feb. 7

brooke's the "star student" of her class for the next 2 weeks.  each student gets a turn at being the "star student," and brooke has been anxiously awaiting her special time.  being star student involves a poster board (as shown above) describing the child (likes, activities, family, etc.) that is shared with the class and displayed for everyone to see, as well as special toys, books and treats that the star student is allowed to bring in to share with the class.  there's nothing brooke loves more than bringing in her own things to share with the class.

feb. 6

do you see what i see?  this is gavin in brooke's hot pink crocs making a run for it!  so funny.  today was a busy day, preparing for heather, danny & stella to arrive, running errands and trying to catch some of the super bowl.  i think the highlight of the day was when gavin put brooke's crocs on all by himself, unlocked the back door and ran out the gate.  i had to throw some shoes on and run after him.  he was trying to make it to one of the big boulders we have in our side yard that he loves to play on, but in the process he lost a shoe, and one foot of his pjs got all wet.  by that time i was hot on his trail, and he came hobbling back to me, a bit defeated.  maybe next time, buddy :)

feb. 5

one of the first pictures i've taken with my new camera.  it's been so busy around here that i haven't had much time to practice, but so far i'm loving it.  brooke has a princess dress on every single day :)  today was no exception.  we managed to get brooke out of a princess dress and into a real dress so we could take her and gavin to the seattle children's theatre.  we saw "go dog go!"  it was gavin's first time at any sort of theatre, and he handled it so well.  the play was perfect for him, but maybe a big young (and wacky :) for brooke's tastes.  after all, it was no cinderella.  gavin laughed out loud and clapped along with the audience.  he sat still for the entire 1.5 hour performance.  quite impressive!  we had dinner afterwards right across from the space needle, and it was quite late by the time we got the kids home and to bed.  it was well worth it for a great night out for our family.

feb. 4

it's here.....  i'm so excited.  although, i'm realizing that cameras are like cars.  you get used to the way they feel, the way they handle, you don't have to think about where the controls are, etc.  so, it's going to take me a couple of weeks to learn how to use this gem.

feb. 3

today was such a good day.  after dropping brooke off at school and coming home to anastasia and hudson who were crashing at our house while having their carpets cleaned, we decided to take an impromptu trip to the mall together.  it was totally spontaneous, and i loved it.  i love spontaneity, especially when i have a house to clean :)  i can't believe we've never done this before.  it was so much fun to be out with the boys.  i can see more of this in our future...

feb. 2

i really treasure the one-on-one time i've been spending with brooke every wednesday since ski lessons started.  brooke and i take a bus up to the mountain with other kids from her school.  i love sitting next to her on the bus, holding her hand during the walk from the bus to the slopes, itching her head when her helmet is bothering her and cheering wildly for her so she knows how proud i am.  i'm so grateful that i have the opportunity to share this with brooke.  it's something i'll never forget and something i hope she's old enough to remember.

feb. 1

ahhh, the first day of a new month.  it called for a hair cut for gavin.  i keep telling myself that i'm going to let it get "a little" longer, and then i go and have them buzz it.  i have always loved a clean cut guy :)