Silly Kid Conversations

Connor has lost both bottom front teeth & now has a loose top front tooth. So, his dad had some advice for him:

Connor's Dad: Connor, you should try not to wiggle that top loose tooth. If you loose them all at once, you won't be able to talk very well!
Connor: Don't worry Dad. I still remember how to talk with eyebrows. (Then he proceeds to show us "yes" "no/angry glare" and "Huh?" using only eyebrows.)
Dad (laughing): Oh good! Do you remember any sign language?
Connor: Just this one (demonstrates "more"...but not the actual way, the way our baby friend Emma does it.)
Me: I guess you could pretty much get by then!

Just this last weekend we were all in the car traveling for a while. About 10 minutes from home:

Ashlyn (yelling): I'm trapped! I'M. TRAAAAAAPPED!
Me (turning around in the passenger seat): What's wrong?
Ashlyn (in her best mad voice): YOU put me in this buckle, and I am trapped!!! I can't get out or move anywhere!
Me: Right. Its called a seat belt. That's how you ride safely in a car. You can't take it off.
Ashlyn (wailing): I'MMMMMM TRAAAAAPPPPPED IN HEEEEERRRREEEE!!!!!
Me (to no one in particular): Oh, good times...

More Bike Riding

How's the bike riding going? Well, thanks so much for asking. It had turned into an obsession, really. There has been a lot of improvement since the early days. Connor has been on two wheels for a while, and the girls really ARE speed racers. Here's an update in case you like to see with your own eyes. 

 We ride bikes every day. And by every day, I mean EVERY. DAY. We ride rain or shine. In coats, and sunglasses. Once we rode in pajamas & rubber boots. Anything goes.

We ride in sleet or snow. Once we even rode for a very short bit on an icy street. There is no stopping these die-hard riders.

They would ride them on a boat. They would ride them with a goat.

They would ride them in the rain, in the dark, and on a train.

In a car, and in a tree...anywhere they could, you see. 

In a house, in a box. With a Mouse, with a fox.

They will ride them here or there...they will ride them ANYWHERE!

Christmas 2013

We had a great Christmas this year! We traveled to Grandma & Grandpa's house, played with cousins, ate lots of food, you know...the usual. As long as I can remember we have opened our family gifts on Christmas Eve. Just can't stand the excitement of waiting until Christmas day, I guess. 

Since the kids get gifts from all of our extended family, Christmas gift opening is quite the ordeal. There are stacks and stacks of gifts, children tearing paper, dogs, parents, Grandparents, etc. It a small miracle that no one gets lost in the paper, really.  Here's some shots of the action.

 Then we spend the rest of the evening and Christmas day enjoying them! Here are some ultra competitive Lego Maniacs having a friendly lego-building competition. Apparently the rules were that if you are not 5 years old, you had to build without instructions. I think the 5 year old might have won. None of the competitors would be willing to confirm the final results, though.

The girls were pretty excited about their Minnie Mouse dress up sets!

 

Here's the gang!

 And the best news of all was that Santa found us at Grandmas. Phew!

The excitement over the Santa gifts...kills me. Just kills me. (Probably because it was about 6am. I think that I can tell that by looking at my face. SO not a morning person.)

And last but not least, we will leave you with this wish from the Cunninghams for 2014:

Very First Santa Meeting. Ever.

If you can believe it, this was the Cunningham's VERY FIRST trip to sit with Santa. In previous years the children have been less than thrilled about getting too close to the big jolly fella. We have waved to him from maybe 1000 feet, we have whispered (and yelled once) our wishes...also from 1000 feet, we have even waved to him in parades, but not too interested in the up close and personal type of visit. However, this year the kids said they actually WANTED to go. Well, then. We. Shall. Go. However, once it was our turn we had a few change of hearts. Ashlyn, in particular, would not get near without her mom, and Connor didn't really want to stand THAT close (but he did, such a brave little guy). Kaia later proclaimed over and over, "I was the bravest on Santa's lap!" (That didn't go over too well with her siblings, little stinker). Connor even whispered to Santa that we would be at Grandma's for Christmas. Santa, of course, said he already knew! Connor couldn't believe it. Amazing. And would you know it...Santa figured out right where Grandma lives and delivered all the special gifts just like the kids asked.

Thank You Uncle Will!

Uncle Will dropped by for an early Christmas celebration this year. He brought the kids all their favorite things...Legos for Connor (two sets!!) & Minnie Mouse blankets, stuffed animals, and pink Tutus for Kaia & Ashlyn. Can't you just feel the excitement in the air? Now if only we could talk Will into reading the blog from the middle of Nowhere, Alaska then he would get this super thoughtful thank you note.

Zip Lining

Connor is into extreme sports now...well just zip lining actually. It took him a while to build up to it, but finally decided that if his friend could go "all the way to the top" then he could too. Just some healthy peer-pressure to motivate an otherwise cautious guy, I guess. 

We can't talk the girls into trying this just yet, but I see that Jingle thought it was a pretty cool trick and just couldn't wait to try it out himself!