February 2021 Hodgepodge

I feel like COVID has led to more random picture posts since we aren't doing as many organized things.  Here is the rest of our February.  We finally said goodbye to our trusty electric skillet we've used since just before we were married.  It was Jimmy's primary cooking method while our kitchen was torn apart for a few weeks.  We've had the new one for at least 5 years.  I asked for a new one when I thought it was on it's last leg, but turned out it just needed a good cleaning.

Esme is showing more personality every day and loves to mimc the things we do.  She wanted to lounge just like dad.  We've been enjoying more frequent visits with Grandpa and Nana's house, always with cinnamon rolls.

I picked up a free treadmill from a friend.  We just needed to haul it, which was the perfect price to pay!  I have been struggling to find motivation to work out, but walking is pretty easy.  I am going to start out slow and see where it takes me.  Also looking forward to more walks outside as it warms up.

Our microwave has had a weird glitch that had recently become harder to mitigate.  I couldn't take it anymore and pulled the trigger on a new one.  We planned to have my parents help install it before our Valentine's dinner.  I was prepping the cabinet and installing the mounting bracket during quiet time and ended up attempting to complete it myself.  I was pretty proud of myself for knocking it out!

I made a fun 40th birthday shirt for Jimmy's cousin inspired by his favorite whiskey.

School has been continuing to go well.  A new friend started in Esme's class and I got some really sweet pictures.

I've received a few pictures and videos from speech and well and love to hear her progress.

I don't get as many pictures of Parker, but he did bring home the cutest assignment.  Yes, you CAN pizza.

About a year ago I learned about a product called Color Street.  They are instant dry nail polish strips and I really started doing some fun things in the last couple months.  The best thing is they helped me (finally) stop biting my nails.  Nail polish has helped in the past, but these last a lot longer.

I started a new project to end the month.  I am hoping to make a piece of wall art that will display our wedding guestbook notes.  We will see how it finally turns out.

Esme is the Star of the Week

Esme's class will have a star of the week each week until the end of the year.  She was randomly chosen to kick things off.  She got to do some special things all week and share a lot of fun stuff.  We got a laminated book at the end.  I helped her complete the Star Student sheet.  I love that she wants to be a dinosaur when she grows up!

Her friends had so many nice things to say about her.

On Monday, she brought a family picture to show her class.  On Tuesday, she got to choose a special item to bring for a guessing game.  She brought the music box grandpa made for her.

On Wednesday, she brought her favorite book to be read to the class.

She got to bring a stuffed animal to keep out and play with all day on Thursday.  White puppy got that coveted role.  On Friday, she brought a tasty snack to share!  She felt so loved the whole week and loved telling us about all the great things she did.

Dental Check-Up

 The kids and I both had dentist check-up this week.  Theirs were originally last month, but had to be rescheduled because Esme got a little sick a couple days before.  They ended up on the same day as mine, so I just took the day off.  The remodeled the office since we were last there and added some fun stadium seats and a revamped play area (still closed due to COVID.)

Esme really stepped up her game this time and let the dental hygienist use most of the tools to clean and do an exam.  She decided not to try to push it with x-rays this time, but we might try it next time.

Parker is still not a big fan of the dentist and has never had a full cleaning or exam.  His 6 year molars are in, so he will be scheduled for a sedated visit at Children's Hospital when one is available.  They will take x-rays, do a full cleaning, exam, and complete any needed work they find.  We've known for a while this would be a next step at some point, so I am excited for it.  He's been sedated a couple times for MRIs, so it's not our first rodeo.

M & M's Taste Test 2021

We capped our Valentine's celebration with an M & M's taste test.  I snagged 12 different varieties for us to try and rank.  We didn't do a blind taste test since it was going to be pretty obvious for most of them.

 

The kids were very interested in the spread and it was hard to keep them away.

We all tasted at the same time and created our own rankings with sheets I printed up.  I used colored post-its to make them easy to move around.  I also used the colors to put them in three different categories.

Purple - Nuts

Blue - Chocolate

Pink - Filled and flavored

We went around and tried to guess each persons favorite and least favorite varieties.  There were a lot of surprises and we all learned a bit about our preferences.

I averaged the rankings to create a final, definitive ranking of flavors.

I love that we came across these taste tests during the pandemic.  I look forward to more and am already planning a diet root beer one!

Valentine's Fondue

One tradition we did not have to give up this year was our annual Valentine's fondue.  We've started gathering in person with my parents again, so they came over to join us along with my nephew.  We've talked about getting a second pot for a while and this year was a good excuse to do it so we could separate ones for each household. 

Esme helped Nana make one while I made the other.  We enjoyed our standard dippers; bread, meatballs, tots, and brocolli.

Red velvet cupcakes for dessert and the kids got some gift cards and M&Ms from grandpa and nana.

Up Next: M&Ms Taste Test 2021

Friendship Parties

Before I get to the kids' friendship day parties at school, I will share a couple other school pictures.  Esme has been doing great with speech the last couple months.  She gets to have her sessions in person now, which is exciting.  I can hear the progress she is making and am so proud of her.  They also had football day the Friday before the Super Bowl and she was matching with one of her teachers.

Friendship Day parties looked a bit different this year.  I normally get a little more creative with what the kids hand out, but I ran out of time this year.  Esme needed to bring hers to school at least 2 days before so they could quarantine in the room.  Both kids have been enjoying the sticky hands party favors, so I just wrote on the plastic pack and she wrote her name on the back.  She was trying very hard to keep all the letters on the hand itself.

Parker's class still had a party, but didn't exchange anything.  They got a bag of special treats from the teachers and made art as a gift for parents or other special adults.

They nailed the pose of him blowing the hearts/kisses.  I love it so much and replaced our winter decor with this awesome art.

Up Next: Valentine's Fondue