An Almost Unhappy St. Patricks Day

Last night I was kissing Molly goodnight and she whispered in my ear, "I can't wait until tomorrow morning because remember last year the Leprechaun came on St. Patrick's Day and left gold coins in our shoes?".  "Ohhhh, I said, yes I NOW DO remember (now that it is 8:30pm on a Wednesday night-ugghhh), chocolate gold coins, right?".  "Yes", she exclaimed. 

So, I tucked her in tightly and quickly walked to my phone and dialed my mother.  I recall her buying some chocolate gold coins around Christmas and I was hoping perhaps they did not get tucked into a stocking or put out for a snack for one of my children.  She took some time to look around the house for them and called me back, "no chocolate coins to be found".  I was not sure how I was going to pull this off and a trip to the store is not easy in our neck of the woods!


Thankfully, Shawn's field is sales and marketing and he often has little nick knacks and giveaways around the holidays.  I decided to search his desk drawers and low and behold....I found a stash of St. Patty's Day goodies from 2010.  Jackpot!  I discovered some beaded green necklaces, some stickers and even a Shamrock pin for each of the three kids.  I then searched my cupboards and I discovered some coconut M&M's that I had bought in Florida (our new favorite) that happen to be green, white and brown, and voooollllaaahhh, a perfect St. Patty's day treat from the Leprechaun! 

It is amazing how fast two first graders can get dressed and downstairs in the morning when they "have a feeling" that a visitor came and left a treat while they were sleeping.  Before I knew it Molly and Myles were dressed and downstairs and admiring their treats with excitement and little yelps of joy at 6:30am.  Hudson was sound asleep still (which is so rare), but they were just in pure heaven.  They did not understand how the Leprechaun did not leave glitter or footprints this year (wow- I was creative in years past--opps) but they were just thrilled with their treats.  Hudson woke up before long and started fussing about getting dressed and getting ready for school, that is, until I told him about the night time visitor.  His mood then did a complete 180 and he as ready to rock and roll and check out what was left by the little green man.   We had a great morning together and everyone was so happy for the day and for their green outfits and for the treats left behind, despite the lack of glitter.  It is so true how the little things in life can bring such joy!

My super excited first graders.

Daddy is sporting a green tie.

My little loves.  "Mommy" is the best title in the world.

Grandpa picked up the twins from school and remembered his green!

Oh the funny things my kids say...a work in progress

"Myles must go to tutoring to learn how to toot."- Molly trying to be funny 2/28/2011

"Mom, my body aches all over, like it is the end of the world." - Hudson 3/6/2011

"I have a headache in my throat'" - Myles 04/25/2011

Hudson saw two seltzer cans in the backyard that had blown off the back deck and looked at grandma and said with some degree of horror in his voice, "My family litters."- Huddy 4/27/2011

"Mom, can you please wipe some of this gasoline off my face?" -Hudson 06/09/2011
(referring to Vaseline)

February Vacation Video Time

So, if you read my prior post you would get a very good understanding of how our week off from school and work went.  Well, I decided to go a step further and make a video with my brand new Flip and here it is for all to see.  I did not remember to bring it along with me on our journeys but you can take a glimpse into our time at home and our time at Molly and Myles' last basketball game of the season.  If you look closely you will see both of them in the game (Molly is #4 and Myles #2).  ENJOY!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXNgDzPEBBg&feature=player_embedded
(This is the link for computers or television)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzFQKaFqD2I
(This link is for the iphone and ipad)

February Vacation Week

The kids were home on break last week and it we had a fun filled and activity packed five days.  Shawn had Monday off due to the holiday and he brought the three kids to see the movie Gnomeo and Juliette.  While at the movie he texted me that my friend's daughter was sitting directly behind them.  So, I texted my friend and told her and she texted me back when the movie got out that my mom and Peyton and Hailey were spotted exiting the same movie theatre.  It turns out that Shawn and the kids and my mom and Peyton and Hailey all went to the same movie at the same theatre and never saw each other and never knew they were in the company of one another. I thought it was kind of funny and if not for modern technology and cell phones we might have never figured this one out.

