Happy Birthday Big Brother!

     Today was Big Brother's 3rd birthday! I can't believe he's already 3! I swear it wasn't that long ago that Hubby and I went to the hospital bright and early so that I could be induced and we could welcome our little boy that afternoon…
     Well, this morning he woke up to a pretty special day. He found that Zippy had shown up as requested, and he decorated the recliner!

Our decorated recliner

Zippy came back

A picture with Zippy

     After that find he found a present on the kitchen table. A brand new Lightening Mcqueen hat! This gift came in handy today since we didn't get out of single digit temperatures for long. He was really excited about his hat until I asked him to model it for me but I was able to get a few pictures of him wearing it before we left the house.

A special gift

Opening his gift

What is it?

A Lightening hat!

Birthday boy

check out that hat!

      Unfortunately Big Brother will probably always return to school from Christmas break either on his birthday or shortly after and day care/preschool is no different. This, however, also means that he is able to have a "birthday party" at school. Today we took in cookies and his friends sang to him at snack time. THEN, since one of my co-workers is leaving we had a joint birthday and farewell party at lunch with cake and more singing.

excited for singing and cookies

making a wish?

blowing out candles

Mmmm tasty cookie

And the cake!

Pretty excited about it

Birthday boy and the cake!

     Big Brother napped at school today though he normally comes home with me in the afternoon and naps here. I made the choice so that I could socialize with some of my co-workers, have some lunch and meet up with Hubby for coffee before we parted ways to collect children or take them home. Froggie and I headed home and waited for the boys to show up. When they got home we asked Big Brother what his favorite food was (he answered fruit) and then gave him a list of meats to choose from (he decided on shrimp) so we could decide where to take him for his birthday dinner.
     We waited for my mom to get out of work and she gave him a gift (2 planes from Disney's Planes) and we headed to Cracker Barrel (the only place I know with a shrimp kids meal). I should have taken a picture but it slipped my mind - oops! Big Brother didn't eat much, though he normally picks at his food. Froggie, on the other hand, ate an entire sweet potato and a bowl of mac and cheese and probably would have eaten more!
     After dinner we headed home, read a bed time story and sent Big Brother to bed. Tomorrow afternoon we're celebrating with family and friends.

Zippy Come Back!

     When Zippy returned to the North Pole with Santa he left a special present for the kids, a new Elf on the Shelf book!

     This one explains how, if the kids write to Santa, Zippy will be allowed to return for 24 hours for their birthday. He will decorate a chair like a tree (cause that's what elves do) and wear a special cupcake outfit. So after dinner Big Brother "wrote" his letter to Santa asking Zippy to come for his Birthday after he decided that he wanted Zippy here for his actual birthday rather than the day of his birthday party. We'll have to see what Zippy has done when we get up in the morning.

"writing" his letter

What we left for Santa/Zippy

What Has Zippy Been Up To?

     Here are some of the things that Zippy has been up to over the last month. I figured this was a decent farewell for him since he will be returning to the North pole with Santa tonight. 

Mini Vacation: Day #1 Travel

     Today was our big travel Day! We got up a little early, got dressed and loaded the car before heading out to the airport. Once we got there and started unloading the car and ran into a snag in our plans. First, I struggled to get Froggie`s car seat unlatched and then our plan to strap the car seats to our luggage didn't pan out as expected. We ended up having to carry the car seats from gate to gate the entire day.

We found a dinosaur in the airport.

     I tried prepping Big Brother for security right off the bat in the morning and he was excessively concerned that he or his belongings were going to be squished during screening. He did well and had no melt downs (thank God for answered prayers!). We went through a new line in security where we didn't have to open anything or take off our shoes. I didn't even have to take Froggie out of the Ergo, which was a huge life saver. All the way through and Big Brother's only complaint was due to the fact that he wanted a snack thanks to not eating more than a few bites of breakfasts. So once we found our gate my mom stayed with our luggage while the kids and I went and bought some drinks and snacks.

Our first plane

The kids and their first plane.

The kids and their first plane.

     Our first flight went off without a hitch and our flight even landed early! Big Brother played with his Leap Pad 2 almost the whole flight and despite my typical views on children and over exposure to electronics I recommend some sort of tablet with games or videos to make the flight pass a little more quietly. Froggie nursed during take off and played at the window and with her new jellyfish toy as well as snacking throughout the flight and playing peek-a-boo with the couple behind us. I think the only issue we had that flight was that Big Brother didn't want to leave his seat belt on.

Nursing cover and suckers!

In flight entertainment.

Looking out the window.

Froggie`s view for flight #1

Froggie and I on her first plane ride.

She had a blast! 

The kids got jellyfish on the plane.

Flying with Grandma.

     After a very long walk carting our belongings across the airport in Charlotte, NC we made it to our next gate just before they began boarding. This was a smaller plane and we had to wait a little longer to turn stuff on (at least it seemed that way). Big Brother ended up watching Disney`s Planes during this flight (ironic right?) but got upset when we had to turn everything off to land. Froggie nursed again during take off and I think I forgot to mention Big Brother had a sucker and bunnies to combat the pressure change. Froggie REALLY wanted to take the kindle and headphones that Big Brother had so she played with a book an  had  a teething cookie which got EVERYWHERE!  In addition to the mini freak out about giving up the Kindle we battled the seat belt issue again and Froggie decided that just  about three quarters of the way through our flight would be a good time to poop. Let me tell you, there is nowhere to change a diaper on a plane not to mention we were told to put our seat belts back on. Needless to say our first stop in Pensacola was the bathroom. The young woman sitting in front of us noticed Big Brother's daddy doll and gave me a dog tag to give to him. It was a very nice gesture on the part of a stranger!

The kids and I on our second flight

Watching "Planes" on our second flight.

Looking out the window on flight #2

The view on flight #2

Gift for Hubby from a girl on flight #2.

     We walked, with car seats in tow to get our rental car. I think that process was the most frustrating, especially since  everything was already booked and confirmed online and I should have just had to show them my I'D and card and been given my keys. Big Brother ran around with his blankie tied around his neck like a cape and watched luggage come in. The blanket cape was done out of necessity since he wouldn't stop dragging it on the floor, but it kept him entertained. He was able to climb into a Blue Angel cockpit they had in baggage claim as well and was super excited about it.

Blanket cape!

Blue Angel cockpit at the airport.

Blue Angel cockpit at the airport.

Blue Angel cockpit at the airport.

Blue Angel cockpit at the airport.

     We packed up our rental and headed towards Hubby who, for the record, is directionally challenged and sent me in the wrong  direction numerous times. We got checked in, unloaded and settled in the rain but it cleared up by dinner and we were able to walk around (without coats!) after dinner.
     Did I mention that Zippy made the trip? Big Brother found him hanging from a lamp shade once we got settled.

Zippy came to Florida with us!

Meet Zippy

     This is Zippy, our Elf on the Shelf. He came to us last year and made his return appearance on December 1st by bringing a note with a book and movie about scout elves. Big Brother was instructed to introduce Zippy and Froggie (which he still hasn't done). On day 2, Zippy made his way into our Christmas tree and held onto a candy cane for Big Brother but we weren't home long enough during his waking hours to find him so on day 3 (today) he was still waiting. Big Brother got his candy cane after dinner and Zippy is now off on a new adventure.

December 1st

December 2nd and 3rd

*** I'm going on "vacation" for a few days. I may publish a few entries but it's difficult for me to post to Facebook from my phone. So, all of you who get to the blog through the links I post on Facebook and Pinterest, keep an eye on the blog (sign up to follow it and check back daily). Otherwise, I'll refine and post links when I get home!