Hi everyone. Sorry no new pictures this week. We've had so much going on, I haven't really taken any pictures. It's been a crazy week, so I'll just give you the quick rundown on activities.
They are still doing (and loving) swimming and gymnastics. They are following directions nicely in both and those teachers get them to do things we never could. They love putting their eyes in the water in swimming lessons. They are motivated to go to gymnastics like no other! Then they talk about the whole rest of the day. They really love it. They are hot, sweaty and tired afterward, but I think it's worth it.
Xander got his 1:1 time on Thursday this week, with grandma Pam. I heard they played outside, then made cookies. Will and Grace stayed with me, we went to the library and saw a dancing demonstration from a local dance studio. Then, we met up at Gateway for lunch. Friday, they spent the day with grandma Pam again, as I got to go scrapbooking with some friends. Saturday, more scrapbooking for me. And the kids stayed with daddy all day, then went to the Niebuhrs for a huge Fiedler family gathering. I hear the kids liked playing with older cousins they don't see very often.
Sunday was another busy day, after church and errands, we met the Niebuhrs for Father's Day lunch at Van Dorn Villa with Oma and Opa. Then, it was a quick nap and off to church for bible school. So, this was the kids' first time doing anything like this, and I think they liked it and did a good job. We only got to watch them walk to their classroom, then I didn't see them again until it was over, 2 hours later. They must have enjoyed it, though, because they talked about it all the way home. Their favorite parts were snack (Will's) and making crafts (Xander and Grace's).
When we finally do have some down time, the boys still play with trains every chance they get. They disappear into the basement for hours playing trains. Their other newest favorite activity is computer games. Will and Grace like playing, but Xander loves it and would play for 3 solid hours if I let hime. He is going to have a love affair with video games, just like his dad. The game they're playing lately is a Reader Rabbit game I checked out at the library. It doesn't involve any mouse clicking, only moving the mouse around, which is perfect for them. The academic concepts are very easy, but they still like it. It's easy enough that they can change from game to game easily. The longest stretch I let Xander play is 30 minutes, which is a long time for a 3 year old to do something. Crazy kid!
The activities don't stop after bible school this week. We're having their birthday party on Sunday afternoon. They are getting big bikes from Brian and I, so that will be a huge event with many pictures, I'm sure. They are also taking a little road trip the Niebuhrs next week, more on that later. Hope everyone is staying cool. I'll update more after the kids get back from their adventure with grandma and grandpa on Tuesday.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Strawberries in the rain and a picnic and UP!
Here are a few pictures of what we did over the weekend. Friday, we went with Grandma Pam to Roca Berry Farm to pick strawberries, and got totally soaked in the rain. The kids didn't seem to mind, though. Saturday was a gorgeous day and we went to the multiples club annual picnic. It was on an acreage east of town and it was a lot of fun. The Wienerschlinger (from the Husker football games) was there. He let the kids shoot their own hotdogs then chase them down. All the kids who knew what it was all about loved it. Ours had no idea what was going on. They were among the last to chase a hotdog, because they weren't quite sure what the deal was. Otherwise, they played games (the kids even participated in a few relay games), had good food and did a pinata. It was a nice afternoon. We also took the kids to see "UP" at the theater with grandma and grandpa Niebuhr. They sat fantastically for the 12:15 matinee, through 25 minutes of previews/ads and a little animated short, that was cute but unnecessary. No potty breaks and they sat in booster seats so there wasn't a chair-seat-staying-down problem like we had last time we took them to a movie. It was a cute movie, I highly recommend it!
