First day of school!

Last night as I was tucking Tristan into bed, I read him a book about a little mouse going to his first day of school.  I left the book by his bed and because we moved to a new bedtime, it was still a bit light in his room.
The moment the clock turned to 6:00am, T woke me up very excited for his first day.  I told him to make his bed and get dressed while I made his breakfast.  He holds up his book and says, "I know mom, I read this whole book again after you left the room last night, so I know just what to do today."  I LOVE the confidence of this little guy.

When T arrived at the table he was greeted by a note from Neil.  Neil left for a business trip this morning at 4:30 this morning but not before he left a some



encouragement for his little man.  After breakfast and getting the twins dressed REALLY fast, we ran out to catch the bus.  At the very end we really did have to run, but he climbed right on and greeted his bus driver.  I breathed a huge sigh of relief when I met the driver and saw that she was very nice.  It all happened so fast and it was over in less than two minutes.  Some of that was good...like ripping off a band-aid.  I didn't cry, I was fine, and I turned to take a nice walk with the twins back home.  Almost immediately after Tristan's bus was out of sight, Ian ran up and threw his arms around my leg saying, "I miss Tristan!" Really?

The few hours of T's half day today went fast and soon it was time to go pick him up.  The boys and I waited patiently outside his room until the teacher opened the door and the kids came pouring out.  Tristan was one of the last ones out and in no hurry.  The twins just about ran him over and attacked him with hugs.  I thought Ian would never let go.  To my surprise, Tristan didn't mind and he even smiled and hugged them right back.  Maybe this time away from each other is going to be great for them!!

When I asked him what his favorite part of the day was, he said the gears toy. When I asked him one thing he didn't like about school he said, "Nothing!  Everything was AWESOME!!"  I am so excited for him and the school year.  I'm glad he is in a full day program and will learn so much.  He didn't love coming home before lunch and recess.  I'm glad he will have so much time with his friends and to settle into learning with plenty of time for fun.  The twins are now beyond excited to start school and I have no idea how I am going to hold them off until next week.

Tristan Graduates

Another milestone down...Tristan graduated from preschool.  We weren't sure he would make it to the ceremony because he had been sick that whole week before.  He made it and stayed up on the stage the whole time, but you could tell the pep was gone from his little body.

The program was really adorable and I was proud of him for remembering all of it.  Neil had to fly out early that morning, so he missed the ceremony but I sent him lots of pictures and there was a fun present he left for Tristan when we got home.

Tristan had a great year at Happy Valley and I'm so glad he had a chance to go there.  He will miss his teachers and his friends that have helped make this such a special experience.

Mother's Day

I love Mother's Day.  What's not to love?  The kids tell you they love you a thousand times and you get to do what you want that day.  Usually we start with church, spend a little family time, and then I go get some much needed alone time.

This year Ian was sick, so I stayed home from church with the twins.  Neil's brother and his wife were in town visiting with their baby Andrew so they went to church with Neil and Tristan.  It was just the nice quiet, cuddly morning with my little ones that I wanted.  Tristan and the boys worked with Neil the night before to make me a wonderful card.  I love it when Neil totally gets what I love about presents.

I was happily surprised that my best friend, Erin, arranged her travels to fly through Denver and be able to spend a few hours with me.  I love when she comes to town because we go to the yummiest places to eat and I don't ever hear one word about how many calories are in the food or how long we will have to be at the gym if we eat it all.  SO REFRESHING these days when everyone seems to be obsessed with talking about food...and not the good kind of food talk.  Erin likes to visit local places, so the two of us went to Chataqua Dinning Hall for brunch.  I have wanted to go to that brunch for twelve years, but Neil doesn't like brunch so we have never gone.  It was perfect.  We got a table out on the porch overlooking the flatirons and the weather was perfect!  We sat and talked about Africa, her adoption, my upcoming trip, and our current lives.  SO good for the soul.

