It comes in three's......

They say things happen in "three's".  If there is any truth to that, then yesterday I got all three of mine. 

First, the hot water heater was leaking.  It's almost fourteen years old and has been poked, prodded and worked on multiple times over it's lifetime, but I believe the end has finally come.  R thinks it's leaking because it has a small hole in it.  If that's the case, we either replace it now with minimal water clean-up or we wait until the whole bottom goes out and we replace it with a lot of water clean-up.  Hmmmm, what to do, what to do?

Second, the girls had dentist appointments yesterday.  That all went well until the dentist asked, "have we talked about orthodontics?"  We  had talked about the possibility of needing to "talk about orthodontics" at past visits, but we hadn't actually had "the talk".  So yesterday became the day for "the talk".  I suspect that before spring arrives my G will have her braces.

Third, and hopefully last, I've been having back issues for a long time.  Actually it's been several years.  Lower back pain will come and go and I can usually attribute it to some type of overwork or overuse.  This time the dull, stabbing ache in my lower back has taken up residency there and it brought with it a dull, stabbing ache that comes around my midsection and goes down into my right hip.  Sounds interesting, huh?  The back is a degenerative disc in the lower vertebrae that can be attributed to age and all those years spent dancing, and the midsection pain is most likely the illiopsoas muscle which is inflamed from trying to compensate for the back issue.  Getting old is not for sissies! 

So with all that doom and gloom, I've decided to take the high-road of positivity:

We're going to install a bigger hot water heater-that means longer showers and more hot water for my big soaking tub :-). 

G is eligible to wear the Invisalign braces which will mean a 9-12 month treatment period vs. 2 years in traditional metal braces.  They are a little cheaper than traditional braces (very surprising to me) and I'll make less visits (it's a 40 minute drive) to the dentist.

And finally, hoping that a short stint of physical therapy will help alleviate the back and muscle pain and help me kickstart a little healthy weight loss so that I can continue doing fun things with my cuties.

Love this pic of the of my two littlest hammin' it up!

They keep me laughing.........

My girls keep me laughing..........

K has informed me that David (a schoolmate in her preschool class) is her Cinderella King.  I think that translates to her Prince Charming but I'm scared to verbalize that in front of her and give her any more ideas.  She also informed me that, as she was waltzing around the kitchen, she was dancing with Everett (another schoolmate in her preschool class).  I am in so much trouble with this girl!

Little Miss M and I were playing with the playfood and I told her how much I liked cinnamon rolls to which she then took it and thru it on the floor.  I asked why she thru my cinnamon roll on the floor and her response, "I was feeding the birds."

And to think that all this time I thought she was just tossing toys on the ground........

Firsts and Lasts

I took the girls to see "Frozen" this past week.  I know, I know, I know. I am probably one of the few remaining people that I haven't seen this movie.  I think it arrived in theaters at Thanksgiving and so I was pleasantly surprised that it was still playing.

This was Little Miss M's first movie in the theater experience.

She looked so little sitting in that big seat and when the movie screen first lit up, she almost looked a little scared from the dolby surround sound.

A little sadness for me......her first movie with all the little reactions that come from trying something new and a last also because by the end of the movie she was completely comfortable in her surroundings, ready to go again.

Also in the list of firsts and lasts, my big girl danced in her first Nutcracker performance.  She was so excited (I think mostly about wearing makeup!) and did such a great job.  She was a "party guest"--there wasn't a lot of actual dance steps, it was more skipping and changing formations, but she shone like a star. 

G has a great stage presence, which I hadn't really noticed before.  I probably should have since she loves to sing, dance, and shows a flair for the dramatic in our daily lives! 

Getting ready for the show!

K performed the part of "proud Lil' Sis" perfectly!

There was a little grey tooth

January has already held some excitement here for us.

Little Miss M had her first "unscheduled" visit to the dentist.  The Sunday before Christmas she took a fall at my Mom's house (walking across the kitchen floor in her socks).  There was a little blood from where her teeth cut her lip but I gave here an ice pack and within 24 hours, the swelling was completely gone.  There was no sign that anything had happened, until last week.

G called my attention to her discolored front tooth.  I actually brushed it off thinking that she had just finished some cherry and berry fruit snacks and it was residual sugar.  A pretty thorough brushing at bedtime still didn't remove it and so off to the dentist we went the next morning.

