Project Life: Week 8

Another day, another post of pictures from the past week. Work is extreeeeeeemly busy right now, and I am living to get through next Thursday at approximately 1:00, when I'll be basically 70% done with my workload. I can hardly wait. In the meantime, here's what our last week looked like:

Monday, February 22

Elaina had her turn at the dentist, where she sat like a champ and got a clean bill of health. And because it took Dr. Roa six months or so to come in after the hygienist finished her work, we had plenty of time to catch up on the on-goings of the kindergarten world.

Tuesday, February 23

Ellie sidled up into my lap during the girls' cartoon tonight, and we decided to have some selfie fun. She usually makes such serious smiles, so I had to tickle her to get this one. Elaina had sidled up on Josh's lap, so I snapped a picture of them, too. (Sidenote: totally love our new lamps! Thanks, Tar-jay!)

Wednesday, February 23

Tonight we enjoyed a beautiful sunset (ahh, for the days when we can watch the sun set without a house blocking the view!)

After dinner, I noticed Elaina's hands were covered in marker. It came as no surprise; she comes home nearly every day with a rainbow on her hands. I love it, because she's so creative, so much more than I remember being at her age. And I know I'll be sad when someday she comes home with clean hands.

Thursday, February 24
We had a quiet night at home, and it was great. Ellie spent some time playing a new sight word game on the Kindle....

Yuna begged for attention....

...and Josh spent the evening looking at house plans. He's happily settled into the dreaming phase of home ownership, where we see the flaws in what we have and dream about what could be, maybe, in some far away distant land. He blames my addiction to Fixer Upper. And he probably has a point. Now to get the Gaines family to move to central Illinois....

Friday, February 25
Elaina drew her own ruler today, complete with numbers and hash marks, and then cut it out. See what I mean about creativity? It's something I never would have thought to do at her age.

Saturday, February 26
Rita asked to keep the girls for a sleepover, so after our visit to Pearce in the morning, we took it easy until she came to get them, around 2:00. Josh and I decided to spend our afternoon productively, so we took a glorious nap on the couch. We then went out for dinner (Sushigawa.....so, so good....) and a movie, Zoolander 2. We worked on our Blue Steel faces before the movie started.

Sunday, February 28
Today was a lovely day, so nice that we let the girls choose a park in the afternoon. They chose the Splash Park and had a great time climbing, sliding, and pretending to be kites.

When we came home, Elaina played outside for a bit and then came indoors to join Ellie with some artwork. She insisted her blue marker was nowhere near her face... :)

Project Life: Week 7

Because I love my husband, I am watching his show with him right now. Or, rather, I haven't disappeared to our bedroom to get away from it. I'm giving it 10 minutes before I give up. Tick tock.

Monday, February 15

After yesterday's beautiful snow, the temperatures rose enough to create a lovely, misty fog. It cloaked the bluff line in a blanket of blue and remained that way most of the day. I would have much rather spent the day curled up next to our fireplace with a hot cup of coffee, a good book, and an episode of five of Fixer Upper on in the background, but the best I could do was grab a picture of the sky from the webcam at my desk.

Tuesday, February 16

Yesterday's beautiful fog gave way to a beautiful sunrise this morning, and I was so glad I grabbed my camera before heading out the door.

Wednesday, February 17

Tonight was our library night, where Ellie built a Mouse House (see the ears?) and posed proudly next to it for a picture.

Thursday, February 18
Elaina's been working on tying her shoes this week, since her teacher instituted what she refers to as the "Shoe Tying Club," where the kids have to practice tying shoes instead of going to their desired centers. Motivated to break out of the club, Elaina's been working diligently to learn. She came off the bus today so excited because she had successfully tied her shoes twice (three being the magic "get out of the club" number) and set out to teach Ellie how to do it, too.

Friday, February 19
Today was the start of what turned out to be a lovely, lovely weekend. First, Ellie had her 6-month check up at the dentist, and good news, no cavities!

Show us those pearly whites!

