q & u wedding.

The big end of the year event for Nate's Montessori class was to do a play called a Q and U Wedding. I'd never heard of this before, but after poking around online, it's a pretty common celebration for preschool and kindergarten classes. All of the kids are assigned a letter, attend the wedding of Q and U, and have their own little lines to deliver.

I'll admit that making Nate's costume snuck up on us and before we knew it, it was the night before the costume was due and we didn't have anything. Chris saved the day and put this little gem together. This man sewed, stenciled, and ironed on patches. Lifesaver!

I cry at weddings and this was no exception. I mean, the bride's dad walked her down the aisle! Each kid's costume was unique and they were all proud of themselves for putting together this big thing for their families. So precious! Nate and I practiced, practiced, practiced his lines and he did his part flawlessly. I was so proud!

My gift to you is the letter D and its sound. 
D is for dinosaur
D is for dog
D is for a doll on a log 

Congratulations, Q & U! :)

mother's day.

I'm a sucker for preschool art - especially when it's Mother's Day themed! N couldn't stand the suspense of waiting until the actual day, but instead had me open up his gifts in his classroom when I picked him up at the end of the week.

So proud!

So, here are the goods - an adorable little book that he put together, carnations that he dyed light green, a little photo strip of him spelling out 'mom' on a chalkboard, and a cute little cutout with his little face on there. Precious!

Nate's goofy personality definitely came through on a Q&A all about mom - hysterical!

Oh, this little love :)

teacher appreciation week.

Teachers work their butts off so when Teacher Appreciation Week comes up each year, I always participate and try to do some sweet things for N's teachers to show them how much we love them. Our daycare center participates and usually gives some 'guidance' for parents on how to show teachers some well-deserved appreciation. This year it was:

Monday: a card or note
Tuesday: breakfast
Wednesday: something sweet
Thursday: lunch
Friday: choose your own gift

Well, we participated in four of the five days. I can never think of something to bring for lunch that won't require them to cook, reheat, and put in effort to be ready. Maybe next year. I'll also throw out that none of these are my original ideas. I scrounged around on Pinterest and Google to find some cute, doable things. And I'm all about some cute puns!

Cards & Breakfast: Dunkin Donuts munchkins and handmade cards

Something Sweet: Hershey bars with a little love note

Choose Your Own Gift: Starbucks gift cards on an adorable and free(!) printable

Now, time to start brainstorming for next year!

easter.

I had lofty plans for Easter this year. We were going to dye eggs with the dye kits that I bought on 70% clearance last year. We were going to have an epic Easter egg hunt in which I hid eggs in really hard to find places to really draw out the thrill of the hunt. Nate was going to have an Easter basket that was all about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

And then the migraine hit. They've been bad this spring, worse than they've been in years. Easter ended up being a basket at 8:00 p.m. and seeing the Easter bunny with my parents the night before. Sorry, kid. We'll have that egg wonderland next year.

That being said, I don't think that N knew the difference. He was so excited to see the Easter bunny. So much so that he decided to take along a stuffed bunny, which I didn't even know we had, who N named Jerry.

The basket ended up looking a bit sparse, but it had the beloved TMNT toys and the coveted chocolate bunny, so all was right in the world. It's a nice reminder to me that I don't need to go overboard because he will be excited for just about anything special :)

Happy Easter!

montessori art show.

Nate has been attending the Montessori preschool program at our daycare this year and I've been impressed with both the curriculum and his response to the program. Let's be honest: the first month or so was a bit of a struggle. N didn't understand the ebb and flow of the day and needed some extra hands on direction. He also wasn't the least bit interested in any of the 'work' that was available for him to do. Fast forward to (almost) the end of the year and he's doing really well. He is learning, he is excited to go to school every day, and his behavior has been pretty good!

One of the bigger events that the class does is an art show based on different artists and techniques that have been introduced to the kiddos. Each kid had their own display and N was pretty excited to show it off ... and eat the refreshments served afterward!

Now what to do with all of this stuff?! We currently have his art on display on a table in our house, but how are parents supposed to keep track of all of this? I'm usually the first person to purge, but I can't seem to pare down on anything yet. For now, we'll live with the ever growing stacks of drawings and paintings...and be thankful that we're starting to be able to decipher what he's made because it's more recognizable and that his 'masterpieces' even have some letters peppered in for fun!

sidewalk chalkin'.

Spring means kids playing outside until dinnertime, shedding off our jackets, and bringing out some of our favorite activities that are put away during the winter. N and I have been taking advantage of these longer and warmer days to get some fresh air, vitamin D, and brush up on our sidewalk chalking skills.

We work on writing the letter of the week.

And while I like to draw pretty things like rainbows, N is far more interested in anything that is creepy-crawly, like snakes.

Our common interests include boats, the ocean, and decorating Daddy's parking spot.

But lately, the new thrill is to draw NYC and the lair of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Love how his creative side is coming out! He has the toy version of these things in his room, but usually prefers to draw his own now!

daily doses of sweetness.

