wheels on the bus

Ever since riding the bus home from kindergarten last year and now riding it to and from school this year, Logan has been extremely interested in becoming a bus driver. Countless buses have been constructed in our living room and all family members are routinely picked up and dropped off at their respective stops. I often catch one route between the kitchen and the computer room.

A lot of thought goes into the design of these buses. Here are a few of the standard features:

• Driver's seat is raised up on pillows to give a realistic bouncy feel
• Cushioned bench seat for passengers
• Camping headlights are used for turn signals
• Toy vacuum provides engine sounds
• Stop sign for letting passengers on and off safely
• A rear-view mirror for keeping an eye on unruly passengers
• Driver's cup holder
• Not one, but two first aid kits
• Directional heat vent
• Driver's seat belt
• The recently installed Bus Cam provides additional monitoring capabilities

A side view of the latest bus.



A shot of the dashboard and instrument panel.

independence

The sound of a chair bumping across the floor, cupboard doors banging open...just a typical day here.

Mama: (coming through the living room) Owen, where are you?

Owen: In the kitchen. I'm hungry, I need a snack. I'm getting it myself.

star bar theater

Logan spent a considerable amount of time constructing a movie theater called "Star Bar" in the corner of our living room. At showtime he projects a light on a screen and you listen to the first song on the John Denver/Muppets Christmas CD for the preview and the second song for the movie. Ticket prices are very reasonable so I attended both the morning matinee and the early evening showtimes.

change has come

"Tonight we celebrate, tomorrow the work begins." President Barack H. Obama

Indeed, it is a time to celebrate.



Watching Obama take his place in history, Owen decided that he does not want to become the president--he is going to "stay two years old forever".

the old sledding hill

Tracy took the boys to Bayfront Park today for some serious sledding. Despite a cool breeze coming off the lake, Logan and Owen stayed warm by pulling their sleds up the hill repeatedly.

Ready, Set, Go!!!



Owen leans into the slope.



Triumphant athletes pose at the bottom of the hill.



No sledding trip would be complete without hot cocoa afterwards.

brrrr

Today's top ten things to do while it's -25º outside:

Stay in pajamas as long as possible.

Pretend we are school janitors cleaning up the school, complete with garbage cans, buffers, dust rags, brooms, and most importantly, jingly keys hanging from our belts.

Play with the train set:





Do homework and practice robust spelling words:



Read a pile of books.

Watch a movie.

Grow something (set up avocado pits to sprout):



Drink homemade hot cocoa, topped with whipped cream, of course.

Build something (marshmallow art inspired by jojebi):

"a really long snake" by Owen


"the base of a house" by Logan


Bake banana bread and eat it.

swim little polliwog, swim

Last night Logan started his new Polliwog swimming class (sing it with me) at the YMCA. (Now that song is going to be stuck in your head). We were both excited to see his favorite instructor from a previous session would be teaching this new class. I was concerned the six weeks off during the holidays may have sent our progress sliding backward but Logan did a great job and is motivated to graduate to Guppy. A nearby hotel will provide some additional water time in between official classes.

if you give a mouse a cookie...

This afternoon's activities were inspired by one of Owen's new books: Mouse Cookies & More, a Treasury by Laura Numeroff, which includes four of her books, recipes, sheet music, games, and a cd. First, we read "If You Give a Mouse A Cookie", then listened to the story on the cd, and finally began baking! Aprons on, ingredients assembled, hands washed, and we're ready to make Mom's Old Fashioned Oatmeal Cookies.

First comes measuring and stirring:



Next, you plop them onto the cookie sheet:



After waiting patiently for 12 minutes, they are done:



And, just like Mouse, Owen asked for a glass of milk to go with his cookie. Mmmm...were they good!

goggle-man

There's really nothing to say about this image except that it amuses us.

cookie decorating

Grandma decided to bake cookies one day and recruited Logan and Owen to be the official decorators. Countless sprinkles and multiple red hots later we had two plates of delicious goodness.





Owen and Grandma Linda.



Logan and Grandma Linda.



Logan's smiley face cookie.





Great Grandma Fitzgerald performs her Cookie Monster impression.

playing with stuff

Logan received the game Blokus from Grandpa and Grandma. This game is fun to play, easy to learn, and doesn't take much time per game. Nearly every family member was involved in multiple games throughout the weekend.

Logan also received a Snap Circuits electronics set and promptly declared it one of his favorite gifts. After assisting him with the first couple of projects, he started building them on his own.

Logan contemplates his next Blokus move.



Logan tests Snap Circuits project #13, a two-speed fan with light.

reading with grandpa

Grandpa's big chair was filled to capacity during reading time in front of the fireplace.



Owen catches up on the comics.

zoom zoom zoom

Uncle Trevor, Clare, and Gabriel gave the boys a huge slot car racing set for Christmas. Many hours were spent zooming the cars around and around the track. Laughter filled the air whenever a car flew off the track or a collision occurred at the criss-cross-crash intersection. Although unconfirmed, rumor has it some older individuals partook in after-hours races even after the kids went to bed.

happy new year 2009