March

March was pretty low-key and we tried to make the most out of some spring-like days.

I confirmed Lucy's status as a hoarder when I opened her jewelry box to find it full of items (many that she wasn't supposed to have in her room - I'm looking at you marker and glue stick).  Finding BJ's high school football picture button still makes me smile.  We don't know where or how she got it but she loves it.

Soccer and a super hero birthday party in the same day?  I'm still exhausted about remembering that particular day.

Lucy caught a quick stomach flu bug but it's pretty amazing how fast little kids can start feeling better.  She was lying on the couch watching a show and the next hour she came down the steps with her doctor's coat on, Joanie Joanie in the stroller, declaring "Doctor Mommy Lucy is feeling better and ready for the day."

The Easter Bunny found our house and brought the kids some candy, stickers and a little toy.  The Easter Bunny also found herself in a moment of weakness and, bought a Kindle Fire for the kids. The kids get 45 minutes of electronics each day during their summer program so I think that the Easter Bunny was wise, but we'll see.  So far they think that it only works when we're on a long car ride and I'm 100% OK with that.  

We delayed celebrating Easter with my side of the family until early April but we went back to Cascade over Easter weekend and enjoyed our time with that side of the family.

Coloring eggs with Nana and Papa.

A picture of some over-excited, sweaty kids before the indoor Easter egg hunt.

The best  photo we could get of the kids with Nana and Papa - the sugar was in full effect at this point.

Charlie and Lucy love their little cousin "Baby Deliliah" and whether she likes it or not, they want equal time holding her.  I'm fairly certain that Lucy was trying to convince Nana that she didn't need help as she slowly fell to the side.

My boys on Easter morning after church.

The "best" family photo from that morning - BJ and I didn't plan our checkered shirts, we're just that in tune with one another :).

My two crazies

A final Easter photo with Nana and Papa.  It was a quick trip back to Cascade but always fun to have some cousin and grandparent time!

February

February started with our first (and hopefully) last snow day.  It was the perfect snow to make a snowman but Lucy's still a little devastated that the snowman's final resting place is our yard.

Charlie asked to take neighbor friend to a movie one weekend and Lucy happily played the role of annoying little sister.   Oh man, it might be time to implement a "everyone or no one brings a friend" rule.

When dad's away, the kids will con mom into falling asleep in our bed.  Because the days of me being able to carry Charlie to his bed are o-v-e-r, I end up having a little slumber party in our room.

It's a special weekend to start the day off with 3 chocolate donuts!  Clearly February was the month of easy parenting choices (sleep in my bed?  Sure!  chocolate donuts for breakfast?  Sure!)

They can fuss and fight like the best of siblings but they really are great buddies.

Nana, Papa and Miles came to visit in February and a lot of fun ensued - from swimming at the hotel to hanging out at the house before Lucy's soccer game.

These three were too busy cracking each other up to take a decent photo.

Charlie and Miles were having so much fun on the sidelines of Lucy's soccer game that she was tempted more than once to abandon her team and join them!

 The kids were pretty excited to pass out their Valentine's cards to their friends!

The Valentine's Day party in Charlie's class coincided with the 100th day of school - it was almost too much fun to bear!  We decided that a 100-year-old Charlie is pretty darn cute but reminds us of Mr. Peabody.

The best part of February?  Emma, Claire and Hannah got to stay with us for a few days.  My poor nieces - I don't think that Charlie or Lucy left them alone for more than 10 minutes over the weekend.

A Valentine's Day brunch with cousins.  Of course, chocolate donuts were on the menu!

We also tried out bowling - it was fun but Grandpa Heinie's bowling skills certainly skipped a few generations!

It was time to get together with all of the Gehl cousins for some fun at Molly's house while Grandma Kathy was back from Arizona.

We also took the opportunity to have an early birthday celebration for Julia...

and Lauren.  Two very sweet and smart nieces!

Here's to March - more sun and warmer temps!

January

January brought back some routine to our house, which was much-appreciated.

You know that your family loves you when they spend more to mail Lambie home than she probably cost - Lucy was very happy to have her back!

Lucy started "soccer ball" in early January and so far, she usually loves it.    Especially the stamp that she receives at the end.

I've described Lucy as a hoarder and I felt compelled to provide proof.  The top of her bed - complete with some books, a cowboy boot, a princess shoe, a bucket of Legos, Simba, a tutu and Charlie's TMNT weapon.  Actually - based on her inventory, she might have just what she needs to conquer the world.

We met Nana and Papa at Carver to watch the Hawkeyes beat Michigan.  Lucy was Party Lucy right before the game, but snuggled on Papa's lap right before tip-off.

Initially Charlie was worried that the Hawkeyes might lose but his worries were quickly re-directed to whether or not he was going to get ice cream.  Priorities.

Lucy fell asleep within minutes of opening tip-off and stayed asleep until there were a few minutes left to the game.  We were close to the band and in a sold-out crowd but she was out.  If we were at home, she would have woken up at the sound of me blinking my eyes.

The picture is dark but we experienced our first hockey game as a family in January.  The night at the Iowa Wild game was fun - particularly dancing to the sweet tunes that were played during breaks.

The kids also had some much-needed Delilah time.

And with that, we've already headed into February and we're dreaming about spring.

December

December was full of birthday and Christmas celebration, which meant a lot of fun, family and sugary goodness.  

