Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree

I have no evidence to show that we are literally rockin' around the Christmas tree, but I can guarantee you that it's the song most frequently sung in our house these days.  If it's not being sung out loud, then it's being sung in someone's head.  Or all of our heads.  All the time.  Thanks to Weston Charles!  He rehearsed the song for weeks with his preschool friends and had a smashing performance at their recent Christmas concert. And once you start singin' it, you just can't stop!

This Christmas is a bit out of the ordinary for our little family of four as we prepare to move to a new house across town.  We put the tree up but didn't add any decorations, so Miles decided he'd just make some. When he's in the mood, he'll get out the markers, paper, and scissors and create a new masterpiece.  Several of them are attached to the tree with duct tape.  This could get interesting.

We have other Christmas decorations out, including some of the 872 snowmen from my collection (okay, I don't have 872, but it is a rather large herd of snowpeople) but they are shadowed by stacks of boxes full of things we've carefully packed away we need to carefully repack for the move. Lots of work to be done in the next two weeks!  The boys have been (mostly) helpful, and Weston has thrown only a couple of tantrums over things he wants that are already sealed up in a box for his new bedroom.  In particular, his battery powered chainsaw and the farting Santa.  Need I say more?!

This is the last full weekend in our current home and it's bittersweet.  I'll elaborate on that later.  For now, some festive pictures!

We kicked off December with a wonderful trip to Green Bay, where we visited Great Grandma Lucille -- 

 and four lucky adults got to go to the Packers game.  Yes, it was cold.  Yes, it was awesome.

Next up was a great concert put on by Kids Korner.  Weston knew his songs well and surprised us by willingly participating in the show.  We were sitting in the balcony of the theater and could hear him perfectly!

(He's in the middle row, fifth one in from the right. Just squint really hard and you'll see him.)

Miles' class told the story about the birth of Jesus.  Although the donkey and wise men costumes were pretty neat, I think Miles was fine with having a speaking role.  I can't describe how proud of him we were (and still are!) for the hard work he put into practicing his line, and for the confidence he showed during their performance.  He was fabulous!  And so were his friends!

(I think we need to get him a pair of non-sneaker style casual shoes.  You think so?!)

Here's the full cast of characters from the event.  They led the audience in singing We Wish You a Merry Christmas.  I might have cried a little...or a lot.

Then it was on to making gingerbread houses.  As you can see, the kindergartners had plenty of candy for the occasion.  Enough leftover to do a little landscaping!

On the home front, we've been busy making messes in the kitchen.  Last night we cut out about 7 dozen cookies....

And tonight, we decorated all but 9 of them. Actually, 10 -- I ate one when the boys weren't looking.  What happened to the last nine, you ask?  The boys simply ran out of steam.  It was time to lick the frosting off their little plastic knives and call it a night.  I don't blame them!  

After clearing the aluminum foil off the table (I went a bit overboard) and sweeping up sprinkles, we ventured up the road about 10 miles to take in the magic of this little display of lights.  We might go back again tomorrow.  Probably Sunday night, too.  It's worth the short drive, even with two little brothers trapped in their car seats relentlessly pestering each other.  Amazing how quiet the car gets as soon as we get there.

 

Merry, merry Christmas!

The Dentist - Take I

Today was Weston's first trip to the dentist.  He was fairly apprehensive about the whole deal and his mood didn't lighten upon arrival.  We brought Miles for a little moral support and he took his role very seriously. Actually, it started last night while the boys were snuggled in bed -- Miles coached Weston about what to expect and encouraged him to try the cookie dough flavored toothpaste.  I'm pretty sure Weston thought the whole conversation was a joke...cookie dough toothpaste?!  This dentist thing ain't real! No way!

Sorry buddy, it's for realz.

Behind the scenes, Westy is a loud, silly, wild little boy.  He always has a song playing in his head and a mischievous twinkle in his eye....life is one big game and he can't wait to rally the team for another round :-)

When it comes to things like haircuts, doctor appointments, and now dental visits, his little world is disrupted and his fight-or-flight instincts start screaming for him to flee.  Poor little guy!  Actually, the haircut experience has improved tremendously...so I'm optimistic that we can overcome this fear of the dentist some day, too.

