Valentine's Celebrations

Valentine's Day fell on a Tuesday this year which is our busy activity night, so we had our family celebration a few days early. 

Papa Joe joined us this year for our traditional Baugher Family Valentine Dinner. You know, we have traditions in our family for each major holiday, but Valentine's Day always stands out for the kids. Maybe because we do some more unique traditions than the other holidays. I don't know for sure, but I hope my kids will come home from college and expect fondue on Valentines Day :). 

We had cheese fondue for dinner, and we went around the table sharing reasons why we love each other. It was such a sweet time. Barry was tearing up for a lot of it. My favorite was when all three of the big kids said they loved Papa because he always puts their needs ahead of his own. So very true. 

Katherine said she loves that I play games that I don't like with her :). I mean, that is the definition of true love, isn't it?

The kids talked about how they like that their siblings play with them, how Samuel always finishes the projects he starts, how Katherine makes everyone laugh, and how Daddy throws them in the air and tickles them.

Fondue is always a favorite dinner around here. 

After dinner we did our annual scavenger hunt. A couple of years ago, the kids started making one for me and Matt too, and I'm about to have them take over because they did a great job. One clue was mirrored, and we had to hold it up in the mirror. 

That clue led to Samuel's keyboard where Samuel had written a piece of music. The title of the song was "The Hunt." When I read the notes, it spelled out egg, and when I played the note on his keyboard, there was a tiny piece of paper hidden in the keys that said living room- Egg hunt in the living room. They also tried to trick us and hid the item we were looking for. Their creativity was still amazing though even with the trickery. 

Then it was their turn. I stumped them on a couple of clues and they needed some hints. 

We surprised them with a huge gift this Valentine's Day. 

They've all been saving their money for months to buy a VR headset. Papa agreed to contribute to it, and he gave me some money a while ago with instructions to save it until Matt and I had decided they'd earned enough on their own to buy it. We thought Valentine's Day would be a good time to give it to them. They were just a little excited :)

While the headset charged, we enjoyed our dessert for the evening. 

They each tried out the headset for a bit, but it needed to fully charge before they could really play it. 

They were all up early the next morning anxious to play. 

I baked some cookies for our co-op's Valentine party that afternoon.

The kids all had fun decorating Valentine boxes for the party. Their personalities shine through in their boxes. 

This is what happens when Nathan gets up early to play on the VR headset. 

I helped with the party and ran a game station. We played Musical Hearts, and I think all the kids liked it. 

There were also plenty of treats. 

Isn't looking through all the Valentines the best part of any party??

Katherine still wasn't finished with her Valentine celebrations. She had one more party at school. They ate ice cream and played an intense game of Bingo. 

Later that night, she got to have another Valentine's Day party with her American Heritage Girls Troop. Lots of sugar that day!

On Tuesday, Katherine performed her Valentine's Dance for the parents. She is loving dance this year!

 We had a SWEET few days sharing the love. 

January Fun

January is typically a slower month for us. It was nice to have some breathing room in our schedule and get back into a good routine. 

We invited the Dalmans over for lunch to end Christmas break. The kids have done this Best Day Ever cheer for years now. It never gets old. I'm always thankful for the friendships between our families. 

The weather was mild for the beginning of January and we spent a lot of time over at Kidsborough with the neighbors. The kids are building a town complete with stores and a jail. Every time I watch them playing together over there, I always think, "Man, this is what childhood is all about."

Elisabeth and Samuel participated in their troop's Pinewood Derby competition. It was a busy Saturday since their competitions were at different times and we had a basketball game in the middle of them. But it was a fun day. 

Elisabeth's car had a big cheering section. 

Elisabeth and Samuel both came in 4th place for their divisions, and they were both a little disappointed. It was a good learning experience for them though, and they're already planning their cars for next year. 

The same day Samuel played in his first basketball game of the season. He's been excited to play again. 

The kids have been learning about lobsters in their zoology class, and when we read about how lobsters are alive in tanks at grocery stores, the kids were shocked, so we took them on a little field trip to Red Lobster. It was a fun family dinner. 

For weeks, as the kids have planned their Kidsborough town, they've been pretending to build a fire. One afternoon the moms got brave let them actually light one. They were so excited. It was such a fun surprise for them. 

Elisabeth read If You Give a Mouse a Cookie in her fun and cooking class, and the next week they got to bake cookies. That is such a fun class for my little baker. 

Samuel earned an award at his Trail Life troop. We're proud of his dedication to attend his meetings every week. It's been a good activity for him. 

We celebrated Sweet Evelyn turning three with a precious little birthday party. We're so thankful for the dear friendships with all the kids around the table. Neighbors who are best friends is such a gift. 

Look at her smile!

Sam's been spending Saturdays on the court. He's having a great season, and I always look forward to watching him play each week. 

Matt and I volunteered during Kids' Worship on week and caught Elisabeth doing the crab dance on stage. 

Sam asked me to video his trick shot at co-op.

The Breedens invited us to their house to watch the AFC championship game with these two die hard fans. 

Nora and Elisabeth could have cared less about the game, but they performed a funny half time comedy show. 

And these girls tried on different costumes all night long. Katherine told me later that they were pretending to be "rich" girls. 

It was a nail biter, and these kids were into it. 

Samuel found his new best friend. These two were adorable together. 

It came down to the end, and these two celebrated majorly. 

 

What a fun night with great friends!