Ben & Ella's 4th Birthday Party

We had Ben & Ella's party this past Saturday and yes, it did rain. We were covered though and the kids didn't even care that it was raining. They went ahead and played in the playground and because no one else was at the park, they played in the skate park, on the baseball fields and all the way across to the end of the other park. They had a great time. They didn't have success with hitting open their pinatas so we ended up using the strings to pull them open (and I put way too much candy in there as the candy did not come out like it was supposed to). They also enjoyed the little treasure hunt that I set up for them too (though I should have waited a bit longer as some kids showed up right after we played that little game). I also got a little horseshoe game for the kids to play.

It was a good day. I wish I had taken more pictures but I felt like I didn't have the opportunity to this year.

They got a few presents and they've played with them all - they got camping chairs (we had to go get one for Nicholas after he saw them), little computers, books, a little paper and pencil set, and M&Ms.

On another topic - the kids wanted me to tell them stories last night. Ella wanted stories about when I was pregnant with Ben & Ella, when I was pregnant with Nicholas, about when her friends were in their mommy's bellies (though I told her that 2 of her friends weren't in their mommy's bellies but were adopted - I tried to explain that as much as I could to a 4 year old). I thought about mentioning the whole IVF thing to the twins, but thought I'd wait a little bit longer for that.

Benjamin wanted stories about dinosaurs and flowers. I told him a g-rated version of Jurassic Park and made up a story about flowers (it wasn't easy for me).

And on yet another topic - I learned that I have gallstones this week so I'll be having my gallbladder removed in the near future. I don't see the surgeon until the 19th though so I'm not quite certain how soon after that the actual surgery will take place. Thankfully, it is done by laparoscopy so the recovery time is much shorter than if it was a bigger incision being made. My dad had it done a few years ago and he said he was fine a week later. I hope that's the case for me too!

That's all for now! Until the next time when I feel like blogging!

Just some little stories

Was just reading a post from December 2009 that said this about Ben & Ella

"Funny. Oh, that reminds me - whenever they find something enjoyable - they say "that's funny". :-D"


What's funny about that now is that Nicholas is saying the same thing for the same reason. Hilarious.

Also, last night at the park, he said to me "mommmy, watch zis" then proceeded to jump from the bottom of a slide onto the ground. He then said he was jumping.

Benjamin is really into baseball all of a sudden so I think I'm taking him to a Mariners game soon (something I wanted to do anyway but even more so now). I am very much looking forward to it. I just need to find a day we can go.

I think for Ella our special time will be going to a movie together and getting popcorn. Perhaps after Cars 2 comes out.

Ben & Ella turn 4!

Benjamin and Ella turned 4 on Sunday. We went to church as normal, then came home to have a BBQ and strawberry shortcake with a couple friends, their son and another friend's 2 kids. We usually have lunch with these friends after church. It was a nice day for sitting outside, eating a BBQ and letting the kids play. We let Ben & Ella open their presents that we got for them. They wanted to play with them right away. Nicholas wanted to play with them when I purchased them and was sad that he didn't have a present to open. He doesn't quite get it that it is their birthday and not his too. Poor guy - this is another glimpse of what it will be like for him being the singleton in the family. Eventually, he'll understand though.

I took a few pics of the day but, as usual, I haven't uploaded them (I still haven't uploaded Christmas!!!!).

This Saturday, we are having their party at the same park we had the party at last year. This year, though, we have two pinatas. One is a Dora pinata and the other is a Thomas the train pinata (at least, I think that is what I ordered). They are quite excited by this.

I guess I'll post more after the party this weekend unless something else comes up. I really hope the weather gets better!!! Right now, Saturday is supposed to be rainy and gross!! At least, the party is in a covered area. Ugh this Seattle weather!!

Ka-chow!

A little while ago, my kids watched Cars for the first time. I also got a few books from the last multiples group sale that had the characters from Cars in it. So Nicholas has been hearing the word Ka-chow (from Lightning McQueen) a lot. Not to mention, we went to a Cars themed birthday party this past weekend (which was a cute place in Woodinville called The Nest). Well, Nicholas kept saying ka-chow last night (saying it like katow!) - quite cute.