We have been very busy around here, with multiples things going on each day. Fortunately, we've had pretty regular nap and bedtimes, which keeps us sane. The kids started swimming lessons on Tuesday/Thursdays and love it! We aren't with them during swim lessons, just the teacher. There are 4 kids total in the class, and they've done things for her that they won't do for us, like put their heads underwater. The teacher wouldn't even let us sit in the pool area to watch, so we sat outside and looked through a window on Tuesday. On Thursday, Brian didn't stay and I took a tap dancing class with some friends while the kids swam. The kids also started gymnastics on Wednesday, a present from grandma and grandpa Hoefs for their birthdays. They had a fantastic time there and have been talking about it ever since. I don't have any pictures, because parents aren't allowed in the gym. I did stick my head in for just a minute and watched them. They were doing a great job and following all directions. Not one minute of hesitation about doing anything. There is a parent visitation day in July, so I can get some pics/video then.
I am really starting to like this arrangement where the kids are in activities, and I don't have to be there! It's a nice break. It's a little sad that they don't need me anymore. In fact, lately, they don't really want to play with me unless it's a playing a game or reading. The boys and I went to the indoor playground on Thursday (Grace was with grandma Ellen for a little 1:1 time) and they just kind of ignored me, preferring to play by themselves or with each other. So, I ended up reading a book for about 2 hours. I suppose this is going to happen more often than not, now. We are trying to split up the kids once a week this summer for 1:1 time. Each grandma and I are taking one on Thursday mornings (this week Pam couldn't). I think that it will be good for the kids, to choose a special activity that only they get to do.
We are making some progress in the "waking up dry" campaign. Will averages about every third/every other morning waking up dry. Xander has started waking up dry about twice a week (which is more than he used to). I'm still doing a lot of laundry, but we are definitely going in the right directions! Yay for that!
Xander's favorite new line is "no comprendo." Now, he learned this from Veggie Tales. I love Veggie Tales for the most part, but I don't love them teaching Xander to tell me "no comprendo" when I tell him to do something. Don't worry, I'm pretty sure he knows what it means, because he uses it in the same context as Larry the Cucumber.
Their new favorite song/tune is "Where is thumbkin?" But in true triplet fashion, they never sing the correct words. The best renditions heard over the past month are....
Will: Are you stinky, are you stinky?
Xander: Yes, I am. yes I am.
Will: Stinky, stinky, stinky.
Xander: Stinky, stinky, stinky.
Will: Stink, stink, stink.
Xander: Stink, stink, stink.
Brian: Where is Xander, Where is Xander?
Xander: Here I am. Here I am.
Brian: How are you today, sir?
Xander: Very, fine I thank you.
Brian: Run away.
Xander: Run away.
Xander (while in the cart at the grocery store)
Mayonnaise, mayonnaise. Mayonnaise, mayonnaise
Yum, yum, yum. Yum, yum, yum.
Yummy, yummy, yummy, yummy, yummy, yummy.
Mayonnaise, mayonnaise, mayonnaise. Mayonnaise, mayonnaise, mayonnaise
(spoken) Mommy, what does Yummy mean?
It is also interesting to note that when they sing this song back and forth they sing in the same key, or they'll answer us in the key we sing in. They are getting very good at singing on pitch and in-tune. They are also getting very good at keeping the syllables of words correct in a song. There's talent there, I think :-). Well, that's about it. Hope everyone is well. More next week.
Monday, June 08, 2009
Vacation Pictures
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Vacation 09 Beware, there are 134 pictures in that album! I uploaded every picture I took, and I took quite a few (for scrapbooking purposes, you know!) So, if you have some time to spare, feel free to browse them. The next few posts describe, in pretty big detail, our 2 1/2 day trip to Omaha. I did that as much for me as for you. Someday I'll get around to scrapbooking those pictures, and I'll need something to jog my memory about the vacation. So, happy looking! |
Omaha Vacation - Day 1
Our plan for the first day of vacation was to go to the zoo first, hoping that there wouldn't be huge crowds. It was a gorgeous day, weatherwise, we couldn't have asked for better weather! It was a perfect day to go to the zoo, unfortunately, many other people had that same idea. The zoo was packed! We left here around 8:30 and were there around 9"30. It wasn't too busy then, but around ten is when it really got crazy. It ended up being OK, though. We did all the must-see things when we first got there, the desert dome, monkeys/gorillas, big cats, bears, and aviary.