After brunch, I came home to a house filled with family and got to celebrate with all of them.  There is something really nice about a full house on a holiday.  Neil then told me that he had arranged for my Mother's Day present that I requested.  One night at a local really nice hotel all by myself...awwww.  It would not be until the next weekend, but I could breath a little better knowing that break was coming.   Well, that day has come and gone and the kids were too sick for me to get away.  I think it will still happen, I just have no idea when.  That's the life of a mother though, those little kids come first :)

12 Years

Another year of marriage and another anniversary to celebrate.  We were really looking forward to this year, nothing big just a date night out.  Since May 1st, it seems like our lives have been non-stop busy and Neil and I just don't really live at that pace because we don't really like that pace.  It started with Tristan's birthday on the 1st where Neil left from the party to go on a business trip, home for the weekend, then off to another week long business trip where he picked his brother and his family up on the way home and we had a nice visit for a week with them.  The day after our guest left, Tristan got really sick and then Neil left for another business trip.  Since then, the kids have been passing the nastiest of viruses around with each other (and with Neil and I).

Now the big day comes and we have a sitter all lines up for an anniversary dinner and movie.  We had the kids just well enough to be able to have a sitter and BAM Finn comes down with pink eye last night.  Yuck!  No date for us, but both of us REALLY did need a break from the house where we had been stuck for the last week and a half.

We moved to Plan B.  We still had dinner and a movie, but we had to be really flexible. Actually it's fitting this falls on this twelve year anniversary because these last twelve years have given us lots of chances to perfect being flexible.  Neil went to the movies in the morning, I went in the afternoon, and then I brought home PF Changs for dinner.
The only difference between the quiet romantic dinner out with a movie we could discuss after and the day we had was that we saw different movies, has someone yell "I pooped" as we sat down to eat, and by the end of the dinner all the kids were over eating off our plates and playing action figures around the table.  We looked at each other, smiled, and couldn't be happier with the twelve years we have had so far together.

I can't believe we have a kid old enough to take our picture... before he figured out how to reverse the camera and take twenty pictures of himself.

Here's to an actual date night next year!!

Tristan turns 5

Today Tristan turned five. He woke up so excited for his day.  Neil took the morning off from work to take Tristan out for a pancake breakfast and then to play a round of golf...well, glow in the dark mini golf.  They had so much fun that T, who hasn't taken a nap in months, fell asleep for an hour in the car on the way home.  He came home long enough to play with his new toys for a bit and then it was off to his party.

Tristan wanted to invite a lot of kids from school to his party and since I planned it for a Wednesday afternoon, I didn't think many people would be able to make it.  Turns out Wednesday afternoons are open for just about everyone because everyone came (except for his best buddy that got sick today).  I never expected to have 15 kids, but they were the best 15 kids and Tristan loved having every one of them there.

Best idea ever: Babysitters for Finn and Ian.  We ALL had more fun because of it :)

I was so excited for this birthday!  Before now, the birthday parties seemed more about pictures for years down the road and maybe a way for us parents to celebrate the survival of another year of parenting.  My fifth birthday party is the first one I remember.  I remember it as one of the most fun birthdays and as the story goes, my mom says it goes down as the craziest party and she swore off Chucky Cheese until she had grandchildren.  Tristan's party was pretty much as crazy but totally fun!!

He looked just like a dude hanging out with his friends

The only hiccup happened two hours before the party.  After a few more kids sent RSVPs than I had originally told McDonalds there would be, I decided to call and let them know.  Apparently, they had no record of a party today.  No problem though, they pulled in a great employee to host the party and she did a great job.  She took care of everything and even did face painting for the kids.  Okay, the Angry Birds all my kids wanted looked a little funny, but they were so thrilled with it.

 I looked around and saw exactly what I had wanted for Tristan.  I saw kids running, climbing, playing together, eating happy meals and ice cream, and just enjoying being together...they were really being kids like I remember being a kid.  Nothing too scheduled or planed.  No games set up for them.  They came up with their own games, made their own adventures, and laughed a lot.  The smiles I saw on Tristan's face were enough to almost make me cry.  I think he will remember this birthday, too.

