A Visit with Santa

On Monday, my friend Holly and I took our kids to see Santa Claus at the mall. We got there and Santa was on a break, so we had to wait for him to come back ... we passed the time by taking *a few* bathroom breaks (ugh!) and by snapping some pictures ...

Paige and Nicholas both were very excited to see Santa, and I'm pleased to announce that this was the first year that I haven't had to be in their picture with them! Paige was a little upset after the picture because she was feeling shy and wanted me to tell Santa what she wants for Christmas. When I refused, she cried (big shock!) but soon got it together and informed Santa that she wants a "real live kitty cat", at which Santa looked to me to see if that's what he is, in fact, bringing Paige. I told him he could bring her a cat if he could magically take her daddy's allergies away, and he went with that. He was a very nice man and the kids enjoyed their visit with him.

Sophie was psyched to see Santa, and Molly (almost 3) was looking forward to seeing him and telling him what she wanted for Christmas ... until it was time, and then she fell apart! Holly ended up being in the picture, but she looked great so it was fine! All-in-all it was a great visit with some fun pictures to commemorate the event!!

So much for which to be thankful!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year with Brian's family in Sturgis, MI! We drove up Wednesday afternoon ... we made a pit stop at the Outlet Malls in Freemont, IN (great deals) and then drove the other 1/2 hour to Dick & Marcia's house, getting in about 10 minutes after Jay and his family. Jeanne and I decided to make our Thanksgiving dishes ahead of time so the Wiard "boys" played on the computers and watched the kids ... more playing than watching but isn't that what Grandma is for?!? Anyway, the next day we had TONS of family in the house ... it's almost easier to name who wasn't there than it is to name who was. Lots of food and conversation ... although I am an introvert by nature (seriously), it's not hard to be social with this family. We had such a good time with everyone ... so thankful for this family!

(Crazy Wiard kids ... even Kate got in on the action!)

Sadly, Jason and Jeanne left to go back to Swartz Creek on Thursday night and they took their kids with them. Nicholas had gone home with Josh and Cassie earlier that afternoon and was spending the night with his cousins, so Paige was on her own. She actually cried at not having her brother to play with, but when Brian pointed out that she would get to make all her major decisions without him (such as which movie to watch!) she quickly came out of it. She loved having her Grandma to herself and we woke up Friday morning to Paige singing at the top of her lungs in the Living Room. When I went in, I saw Paige sitting in the wooden rocker in the middle of the room, rocking and singing her heart out while Marcia snoozed in a nearby recliner! Paige doesn't care if her audience is awake, just as long as she has one!!

That night, Brian, Paige and I joined Nicholas at Josh & Cassie's for dinner. Cassie made us pizza and me and the kids spent the evening trying to convince Brian to let us take home one of the kittens that were born in their barn in the early fall. Nicholas named her Lucy but I called her "Chi Chi" (this is what I'll name our next dog--she'll fit in my purse) and she obviously favored my sweet boy over the rest of us. Brian didn't relent so we had to say goodbye to the very sweet and docile cat. I've decided that I'll literally rub the cat in Brian's face next time to make sure Brian is still allergic before I let him veto it! I'd have the cat now if the kids would have let me trade Brian for her ... lucky for him they love their dad more than they love cats! :)

(The two "Elmyra's" of the family ... this cat even liked US!)

(Ethan and Nicholas while playing on Webkinz.com and he and Paige just before we left)


(all four kids ... and Nicholas with the kitty ... she really favored him!)

We were all glad to be back in our own home when we got here yesterday, but really had a wonderful Holiday. We have SO much for which to be thankful ... family, friends, food, shelter, clothing and an amazing Heavenly Father who loves us more than we can possibly imagine--and the freedom to worship Him--that's a big one!!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

AU Homecoming

AU's Homecoming was this weekend and we had a HOUSE FULL: all the rooms in our upstairs were occupied, including the kid's rooms--they slept in our bedroom! It was fun, though, and I haven't laughed that much in quite a while! In addition to us alumni, Brian's youngest brother, Joe, joined in on the fun this year with his friend, Ryan. They're both seniors at Sturgis High School and interested in attending Anderson University next year so they came to preview the campus and talk to the Football coach. Jeanne's cousin, Elyse came with us, as well, to visit some friends she has on campus.

