So much has been happening lately and I’ve had every intention of posting pictures and thoughts about each activity…but haven’t slowed down much to actually make that a reality.  Instead of letting another day go by without at least recording the events for me to think back on someday, I decided to take 5 minutes and jot them down here.  Even a bulleted list is better than nothing, right?!

(Of course I have a few pictures of some of these things, and I really want to post them…I’ll try to add them sometime soon!)

• January/February is coaching season for Hubs and this year, we’ve appointed the kids as managers.  So they’ve helped give water to the girls as needed, clean up the empty cups, put basketballs away and generally cheer on the 8th graders as they play hard!  It’s been fun and adorable watching them, and they’ve both picked up some basketball skills along the way too! 🙂
• Buddy and I scored some last-minute tix to the Mother-Son Activity Night and we sure had a great time!  It was such a good reminder to take time just one-on-one with the kids!
• We participated in our first ever Awana Grand Prix and learned that we’ll need to spend a little more time on the design and construction of the car than we did this year.  It was a good experience though!  Despite the reminders that it wasn’t about winning, there were still tears when trophies were awarded and he was handed a ribbon.  Hard lesson, but hopefully one that he’ll take to heart.
• Sis and Daddy headed to the Daddy Daughter Dance on Valentine’s Eve!  She woke up at 5am the day of the dance, which also happened to be ONE of her preschool party days!  She wore the special dress to school and kept it spotless, so she could wear it for her big date that evening!  Hubs said she was a riot and that she didn’t stop dancing or smiling all the entire time they were there!
• Valentine’s Parties!!  I used the new Silhouette Cameo I bought with a friend to cut some super cute cards!  We’ve been crafting up a storm with this thing!
• Kids spent last weekend with Aunt Julie and got to see a few cousins, go swimming and generally get spoiled by treats, movies and later bedtimes.  They’re already asking when they can go back again!  We were able to enjoy a dinner out and then I took pictures at the Winterfest game, which was a lot of fun (and still on my list of projects to finish!).
• For the first time since I can recall we actually had President’s Day off from school – no Professional Development or anything!  So we picked up kids from Julie then headed to Grandma and Grandpa’s house for dinner.  Afterwards, we all went into Aunt Cheri’s house and found GGMA and GGPA there as well as Aunt Meri and Uncle Jeff!  It was a regular Bigg Small Group! 🙂  We had a great time and spent the night with Mom and Dad before heading home the next afternoon.
• We nearly escaped February without sick kiddos, but this past week, Sis woke up with a fever and a sore throat.  It kept her pretty much out of commission from Wednesday until today.  She still has a sore throat, but there wasn’t anything the doctor’s could find to treat, so we’re just hoping that she’ll continue to stay fever free (and that others in the house won’t catch whatever it was!).
• This week we have a couple more basketball games, Awana, and Sis is starting gymnastics.  Then, a few family members are headed northward to celebrate Great Papa’s 90th birthday party, while one of us heads westward to photograph a wedding!