On Tuesday we had a busy morning getting out of the house and to our 8:30am dentist appointment in Westerly with shiny clean teeth.  We made it just in time and all three kids did so well sitting in the chair and having their teeth cleaned and getting X-Rays.  No cavities, a plus!  I was a proud mama bear and I brought them all do the Dollar Tree to pick out whatever 3 items they wanted in the whole store. They could not believe that they could have ANYTHING in the store, never mind THREE of anything.  The kids had been making money for hanging up their coats (10 cents), putting their shoes away (10 cents), clearing their dinner plate and sleeping through the night and NOT waking up a sibling in the morning (1 cent). They had fun picking out their items and counting out their "hard" earned money to pay for them. They were proud.  We then got pizza to go and went home and Myles had one of his best buddies over for a play date the rest of the afternoon.  The kids all played so nicely together and before we knew it dinner had arrived and bath time had come and gone.

On Wednesday it was Molly's turn for a play date.  Her friend Elliott, who has two working parents, got dropped off at 8:30am and spent the entire day with us.  We had so much fun!  Elliott is the easiest and happiest little girl who seems to enjoy the company of both Molly and Myles so this is a fun trio to watch. We decided on going to the Mill Store to do a project and we invited Michael and Jen (our neighbors) to join us.  So Jen and I and 5 kids piled in the mini-van and traveled to North Kingstown so the kids could paint their very own wooden crate.  Two hours and lots of colors later we piled the kids back in the car with their master pieces and brought them to lunch at McDonald's, the one with the indoor playground.  It was crazy crowded but the kids had a great time.  Jen and I treated ourselves to Chipolte (at McDonald's) so we were delighted not to eat fast food and to watch the kids all playing so well together.  The time flew by and before we knew it we had to leave to get home for dinner and in time for Elliott's dad to pick her up.  What a good day!

Thursday brought a morning of questions.  The kids all wanted to know what we were going to do that day.  Apparently, there was NO WAY I was going to get away with staying home and lounging around the house and playing with toys or simply taking it easy.  I really wanted to take the kids ice-skating but I was nervous to do this without another adult to focus on the kids.  Jen and Michael were willing to join us and excited for yet another adventure but still Jen and I realized we needed another set of hands.  So we ruled out ice skating and decided on ....the Casino.  Oh yes, we all piled in the car and drove 35 minutes west toward Mohegan Sun.  Jen and I had never been there but we read online that they had an enormous gaming room for the kids.  So, we were determined to entertain and headed to CT.  We got there in no time and ventured from the parking garage through the casino full of slot machines and noise and smoke to the children's arcade room.  We stayed about two hours and allowed the kids to play games and win tickets and pick out prizes. We then allowed them to ride the escalators up and down three times, make a wish in the wishing-well and then back to the car we all marched.  Thankfully, we remembered where we had parked!  On the way home we stopped to eat at Mystic Pizza II, and I must say, our kids were little angels.  They had all chosen Lava Playdough like stuff as a prize and they played and made creations while we waited for our food.  They were so nice and quiet and well behaved. When our food came they all ate with no complaints and they all were just so still in their seats and content.  Jen and I were proud mamas!  Another good day.