Ever since the first toothbrush worked its magic in Weston's mouth (a good 2 1/2 years ago), we've talked with him about the importance of keeping his teeth healthy.  Part of that means having a checkup with the dentist.  Miles contributes to the discussion by talking about the special tickly brush, the flavored toothpaste, the light above the chair, and the awesome bag of goodies you get when you're done. We looked at some pictures of Miles last trip to the dentist a few weeks ago, and that was that.  Easy peasy.

Weston had other plans.  He wasn't ready for fancy toothpaste and he could not have cared less if he had 20 teeth or 200 teeth.  He sat on mommy's lap in the dental chair and cried big dinosaur tears.  After a bit of coaxing, he opened his mouth so Dr. Huxford could take a peek (from 4 feet away).  Suddenly the sadness turned to nervous giggling, and words of praise came pouring out of Miles' mouth.

"Good job, Westy!"
"Open bigger, Westy!"

Dr. Huxford was pleased with the color of Weston's teeth (we are trying to keep him away from coffee so as to minimize the staining) and with how nicely they are arranged.  I must say he does have an impressive little set of teeth....fingers crossed his adult teeth line up so perfectly, too.  I can't imagine orthodontics are getting any cheaper by the year.

We spent a little more time in the dental chair checking out the various tools that the hygienist uses to clean teeth.  Miles was her right hand man (literally), retrieving tools and putting them back in place when she was done demonstrating them for Weston.

Here's the one picture I snapped of the event.  A proud little boy picking out a toothbrush and pencil...with a little advice from his big bro, of course!

Today's experience proved to us once again that although Miles and Weston have a lot of similarities, the very core of their personalities is quite different. Which is how it should be since they are two special and unique little boys :-)  Miles' first trip to the dentist was a total breeze.  Below is the evidence (along with the same - extremely patient - hygienist!).  A little nervous, but playing it calm and cool.

I wonder what kind of comparison we'll make in another 13 years when Weston takes his driver's license exam?!  Eeeeek!

HGE 2013

It’s that time of year for the Potts family to prepare for the annual Holiday Gift Exchange – or more simply put, the HGE.  I have the honor of serving as the (un)official HGE Coordinator.  While I’d like to say that I was The Chosen One this year because of my status as favorite Potts child, the truth is…well…several weeks ago I mentioned to mom that a superhero theme would be fun and she said, “So you’re volunteering to be the HGEC then?  Great!  You’d better get going on it so we all have time to plan.”  Deep down she knows she is the only one who really plans anything in this family, so I’m not too worried about the timeliness of this initial communication to the crew.  It’s quite likely most (if not all) shopping will be done online anyway.  And it’s also quite likely that most (if not all) online orders will be shipped to mom’s house for storage (and maybe a little organizing, because she’s good at that).

So here we are, folks.  For those of you who haven’t heard about the Potts Family HGE, it’s the annual exchange of gifts between adults to celebrate Christmas and a little bit of Hanukkah (we pride ourselves on being a blended family).  Participants include parents Jill/Larry, siblings Elisabeth/Charlie/Annie, and the characters who married into the family – Evan/Angie/Tanner.  The event itself usually doesn’t kick off until well after 9pm when all minions have (mostly) fallen asleep.  It may or may not include adult beverages (i.e. mostly Diet Coke, but some potent lemon liquor has been consumed in previous years).

The rules this year are fairly basic because nobody has time to for it to be complicating.  Here we go… 

In no particular order:

• In case you didn’t pick up on it already, the theme is SUPERHEROES!
•  Every HGE participant (giftee) will be assigned a name (giftee) for whom they are to purchase a gift.
• Multiple gifts are allowed, but may be construed as “favoritism” toward the giftee.  Totally fine if the gifter is Larry/Jill and the giftee is me.  Perhaps a bit awkward if the gifter is Evan and the giftee is Angie.  Just sayin’.  Keep in mind that superheroes do not have favorites – they come to the rescue of all people, regardless of race/ethnicity/gender/religious beliefs/scent/smartness.
• Maximum dollar value to be spent on gift(s) = $50.  Quit freaking out, Tanner.  I said it’s the maximum amount.  You can spend less.  But you might be called a jerk.
• No gift cards allowed.  Mainly because that’s always been a rule it’s a good one.
• The gift you purchase for your giftee must somehow tie back to the superhero theme.
• Creativity is always welcomed and generally required when purchasing the gift(s).  Refrain from buying someone a Batmobile or a catwoman suit.  Way too obvious (but totally awesome ideas!).
• As usual, you will be required to defend your gift at the time of gifting it to your giftee.  Props, songs, poetry, and other forms of entertainment are encouraged.

