Saturday, November 17, 2012

Half way there

This Thanksgiving we are doing a family project. We are doing acts of kindness each day of the month to show people we are thankful for them. Project: Give Thanks 2012 is half way done and so I thought I'd list what we've done so far.

1: We made cards for Children's Cancer Connection. Hopefully the kid's hospital stay was brighten by our cards, pictures, and stickers. We received a very nice card back from CCC thanking us.

2: The crossing guard up the street was our target. This is where the idea for the project was created. Each day we pass the crossing guard at the neighborhood school on our way to Josie's school. We always talk about how she protects the kids and keeps them safe. So we decorated a bag and filled it with cookies, kleenex, and hot cocoa. She was so surprised by our gift. She thanked us over and over. When she said, "but you don't even know me." Josie said, "Yes we do, we see you everyday taking care of the kids." Melted me.

3: Ring Bells for RKR. This was awesome. I've been working on the Red Kettle Run for The Salvation Army since April. It was a fun run to kick off the kettle season and bring awareness to what all The Salvation Army does in our community. The kids rang bells and cheered on the runners. Will was so adorable. Every runner he yelled, "Good Job, keep going, all the way to the clock." He really was getting into it!

4: Sunday School Teachers. We did bags with tiny flower pots in them with decorated cards. Josie walked into her class and said loud and clear, "I'm thankful for you!" to both teachers. One started to cry. This thankful stuff is easy, fun, and rewarding!

5: Doctor Beebe got a bag of fun from the Bemis kids. Homemade yummies, tissues, hand sanitizer, etc... With 3 kids we know the doctor office well... too well. We needed to tell them we appreciate all they do for us. She was thrilled.

6: All of our teachers. I say ALL because Josie has 4 teachers in her class, the boys have two, plus an awesome preschool director to boot. We gave our last bag of treats for the week but in this one we also put Junior League Gift Mart tickets in there too! I am required to buy so many tickets as a member. Last year I brought a bunch of friends with me to the event, but this year my schedule wasn't looking good. So we decided to give them all away. The boys' teachers all were excited to go!

7: Clive Librarians. We go to the library almost every week. Even when we don't have story time we find ourselves there to check out books and play with the toys. The librarians are always so sweet and the free programs they offer are awesome. The boys brought them a big vase of flowers to say thank you. I get such a kick out of them saying, "We're thankful for you!" It NEVER gets old.

8: Over 30 cards in the mail... this took some time. The kids wrote on most cards and the ones they didn't they helped stamp. It felt good to send some love to our friends and family.

9: Food Pantry donation. Will & Ben's gymnastics were doing a can good drive for the food pantry. By participating we got a free open gym pass... Winner winner chicken dinner! I read an article about the need for protein and kid friendly foods. So I let them each pick something out they like at the store then added some tuna for good measure. 10 can goods later we were set!

10: Postal Carrier. This was a shout out to our Grandshe. We gave a small box of chocolates with a card to the carrier. The boys sat by the mailbox for a good 15minutes just to make sure she got it.

11: Hospital visit. We created a very large basket of yummies for the NICU nurses at Blank Hospital. Those nurses will always have a special place in our hearts thanks for the wonderful care they gave the first 12 days of the boys lives. When each kid said why they were thankful I felt tears in my eyes.

12: Make Dad lunch. We've been working so hard to show others we are thankful for them, we didn't recognize what's right in front of us! Our number one supporter in all that each of us does! It was a simple gesture that went a long way... he used that paper bag to carry his lunch in ALL week. Proud daddy.

13: Good Friends! We made brownies for our besties. The kids all had teacher conferences within a week. The conferences never last long and seem silly to have a sitter drive all the way over here (none of our sitters live near us!) for 45minutes of watching the kids. What do you do when you need help?! Ask good friends to come to the rescue :)

14: Baby shower. A neighbor decided to have a baby shower for a girl who is young and pregnant. She doesn't have a support system and needed help with the bare necessities. We purchased an outfit, diapers, and wipes to contribute to the gifts they were putting together for this soon-to-be mom.

15: Kindness goes a long way. The boys brought flowers to the receptionist at the Chiropractor office. This mom of 3 tends to need adjustments and never gives a lot of warning on when I can come in. Amanda always gets me in right away, which is awesome. But her attitude to everyone who comes through the door is kind. It's the little things in life that are easy to take for granted. So today we thanked someone for being kind hearted.



 This was the picture we used on our Thankful cards this year. 

 Cards for CCC 


 Sunday school teachers....


All of our teacher bags - the kids were so excited for this day! 


The basket of goodies for the NICU nurses. 


Brownies for our besties.... 


30 plus cards in the mail!

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Step Aside...

Here comes the professional!

We had the perfect family day Saturday. It might be the last perfect weather day this fall. I say might, because I think we've thought that a few times already this season.... hopefully we'll continue to get a few more perfect weather days.

We got up and out of the house early to get donuts. We knew we needed to seize the day. After donuts we took the kids to play putt-putt. It was a first for our family. Josie loved it and was actually pretty good. Will was enjoying it and Ben wanted more to do with... well anything else really. But we had a blast! After golf we hit the zoo.

It was a great day that was full of Josie one liners that had Billy and I in stitches. While she made her way through the putt-putt course, Josie would tell us "Watch the professional". Then she'd whack the ball and most of the time get it surprisingly close.

Josie also informed Will, in a very serious tone, that she has been looking out for him her whole life. Jos emphasizes the whole life part... like she's been around for more than five years.

Last night, we had Josie's first teacher conference in half day kindergarten. I'm pretty sure we didn't stop grinning for a long time. Josie got rave reviews. While she is doing great in school the thing that made me the happiest was when we were told that Josie makes sure to include other kids. There are a few special need kids in the class and the teacher told us that Josie is a great buddy. That's a skill I hope she keeps for life.

 Josie and Billy at the Zoo. 

 Will getting some Josie love. 


 Putt-Putt Time! Ben, Josie, and Will. 


Breakfast singing....

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Halloween Fun!

Halloween is a big deal in our house. We love dressing up. We love decorating and putting out the Halloween Village. A tradition we also love is our sleepover at GiGi's with Grandshe and Ayla! Even though GiGi doesn't live in town anymore, she still organized an amazing Halloween slumber party. She called it Halloween Hotel (original name was Haunted Hotel, but the crew was apprehensive with that name).

While the kids enjoyed a hotel stay filled with swimming, movies, crafts, and (the kids favorite) breaking ALL the rules.... Billy and I went to the Nebraska game. Everyone wins!

Josie was able to wear her costume 3 times. She was Alex the Lion from Madagascar. Will and Ben were also characters from the movie. Marty the Zebra (Will) and Gloria the Hippo (Ben) loved following their Lion Leader.

Here is a video of Josie doing her Halloween Dance routine: