Catch Up Part 1.

Maleah & her snowman PB&J.

The cookie-cutter scavenger hunt.

1. I bought these cookie cutters a month ago and pulled them out today. Any mom who is home all day with her little tikes during the winter understands the need to make simple items go much further than its initial use. We need to kill time, folks! Therefore, Momma initiated the cookie-cutter scavenger hunt. The girls LOVED it! I had Layla find red ones, or pick out two. Maleah started out finding certain animals, letters, etc. Then I extended it to finding what certain names start with. (P for Papa, etc.) This wonderful activity lasted 45 minutes! At the end I had her chose something that meant winter for our sandwiches today. And voila - you have the snowman peanut butter and jelly up above.

2. Then there's this cutie-patootie, Carson. He will be spending lots of time with us as we are going to be watching him a few days a week while his normal caregiver is on maternity leave. Today has gone amazingly well. All four kids are even sleeping at the same time! He is such a good boy, and you can about imagine how much the girls love having a little "baby" who walks and plays! He is 15 months old, and quickly reminding me about all that comes with that age. For example - I put a plate of lunch on his high chair, and well...the first thing he did was dump the plate. I'm excited to get to know him better.

3. Last week was a whirlwind. Between visitation, funeral, and having our guests here, the week seemed crazy! The great thing about funerals (wish it was a wedding!), is how it draws family together. Dallas's cousin and her family stayed here all week. They have two little kids who got along so well with ours. We played cards every night and stayed up way too late talking and laughing and laughing and laughing. It was a blast!

4. All the kids have been fighting the sniffles. Within the last hour, I've felt the waterworks coming through my nose too. Lovely.

5. We are going to the Dells Thursday and Friday with our dear friends for some much needed time away. I can.not.wait!!

6. Lastly (for this edition of catch-up), I love Mondays! Everyone seems happy to be home with nowhere to go.