Gearing up for Christmas

The day after thanksgiving the kids begged me to put up the tree. So we did.
Then we made sugar cookies. The kids think they are good, but Peter and I agree they taste like flour.
To top it off we made festive bell necklaces.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS everyone!

Being Thankful

With Thanksgiving coming and someone that used to work at Courage Center having their 2 year old daughter pass away this past weekend I find myself having A LOT to be thankful for!

I am thankful for my 3 healthy kids and all the trouble they give me.
I am thankful for my husband who is a perfect stay at home Dad and a fantastic husband!

I am thankful for my Mom, Dad, sister and even my brother who ruined his own surprise party. My sisters family-Chub, Ethan, Hannah, and Cameron

I am thankful for Peter's family: Al, Bobbee, Kathy, Steve (who is no longer with us but has impacted all of our lives) Laura, Ryan, Irelynn, Dominic, Tony, Kathy, Thom, Barb, Cindi, Rick, Kristi, and Nate. I have taken the kids to many gatherings with the "in-laws" without Peter because of his work schedule and never feel out of place. These people ARE my family too!

I am thankful for my friends Melissa C, Jen, Erin, Gretchen, Amy S, Brandi, Melissa R, Danika and Amanda.

I am thankful for my triplet mamas-Alison, Kathy, Jennifer, Niki, Heather, Patsy, Molly, Janelle and Julie.

I am thankful for Minnesota Valley Mothers of Multiples and the spunky women I am on the board with!

I am thankful for the wonderful people who take care of my brother day in and day out. They are saints in my book!

I am thankful for triple, venti, Non-fat, extra hot Caramel macchiatos from Starbucks and their drive thru window.I am thankful for Courage Center. Not only because it is a great place to work, but because it does amazing things for people living with disabilities in our community every day.

I am thankful for Synthroid. I am a new woman since I started taking this drug!

I am thankful for Facebook. How else would I know what the heck people are doing?

I am thankful for Anne at Lifetime, her cardio kick boxing class, and the child care center.

I am thankful for Black Friday shopping and Nate's willingness to sleep at my house so I can shop!

Tonight I asked the kids what they are thankful for.

Addison "Christmas"
Morgan "When it snows"

Eli "Watching TV"
Nothing too insightful, but they are 3 1/2 right?

What are you thankful for?

Another way to sum up my life....

Check out this video!

I am not trying to offend anyone, but yep this IS my life (AND I LOVE IT!)

Triple the laughs #4 and #5

#4- Me- "I am going to a baby shower"

Addison- "Why does the baby need to take a shower?"


#5- Eli, running happily out of the childcare center- "Mommy I played with a boyfriend today!"

Said "boyfriend" who looks to be about 7 years old rolls eyes and stares at Eli looking very annoyed. I don't think the friendship is mutual!

If they build it...

Eli will stay out! This is the barrier the girls built (all by themselves) the other day to keep Eli away from them. I guess me and Peter aren't the only ones who think he is too mean to his sisters!

Creativity.

We are almost 3 1/2 are getting really good at using our imaginations. The other day at lunch my half eaten sandwich looked like......

A VACUUM CLEANER!

I also like to build with legos ALL day long (when I am not tormenting my sisters)
Addison and Morgan like to pretend too. Here they are playing Lemonade Stand:

The SNOW is here (and we think it's staying!)

It's official..winter is here!

Things change so quickly!

This was 7 days ago

This was today

Gotta LOVE Minnesota weather! We do!

Fire Safety

This week at preschool the kids are talking about fire safety. Since their dad is a firefighter I was interested in their responses to questions about basic fire safety.

Q: What do you do if you see a fire?
Morgan- "Get my daddy" Fair since dad is a firefighter.
Addison- "Get a fire truck" Again, fair.
Eli- "I don't know" Takes after his dad I guess;)

Q: What do you do if your clothes catch on fire?
Morgan- "Drop!" They learned stop, drop and roll so at least she has part of it
Addison and Eli- "I don't know"

So I guess the kids have got a long way to go before they are ready for the MGFD. Dad has some teaching to do!

In other news, my children are trying to drive me and Peter insane. Almost 3 1/2 is definitely the new 2. YIKES!! I hope this period does not last long! No wine tonight, but I only spent about an hour with them today:)

How was your day?

This picture sums up mine...


Here's to hoping for a better day tomorrow!

Alison:)

The winner is...

ELI! He almost vomited when he touched the insides of the pumpkin. After that he could not even look at it without gagging. Odd since he is the messiest child when it comes to eating and has NO trouble getting his hands full of paint, dirt or any other substance he can find, but "pumpkin guts" are no go for this little guy!

Little Fish

We started swimming class a month ago and we LOVE it! Tracy our teacher is so nice and we are getting really good at swimming. At class this week I stuck my head under water over and over again and had SO much fun! I can even jump into the pool (with a little help!)

POP!

Belated Halloween Take 3

We've been pretty busy here at the Hanlin household. Here is what we have going on:

-Mom working 40 hours a week
-Dad working at Maple Grove, Brooklyn Park AND Roseville Fire Departments (on an opposite schedule of mom's work schedule of course)
-Swimming class Thursday evenings
-Preschool Monday and Wednesday afternoons.
-Dad's paramedic classes every Tuesday and Thursday evening which has been going on for a while. But now he has added his ride along time which will involve many 5:30PM-3:30AM shifts.
-Mom starting online classes for Life Care Planning this week with conference calls on Monday and Thursday evenings.
-Mom's Mothers of Multiples Meetings 3 Tuesday nights a month.

So forgive us for not posting these pictures sooner. For Halloween we went to Grandma Barb and Grandpa Bubba's house to trick or treat with our cousins Ethan and Cameron.

Addison the portly princess due to the many layers!

Morgan the monkey

Eli the "choo choo train driver"

Here we go...

We got LOTS of candy and have eaten a lot of it this week, but on Sunday we are going to go give some of ours away so we can get FREE noodle bowls at Noodle and Co. YUM!

We hope you had a great Halloween and are staying as busy as we are!