Pajama Day

Tuttle was SO excited to wear his jammies to school on Thursday for Pajama Day. 

After school his teacher told me that they watched a movie clip on Arctic animals and drank hot chocolate. Tuttle was able to tell me specifically what kind of pajamas each classmate wore. He was very happy that his best buddy, Cooper, wore Star Wars jammies, too. :)

Maggie insisted on her picture before preschool, as well. I think she was confused that I was taking Tuttle's picture since I am always snapping shots of her!

The school week ended on a high note because Tuttle was line leader today. He picked letter Cheez-Its, apple sauce squeezies, and fruit snacks to share. He packed two Lego Star Wars battle ships for his Show-and-Tell. 

Maggie loved dressing like Mommy today. I am savoring every moment that she does not fight me on dressing her up! :)

We are lucky to have our babies at Oglethorpe Presbyterian Preschool. I love all these sweet memories they are making there.

The Weekend

We fit in a lot this weekend, but I still feel like we were able to be a little lazy, too. That is always a great combination. :) Friday night we started out with a big slumber party in our room. This included Mommy, Daddy, Tuttle, Maggie, Smelly (our dog), and Cat (our cat). Maggie wanted to sleep in a sleeping bag on the floor because she is not much of a snuggler, but she woke up around 1am, and was not happy to be on the floor, so I took her to Tuttle's room. Maggie and I slept until 10am the next morning! That was a FANTASTIC start to my weekend!

The kids and I could not waste much time once we were up because we had a birthday party to attend. Baisden was turning two and invited us to her party at My Gym. The kids had a blast climbing up and down the equipment, jumping in the ball pit, and riding on the zip line. I absolutely love My Gym- it is so clean and contained. I was actually able to spend a few minutes catching up with my sweet momma friends and meeting some new ones.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Baisden!

After the party I dropped off Maggie and Tuttle at Gram and Grump's house for our monthly date night. I know they had the best time playing with their new toys (a Star Wars Lego kit for Tuttle and a Rapunzel wooden paper doll set for Maggie) and sleeping in a tent in the living room! 

Jay and I dressed up a little for our night out and headed to Mableton for a birthday party for Justin. I was so thrilled to see almost every one of our friends. I had no idea everyone was coming!

We were able to stay about our hour before we needed to leave for our dinner reservations at Chops. 

Our dinner was a little disappointing because they lost our dinner reservations and our waiter almost ignored us, but I loved having an entire meal devoted to my amazing husband. We talked non-stop (mostly me!) and had such a fun time reminiscing about our life together so far. I love this man so much and am very lucky to spend my life with him. He definitely spoils me rotten and works SO HARD to better our family. 

Today Tuttle, Maggie, and I stayed in our pajamas almost the entire day while Daddy went to Starbuck to work and grabbed lunch with Aunt Peach. :) I always like to organize the house on Sundays with picking up rooms, cleaning the kitchen, running loads of laundry, and sending out various emails, and I had a full day to get everything done. We are ready to start the week! :)

Tuttle

I want to devote an entire blog post to Tuttle. He is having such a great week, and I wanted to brag on my sweet boy. :)

On top of balancing piano lessons and basketball practice, we added swim lessons into the mix this week. I am completely determined to have Tuttle independently swimming by this summer, so we are starting early and expect to continue lessons until the weather warms up and the outdoor pool officially opens. Last summer Tuttle came very close to swimming by himself, but I still had to be close by in the deeper water. I want him to be a little fish this year!

We lucked out with the aquatics director as Tuttle and Gigi's swim instructor for their private lessons. I cannot wait to see how much Tuttle will learn from Coach Katie.

Tuttle has been loving all the building toys that he received for Christmas. I am trying to rotate the sets, so everything continues to feel fresh. Yesterday Tuttle amazed me with his creativity in building a soccer field complete with goals, players, scoreboard, and benches. He worked on it all afternoon and even requested to continue his project during quiet time today. His attention to detail and clever designs would make him a fantastic architect one day. :)

Today I joined Tuttle's Pre-K class on a field trip to the Center for Puppetry Arts. We watched The Big Bad, Little Red, Pig Show. Tuttle was literally cracking up almost the entire time. I love hearing my little boy so happy. Maggie was in school, so I was able to devote my entire attention to Tuttle. It was a perfect morning with the Dragon class.

I cannot believe that Tuttle will be in elementary school in about seven short months. I want to soak up every second with him. He is growing up way too fast for my liking. :(

Pampering and Puzzles

This weekend Maggie and I started the fun with manicures and pedicures. Maggie has been asking to go back ever since we went a few months ago. She requested blue polish for her toes and pink polish for her nails. The sweet nail technician even offered to add sparkles. :)

Before we left for the nail salon, I made a big deal about how it was a special morning for Mommy and Maggie. There were no boys allowed. At one point a man walked into the salon to get a pedicure, and Maggie announced, "Mommy, there is a boy. No boys allowed!" Maggie obviously decided to bring her sassiness on our outing. 

