I usually tune out to what the kids are saying in the back seat when I'm driving the preschool carpool, but when I tune in, it's usually pretty amusing. I usually drive Elaina and her two friends, Matthew and Caleb. Today I tuned in because Elaina was distraught and on the verge of tears. I asked her what is wrong. She answered that nobody would play with her. I asked why not, and was told that she wanted to play "Mommy and Daddy" and they wanted to play "a game called shoot the bad guys." We all had a little talk about including everyone and that she might need to be willing to play what the boys are playing if she wants to be included. So, she compromised...and tried to bend the game to go how she wanted it to go. I heard a lot of "pssshh, pssshh" (gun noises) and then, in her high-pitched, girliest voice:
Elaina: "oh no! Save me! I'm the princess and I don't have a shoot gun!"
Caleb & Matthew: "pssshhh, psshhh, bam, bam"
Elaina: "oh no! My gun ran out of batteries. Can you give me some more?"
Caleb, sounding a little annoyed: "Nooo!! We're shooting the bad guys!"
....more gun noises from the boys and more high pitched, helpless cries from Elaina....
Caleb: "oh no! Let's shoot the rabbits!"
Elaina looked a little concerned at this, but still wanted desperately to be apart of the game: "ok, now we've got the rabbits. Let's take them off to jail."
Caleb: N-N-N-N-N-O! We're supposed to SHOOT the rabbits!!
After a long, silent pause in which everyone seemed bothered (each for their own reasons) about how this game was going, Elaina decided to just change the game altogether:
Elaina (on the pretend phone): "hello hello? This is Princess Aurora. Hello? Hello? Someone pick up the phone please. This is Princess Aurora."
Nobody picked up the phone and the boys went back to shooting rabbits and bad guys...and bad rabbits.
I'm finally getting caught up on our blog! I've been doing a lot of posting lately, so scroll through the older posts (at the bottom of the page) to see other recent posts. One of these days I will actually be caught up! :)
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Erin Dressed Herself...
Monday, March 15, 2010
A Bouquet of Weeds
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Snow in Texas!!!
It snowed here last week and we were so excited! We're a little limited on the winter clothing :) Erin ironically has 2 pair of winter boots; poor Elaina had to wear her regular tennis shoes, which soaked through. Erin's gloves didn't match; Elaina borrowed mine (which were huge on her!) when hers got soaked. Elaina's coat was pretty light-weight and so she had lots of layers underneath to try and keep her warm.



At first the girls were a little hesitant to go and really play in the snow; they weren't really sure about getting wet and dirty. I told Elaina to "go play" so she jumped in, and then jumped right back out. It was so funny to see them so unfamiliar with snow!
Erin's a little copy cat, so she followed Elaina jumping in....and right back out. It didn't take too long for them to get wet and dirty and have lots of fun. They got drenched! It was so great!
Erin got stuck in this position. She didn't really want to get wet yet, so she just stood there calling for me to help her. I snapped a photo :)



Elaina, starting our snowman...but then the girls discovered how fun it is to throw a snowball and so we started several snowmen that afternoon
We stayed out as long as we could, but after about an hour and a half they were both pretty drenched and so we came in. I stuck Elaina's shoes, and all the gloves, hats, and sweaters in the dryer so we could go out again after dinner.



At first the girls were a little hesitant to go and really play in the snow; they weren't really sure about getting wet and dirty. I told Elaina to "go play" so she jumped in, and then jumped right back out. It was so funny to see them so unfamiliar with snow!
Random Recent Fun
We went to the Aquarium in Houston with some friends last month. Elaina and Erin were both brave enough to touch the stingray and starfish:


We went to a birthday part at a place called Mt. Aggie. It's February and so the fact that we're sledding doesn't seem too ridiculous, right? Right. Except notice the green grass in the background, the short sleeves/no coats. And our friend Aspen at the front of the sled in his bare feet. Yes, we are on a mountain of carpet (which is white to make us feel like we're getting the true effect, but some of us aren't fooled since we still go down barefoot), which is hosed down every couple of hours so that we can slide better. It was a blast! Elaina was a little nervous at first. I went with her several times, and then she found a new friend that she shared a sled with the rest of the time. I did send her down once by herself and it scared her to death! Mt. Aggie is a huge hit - it's on A&M campus - just this white mountain in the middle of nowhere that I had never noticed before.
DiSnEyLaNd!!!
I was so excited to take the kids to Disneyland when we were in California after Christmas. I think they were the perfect ages - Erin was old enough to enjoy the excitement and know who the characters are. She was also old enough to be able to handle a long day. Elaina was young enough that she wasn't trying to figure out if it was the real Mickey Mouse, or just someone dressed up as Mickey. It was magical for all of us. I love Disneyland! I'm glad that all of my brother and sister in laws (who were there) were able to come too. It was such a fun day!
Entrance to Disneyland. The girls were just in awe. I was so excited to introduce them to Disneyland!
Visiting Dale. He was so impressed with Elaina's sparkly shoes, and she was just as excited to show them off :)


Elaina, me, and Staci on the boats at It's a Small World...Elaina looks scared, but she wasn't scared - this is her "I-want-to-look-at-other-things-but-Mom's-making-me-smile-for-the-camera" face.
Teacups! Kelli and I volunteered to go on with the kids (Kelli is pregnant; I'm just a wuss - I just can't handle the dizzy rides!), while TJ and Staci went crazy on their own teacup.
While we were waiting for the parade to start Erin got in front of the crowds and started twirling and dancing. People around us thought it was pretty funny, and then other girls started to follow. Then this little girl came out and Erin was in heaven that Snow White came to dance with her. I think there ended up being about 3 little girls that were out there dancing for the crowds.
After the parade we went to go visit the princesses. We got in line and realized it was an hour and a half wait. I had told the girls that the princesses lived at Disneyland and that we would be able to see them so there was no way that we were going home without seeing them. So I stood in line while the kids went on other rides with Kelli, TJ & Staci, and they got back just in time to meet the princesses. It worked out great and was SO worth it. I wish you all could have seen their faces when they walked up and saw Belle and Ariel and Jasmine. They acted elegantly, and polite, and very princess-y. It was so cute.
Elaina felt like a real pricess sitting with Belle
Ariel as our favorite - she was so talkative and friendly. She kept talking and asking questions to the girls and was so interested in what the girls told her. She played the part perfectly and we all just loved her
I love this picture of Elaina and Belle - it's like they're having a little conversation and you can see on Elaina's face how special she feels to be visiting with Princess Belle
Erin & Uncle Jonny. He went with us on Pirates of the Caribbean and was sitting next to Elaina and Erin saying "you're going to die!!!!!" They just laughed and thought he was hilarious, and the ride wasn't scary. However, earlier in the day when we were on Mr. Toad's Wild Ride (far less scary than Pirates) they were both freaked out and crying - and Kelli and I were trying to calm them down and tell them it was all pretend the whole time!
If you've talked to the girls at all in the last 2 months you know that "Goofy turned around in the picture." They tell everyone they ever talk to. Multiple times. They tell strangers in line at the grocery store. They tell random people at church. People have no idea what they're talking about, but Elaina and Erin think it's hilarious. If only Goofy knew how memorable his turning around in the picture would be!
Elaina always wants to help navigate. I have so many pictures of her reading the map at various different places. I think these pictures are so cute!
Elaina at It's a Small World
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