Love the LOVE

I love making homemade Valentines. I start really early, so that I have time to make them without getting stressed. And it allows me time to let my kids help. When I pick which Valentines I'm going to make (off of the Disney Family Fun Go website) I always make sure that the kids can help in some way. 

These are the Valentines Jensen made for his "preschool" class. They are little glow sticks pushed through hearts that say "You make my heart GLOW". (My kids love glow sticks!) I love that he signs his name now, and he also helped carefully push the glow sticks through each heart. The best part was that I got the glow sticks in the Target dollar bin! Talk about inexpensive (yet cute and fun.)

These are Carson's Valentines. We made some cute heart shaped crayons (this year's attempt was much more successful than last year) and they have a card that says "You Color My World." We also had the good fortune of getting some Krispy Kreme Valentines for free while we were there last week, and so each of his classmates can also take those in to get a free donut in the next month! Yummy and fun!

And these were the Valentines that we made for their teachers. They are bags of microwave popcorn taped on to what is supposed to look like a box of movie popcorn. And even though the boys didn't do too much to help me, I still really liked them.

I know a lot of people who hate Valentines day because they think it's too commercialized, or because it focuses too much on romantic love.  I guess I just don't worry about those things when it comes to this holiday. I feel like I have a lot of love in my life, through my husband, kids, family, and friends. I could think of a lot of people who I would consider my "Valentines." 

Of course I love this guy.

And this guy.

AND this guy.

And who doesn't love this guy? :)

 But mostly I love all of this.

To the Birthday Boy

Yesterday my "Sweet Baby J" turned 4 years old. I have long since called him "Baby J" because he outgrew being a baby a while ago. It is clear there is no more baby left in him, just pure little boy. He was so excited to be 4! I sang "Happy Birthday" to him when he woke up, and the first thing he said to me was, "YES! I'm 4 now!" I have been smitten with his little funny face since I first laid eyes on him. Oh how we love this spunky little guy! We couldn't imagine our family or our lives without him in it.

For his birthday this year, we kept it simple. Jensen invited Grandma and Grandpa Brudnicki and one of his friends to go to a pizza and game place for the evening.

 After some games we opened presents (which he totally loved).

 I think this face says it all. :)

 We also had cake, which Jensen was very specific about. Chocolate cake with whipped cream inside, and strawberries in a circle on the top, and a big pile of whipped cream in the center. It was a beautiful creation, and a tasty combo! I'm bummed I didn't get any pictures of it, but oh well.

Happy Birthday Jensen!

They Start So Young...

 Lately, this is where I've been finding Mason when he's been quiet for a little too long. He likes to climb up in his chair and look at his books. Sometimes he climbs onto Carson's bed and gets into his book basket, too. These are the only pictures I've been able to get of him doing it, because as soon as I find him and sneak off to get my camera, he decides he doesn't want his picture taken!

 Then today, I found him playing with his toy phone that he got for Christmas. He looks like he's texting!

 "What?"

 "I don't know why you're laughing at me. You're the one who looks silly."

Happy Birthday to Me

I had my 32nd birthday last week. Nothing big. Just a little cake (that I made for the boys benefit), some beautiful flowers and a fun spa night with our young women at church.

 I call this cake "Tiers of Fire." The tiny 3 tiered cake actually had all 32 candles, so it was kind of a fire hazard in and of itself. But, man, did those boys have fun helping me blow them all out!

 And although this little one now has all of his teeth in (aside from his 2 year molars) they still seem to be bothering him. And apparently chewing on his hands seems to help.

 And this is a picture that Dustin took of Mason after one of his baths. Dustin decided to spike his hair, since it's getting kinda long again. Admittedly, it was adorable. But what isn't adorable about a baby this age?

Shake What Your Mama (that's Me) Gave Ya!

My kids have some sweet dance moves. Well, we'll call them "dance moves" for lack of a better term. I have seen some kids who actually know how to dance, but my kids are not those kids. My kids are, however, cute and hilarious, so I will post this picture with motherly pride.

And seriously, when did my baby get so big? I love those sweet cheeks.

Latest Happenings

Poor Mason has been cutting his last 2 teeth. (Yes, he's almost 17 months old and all the boy has left are his bottom canines.) I hope those 2 year molars don't give him as much trouble as all these other teeth have. He's been fussy and tired thanks to his chompers. So last week I started laying down his quilt that Grandma Jensen made for him, so that he could enjoy all the balls. He cracks me up when he goes and gets all the balls in the house and puts them on the blanket. Or when he decides to just lay down and snuggle all the balls on the blanket. He's a funny little guy, and at a super fun age.

 And last week, when Jensen went to Sunbeams for the first time, he also lost his most favorite friend, Naners. We waited out the first week to see if his primary teacher had it, but she did not. So Jensen and I went on a little date tonight to get a new Naners. (Fortunately, I knew there was a store not too far away that sold them!) He was a little disappointed that the new Naners looked so…well…new. But I told him this new Naners was soft and snuggly, and he would be perfect. Jensen hugged him and took him to the counter to be rung up. Then we went to Auntie Ann's and shared some delicious pretzels. It was an awesome date.

What's Up, 2012?

On New Years Eve we hung out with Grandma and Grandpa Brudnicki and Uncle Jason. The boys were pretty excited about the party horns and poppers I got to "celebrate" with. We did the countdown at about 8 o'clock and then everyone went to bed after that. Sadly, that included the adults. :)

But Jensen was well rested for his big day. The new year meant he finally got to go to Sunbeams. He is so stinkin' BIG! He loved going to what we call "big Primary" and he liked his new teacher. Carson was excited about his new class as well.

 Today was Uncle Jason's last day here, so we went out to lunch with him. Carson and Jensen both had to sit next to him. Mason finally warmed up to Uncle Jason, too. When we got out of the car he ran up to Jason with open arms! So cute.

Dustin, Jason and I also went to the gym together this morning. Nothing too out of the ordinary there, but Dustin did take his first Body Pump class with me. I'd be surprised if he takes another one… He actually did fine, but we'll see how sore his legs are tomorrow. :)