It Happens Every Year...

This year, we escaped the dreaded January sicknesses, only to have it catch up to us as we rolled into February.

Usually one of the kids starts it, but this year, it started with Daddy. We passed a stomach bug around and LittleL.G. started with a terrible cold and sore throat.

Poor kids spent all day Wednesday cuddled up together on the couch. They were so adorable, but I was just picturing their different germs crawling to each other...

Kids bounce back quickly, so SlimJim was back to himself yesterday, playing with Mr.T. who somehow managed to escape the illnesses. MiniM.E. never really got either germ, but needed a low key day. LittleL.G. woke up worse than the day before with a stomach ache. We thought she was next and had the stomach bug on top, but turns out it's the flu.

What a warm welcome to February. Looks like we are in for a couple low key weeks of recovery.

Lake George Winter Carnival

Today we ventured up to Lake George for their annual Winter Carnival. We've been in the past, and while we've never stayed the whole day, the fireworks are definitely worth going up for, primarily because the snow muffles the noise and we don't have to worry about hunting for the earmuffs! All the kids activities run 12-3 and we didn't arrive until 3:30. We were able to see the parade, which SlimJim loved, comprised mostly of trucks, firetrucks and more trucks. We ventured out on the ice and slid on the slippery spots. The kids were having sliding contests and even Daddy and I were enjoying ourselves until the loudspeaker barked that the ice wasn't safe. We booked it to shore with 90% of the other ice walkers and proceeded to walk around a bit on solid ground. The kids burnt some marshmallows, saw the bonfire, and waited anxiously for the fireworks while complaining of being cold.

They were worth the wait, but my plan for next year is to do the winter carnival activities one weekend, and go just for the fireworks another. 

New Belt, New Friend

MiniM.E. is really climbing through the ranks at Taekwondo. She received her high red belt today and is thrilled. Throughout the intermediate belts, she was a little less motivated, but she's back on her A-game and learned the entire form for her new belt before arriving at class tonight. We are so proud of her!

LittleL.G. is always creating and made herself a paper friend yesterday.

Watzke enjoys it too.

A Birthday Celebration Weekend

Gram and Grumpy came to visit this weekend to celebrate Mr.T.'s birthday. Not a ton of excitement, since one-year-olds don't appreciate many of the activities adults enjoy. But plenty of playing and attention, a trip to the mall, a walk outside, and- of course- presents, cake and singing!

Happy Birthday again. You deserve all the cake, Mr.T.!

Happy Birthday Mr.T.!

Today Mr. T. turned one. I'm not sure where the last year went. Just yesterday we were bringing home a brand new person and today I can't imagine our family without him.

Mr. T., you have by far been our most easy going baby. You have made us all swoon, coo, giggle, laugh, and because you are so good, sometimes even forget you were there. You've grown into such an adorable little toddler with a love of music and dancing, opening things and most of all: stairs. Your sisters adore you and love taking care of you. SlimJim loves you too, even when much of his day consists of, "No, Baby!" and it's too cute to watch you follow him around and try to do everything he does.

We couldn't pull together a big fancy party right after Christmas with four kids and getting back into school, but with all of us at home all day every day is like a party. And lucky for us, Mr.T.'s birthday fell on a music class day, which is probably his favorite thing to do anyway.

So, we made birthday toast and sang "Happy Birthday" at breakfast:

Played all things Mr.T. in pajamas:

Enjoyed a music class:

And had a birthday dinner and get together with our closest friends:

Happy Birthday, Mr.T.! 

A Skating Party

To celebrate a friend's 10th birthday, we went to a skating party today. Her grandparents have a frozen pond in their backyard, and despite the warm weather, it was still frozen enough for skating!

The girls had a blast weaving in and out of the reeds and are both pretty decent at it. It was SlimJim's first time on skates and he thought it was the best, though my back and arms are exhausted from carrying his weight while he slipped and slid.

And Mr.T. enjoyed being pulled around by all the girls. 

We Rock the Spectrum

The kids have afternoon or evening activities every day of the week except Thursday, so if we ever want to get up from SlimJim's nap and do something, this is the only day of the week to do it. It was bitter cold today, so even though it looked nice out, we weren't spending time outside. The kids were troopers getting back into school and being patient with me not feeling well, and they needed to get out of the house and do something fun. 

We headed to an all abilities gym in Ballston Spa, We Rock the Spectrum. 

With only a couple other families, the kids had a fantastic time swinging, jumping, zip lining and just playing. 

We'll definitely have to visit again because the kids would have stayed there all night!