After work, we came home to the great news that Elaina had made it out of the Shoe Tying Club (glory, hallelujah), and it was so nice the girls got to play outside before dinner.

I threw open the windows and breathed in the hint of spring. Winter can't be over fast enough.

Saturday, February 18
Today was really quite perfect.

It started with a trip to Pearce, where Josh and the girls went for a swim while I exercised elsewhere.

After lunch, we relaxed for a bit before heading out for some shopping. Elaina decided to help Ellie tie her shoes before we left.

We went to Costco, Target, and Kroger and drove with our windows down. I couldn't believe the temperature--66 degrees in February. It was amazing.

So amazing, that we went to the park. In February. Even though half the town was there, too, the girls had a wonderful time. 

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We came home, grilled out, and closed the book on a wonderful spring-ish day.

Sunday, February 21
This morning, Elaina had a birthday party for one of her pre-school-turned-kindergarten friends, so Josh and I took Ellie out and about to help her feel special, too. We got them Happy Meals for lunch and after some relaxing, went outside where Josh cleaned up some shrubbery and burned some of it back, in the hopes of preventing another bout of powdery mildew and scaring back some of the rabbit population. Here's hoping!

Project Life: Week 6

Usually I post my weekly recap on Monday nights, but Josh watches a show I absolutely abhor on Tuesday nights, so I've retreated to our bedroom to escape it this week. It may become a weekly thing--at least until this season is over (please, let it be soon!)

Monday, February 8

We've finally reached the stage in parenting where school projects are a part of life. Elaina had to create a Valentine's box for her party on Thursday, so, after I found an old shoebox, we stopped by Dollar General on our way to get Ellie to find something to decorate it with. Elaina chose this wrapping paper, plus a ribbon and some stickers, and we were set. After dinner, she and Ellie "helped" me glue the paper to the box. Martha Stewart likely won't be calling me any time soon for tips, but it made Elaina happy, and that was enough for me.

Tuesday, February 9
Ellie came home from school today with a picture she'd drawn of Gramma and Pampah--a pretty great job for a 4 year old!

Later, Josh put on his show and teased me a bit as I disappeared into our bedroom to read, since I can't even stand to listen to the poorly written dialogue. I texted him this picture a few minutes later, because clearly Chappu thought I had made the right choice.

Wednesday, February 10
Found Elaina tonight as I do so often, curled up on the couch with her stack of books from Kindergarten, practicing reading. She is really picking it up nicely and loves stories. I love that she loves to read. Gramma Copes always says you can go anywhere in the world in a  book; Elaina is on her way to a thousand and one adventures one word at a time.

Thursday, February 11
Elaina plopped down on this rock on our way out of Pearce tonight. She smiled so sweetly for me and even managed to mostly look at the camera!

Friday, February 12
For some unknown reason, Yuna got all sorts of wound up tonight. This pretty much sums up what that looks like:

Saturday, February 13
We took the girls to see Kung Fu Panda 3 this afternoon, and they loved it. It was a sweet, full circle life moment for me and Josh--we saw Kung Fu Panda 1 in an imax theater in Nashville back in 2008--two weeks before we moved here, and not long before we started trying to start a family. Fast forward almost 7 years, and we're watching another iteration of it with our daughters. Life is really neat sometimes.

Sunday, February 14

Today, Winter finally decided to make a reappearance. Elaina desperately wanted to go outside for awhile, so we got her all decked out in her cold weather gear and headed out. The weather was quite lovely for a snow--around 25 degF, maybe, and not too windy. She spent most of her time making snow angels, shoving snow in her mouth, and laughing riotously. It was 15 minutes well spent.

Little Sweetie decided to stay inside and "colwer"

Project Life: Week 5

I would like all of us to take a moment and appreciate that I've completed an entire month of posts thus far. Here's to continued success in 2016!