When we paid our admission, we bought tickets for the new Skyfari that just opened up. It's a sky-tram/ski lift thing from the middle of the zoo to the end and back. We parked the strollers in a little 'parking lot" type thing and got on. Brian took Will and Grace in one car, and I took Xander. I had to admit, I was a little nervous flying 30 feet above ground with only a little bar keeping squirmy 3 year olds in the seats. But, everyone was fine and no one was scared at all. When we started going up in the air, Xander started asking tons of questions like "What would happen if I dropped my shoe." and "What are we doing up here?" We ended up at the far end of the zoo where the elephants and rhinoceros are. That was neat because we never walk that far to see those big animals. We ate lunch in that area, then got back on and "flew" back to our strollers. After that, we hit the butterfly garden and aquarium. That took us until about 1:30. The kids were starting to get tired, so we drove to the hotel on the chance that we could get an early check-in and give the kids a nap.
Luckily, we were able to get that early check-in, so everyone was down for a nap by 3, I don't think they fell asleep until 4 or so, too much playing/talking and too much excitement about being in a new place. In case anyone was wondering, we had a pull-out couch where two of them slept, then we brought an air mattress and sleeping bag for the third. Although, those air mattresses are very noisy and not so comfortable. I don't think we'll use those again.
Once they woke up around 5, we headed for the Amazing Pizza Machine in Millard. Wednesday night is definitely the night to go there. That place would be chaos if it was busy. But, it wasn't and we had a pleasant surprise that all the rides and games were half price. So, everyone got to do twice as much as they would have otherwise. If you didn't know, the Pizza Machine is owned by Valentino's, so the food was pretty similar. We ate in a room that was showing the cartoon network on a huge projection screen, Will was totally distracted by that. I don't think the kid ate anything until we got ice cream sundaes, then he was down to business!
As I mentioned before, there are tons of rides and games that we got to ride for half price. The kids each drove a little train in a small circle, rode a small carousel did other small race car/roller coaster simulation rides, but we saved the best for last. It was called the "Frog Hopper" and it's a little ride where you sit on a bench with a bar across your lap and you go up and down, kind of hopping like a frog (see the pictures). It went almost all the way up to the ceiling. Well, we didn't think anyone would be scared, since they weren't scared on the Skyfari, and we were right. They LOVED it! They screamed and giggled the whole time. When they got off, Xander ran up to me, grabbed my hand and said "We have to do THAT again!" And we eventually did let them do it again. The best part for daddy is that he is sure once they're bigger, he'll have lots of people to go on rides with at amusement parks, because it seems like they are going to love rides.
We didn't leave the Pizza Machine until around 8:30, so it was a late bedtime. Even with a later bedtime, they still took until around 10:30 to fall asleep. It was painful for Brian and I to sit there in the dark yelling at them to stop playing and go to sleep. I think we went to sleep even before they were all asleep. I think once they were alseep they slept OK, although Brian said Will fell off his air mattress several times. Will is a crazy sleeper, I will admit. Maybe he wasn't the one to put on the air mattress! More in the next post about days 2 and 3....
When we paid our admission, we bought tickets for the new Skyfari that just opened up. It's a sky-tram/ski lift thing from the middle of the zoo to the end and back. We parked the strollers in a little 'parking lot" type thing and got on. Brian took Will and Grace in one car, and I took Xander. I had to admit, I was a little nervous flying 30 feet above ground with only a little bar keeping squirmy 3 year olds in the seats. But, everyone was fine and no one was scared at all. When we started going up in the air, Xander started asking tons of questions like "What would happen if I dropped my shoe." and "What are we doing up here?" We ended up at the far end of the zoo where the elephants and rhinoceros are. That was neat because we never walk that far to see those big animals. We ate lunch in that area, then got back on and "flew" back to our strollers. After that, we hit the butterfly garden and aquarium. That took us until about 1:30. The kids were starting to get tired, so we drove to the hotel on the chance that we could get an early check-in and give the kids a nap.