Charlie turned 6 on the 3rd and we began the day with his "All About Me" presentation at his school.  We sent pictures earlier in the week and BJ and I were invited for his presentation where he told his class a little bit about himself, was "interviewed" by his classmates (the questions and his answers were priceless) and shared his favorite toy (no shock that it was a Star Wars toy that Grandma and Grandpa gave him).  

The fun continued when we headed to Chuck E. Cheese with Lucy for dinner.  Charlie was pretty serious about scoring as many tickets as possible while I tried to be diligent with squirting Purell on our hands every few seconds.

Star Wars really dominated Charlie's birthday and Christmas lists this year.  There might be hope for me yet to become a Star Wars fan but I'm not holding my breath.  Even Lucy has become disgruntled with my lack of Star Wars knowledge.

Grandma Kathy, Nana Jan and Papa Steve came to town to watch one of Charlie's basketball games.  He was really determined to score a basket with fans in the crowd and luckily he scored twice!  We want to talk about percentage of shots made because he's not so much into passing to his teammates. We're working to instill the value of a good assist.

Charlie had a friend birthday party at a local gymnastics place.  I struggled to limit the list of attendees because I'm still learning all of the kindergarten dynamics and after he came home rattling off the long list of kids he invited to his party, I caved and invited his entire class.

A good time seemed to be had by all and my only regret was that few people adhered to the "please, no gifts" request.

Chocolate goodness seemed to dominate our kitchen throughout December and I had two little "bakers" always willing to assist.  I'm guessing that about half of the chocolate actually made it into the desserts while the others were subject to taste-testing.

I don't know why our Santa pictures are upside down but we did the obligatory Santa visit with a Santa that was only mildly creepy-looking.  The kids didn't seem to mind.

Charlie lost his first tooth and is so excited about it that he has yet to leave it for the Tooth Fairy.  He wanted to take it back to show all of his cousins (which he did) but it's now resting in his nightstand because he really wants to keep it.  I tried to assure him that the Tooth Fairy might leave his tooth if he politely asks her to do so but, more importantly, I have stressed that he needs to let us know when he decides to place it under his pillow!

We were able to celebrate Christmas with both extended sides of the family the weekend before Christmas.

Lucy is my little pack rat so she was thrilled that the Supple grandkids received their own piece of luggage.  She spent the rest of the night diligently placing her other gifts inside her luggage and was very pleased that they all fit inside.

Charlie was happy with Legos and was even happier when Max suggested that they switched Lego sets.  We still don't know why they decided to switch but hey, if they were happy, we were happy.

Getting a decent Supple cousin photo proved to be quite the challenge.  The below photo, with Miles escaping and Charlie holding Lucy so that she doesn't escape was the best that I could capture.

We're working on Lucy giving Delilah appropriate personal space.

But she's definitely thrilled to have a baby girl in the cousin mix!  I'm confident that these two girls will more than hold their own with the Supple boy cousins.

The following day, we enjoyed some Gehl Christmas fun.  Lucy with thrilled with the Barbie car that she received.

Charlie was happy to receive another Star Wars toys but started to turn a little pale during the present-opening and subsequently was sick to his stomach.  It's not a party until somebody barfs!

Thankfully, Charlie seemed to perk up a little later afternoon and enjoy the rest of the fun.  Lucy decided to be a stinker during family photos so the below photos are the best that I captured.

 More baking ensured - this time a birthday cake for BJ and Papa Steve.

Steve and Jan were in town on the 24th and the 25th so we celebrated with a birthday lunch for the guys.

This is the reaction when Papa Steve realized that Charlie and Lucy gifted him with a sound machine, which was used way too often over the holidays.

We shifted from birthday to Christmas and Charlie and Lucy were able to "open" the gifts from BJ and I - a Star Wars game for the Wii, an Ariel barbie and an indoor "jumparoo".  We have lots of energy to burn in this house so the jumparoo might be as much of a gift to BJ and me as it is for the kids.

We played in the afternoon and then headed to mass with the rest of the greater Des Moines area.  We tried our hardest to get a few decent family photos but the kids were crazed after church.

In true National Lampoon fashion, BJ shouted an r-rated word to get their attention and we finally captured a family photo.

Nana and Papa were happy to help build some Lego creations.  Between the prayer that Jan seems to be offering and the beer on the Lego table, I think that the session was a success!

We ended the night by watching The Polar Express and setting out some goodies for Santa and his reindeer.  Charlie had some 11th hour concerns about whether he was on the nice or naughty list and suddenly offered to help with some chores around the house.  The developing conscience is interesting to experience!

Lucy was thrilled with the silly string that Santa left in her stocking.

But miffed that he left her a "balance bike" without pedals.

Charlie was happy with more Star Wars, Lego and Wii goodies.

And Lucy was ultimately happy with her loot of goodies as well.

The chocolate chips were supposed to make it into the pancakes but a little snitch took them before they ever saw the batter.

Meanwhile, Charlie was happy to organize Candyland for our first family round.

Following the holidays we went to check out the latest and greatest at the Science Center.

And my perpetually-warm Charlie discovered that sticking his face in front of the air experiment was an efficient way to cool off.

As we left Lucy the Science Center that day, Lucy declared that she's ready for more adventures and I think that is the best way to enter into 2016.

Health and happiness to all!