barrett's first haircut

 

Barrett got his first in-salon haircut last Saturday!  I've tried to post this multiple times, but it seems Safari and Blogger aren't playing nice, so I'm behind.  Above is Barrett's "before" picture - flowing locks, which I love, but usually result in waiters asking me what "she" will be drinking.  I don't much care either way about that, but we're heading to Disney World next week and while the length is fine in wintry Pennsylvania, not so much in humid Florida.  So Britton and I took Barrett to the salon for his haircut.

 

 Memaw has trimmed Barrett's hair for us before, so he wasn't completely unaware of what was happening.   But he wasn't so sure of the chair that moved up or the cape or the spray bottle of water aimed at his face.  Luckily, the stylist Michelle was patient and told Barrett everything she was doing, trying to get him excited.  He wasn't, but he did sit there quietly and let her get it done.

 

And just like that, it was over!  She offered to blow dry his hair since it was freezing outside, but Barrett doesn't like loud noises so I passed on that.  And he was in heaven when he got a sticker AND a lollipop!   Now dry, his hair has a medieval knight look, and I've taken to calling him King Arthur.  All in good fun!  He's ready for Disney World!

"Yes, I was in Sword in the Stone.  Why do you ask?"

take it to the net

Usually, Britton has taken a combo dance class in the winter and spring.  But the only classes being offered this time around go up to 5 years old, so we had to find another activity for Britton.  She happened to bring home a flyer for a basketball camp which met for four weeks.  Bonus - no long-term commitment and no games!  The camp is run by the varsity high school players in her district, and gave her a fun activity held indoors during the cold winter month of January.  

As luck would have it, Britton already knew two girls in the camp - a classmate and a fellow Daisy!  They were introduced to dribbling, passing, and shooting.  The baskets weren't lowered, so not too many first and second graders were making baskets!

Britton loved it! I now wish that the camp ran longer, so that Britton could really develop her skills.  But it's great having an activity that's new and wears her out!

Hopefully her enthusiasm continues tomorrow, when she goes back.  And I'm quite enjoying sitting in the stands, getting to watch her play and have fun.  

barrett: 32 months old

My poor second-born, whose monthly birthday was remembered and forgotten not less than three times in the past four days!  But it's Monday and I'm back on track now, and finally catching up.  If I had to pick one thing that has changed the most this past month, it's been language.  Barrett is talking up a storm, streaming together run-on sentences and throwing in some emotion too.  I try not to laugh when he points and furrows his brow and goes, "Mommy!  You go over there!  Over there!!!" He's trying so hard to be as grown up as Britton.  

New this month - we just bought a train toilet seat!  Barrett is officially 2.5 years old, and frankly, if we sit around waiting for him to be "ready" to potty train, I might just be sending this kid to college in diapers.  He's not in daycare, so he doesn't see other kids using the potty - his curiosity hasn't moved him along.  On the flip side, we also don't have an experienced daycare teacher potty training him for us like we did with Britton!  So we took the plunge and bought him the toilet seat, and while he hasn't actually peed on the potty yet (it's only been 2 days!), he has sat on the seat for a cumulative 3 hours, it seems.

Likes:  jelly sandwiches (no PB), cuties oranges, any carbs he can get, his tool bench, anything to do with trains, playing tag with Britton

Dislikes:  getting dressed

shake your tail feathers

We needed out of the house over Christmas break, and not just to run errands.  We considered the natural history museum, but Britton voted for the Aviary, and then Barrett started in that he wanted to see the birds too.  We figured that Sunday around lunchtime would be a good time to go - get us out of the house without having to go into the frigid cold temperatures outside!

The penguins - a family favorite.  Britton loves the tunnels - see her head peaking up below?  That's our  buddy TJ the penguin, cheesing it up for the camera.

Because you have to.

The National Aviary has some amazing birds, including this rhinoceros billed toucan.  It was as big as Barrett!

The burrowing owl.  He's no more than four inches tall here, and if I was certain it wouldn't peck my eyes out, I'd have tried to smuggle it home.  Not like we need anymore animals here or anything, but this owl was too cute.

The sloth is constantly competing with the penguin and elephant for "Carrie's favorite animal," and I'm not exactly sure why a sloth is at an aviary.  Regardless, Barrett was in love with this sloth and didn't want to leave her.

We ended our tour with the condors.  These scavenging birds are no joke, with four-foot-wide wing spans.  The females have red eyes, and yes, that's as creepy-looking as it sounds.  The cages are outdoors, so I guess they don't mind the cold.  

Barrett still wasn't ready to leave (yelling "My birds!  My birds!") so we figured we'd ease him and Britton into the idea of leaving by re-visiting the sea eagles.  And the snowy owls.  Admittedly, it might have been my whining that made us visit the eagles and owls one last time.

Poor sea eagle, stuck inland nowhere near the sea.

