MORE of FOUR!

Another action-packed long weekend with our buddy, Henry!  Fun dinners & lunches @ the bar in the 'grown-up stools'!!

Sunday Funday - Henry had 'Bombers Ski School', so the boys went to the Mountain, while Elsie Anne & I had a chill day @ Church and home!  This is EA walking to her "Sunday Cool Class"!

And the boys met up after Henry's instruction & went out on the Ski Lifts!  Henry did fantastic skiing all by himself.  Shawn loved giving him pointers that really helped his coordination!  Back-in-the-Day, this was Shawn's day-job, and he is still REALLY good @ it:)

The BIG MAN himself...

After nap, we packed up & headed out to meet them!  Up,Up,Up the Gondola to the 'T-Bar' for beers & snacks!  It was awesome to hear Henry's stories of his day, his favorite part... "going FAST w/ Shawn"!!

And here are the little Munchkins going Down,Down,Down the Gondola!!  What a fun life they live, growing up in the Mountains:)

This just makes me SMILE!  Their little noses pressed up on the glass - they couldn't be sweeter:) 

Monday Night Family Dinner Date @ Mi Casa!  We picked up Henry from school & went straight there for an early dinner!  I love it when we can cut out that late afternoon snack & the kids stuff themselves @ dinner!  The kids behaved beautifully & it was such a nice evening for all of us:)

Woah, a little too close Daddy, but I wanted to include the other side of the table!  My buddy, Henry! 

Our Nanny stays with Henry are draining from all the extra activities, but always so enjoyable & worth it!  He is such a sweetie-pie & I am the luckiest Nanny to work with his family.  Just thinking about leaving him for Florida, (in the future) breaks my heart!

"Slide Water Park"

After being SICK, and I mean as sick as Elsie Anne has ever been... our first outing was the Silverthorne Rec Center, which has an amazing water area!!  We all deserved this little getaway:)

Elsie Anne & Daddy getting ready for the HUGE water slide!  Who do you think was more excited??

WAY UP at the THREE STORY top:)

In the middle of the slide!  It was so fun to see all her expressions on the way down!

SPLASH!  EA liked this part the best!!

We are so happy that fever, cough & snotty-ness are GONE:)

EA's Room - Phase II

Its funny how 'one thing leads to another'...

Last week, Elsie Anne's changing table broke in two places - even though Shawn is a 'Mr. Fixit' we decided it had a good run & trashed it.  This freed up some space in EA's tiny bedroom, so off to Target we went!  We made a big production about getting 'new big girl furniture'!  Once we put it all together & got it all set up, we were impressed w/ the small play area/cozy corner we created!!

Bookshelf by Rocker, Storage Cubbies w/ Baskets, & Bean Bag, all for just over $100!  We were pretty pumped w/ what we did on our Target budget!

And even more pumped when Elsie Anne confirmed "I like it!" 

Once the room was finished, it was obviously harder for us to change diapers, which made us start pushing panties more!  And to our astonishment EA was all for it:) 

Just following God's 'How-To-Parent' Handbook!  I love seeing Him work in the tiniest of ways:)

Potty Perfection...

...well, not quite PERFECTION - yet - but Elsie Anne is bound & determined to be a BIG GIRL!  As I've said numerous times lately - we are so PROUD of her!  It just amazes us to see her glide through these transitions that have taunted me in my sleep!  What a relief:)  I'm not fooling myself, I'm sure the 'training' will continue for months!  But, at this point EA has worn "big girl panties" for 3 days in a row, had a "dry cribby" after every nap, very few 'mishaps' & did her first "POOP in potty Daddy!" this afternoon w/ no coercing !!  She is still in a diaper @ night, but we'll start working on that soon:)

And, of course, I'm reading Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah - who's main character is having problems with her 13yr old daughter wanting to grow up too fast, & I'm thinking, "oh Lord, what will we have in store for us in 10yrs - in 3yrs for that matter??!"  I'm trying my hardest to take life SLOWLY & enjoy all the little things that happen every day!

Sweet Dreams...

...and Farewell, Tony Aveil.  I can't even believe its happened this fast - so thankful you passed peacefully in your sleep.  We will think of you each time we jump in the refreshing water - as Sandie has posted, your ashes will be spread all over the world, in various bodies of water.  Your vibrant, contagious personality will always be remembered.

Thank you for being such a true friend to Shawn & I.  Thank you for all the crazyness & fun times we shared together - always with a permaGRIN.  Thank you for our favorite nicknames - 'Els' for Elsie Anne & 'MacKer' (pronounced MacKa) for me. We will miss your entertaining Aussie Pride, your flowing blond locks (which Shawn had the honor of buzzing off after his 3rd wk of chemo), & your LOVE for the Buckeyes, once Shawn taught you 'American Rules Football'!

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This has truly been an eye-opener.  Shawn & I have never SEEN the effects of Cancer & how fast it can eat a person up.  Just 4 short months ago Tony was having the time of his life - and had turned a 'healthy' corner - only to find out he had a tumor growing in his neck.  After surgery & a clean bill of health, we celebrated a short-lived HIGH. 

Two weeks later, another tumor, on the other side of his neck, had grown @ super speed.  He had 12wks of intense chemotherapy & radiation, to no avail.  They did a cat scan of his whole body on Christmas Eve, and found dozens of small tumors throughout his lungs, which were considered 'in-operable'.  They gave Tony 12mo to live, which he called his "Expiration Date". 