And some food for thought:

• Watch out for supervillains – they are not superheroes and nothing about them would make for a nice gift to your giftee.
• Remember that not all superheroes have super powers. For some reason that kind of makes me feel a little sentimental….hold on a minute while I wipe this tear from my eye.
• Okay.  Better now.
• Howard the Duck is considered a superhero, greatly skilled in Quakfu.  Interesting, no?
• There is a world superhero registry.  I’m pretty sure this would be a great resource for dad’s genealogy research.
• In your spare time (admit it – you have plenty!), I encourage you to create your own superhero:  http://marvel.com/games/play/31/create_your_own_superhero
• I was going to assign a superhero to each person but let’s be honest…you’re all superheroes just the way you are, so there’s no need to give you alternative identities.  Sigh.

And for a little inspiration, I leave you with Miles’ latest coloring job.  Who is this woman?  A superhero’s wife, of course.  He said it, not me….

You’ll receive the name of your giftee in the next day or two (I’m a little parched from this initial post) via email.  Check back on the blog for ideas, inspiration, and the occasional new or changed rule.  Keeps things fun when the game changes a bit.

Big Birthday Weekend

The Big Weekend of Birthday Fun lived up to its name!  I'll let the pictures do most of the storytelling.  You can use your imagination for some of it, too...the wilder, the better.

Things kicked off on Friday morning with Ms. Jen and the Kindergarten class.  Miles was busy working at one of the writing centers in his class room when I arrived.  He had to label some Thanksgiving-themed pictures.  He debated how to label the pilgrim's footwear... Are they shoes?  Boots?  Is there a fancy word for pilgrim footwear that we don't know?  We went with boots.  I think that's a safe bet.

Next it was time to pop bubbles as the class sang a beautiful rendition of Happy Birthday.

Then Miles gloved up so he could serve puppy chow (not the REAL kind, as all 15 kindergartners took turns explaining) to his friends as a special birthday treat.  I think wearing the gloves was secretly the highlight of his morning....

At Miles' request, we went to Newt's in Rochester for supper on Friday night.  Newt's is known for their burgers and fries.  As far as Miles and Weston are concerned, the place is known for their popcorn, lemonade, and mac & cheese.  Add to it a birthday sundae!  And a dollar bill from some grandparents sitting near us who were clearly lonely for their grandchildren and were obviously fooled by Miles and Westy's mostly appropriate behavior during supper!  It was a fun night on the town.

Finally Saturday arrived, which meant official present opening day.  Miles didn't miss a beat.

Weston did, however.  He was quite upset over the fact that he couldn't tear into packages and bags himself. A tough reality check for this 3 year old.  He angrily threw tissue paper around the room until he decided he'd gotten enough attention.

Ethan, Owen, Uncle Charlie, Grandma Jill, and Grandpappy spent much of the day celebrating with us in Otown.  It doesn't look like any adults were around based on these pictures, but I promise there were...

After lunch the boys insisted on playing outside in the frigid November air.  It was ~10 degrees, but under 0 with the wind.  Brrrrr.

If you do a head count, you'll notice one boy is missing.  Ethan decided it was too cold for his own good and went inside.  He proceeded to take off his pants to warm up.  No pictures of that, but it must have worked because a couple other boys followed suit (or lack thereof) and immediately stopped complaining about being cold.  Hmmmmm.

On to Sunday.  We bundled up and went to St. Peter to continue celebrating Packer style at Grandpa Dave and Grandma Doreen's house.

Uncle Will and Auntie Anne were taking care of Kobe for the weekend, which meant the boys had another playmate for the day.  Miles loved helping with all of the dog-related chores, and Weston (who is usually terrified of dogs) got a kick out of playing fetch with Kobe.  Kobe is very sweet and tolerated the boys very well....and that takes a very special kind of dog.

After a little (or big) cookie cake --

Miles decided that being 6 means he can sit on the counter at Grandma's house.  When he was 3, he was quick to tell Grandpa Dave that sitting up there was a "sad choice".  My, how times change.

The NC cousins helped us celebrated Miles' birthday, too, with a very cute birthday video message.  Here's a shot from their performance....

We missed having them around for the excitement, but do appreciate their e-participation.  And their attempt to make us feel better about the cold weather -- nothing like wearing winter hats and summer dresses (with little cardigans, of course)!