Luckily, we were able to get that early check-in, so everyone was down for a nap by 3, I don't think they fell asleep until 4 or so, too much playing/talking and too much excitement about being in a new place. In case anyone was wondering, we had a pull-out couch where two of them slept, then we brought an air mattress and sleeping bag for the third. Although, those air mattresses are very noisy and not so comfortable. I don't think we'll use those again.
Once they woke up around 5, we headed for the Amazing Pizza Machine in Millard. Wednesday night is definitely the night to go there. That place would be chaos if it was busy. But, it wasn't and we had a pleasant surprise that all the rides and games were half price. So, everyone got to do twice as much as they would have otherwise. If you didn't know, the Pizza Machine is owned by Valentino's, so the food was pretty similar. We ate in a room that was showing the cartoon network on a huge projection screen, Will was totally distracted by that. I don't think the kid ate anything until we got ice cream sundaes, then he was down to business!
As I mentioned before, there are tons of rides and games that we got to ride for half price. The kids each drove a little train in a small circle, rode a small carousel did other small race car/roller coaster simulation rides, but we saved the best for last. It was called the "Frog Hopper" and it's a little ride where you sit on a bench with a bar across your lap and you go up and down, kind of hopping like a frog (see the pictures). It went almost all the way up to the ceiling. Well, we didn't think anyone would be scared, since they weren't scared on the Skyfari, and we were right. They LOVED it! They screamed and giggled the whole time. When they got off, Xander ran up to me, grabbed my hand and said "We have to do THAT again!" And we eventually did let them do it again. The best part for daddy is that he is sure once they're bigger, he'll have lots of people to go on rides with at amusement parks, because it seems like they are going to love rides.
We didn't leave the Pizza Machine until around 8:30, so it was a late bedtime. Even with a later bedtime, they still took until around 10:30 to fall asleep. It was painful for Brian and I to sit there in the dark yelling at them to stop playing and go to sleep. I think we went to sleep even before they were all asleep. I think once they were alseep they slept OK, although Brian said Will fell off his air mattress several times. Will is a crazy sleeper, I will admit. Maybe he wasn't the one to put on the air mattress! More in the next post about days 2 and 3....
Omaha vacation - days 2 & 3
So, day 2 started off pretty well. The kids slept until about 7, so we got up, showered, got dressed and ate breakfast that we had brought with us (the kids loved this, I brought donuts!). We piled in the car and headed off to Lauritzen gardens. We got there around 9:15 and found out there was a tram ride leaving at 9:30. So, we bought tickets and hopped on. We were joined by a bus load of retirees and their tour guide and those people just loved the kids! Xander fell down while trying to run to the tram and I swear every little old lady wanted to give him a hug and ask him if he was OK.
The tram ride was totally worth the time and money. The gardens are pretty big and there would have been no way to walk all of them with the kids. It did stop at one point and let everyone get out to explore the model railroad garden, which the kids loved. It had several little trains running over hundreds of buildings, tracks, bridges, trestles and more all over. The kids were enthralled. There was always something new to see. The old people loved watching the kids get excited over the trains. We got back on the tram and went to Kenefick park, which has two HUGE Union Pacific engines to look at. Xander was extremely mad he didn't get to ride on them. After the tram ride ended, we loaded the kids up into the stroller and took a walk to the Children's garden, which was OK.
After we left, we ate lunch at McDonald's and let the kids play for a little while. At one point, when all three of the kids had disappeared into the play structure, we saw Will's shorts drop from the sky, followed shortly by a bottomless Will. He looked at us and said "I was jumping too much, my pants fell off." The family sitting beside us got a big kick out of that.
