Family Photo Session

Back in December, before we moved I asked our wonderful friend/babysitter Hailee Webb if she could take a few photos of our family.

Now that we are in our home, our family photo wall is filled with these photos. Just thought I'd share what a great job she did. Friends in Huntsville, give her a chance, she did great work!

Obviously, I had a hard time picking just a few.

Nap Time

Nap time is my favorite time of day. Followed closely by my second favorite, bed time.

I kid, I kid.

Kind of.

Anyway, for the last several months Maggie has been making it clear that she is almost done with nap times. She stays awake in bed while Ellie is napping peacefully, and then falls asleep only a few minutes before Ellie wakes up.

I fight with her every nap time because I know that just before dinner time melt downs tend to ensue pretty frequently and with great fervor. So, nap times are still an important part of our day.

Not to mention mommy needs the rest time too.

The girls are now sharing a room for the first time ever, as well as the fact that Ellie is now in a twin bed instead of a crib.

The extra freedom has caused Ellie to go a little crazy at nap time. She is up and down about a million times. in her dresser drawers and the dress up clothes cabinet in their closet.

Scott walked in the other day to find her jumping on Maggie's bed, while Maggie looked on in fear with her sister jumping on top of her. Maggie knew the consequences. Ellie, not so much.

I am understanding that these girls have been through a lot of transition in the last several months, with more on the horizon for Ellie. Potty training is being introduced very soon.

However, naps will remain on our schedule for the indefinite future. They will learn how to share a room, transitions don't last forever.

Maggie's Gym Class

We've been looking for different ways to get involved here in our new home town.

We've found a great church and Sunday School class, and by that we came across a gym class for 3-5 year olds.

A sweet couple from our class offers a class each Thursday through the end of May that allows the kids to run off some steam while learning some pretty important skills.

Maggie's first week was actually the classes second week, so she was a bit behind.

She also decided to be SUPER shy.

The shyness comes in waves, but this first class it came out in spades. She showed her shyness by walking instead of running and chewing on her hand.

She's never chewed on her hand, so I'm not sure where that came from.

She warmed up some by the end of the class.

They learn how to stand in a line, one behind the other and side by side. They play red light/green light. Kick ball, they throw and catch balls and Maggie's favorite the obstacle course.

It's funny, I didn't really realize that standing in line was a skill that needed to be taught. Something so innocuous, Maggie didn't know how to do. I don't ask the girls to line up for their dinner, so not knowing how makes sense. I just thought that was interesting.

There are only two more classes left and she has done much better. It takes her a few minutes to remember that she enjoys the class and is usually the caboose of running children, but then she remembers and tries her best.  She has done well following the directions and after each class when asked what she liked the best her answer is always, "Everything!"

While this class has been great for her, I've enjoyed the chance to visit with a few of the other kid's moms. We are enjoying getting plugged in here, and are excited to see the opportunities God is providing.

PS. Sorry for the terrible pictures, distance and camera phones aren't a good pair.

Let the Good Times Roll

My dad turned 55 last week, and in typical Wilson fashion we celebrated for a week.

But nothing was as big as the surprise murder mystery dinner party that my mom had planned.

The initial plan to throw him off the surprise was to have his birthday dinner at our new home.

So we did.

Our first guests in our new home.

And I didn't even have to do the dishes. Thanks mom!

While enjoying our yummy cake, after pretend blowing out fake fire on the candles, we strategically planned to orchestrate the parents to take our girls to a movie on Saturday.

The carefully thought out script to get my dad out of the house Saturday afternoon, felt so obvious. And while my dad may have wondered why on earth my mom committed to taking three young girls three and under to the movies, he didn't ask any questions. Thankfully.

So, Saturday afternoon while Poppy and GG were watching a flick, my sisters, husband and I were decorating and preparing food for our Mardi Gras Murder Mystery.

The title of the show was "As the Bead Turns" and was written in three rounds. Each guest was given a character and a set of information about their character. They were directed certain things to say or do at certain times and to certain other characters.

The evening was broken into three rounds.

Round 1: Appetizers and general introductions.
Round 2: Dinner and a Murder
Round 3: Dessert and the Accusations/Big Reveal

Between each round there were a couple of games the guests played, including at the end a dance competition where each team was given a different type of dance (80's, waltz, robot etc.) and were asked to come up with a choreographed routine to a popular zydeco song.

It was a hoot!

All of the guests really played their parts well and were in great characters! With only a hitch or two, the killer was revealed and the party came to an end.

We had a great time, and it was a lot of fun to dress up.

There were so many different murder mystery scripts to choose from, I'm sure I'll have to host my own someday.

Bike Riding

Life has been busy.

Super busy. Some good, some bad, lots of busy

I have several posts completed and ready to go, but I forget to actually post them. I'll try to do better.

My sister was in town to celebrate our dad's birthday. Before they leave tomorrow we were able to spend a little time today with them before they head back tomorrow. Next time see them, my brother will become a husband. Weird.

Anyway, after a stressful morning at home with my girls where we camped out in the bathroom all morning hoping to avoid accidents. We are starting potty training for Ellie and had not one but two #2 accidents. Ugh...I know, it'll come

We headed over to my parents and went for a walk/bike ride. It may have been the first time my girls have used their bikes outside.

It started off pretty well, until we hit a down hill part of the sidewalk. 

And remembered that these bikes do not have brakes. 

Bad mom, stopped to take the pic first. They survived. 

Though they did leave their bikes behind and took off on foot.

The weather looked really nice, but the wind was a bit brutal. 

The snow was still on the ground, which immediately was flying from one kid to the other. 

Which was followed very quickly with playing in the dirt. They made a garden in a paint tray that had to be cooked under the cars. I don't know. They had fun, so who cares. I was a very chill cool mom and let them play their hearts out. We did stop in the utility room immediately when we got home though.  

After a picnic on the driveway we called it a day. Telling them see you soon. Looking forward to more walks and bike rides with the coming spring weather. Surely its coming.