Thomas has been thrilled to have John Paul as his sidekick...and Thomas has been wearing his costume EVERY DAY since it arrived. I had assumed that it would be as easy for 17 month old John Paul to become accustomed to it...not so.
TEN MINUTES OF CRYING to get his costume on. I finally got it on him and set him down in the kitchen for milk and cookies so he could calm down.
Then I heard the yelling as Batman was trying to put the black glasses on Robin:
"YOU ARE NOT HELPING ME! YOU WANT TO BE ROBIN! IT'S OKAY! JUST PUT THEM ON! HOW WILL YOU BE MY SIDEKICK WITHOUT YOUR GLASSES?"
After Batman's timeout...the Wee Caped Crusaders were ready for action.
Seriously love these little pumpkins that their Auntie Janell made for them...she painted a Wee Pumpkin for each of them, to match their costumes. Once John Paul realized his outfit matched his pumpkin, he WOULD NOT set the pumpkin down and ran around with it for a half hour.
Thomas gets to wear his costume in the all-school parade today and he couldn't be more excited. Seriously love seeing holidays through the Wee Skis' eyes.
The ferocious dragons spotted on the farm...I couldn't decide which was my favorite, so you get both! Double the Wee Skis, double the HalloWEEnie fun! :)
Happy milestone days just scream to be scrapped. Especially while emotions are fresh and real.
Today, I turn 34 years old.
And as my Facebook status update says right now:
34 years ago, I was born.
On my 30th birthday, my now-husband proposed at the Relay For Life.
On my 34th birthday, he told me that he found my birthmother. I can now tell her "thanks" for giving me the gift of life. ♥ ♥
Jonathan Sprouffske, I never thought you could top my 30th birthday...but you did!
I love you so much!
Adding this page to the "2011 Ski Album", of which I have done no other pages for this year. And I am totally OK with that. :)
"Lent is a journey of evolving, creative reflection which inspires penance
and gives new impetus to every aspect of our commitment to follow the Gospel.
It is a journey of love which opens the hearts of believers
to our brothers and sisters and draws them to God.
Jesus asks his disciples to live and radiate charity."
POPE JOHN PAUL II, MESSAGE FOR LENT 1996
Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Lenten season.
It's the start of a 40 day journey to Easter. Time has flown by since Thomas's first Ash Wednesday two years ago. As a family, we talked about the things that are keeping us from joy, that are weighing us down (usually completely relating to sin), and how we can use this time to renew our focus on our Lord.
One of the things that has struck my heart is the repeating of the word charity in what I'm reading...the Kindle devotion I have speaks of St. Thérèse's conversion and how her heart was simply filled with charity...a leniency in judging others and being full of agape love. For me, personally, that is a call I need to answer this Lent, as there have been several issues weighing on my heart. My hope is that a true metanoia can come from this season.
With the Wee Ski 2.0's arrival just a little over 7 weeks away (a week after Easter), it was important to me that our decisions for Lent were practical and simple: going back to my 'one word' for the year: simplify.
For each of us, we made a few simple decisions.
TO READ | On our Kindles, we each downloaded a 40 day journey. I love that we were able to download samples directly to the Kindles to read through before ordering. Jonathan downloaded The Power of the Crossand I downloaded A Lenten Journey with Jesus Christ and St. Thérèse of Lisieux. Thomas has a new coloring book on the Sacraments.
TO DO | On Tuesdays during Lent, there is daily Mass in the evenings at St. Peter's in Tenino, so Jonathan can attend with us too. Fridays are soup dinners at St. Columban + Stations of the Cross...with a bonus this Friday of Tom Curran coming to St. Columban for a special Lenten presentation.
TO GIVE UP | I am giving up television and gossip. I suppose, on some level, those go hand in hand. But seriously, as much as I'd love to think that I don't use the television as a crutch when I'm tired or gossip when the chance arises...it happens. And this is a great chance to offer that up. Thomas is giving up television (except for one hour of Sesame Street in the morning with breakfast). He doesn't fully appreciate the phrase "offer it up" quite yet, but I guarantee you, by the end of Lent he will. Or maybe I will after being asked for Elmo for the 259,305th time. Jonathan is giving up convenience food and being grouchy with me in the morning. :) So for all or any of these, if you are around us, please help keep us accountable in our journey.