Monday, February 1

Today I set out to do a Day in the Life post, which, as you can see, was a smashing success. Or, I did a great job taking pictures and a terrible job actually writing about them. Whichever. Anyway, here's a handy dandy highlight photo grid:

Clockwise: Ellie on the way to Gramma's; the long walk into work; a very exciting breakfast of oatmeal, almonds, and pumpkin seeds; a picture from Elaina's birthday I found in my purse (such a sweet surprise); Puppers waiting for her chow;  our delicious dinner; sitting with my girlies at the end of their nights; girlies dancing to Max and Ruby; Josh filing our taxes (oh, the excitement of adulthood); artists at work; watching the bus arrive; my chocolate afternoon treat; center, Josh and I after killing it at the gym (yes, Erika, that would be the sheltie shirt I'm wearing....)

Tuesday, February 2

The girls have been doing a great job of cleaning their room lately, so Josh and I decided to reward them with a trip to Dollar General (yes, they do think it's a reward--so either they're incredibly easy to please, or we're incredibly lucky...probably both). Ellie chose a coloring book, and Elaina chose finger lights. Tonight, they ran upstairs and put on a play for us in the dark. It was a hoot.

Wednesday, February 3

Today was Spirit Day at Elaina's school, so she was supposed to wear green. Since we don't have any school-specific gear yet, we improvised. Josh sent me this picture before she got on the bus. Adorable.

Go Warriors!

Thursday, February 4

Tonight we treated the girls to a Netflix cartoon before bed. For some reason, watching it at the  computer desk instead of on chairs was the best thing ever.

Friday, February 5

Today, my boss was kind enough to provide pizza for lunch as a thank you for all the hard work our team's been doing lately. And since I'm still trying to get in shape for Mexico, I limited myself to one slice. An hour and a half later I preparing to gnaw on my desk  noticed my stomach was growling, so I looked up the calorie count of that single piece of pizza. 148 measly calories. If I'd known there were that few, I would have had a second! But, it was all for good, because I took it as motivation to work extra hard in the gym after work, and today was my PR for steps!

Saturday, February 6

Today we drove down to visit Mom and Dad for the day. Mom and I went shopping for a bit and found some great deals on books and clothes, and we spent the rest of the day just relaxing and spending time together. I even managed to twist Dad's arm into popping some corn for me--ahh, the taste of the Sunday afternoons of my childhood. We had a really, really good time, evidenced by the fact that Elaina cried for five minutes before we left and 10 minutes after we hit the road. Definitely looking forward to going back soon!

She has no fun with her daddy at all...

A master and his craft, using the same pan he used when I was a kid

Little sweetie waiting for her snack

Sunday, February 7

We went to Josh's folks for Super Bowl dinner (enchiladas, rice, guacamole) and treats (fruit pudding and thin mint truffles that I made), and came home after the first quarter to get the girls settled down for the night. Obviously, Yuna was very, very interested in the game's outcome, too.

Project Life: Week 4

Right now Josh is wrapping up our income tax filing, and I'm watching Biggest Loser and doing this. Something tells me I got the better end of the deal...

Monday, January 25

Today, Ellie donned a pair of wings and assumed the title of Tooth Fairy. She even found a couple of coins to put under Elaina's pillow.

Tuesday, January 26
Josh has had an out-of-state trip planned since we came back to work earlier this month, and honestly,  I've been dreading it. Not because I can't handle the girls by myself (which, to be fair, is soooo much easier than when they were younger), and not because it was a huge disruption to our lives (one night, two days), but mostly because I just didn't want him to go. (Yes, I realize that's pathetic, and no, I do not care.)

His flight to Minneapolis was supposed to leave around 8:45, but he got an early text that it had been delayed. Elaina and I enjoyed the extra time with him.

We got Elaina off on the bus together, and then Josh left for the airport while I headed to work. The remainder of my morning mostly consisted of hitting refresh constantly every few minutes until I saw his flight, which had been twice more delayed, had landed.

The rest of the day was fairly uneventful. I picked up the girls, we came home and had chili for supper, and then they spent the remainder of the evening coloring Junie B. Jones pages I'd printed off for them. After they went to bed, I worked for awhile, talked to Josh, and then sent him this picture of Yuna. If you look closely, you can see the whites of her eyes. She flashes this look every night when it's time to go to bed. Poor puppers :)

Wednesday, January 27
Giles Day without Josh. Boo.

