It's Always a Circus Around Here!

Henry's class had a circus day on Friday complete with a ring of fire, walking on a tight rope, taming circus animals, going to a photo booth, face painting, a bouncy and several other fun activities "under the big top!"

Then David decided to teach the munchkins some circus tricks in the den the other night :)


Grant and Grace fight over the sunglasses in the bath tub. They understand the importance of being stylish at all times! :)

It is Tuesday morning, and David and I feel half way human again. The kids got a virus over the weekend, and gave it to us! It has been a rough few days around here, but I think we've finally turned a corner. It truly is always a circus around here! We are thankful for the return of good health, and ready for spring with less sickness!

My Babies are Not Really Babies Anymore!

With their second birthday just a few days away, I'm starting to realize my "babies" are not really babies anymore!

(Excuse the fuzzy video quality/poor lighting--these were too cute not to post despite it!)

They know their animal sounds:

Untitled from Brooke Patterson on Vimeo.

And yes, Grant can count to ten! (So can Grace, but she was too busy to pause for the camera tonight!)

Untitled from Brooke Patterson on Vimeo.

I need to get a video of them singing their ABC's and some other cute songs they sing all the time...maybe that will be our next post!

The Funny Things You Say

The kids say the funniest things these days. They really keep us laughing. I wish I wrote these down more often so I could laugh at them one day!

A few days ago, Grace walked in the room and told her brothers, "Boys, I need to talk to you!" I'm pretty sure she'll be running this house pretty soon!!

Grant's favorite things to say are "more kisses" and "It's not night night time!" If you tickle Grant and he laughs really hard, he'll say, "Oh me!"

And a few pics of life around here.....nothing too eventful to report! See below. :)

Grant and Grace love story time in Grace's room each night before bed. Their favorite book these days is Ten Tiny Fingers & Ten Tiny Toes.

We had to get out of the house on Saturday afternoon for a showing, so we headed over to spend some time with Mimi & Papa. Grace had a lot of fun sitting in the rocking chair that was mine when I was her age! (I made Grace's pants! I still have a lot to learn, but I was please for play clothes!)

A Fun MLK Weekend

We had a great long weekend. On Sunday afternoon (perfectly timed between am church, naps & pm church), Nana & Pawpaw stopped by for a visit. They have fun playing ring around the rosies with the kids!

On Monday we went with our neighbor, Jack, to Edgar's to get cupcakes.

Grace got a pretty pink flower and hardly touched it. (Grant devoured his before I could take a pic.)

Henry ate none of his, and instead wasted my $1.75 by flattening his cupcake like a pancake!

A Snuggly Sunday

The kids were so cute this morning before church. They piled up on the couch on top of each other to snuggle before we left for church!
Grant liked sitting in Grace's lap, but I'm pretty sure Grace was not quite as entertained by the idea!

My little ham. He loves the camera!

Cheese! Grant has been into all kinds of trouble this week. He ran a fever for six days, and when he was finally well, he was in rare form! Yesterday he decided to make the world a more beautiful place. His tool: a red Sharpie whiteboard marker. His canvas: our kitchen floor. Luckily it wiped off very easily with a wipe! Whew! (I had a heart attack when I saw it!)

I appologize for not posting all week. The ice storm and Grant being sick had us cooped up in the house. Plus, my new sewing machine arrived this week, and I have been sewing like crazy! It has completely consumed every spare minute I can find! I'm having so much fun. Yesterday I made the dishmat above--a stylish way to have dishes drying on your counter. (It is not perfect--don't look too close! I need to brush up on my sewing skills!) And below, a fun tote bag. This turned out really well, and I used an iron on interfacing that really gave the bag a nice body. I may make some more of these. They would be a good size for a pool bag or even a good overnight bag for the kids!

A Day We Won't Soon Forget!

There was so much ice when we woke up this morning! It definitely made for some fun sledding! We are thankful for the inclement weather that cancelled work and school on the day of the National Championship game, and even more thankful that it wasn't enough to make us lose power or cable! This is definitely a day we won't soon forget! WAR EAGLE!!!!

Happy Birthday, Papa!

Papa's actual birthday is tomorrow, but we had a party for him at lunch today! Everyone had so much fun. Grant & Grace refused to nap at their house due to the excitement. As we left at 4:30, they collapsed in the car and have been asleep ever since! I hope they don't wake up at 3:00 a.m. tomorrow ready to start their day!

Of course, Grant's favorite part of Papa's party was the cake!!

Tonight Henry had no less than 30 drafts of the perfect family portrait. I told David I thought he had an anger problem, because he was dramatically tearing out sheets when he made an error and throwing them in the floor. Then David said, "Brooke, I think he's probably just a perfectionist like you." Is this supposed to make me feel better or worse? Haha.

(I shouldn't have said "smile!" That always encourages Henry to make the craziest face possible.)

And I tried a new recipe this week that was SO good and SUPER easy, so I must share!

Southwest Chicken Soup:

1 Box of Swanson's Chicken Broth

1 Rotisserie Chicken pulled into pieces (I used a southwest rotisserie chicken)

1 can of navy beans, undrained

1 jar of pace medium salsa verde (green salsa) (I used 2/3 of the jar)

Dump in crockpot and cook on low for 2 hours or just simmer on the stove for a few minutes.

It was amazing! Next time I might tweak it by trying kidney beans or even adding a pasta to it, but it was so so good & so EASY! I must warn you, it is spicy! If you like mexican food, you will love it though!

I'm just so proud of my children's table manners! :) Sitting on the table, barefoot, and drinking out of a bowl. I really do try to teach them better. I know you can't tell, but I do try!

"I don't want to live in Alabama, Mom!"

The kids did not want to go to bed tonight, so they smartly opted to hide under Henry's bed where their big ole Mama could not squeeze to capture them!

Tonight on our way home from church Henry informed me that he didn't want to live in Alabama. I asked him why, and he said, "Because Alabama is stinky. I want to live in Auburn where you and Daddy lived when you met!" (Sometimes I want to live in Auburn, too, but I'm afraid this four year old needs some clarification on the team Alabama versus the State of Alabama!) Kids say the funniest things!

No Nap Monday!

Apparently I did not get the memo from the munchkins that they were planning a "no nap Monday." When I picked them up from school I learned that no one wanted to cooperate during nap time today! I guess it may take a few days to get back in the swing of things after the long Christmas break.

When we got home we joined our sweet neighbor Mollie on her new trampoline she got from Santa. It was a hit with some (Henry), and not so much with others (Grant.) Thanks for sharing your fun toy, Mollie!

Happy New Year!

The kids love to dance. I took this video the other night of them dancing after dinner. Sorry it is a little blurry. I thought I had the camera in focus, but I guess not!

Untitled from Brooke Patterson on Vimeo.

Here are a few pics I've taken of the kids playing outside the past few days. We've been taking advantage of the unseasonably warm weather!

Grant & Mollie had fun playing with play doh at her house!

Will, Reid & Kate came down on New Year's Eve day for a visit. The kids absolutely loved it! I hate that the kids don't live closer to their cousins, because they have so much fun together. I hope in the years to come they will come see us for lots of sleepovers so we can have more time to visit with them!

We had a great time last night ringing in the New Year with friends. What a great year 2010 was, and we look forward to all that 2011 has in store!