together, because, with the double Mass days, we decided to do Christmas Eve Mass, and Mlada woke up from her nap just in time to have clothes thrown on her (as she protested mightily) and hop in the car.

We had a relatively traditional (for my Czech/German family) dinner, at least in that it was vegetarian. We had creamy pasta, shrimp, a yummy salad, and bread.

Then it was time for the traditional Christmas jammie present (and they so sweetly posed for a photo! They were loving the snuggles.)

Finally, our Christmas Eve closed out with reading The Night Before Christmas. My dad always read us this poem, and Daniel continues the tradition when we aren't in Wichita for Christmas.

Christmas morning was such fun! We try to keep our gifts to a three gift maximum, but we really enjoyed trying to get something they would each love this year. Colette got a dollhouse, which she has spent every day since emptying, rearranging, and creating all kinds of wonderful stories.

Anni got an Our Generation Doll (Target's version of an American Girl doll), which was the one thing she reallllly wanted, and despite a tragic loss of one of Franny's shoes at Nonna and Papa's, she is quite enamored with her sweet doll.

We gave Mlada a doll to go with a big gift we knew she was getting from my mom (a darling doll pram!) and the sweetest doll quilt from my sister, Katie.

Then we were off to my lovely in-laws' for food, gifts, and lots of cozy time together.

It snowed softly all day the day after Christmas, which just made things seem all the cozier.

Then we faced down the hard part of our break: Daniel leaving. He headed off for SLS18, and we missed him awfully as we rolled into the year, but made it!

Quotables #8

(C) "Daddy, last night my dream came true!"
(D) "What was your dream?"
(C) "That I would go on a trip... into my own dream!"

(A) "I love my Colette's imagination, her lovely imagination."

(D)"It's important to be careful about the person you're going to marry."
(A)"Yeah, I should be very careful, and sneak into their house to make sure there are no swords."

(C) “I have to wipe my oatmeal up off the table to earn money for a convertible."

(D) "Why are you trying to get that penny?"
(A) "So you have more money and Daddy can retire sooner."

Quotables #7

[A] "I want to see Karlie at the ski alley too!!"

[C] "I like Winnie the Pooh instead of the devil!"

 [C] "I'm going to turn on dark."

[C] "This smells like thunder."

[A] “You know that it’s real when they say ‘Once Upon a Time’."

[A]"Daddy, give it all you've got today. You're 29!"

[C] "No! My tummy isn't a heart! I don't have a heart!"

[D]"I'm sorry that your office becomes the sewer of the house, but does that make you a ninja turtle? Because that's really cool."

[A] "My feet aren't used to visitors!"

[C] (as we started to pray over our dinner) "In the name of the Hundred Acre Wood"

[C] "Knock Knock"
"Who's there?"
"Chicken!"
"Chicken who?"
"Chicken tastes like butter!"

Thankful

Our thanksgiving celebration almost didn't happen due to a random stomach bug poor Anni picked up a couple of nights beforehand. Luckily, no one else picked it up and she recovered much quicker than she usually does from these kinds of things. We drove through a flurry of snow to my in-laws and spent a day filled with lots of stories, a nap for me, and a whole tableful of amazing food. It was lovely and happy, annnnnd now I'm ready to welcome this little one. 

Happy Constitution Day! (Yesterday)

One of the really fun things about our Nugget going to a classical school, is that they work really hard on things like memorizing the Pledge of Allegiance, and celebrating Constitution Day. I love it!

The First Day

It's the first day in lots of ways. Anni's first day away at kindergarten. Daniel's and my first day sending one of our babes off to school. Colette's first morning all alone with Mommy.

This morning I woke Anni, and she crawled into bed with me to wake up the rest of the way. I had the sudden realization that we may not have left as much time as we needed for everything we wanted to fit in that morning to get her off on her way, but part of me desperately wanted to keep her sleepy self all curled up right next to me.

After rousing ourselves, she munched on her breakfast, but was so excited that she was "full" just a few bites in... a big deal for my little girl with the big appetite. By the time we got on the road, she was brushed, braided, and uniformed as sweetly as can be.

Of course, then the 10 minute drive turned into a 30 minute drive when we got stuck behind a four-car accident, and my brain just kept repeating, "Not on her FIRST day of school... are we really going to be those parents?!" I was in the car with the girls, so outwardly I stayed calm so Anni wouldn't realize things weren't going according to plan. I don't need to pass on any more anxiety to her... let her stick with excitement for her very first day! Of course, all was fine, because everything that I freak out usually does turn out fine (life lesson here, all!) There were plenty of parents still herding their littles (and not so littles!) into the front door when we got there.

They let the kindergarten parents walk their little ones in for their first day; and because we were a little late, our urgency and Anni's pure excitement kept my tears at bay. When you walk through the classroom door, there's an itty bitty hallway before it opens up, and as we snuck Anni in, a mama stood there, hidden from the class, with tears dripping down her face. After settling Anni in, as we watched our girl's little braids swinging at her desk for a few moments, the other mama whispered, "Is this your first?" I nodded, feeling the tears start to prick, and she smiled a little and said, "This is my last. It's hard no matter what."

As we walked out of the classroom,  I let a few tears trickle out, and then remembered we were meeting in the office with other kindergarten parents, and tried to pull myself together. (I'm pretty sure I still looked like I'd been crying, as another mom's first question when I walked in was, "Are you doing okay?")  

It's amazing all the emotions this first day brings. I'm so excited for her and so proud of the sweet, smart, and caring little girl we've raised. I'm also a worrier, so I worry that she won't be happy, or it won't be the right place for her, or or or...

Happy first day, my Antonia, there's so many beautiful, hard, and amazing things ahead of you. I can't wait to see where else you're going to go in this sweet life of yours!