Sledding Debacle

Our Christmas Eve sledding trip started and ended well.  Everyone was so excited to be there and the conditions were perfect! 




It took no prodding at all to get the kids on the tube and send them down the hill.


But.... do you see what we didn't see? And as Ben said as I was taking this picture, "Uh oh."


Too bad I didn't keep shooting pictures.  I kinda forgot as I was watching my kids fly through the air....


I like this picture.  They were looking at the offending ramp hidden in the snow hill.  It may not have been that bad if they had been expecting it.


They flew like birds, beautiful birds.


Coming back up the hill for another run down. 


Madelyn was up for the challenge.  She had flown like a bird before at this sledding outing (even though it wasn't mentioned).  Greyson sat out for a little while, but he warmed back up to the idea of riding down the hill  He even went by himself a few times.... I love me some good sledding!

Jesus' Birthday

MERRY CHRISTMAS from the Rhodes Family!!

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.       John 1:14

We've truly enjoyed today.  Waking up to the quiet and then surprised at the late hour (7:30am!), the house was soon bustling with excitement!  It is Christmas!  What we've been waiting for!  It's been wonderful ushering in the real story of the season as we've been more intentional in the story telling and emphasizing of Jesus, his birth, and why it is SO important.  The anticipation of living the anniversary of such great moments in history has been building for days, weeks.  And they didn't disappoint.  God has truly blessed us - greatly!  We shared a birthday blessing in honor of our Savior followed by a Rhodes tradition of homemade blueberry muffins, some gifts, some playing and relaxing, and soon a meal to celebrate His coming into the world, for us, so that we can commune with God as His children.  What a blessing....  Merry Christmas!

This year's fort is outside!

Really quick, while I have the gumption, I thought I'd post the kids and my favorite pastime lately. We have definitely built our share of inside forts in years past with as many chairs and blankets as we can find.  However, here is our new take on an old pastime.  Introducing our first snow fort! I guess you could call it an igloo. Since we were pummeled with almost 2 feet of snow a week and a half ago, it seemed like the best way to make use of the piled high snow.... and loads of FUN!

Blog Slump

I know, I admit it. This blog is a wasteland come October, November, December and maybe even January..... Let's call it my annual blogging slump. I'm sorry. Life has continued here and I definitely have the pictures and stories to fill these pages. It just doesn't happen this time of year and I don't know why.

Here are a couple of pictures taken at Thanksgiving to keep you entertained a little longer while I find my blogging groove again. (which may be here sooner than you think after seeing all the great pics we have stored up!)

A boy and his toys

Greyson turns 4 today.  (He turned 3 a year ago too, despite never getting a post up about it.  It's hard when your birthday is in the middle of your mom's annual blogging slump...)  I can't believe how much he's grown in the past year and how wonderful he is.... most of the time, I can't keep my mom-pride from beaming when he is around.  I am holding on to these days when he will still sit close and hold my hand.   He's loving pre-school and "hot pizza" (rather than the cold pizza that Mom likes).  He is VERY observant (always has been), which comes in handy for his mom and sister who are NOT.   He helps us find the things that we have misplaced all the time.  He is very smart and has a problem solving mind ("mom, what happens when the money is all used up?").  Yes, he's also a boundary pusher and forgets/ignores the "house rules" often, but he is as cute as a button and keeps me laughing and smiling.  What more can I ask of a 4-yr-old, right?

And man!  Did Greyson hit the toy JACKPOT this year!  It is amazing!  He has enough to keep him busy for days (months) on end!  He is set for those long inside winter days, for which I am very grateful!!  And he loves ALL of them!  The Batman stuff, the Buzz Lightyear, the Thomas train bridge, the marble tracks, the toy cars, the glowdoodle, the ninja motorcycle, and the monopoly junior game..... WOW, like I said, JACKPOT!  As for the toy quota in our house though - it looks like an old toy purge is in the cards.  I think the toys are overtaking the house!

There will be pictures added later.  Right now, it almost trick-or-treat time and that waits for nothing!

Unexpected

I decided we would clean the bathroom as a three-some (mom and kids) and after telling Madelyn that her part of cleaning the bathroom was the toilet. It was her first time and, of course, she balked.  I took a moment to show her the finer points of toilet cleaning and then went to work on cleaning the tub with Greyson.  After a minute, here's our converastion -

Madelyn:  "Mom, I like cleaning the toilet.  Can I do it every time?" 
Me: "Yes, of course." 
Madelyn:  "Mom, is lunch soon?"
Me: "yes, but we have to finish cleaning the bathroom first."
Madelyn: "good, I'm gonna clean the toilet again."

