What If...

Katie and her friend Hannah are studying history and literature together this year. Here is a poem Katie wrote this week...

What If...

You were owned by your pup
And you slept standing up
Girls were called males
And boys wore pigtails
Ice became hot
And siblings no longer fought
Music was silent
And wars weren't violent
We all heard with our noses
And wrote with our toses
If all the fishes lived in a tree
And everyone acted like me
What an upside down world this would be!

and one of Hannah's describing a day she helps out at a preschool...

Work

door, lunch away, room assignment
lunch away, room assignment, kids
room assignment, kids, play
kids, play, clean-up
play, clean-up, snack
clean-up, snack, worksheet
snack, worksheet, carpet time
worksheet, carpet time, gym
carpet time, gym, lunch
gym, lunch, nap
lunch, nap, play
nap, play, home

It's almost March...

and that ONE sledworthy snowfall we get every year is looking less and less likely to materialize. HOWEVER...snowbunnies that we are we went against the grain, took our spring break early, and headed for the SLOPES! The girls have never been skiing and as for Wade and I, well, it's been 20 years. Unfortunately, the days we chose to go skiiing in MN (snowbunny hills only) brought rainfall to break records from the 1800s. Yes, RAINFALL. Good grief, it was only a quarter of an inch but rain in February is not normal in MN. Temps were in the high 30s and alas, the slopes were closed. Good thing we had such a great time SLEDDING in Fargo before the heatwave came!

My girlies, their "big" cousins and Celleste (in the front) who FINALLY made it to North Dakota!

Ellie, going down....

Ellie

Celleste, Katie, Tia

Go Bryton!

Clinton and Daniel.

Zech

Madison

Samuel. My absolute favorite part of sledding is seeing all the adorable little kids bundled up so they can barely move yet they are having a blast.

Emma....oops...this is what happens when you try to slide down DIRT! Which reminds me...my girls and Celleste learned a new word on our trip.

Snirt (n.) Snow that is dirty, often seen by the side of roads and parking lots that have been plowed.

The fact that the girls did not know this word made me realize just how long we have been removed from a snowy climate!

Madison, Ellie, Celleste, and Katie making a tunnel in my mom and dad's back yard.

Blurry shot, I know, but I love the expressions on their faces!

Ellie and Kayla

Happy Birthday Ellie!

We have been celebrating Ellie's 11th birthday this month! We went to North Dakota to play in the snow on the big day so she got to party with both sides of the family over her birthday weekend. We got home last Thursday and Friday she had a long awaited sleepover. I'm not kidding...she has patiently waited two years for this party! Nine of her friends spent the night....plus my three and Katie's friend Hannah who came to help out made 13 girls in the house! Her long time buddy, Kayla, who recently moved away was even able to spend the weekend with us making it extra special.

To give you a little glimpse of some of the things that make Ellie so special...she loves to sing and read and play soccer. She always has a bit of mischief in her eyes...usually with the intention of pestering one of her sisters (in a loving way of course)...for instance...she loves hugs and she is well aware that at least one of her sisters does NOT. Ellie also loves politics and history. A sign on her door will tell you that you are entering the room of a future "President of the United States" and that "she approves this message!" She is sensitive to the needs of others wonderful with smaller kids. Even though she would rather be taking voice lessons (someday!) she makes beautiful, expressive music with her violin. And if you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up she will tell you she plans to be President, a hairdresser, an archaeologist, and a professional soccer player. Not necessarily at the same time:)

Happy Valentine's Day

Valentine’s Day is a seriously big deal at our house. Wade goes all out to spoil all of us. In fact, I am sure we are ruining our girls. In the event that we ever let them date or get married the poor young men will have a long history of Valentine’s Day memories to live up to! One year he got us all wrist corsages and took us to Red Lobster followed by the carousel at the mall. Last year he came straight from the airport and had me meet him with the girls at another favorite restaurant- the girls didn’t know he was coming until he showed up with a single rose for each of them and a bouquet for me.

This year he decided he wanted to grill steak for the big day and if you have ever had his steak you know that was a huge treat. It was funny because as we were on our way home from Katie's basketball game Ellie and Madison asked me what was for dinner. They were thrilled when I answered with "hot dogs." We don't buy alot of hot dogs. I get a similar response when we have pot pies or TV dinners. Guess that doesn't say much for my cooking, right? Anyway, when they came downstairs to see the steak, baked potatoes, asparagus, and sparkling grape juice they were happier yet.

Unfortunately, they weren't quite as pleased with the fancy chocolates I got them - on clearance, in fact all three were free with coupons- we're trying to be more frugal these days. Turns out, although beautiful, these chocolates made better eye candy than anything. Next year I'll stick with Reese's peanut butter cups :)