A Touch of Christmas

The Kroc Center hosted an evening event called "A Touch of Christmas" on Friday Dec. 14 that was really impressive (waaaayy better than the Target parking lot ordeal...see previous post :) It was from 5:30-8:30 pm and included a snow play area, bounce houses, the gymnasium full of Christmas games and crafts, gingerbread house making, live music, and a play of the Nativity scene - all for Free!  Since we missed the snow play at Target, I wanted to make sure the boys got a chance to play in the snow, so I took them there around 5:00 pm and we were in the first group to go in and play in the snow.  It was Hawaiian-Style fresh tracks :)

Dylan did not like getting hit with snowballs from Gavin

They had a fishing game where the kids threw their poles over and pulled in a toy. These were big time toys too, very impressive!

Posing with their fishing game toys

Coloring Nativity Scene crafts

Photos with Santa

The shopping centers in Kapolei have Christmas activities throughout the month of December (Nothing like the Christmas activities and snow days I see of friends pictures on the mainland, but it is something).  Nothing says Christmas in Hawaii like waiting hours in line to play in some snow ice they dump in the Target parking lot :) Monica, Trish and I took the kids this year but when we got there, the boys decided waiting in the 2 hour plus line to play in the little patch of "snow" wasn't worth it (my bribing them with the promise of using $ Grandpa sent them for Halloween to buy a toy at Target helped). 

So, instead of playing in the snow, we were the first ones in line for free photos with Santa and had some free shave ice while we waited:)  Perfect, Hawaiian-style Christmas day of fun!

The Gingerbread House

Gingerbread house making has certainly become an easy activity with the invention of the "kit" containing the candy, icing, and pre-made and shaped gingerbread house. I remember making these the "old fashion" way by using cereal boxes and graham crackers, but I'd have to say that I prefer the ease of the boxed kit! The weekend after Thanksgiving we picked up a kit and created our gingerbread masterpiece :)

A month later....right before I threw it out, the boys asked if they could "try it." I figured it would be stale and gross, assuming they would take one bite and not like it.  I under-estimated the taste-buds of children for candy.  They liked it! Lesson learned :)

3 Year and 6 Year Old Stats

We are so very blessed with two healthy boys. They are a little bit rowdy at times, but seeing life through their eyes brings us so much joy.  Here are the stats for our growing kiddos...

Dylan turned 3 on 9/10/10
He weighed 31 pounds and measured 3 feet 2.5 inches back in September (body mass index of 14.94)
On his second birthday he weighed 27.6 pounds and measured 3 feet 1 inch.
He has perfect, selective hearing  and 20/20 vision

Gavin turned 6 on 12/15/13
He weighs 46 pounds and measured 3 feet, 10.25 inches (body mass index of 15.12)
On his fifth birthday he weighed 40.8 pounds and measured 3 feet, 7.25 inches
He has perfect hearing and 20/20 vision. 

End of November

I just had a few pictures on my phone and camera to post before getting into the Christmas posts. So, here are just a few random photos....

We watched Echo one evening so Julie and Jamie could go to dinner for her birthday. The boys loved being able to show her all their toys!

Found them playing inside the media book/media shelf that holds their toys.

When Dylan is home with us on the weekends, we don't put him down for naps anymore because he fights it, which ends up taking about 2 hours of time to actually get him to sleep.  We just let him charge the day and then he goes to bed early on the weekends. Apparently, he just wants to be a couch napper rather than sleeping in his bed :)

This is what happens when a 3 year old uses scissors for crafts.

Gavin's wrestling team had a beach party as their end of the season celebration. It has been so nice to get to know these families over the years as this team has really grown into a very organized club!  All of the kids got a metal and a certificate for their participation in the Saber's Wrestling Club.

The boys doing a tabata workout together :)

Kroc Center Art Night Celebration

The boys really enjoyed their art classes at the Kroc Center these past six months! It provided Gavin time to learn about the basics of art and explore with color, line, and shape. While providing Dylan and I some one on one time in his Messy Monster class.  They had an art showcase night back in November so the kids could share their art with the public. It was really nice to go and see Gavin's work displayed! He painted a winter scene with ice skaters. They also had arts and crafts for the family. I would have to say we are really happy with all that the Kroc center brings to this community- we've certainly been taking advantage of all it has to offer!

December 6 was Dylan's last Messy Monster's art class and Gavin was able to join us also. Each month the class focused on a theme and this time it was a Christmas party. the kids made several different Christmas crafts - candy cane ornaments, hand-stamped cards, Santa hats, and had fun playing with photo booth props.  I wasn't able to get pictures of everything because we were busy with our crafts, but the kids and I really enjoyed our 2 hours together :)

Dylan wouldn't stand in front to of the scenery long enough to take a picture - this was all I could snap of him.

As you can see, Dylan doesn't just stand and "smile" for a picture - he "poses". What a character!