As Homecoming events go, for some reason this year seemed more fun to me than others--could be the 10 years we've been graduated has added the proper amount of perspective ... or I guess it could be that my meds were working better than usual this year! :) Whatever the reason, it was fun to be on campus, catching up with long-lost friends and, of course, spending time with family!! Here are some pictures (click to enlarge) from the weekend--I always have the camera so I did a lot of self-photography--I feel like all my pictures get duplicated between here and Facebook, but since a good majority of our family doesn't subscribe to Facebook, it's necessary!

Paige ... our little dancing queen!!

Paige started ballet a few weeks ago with the Academy of Dance Arts here in Fishers. She attends with her 3rd cousin, Lydia, whom she hasn't really gotten to know until recently. At first the girls were kind of shy towards each other, but they are slowly getting to know one another and Paige won't even go in the room until Liddy is there to go in with her, now!! Paige has adjusted real well--I got her in a few weeks late so the other kids had several classes before Paige's first one. She did pretty well her first day--she was a little lost but her teacher made sure the other kids helped her catch on and now she's an old pro! She really seems to like it and doesn't mind branching out ... I'm so proud of her!

I'm sure there will be more to come, but here are a few pictures from Paige's first class (click on the collage to make it bigger):

Paige is 4!!!

Paige had her 4th birthday on September 3rd. We celebrated at home, as a family (and our neighbors) with cake and ice cream and presents. Paige completely hammed it up and enjoyed the attention ALL DAY LONG ... she wouldn't allow any of us to call her Paige: she said, "Call me Birthday Girl" everytime we addressed her by her name--that has continued on through this week, even! (I've created a monster!)

The following Saturday, we had a birthday party for her at the local park. We ended up with 15 kids and they had the most WONDERFUL time playing on the playground! Brian went and picked up pizza so we all had lunch under the covered pavillion, then we sang "Happy Birthday" (Paige hid under the picnic table--she loves attention but THAT MUCH obviously overwhelms her!), ate cupcakes and Paige opened her presents. She got some really great presents--one of her favorites is a microphone that plays two songs from Highschool Musical 2 that she can sing along to! She's a little rock star--even I am impressed by her awesome moves!!

Humor me for a moment as a get a bit reflective ... I can hardly believe Paige is already 4 ... it seems like just yesterday that Brian and I were falling over in disbelief because we had a nine month old son and had just found out we were pregnant!! I never would have thought I could love another child as much as I loved Nicholas but then this little girl came into our family and stole our hearts! She makes us laugh everyday and is such a sweet and sassy gal--she has completed a family that we didn't even realize wasn't whole!! We whole-heartedly celebrate the day of her birth and hope that we did it justice in her eyes--I hope every year she'll understand just a little bit more what a treasure she truly is!!

The Indiana State Fair

The Indiana State Fair was in August and we took the kids, along with our neighbor, Sophie. The kids got to go through a mock-farming experience--they milked cows, fed animals, planted & harvested crops and sheared sheep! After that we rode an elephant (weird combination of circus and farm animals, I know!) which was fun but kind of scary--for me and Paige especially (I had to ride with them because Paige freaked out when time came--the lady running it let me ride for free due to Paige's little fit!). Afterwards, we walked through and saw the real farm animals, ate some fair food (no deep-fried candy bars or twinkies) and the kids rode some rides. The kids had a good time--so did Brian and I--it's always a good Indiana experience!!

Another week ...

Well, we've made it through the first week of school in the Wiard household ... barely! Nicholas did great until his 4th day of school--Thursday. He cried and cried as he got on the bus--I barely thought he would make it, but was happy when the bus doors closed and he was sitting in his seat! I got a call from his teacher later that day saying that he had a rough first hour but she was able to get him calmed down and he enjoyed the rest of the day. Let me just stop here and tell you how grateful I am to have Mrs. Kim Morey for Nicholas' first "real" teacher! What an amazing lady! She took my child and loved on him and showed him such patience and kindness ... I hope she realizes what a blessing she has been to our family already--especially this blubbering mom! SO! My second day working and here I am crying because Nicholas struggled so much that Thursday morning . . . not that I could have done anything differently had I been at home--he still would have had to go to school--but somehow I managed to make myself feel guilty. Regardless, he made it through his day--barely said a word about it when he got home that afternoon, not even when prompted! He was a little teary when he got on the bus on Friday, as well, and that's pretty much been our experience through this morning. From discussions with Mrs. Morey, once he gets to class, Nicholas gets through his tears and participates just fine! Here are a few pictures that I didn't get on the computer--one of Nicholas in front of his school the day before it started (he was NOT happy about having to stop to pose for that picture!) and the other I took out the car window as I was picking him up from school on his first day!