I was so happy that Neil made Tristan's birthday such a big deal.  Spending most of the day just the two of them and then taking the last flight out tonight for his business trip so he didn't miss a minute of T's party.  The kids and I got home and TRIED to get the face paint off but not with much luck.  The twins should look cute tomorrow.  I put the twins to bed and then Tristan and I sat quietly in his room building a Lego toy one of his friends got for him.  It was a really sweet time to spend together and he snuggled right into bed after with his new Yoda doll. 

I never would have dared to dream I would have a kid like Tristan.  His big heart and huge personality are unbelievable.  After today, I think I can add being a good friend to his list of great qualities.  He was really nice to all his little party guests.  I love every day that I get to hang out with him.  Happy year number five with the coolest little kid :)

T-ball

This year, Tristan received an early birthday present from Nana and Bits...a spot on a real t-ball team.  He is so excited to be a part of a team!  I don't know if he loves the sport of it, but he does love the shark on his bat, wearing a real "jersey" (black his favorite color), the name on his hat, wearing the same number that dad did, and most of all making lots of new friends.

It's adorable to watch him figure out what all of this means.  He is the biggest encouragement to his teammates and chatter box to his coaches.  He tries so hard to stay focused, but the dirt is just too tempting to dig in and his friend on the next base it too interesting not to talk to.

I am a big believer that once my kid is on a team, I am NOT the coach!!!  I do get a sad little chuckle out of watching the parents hang around 1st and 3rd and try to coach their kid... during PRACTICE!  It's all so ridiculous to me that I don't quite know where to put it.  I am just thankful we chose to go to the "less competitive" t-ball league.  When I first heard this, I couldn't fathom who would be pushing their kids at age 4/5 level...then I saw them.  There's no time for parent chit chat because there is a future Rockie on the field ;)

I can confidently say that I hope major league baseball is not in my children's future, but I do hope Tristan enjoys every second of his season and if he chooses to play again next year I hope he enjoys that, too.  As for me, I think it is adorable to watch the boys play and exhausting to watch those coaches literally pick kids up and put them back in their positions time after time.  I'm thankful they are willing to do it and I promise not to get in their way...I don't want their job!!!

Grandparents Come to Town

A few crazy weeks have passed since our visitors left the state, but I am finally getting back to the blog.  In January, The Conways came to visit for a week.  It is always so nice to see the kids with their grandparents and Tristan did not want to be parted from them after only the ride from the airport.  Instead of staying at a hotel and renting a car, they rented the furnished suit on our floor which made it so easy to be able to see them.  The suit was actually bigger than they needed so we ended up bring down a fort building kit from storage that we don't have room for and the boys had fun in their fort when they went to Nana and Bit's.

The weather was beautiful so we were able to spend many afternoons at the playground.  I think the boy's energy was a surprise to them...as it is to just about everyone.

Nana and Bit's love to bowl back home and our boys had never been, so we found a place that had toddler bowling and the kids LOVED it!!  Tristan keeps asking to go again and if he can have his birthday party there.  I would say it was quite a hit with him (oh, and he was only 2 pins behind Bit's).  The twins on the other hand had some trouble with the whole "it's not your turn right now" thing.  It was good for them though and I can't imagine the workout they got!  They napped like champions that afternoon.

Neil took a few days off of work and one day he and his parents took Tristan and Ian to the Museum of Nature and Science.  The kids loved all the extra attention and activities.

One night after dinner, we met up at Nana and Bit's for popcorn and movie night.  Felt like we got out for the evening but the boys didn't have to get out of their slippers.

The kids missed them terribly after the house went back to being just boring old mom and dad.  Hope to see them again soon!

Christmas 2012

Christmas 2012 was just as special as we hoped it would be.  I love this picture of our tree just before we headed to bed on Christmas Eve.  I love the fire trucks that every two-year-old boy should have under the tree, the ornaments only hung on the top third of the tree because Finn couldn't leave them alone, that our room was not filled with packages but I know all those wrapped beauties would be loved, and the Star Wars figures on the packages to the right protecting the gifts for the evening.  This non magazine worthy Christmas picture tells a perfect story of our wonderful Christmas in the Conway house.

