Hershey Park Candylane

This year for Christmas, Justin's parents gave us some money, which we decided to spend on a fun experience instead of another toy or thing, which we clearly don't need. We decided to try out Hershey Park's winter event, Candyland. We got there just after the park opened at noon and met Aunt Eileen there. After an immediate rush to the bathroom, our first stop was the official measurement station. Alexander was a Twizzler; Jack was a Hershey bar; Kai was a Hershey Kiss and Noah was a Hershey's Miniature. There number of rides that were opened was limited, and it was quite a bit more crowded than I expected. We spent an inordinate amount of time deciding where to go, using the bathroom, eating food, and putting on and taking off hats, gloves, and extra coats. However, we did manage to get the kids on a fair number of rides. Noah learned to say "riiiii" for ride, and was thrilled with everything we put him on. They started asking to go home around 6:00, but they said they had a really fun time. Over all, I think it was a good use of our Christmas gift from Justin's parents. Thanks, Mom and Dad! The kids had a great day!

Christmas 2013

I have no complaints about our 2013 Christmas! It was another good one! Noah woke up first, but was fairly easily contained in the playroom until his brothers (and mom) woke up. The kids happily tore through their presents. Alexander's favorite was his Nerf style bow and arrow. Jack's favorite was his new Beyblade dome. Kai's favorite gift was an Angry Bird activity pack of stickers, coloring pages, tattoos, and more. I would have to  guess that Noah's favorite gift was his little tricycle. he scoots around the house on it every day. We had present frenzy number two a few hours later when PopPop arrived. We were also happy to have some good friends visit in the afternoon. We are taking a nice long winter break from schooling, so the kids have had plenty of time to enjoy their new gifts and, of course, far too much screen time. We'll be back to the grind in a day or two. Happy New Year!

 

 

Christmas Eve

Our Christmas Eve tradition is that the kids receive one present from Mom and Dad before going to bed. This year I chose to get the three big kids hooded blankets, since they are always wandering around wrapped in blankets. Alexander and Kai loved theirs immediately. Jack was initially upset, as he did not recognize the character on his hooded blanket, which is from the game Cut the Rope (a fact I wasn't even aware of). Once Justin showed him the game on the iPad mini, Jack turned his upset around and was just as happy with his present as his brothers were. Noah, being too little for a hooded blanket, received an adorable owl hat, which he enjoyed putting on and taking off.

First Snow of the Season

Not even officially winter yet, and we've had three snowfalls! The kids all enjoyed getting in some snow time the other day, even Noah, my little marshmallow.

Santa Visit

This year we traveled again down to Maryland to see Santa. You may notice a lack of continuity from our previous years visiting Santa, which I am ridiculously disappointed about. However, the boys and I had a fun visit with our cousins and a nice stay at Aunt Eileen's house. They enjoyed seeing Santa (and were unaware of any difference), although Kai was a bit nervous at first and asked me to talk to Santa for him. There were tons of crafts, old toys, games in the garden, and even a magic show. We even beat the snow by coming home early.

 

 

Halloween- Just a few

Last year, Halloween turned out to be rather confusing because of Hurricane Sandy having just come through our area. This year, we got a better taste of what Halloween is like in our neighborhood. Almost everyone participates! It was great! Jack had a swimming lesson at 5:30, but Justin had been working from home, so I left the other kids with him to get ready. Jack and I rushed home after lessons and found that Noah, dressed adorably as a Ninja Turtle, had fallen asleep in his chair. I guess he has to wait until next year to say "trick or treat!" Thanks to "Sew-Nya" for Alexander and Jack's penguin costumes. I didn't get many pictures, but here they are:

Pumpkin Carving

This year Alexander did most of his carving on his own. He did get some help from Dad with scooping out the guts. Jack was also able to handle some knife wielding, and got some help from me for the gut scooping and with finishing up the carving when his arm got tired. Kai was happy to direct me verbally in the design and execution of his pumpkin. Noah adorably got in everyone's way. Our pumpkins weren't fancy, but the kids were proud to have done them with relative independence.