It's December with no coats!

December has been so mild. There have been several days when we didn't need much more than a sweatshirt to play outside.  Andrew was out of town so we got all dressed up and went outside to take pictures while the sun was out and the temps were warm (for December). 

Miss M is in love with her sparkle dress. She picked it out as her holiday dress this year.  

Big Willie smiles like Craig. Pained and uncomfortable. But I want to eat his face regardless.

So handsome when he gets cleaned up.

She's like a little boss.  The strut was too much. It just makes me laugh.

Ready. Set. Go.
Horsey #1, Horsey #2, Horsey #3.

Andrew made it back from Indianapolis in time to go to lunch and the ice cream shop.  Big Willie is a good sharer.

We bought Jack a Teeter Popper for his Christmas present.  We tested it out for him while we waited for him to arrive.  Cater found multiple uses for the toy.

Andrew in Indianapolis for the Big 10 championship game with Craig, Tilley, and Nick.

Cate had been really feisty all weekend. I didn't know what to do with her. Finally I bundled her up and took her on a walk outside. She usually loves riding in her red car but after about a block she screamed the entire way and tried to escape.  Finally I had had enough and called the doctor to find out she indeed had an ear infection.  I am on top of this ear infection thing (sort of). I will not spend 9 months with ear infections on and off before I lose my marbles on the doctor. Big Willie got tubes and it was life changing. Miss M is getting them next month. I wish they would just knock Cate out and give them to her at the same time. I don't understand what it could hurt.

For some reason Big Will was the only one awake/around when I was going to the gym so I took him.  I told him we could do something special after Kids Club.  When I picked him up he requested we go to Peterson's for ice cream.  He still always requests blue. He ate it all and was so good.  It's fun to spend one on one time with him. He's a totally different child than when he's surrounded by his sisters.

The Lion King

During an afternoon play date at Miss M's best friends house the adults thought it was a grand idea to buy Lion King tickets and take the girls! It happened to be during the week in which Mimi was here so we brought her along.  

We drove to pick up Anwen and her mom and then made out way downtown for dinner before the theater.  The girls were so excited. They were all dressed up and ready to party. 

Dinner at the Italian Village.  The girls were so happy.  They even got a 'kiddie cocktail' (shirley temple) as their drink.

In front of the marque.  Miss M was so nervous about the noise. She was holding her ears before we even walked in. I was worried it was doomed from the start but she recovered nicely with a little help from her Mimi.  Mimi had more patience for her sensitivity to noise than I did considering the price of the ticket!

We were even able to take a picture of Mimi under the marque on the way out of the theater.  I think she liked it!

Saturday night Anwen's parents were having a dinner party that we had been invited too. I had completely forgotten about it until Cynthia reminded me. I ended up taking Miss M over to play while Mimi stayed home with the other two littles.  It's an English tradition to pull the crackers open before dinner and inside is a prize.  There was a paper crown and a small toy for everyone. The girls pulled so hard to try and get the cracker to pop but had no luck without adult assistance.  

Fun with Mimi

Chilling at Chipotle. 

Playing games with Mimi.  Cater thought Mimi was pretty darn funny.

I called Mimi to ask her to come visit b/c our schedule felt out of control with Andrew traveling a lot, getting 12 dozen cookies made for the school cookie walk and just all the other random things that come up.

She helped us decorate the tree.

She helped us shop at Costco. Miss M wanted her picture taken with her every where we went.

Making cookies and putting the kid to work.

Mimi getting Cate to drink from a cup

I think Mimi was pretty exhausted when she left.  I am exhausted every day so I understand.  We had fun. It was nice to have the ability to leave during the day when I needed to to get things done or run to the store for a missing ingredient! She'll be back in a month whether she wants to or not!

Thanksgiving in Omaha

We decided to head west for Thanksgiving and visit Nathan and Cathy and Kids in Omaha.  The kids and I broke up the trip by going to Grandma D's on Tuesday and then heading to Omaha on Wednesday.  Andrew flew in to meet us since no one is ever sure what his schedule is going to look like. 

Wednesday was Trenton's 16th birthday.  We all celebrated by going to a Japanese steak house for dinner.  The staff didn't seem phased by 4 adults and seven children! 

The look of awe and excitement when the chef started flipping shrimp.

Miss M and Dallin were the best of friends all weekend. It was the sweetest thing.  They played and ran and screamed for three days straight.

Ashleigh was the biggest helper. She is so good at recognizing when the kids need redirected and finding something to do with them that is engaging.  Cathy had bought craft projects since all the kids love crafts. Ashleigh helped them each make their craft without letting them lose focus...no small feat.

We loaded up on Friday and drove to the Visitor's Center to see gingerbread house displays.  There were so many of them. The kids got look and find sheets so they could look for objects around the displays to mark off.  They had cut out gingerbread people for the kids.

The adults wanted in on the fun too.

We played games Friday night after the Hawkeye football game.  We played cards and then Grandma taught some of us to play spoons.  The little kids just ran around and entertained themselves. I love the kids being able to entertain themselves.

First snow

It snowed.  Not much.  Enough for the munchkins to get in their gear and play outside.  I forgot how much I don't like snow gear especially for three children.  I hope Big Will learns how to dress himself soon. 

The excitement for snow was uncontainable.

Even the littlest one wouldn't be kept inside.  She cried at the door until I finally got her dressed.  She enjoyed eating the snow more than anything.

Big Willie giving Cater a ride on the sled.  He pulled so hard to make her move.  The snow was so heavy that it was hard to pull.

The Girls

Cater.  All dressed up.  At the MSI. 

Cater & Hazel. Our regular Wednesday morning date.

Hazel feeding Cate.  Hazel would scream Cate and Cate would come running to feed her some snacks.