Then, it was back to the hotel for another short nap, too short because the kids were pretty tired by then. I took a quick jaunt out to Archiver's for a little shopping during that nap. Once everyone was awake it was off to CoCo Key water resort for the rest of the day. Boy, did they love that. The only dark spot that afternoon is that Brian forgot to pack his swimming suit! He ran off to find a discount store while I went ahead with the kids. The kids had an awesome time on these yellow waterslides. They weren't huge, but big enough to be fun. Grace and Will probably went down 100+ times each, it's all they did for several hours. Xander also liked them, but spent a lot of time playing with manipulative water features (a series of fountain things and water guns). We also floated on tubes in the lazy river, and played with toys in the small zero-entry pool. We ate dinner at CoCoKey, then swam some more. We ended up leaving around 7:30 for showers and bedtime! Luckily, they were all very tired, so they actually fell asleep before 10. Unfortunately, Brian and I were also exhausted, so we also fell asleep shortly after ten.
Friday morning, we took our time getting ready to go, then eventually packed up and went across the street to a Perkins for breakfast. Xander ordered the kids breakfast of silver dollar pancakes and ate all 5 of then, plus some of Brian and I's breakfasts. Grace got chocolate chip pancakes and Will ate pancakes with sprinkles and whipped cream. I think those were great treats they won't get for a long time to come. At 10 when the water park opened, we did a little more swimming (Will and Grace logged an hour or so more on the yellow water slides) and finally called it a day around noon. Since none of us were hungry, we just drove home, ate a light lunch, then went down for a nap, all of us! Boy were we tired. It was so nice to sleep in our own beds on Friday night.
So, all in all, it was a successful vacation. I believe we will do things a little differently next time with the sleeping arrangements. We know the kids had a lot of fun, so it was worth it.
The tram ride was totally worth the time and money. The gardens are pretty big and there would have been no way to walk all of them with the kids. It did stop at one point and let everyone get out to explore the model railroad garden, which the kids loved. It had several little trains running over hundreds of buildings, tracks, bridges, trestles and more all over. The kids were enthralled. There was always something new to see. The old people loved watching the kids get excited over the trains. We got back on the tram and went to Kenefick park, which has two HUGE Union Pacific engines to look at. Xander was extremely mad he didn't get to ride on them. After the tram ride ended, we loaded the kids up into the stroller and took a walk to the Children's garden, which was OK.
After we left, we ate lunch at McDonald's and let the kids play for a little while. At one point, when all three of the kids had disappeared into the play structure, we saw Will's shorts drop from the sky, followed shortly by a bottomless Will. He looked at us and said "I was jumping too much, my pants fell off." The family sitting beside us got a big kick out of that.
Then, it was back to the hotel for another short nap, too short because the kids were pretty tired by then. I took a quick jaunt out to Archiver's for a little shopping during that nap. Once everyone was awake it was off to CoCo Key water resort for the rest of the day. Boy, did they love that. The only dark spot that afternoon is that Brian forgot to pack his swimming suit! He ran off to find a discount store while I went ahead with the kids. The kids had an awesome time on these yellow waterslides. They weren't huge, but big enough to be fun. Grace and Will probably went down 100+ times each, it's all they did for several hours. Xander also liked them, but spent a lot of time playing with manipulative water features (a series of fountain things and water guns). We also floated on tubes in the lazy river, and played with toys in the small zero-entry pool. We ate dinner at CoCoKey, then swam some more. We ended up leaving around 7:30 for showers and bedtime! Luckily, they were all very tired, so they actually fell asleep before 10. Unfortunately, Brian and I were also exhausted, so we also fell asleep shortly after ten.
Friday morning, we took our time getting ready to go, then eventually packed up and went across the street to a Perkins for breakfast. Xander ordered the kids breakfast of silver dollar pancakes and ate all 5 of then, plus some of Brian and I's breakfasts. Grace got chocolate chip pancakes and Will ate pancakes with sprinkles and whipped cream. I think those were great treats they won't get for a long time to come. At 10 when the water park opened, we did a little more swimming (Will and Grace logged an hour or so more on the yellow water slides) and finally called it a day around noon. Since none of us were hungry, we just drove home, ate a light lunch, then went down for a nap, all of us! Boy were we tired. It was so nice to sleep in our own beds on Friday night.