She is now the proud owner of a "dead" babytooth.  Obviously, the fall was a little more significant than we thought.  If we're lucky, the tooth will stay in place and just remain "grey".  If it turns black or looks like infection is setting in, it will have to be removed.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it just stays in place.  As vain as this may sound, I don't want all of here pictures between now and kindergarten to have a missing front tooth.

But then again, this is an opportunity for my fav photographer to practice her Photoshop skills! (Not easy to see, but it is the top front tooth on the left.)

First Full Week Back

Just completed our first full week back in the pre-holiday routine (we really need to stay on a routine :-) and it looks like we may have some snow in the next 24 hours.  I know the girls would really like some snow but as the mom, I really need them to go back to school!

We had a crazy, wonderful holiday season in 2013.  The girls had school activities, we squeezed in some outside holiday activities, and we even managed a little down-time.  I call that a successful season!

K's Christmas program at preschool.  Her "Cinderella King" is standing behind her!

Annual trip to Christmastown at Busch Gardens.

Little Miss M was big enough to ride this year.

G and Grammy.

The girls at Mimi and Papa's house getting ready to open presents.

G's Christmas program at school.  She was chosen to be the student conductor this year!

The girls at Grammy and D-daddy's getting ready to open presents.

The Jones 5.

Getting ready for bed on Christmas Eve. 

Santa got creative this year--thanks Pinterest!

As you can see from the pics, the theme was "opening presents".  We are so blessed to have all of our family close-by and willing, able, and anxious to shower our kids with gifts! 

It was a year of many changes......

It's hard to believe that we're about to wind down another year!  Where has the time gone?  Each year at this time, I create calendars for the grandmothers and as I was going back thru each month of the year, I was overwhelmed at how much my girls have changed.  This has happened right before my very eyes!  How can it be?

The most notable change, has of course, been with Little Miss M.  One year ago she was still very much the baby.  She is now a full blown toddler with a vocabulary that would make a 2nd grader jealous!  How many two year-olds look at their own picture and say, "how adorable is this"?  She cracks me up!  The other day she was having a minor melt down over I'm not sure what and I asked her "why" she was whining.  Her response, "I don't know."  I love the fact that she can verbalize that.

As I perused those pictures, I realized that my sweet K had made the jump from toddler to little girl.  Somewhere this past year, she lost that baby face, the one defined by the remaining baby fat, and now is officially a little girl.  She is a force to be reckoned with!  I love her mischievous grin!  She loves princesses and all things pink and sparkly.  And did I mention she is a social butterfly?  She can't wait to get to school and see her friends and teachers.  The only child I know that cried when we had a snow day last week and she couldn't go to school.

Last, but not least, my big girl.  I can only say, "Wow!" G has really come into her own this past year with definite opinions on everything-how she likes to wear her hair, what clothes she likes, what she wants to do, and the list goes on.  I'm so proud of the kid she has become.  She is an awesome big sister to the littles.  I'm sure they would say she is overbearing, but I see my own actions mirrored in her.  Sometimes good, sometimes scary :-)  This past year I've really seen her take-off academically.  She was always a good student but this past year she has started expressing that desire to study and to excel.  (and secretly I do the Snoopy happy dance over this!)

So for all who haven't noticed Santa yet, it's R!  Doesn't he make a great Santa!  I love that my favorite photographer comes up with these great ideas.  I wish I had of thought of doing a family shot that included myself but I'll have to wait for another session for that.

Alone time with my K-bug

I love the "alone time" that I get to have with my K-bug!  It's seems few and far between that I get to have individual time with each of the girls and so I really cherish our car rides to preschool in the morning.

It's those early morning drives is when I can really get the feel for the little person she is becoming--not the middle child, not the younger sister to G, and not the (sometimes) bossy big sis to M--just her own little individual self.

Her seat is situated in the back row of the silver bullet and so when the radio is on, it is really difficult to hear her.

A Saturday afternoon playing with a sheet of "bandaids".

Overheard on a recent trip to school:

K:  In a loud voice, "Mom, look at my hand!"
Me: Turning down the radio and trying to look in the rearview mirror. "What's wrong with your hand?"
K: Making a turning motion with her hand. "Can't you see this?  This is sign language for turn the radio up."
Me: Trying not to laugh out loud. "K, it's best to use sign language when someone is actually looking at you."

Love my kid and wondering at the same time where she comes up with this stuff :-)

K and M in their usual state of "jolliness" on G's school fieldtrip.

All three goofin' it up with hats made by our Aunt J.