With our little spare time we have Russ tries to work in the basement. We are still working on finishing the kitchenette. The work he does really is perfection. I don't think anyone would look at our basement and think it was DIY. I mean he built these cabinets and cabinet doors from scratch. So impressive! We now need to pick out a paint color. We are wanting a blue cabinet but just need to decide just how blue we want them.
Every year we host a New Years Eve party with our friends. We (mostly Russ) cook a really nice dinner for everyone and then go to the Naylors house for games once the kids go to bed. Russ was cooking steaks on his new Blackstone grill he got for Christmas and burnt himself real good. He was cleaning the grill at the end, trying to hurry up and come in and eat dinner with everyone, and he burnt his knuckles. Poor Russ. It blistered right away and looked so painful. I had him baby that burn for about 10 days to avoid infection and he followed my rules strictly. Luckily it healed up nicely.
And for another adventure the kids did while Russ was off work this week...going to the movie theater. They saw Puss & Boots. It was the only kid movie really out at this time. I stayed home while Stockton napped and worked out. Russ suffers from FOMO (fear of missing out) and also doesn't like staying home all day. I am a homebody and don't really care if I miss out on the little things. So, Russ is usually the one that takes the kids to do things when we can't bring Stockton along.
I know I've said this before but Brooks has grown leaps and bounds this year! I am so proud of him stretching himself and trying new things. He has grown so much academically with Upstart that I do with him everyday. He has grown socially and has found friends that he has play dates with WITHOUT me. He loves going to preschool and is so well behaved there. He goes to his primary class without problems and I actually believe he participates now. His confidence is growing and he is figuring out who he is. I love watching him discover the world and make his mark on the world!
Brooks is quite clumsy. He falls off of our stools in our kitchen at least a few times a week. He is always the one that fell over or slipped on something. We have to repeat ourselves all the time because his initial response to anything we say is, "Huh?" He has to experience something at least once before he feels like he can loosen up and have fun. He has a sweetness about him that is so unique to him. His toothless smile and small dimple just about melt me. He has the best belly laugh that you can't not laugh along with him when he does it. His obsession with hats and his dad run deep. There are a million things about Brooks that I love. So glad he is mine!
For Christmas I told Russ the only thing I wanted was for him to redo our front room. I wanted an accent wall, window trim, and new furniture for the space. I wanted to modernize and update the front room. Russ has been focusing all of his home project work on the basement, which is great and it looks amazing but the process is SLOW! I have been sick of my front room for awhile now but I didn't want to wait forever to get it updated. I knew if I asked for it as a Christmas gift Russ would get working on it quick because he wouldn't want me to not have anything for Christmas. It sounds evil but it really is not. It is just capitalizing on his determination to make me happy for Christmas. Haha! The room was completed and fully decorated about a week or so after Christmas and I couldn't love it more!! I find myself just randomly walking into this space just so I can look at it some more. And man Russ is so talented! Seriously. He does such good work!
My internet inspiration picture for the accent wall. Although I want the wall to be green. It seems bold but I think it will be really pretty in the end. At least I hope so.
Hallie is the perfect balance of girly and sporty. She was invited to her cousin, Xander's, birthday and was 1 of 2 girls there. Honestly it wouldn't have bothered her if she was the only girl there. I love that she can hang with the boys and play rough with them. She also lost another tooth this month. She's always been a persistent girl and once her tooth is even the teeniest bit loose she will wiggle that thing nonstop until it is out!
Russ had the entire week off of work this week! It was awesome. He took the two older kids to the Clark Planetarium today for a much needed outing. Hallie is super into space and so this was a fun adventure for her.
I cut my finger pretty good the day after Christmas. I was reaching across the counter and there was a glass cup sitting on the edge of the countertop. When I brought my hand back I accidentally knocked the glass cup over. I tried to catch it before it fell to the floor but instead smashed it up against my finger and cabinet and it shattered everywhere and cut my finger open. I for sure needed stitches but I didn't want to go to the ER at 10 PM to get my finger stitched. One, I didn't want to pay for it and two, I didn't want to go to the ER. So, I decided I would deal with an "uglier" scar on my index finger and glue it at home. Unfortunately, the glue "popped" open the next day because there is just so much tension in that area and that area is easily bumped. I bumped it while putting Stockton in his car seat and it broke open. My finger took 10 days to completely heal up. I was still bleeding days and days afterwards. Probably a sign I should have gotten it stitched up but alas it is now healed and is fine looking.
Going to my parents every Christmas morning is such a fun tradition. Norwegian pancakes and presents is always fun. This year, my parents surprised everyone with a big family trip to Disneyland. Next year, my dad turns 70!! And they landed on some inheritance money from my dad's parents so they are taking us all to Disney. The trip is scheduled for Nov 2023 and we can't wait. This truly is a once in a lifetime trip for all of us to take together and something my parents have wanted to do for us for forever. It is very nice of them to spend some of their inheritance money on a family trip!
We had a magical Christmas morning as a family. Hallie and Brooks couldn't contain their excitement and Stockton loved opening all his gifts. This year I asked Russ for one gift, to redo our front room. Besides his "daddy gift" to me and the kids he stuck to his promise of no other presents and I absolutely love my new front room. Brooks kept asking why Rosie didn't get any presents. Haha!
Santa came! He piled all of the kids' Christmas gifts (from last nights Christmas Eve party) into one area to make things easier. Here is what the kids got: Hallie: V-tech watch (in fact, all Hallie asked for for Christmas was "a watch with a screen"), heely's, 3D space puzzle, light up drawing board, and a tamagotchi. Brooks: A jeep with a trailer, remote control Megalodon truck, motorcycles, a new hat, and a sports car. Stockton: Tricycle, sports car, toy phone, light-up ball, and a shark car.
I gave Russ: An ultimate sneaker book because he has shoe obsession, magnetic golf towel, cologne, churro making kit, birkenstocks, black stone griddle, griddle cover, and cooking utensils. His favorite gift was the griddle but overall he really liked all his gifts. And all of them were complete surprises for him!
Brooks' Christmas