This morning, we started prepping dinner for tonight since our Mass is at 7 pm.
Thomas and I made minestrone in the crockpot. All I did was cut vegetables, open cans, rinse beans and pass everything to the Wee Ski. He added everything into the crockpot (especially loved sprinkling the herbs), and stirred it up like a good little chef. We'll add the pasta tonight just before Jonathan gets home, and it will be good to go.
We made a very special dinner to celebrate Valentine's tonight as a family...for dinner, we had Savory Garlic Marinated Steaks (they had been marinating since Sunday - YUM), Garlic Mashed Potatoes (with roasted garlic), and steamed broccoli. We used our fine china - even for the Wee Ski - but he had a plastic shot glass to drink from instead of crystal. :)
It was fun to make this evening special for us. We have been going nonstop the past few weeks, and I was grateful to have a quiet night with my two favorite guys. We opened all of our Valentine's cards that came in the mail.
Thomas and I made dessert together - heart shaped brownies with homemade vanilla bean ice cream. I realized they were very tasty when I had just finished the tablescape only to turn around to find Thomas's brownie missing, with a trail of crumbs leading away from the table. He started dinner on an incredible sugar high...but I suppose he earned it because he was in charge of stirring the brownie batter. You always take great pride in things you make yourself. :)
The ice cream. Just three ingredients -- and a half hour in the ice cream maker. Delish.
Jonathan had red roses sent to the house, which smell divine. I designed a custom iPhone case for her brand new Verizon iPhone, and it was delivered to him yesterday at his office. We were both happy. :)
Thomas gave us a great gift of wanting to go to bed early. It is the FUNNIEST thing to see him fall asleep at the table. It was only 6:15, but we took advantage of it. He had taken a 3 hour nap earlier in the day, and still slept for 14 hours last night. I'm thinking both the Wee Ski 1.0 and the Wee Ski 2.0 are going through growth spurts, and the sleep is good for everyone.
Jonathan and I finished the evening with an extremely competitive game of Phase 10 - my current addiction. During the game, we ended up watching/listening to the half hour ad from Time Life about their Easy 80s collection, with Jack Wagner touting the goods.
It was hilarious. I was reminded that I definitely married the right man when we were both singing along to nearly every song, and he made the comment that the 80s were really the last era of great duets. You know what? It really was.
We celebrated Thomas's birth today. With 66,333 other Hawks fans at the first round of the playoffs at Qwest Field. We sold our normal seats to one of our friends, and picked up 4 seats together for Jonathan, Thomas, my uncle Tim and my cousin Brandon.
You could not have picked a better day for football!
We woke up to a snowy forecast, so we were layered for sub-zero weather, but it ended up a pleasant 39° and felt almost balmy. We carpooled from the farm with Uncle Kevin and Auntie Heidi, and hit Touchdown City for some calm-before-the-storm inside Qwest Field. After Jonathan played chicken with a train. Which, thankfully, he won, otherwise I would not be here to write this blog post. Just for the record.
And we got to celebrate Thomas's birthday in a big way with his name on the Jumbotron.
Anyway, back to the game. The Hawks pulled out a stunner -- beating the defending Superbowl Champion Saints, bringing their record this year to 8-9. Jonathan had posted this story to Facebook earlier in the week and it couldn't be more true!
Thomas with Heidi and Kevin, after he somehow roped Kevin into carrying him up the ramps
The start of the game.
Jonathan and I have a running joke that he doesn't cry at ANYTHING. Anything at all. Except for pets. And now, for Walter Jones raising the 12th Man flag. He teared up at that. So did I, but that's not the point.
Getting high fives from Brandon and everyone else around us after the Hawks' first touchdown.
The Wee Ski promptly fell asleep at the beginning of halftime AND SLEPT THROUGH THE ENTIRE THIRD QUARTER. Throughout the insane noise and false starts and craziness. We like to think he was passing his mojo down to the field.
After the shocker of an ending...the Mausskis were pumped! Check out the random dude who is in a ton of our photos. L-R: Jonathan, Tim, random dude, Brandon :)
Cheering on the Seahawks after a sleepy nap
We headed to the Cheesecake Factory to finish the celebration. At first, we were going to celebrate with my red velvet cheesecake, so Thomas was ready to blow out candles. READY. TO. GO.
And then our server brought him his own sundae and everyone started singing. When he realized we were singing for him, we put his hands in the air. Cheering for himself.
They're really singing for me?
Yup, kiddo. And that sundae is all yours.
Happy birthday, sweet boy! Your third birthday will be a tough act to follow!
And in case you missed the incredible 67-yard touchdown with three minutes left in the game. ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. The Wee Ski 2.0 = Marshawn Sprouffske? :)
The 6th annual Super Fabulous Christmas Tunes mix is complete! I've had it on my playlist for a few weeks now, and I love how it turned out! A good blend of old + new, popular and a bit obscure. I loved the ideas from last year's comments, so you'll find a few of those on here!
And as always, I love new ideas for the mix for the upcoming year...so why not have a win-win? Want to win a copy of the CD?
The Giveaway
You comment with your favorite Christmas song (song + artist, please), and tomorrow night (Friday, December 10), I'll use my favorite random.org selector to give away a copy of the mix to two lucky commenters!
The winners can select this year's edition, or a past year's edition (if you prefer!)...but all comments have to be in by 6 pm, Friday, December 10th! Good luck!
Thomas, all decked out for his first real trick-or-treating! We are equal opportunity superheroes & holidays around here...Thomas's Superman Easter basket does double duty as a Halloween basket for Spiderman!
Maggie wanted in on the fun, even though Spiderman never had a canine companion. He can have one now.
And yes, those are Thomas the Train boots on his feet. He lives in them and screams if we take them off before he's ready to take them off. Thankfully, they match his costume. Because that's all that matters on Halloween anyway. :)
65 years ago today, my grandparents married in Des Moines, Iowa.
This year is a bittersweet milestone year, as it's the first anniversary that Grandma's celebrated without him here on earth.
Their 65th anniversary year marks a milestone year for many -- my aunt Darcy and uncle Tom (40 years) and my parents in October (40 years) as well as what would have been 40 years for my in-laws/Jonathan's parents (40 years). Evidently, 1970 was THE year to get married in the 70s. :)
I am so grateful to my grandparents for the example they set for their family: their devotion and care for one another and lasting love that now spans the heavens. Grandpa treated Grandma like a queen, and loved her so dearly.
Grandma, congratulations on your anniversary. You looked so beautiful on your wedding day. We are so lucky to have you two as a model for us in our own marriage.
And I love this photo of Grandma looking at Grandpa...from 56 years ago, this month.
A few months ago, Grandma surprised all the kids with special fourth of July outfits from her favorite shop in the world: Cracker Barrel. We saved them until just before this mini-shoot (Thomas + white clothes = crazy mess instantly).
And these are all straight out of the camera. As painful as that is for me. I wouldn't be surprised if the images get cleaned up a bit when I get home. :)
This face on Max is AWESOME. It has been so much fun to see the kids all together here...they have had a blast together. Avila is even teaching Thomas how to shadow dance with himself. So. much. cuteness. everywhere.
You really need to enlarge this photo (click on it) and see Mike's face while Kristine is shooting the roman candle. It was HILARIOUS.
Slightly different than years past -- this was the first year in more than 10 years that he wasn't one of the pyrotechnicians for the show at Ft. Lewis. The guys called him during the show's mid-show volleys, and we shot roman candles and lit sparklers while they lit the big explosives via speakerphone.
Fantastic weather here, kids are in heaven. Lots of sun, playing in the pool, getting ready for tubing on the lake and lots of naps. Lots of naps.
"Unless there is no Good Friday in your life, there can be no Sunday."
-Fulton Sheen
Today is the day marking the death of Christ on the cross. It is the only day of the year that Mass is not celebrated. The altar remains bare from being stripped after the Holy Thursday Mass. The Veneration of the Cross is a humbling experience -- especially when realizing that his death was at the same time for all of us, and also for each of us.
It always struck me that the stock market closes to honor Good Friday, as few other secular businesses do so. I can remember seeing Discount Tire in Tacoma, which closes from noon-3 pm on Good Friday. Typically, unless you recognize Good Friday in your faith, it isn't typically marked.
A friend of mine, Fr. Robert Fath, updated his Facebook status with this:
On this last stage of our Lenten journey we are encouraged even more by the liturgy to deepen our knowledge of Jesus, to contemplate his suffering and merciful face, and to prepare ourselves to experience the splendor of his resurrection. We cannot remain on the surface. We must have a deep, personal experience of the richness of Christ's love.
The past few days have had both great joy and great sadness in the life of our family. The promise of the Resurrection gives us hope facing the suffering and death of our Lord today. And it's an awesome opportunity to embrace our own suffering to unite it with his.
Please especially pray for the soul and family of Rick Schmitt, who passed away yesterday.
If you have time, the last Good Friday homily by Fulton Sheen before his death -- entitled "His Last Words" is beautiful. And of course, as with all things now, he is available on YouTube.
May peace and plenty be the first to lift the latch on your door,
and happiness be guided to your home.
May you be poor in misfortune, rich in blessings,
slow to make enemies and quick to make friends
May your home always be too small to hold all your friends.
May love and laughter light your days,
and warm your heart and home.
May you have warm words on a cold evening,
a full moon on a dark night and a smooth road all the way to your door.
May the hinges of our friendship never grow rusty.
May the lilt of Irish laughter lighten every load.
May the mist of Irish magic shorten every road.
Always remember to forget
the troubles that passed away
but never forget to remember
the blessings that come each day.
May the face of every good news and the back of
every bad news be towards us.
May you have the hindsight to know where you’ve been,
the foresight to know where you are going,
and the insight to know when you have gone too far.
And may God who blesses us with so many gifts grant us the
peace for ourselves and the nations of the world.
We smuggled Thomas into the ICU (after we heard of a successful run last night by Thomas's cousin, Avila) for a "pizza and wine" night at the hospital. We had a little surprise for Mom as well.
Since we didn't end up planning a big soiree for his first birthday, Auntie Karen came through for us and made Thomas his first birthday cake - a big firetruck! We brought up his Bumbo chair and a big black garbage bag for the mess, and were ready to celebrate.
No candles in Intensive Care, but there was a lot of merriment. :) Had there been room in the "general population" part of the hospital, Mom would have been transferred out of Intensive Care today! She'll hope for an open bed tomorrow, and rest peacefully tonight in what we hope is her last night in the ICU.
Mom looked beautiful. Just on a nasal cannula. Thomas immediately reached for her when we got there. With the TV remote and all of Mom's tubes, he was happy as a clam in her lap. He was terribly impressed when he saw her finger light and wanted as close to the action as possible. Especially if he could zap the light with his remote. With the current course of steroids, she is being tested frequently for her blood sugar count. Thomas supervised the nurse. And he had great birthday loves from Grandpa. They played and played and played. And laughed with Grandma. After dinner, we unveiled his truck...which he loved. ♥ Thank you, Auntie Karen! We captured his first cake on video...at least the first few minutes. We chose to save you from the "hosing the child down in the hospital sink because he has red frosting everywhere, especially in his diaper" segment. You'd thank me, I promise. :)
Enjoy our little one-year-old. :) And the music halfway through?
It is a tall and skinny folding card. I love how it turned out. I slid it into deep blue long and skinny envelopes, and sealed it with a return label of Santa Thomas. The images are taken roughly each month on the 8th, with a few bonus shots to bring the total to 14. The youngest image, at the lower left, was taken at a week-ish old, and the higher you move up the tree, the older he is.
We had a special visitor to the Christmas tree farm this morning... Wishing you and your family a most blessed Christmas, celebrating the birth of our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas!
We made a very special dinner to celebrate Valentine's tonight as a family...for dinner, we had 
65 years ago today, my grandparents married in Des Moines, Iowa.