Happy birthday, Miles Jay Grimmius.  We love you all the way to Z and are so glad you were born!*

*On a side note:  As I was snuggling Miles in bed on his big birthday night, I spent a minute reminding him how much I love him and how the last 6 years have been so awesome - he brings so much joy to our family and makes us so proud.  I didn't think I was over-doing it, but apparently I went on a little too long about my deep, unconditional love for that boy... He smiled and giggled, then leaned over the railing on his top bunk bed so he could see Weston and said, "Hey Westy, have you ever watched a dog go up or down stairs?  It's really funny because they have four legs.  I'll have Kobe show you tomorrow!"  I got the hint, smooched the boys good night, and let them get back to other important dog related topics.  Sigh.

hello

Long time no blog.  We've been busy doing homework...which is pretty awesome, because Kindergarten homework is FUN!  Miles is a reading and spelling machine.  We're lucky that he likes to practice because it means we flip through lots of pages in books, play round after round of hangman, and attempt to communicate by spelling out words so that a certain little brother can't follow along.  It sounds mean, but it's really not...he thinks he knows what we're spelling and we lead him to believe that he's right.  Only he's waaaay off.

Last weekend was dreary on the weather front (literally), and we were all taking turns battling the stomach flu.  It started with Weston on Thursday night, hit me by Friday, took out Tanner on Saturday, and ended with Miles on Monday.  Uffdah.  On the bright side, it meant lots of time to do art projects like this one --

We had to create a couple of pages for a family-themed scrap book that Miles' class is putting together. We are proud of how it turned out - it was a team effort!  Miles and mommy did the actual work while daddy and Westy voiced their ideas and opinions.  Probably a good strategy for future projects, too.

Miles turns 6 (say what?!) on Saturday.  To celebrate, he had his bi-annual dental checkup today.  No cavities!  But he does need to do a better job brushing his top teeth along the gum line.  Pretty sure he took detailed notes while listening to the hygienist (he was very interested), so we should see definite improvement at his next checkup.  Let's hope it continues into his teenage years.

And tonight we helped Owatonna kick off the holiday season with the annual lighted parade and Lighting of the Lights ceremony.  It was chillllllly, but we bundled up and had a great time.  I think we've gone almost every year since 2007 (except in 2007 because Miles was brand spanking new and still had his days and nights confused....therefore mommy and daddy were not interested in going to a parade).

Tanner and I have fun thinking back to the Lighting of the Lights ceremonies in St. Peter.  They used to make the magic happen with a big light switch - very symbolic.  There was hot chocolate, prizes (one year I won some colored pencils), and all sorts of activity in the Ginny May's parking lot.  Those were the good old days.  It's fun making similar memories with our little boys.  One of the best memories we'll have from tonight is Miles' reaction to "Steely", the Steele County Fair mascot (he's a moose).  Miles has seen Steely on numerous occasions and loves him -- loves all mascots, really.  We were certain that he overcame his fear of mascots long ago, but tonight was apparently an off night for him.  As Steely made his way toward us, Miles quickly moved to the back of the crowd along the sidewalk and squatted down behind a group of adults so that he wouldn't be spotted.  He was trying to blend in.  It worked!  Steely walked right on past him.  No big deal...we've got plenty of time to become friends with Steely.

Weston is 3!

Happy birthday to Weston!

Weston Charles Grimmius turned 3 years old just after 1 o'clock this morning.  We all slept through the big moment, but he woke us up about an hour later asking for some snuggles.  Daddy came to his rescue, but the snuggles didn't last very long because by the time Weston's head hit the pillow again he was fast asleep. Regardless, I'd say that's a pretty sweet way to start your birthday.

The celebration actually started this past weekend when Weston was with all 5 of his cousins in St. Peter for one heck of party!  Those kids know how to have fun!  Needless to say, Westy was probably still feeling a little hung over (from the excitement) this morning when we took his first picture as a three year old.

Two very talented high school students made the cake for him.  Lucky boy!  It's just his style.  He asked if he could wear it.

Then it was off to school for more celebrating with Ms. Stephanie and Ms. Natalie!

Weston was feeling extra generous and saved a spot for me to share a special birthday snack with his friends this afternoon.  They are quite the crew!  Two girls and a whole bunch of boys.  They were eating broccoli for their regularly scheduled snack and we sweetened it up with some cookies.  We also lightened the mood with stories about broccoli pancakes, Santa, birthdays, and the pool table at Grandpa Dave's house.  I thoroughly enjoyed the variety of topics we covered during snack time today!