On the bright side, the girls woke up happy, and I was able to send Josh this picture of his ladies before getting Elaina off to school and Ellie off to Gramma Rita's.

My boss was awesome enough to allow me to work from home today, since, in addition to dropping Elaina off at the bus, I had to be home for an early dismissal as well. Honestly, I loved it. Yuna was clearly fine with the arrangement as well.

After Elaina got home and I finished up a conference call, I gave her the option of going to the library  or of coming home and having a "movie night" before supper. She opted for the latter, so we picked up Ellie and they happily watched The Lorax while I finished up working for the day.

The rest of the day went well, but it got a whole lot better at 10:13 when Josh walked back through our front door :)

Thursday, January 28
To my surprise, when I looked through my pictures this week, I realized I had missed today. But Josh was home, and that was great. We went to work and then headed to the gym, after deciding to go to Billy's visitation on Friday before his funeral mass, instead of the one at the funeral home tonight.

After a good workout, we came home, had dinner, and the girls got extra time with their daddy. When they went to bed, Josh tortured me watched The Shannara Chronicles while I did everything in my power to ignore the television (other than adding color commentary when it was necessary, which was like every 3 seconds).

Friday, January 29
Today was kind of a weird day. I got to work a little earlier than normal, about 6:35/6:40, only to find out that the entire network was down in our building. No phone, no internet, no access to file folders...nothing. Security announced on the loud speakers around 7:00 that there was no ETA on when it would be fixed, and an hour later, they made the same announcement. At that point, my boss said if we could work from home, go home and work. So that is what I did.

Josh came and picked me up a little after 10:00, and we headed to St. Ed's for Billy's visitation. There isn't much to say about it except that it was an honor to know Billy, it was an honor to share smiles and laughs with him, and it was an honor to hear how he has inspired so many people in this little town. We didn't stay for Mass, but by the time we left, it was nearly full. Rita said by the time the service started, it was standing room only. Quite an honor for Billy. He loved people, and they loved him.

Josh and I came home and had lunch, and he went back to work while I finished my day at home. Yuna was again a-okay with that decision.

After dinner, the girls started talking about the blankets Gramma Rita had made for them when they were babies. They decided the best thing they could do is wrap up in some of Gramma's love while they watched their cartoon at the end of the night.

Saturday, January 30
This morning, we got up and went to the gym, where Josh swam with the girls and I died on the elliptical. All for good, though--the dastardly scale has finally moved in the right direction! Mexico, I'm coming for you!

After lunch, Josh relaxed with a video game, which Ellie was happy to watch, while Elaina wanted me to read a book to her. I complied, and then had the wild idea to read her some Shel Silverstein poems. (I had tried it a couple of years ago, but she was a bit too young to appreciate it.) She was enthralled, and we read nearly the entire book.

Later, Rita took the girls for a sleepover, and Josh and I had a date night. We went to the Fox Pub where I got my weekend cheat, a cheeseburger with pickles, tomatoes, lettuce, and grilled onions. Oh, and the glorious french fries. Josh had a burger with a fried egg on top and got to try a new Urban Chestnut brew which, of course, did not disappoint.

We didn't have much else on the agenda, so we came home and watched fights and Ghost Adventures before sacking out on the couch. By some estimates, it was a lame date night. By ours, it was just about perfect.

Sunday, January 31
Today was unseasonably warm (this winter has been sadly void of snow. Hello, midwest winter. We bought a sled and have used it one time. Let's work on this, shall we??). So when the girls asked if they could play outside, I happily agreed. Ahh, what a wonderfully foolish thought.

Meanwhile, the warm weather meant all the wildlife in our neighborhood was centered in our yard with the sole purpose of driving Yuna insane. It worked.

Later, we took advantage of the nice weather and took a walk as a family. Josh barbecued chicken for dinner, while I made Alton Brown's roasted broccoli. Delish.