77 months old

We're working our way out of the Christmas/New Years fog around here.  Britton doesn't go back to school until Tuesday, so we're still sleeping late, wearing pajamas for too long, and generally being pretty lazy around here!  The frigid cold weather is helping motivate us much either.  Britton and Barrett have had their fair share of screen time, but are being sweet with the quilt cuddling...

Britton loves all things crafty, and found a fun video about making Shopkins out of sponges.  We gave it a try, covering them with fabric paint, which acts like a flexible plastic over the sponge.  It was hard to wait overnight for them to dry, but today we finally got to draw the eyes on and declare them completed.

Since Britton got the American Girl Caroline doll, we've been reading Caroline's chapter books.  In one book, Caroline (in 1812 New York) gives her father, a prisoner of British troops in Upper Canada, an embroidered map to help him when he escapes.  Britton wanted to try embroidering a map, showing the United States, and our route from Pennsylvania to Disney World "in case we get lost."  I taught her some basic chain stitches, and she ran with it!

Likes: playing with Nella (the cat - Calamity Jane was too hard for anyone to say), the Shopkins fridge Jessica got her for Christmas, her new iPod from Memaw and PawPaw and all her Taylor Swift songs on it (and dancing, oh my, the dancing)

Dislikes:  only reading for 30 minutes a night (I'd read for hours if she had her way), sharing with Barrett when Barrett doesn't share with her

we had ourselves a merry little Christmas

This year Christmas flew by in a flash!  Even though I've had two very excited kids waiting out the Christmas countdown, it just snuck up on me.  So much so, that when it came to decorating cookies for Santa last night, I had forgotten to make cookies for Santa!  Luckily, I did some baking for work folks earlier in the week, so I handed Britton two ginger cookies and some royal icing.  She made it work!

Britton read "The Night Before Christmas" this year, and did a great job!  

After our story time, Britton set out cookies and Sprite for Santa.

Once the kids were in bed, with visions of sugarplums dancing in their heads, us adults got busy.  Sitting on the couch watching "A Christmas Story"!  Once we were sufficiently relaxed and stuffed on Christmas Eve dinner leftovers, we - I mean Santa! - moved some gifts into the living room to be discovered in the morning.

Santa hooked them up!  Barrett loves all things truck, and this cement truck was an instant hit!  Memaw and PawPaw got Barrett a tool bench, and we found a new bigger pony to replace his small one.

Britton asked Santa for the Caroline doll and a doll wheelchair and crutches.  Seriously!  She also got Shopkins Shopkins Shopkins - season 4 and undies!

Hi ho Silver!

I found a sweater with Sadie dog on it for Britton!

This is the first year that Barrett got excited about opening gifts.  He spent time between opening gifts playing with everything he received, so by the end of the morning Britton was helping him open!

Family group photo - we do this every year, and it is a necessity for me.  

Give this boy flashing lights and honking horns, but his favorite toy of Christmas was this wooden Mickey Mouse train.

And the Caroline doll was Britton's favorite.  Poor Caroline seems to be recuperating from a nasty broken leg.

The kids spent the day playing with Memaw and PawPaw while I put away our new gifts.  Clothes got washed and folded, beauty products and hairbrushes were hauled upstairs, and I made room for all the new toys.  Britton organized her Shopkins in her new carry case, while Barrett filled the cement mixer with every small item he could find.

The hubs got me a beautiful Pandora bracelet, and I got him some Tottenham Hotspurs gear and a Chemex.  We got Memaw and PawPaw a vacuum, which seems like such a practical gift, which it is, but we like to get functional gifts.  And we always get Memaw a new charm for her charm bracelet to reflect something from that year - this year, it was a tractor to commemorate her and PawPaw buying a farm.  

We had a wonderful Christmas, and it went by way too quickly.  I'll start putting away the decorations and taking down trees tomorrow, if only because I don't want the reminder that Christmas is over.  Luckily, I've got ten more days of vacation and a quick trip to Jessica's in the near future!

Christmas fun at school

Britton has had "themed" Christmas days all last week into this week, including "Pajama Day" for the Polar Express movie, "Crazy Hat Day," and the like.  On Monday they had "Gingerbread House Day," when the parents went into the school to help our first graders make, you guessed it, gingerbread houses.  The kids were so excited to come into the cafeteria and claim their parent!  I must remember these times, when years from now Britton pretends to not see me when I show up at her school.  

The kids frosted milk cartons, then covered them in graham crackers.  Then it was a sugar bonanza, with everyone covering their houses in candy, cereal, candy canes, and marshmallows.

Then today was "Grinch Day," where the kids were encouraged to dress up as "Whos from Whoville."  Britton's teacher referenced the Jim Carrey version of the movie, but we had never seen it, so we watched last weekend.  Ugh - two hours of my life I'll never get back!  But at least it gave us some fun ideas for Britton's get-up. 

 I bought the tree headband, and Britton got to use the hot glue gun (first of many times, I'm sure!) to add to it.  The kids were encouraged to get crazy with their hair and hats!