Return Of The Queen!

Good news! The Queen is back! She was missing for months and we could not find her despite our great efforts. Finally, when we pulled out the storage tub of vintage Cabbage Patch Kids, we happened upon her! She somehow got tossed in with them the last time they were out for play, which was obviously quite some time ago. Anyway, we are thrilled to have her back because she entertains us to no end. Above, The Queen can be seen in her palace visiting with friends. Among her friends is Real-Looking Fake Calico and a new friend...Vintage Poochie Stamper. One of Bennett's aunt's might be missing Poochie. The friends were hanging out, discussing The Queen's upcoming wedding. I thought she'd already married, but I'm told she's remarrying. Hmmm? I don't think Bennett understands monogamy, polygamy and such. We'll just let that go for now, I think.

Here we see The Queen and many of her friends at the hotel where the wedding will take place. I'm told that the California Raisins are having a meeting with the old King (the Queens first spouse) about who she might possibly be marrying this time around. On the second floor Papa Smurf and Smurfette are decorating the conference room where the ceremony will take place. Notice the red carpet and a copy of the wedding invitation. On the top floor The Queen's closest friends also continue to discuss who she might possibly be marrying. Only they don't realize she is hiding under the sofa, listening in on their conversation. As a mother, I am promoting the idea that the original king and The Queen should renew their vows, but I'm not certain what will actually go down here. We'll keep you posted!

Mid-Week Happenings

Here is what has been going down the past couple of days. We took a roadtrip to watch a basketball game with friends...our first this season. Bennett watched most of the game through her program/roster telescope.

We are in the process of transitioning Ainsley away from napping so she'll sleep better at night. The only problem is she is totally wiped out at about 5:00 p.m. Yesterday she fell asleep in the middle of the kitchen floor amidst the craziness of Dad getting home from work and dinner prep. Then she's super-d-duper crabby for about an hour. However, she is sleeping better at night so mission accomplished!

Bennett's Journal

Bennett brought home Part I of her school journal today. It contained entries from early November to the present. I have been very eager to see her journal because it is so fun to see how her reading and writing are developing. Her journal contains documentation of the highs and lows of life as a child. Some entries talk about her likes and dislikes, going to Grandpa and Grandma's house, playing with her sister, and such. Above is my favorite entry though, and I'm sure that her teacher enjoyed it as well. It says, "My mom is sick. In the middle of the night she puked." Nice! Thank you for sharing, Bennett! No wonder her teacher asked me if I was feeling better the day after this entry was dated. She had more personal information that I had realized. Now that Bennett is journaling, nothing is sacred!

WALMART - LOW PRICES, NOT ALWAYS

So we went to Walmart as a family tonight. To make the trip more appealing to the children we allowed them to take a little bit of money from their spending banks, to be spent as they so desired. Each girl took $3.21, enough money to purchase something up to $3 in value, plus the tax. They are well aware that when they take spending money to a store they may only buy items they have enough money to pay for. For some reason this lesson was more difficult for Bennett tonight than it usually is. I think this is because she is usually able to find an item she wants that she can actually afford. This was not the case tonight. She searched every inch of Walmart and simply could not find anything she wanted for $3.21 or less. Ainsley did...Valentine's candy. She even came home with money to put back in the bank. Bennett did not want candy, but rather something "that would last forever." Since she could find nothing in the time frame she was given, she had to be taken to the car empty handed and crying her eyes out. It was quite a scene. Ainsley even offered to share her candy with Bennett but she would accept no consolation. Grant waited in the car with Bennett while Ainsley and I checked out. He said he could not control his laughter as she read the sign above the Walmart entrance aloud in the car..."Walmart, Low Prices...Always" He said she read it and they carried on and on about what a lie that statement was and how disgusted she was because the prices of the toys she wanted were not low enough. Oh, such hard lessons learned at such a young age!

What should one do to comfort themselves during a deep freeze in the dead of winter? The answer is obvious. Venture out into the bitter cold for some Superman ice cream with whipped cream, sprinkles and a cherry on top...that's what! This photo was taken a split second after Ainsley popped the cherry into her mouth. She ate every last drop of that freezing cold ice cream!

We Love Winter, Right?

We're really working hard to have a positive attitude when it comes to the winter season. This morning Ainsley has experienced two joys of winter. First, she finally saw a squirrel nibbling corn on our new Squirrel Snacker from Grandpa and Grandma. Second, she had some incredible static electricity going on in her hair. She was simply thrilled about the crazy hair. Notice though, she just can't completely bring herself to embrace winter...she is wearing a tank top today, per her request. Her flipflops are out as well. How many weeks until spring?

Recent Happenings

Below are some photos from the past few days. Mom has been under the weather, but Bennett and Ainsley have been their crazy selves! Ainsley enjoyed a mid-week roadtrip with Mom and Grandma last week. The highlight was clearly the coin-operated entertainment!

Since Mom was sick the girls were stuck at home all weekend. Hence, the library table got a lot of attention. It became a covered wagon for two little pioneers on Saturday. Honey Pie Pony did an outstanding job of crossing much of Kansas that day. Notice...in the "storage area" below the table you'll find Snowy Days. The Real-Looking Fake Pets continue to be part of library table play time. They also took a book about sibling rivalry on their trip. They obviously forgot to read it though, as Bennett and Ainsley had a record-breaking day of fighting on Saturday. Full moon, you know.

The overall theme for the weekend was music and entertainment. The girls figured out that I was pretty much useless to them, so they kept themselves busy making instruments, singing songs, and performing plays. Here they are in the midst of some Christmas song about baby Jesus the newborn King. Most of Ainsley's songs pertain to baby Jesus, which is lovely.

Home Sweet Home

The Girls were playing "house" this evening. Below is a photo of their house...the library table and its surrounding area. I interrupted to take this photo right at bedtime. Sorry, Girls! Located on the upper level of the "house" was none other than the beloved Real-Looking, Fake Cat and Dog Family! They were also resting. Snowy Days was sporting some type of top hat as his night cap. It was a strange sight, as we're accustomed to seeing him wearing a small, green sombrero. Oh, you've gotta love the Real-Looking Fake Cats and Dogs...never a dull moment with them!

Strange Stuff

So, we have strange children. Just when we think they can't possibly do anything more weird than they previously have, they find a way to do something more weird. For instance, pretending an old purse zipper is your hip-hop turntable is pretty strange. But disguising yourself in a bedsheet and shining a flashlight onto an ugly little hippo, while pretending the hippo is performing a song you learned off of an insurance commercial is definitely more strange.Requiring your dad to help you hold the sheet up to create a more realistic looking backdrop for the ugly hippo singing a jingle from an insurance company commercial is equally as strange.

Dressing your little sister up like a matador and having her charge at a red cape while you wear your cousin's hand-me-down beanie hat is also strange. What could either of these children possible do that is more weird than the things shown in the above pictures? Time will tell...

Word to Your Mother!

Bennett was doing some beatboxing this afternoon, which prompted a family discussion about Hip-Hop music. The discussion prompted Bennett to find a cap she could wear sideways.

The sideways cap, along with conversation about turn tables, prompted her to find an old purse. Why? Because zipping the zipper back and forth repeatedly sounds a lot like a turn table, of course! Very clever, Bennett! She also threw out some phrases including "word to your mother" and "take it to the bridge." Dad and I were quite entertained by our "dope" and "fresh" performer. We might throw "Ice, Ice Baby" onto the next cd we create on iTunes, provided we deem it free of profanity.