So, all in all, it was a successful vacation. I believe we will do things a little differently next time with the sleeping arrangements. We know the kids had a lot of fun, so it was worth it.
Saturday, June 06, 2009
A quick update
We are back from our little vacation, and once I get a little more time, I'll post the 134 pictures I took and tell you all about it. We're a little tired, but laying low this weekend, so we'll recover. In the mean time, here is a quick update about life before and after vacation.
Well, the kids are enrolled in a lot of things for the summer. We have swimming lessons, as I mentioned before, on Tues/Thurs in June. They are also taking a beginning gymnastics class that my parents are paying for as a birthday present. That is on Wednesday mornings for 45 minutes. I think they'll like it, but it's a class withOUT a parent. So, that will be different for them. I'm not even allowed into the gym while they're in class. I am a little nervous about it, but hope they warm up to the teacher and participate and have fun. We are also taking them to bible school at our church the third week of June. This is all in addition to the regular things we do like storytime and playgroups with the multiples club. Whew! What a busy month!
They are doing some new things lately. The most notable is taking showers instead of baths. I still do all the washing for them, but I do admit, I like the showers better. I do one at a time, and they're faster. Plus, all 3 in the bathtub is getting a little tight and they get a little rowdy.
A few funny comments from the last week:
While playing "ghost" (putting blankets over their heads and saying "ooooh").....
Xander: Grace it's your turn to be the ghost.
Grace: I can't, it messes up my hair.
Overheard while playing...
Grace: Let's do something where I can be the boss, next.
While playing trains....
Audrey: Xander, do you want to go play the video game on the computer? It's your turn.
Xander: No, I'm good.
All, overheard at various times during the day......
Xander: Ladies and gentlemen, in the center-ey (we think they mean "center ring"), Will, the strawberry!
Grace: Ladies and gentlemen, in the center-ey, Xander the elephan!
Will: Ladies and gentlemen, in the center-ey, Grace the blueberry!
You get the idea. Picture them saying this as an actual circus announcer, with a pretent microphone and everything. Grace even hold out her hand as she announces her person. It's funny!
Have a good weekend everyone. I'll get those vacation posts up soon!
Well, the kids are enrolled in a lot of things for the summer. We have swimming lessons, as I mentioned before, on Tues/Thurs in June. They are also taking a beginning gymnastics class that my parents are paying for as a birthday present. That is on Wednesday mornings for 45 minutes. I think they'll like it, but it's a class withOUT a parent. So, that will be different for them. I'm not even allowed into the gym while they're in class. I am a little nervous about it, but hope they warm up to the teacher and participate and have fun. We are also taking them to bible school at our church the third week of June. This is all in addition to the regular things we do like storytime and playgroups with the multiples club. Whew! What a busy month!
They are doing some new things lately. The most notable is taking showers instead of baths. I still do all the washing for them, but I do admit, I like the showers better. I do one at a time, and they're faster. Plus, all 3 in the bathtub is getting a little tight and they get a little rowdy.
A few funny comments from the last week:
While playing "ghost" (putting blankets over their heads and saying "ooooh").....
Xander: Grace it's your turn to be the ghost.
Grace: I can't, it messes up my hair.
Overheard while playing...
Grace: Let's do something where I can be the boss, next.
While playing trains....
Audrey: Xander, do you want to go play the video game on the computer? It's your turn.
Xander: No, I'm good.
All, overheard at various times during the day......
Xander: Ladies and gentlemen, in the center-ey (we think they mean "center ring"), Will, the strawberry!
Grace: Ladies and gentlemen, in the center-ey, Xander the elephan!
Will: Ladies and gentlemen, in the center-ey, Grace the blueberry!
You get the idea. Picture them saying this as an actual circus announcer, with a pretent microphone and everything. Grace even hold out her hand as she announces her person. It's funny!
Have a good weekend everyone. I'll get those vacation posts up soon!
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