To Caroline's Tooth Fairy: Get ready!!

Back in May of last year, Caroline made an important dental announcement (click here to visit that post). Perhaps it was a bit of wishful thinking that she had a wiggly tooth back then, as it has taken just a couple of months shy of a year to get close to losing that same tooth. She has been so anxious to meet this milestone...she wants to use the tooth fairy pillow that she made when she was in preschool...she just can't wait until the fairy makes her first visit...and many of her friends have lost teeth.

She has been diligently working on increasing its "loose-ness," trying to eat crunchier foods and wiggling, wiggling, wiggling. As a result, said "wiggly tooth" is extremely loose now, and Caroline is one excited girl.

I went to check on her before I went to bed tonight, and noticed that right next to her tooth fairy pillow, she had written a little note to the tooth fairy. As you can see, on the note she wrote, "My tooth is get(t)ing loos(e)r tooth fairy." She also drew a picture of her teeth in her mouth with her fingers wiggling her tooth. I can't wait to see her reaction in the morning when she sees that the tooth fairy wrote a note back to her..."That (tooth) is getting looser, sweet Caroline! I'll be coming back soon! Love, your tooth fairy"

Poor Caroline!

Caroline had a great weekend...a playdate, a sleepover, a birthday party and the McCAP party. However, her week is not off to a great start. At midnight last night, she came down with the stomach flu. Ugh. She's been pretty low today, sleeping a lot and not being able to eat. Although I think she started turning the corner, she'll be staying home again tomorrow. Please say a little prayer that she feels better soon and that the flu stops in this house with her!

Here's our sweet girl at her sweet friend Sydney's party on Saturday. Caroline and Sydney have been friends 4ever (or since they were three!). The dalmatian that Caroline was sitting next to was a troublemaker...

I only caught the tail end of this, but this rotten dog kept trying to steal Caroline's cupcake. Caroline and her friends thought he was the funniest thing ever! :)

McCAP's big night!

Last night our family headed out to McHenry County Adult Program's winter fundraiser. As stated on their website (click here to visit), McCAP's mission is "to provide a meaningful learning experience that will enrich and expand the lives of young adults with severe and profound disabilities." My cousins, Mary and Pat, helped to found the program, and their daughter, Megan is a participant in it.

It was such a fun night for a wonderful organization, and it was a big success! Pat is a member of the band, The Spectacles, who performed at the event. They ROCK, as Seth said. (Caroline agreed, but would have preferred some Hannah Montana on their playlist.)

They served yummy food...

and held a silent auction.

The kids had a great time, not only on the dance floor, but also in a little hide and seek...

Seth and Evan were dancing partners tonight.

Check out their moves, the band (Pat's the drummer in this clip, and also plays the guitar and sings in the band...multi-talented, that one!), and some other terrific dancers (including Mary and Megan) in this clip...



...and here's some more from Seth and Evan. They've got some good moves, huh?!

Thanks for a fun night, Pat and Mary! Love you!

He's a goofball.

But at least he's having fun.

Seth's in love...

...with Captain Underpants and Diary of a Wimpy Kid, two series of books written for the young elementary set. Last year, Seth started to read the Magic Tree House books (which Henry at one point LOVED), but he never really got into them. Apparently, Seth prefers humor to adventure. He is devouring these books. I couldn't be more pleased. Perhaps some people would object to the type of humor in these book with titles such as "Bionic Booger Boy" and "Professor Poopypants." However, watching Seth enjoy these books, I sometimes find myself laughing out loud with him. I guess I'm in love too!

Here's what you do...

...when all of your older siblings have homework to do.

I kept Evan busy tonight by recording all of his tricks...mainly the somersault variety, with a bit of jumping and one-foot standing mixed in. He's a talented young man, that one. And he kind of has a thing for watching himself on camera. :)

On a side note, I do think that Seth should be recognized for his patience and his ability to focus on his math assignments while this "show" was going on. It was impressive!

Caroline's room

It's full of many special things...

--a bed from her Great-Grandpa's house, the same one that her Great-Aunt Shirley used to sleep on when she was a little girl, and the same one that her Aunt Lisa and I used to sleep on as little girls when we stayed over at our Grandpa and Grandma's house. It's a special bed.

--a table, chairs, and hutch from her Grandma Orton...Caroline has tea parties there, and when her mom feels like indulging her, lets her and a girlfriend have lunch there.

--a trunk that her Great-Great Grandparents used

--billions of books, stuffed animals and dolls

--some sweet doll bunk beds that I used to play with when I was a little girl

--a desk that her aunts, her uncle and I used as kids...it is ALWAYS well-stocked with plenty-o-art supplies, as she is definitely our artist-in-residence

--lots and lots of clothes handed down to her from her cousins ;)

--a dresser that her Great-Aunt Shirley gave her...it was originally her Great-Grandparents. It's beautiful!

--a karaoke machine that is definitely put to good use

--a sweet girlfriend (or two or three), their laughter, their imagination


I love Caroline's room!

Happy birthday, Mom!

My mom turned 17 today! And somehow I'm turning 40 this year...

My mom is actually a leap year baby, born on February 29th. Because she was born at home, her doctor suggested to my grandma that they make her birthday March 1st to make things simpler. However, the original birthdate is the one she's going with today. She is, perhaps, the youngest grandma in existence!

So, we took my young mom out to dinner at our favorite pizza place, the restaurant that we always ordered our pizza from when I was growing up. YUMMY! It was delicious, a fact that Evan confirmed when he told our waitress repeatedly (with gusto), "I LOVE PIZZA!" Our table was right next to a kids' play room, complete with video games and a teeter-totter, so the kids were very happy.

Next we headed to another restaurant/play place...McDonald's. We wanted to use SKYPE to call my sister, Lisa, and her family down in Texas, and McDonald's was the only place that we knew had WiFi (sp?). My cousins, Mary and Pat, introduced us to the idea of SKYPE when we got together last. If you are not familiar with SKYPE, it's a service that allows you to place FREE video calls using your computer. My mom was excited about this idea because she can use it to talk to her grandkids. We tried it out for the first time last night, with the help of Pat and Mary(thank you!), and had such a fun time including Lisa and her family in the McDonald's part of my mom's birthday celebration. :)

Lisa's kids were so sweet...they made her a cute "Happy Birthday!" sign that they were able to show her.

Here's what we were looking at...

SKYPE even allows you to take a snapshot of your screen...so here are some of the beautiful people we were talking with last night...Will, Annie, Callie and Evie!

We love you, Mom, and hope that your ongoing birthday celebrations are FABULOUS!