Best Buds

Matt is the type of kid who takes a while to.....well, do anything.  He took forever to start walking.  He'd stand up and hold on to things but he wouldn't let go even though he was able to take a few steps.  He just waited until he was ready to walk well before he unveiled his new talent to the world.  He was the same way with talking.  We were starting to get worried because he just didn't talk much.  When he finally started talking, he talked our heads off! 

He's just a very cautious little fellow who likes to observe and study a situation or a task before he dives into it.  He started pre-school this year and didn't seem to care anything about any of the kids in his class.  He couldn't (or wouldn't) call any of the names of the kids after being in school a month!  I think he was just observing and getting to know his new classmates.......from afar. 

Well, now he's gotten to know them and he's really coming out.  He and Betty had the following conversation the other day.
Matt:  "Mommy, all the girls like me."
Betty (not sure where this was going): "Oh really?"
Matt:  "Yeah, they think I'm funny."
Betty:  "Do you mean girls like Miss Lauren?"  Lauren is a young lady in her 20's who Matt has a crush on.  He says he likes her, but he doesn't like to look at her because it makes him nervous!
Matt:  "No, I'm not talking about old women, I'm talking about the little girls in my class!"

So, not only is he becoming a little ladies' man, he also has a best buddy -- Carter.  Carter had a birthday party last Saturday and Matt was so excited about it he could hardly stand it.  Here are a few pictures of the buddies at the party.

Valentines, Birthdays, and Bieber Fever

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone, especially my Valentine!  Our Valentine's celebration was a trip to Memphis Saturday.  Betty requested a trip to a couple of our favorite restaurants and just a day with the family.  Our first stop was The Olive Garden.

Betty and McKenzie really love The Olive Garden and Matt loves it because he gets to help Mommy with her salad.

After a little shopping and a stop at the cupcake shop, we went to the Paradiso movie theater.  McKenzie has the Bieber Fever and she and Betty were going to see the Justin Bieber movie.  Matt and I had intended to just go to a few stores and kill time until the movie was over, but he decided he wanted to go see Gnomeo & Juliet.  Betty and McKenzie really enjoyed their movie, Matt thought his movie was funny, and I enjoyed my $7.50 nap.  Yes, I followed in my mother's footsteps and fell asleep during the movie.  I didn't make it much past the opening credits but I woke up in time to get us some popcorn and still see the main part of the movie.  Back in 1977, my mother took Andy and me to see Star Wars and slept through the whole thing!

This is the line Betty and McKenzie had to stand in to get into the movie.  The place was crawling with little girls suffering from Bieber Fever!

We finished the day by eating at the Side Porch Steakhouse to cap off a wonderful day!

Valentine's Day is also the birthday of two lovely women in our family.  We'd like to wish a very Happy Birthday to Nana.....

...... and BettyWard.

Snow Day

The kids are home today enjoying a snow day. McKenzie suckered me into giving her and Matt their Valentine baskets early since they would be home today to enjoy them. She did have a point and I am glad we gave in. Here are a few pictures of their goodies.

McKenzie loved her new thermos for school and new charms for her charm bracelet and necklace that she received for Christmas. Matt loved his new Iron Man costume and dinosaurs.

I am loving these Valentine ring pops I found for them...so cute! They are made to look like a diamond ring in a case.

Speaking of Iron Man, Matt is very into super heroes these days. I hear that his daddy was the same way at his age.

It's so fun to watch Matt pretending to be someone different everyday. David and I loved this commercial that was aired during the Super Bowl. It was a commercial for Passat but had a little boy in it that pretended to be Darth Vader. It reminded us of our life these days with our little super hero! If you haven't seen it check it out...It is so cute!!!!!!

The Stain Fighter

Thursday McKenzie participated in her first science fair.  Her project was "Which Laundry Detergent Works Best?".  She tested five different detergents and included water as a baseline.  It was a good experience for her and they weren't required to do one, so I'm proud of her for wanting to do it.

Her findings were that All with Oxi-Action Stainlifters worked the best at getting out mustard and jelly stains.  Clorox II was the worst.

Good job, McKenzie!!!