I turn away before she catches my shocked look.... It WILL be nice to not have to clean a toilet  for awhile.

Rock Wall Fun

Today, we did something REALLY fun! We went indoor rock climbing with some friends. It went even better than I thought it would. Ben enjoyed it and claimed his forearms to be jello at the end. We couldn't keep Madelyn's feet on the ground. Greyson struggled a little with the weight of all the equipment but loved every bit of what he could do, especially the "bouldering". And I wish I had taken it up as a hobby a long time ago. What fun! Thanks, Spencer and Marjorie, for being our hosts for the day!

{this moment}

A Friday ritual inspired by Soulemama. A single photo - and maybe a few words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Have a great weekend!

Greyson - Momma = Happy Boy

Over the summer, Greyson and Madelyn both had a chance to spend 4weeks of 4 days a week, 2 hours a day at a daycamp where they got to spend time with other kids, making crafts, and doing special activities like swimming and puppet shows. Madelyn loved it from the get-go but Greyson... not so much. He was almost inconsolable for the first week, the second week he was very unhappy as I left, and the third week he was finally ready to have fun! I was only slightly surprised whenever all this happened because with exception of Sunday School and the gym we go to, he and I had been pretty inseparable for about 2.5 years at that point. And even though I questioned my decision to make him endure this adversity in his little life, I persisted for exactly this reason - that he would enjoy his first day of preschool! And I'm happy to report - HE DID GREATLY! I'm so excited for him. He has embarked on a new adventure of learning so many things - making new friends, walking in line, being respectful of authority, to love God... and that life can be had without Mom around too... as for that last one, I'm a little sad for me, but so excited for Greyson!!

Greyson couldn't contain his excitement as we were leaving for preschool! So excited!
OH, and here's a video to capture the moments just after too....

Last Summer Trip to Como

A video of one of our FREE carousel rides...


And now for pictures - ENJOY!

Beautiful eyes....

Ben's hair in little boy blonde

laughing with the seals

got to see the polar bears this time.  amazing new exhibit.

penguins - "waddle, waddle"

We love summer trips to Como Park. Since summer seems to be wrapping up for the year, we were happy to get our last zoo trip in before it got too chilly. Seeing the orangutans playing in their yard and the seals in their moat was so much fun. Getting to see the polar bears pacing in their new home was a treat as well. This last trip Madelyn had to miss since she started school, but no worries. We will be back to Como Park again and again. The Como Conservatory is a beautiful, flower-filled place to visit during the winter when everything is hiberating under the snow. Expect those pictures this winter!

{this moment}

I couldn't pick just one this week... one of the "city" that Madelyn built out of what was left when Greyson "used ALL the tracks!" and one of Greyson spelling his name with the letter magnets, which he can do almost by himself now.

A Friday ritual inspired by Soulemama. A single photo - and maybe a few words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Have a great weekend!

Call the ZOO!

When I looked out my front window tonight this is what I saw.... I tell Madelyn to look with me and am laughing a little until I see the tail MOVE! Then I started wondering. So did these men in the tow truck that was driving by...

Turns out that our neighbor, Dave, was playing a GREAT practical joke with a $4 garage sale find. He tied fishing line to the tail and rigged it over a branch to make it "wag". We live on a pretty busy street and it was great (and funny) to see all the cars that would slow down to make sure they understood what they were seeing!  Great job on a great practical joke, Dave!

Excuse my not clear pictures... I don't know how to take low-light pictures.

The First Day of First Grade!

Madelyn waits for the bus in blustery wind, even though she doesn't ride it this morning.

Yup!  That's the bus!

On her way to classroom J

Saying hi to a friend and locker mate, Yamilet.

Posing with her new teacher, Mrs. Felling

Madelyn had a GREAT first day at school today.  She had fun meeting her not one, not two, but three in-class teachers!  The main teacher, Mrs. Felling, and then a science/math teacher and a student teacher.  She enjoyed seeing a few friends from her class last year in her class this year but her other kindergartener friends were split between four other classes.  Her two best friends from last year are in two other classes too, but she doesn't seem to broken up about it.  I think she is just looking forward to getting to know her new classmates.  Anywho, she had a great day until.... her bus driver got lost on the way home.  I was standing at the bus stop to meet her and the bus drove past TWICE and didn't stop!  When it showed up again, she was 40min late getting to her bus stop.  Sounds like the bus company's manager had to come and help the bus driver with his route.  Poor guy.  I bet he also had to deal with unruly children speaking their minds too.  Madelyn got home with red, puffy eyes.  Poor girl.  Her spirits rose pretty quickly though and she had all kinds of fun stories from her day.  There's not much that can get this girl down!