Saturday, March 10, 2018

February Happenings

February started off with a wait in the PreK drop off line, so we took some silly selfies to pass the time. 





While Nolan was in school learning about Groundhog Day and making his very own groundhog, Acelyn and I did a little retail therapy, where she insisted on carrying bags and bonding with the Old Navy doggie. 





Girlfriend was looking SO big and had the massive giggles after lunch. She kept melting my heart when playing with her baby independently... talking to her and giving her the sweetest love!




I volunteered to take the photos for our tee ball team this season, and although I'm definitely not a pro, I was satisfied with how they came out and even more surprised with how well all the boys did taking them!  I was a little nervous it would be difficult to get 3&4 year olds to pose for pictures, but they all did great!  Nolan's tee ball season has been so fun with all these little guys, and we are excited to continue playing through the spring with a lot of the same team members!














Acelyn did her own thang during the game, and kept Daddy busy chasing her while I snapped some more shots of the team playing. 



We celebrated Scarlett turning 7 (what!?) with a small get together, and Acelyn got down on some cupcake frosting.



We spent the morning of Superbowl Sunday playing at the park, then randomly took a drive over to our old track at Foothill.  Jason and I have had the same discussion going for months now, debating if he could run at 400m under 60 seconds. He thought it was possible, (no freaking way, man!), so we finally put it to the truth and timed his lap!  It was hilarious and he failed, but not miserably.  I'll spare the video I took, but let's just say that I won! 




Nolan loved the idea of the track and getting to run around the lanes, but when I had him "race" against Daddy and he quickly fell behind... he collapsed to the ground crying that Daddy left him.  Oops!  We may have traumatized him from running track, like, ever.  To make it better, we let him race us the last 100m and he won.. so hopefully we didn't do too much damage. 



We finished up the day by watching the Superbowl and relaxing around the house. 



At Preschool during the week, Nolan learned about the letter R and painted an impressive rainbow. 



We crafted some Valentine's Day hearts with pom poms and clothespins, where I later strung them together and made a cute garland to hang. 




On Friday, our friends put on a Valentine's Day Playdate at the park, so we met up with them and enjoyed seeing lots of familiar faces from high school that we hadn't seen in a while.  The kids got to decorate their own cupcakes, and Lindsay put together cute craft kits for them to take home, as well.  She did a great job hosting and it was so fun to see old friends and let the kids run crazy and play together while catching up! 






The next day, we headed down to Symphony Park by the Smith Center to check out an event Jason had been helping inspect a few days prior.  It was a benefit event, with proceeds going towards the American Cancer Society and focused on Construction vs. Cancer, with tons of local construction companies and the likes coming together to put on an amazing day of all-things-trucks for the kids.  To say Nolan was in heaven is an understatement... he loved every second of it! 

There were character meet and greets as soon as we walked in, so we got to snap some pictures with Elsa (who Acelyn was not afraid of finally!), as well as the whole Avengers team.  Nolan got to chat up Captain Jack, but Acelyn wouldn't go anywhere near him.  We even hit up some Storm Troopers, too!






We got to play lots of games, win prizes and get balloon art, and the kids collected lots of swag throughout our morning. 




We got our picture taken with McGruff, and even Acelyn's love of doggies couldn't get her anywhere near this guy. 



Next up, checking out the big trucks!  These things were huuuuuuge and made us feel super tiny standing next to their tires, alone!








The kids got to sit in trucks and play with all the gears, buttons and steering wheels, and Nolan's favorite was sitting in the buckets of different trucks and thinking it was hilarious that he could fit inside. 









The best part of the event was that they were letting kids operate many of the trucks (with assistance)!  Nolan was reallllllly against it and nervous, but we finally convinced him (aka bribed him with ice cream afterwards) to try just one of his choice.  He chose the lift, so we hopped on and took a ride!  As we got to the top, the operator asked if he wanted to play a game, and they tossed beanbags over the edge into a bucket below.  Sure enough, on the third try, Nolan made it!  On the way down, Nolan even got to press the buttons to help us move towards the ground. He was definitely nervous, but was so brave and overcame his fear, because he thought it was "super fun" and wanted to do it again (after his ice cream, of course).  






While we fulfilled our bribe, we all snacked on some ice cream and cotton candy, and even got to enjoy a Jabbawockeez performance!  We ended our day on that note, and the kids passed the heck out as soon as we started driving, which was much needed since Nolan had a tee ball game later that afternoon. 




Nolan helped put together his Valentine's for his Preschool party, and even signed each one of them for each of his classmates.  He also picked out what type of small gift he wanted to give his teachers, so we went the hand sanitizer route (thanks, Pinterest!) 



When we checked the mail on Monday, we were surprised with some Valentine's Day cards with stickers for the kids from Great Grandma Jeanne, which they loved!  Thanks for thinking of us, Gram!



Nolan celebrated his Valentine's Day party at school and had a blast exchanging Valentine's, crafting, eating fun snacks and playing games.  He really loves his school and I'm so happy they put on fun little parties for them every holiday!