Next I dropped off Maggie at the house and went straight to a massage. I never allow myself any treats, so it was so relaxing to sneak away for an hour of pampering!

Jay came up with the best idea to purchase a large puzzle for the family to complete. I grew up putting puzzles together with my family, especially on vacations, so I absolutely loved introducing the activity. We started with a smaller 300 piece puzzle, and everyone got in on the action.

We successfully finished the puzzle today! :) Tuttle stayed dedicated during the entire project and way so proud! Jay purchased a 1000 piece Yoda puzzle for our second attempt. He worked on it pretty independently for a few hours and completed the border. I think the Yoda one will take us MUCH longer than our airplane scene. 

Tuttle and Maggie played so sweetly all day that I suggested their first sleepover in Tuttle's room tonight. Maggie could not have been more excited. The kids do not have school tomorrow due to MLK Day, so I thought it was a perfect time to try it out since I could move Maggie back to her room if necessary, and both could sleep in. So far, so good......

 We are looking forward to a playdate tomorrow with some sweet friends that we have not seen since this past summer, Witt and Polly. :)

Open House and Sunshine

On Wednesday Tuttle and I went to an open house at his elementary school for next year.

I knew that I was very sad at the idea of Tuttle starting Kindergarten, but I was literally choking up throughout the tour. I am definitely not ready for my little boy to grow up. :( Tuttle was very excited to explore his school, especially the cafeteria and library. I know that he will thrive next year, but I am going to need a lot of tissues handy. 

After a week of dreary and cold weather the sun came out today! Maggie was happy to pick up Tuttle and Gigi and head to the school playground.

We made last minute plans with a group of friends to grab pizza at a neighborhood spot after the playground. We successfully fed nine kids and actually had a few minutes to catch up. It was the perfect way to start the weekend. :)

Surprise Field Trip

It has been pretty cold here so far this week, and even though the kids are back in school, we all still feel very stir crazy being inside all afternoon. 

Last night I decided to surprise the kids with a trip to Legoland after I picked them up from school today. I packed a lunch and headed straight for our fun surprise. Tuttle questioned where we were going, but I simply told him that we were taking a different way home. :)

The kids were ABSOLUTELY thrilled when I parked and told them we were heading to Legoland for a few hours. It was the perfect day to visit because the place was practically empty. We were able to watch the 3-D movie, build a few creations, and play Lego games. Unfortunately Maggie is still a little short to ride the flying attraction or play in the playground area, but Tuttle and Gigi were able to get a little energy out there while Maggie watched.

We ended our outing with cookies from Subway. I think the surprise was a huge success!

School and Basketball

Tuttle and Maggie were so excited to return to school on Tuesday! 

Maggie has a new lead teacher in her room that was slowly transitioned into the Pound Puppy classroom before the break. Maggie already loves Ms. Jen!

Tuttle eagerly awaited Thursday, so he could be snack student. He insisted on bringing his Rudolph stuffed animal, his Lego monster truck, and his Star Wars Lego book to share with his friends on his special day!

We finished the week cheering on Tuttle at his first basketball game! I was anticipating total chaos during the game because the team had not practiced for two weeks due to the holiday, but I was shocked at how well Coach Steve organized the Rhinos.

Although Tuttle was a little disappointed that he did not score his first official goal, he was such a team player and ran his little heart out all over the court! 

Maggie loved all the action and yelled for Gigi and Tuttle throughout the game!

Tuttle was completed EXHAUSTED after the game. I would barely pull him off the couch in the lobby to head home. :) I was a little apprehensive about how successful basketball could be with four year olds, but the Peachtree Presbyterian sports organization are exceeding my expectations! We cannot wait to play again next week!

Making The Cut

I took the plunge and cut Maggie's hair into a little bob this past weekend. I loved her long locks, but they were starting to look stringy. I made sure to tell the hairdresser that I still needed to be able to put the hair into pigtails.

Before

After

I think it makes her look little again. I am really just trying to slow down time. :)

We are trying to get back into a routine and not stay in pajamas all day, so even though the kids do not go back to school until tomorrow, we planned a playdate with friends this morning. This required everyone to be dressed by 9am, so I experimented with the pigtails, and they worked!

I think the haircut made the cut!!

Our Lazy Break

We have all been completely lazy since Christmas, and we are loving every minute of it. Jay has been off work since Christmas Day, and most days have been spent in our pajamas. 

On Monday we celebrated Daddy's birthday with a breakfast at J. Christopher's and running errands that Jay needed to complete. I think he had a fun family day!

We have filled the rest of our break with movies (Jay and Tuttle started a Star Wars marathon), riding bikes (including a long trip to grab lunch. The kids were troopers and rode for almost TWO HOURS!), and building Lego kits and doll furniture. One of the highlights has been sleeping until about 9am everyday, even Tuttle and Maggie! We are slowly packing up Christmas and getting our house organized with the additional loot from Santa. 

While I start back working tomorrow with Gigi, I think everyone will begin next week fully refreshed and ready to return to a routine! :)