Swim-A-Thon

Braeden was a bit worried about promising to swim 25 laps in the Makos swim-a-thon.  He forgot that he could get out after 25 laps so he and his friend Liam swam 34 laps!  Braeden raised over $200 thanks to his supportive extended family!

Swimmer of the Meet

Braeden was honored with Swimmer of the Meet for his meet on the 24th.

From the Makos website:

This section is dedicated to our "Swimmer of the Meet".  Swimmer(s) of the Meet are chosen by the coaches and given the honor for various reasons.  Really fine performance, a kind gesture, good sportsmanship, extra effort, etc. are some of the reasons.  Congratulations!

Makos site

Braeden got a Swiimer of the Meet swim cap, we'll see if he'll really wear it!

Teagan wins Earthopoly!

She drove us all into near bankruptcy and correctly counted added and multiplied while doing it.

We finished Teagan's High School Musical room!

Her closet is now a star's dressing room!
A stage area.

The stickers are removable but the paint may never go away!

Breakfast

Braeden and Teagan fixed a delicious breakfast for us this morning.  Braeden and I made the cinnamon rolls yesterday afternoon.  They set the table and made fruit salad for us!  All was delicious.

Snow

We had snow last night, which turned into rain, which turned into a bit of sleet, which stopped altogether, and then started up again just as we were to leave the house!  Since the temperature was dropping we choose to reschedule our plans and stay off the roads.  That did not mean stay inside!  The kids went out to see how their snow forts from last week had held up--they were solid ice and now fun climbing structures.

Braeden's fort.

Teagan's Birthday Walk

Teagan had her birthday walk today.  She has been around the sun 7 times!  

This year she wanted me to do the birthday walk since I usually do in our class.  Braeden came to watch and be our ace photographer.

Singing (and signing) to Teagan just before she blows out the candle.
Making her orbit around our sun. 
Teagan--she did her own hair!

Teagan's room

For Christmas Jeff and I told Teagan we would paint her room.  She has been asking for about a year, so she was thrilled with this gift.  She chose a High School Musical theme (shocking!).  Which meant that for Christmas she was lucky enough to get some High School Musical wall clings (removable!), pillowcases, and fleece blankets.  She also got a microphone, so her former princess tent corner will now become a mini stage.

On Day 1 of the transformation Teagan and I cleaned out her room--throwing away 1 bag of trash, giving away more than 1 bag of toys, and 1 box of books.  We also gave away her old crib mattress!

Teagan obviously likes this color--to wear and for her wall!
The pink walls are remaining pink, the white wall is becoming a turquoise color.  Jeff working hard!
Teagan was a little sad to see her Sandra Boynton animals go--I had painted them when we decorated the room.  We decided to keep one mouse in the corner!

All of Teagan's belongings!  Books from her bookcase and clothes from her drawers all needed to be corralled so her paintable furniture could be painted.  

Visit to Grandma and Grandpa

We went to visit Grandma and Grandpa today.  We wanted to give them some treats we had made for them (Grandpa was worried we might forget his cookies!) and hand deliver thank you notes.  We had a great visit.  Braeden borrowed the camera so we have many pictures of Tammy and the birds, some which are very experimental.  We all sat down to watch Braeden and Teagan's Christmas DVD which was fun.

Visiting on the porch
Tammy
Teagan and Grandma