This needs no explanation- too funny of Brett and Henry- post-Thanksgiving dinner entertainment. If you don't giggle while watching something is seriously wrong....

George Part Deux

So- I still LOVE George. In fact, George is my hero right now. As I struggle to be a parent, I really find some joy in putting the blame or cause to be a good listener on someone else. And at times I go to bed frustrated that a 2 year old can cause me to feel defeated- like I lose control and feel helpless to the clever offensive and defensive tactics of a toddler, for goodness sakes! I read something tonight that really hit home. My friend Julie Tassey's Dad, Robert Wolgemuth, wrote a great book called, The Most Important Place on Earth. In a chapter on discipline (kindly entitled "Discipline is not a Dirty Word") he writes this:
"I want you to know something that's critcally important about the uses for the word discipline. The noun is the goal, and it's the result of the verb. In fact the noun is the great reward of the verb".
So as I struggle to be disciplined in my routine with Lucy (being mindful of setting the appropriate stage and timing-getting dressed, breakfast, dinner, bathtime, bedtime) I was reminded that my discipline in my attitude and actions toward Lucy will inevitably allow her to learn discipline and as a result be disciplined. Disciplined as in- know when to be obedient and when to push herself towards a goal (I already have high hopes for athleticism and academics!).
George is my out- he allows me to focus on his reward of telling Santa what a good listener Lucy has been, or to tell the stories of her good choices of obedience and kindness at home and at school. Below is a video of Lucy finding George this morning....I love it!

HFB is ONE!!!

we had BIG birthday celebrations with our Thanksgiving turkey! Henry hit his 365 days and my cousin mark turned 27, last thursday, Thanksgiving day. sorry mark- from now on you have to share with henry!!! we ventured to uncle steve & mary beth's house in the early evening for a delicious meal but we decided to start the night off with cake celebration first- my kind of order!! desserts first! we had so many great pics from the birthday cake that i couldn't decide which to choose so i just posted them all. henry wasn't so sure about the birthday cake until i shoved the icing in his mouth. then he proceeded to get his hands all in it and lick it up! he didn't do a face plant, which i was really hoping for, but at least i know he has my sweet tooth!

happy birthday little buddy (and mark too :) ) - the year has gone by way too fast!

(i am working on a one year video so hopefully i will have that posted sometime this week- stay tuned!)

the birthday boys

my attempt at making birthday hats- not very martha stewart but hey, i tried! of course henry kept his on for all of 10 seconds!

mark's giant cupcake

hen's big cupcake

checking it out

the goose & uncle mark showing henry the ropes

me shoving the icing in his mouth.....then he finally realized it is soooo good!

yummy!! so good!

i think we can say sugar overload!!!

yay- i'm one!!

GEORGE

We were given "Elf on a Shelf" by Honey this past week. As a former teacher, I love behavior modification tools that are positive. We brought this little elf out the night before Thanksgiving and after much discussion- Lucy named her elf George...not sure why but it is Stephen's "go-to" name when playing legos- so she must have wanted to suck up to Dad. George is AWESOME. Here is the deal- George leaves our abode each night to report to Santa on Lucy's behavior that day...and when he comes back he is always in a different spot. The search for George is hilarious- George can't talk but you can talk to him. And you cannot touch George or he will lose his magic. So- Lucy loves to hunt for George each morning. And frequently can be heard telling George, "I am bein' such a good listener".
We struggled with bath and bed time last night. As you may guess, George is sitting on the towel rack in Goose's bathroom this morning. Will let you all know if it works- good thing George is clever too- hoping he will help Mama out this week and correct the stall tactics that have become a habit pre-bedtime.
GEORGE- help a sister out!! xxoo.

hen & goose's halloween

trick or treat! smell my feet!! the Goose was a ballerina and Hen was a clown. we have decided that next year we must dress them up together somehow....any suggestions are welcome!! enjoy the pictures.....

the ballerina and clown at the neighborhood festivities

here are some full shots of the two

i had a multi colored wig & red nose but that didn't even get on the head or nose!

laundry man

he loves it when i am getting things out of the dryer. he likes to pull each one out separately and throw it on the ground first! so...we decided to see if he fit in the dryer! aren't we so mean???

quick visit with mark

the little ones aren't paying attention, so.....

we finally got them to kind of look at the camera....check out the crazy parents in the background!

then of course we had to do a silly face picture....i think i got lucy in the middle of her expression, henry had no idea what was going on & mark had it just right!

great to see you for a quick bit mark! we miss you all the time and can't wait to hang out over the holidays!!!