Weston handed out some fancy party napkins to his friends....

...as well as some silly party favors.  This picture of Weston makes me think he has a bright future as a teacher. Doesn't he look like he's leading the class in a fun lesson?  Maybe a lesson in partying?!

Yep -- definitely a lesson in partying.

Back on the home front we enjoyed birthday pancakes (complete with sprinkles), and a little cake.

The birthday boy got a few presents, too.

Thanks Cousin Linda for the super cool car!

Now our little buddy is fast asleep, dreaming of all the exciting things he will accomplish as a 3 year old. Okay, who am I kidding.  He's totally dreaming about the battery powered leaf blower we gave him.  He loves it so much he tucked it next to mommy's bed so it stays safe tonight.  Good idea!

We love you whole bunches, Weston Charles (Jay) Grimmius.  We're so proud of your sweet, funny, silly, ways....thanks for bringing so much sunshine to our days!

A Triple F Weekend!

It was a Fabulously Fun Fall weekend! We made the most of what Minnesota (particularly Otown) had to offer. I love this time of year for exactly that reason -- there's always a lot being offered, and the weather is always totally unpredictable :-)

It started Friday night with the Owatonna Huskies football game. It was homecoming, and it was raining. Bummmmmmer. We bundled up and lasted until about 7 minutes were left in the first quarter...then a storm started moving in and they called the game off. Miles was concerned about the game starting again without him being there, and Weston was worried about what was going to happen to the Husky mascot, since dogs (especially those made out of acrylic fur) don't care much for rain. We watched him cover his head with his paws and scoot on in to the high school. He was safe.

On Saturday, Miles and Tanner went to the MN Wild hockey game with Miles' buddy Reid and his dad (Tony). Their trip included a stop at Chipotle for supper, a variety of zambonis, cute girls shoveling ice shavings off the rink (Tanner's favorite part....groan....), some popcorn, new hats, and a picture with Lucy.

   

Weston and I went on a date to Rochester. We shopped at Costco and filled our tummies with samples, then checked out the pet store (it was crazy cat owner day, so that was entertaining) and then enjoyed a nice dinner for two at Noodles. It was lovely!  Isn't he a cute date?!

On to Sunday, which was the fun finale to our fabulous weekend. After eating brunch at the OCC, we decided to go check out Trump's apple orchard in Faribault.

We hadn't heard much about it, but a quick google search for apple orchards near Otown helped us locate this little gem of a place. It's perfect for a low-key outing on a fall day. No fancy horse rides or hayrides, no giant slides or corn mazes. No crowds of people. Just a little orchard where you can buy a bag and fill it with whatever apples you want...you can roam the rows of trees freely and sample all the apples your tummy can take. For the boys in this family, that's a lot. Let's just say mommy did most of the picking. Somebody had to accomplish what we'd set out to do in the first place!

Miles took hold of the camera after a while. Not too shabby!

Thanks to the new iPhone operating system, his little fingers were able to snap about 20 images per second. He couldn't stop! Helllllllp!

Back at the main shop, there were more apples to sample and caramel, pies, cider, and other goodies to purchase. Perhaps the best part, though, was the view into the apple sorting/cleaning/packing station. We watched several "worker guys" busy preparing apples to be shipped to local stores. It didn't look like they were doing much sampling, though. I suppose when you look at apples all day long, some of the excitement over the fresh-off-the-tree taste is lost. Hmmmm.

We returned home to cheer on the Packers to a victory over Detroit.  Well, daddy was busy doing that.  The rest of us had more important things to do, like set up our own apple sorting/cleaning/packing station.  What better place than the bathroom?!  The tub (which I just cleaned, so don't worry) was just the right size for the boys to organize and clean the goods.  Mommy was given the responsibility of buffing the apples and preparing them for shipment (to the kitchen).

Finally, we were off to the Otown fire station for supper. We look forward to this event every year -- Tanner for the chili (it's all-you-can-eat style), and the boys for the firemen and trucks. I like going because it means I don't have to cook supper. Okaaaay, it's also a great community event and we're happy to support our local fire fighters. They are a good crew!

Even Tanner giggled like a little boy over the chance to fire the hose.

So there you have it. A triple F of a weekend! There was maybe a little bickering mixed in. And a handful of tantrums. And some laundry and a trip to the grocery store. But we had a blast and are grateful for these kinds of weekends!  Hope you enjoyed a good one, too.