Happy 1/2 Birthday!

Mrs. Clifton is the first teacher that has celebrated the summer birthdays on their 1/2 mark rather than in May before school gets out.  I like that! 

So last Friday, January 26, was Camden's 1/2 birthday and we took cupcakes for a treat (per Camden's request).  I had to get 3 dozen!  This is the first time in her school years that she has had more than 20 kids in her class.  This year there are 27, plus the teacher.  She also wanted a few extras to take to some of her favorite adults throughout the building (kinda a tradition at our school).

She came home with a fun pencil from her teacher. 

Sunday

 Camden and I went with Sophia and her sister Emma to the Crawfordsville Library while Kevin slept on Sunday afternoon.  Then we headed to Steak -n- Shake for dinner.  Selfies were in order.

Camden always gets her burgers plain, just cheese.   That is until she tried a bite of her Dad's burger with everything the last time we were at S-n-S.  She ordered it that way this time...minus onions.  Said it was the best kids burger she has ever had!

That evening, Camden was busy enjoying her cat.  One of Bandit's new favorite spots is on top of the old gun cabinet (now display case) in the living room.  It's amazing that he can jump up there, but he loves to perch there and stare down at Camden.

And later that night, after her bath, Bandit crawled up in her lap and enjoyed some Camden time.

Three Things I Love

A few things (of the bajillion) I love about Camden...

...how red her face gets when she plays.  It happens to me too and reminds me of how much we are alike.   

...her hands.  She has always had such expressive hands and those fingers get moving when she is excited. 

...how kind she is to everyone.  We can never go anywhere without her making "a friend."  If you are willing to play, she welcomes you into her life.  She played with this young boy and when he went to sit with his grandma to eat, he/she asked if she could sit with them.  Kevin and I watched the three of them talk and laugh and simply be nice.  She has such a great heart that is full of kindness.

Troll Gummies

Camden has been begging to make some gummies since Gramma got her a "make your own" kit for Christmas.  I finally had time last night and she decided to make the pineapple pack. It was super easy to mix together, although I think we could have made a little thinner consistency.

I also wasn't patient enough to use the little dropper and it was starting to set, so the spoon made them a little overfilled.

I was glad to see the sticks were included to be able to make suckers.

She declared them delicious!  I'm sure we will make blue raspberry or sour lime next.

Rub-A-Dub

Camden is usually pretty noisy when she takes a bath...singing or talking or splashing.  I hadn't heard her make much sound, so I went in to check on her.  She was scuba diving!

The water was getting pretty high, so I had to put an end to the fun, but she had a ball.

When I opened this picture...there was a quick resemblance to her cousin Rachel...around her eyes and nose.  I don't think they look alike, but something "caught" that reminded me of ReeRee. 

A Tiny Miracle

Sophia spent the night on Saturday.  The two of them were busy in the front of the house while Kevin and I were binge watching a show on Netflix.  After a little while, they came to the family room and asked us to come look.  Was this a good thing or should I be nervous?

Turns out, they had cleaned Camden's room!  It was spotless (well, minus some stains on the carpet that now need some attention).

They did a super job...just don't open the closet door!

Ginger's New Home

Ginger has been a very good, sweet pup.  Emphasis on pup!  She is very curious and LOVES to chew.  She has many, many chew toys and enjoys them all, but she also loves any scrap of anything she can get ahold of.  She still stays mainly in the backroom (except when we are with her) and we had been leaving her be at night.  But after several discovered books, papers, cords, etc. chewed up in the morning, we knew we had to contain her - especially during the day while I was at work and at night. 

Her new home has been a perfect solution.  It fits well in the corner by our back door.  We keep pine shavings in one corner that she uses when we aren't around to take her out. 

She did have a nice dog bed in there too...but she chewed all the stuffing out of it! 

Bandit's New Home

Molly was over for the day and the girls were looking for something to do.  They saw a big box in our kitchen and asked if they could have some scissors and cut the box.  Sure.

They diligently worked for a long time and presented Bandit with a new house.  He actually loves it and uses it all the time.

And, yes, I did get a new food processor...I have never owned a large one.  It has great blade options for the normal slicing and shredding, but also dices and spiralizes.  I love it!

Sledding Fun

Temperatures dipped into the negative numbers for several days.  Wind chills were in the negative 20's.  So when it got into the teens, we had to get out and do some winter sports.  Kevin fired up the 4-wheeler and got our small round sled attached.  He and Camden had a ball for a half-hour or so and then thought it was probably wise to come in for a break.

Later that afternoon Kevin ventured to town to get a larger sled because our neighbor Molly was over and they both wanted a go.  We knew this would be a fairly normal activity - having a friend over - so it was a good investment.

Ginger wanted a turn when I took her out for a potty break.  She had to settle for watching.

Christmas Break Adventure

Got several more days of adventures over the long, cold holiday break that I'm still trying to catch up on...

I took the last two days of Camden's break off from work to be able to spend a little more time with her.  One of her friends, Braxton, had a birthday the previous weekend and we missed the party because of bad weather (and a bad memory).  Turns out the weather had meant no kids came (just family), but we wanted to take him out for his birthday.  We invited Sophia (who is in Braxton's class) and her younger sister, Emma, to come too.  It was nice that Gramma Pat had spent the night and gladly came along.

We stopped at McDonald's for lunch before heading to the Park for play.

The last two times we have gone to the Park, there has been a big line to wait because they are at capacity.  It usually is about 1/2 hour or so and totally worth it to enjoy this great, free play place.

They wanted to come back to our house and play, but Braxton was battling a cold, so we took him home.  We also dropped Emma off, but Sophia spent another night with us.  She is a good girl and we enjoy having her around.

2017 Gingerbread House

Gramma Pat and Camden did our annual gingerbread house on Christmas afternoon.  We selected a small doghouse this year and it was perfect!  It went together well and didn't require tons of decorations.