I think I can, I think I can, OH wait...I can!

Bella

Bella.  Bella Lou.  Bella Cita.  And sometimes Bellatrix.  What would we do with out you?!  This little pup has worked her way into our family too perfectly.  She is feisty and lovey and smart and fun.  The boys had her outside all day Saturday playing in the snow and running and chasing snowballs until she stood by the door begging me to let her in so she could sleep.

She really is smart.  I have worked commands with her and she gets them so easily.  She can sit, wait, down, come, paw and is currently attempting to roll over.  She is fully trained to ring a bell to go outside.  I over and over, took her paw, said paw, rang her paw on the bell, gave her a treat and put her outside.  Then she caught on and rang it herself!  We were so impressed.  Then one night she rang the bell and sat waiting for a treat with zero intention of ever going outside!  OH NO!  So I had to change it up and give her the treat after she had gone potty!  Told you she was smart.

The worst part about her is the play biting.  She chases after the kids (usually Emmitt who runs away from her screaming and clambering up on a piece of furniture).  Well she thinks it a game and he is her ultimate prize and goes tearing after him. She can officially get on the furniture now, which causes more screaming by Emmitt and more biting from Bella.  She is better, but once she is broke of that habit I think it'll be even better.  She does other naughty puppy things like dig holes in the sandbox and comes in super dirty. But she is getting used to her baths and let's me blow dry her! After the big snow came, she forgot that the deck is not a place to poop or pee.  We MUST stop her from that! Ick! 
She jumped over her playgate about 2 weeks ago and officially lost that freedom.  She is crated during the day while we are gone.  I come home at lunch to let her out and feed and play with her.  She can't really help but go nutty at night when we are home.  On the weekends when we are home all day, she is much better.  She sleeps in her crate at night too.  After that first week home, she has been holding it all night and gets up with me in the morning to go out.  She really is a good puppy.  The boys have done really well with her.  Some days I wonder if they really knew what getting a puppy was all about and other days, it's amazing to watch them with her.  They whine about picking up the poop and when she attacks them, but some of her puppy ways are so short lived that they have made a life long friend in her...

Tis the Season

 Tis the Season for busy little elf work.  We jam packed our weekend to get the most out of it.  But at the same time tried to relax while doing it instead of stressing out.  Looking back at the weekend overall, we accomplished just that. 
 Saturday we were able to enjoy a nice breakfast together and get outside (before the fog and rain came).  We built the outdoor rink together.  It was mostly just dad with mom's help.  Every so often I would ditch Bear and help the boys with their giant snowball fort. It was the perfect snow for snowmen and forts.  We made a Frosty and decorated him all up and by the end of the day he was smashed to pieces.  Emmitt did manage to get himself all dressed up like frosty though!

The boys and I also tackled an Advent calendar this year.  It was a kit I had ordered and seemed daunting every time I looked at it.  But with some help from my little guys we did it! I quickly filled the number one slot with a note to say "make advent calendar with mom" and with everything else we did this weekend, I think they were okay with it.  Anytime I drag out my scrapping supplies, they quickly get the stuff they like and start making projects with me.  It keeps them entertained at least.  We also released "Chippie" from his box.  He made his appearance on Sunday morning with a little treat for the boys from Jolly Old Saint Nicholas.  They had to show Bella Chippie and Chippie Bella.  After the introductions, they talked to Chippie all about the things we had done together.  That little elf brings lots of fun to the season.

 

 Day Two: says to get our tree from the tree farm and to go eat Lutefisk!  Or LunaFish as Parker called it!  After church we packed up at headed to Littlefork Lutheran for their annual Lutefisk, Meatball, Lefse, feast.  The boys were by far the youngest attendees that actually ate the Lutefisk and impressed all of the passersby.  Most were amazed they would eat it, but mainly they kept encouraging the boys to eat more of it and they will grow up to love it.  I love how my boys know how to react in a way that will just melt older people.  They both were like, "yeah, we love it, it's so great!"  They boys also flirted with two older ladies over the lefse platter at our table.  Papa Milo has turned them into Lefse eating machines and as soon as they both saw that giant plate of Lefse their eyes lit up.  Then they proceeded to chat it up over how much they loooovve Lefse!  Milo and Bear were the two soul eaters of the Lutefisk.  Peg, Tolle, the boys and I ordered the meatball dinner plate.  But of course once we tried it, we ate a little more of it.  Parker (my texture issue boy-THANK YOU Auntie Debbie!) got one gooey piece and he was done.  Emmitt just kept pounding it back.  We were a bit surprised, but overall glad that they try new things.

 After many trees, our family decided on one.  Some kind of Colorado white spruce, I think!  It's a shade of lime green and has a crazy top.  Crazy top for a crazy family.  It's a bit of a Grinch tree and fits in perfectly.  Parker wanted to be the man and cut down the tree.  He tried, but it was super hard to keep the saw in the right spot and eventually said his knees were getting wet and wanted dad to finish. 
This is our best attempt at a family shot in front of the tree.  Last year I vaguely remember dragging my tripod with, this year I am luck I remembered my camera!  Bear has the longest arms which means he is the lucky fellow that gets to arm shot our family.  Shot captured!

 Our little elves demanded to haul the tree out of the woods themselves. They accomplished it for the most part, but the snow was so wet and slippery that we had Emmitt running back to us in the truck saying, "I guess we need help."  And home we went. 