This brings us to Friday.  Friday Shawn and I both worked and grandma had her own adventure with the kids.  In grandma's words:
"On Friday I had all the kids because it was winter vacation week. Abby had her kids the other days, and Peyton and Hailey went to their other grandparents.  I decided to take them to the URI pool which has family swim hours; and they all love to swim. Peyton and Hailey and Myles are very good swimmers. Molly can 'dead mans float' and go underwater for a long time. Hudson can go underwater very well but cannot yet swim so he still wears a life jacket. We had lunch before we left my house at about 11:30. I had asked them all to put on their bathing suits under their clothes. Hudson wanted me to help him with his suit; and then we packed up towels and clothes and piled into the car (I had traded cars with Abby so I had the minivan and everyone could fit in it). We ran across the parking lot in the pouring rain, and headed for the gym which had the pool. Everyone pulled off their clothes to jump in BUT Myles said 'uh oh, I don't have my bathing suit on'. The lifeguard said he could not go in the pool in his underwear, so he sat sadly on the bench and pitifully watched us. Eventually I phoned Shawn who was working at home and he was a hero and brought Myles' suit over to us! Myles grinned from ear to ear when Shawn showed up. As Abby said, we hope this makes Myles a better listener!  URI has two pools. One for families which is warm and only about 5 feet deep. The other is very deep with a low and a high diving board. Peyton and Hailey jumped off the diving boards. Well actually Peyton was not quite brave enough for the high diving board; both times he walked out on the plank, he returned and climbed back down; but Hailey jumped at least a half a dozen times. Once Myles was in the water, he wanted to try the diving board too, but I did not dare to let him. The pool closed at 3 and we had to leave; everyone dried off and clamored into their clothes. I took them all to McDonald's which is a huge treat (for them not me). And we returned safely home, with everyone pretty worn out. A fun time for all.

Yesterday Abby and I and her friend Kim did a little shopping and then went out to dinner at a Mexican place that we like. And today I am going to make several lasagnas. One for us, for Clays and Abby's family and one for a coworker who is battling cancer. It should be a cozy day."  ~Grandma

So February 2011 brought a busy week for the Juenger crew.  We had some adventures together and made some really nice memories to always cherish.  We are back at school and work and back into our routine and as Molly and Myles said last night, "six more weeks until April vacation".  I can't wait!

A Sports Day

We went to a sports clinic at URI last Sunday with the kids.  This was a sports clinic hosted by URI athletics and there were about 10 different stations set up for the kids to rotate through.  It was such a great concept as it allowed the children to try about 6 minutes of all different sports.  Molly tried Rowing, Hockey, Volleyball, Cheering, Tennis and Track to name a few. Her favorite was jumping the hurdles and running the track.  She had a blast and was so excited to receive a certificate of completion and a bag of goodies when it was over.  She then went on to the URI Woman’s Basketball game and cheered on the University.  We even saw the family on the news that night and there was Ms. Molly holding her URI flag and yelling “Go Rhody”.  It was a good time.  Here is a picture of Molly with her good friend Elliott, they made two adorable cheerleaders!  And, yes, the boys did join us but they both protested participating in the sports clinic.  They then wanted goody bags but we put our foot down and said, “no”.  I think the lesson was learned as they were a bit bummed not to get a cool URI flag like their sister!

"Go Rhody, Go!"

Girls Night with a Twist

Last Friday the kids had a home day due to a Professional Development Workshop the teachers were attending at their school.  This was great for the kids as we still had plenty of snow on the ground and a Grandma that was willing and able to take time off work to watch them.  Myles and Hailey played all afternoon in the snow and when he came in from playing he was begging to go to bed.  So at 7pm I put him and Hudson to bed and Molly, Sadie (Erica's 7 year old daughter) and I stayed up and had a girl's night.  We ate pizza, had popcorn, watched High School Musical, danced to the songs and the girls even wrote and performed their own song for me.  It was adorable and the three of us had a blast together.  I put Molly and Sadie to bed at 9:00pm but they were still moving around when I checked on them at 9:30, 10:00 and 10:30 (uggghhhh).

  Well this brings me to Tuesday.  I was driving Myles home from tutoring after school and we were talking about his day at school.  He seemed to have had a good day, he was very hungry but most of all he was just so "confused as to why Sadie and Molly had to poke him in the eyes and the eyebrows when he was trying to sleep the other night".  RANDOM.  I love how I hear about this 4 days after it happens.  Apparently, the girls were getting out of bed and walking across the hall (where this poor little boy was so exhausted from the day's events and simply trying to sleep) and they were poking him and tormenting him!  I did not know if I should laugh or cry.  When we got home I asked Molly about it and she could only look down and smirk at me.  I decided to drop the conversation and we moved onto homework, but I still picture these two adorable cuties tormenting Myles in his sleep. Poor Myles.

Photo Booth Fun

Today Hud's was home with Gramma and Grampa all day.  He had a typical Wednesday but he discovered a new toy on Gram's computer.