I've been using my happiness jar and I'm not the only one, either. That in itself is something to be happy about! For every weird or annoying thing happening that pops up and distracts my attention, like accidentally taking 329 pictures with my phone while it was in my pocket, I've found little things that are just so sweet to re-focus on what matters. Sweetness is a perfect way to add balance and perspective into what can become a hectic day.

Nate has also really gotten into drawing pictures for us this week. One day when he wasn't particularly looking forward to going to school, I reminded him that he could draw me a picture while he was there. When I went to pick him up, not only was he incredibly focused on his picture but he had eleven others to bring home with him. I thought that maybe he was drawing a diagram of how to set the table, but apparently this is a family portrait.

Yesterday we got a lot of snow -- which makes N think that it's Christmas. After shoveling twice (!), I was super sore and had a nasty headache brewing. When I went to take a nap, Nate came in and covered me up with a blanket, gave me his teddy bear, and gave me a kiss on the forehead before telling me to get some good sleep. So adorable and my nap was glorious!

Another day I'll admit, I wasn't my best self. I had a rough day while Nate was at school and then tried to cram in too much in too little time. Rush, rush, rush ... and pick up from school got me back into perspective. Nate discovered marbles. Something so simple, not electronic (because, well he's obsessed), used some critical thinking, and was fun. He talked about this little marble maze for hours after we got home! It reminded me of neighbors that we had when I was a kid who had so many marbles and gave me some when I moved away.

And then there's this cape: this gift that no one will ever be ever to top and constant staple in his wardrobe. Nate's aunt and uncle gave him this cape for a birthday or Christmas, I can't remember, and I'm pretty sure he's worn it every day since. He often pairs it with some snow boots and gloves to pretend to be a "bad guy" to stomp around the house. This is how he stomps around the house every single night...and the lighting in this picture is absolutely perfect.

I'm hoping for a fun weekend with my boys! We've got a birthday party party to go to, a kids workshop, and I'm determined that we're going to build a snowman before all of this snow melts away!

nathan-isms, vol. 8.

Saving some more of N's gems, since it's been a while.

At the dentist's office...
Hygienist: What flavor do you want me to use to clean your teeth?
N: Ninja.

Out of the blue...
N: How will we take over the city and destroy Shredder's ultimate weapon?

Just your normal question of how he came to be...
N: So, I think you and Daddy went on a date and then I was in your tummy for a week, and then I was born.
Me: ....
N: But how did I get in your tummy?
Me: Magic
N: Who did the magic? You or Daddy?
Me: Umm....both
N: But who won?

Because this kid is a genius...
N: Can you bring my guys when you pick me up today? I put them in place where you'll find them.

After reading a Doc McStuffins book before bed...
N: Mom, why are all of Doc's toys broken? I mean, really, what's going on here?!

After dinner one night...
N: Thank you for my dinner!
Chris: Mommy is pretty awesome, right?
N: Yeah, she should be the boss.

The joys of raising a boy...
Me: Do you need to go to the bathroom?
N: No.
Me: Then why is your hand in your pants?
N: Sometimes my privacy just needs to stretch.

snow.

Apparently late February is when we get the bulk of our snow. After a few dustings in December and January, I felt compelled to get a snowsuit and boots for N (last year's were way too small - this kid has grown three inches taller in six months!). And then we waited .... and waited. I was worried we wouldn't get to break any of his new things in and then we finally got two decent snow days within a week!

It's hard enough to get this child to wear clothes on a normal day, much less the layers we needed for playing in the snow. After some coaxing and really selling the waterproof aspect of these clothes, we finally got him dressed. Not too shabby! Everything coordinates, except the gloves.

And once we were outside, there was a barrage of snowball fights (which he liked to throw directly at our bottoms) and general shenanigans.

Oh and sledding, lots of sledding. This was a powdery snow, so not the best for sledding, but the boys made it work.

I think somebody is a big fan of snow days now! 

valentine's.

We've taken a very low key approach to Valentine's Day over the last few days and I have to say that it's been nothing short of refreshing! Am I the only girl in the world who doesn't like flowers? Don't get me wrong, they are beautiful and do make me feel special (and when I've gotten them in the best hubby has done very well), but the pragmatist in me looks at the dollars and cents v. the fact that the flowers will be dead and in the trash soon.

So our V-Day weekend went a little something like this:

Friday afternoon, N's preschool class had their Valentine's Day party. This marks the first year where I didn't buy him a special V-day shirt to wear, but we tried to make do. The back of this shirt says "ladies dig me." There were cookies and cupcakes and vegetables to eat ... which one did my child not touch? :)

Once we got home, I let him open up his Valentine's from his friends. I'm so glad I didn't add sugar to the mix and hope that the other parents appreciated my candy-free Valentine's for the kids.

Saturday started off with a fun little Build & Grow clinic at Lowe's where my boys made another thing for N's ever-growing collection. This week's project was a Valentine's-inspired picture holder.

Then we grabbed some Panera bagels, some coffee at Starbucks, I took a nap, and then went to Target all by myself. If that isn't love, I don't know what is.

This morning we headed to a birthday party where both of my boys got to play :)

Chris spent this afternoon and evening going on an organizing binge to straighten up the garage and all of the miscellaneous things that find their ways into junk bins and drawers. Love it!