Abilene, Kansas

I have to get my posts caught up!  I know people will be clamboring to see pictures of the girls' Halloween costumes, but I can't go out of order! 

A few weeks ago, (I feel like I start a lot of posts that way) we went to a family reunion in Abilene, Kansas.  We got to visit with family and enjoy the charming town.  While we were there we took a ride on an old fashion carousel.

It was different than what we are all used to.  Instead of the horses going up and down, they rocked jerkily back and forth.  It had a pipe organ that blasted the music instead of a recorded song.

We spent time with Will's cousin Callie, and her daughter Hailey.  Its nice that we have cousins our age to hang out with!

We spent some time exploring the downtown antique shops.  The girls enjoyed looking at everything shiny, fancy, or girlie.

I was really sad that we didn't get to the soda fountain before they closed.

Looking forward to our next visit!


 

First Concert

The first concert I remember going to was New Kids on the Block.  I was in fourth grade.  I remember every detail of it.  Waiting in line to buy tickets.  Wearing my holey jeans with my giant NKOTB button on my shirt.  Driving home from Wichita with Emmy, Crystal, my mom, and Crystal's mom, Olivia.  I could go on with the details, but you get the picture.  It was a big deal.

A few weeks ago, we took the girls to their first concert.  The Imagination Movers.  Here's a link for you to watch.    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQHjg0vhQKw    I have to admit, Will and I like the Imagination Movers just as much, if not more, than the girls.  Its music that gets us all dancing. 

I don't know if you've ever watched a video of a "kid" concert, but our experience was right out of a commercial.  There were balls thrown into the audience and toilet paper sprayed from the stage. Confetti shot out of cannons.  Taylor and I were immediately up on our feet doing all the dance moves we had practiced so often at home.  It took Emma and Will a while to follow suite.  Emma just watched from her seat with her head in her hands, a smile plastered on her face.

The end was approaching and they took the fun to a more subdued level.  They thanked the parents for bringing their children.  Thanked us for giving them the gift of our time and attention.  I looked at Taylor and she had tears rolling down her cheeks.  I didn't say anything.

In the car on the way home she said, "I was so happy when they talked about you giving us a gift that it made me cry!  That has never happened to me before."  She is definitely a child after my own heart.  I explained to her that everything makes me cry!

Please excuse the terrible phone picture - I forgot my camera.

Sick Days

Three weeks ago Taylor was home from school sick for two days.  This past week Emma was home from school sick for two days. 

Sure, they had some sick days last year during preschool, but that was different.  I only had the sick one by themselves for two and a half hours.  Now I have them for seven hours.  Seven. Long. Hours.

I can hear people with only one child now. 
"I entertain my kid all day, every day!" 
I know, having twins has spoiled me.

When you're sick, that's the perfect opportunity to watch t.v., but I have a problem with that after we hit the 3 hour mark.  I can't help but feel like its sucking the life out of them.  Wanting them to stay low-key, I encouraged things like reading or play-doh.  Taylor does a pretty good job of playing by herself, but Emma struggles with that.  She needs constant companionship.  Having a twin has spoiled her, too.

Actually, I ended up really enjoying the time I got to spend with each of them.  I discovered that Emma has been hiding a secret from us!  She is becoming quite the little reader!  I already knew that about Taylor, but Emma hasn't shown us much in the area of academics.  Emma also decided that the ideal way to take her temperature is under her tongue.  She has refused to do that up to this point.  It's like she grew a whole year in two days.

To top things off, both girls decided that they don't want to sleep with any stuffed animals or dolls anymore.  They are just growing too fast.

I now have a different view of sick days.  I'm looking forward to the next one.

These are Emma's special treats that she made during one of her sick days.  In case you were wondering, she won first prize in the queen's baking competition and she made $1,000 in her bake sale.  She will use the proceeds to buy more baking supplies.

32 Years

 With the help of wonderful friends, I celebrated my 32nd birthday on Sunday.  They decorated our campsite and even gave me a candle for my biscuits and gravy.

As part of Taylor's gift to me, she collected flowers and decorated my hair.

Last week, the girls had school store day where they could buy items for a quarter.  Will encouraged them to buy me a birthday gift.  Taylor bought be a beanie baby bear.  She couldn't wait to give it to me so she handed it directly to me after school. 

Emma bought a candy bug and said she would share it with me.  She then gave half to Taylor, and handed me a leg.  I told her she could keep it.  Don't worry though, she still gave me something.  This is her digging my "birthday" hole.

This was my special birthday chair.

I love these friends!

Camping at Pete's Puddle

Last weekend we went camping with two other families at Pete's Puddle.  We were the only tent campers among a sea of very fancy rvs.  In fact, I think we may have been the only tent campers they had seen in years.  We were definitely the talk of the puddle.

This was a great fishing spot for the kids to really "learn" how to fish.  They practiced casting, walking around with the pole and not hooking someone in the eye, and having patience. 

Will caught five and I caught one.

Later that day, Taylor caught her first fish!

On Saturday afternoon we ventured into the little town of Burrton to watch the Fall Festival parade.  This is our crew waiting for it to start.  We left before the lawn mower races began.

We went back to camp and did camp-like things.  Emma caught her first fish on Sunday morning (with some help from mom).

I will leave you with random pictures to conclude this post.  Enjoy!