We started with stockings and opened presents while the Christmas morning casserole was baking.  I think this year I can safely call it my own.  I think the only thing it still has in common with my childhood casserole are the eggs.



I went back and forth on which present from my sister Erika should go to Finn or Ian.  I guess I chose wrong, because when they opened them at the same time, each one looked down at their present and then over at the other's and silently exchanged gifts.  It was pretty funny to watch, but they were both thrilled with their toy after fixing their mother's mix up.

The kids were at such fun ages.  There weren't a ton of presents, but it took about an hour and a half to get through them.  They would open a present and then want to play with if for a while.  Tristan wasn't in a lot of pictures because between the Legos and Star Wars ships he was in his room for most of the day playing.  It was the right amount of excitement without crossing the line into melt down city :)

After dinner, we had a birthday party for Jesus and Finn was thrilled with the cupcakes.  Ian entertained us by navigating the new book narrated by Bits about ten times.  They all loved it.

They all wanted to wear their new pajamas from Grandma and Grandpa. By the end of the day they were all getting along so well that they posed themselves for this picture :)

 

Another Christmas on the books and I love that my family was able to celebrate the birth of Jesus and also have a lot of fun along the way.

 

 

 

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

This Christmas season has been one of true blessing.  It looked and felt very different from years past.  Christmas 2012 stayed calm and enjoyable.  As a matter of fact, at our Christmas eve service when the pastor said that he knew we were all tired after the holiday "hustle and bustle", Neil and I looked at each other and chuckled because it really was not stressful...except for that ONE thing that stresses me out.
Okay, the ONE thing that I stress about each year is getting, wrapping, and shipping our extended family presents on time and on budget.  I would say I'm doing okay if that is the only thing all year I stress about, but stress is terrible and feels horrible.  Maybe next year will be the year I learn to eliminate those feelings :)

This year we sloooowed the pace and eliminated things that were "should dos" but are not all that enjoyable with the age of the boys right now.  There were no Christmas cookies, gingerbread houses, advent calenders, ice skating, or other difficult to maneuver/clean up activities.  We did get at least one good holiday fun activity in each week which was enough this year.

We got our Christmas tree, decorated it, realized it was almost dead after a few days, undecorated it, returned it, got a new one, and decorated it again :)

We went to two Christmas parades.

We went to zoo lights.  It was SOO cold that night, but we weren't sure we would have another chance to go.  The twins did great and didn't mind the cold, but Tristan complained most of the way.  Very out of character for him so it came as a bit of a surprised to us.

We went to a lovely Christmas party put on by Neil's mentor.  It was his first Christmas since his wife had passed, and he did a great job of getting the food, setting everything up, and even having movies for the kids.  I know it must have been hard for him to do this all on his own when I know he missed her so much.  She was with us in her own special way though.  Walt wore the bell that he had made for her years ago and that she wore every Christmas.  It was a special night together :)

We had Tristan's first Christmas program which was adorable!!!   He started the concert by yelling out, "My parents aren't here yet!"  Then he stole the show by singing louder (and more off key) than any of the other kids.  It was hilarious, cute, and memorable.  Neil and I could not have been more proud that our little guy was no wall flower!  He sings it like he means it and is not ashamed.

We rounded out our pre-Christmas activities with my favorite.  Christmas eve service is the best one for me.  We went to a family service where Tristan got to participate as a wise man.  I can't wait until it is complete next year when the twins will be able to join us for church instead of nursery. 

Since the church service was so early, we had a lot of time to kill before bedtime.  We took the kids to the movies.  It was the twins first time in a movie theater and they did great!  It was an hour and a half before the got the wiggles.  I looked down the row of kids to Neil and smiled.  This is something we have been looking forward to since we started having kids.  Neil and I LOVE to go to the movies and to be able to go as a family was just awesome!

Then it was home to get in our Christmas jammies and head to bed.  I love the weeks leading up to one of the best days of the year.  I love my family, and I love how fun they are!!!