Figure Skating

The babysitter helped the boys make an Olympic ice skating rink for their little people. If you look close you can see the Olympic rings under the ice.

The boys took turns playing, licking and "having concerts" (they added their own singing as music) on the ice with their people so long that when they were done the ice was almost completely melted.

Walkie-talkie...

The boys were getting ready for bed on the second floor of the house and Nick was in the basement. They wanted him to come upstairs to tell them a story so....

They scream into the vents to get his attention. It was WAY more entertaining to watch back when Geremu thought the communicating happened through the carbon monoxide detector plugged into the wall in his room.

The Airing of Grievances...

Every night when the boys are in bed we do roses and thorns (I'm pretty sure I've explained this before) right before they pray. Geremu is really good with the roses and thorns but then when it comes to prayer time his prayers sound just like his thorns.

Gere: "Mom I pray now."
Me: "Okay, go ahead"
Gere: "Dear God, Cullen mean today. Cullen chubby-wubby people and Mom no let me eat popcorn."

Of course I prompt him when he finishes to say things/people that he is thankful for or happy about and he does but then isn't the prayer just a repeat of roses and thorns?

Geronimo!

My Grandpa Bob (my mother's father) affectionately calls Geremu, Geronimo. Bob is pretty much 100% with it, his hearing is going a bit but he is totally with it. He just can't remember Geremu's name and he calls him Geronimo. Geremu isn't the only name that Bob screws up. My sister Colleen has been dating a guy, Luke, for at least two years now and Bob always refers to him as Jake. I think it's so funny that Bob makes nicknames for people and doesn't even seem to know he is doing it. Frankly, the name Geronimo fits Geremu pretty well- I like it.

This past weekend I was cleaning Bob's house. I didn't want to miss Apolo Anton Ohno's race and since Bob was watching the Olympics I asked him to call me for his next race. A little while later I heard Bob yell, "Annie, Uno's racing again". I couldn't help but smile, another GREAT nickname by Bob!

One more Bob story for you. We went to church this past Saturday afternoon. In the middle of mass I decided to tell Bob something I thought he would get a kick out of. So I lean over and say, "Hey Bob, I've got Olympic Fever", meaning we are going to need to leave a little early so I can catch more the of Olympics. But Bob didn't hear me so he says, "What Annie?" Not so quietly. I lean over and repeat myself a little louder. Again I get a, "What Annie? I can't hear you." This sequence repeated itself one more time. Finally I gave up trying to tell Bob what I was saying after I figured everyone in the church knew I had Olympic fever except for G'pa Bob.

Another Weekend Come and Gone...

This weekend again flew by and I find myself counting the weeks until spring break. The boys had a good weekend and got a chance to see some of Nick's relatives while I got the chance to see a few family members on my side.

Today Geremu laid down with me to take a nap, he never fell asleep and told me after about 30 minutes that naps give him a stomach ache. Yeah right kid- I don't buy it. Anyways, after resting a while I let him get up. When I went down stairs with him Cullen wanted to snuggle with me. So we went upstairs and Cullen had made a tent by draping blankets off the top bunk. When Geremu found us in the comfort of that tent he really wanted to join us because, "I love naps." Yeah right kid, why won't you actually fall asleep anymore?

One thing lead to another and the next thing I know Cullen has talked Geremu into making us popcorn and chocolate "If you know how to make that.". Geremu leaves and I'm thinking this was all just a plot Cullen used to get more alone time with me because I'm sure Geremu doesn't know how to make popcorn or chocolate... Then I hear popcorn being dumped out... A bit of a struggle... I jump out of the tent and head downstairs expecting disaster.

I find Geremu struggling to get the microwave door open. There is no mess and he has put just the right amount of popcorn into the bowl. Apparently Geremu does know how to make popcorn. I helped him cook it and Geremu sprayed on the "I can't believe it's not butter" before adding the perfect amount of spices to the popcorn- he had retrieved all the ingredient from the cabinets himself. Freakin' amazing! After he brought it up to Cullen, Cullen asked for the chocolate to which Geremu said, "I go get it". I stopped him at that point and we just enjoyed the popcorn, which was delightful!

Late afternoon fun for Geremu included a sink full of water and a few toys.

Short video of Gere doing "tricks".

Cookies...

Cullen and Geremu LOVE helping and having little jobs around the house. Last night Geremu made pizza (I'll post pictures when I get a chance) and today Cullen made cookies (clearly not from scratch).

He wanted to see them grow so he watched them cook the entire time.

This week life has been busy, the boys are doing great and constantly keeping us on our toes. That's all I've got right now.

Our V-Day Party

I decided to invite our friends over for a Valentine's Day "party" ("party" meaning we decorated the house) today. We invited our friends Katie and Billy over with their three kids to celebrate the day. The highlight of the food spread was chocolate covered strawberries and a garbanzo bean salad that was simply delightful (says the cook). Sophia preferred the "chocolate balls" (malted milk balls), she kept sneaking them when her mother wasn't looking.

The one requirement to attend the "party" was guest had to wear red, pink, or purple attire. Everyone played along to keep the host happy.
We tried to get a picture of the older kids in their matching outfits, my kids didn't quite cooperate but at least Carson and Sophia look amazing. This afternoon the boys played, Geremu practiced roller skating with a little help from Cullen. It was a fast, yet fun weekend.

This past Monday we had a bay window put in, I love it and it's just what our front room needed. This picture is mostly for my parents viewing pleasure.