He quickly made his Bucket List and started checking things off.  Recently he spent 10 days in Scottsdale, AZ & played 2 rounds of golf.  Upon his return, his health declined rapidly.  We were able to say "see you soon"  this past Friday.  Although he was in & out of reality, Shawn, Elsie Anne & myself, each had a special moment where he recognized us!  I feel extremely fortunate to have had this last visit with him & feel better knowing that he's not in anymore pain.

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There will be no 'Resting In Peace' for you 'mate' - have a BLAST on your New Adventure! Cheers!

EA, Shawn, Tony, Donnie, Kip - October 2010 - Good Luck Golf @ Copper Mtn, before his first surgery.

DRY!!

1year,11months, 1week, 3days!
I must say that we are EXTREMELY PROUD of our Little Lady!  We were home today with not many plans, so Daddy put EA in her big girl 'Yo Gabba Gabba' panties this morning.  And with the exception of ONE mishap this morning, Elsie Anne stayed DRY ALL DAY - even through her 2 hour nap!!! 

EA decided she wanted to wear big girl PANTIES to the restaraunt when we met Daddy (after his skiing).  She packed her bag w/ panties, instead of diapers & did a big peepee before getting into her car seat.  It was awesome to see her understanding that she DID NOT want to get her car seat wet with peepee.  Another fun thing about potty training - she loves being able to pull up her shirt to see her bellie-button, since she usually has a 'onesie' (which is tucked in & snaps @ the crotch) on under every outfit!

Elsie Anne's infamous "FUNNY FACE" as she calls it!!

Kisses for her "scratchy Daddy face" as he grows a beard!  To Momma's dismay, he grows a huge beard throughout February, then shaves everything but the mustache for 'Mustache March' - as it's called on the Mountain!

And for her last peepee in the potty of the day - before her bath - she did it "all by-self" with her new potty step stool:)  I mean, what next - Middle School Dances??! 

Shawn & I are seriously freaking out with all the new BIG GIRL milestones she is hitting!!!

Setting Up!

As most of you know, I teach two toddler's classes @ our local gym.  I'm usually a little stressed on Friday mornings, knowing I have to get Elsie Anne up, fed, dressed & to the gym by 8:30am to set up for our 'Tumbling Tots' class (which should sound very familiar to a few of you Tally folk).  However, this Friday, Shawn was able to help out:)  So, we all loaded up & he snapped a few silly shots!  This is ONE of the THREE floor mats I have to push across the entire gym, roll out & smash together, to create a 'gymnastics floor mat'!

Obviously, EA thinks I push them out just for her tunnel pleasure:)

I'm happy to say that our class has really picked up in popularity & we've made some really great friends!!

Bubble...

...is what Elsie Anne calls her new plush blankie, she got from our visiting friends, The Prickett's.  She continues to say "Thank You Paaiissh" (Parrish) when she snuggles into her lovie!  It is truly the softest thing I've ever felt - bumpy (bubbles) on one side, smooth on the other & taggies along one of the edges!  Unfortunately I lost my camera for a few days & didn't document any of our visit.

Visit the complete line of Blankies, Burp Clothes & Bibs - The Blue Eyed Monkey - Kristin designed!

Busy Fam!!

What a whirlwind these 2 weeks have been!!  Since getting home from Florida, I feel like I've barely had time to breathe.  I've had my normal work weeks - this is not including trips to the grocery store, wal-mart, laundry, cleaning toys up, bath time, etc...

Mon: I teach 'monkey see, monkey do yoga' 9-9:45am
Tues: nanny Adeline + dance class 10-10:45am
Wed: nanny Adeline + family gym 10-12pm
Thur: nanny Adeline + gondola ride or toy store play area
Fri: I teach 'tumbling tots' 9-9:45am

PLUS we started over-nighting Henry on Wed, 2/2 - Thur, 2/10 & he has activities of his own...
Sun: 'Bombers' Ski School 8:30-3pm
Mon, Tues, Thur: Pre-School 9-5pm
Wed: dance class 9-9:45am

I must say I've got a whole new perspective for life of a family of 4, or 5 for that matter!  Do you ladies ever get a rest?!  I feel like my life with Elsie Anne is crazy enough, but add Henry to the mix & we're on a whole new level of action packed!!  I'm hoping that in 'real life' it won't be as chaotic, since I'll have time to ease into it?!

Night-time is easily my favorite time of 'day'!!  Not just because I get a break, but because the kiddies are always super sweet & lovie!  Stories, Songs & Prayers always settle them down, no matter how crazy Shawn gets them:)

Brrrr!

Too cold to do ANYTHING today!  Woke up this morning to -38* weather, our living room was 50*, and our fire place was so cold it took over an hour to get the fire started!  Thankfully our heaters work better upstairs & our rooms were nice and cozy last night.  Even now at 2pm, it is -18*!!  We got a little stir crazy, and I loaded Elsie Anne & Adeline up to meet Shawn for a Chinese lunch date:)

Cupcakes!

Once again, Daddy proves to be the chef/baker of the family:)  I fell in love all over again when Shawn brought home makings for Cupcakes!  Elsie Anne was thrilled when he asked her to help! 

And this is what Momma did while they were busy in the kitchen... hee,hee:)