Only 2 more days and Ben & Ella will be 4! The time has indeed gone by fast. Their party isn't until next weekend - I planned their party then thinking my sister and family would be more likely to come since they are still in school now and my niece's birthday is tomorrow - but they aren't coming. So I wish we were having the party tomorrow as more would have been able to come. Oh well.

Ben & Ella have been able to write their names for some time. However, for some reason, Benjamin now thinks he needs to write his name perfectly. So because the N was not written with a straight line, he threw a tantrum and a pen and told me to write his name. I told him that it doesn't need to be perfect, but he didn't believe me.Ugh. What is this boy going to be like in school?

Ella is doing a bit better with going poo on the potty. She went last night all on her own and well, she is 4 in 2 days so she better start going on the potty like she told me she would do.

Nicholas is rather possessive these days. He sees one of the other kids walking toward me and he will run toward me to say "my mommy!" It is quite cute actually. It is going to make me sad when he doesn't run to me anymore (like Benjamin) and give me his little pat on the shoulder hug.

In sad (but keeping a positive attitude) news, my mom has learned that her cancer has spread further down her spine and into her pelvic bone. Not the news any of us wanted to hear. so she is starting chemo on Monday. I hope that chemo will get rid of the cancer yet again. She battled breast cancer about 5 years ago and it came back in her bones (and because of that, they denied her long term disability because she had a pre-existing condition - that word just drives me crazy). Please send her positive vibes and send up a prayer that she can beat this yet again!

Another overdue update

My heart doesn't seem to be into blogging anymore but I do want to have some record of what my kids are doing at a certain age so I feel I must.

Here are a few recent stories:

Nicholas finally said his own name the other day. It only took him 2 years and 3 months since birth to say it. Of course, he then turned around and yelled "nick" at me when I said Nicholas. However, if you ask him what his name is - he will tell you it is Footee. Silly boy.

He went poo on the potty the other night too - sort of - he had poo coming out and he just happened to finish it off into the potty. That counts, right? He wanted to go potty last night too but it was merely a delaying tactic to keep from having to go to bed. The night prior he stayed up until midnight. I did not want a recreation of that so he cried for about 5 minutes until he fell asleep. that was a hard 5 minutes.

Nicholas LOVES to be naked. You try to clothe him, he throws a fit. Not so fun getting clothes on him these days.

He tells me he is big all the time so he is trying to show it by not using the railing to go down steps just like his big brother and sister. He was doing pretty well until that last step then he stumbled and fell. He's alright - just a bit shocked more than anything.

Ella has been telling me that she will poo on the potty when she is 4 though she did go the other night though she wanted someone in there to comfort her and that someone was me. I'm glad she did go though and she went and sat on the potty all on her own the other day to go poo but nothing happened. It's progress though, right?

Ella has also become a huge fan of finding and picking up worms. She will pick them up and talk to them in a motherly baby voice saying things like "Hi worm! It's o.k. It's not scary." quite cute.

Benjamin seems to have figured out how to play the solitaire game on my iPod. He's a smart little guy. The preschool tells me all the time. However, he doesn't seem to be quite comfortable with affection. Sometimes I feel like I have to force him to let me give him hugs. Though I can tell he kinda likes getting them though maybe he doesn't want to admit it. :-)

The other day we went to a park called Saint Edward State Park in Kenmore,WA. I LOVE that playground - I want to play in the playground too and thankfully, it is big enough for adults to play on. It kinda looks like a little castle.

Well, Ben & Ella are nearly 4. It's shocking how quick the time goes sometimes (though right now, it feels like the day is going by way too slow probably because I'm anxious to end this work day). We are going to have a party for them at a nearby park (same as last year) but this year, we will have a train pinata and a Dora pinata. They are quite excited by this.

Alright, enough for today. Maybe I'll post again in the near future, but we'll see.