....and she's 5 years old now

My dear sweet K had her 5th birthday last week and what a fun birthday it was.  We had a "Frozen" themed birthday party, birthday dinners with the grandparents, donuts for breakfast, special treats each day of the week leading up to her birthday, and cupcakes to share with her friends at school.

It was a busy week.  In fact, the past month has been overly busy with all the regular scheduled activities and then tossing in two birthdays with parties.  I'm glad that Little Miss M's birthday is not until June--it gives me a bit of time to de-stress from these last two.

I've also started to bear witness to the passage of time with my middle child.  Several weeks before her birthday she started telling me, "I'm almost 5 years old now."  This would usually come up when it was something she didn't want to do.  For example: a trip to Costco means that she and Little Miss M ride in the cart--just easier for me to keep them corralled.  She told me, "Mom, I'm almost 5 years old now.  I'm too big to ride in the cart."  Another example:  we were having breakfast and using the same cups with lids that we've used for a very long time and she announced, "Mom, I'm almost 5 years old now.  I'm too big to use these cups with lids.  I want a cup like G has."

Why can't they stay little, just a little while longer??????

The birthday girl just starting her day.

Donuts for breakfast on our birthday.

Getting ready for the party.

Princess Anna paints fingernails.

Old and young were captivated by the princesses.

Princess Anna and Queen Elsa.

Happy Birthday G!

G turned 10 years old last week.  How did that happen?  As per the routine established by me, we celebrated the birthday all week.  (What was I thinking when I started that?  It was obviously before I realized that there is only a three week difference between her and K's birthday :-)

I setup the birthday bucket, took cupcakes to school, celebrated the birthday with donuts for breakfast and Taco Bell for lunch, had a birthday dinner at Grammy's house, a birthday dinner with Mimi and Papa, and finished off the week with a party with all of her friends. 

It was fun, crazy, chaotic and bittersweet at the same time.  Somewhere, way back when, we decided that 10 would be the cut-off for the big parties with all the school friends, etc.   A relief that it's over but some sadness that we've hit that milestone marker.  I put together a photobook for her as a momento of the week--and it didn't hurt that I had a coupon code for a free book :-)

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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!