I am not sure I want to even put this in writing, but that little 11 week furball of a puppy we have has completely ignored our tree.  I was planning on gates and tying it to the ceiling and so far she has eaten a few stray needles off the floor and only tried to chew the lights when they were a pile of shiny things on the floor. 
Today is Day 3: decorate our tree with our ornaments.  And Chippie is in the tree watching you...

7 Years

Seven?!  How did that happen?!  My little 7-11 baby.  The day you were born we talked about all those lucky numbers.  You were born on 11-11 and weighed 7#11oz and we lived at 1105...I think dad went out and bought a powerball with 7's and 11's on it...then he commented that he would take you to the casino someday with him.  I actually think you want to be number 7 for hockey this year.  I immediately asked you if you were going to change your hockey number every year you have a birthday and you went deep into thought and asked "what number was dad again when he played?"  20 bud...okay, I'll be 20 again.  Yep, you want to me just like dad.  You want to go with him every time he leaves for the shack, you want to skate like him someday, you want to eat your meat like him so you can be big and strong. You idolize him.  I keep thinking my days are numbered every year you turn a new number, but you are and I believe will always be my big boy.  You still come to me for snuggles, books, when you are hurt, when you just want a hug or to say you love me.  Even though I feel like the one who is always barking at you to brush your teeth, flush the toilet, wash your hands, finish your homework, eat your breakfast and buckle up.  I am not sure why those daily routines are such a surprise to you most days, but dude, I hope you figure it out soon.
This year mom agreed to throw you a kid party.  I had one when I was 7.  I remember it.  I just cannot fathom a kid party every single year.  This party solidified that theory too.  No way!  I have been dragging my feet for years about the big party.  I mean we are just about 30 people with a family party, what more could you ask for.  Well how about a Mario Kart party with 12 of your bestest friends?  Sure why not!  (If you just read that and thought I was nuts, you are correct).  So I stayed up late making decorations, invitations, cleaning, putting together party bags, and planning games.  At least I had enough sense to hire out the cake this year.   Daddy was up a tree with a gun so it was just you and me to prepare.  The party day came and we had a busy house for just over 2 hours.  We played Mario Kart on the Wii, popped Mario balloons to gather Mario Coins,  ate Mario cake, pinned the "stache" on the Mario, and had a Yoshi Egg race.  That was all great fun for all involved.  But more than once I found you sulking on the stairs or hiding behind the couch.  I had no idea why?  What is my center of attention child doing ditching out on his own party?!  Two of the times I found you hiding you were in tears.  When we talked about it, you were hurt that certain friends weren't letting you have turn at the Wii or somebody took your coins.  I felt like I was in the Bernstein Bears Too Much Birthday book!  It was just too much for you.  You felt like you should have your way on your birthday, which is fine, but don't expect to get everything you ask for right now on your birthday, it doesn't work that way.  You have to be a gracious friend, especially when they are hear for you and your birthday.  It took him a bit to realize that and then he was fine.  But it was a shock for me to see him like that.  Just the other night I had him write out his 19 thank you cards and he said he wasn't going to have a kid party anymore, it was too much work!
We had the family party the day of your birthday.  Simple.  Cake and ice cream.   Just you being the center of attention and visiting with your family.  You loved it.  When I asked you if you preferred one party over the other, you said, just family...it's quieter too mom!  Yeah, I noticed too bud.
So Seven you are.  You have physically grown this past year and emotionally.  You are one of the taller kids in class, you may be the tallest on the ice too.  You are figuring out your boundaries more and more every year in school.  The last few have been trying that's for sure.  But this year it clicked.  At conferences this year, I finally left feeling pure relief...unlike the last 2 years I have left in tears and feeling frustrated.  The part that I had always heard was "he knows when he's doing wrong" but it was like you couldn't stop yourself from crossing the line.  You always had to put a whole foot over it, not even a toe.  Mrs. Dowty said that she loves watching you try so hard to "stay green" and make mom and dad proud of you.  You are smart too.  You get your math and spelling down right away.  You are doing things I am pretty sure I didn't learn until 3rd grade!  You are reading and reading and reading.  You don't always love to sit down and do it, but recently you like to read to Emmitt.  He is finally willing to sit for a long-short book.  We had been splitting you up for a while to do bedtime because it takes awhile to read one book, when he was used to mom or dad reading him many books.  But he always comes back to sit and listen to you read.  Your writing is coming along nicely.  You rush and therefore sometimes it's sloppy.  But I know that you would rather be outside playing or building something.  You build anything.  A fort, a beaver dam, a lego kit, a lion cage, the possibilities are endless.  Your imagination is going to take you far.  Many times I will come to the basement to find you and your brother hunkered down under a row of blankets, pillows, totes, chairs, anything you can pull out (and not want to clean up later) and I have to ask what kind of wild animal you are.  It's usually something "exotic" like a heard of lions waiting for the antelope to come through the plains.  Or a pack of mule deers or wolves.  Emmitt still has you play the "family of animals."  He is the baby or the mom and you are either the dad or the big brother.  And then I will find 50 stuffed animals that are the other babies you share.  Then in the next moment, I find the two of you hitting each other, scratching or taking some bat, club or stick after the other.  Emmitt is typically the one who goes after you, always for "no reason" which we know is not true.  But it's you who comes up crying or mad.  But it's Emmitt who comes up tattling on what you did.  For the most part mom and dad tell you to just "figure it out" together.  Frankly because we have heard it all and don't want to listen to it anymore.  But then we find you back together on the couch, your arm draped around your little brother's, him leaning against you.  And we sigh and do it all over again the next day.