He came home with his Valentines loot and went through each and every one of them from his friends, multiple times. 



The kids crafted cards for Daddy to open the next morning, and glued together pieces of paper inside some hearts to say, "They love him to pieces". 





On Valentine's Day morning, the kids woke up to a small surprise in their special mailboxes. 




We met up with Jess and Becks to get donuts, only to find they were completely sold out, so we took a short walk over to Starbucks for cake pops, instead.  We let the kids play outside, where we sat next to some Henderson police that gave the kids stickers and made their day.  When they took off, Nolan and Acelyn had to wait to see them drive away on their motorcycles. 






We delivered some Valentine's cookies to our friends, and ate about a million of our own at home because they were friggin' good. 



We hit up fancy schmancy Olive Garden for Valentine's Day dinner, and definitely had to get an ice cream sundae for dessert (per Nolan's request). 



Acelyn had more fun at gymnastics during the week. 




I finally received the Saranoni blanket that I missed the last few restocks on to use my Giveaway credit from BLACK FRIDAY... to say I was waiting for this is an understatement.  And to say this is the most magical, comfy blanket I've ever owned is no lie.  THE BEST!



Nolan had his second to last tee ball game of the season, and because the coaches were going to be out of town for the last game, they did their little awards ceremony post-game.  Each little guy on the team did so well this season and it was crazy to see the improvement in just a short amount of time!  They all loved having a little speech made about them and standing in front of their teammates.  And the baseball donuts afterwards were a win, too!







We were lucky to be able to try out the new Freshly Picked sandals and write up a review for their big release, so we took a drive down to Cadence Park to shoot some pictures and play! 











Acelyn was so pooped from the fresh air, she took a solid nap and I got some extra snuggles in with my baby and her baby. 



She also demonstrated exactly why playing board games around here is chaos. 



We set up blankets and pillows, popped some popcorn and turned down the lights to have a movie night as a family.  I finally caved and decided to let the kids watch Boss Baby, and surprisingly, it wasn't half bad!  They loved every minute of it and both of them sat through the entire movie. Success!



Nolan had his four year well check, and Acelyn wanted to make him feel "behha" (better) by holding his hand and keeping him safe.  While we waited, we came up with the "Where's the sunglasses game" that had the kids dying of laughter and entertained the entire wait.  At least they were loud and happy and not loud and screaming!





After, all that laughter wore off as we made what was supposed to be a quick trip to Target, until Acelyn had an unprompted (I still have no idea what triggered it) tantrum and literally refused to let me carry her, put her in the cart, sit in the cart, walk by herself, be entertained by toys, food or the iPhone... I literally tried every trick in the book and could not get her to stop screaming, so I finally just gave up and let her freak out in the aisle. It went on forEVER, and I really wasn't even too bothered by it, until a sweet, very pregnant Mama came up to me, asked if she could help and gave me some encouragement with saying, "You're doing a great job!" and then my emotions and tears started flowing.  Her sweet gesture was much appreciated and made me feel less crazy and alone in the moment.  Acelyn finally calmed down after about 20 minutes of screaming, and reminded me how much more of a challenge she's going to be as she enters her twos.... bring it on, lady!



Jason spent an evening at the Golden Knights game with Brock and Aaron, so I headed to Jess' house to spend dinner and movie with her and the kids.  We got to meet their new puppy, Acelyn decided to turn into a puppy by playing in her crate, and the kiddos PJ'd, popcorned and chilled while watching Coco on the couch.  






We were able to sample a week of Hello Fresh meals, and it was SO good, simple and refreshing to not have to worry about meal planning and grocery shopping for the week.  I wish this could fit in our budget more, because everything about it was great!  Our sample meals for the week were the Juicy Lucy Burger (with Tomato Onion Jam) and Arugula, Creamy Dill Chicken with Roasted Potatoes and Green Beans, and Mushroom Ravioli Gratin. 





We spent a day in pajamas and did laundry all day, so why not waste a perfectly good opportunity of jumping on the bed with no sheets!? 






Nolan had his final tee ball game of the winter season, which was fitting, as it was balls cold and definitely the coldest game of them all.  He did so well and hit the ball amazing every time he was up to bat, and all the kids just seemed to really enjoy playing this last game!  Nolan grew a ton in just a short amount of time, and we can't wait to start playing again in just a month or so for Spring season!  




Acelyn and Harley hung out while I got ready in the morning. 



In Preschool for the week, Nolan shocked me with all of what he learned about George Washington and about President's Day, telling me every detail on the drive home.  He also brought home his progress report for the quarter, and had another great review!  He improved from a M- to a M on "singing and dancing", so we were proud that he's feeling more comfortable performing in front of others.  





His class also built a huge block tower that the kiddos loved!



More dress up days called, followed by a snack and show on the couch while snuggling.  Some days may be long and slow, but moments like this with my babies are so worth it. 










...Until next month!

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