My great big 4-year-old

 Last week Linden turned four! She requested a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and chocolate sprinkles, and we added a chopped up chocolate bar too. 

I love how grown up this little gremlin is becoming ❤️

Yesterday was haircut day. Both kiddos got new ‘dos, Linden doing a much more dramatic change than Maren:

I can’t decide if Linden looks more grown up, or reminds me of her toddler self. I can see both, and for now I think I’ll just decide which version is better to see in a particular moment. Carrying a stack of dishes in a way that makes me nervous? Remind myself that she’s a big girl and don’t say anything. Screaming at me for doing exactly what she asked me to, but that now she doesn’t want? Remind myself that she is still oh so little. My little big girl ❤️

Linden’s latest masterpieces

 

Family Day

 Today is the Family Day holiday in Saskatchewan. We had waffles this morning, a cold sunny walk after lunch, and movies and cupcakes this afternoon. 

Maren and Jeff watched Poltergeist in the basement while Linden and I watched Chicken Little upstairs, but Poltergeist was longer and Linden insisted on going down to watch the end. She also insisted it wasn’t too scary for her, and while I’m not so sure, there isn’t currently any evidence that she was wrong. 

Maren has been playing lots of board games lately, and getting good enough at them that it is actually fun. Some of her favourites these days are mancala, Carcassonne, and Set, which are all games that Jeff and I used to play together. She is also getting pretty good at puzzles!

Just old

 First, today we had a sewer back up into our basement. It is pretty much the worst. Fortunately someone could come right away and clear out the sewer line, and the blockage was far enough out from our house that it is city responsibility, and we can get reimbursed. But Jeff spent much of the afternoon cleaning up in the basement. Not fun. 

More fun was my birthday on Friday. 

Fun decorations, awesome cake, great presents. Maren has started to make a tradition out of getting me CDs, and this year got me The Blues Brothers soundtrack, which is amazingly appropriate 😎 I watched that movie many times as a kid and know all the songs ❤️

Same old same old

 Not much exciting is happening around here. Work, school, daycare and preschool, all the regular stuff we do on repeat.

It is also still winter here, and will be for quite some time. This means outdoor activities are somewhat limited, especially for me. Depending on how snowy it is, how icy, and how much the snow has frozen into icy, bumpy, uneven ground, I can sometimes go out, and sometimes can’t. If the weather is too cold and windy, no one can go out. We had a few of those days last week.

However, today the weather was lovely – sunny and relatively warm for a winter day. And as long as it is not too cold, we can enjoy our backyard. And I have to say, I don’t think I have seen the kids enjoy the backyard any more than they did this afternoon.