I need to spend a little time on Paige while I'm writing--these kids are like night and day! Paige had her first day of preschool last week and barely looked at me to tell me good-bye! Her teacher is Mrs. Gue (pronounced like "Cue" with a "G") and is a very nice lady. Her husband is on staff at the Fall Creek Wesleyan Church where Paige attends school and I already feel like she genuinely loves my child! Paige likes her class--she goes on Tuesday and Thursday and seems to really enjoy her time there. She takes naps at school and still manages to fall asleep by 8:30PM those days so they must be keeping our little princess busy! I have enjoyed the daily updates that Mrs. Gue sends home and also Paige's creative artwork--on display on the fridge whether I want them there or not!

Paige went with me to the eye doctor last week and she was SO crazy! She was entertaining the waiting room--two elderly women were sitting next to us and gave Paige the captive audience she demands. She put on some of my lip gloss and kept trying to pucker her lips; she wanted me to take her picture and I just happened to have my camera in my purse so I complied. Then, after the exam (she did really well waiting for me--but didn't like the lights being turned down for the Dr. to test my vision on the eye charts), she was SO bored waiting for me to pick out my frames. There was a whole kid's section and finally I agreed to let her try on the Hannah Montana frames--what a nut! I put some of the pictures I took that day and put together a little collage--The Many Faces of Princess Paige:

Lastly but not least, we've had some additions to our family! The week before school, I took the kids to PetSmart and they each picked out a new fish (they think they are theirs but you know they're mine ... I love fish!). We got Bettas; Nicholas picked out a boy--Spiderman and Paige picked out a girl--Ariel. We took them home and from the start both were very active and interesting. Eventually Ariel stopped eating and, after joining a Betta chat room (I know ... feel free to make fun of me!) I diagnosed her with "Dropsy" and she died shortly thereafter. Paige was only concerned long enough to ask if she could get another one, so no harm done! PetSmart guarantees their fish for 14 days, and we were at about day 8, so off we went and picked out another one--this time a boy named Jasmine (Princess P needs to stay with her theme, even if doesn't match the gender!). Jasmine has been fun--he's adapting well and has finally started to eat (we'll have had him for a week tomorrow). They're fun but more work than I'd like ... regardless, I enjoy them and I'll do the extra work! The kids have pretty much forgotten about them at this point--except to show their friends or cousin about them. Here are a few pictures because I'm obsessed with them!!!!
Spiderman:

Jasmine:

Nicholas' first day of KINDERGARTEN!

So, today marks Nicholas' first day of Kindergarten, and it went off without a hitch! He woke up before his alarm went off at 7:30 and was dressed right away. He ate his breakfast and was ready to leave the house before 8:00 ... his bus is schedule to stop at the corner of our street at 8:28 AM! We saw some other kids heading down around 10 after 8 so we decided to go, as well ... Brian said a prayer while the four of us stood at the front door--Nicholas didn't really feel like he needed it (our brave boy!) but mommy was definitely in need of a little strength! Our bus stop has a TON of kids this year--I think only 3 of them are Kindergarteners. When the bus came, Nicholas got on like a champ and waved at me as the bus pulled away. Like several other moms, I was crying--it almost turned into an ugly cry but I gained control before that happened. Nicholas is in Mrs. Morey's kindergarden class at Fall Creek Elementary. School starts at 9AM and I pick him up at 11:40AM. On Tuesdays and Thursdays he'll attend the K+ program through the YMCA which will supplement his day to be like the rest of the Elementary school kids and he'll ride the bus home with our neighbor, Sophie, on those days. Originally I was going to have him attend the after-school program through the Y that would allow him to stay at the school until 6PM so I can work, but I had second-thoughts about that and my neighbor Holly graciously offered to let Nicholas come over on those days so that I can work until 5 without worrying about him. Paige starts full-day preschool tomorrow and will attend that on Tuesdays and Thursdays, as well. I'm so grateful Nicholas got off to a good start today--I was SO proud of our boy. I can't believe time has come for him to be in Kindergarten ... I remember so clearly the day he was born and it doesn't seem like almost 5 1/2 years have passed. This was a huge milestone--his first day of Kindergarten! I'm sure some days will be tough but now that we've gotten the first out of the way, I'm sure we'll manage. Thanks so much for all your prayers for Nicholas--they were truly felt today!!