Weekend Top Five: 2/15/10

This weekend held a holiday (kind of). It also held the start of the winter Olympics, which we spent a lot of time watching. It also stretched into a three day weekend since both boys had Friday off for in-service/winter break days. We had a pretty good weekend even though it had its usual ups and downs in dealing with two high energy boys who seem to both be going through difficult phases at the same time. I won't go into details, but we are definitely struggling in the Wheelz home at the moment.

But we did have some fun times this weekend. We tried out another church and I am saving that story for its own post this week. Here are the top five from this weekend.

5. Friday Day Off
We had the day off on Wednesday because if a snow day, but the boys didn't want to spend the day running errands, so we had to push it to Friday. After haircuts, I had to go replace my second "new" camera that had once again broken, and with store credit, clearance prices, and the very last bit of tax refund left, I was able to get the camera that I had wanted in the first place. The boys were very good during the two trips back and forth to the store during the adventure, so as a reward, they decided to go to the children's museum.

We have had a membership there for a couple of years and have always enjoyed it. We took a few months off from going since it started getting a little too ordinary for them, so I wondered how they would do. Our membership is actually up next month and we've been trying to decided whether we should renew or not. It seemed as a good a place as any to try out the new camera though so we went.

The kids had a blast. After two hours (when our meter had run out), the kids were still playing and begging to stay. That's a sign of a good time. And I got a great chance to try out my new toy.

4. Princess and the Frog
The latest Disney movie finally made it to the second run theater and we surprised the boys by taking them on Saturday. Steve was not so excited about going, but I think he loved it as much, if not more than the kids, because of the music. The movie is based out of new Orleans during the Jazz Era, which is some of Steve's favorite music so he was in heaven. I understood what the reviews were saying about the story characters not being as strong, but it was definitely typical Disney in story and style and we all had a good time. The boys asked if we could go back to Disney just to ride the Princess and the Frog ride :)

It will probably become part of of the Wheelz Family collection at some point.

3. Dinner Out
We don't go out on the weekend much anymore and last weekend both boys at separate times mentioned the fact. So since our little teensy tiny (long story) tax refund came in, we decided to take them to Moe's (our favorite Mexican fast foodish restaurant). We really had a nice time and I think the fact that we barely ever go out anymore helped the kids to really appreciate it when we do.


2. Valentine Buddies
I have always gotten the boys a new buddy for Valentines Day. They enjoy them. I won some cute little Yoo Hoo Buddies from my friend Chris' blog (Dad of Divas) and I presented them to them for Valentine's Day. One made kissing sounds and the other laughing sounds. The kids loved them immediately and Noah begged this morning to take his to school (no).

Their love of stuffed animals (especially Noah) helps me to see the innocence in them still, even when we struggle with their growing desire for independence. I will keep this tradition up as long as I can get away with it.

1.Yummy Treat
With lent starting on Wednesday, I figured this was my last chance to really go over board in indulgence for awhile, so I found this recipe on one of Deb's blogs (Just a Mom's Take On Things) and decided to try it. I love baking with the boys. I have Noah read all the directions and Aaron do a lot of the measuring. I think they learn a lot from it and I hope that they will remember those times when they get older. They're kind of like a homemade candy bar, but made with chocolate cheerios. They are soooooooooo good but soooooooo bad for me. I can't even start to figure out points for them so I think we'll just call the next 48 hours a wash until lent starts. I just know if we can get rid of all of it before Wednesday but I guess I'll have to do my part and try :)

The Week Ahead:
It feels like a long week stretching ahead of us. Five full days with not really anything exciting in store. I really have to get going on finding a new location for my student recital in May. I also have to get the house ready for Steve's brother to be here next weekend to help put in the new sink. Steve's family are a group of high stress people who have a way of making one feel small just by being in their presence so I don't know why I try, but after 13 years, I still keep at it. I may have to take one afternoon and head outside with the new camera to play. And I won't even feel guilty about it (maybe).

Have a good week.