March Antics-A-Plenty

This post brings us to the month of March.  It was cold with bouts of snow and rain.  I tried to get the kiddos out and about as much as possible, but we definitely still had lots of fun around the house.

I was Face Timing with my sister one day and
she snapped this picture of me and Miss P while
the boys were at school.  Love this moment.

Here's big brother Alex holding Penelope in his lap one morning
while I was finishing getting ready.  The boys have been really
great helpers with her.

In music class, Penelope absolutely loved to listen
to the music and chew on all of the instruments.

She also loved looking at herself in the mirror after
each class.  :-)

I love getting some quality snuggle time in with our
middle kiddo.

Penelope on March 2.

Penelope eating her baby cereal on March 2.

Penelope gumming her fruit in her mesh food trap.

William was having kind of a rough time in school and home.
We had him on an incentive plan, and he was very proud
to get in the car after school and report that he had had a great day!
After working really hard, he chose to have dinner at a local diner
for his reward.

William was so proud of himself for earning dinner
and dessert (dairy free ice cream with sprinkles and gummy bears)
at one of his favorite restaurants.  We were so proud of him as well!  :-)

Our snuggly, cutie patootie teddy bear was quite happy
this particular morning.

I looooooove her squishiness!

Alex chose to read a book to William while I was feeding
Penelope.  He's really come a long way with reading this year.

I could just eat her up, couldn't you??!!

On March 6, we met Joseph's cousin Ilias out for brunch
at one of our favorite places to eat:  Kirkland Tap and Trotter.
The food is really great and they rush out all of our dishes at once,
thus decreasing the chance of a melt down (which is pretty awesome).

Penelope on March 6

Mmmm!!  I loooove nibbling on her chubby little feet.

Little Miss P insisted on holding her bottle for a little
bit one evening.  We thought it was adorable.

One of Alex's friends from school had to move back to
Spain for family reasons.  We used to walk to and from school
with this kiddo and his father almost every morning.  The boys
said "farewell" for now, but the boy and his family will move back
next year.
See you soon, Julio!  Alex, William, and Alex's friend Oscar miss you!

On Tuesday, March 8, Alex and William had a play date with Alex's classmate Oscar and his mother.  The three boys had so much fun running around the zoo together that afternoon.

The boys playing around at the zoo on March 8 while
a lion was roaring in the background.

Alex and Oscar playing at the zoo playground.

Oscar and Alex playing on the teeter totter.

William was bouncing the big boys up and down.

Alex had a lot of fun with his friend Oscar.

Alex and William enjoyed playing together as well.

Goofing around with the kiddos on March 8.

Ugh...in early March, Penelope caught the cough and runny nose that the boys had all week.  The poor dear couldn't sleep well because she kept coughing (from the post nasal drip) and waking herself up.  So, for three nights in a row, I had to sleep in our recliner chair holding her upright.  She slept much better that way, which made her a much happier baby throughout the day.

Getting ready to sleep upright for the entire evening...
at least Penelope felt comforted and slept well.  Meanwhile,
I was absolutely exhausted that entire week.  *The things we do for our babes*

On March 9, my dear friend Vanessa was in town for a business trip and made the trek to the 'burbs to have dinner with us that evening.  I've known her for 11 years and she's been one of my dearest friends.
Thanks so much for schlepping all the way to the 'burbs to see our little family, 'Nessa!  It's always so nice to see you!!

Vanessa holding Miss P during dinner that evening.

She loved snuggling and loving on Penelope.

Thanks so much for visiting us, Vanessa!!  XOXOXOXO

Little Miss P rocking her fabulous head wrap while
doing some tummy time one morning.

Oy!  I love these two goofballs a ridiculous amount.

William lovin' on his sister before bed.

Little Miss P doing some tummy time.

Time for some bubble gun fun!

They were loving the warmer weather.

Our boys playing around

The Franses ladies observing the silly Franses boys.

In Alex's Kindergarten class, he had to write a "How to" piece.  He chose to write "How to make a jetpack guy" regarding his most recent Lego kit that he had put together.

"How to make a jetpack guy"
1.  Get him out them build him
2.  Take his head of (off) then put the jetpack on
3.  Then put his head back on

4.  Enjoy and have fun
5.  (I'm having fun)
6.  Yay!

I loved his illustrations that he had with each step.  Our little guy
has really come a long way with his writing this year.

Alex felt like reading to Penelope one afternoon.

Little Miss P playing around.

One afternoon, the weather was lovely and I wanted to go for a run outside.  We had just put William down for a nap and Joseph had to do some work at home.  So, I asked Alex to lace up his shoes, we put Penelope in the jogging stroller, and the big guy and I started off for a run.  I told Alex that we would be running towards a surprise (our local ice cream shop that had a dairy free option), so he jumped at the chance to go for a run with me.

We were ready to get our run on.

Penelope screamed for 0.4 miles straight, so we had
to turn around and run back home.

Alex and I were bummed because we really wanted
to go for our run.

This girl was a real stinker.  She absolutely hated the
stroller and only liked being held in the baby carrier.

We dropped Penelope off with Joseph, stretched, and
went for our run together.

We ran to the local frozen yogurt shop that was 1.3 miles
away from our home.  This big guy (with a gummy peach ring
in the side of his cheek) ran a 12 minute mile while holding
my hand!!  I was so proud of him.
We had a little treat together and then ran all the way back home.
It was really nice to have this one-on-one adventure with him.

William (top left) playing at school with his classmates.

One evening after dinner, Joseph started playing some Ben Folds music
on the piano for us.  Penelope and I decided to lounge on the snuggle couch
and listen to the music together.  She sat so still and thoroughly enjoyed
listening to her father play.

She really loved it.

She also enjoyed some snuggle time with her big brother William.

Penelope doing some tummy time and trying to roll over.

Joseph getting some quality face smooshing time in with
Miss P.

Woo hoo!  Happy 5 month birthday to our dear Miss P!
She was in size 2 diapers, loved rice cereal, started
responding to her name and loved laughing at her brothers' antics.

Alex was student of the week and got to go up in
front of his class and answer questions about himself.
This is what he shared about himself with his classmates.
He also shared that our family calls breakfast "brekky"...
ohhhh the things that kids think are amusing and important to share
with others.  LOL!

Each week Alex checked out one book at Library time.
This particular week, he chose this book which made me
crack up completely!  (Considering the fact that we do NOT
have a cat at all, and he wasn't interested in owning a cat at all.)
 LOL!!!  We have some funny kids.

March was a fun month.  The weather started to get much more tolerable outside and we were able to get some much needed fresh air.  The spring was even better and I can't wait to share what we did with you!
Until next time...

Love and kisses,
Nikki