The Big Finish!

What can I say? My girls are so fun to watch. Make sure you wait for the big finish!

Allyson has a built-in radar which leads her to my cell phone at any given time. My last phone lasted just minutes in her posession. The screen never displayed another phone number. I try to be a little more protective these days. I thought it was safe inside my purse on top of our pub-height kitchen table. And then, one day I realized the house was too quiet...

Spaghetti Dinner

The pictures say it all this time.

The Library

We were getting ready for church one day and Nicole decided to pass the time in the "library". She picked up one of my magazines and made herself at home.

Side note: I recognize this bathroom is still in desperate need of re-decorating. Please don't think I picked out the pink wall color or the wallpaper.

Snow White

I don't remember if it was Nicole's 3rd or 4th birthday when she received a 300.. THREE-HUNDRED ... piece puzzle from a friend (not my friend, that's for sure). The puzzle was of a favorite princess... Snow White ... so, of course, she wanted to put it together. I agonized over that blasted puzzle. It took FOR-EV-ER. And, I swore, the box would never be opened again until she was a pre-teen. But, just in case, when taking it apart, I broke the puzzle into six sections, carefully putting each section into plastic bags and labeling them.

The puzzle remained safely forgotten in the closet until last Thanksgiving. That's when my Dad visited. And Nicole saw the puzzle. Of course, "Papa Sedenko" wanted to have this bonding experience with Nicole. I warned him. I told him the evil stepmother had placed some kind of "impossible" curse on this puzzle but he wouldn't believe me. Honestly, I think ... even with the help of the "sections" ... it took him longer to put the thing together than I did the first time. (Nicole's participation was rather minimal these first two times.) Papa and Mom now share a similar distaste for Snow White and each of the seven dwarves.

Then came the day, not too long ago, when Nicole asked for the puzzle again. I tried everything I knew to dissuade her. Personally, I don't enjoy puzzles. And I especially don't enjoy this one. But I gave in. And, somewhere, somehow, Prince Charming bestowed a kiss and broke this "impossible' spell. Well, that's what I like to believe. Because it's just too humbling to admit that my four-year-old put this thing together in just a few days with only minimal help from a babysitter and myself. Here are the magical final moments.

Several weeks ago our good friends, the McNeals, visited. We first met this family in Branson at Silver Dollar City. Our tables were next to one another at the park's Mine Restaurant. Nicole, just two-and-a-half at the time, and their oldest son, AJ, were immediately drawn to one another and literally fell apart when we tried to say goodbye. So, we nixed the goodbyes, let the kids enjoy the rides together the rest of the night, and made the best of friends with AJ's parents. Little Hunter was just a baby at the time, but as you can see by these videos, he's grown into "The Baby Queen"! (He'll hate me for posting this when he's older.)

Allyson's All Wet

Dad was on bath duty a few nights ago. (I was on kitchen duty.) He was making good progress with one girl down and one to go when he must have turned his back for a minute. This is what he found when he turned back around.

Slippery Nicole

Every New Year's Eve since moving to Missouri we've enjoyed Springfield's "First Night" ... a collection of family events and activities culminating with a concert and fireworks show at midnight. We usually begin the evening at the YMCA where there are bounce houses, face painting, clowns who make balloon animals, and various glittery crafts for the kids to create. There is a trolley which takes First-Night attendees to the various stops. Another favorite for us has been the Landers Theater kids troupe with their fantastic singing and dancing. This year, however, was the first time we tried ice skating. (Nicole was too young in the past but she begged to go this year.) Here's a little glimpse of how that went!

First, I need to mention just a couple of things. First, by the time we got to the skate counter, there were no women's skates left in my size. So mom got men's hockey skates. That means no toe-pick. Which means, for me, no way to stop. Try that with a four-year-old hanging on you for dear life.

Second, you will hear Britt's courageous voice ... laughing ... coming safely from behind the plexiglass. "Daddy doesn't skate." Well, neither does Zoe's mom. Zoe is a friend Nicole made at the YMCA that night. She wanted to ice-skate with "us". Problem is the only adult in "us" was me. So, toe-pickless, haven't-been-on-skates-in-years-myself, little me was trying to hold onto both of these girls just enough so no one started the new year with a concussion. (Zoe is in the polka-dotted sweatshirt... she's standing on the side in this video.)

This is us finally coming off the ice. Here's Nicole's final take on the night (and Mom's, too, for that matter.)