Belated Emma post

 It's still January! Ha. 

The day before Emma's birthday I took her to pick out birthday balloons; she selected a pink Happy Birthday one and three stars of different colors - black, orange and red. 

Emma wanted to make and decorate her own cake. I had her help me mix up the batter and I baked it the day before. On her birthday I put white frosting on, per her request, and she placed and put in the candles and poured the two types of sprinkles she selected. 

It is a New Year

Hooray! So here's an update. 

We often ask Henry if he could stay 3 but he says he can't. He's certainly a sweet boy (most of the time minus the regular hitting and screaming of toddlerhood). Bry and I love that he still climbs into our laps to read books on a daily basis. He also likes to climb into his daddy's lap at dinnertime but that is less desirable since it impedes the ability to eat. We appreciate that he likes to be close to us, though. 

Emma and Henry grew much closer throughout 2020. While I am sad Emma has had to do kindergarten on a computer, Henry and I are so grateful for the extra time we get to spend with her. 

Henry has a big imagination and likes to act out stories with others. Emma loves to draw on as much paper as I'll give her and it often involves writing the word "love" somewhere on the page. 

When I get overwhelmed with life (meaning, have an outburst), Henry will come to me and hug me while earnestly saying "it's okay, mom" and Emma will draw me a picture of us together with a big heart that reads "I love you mommy" on it. This past year was filled with so many ups and downs and I'm grateful to have my kids' sweet hearts with me and to have Bry who helps me pull myself together by just listening and being there for me. I collected a lot of "I love you mommy" papers from Emma since the mental load of 2020 frequently felt like too much for me. 

Parenting is certainly a rough journey and I have been learning a lot. I'm hoping to move forward with more patience and compassion this year. I am also hoping this year I'll be able to spend more time with friends since they provide perspective, love, understanding and more that enriches my life and helps me feel more sane! 

Tahoe time

While in California we took a trip to the cabin. It was a beautiful time. The kids loved sleeping in the same house as their cousins and getting to wake up and play every day. Mom and dad rented a boat like last year and we had a blast. We played lots of card games at the cabin and went to the beach one morning (which we wore masks to and spaced out from people). 

Henry's birthday in California

We were happy to be able to spend most of August in California with family. It was particularly great to be there for Henry's birthday and mine. Henry loved time with his cousins and we enjoyed relaxed birthdays with family. 

Couldn't quite blow out the candle so his dad held him closer to the cake. 

Getting a good look at his Paw Patrol cake. 

Poor Charlotte's balloon dog burst right as she walked over for pictures. 

While opening presents his sister and cousins were eager to help him and see what he got. 

Getting outside to enjoy summer

Parks and trails galore. There are seriously so options of places to go. These pictures were mostly taken at state parks (and mostly in June - I'll post more pictures later). Over the past two months, though, we have also gone to city parks, regional parks, natural areas, etc. Always trying to go to places that aren't very busy so that we follow coronavirus social distancing measures. In these strange times, it's nice to focus on something basic like nature. The kids love our outings and I enjoy them too.

 

Watching a slug.

July 4th we went to a park as a family.