The Nelson Narrative

The girls got their first Chuck E. Cheese experience on Saturday in honor of their friend Lindsay's 5th birthday.  They had so much fun.  They played on the toys, ate pizza and cake and loved watching Chuck E. do his little birthday show.  We had a great time. The girls with the birthday girl, Lindsay Not too sure about Chuck E... Interesting way to eat pizza The whole gang Cake!  Yum...

There are at least 4 days that you can pretty much always count on rain in Western Washington (in addition to the many more that you can usually count on it):  Memorial Day, Labor Day, the 4th of July and the first day of summer.  Well, today bucked the trend.  We had close to 80 degrees and sun!  The girls and I spent the whole day outside.  We did sidewalk chalk and rode bikes. We ate lunch outside. The girls played with their water table. We ate ice cream. We grilled. It was awesome.  Happy summer!

The girls don't get enough sleep.  I've been keeping track and about half the time they get less than 11 hours per day and the rest of the time they get a little more than 11, but definitely less than 12.  They should (according to Babycenter) be getting between 11 and 14 (so, half the time they barely get the minimum).  This has been the case for  last 9+ months, when they dropped their nap at exactly 2.5 years of age.  For the most part they seem to do fine on this amount, occasionally falling asleep in the car or less often on the couch in the late afternoon/early evening.  But lately they seem to almost always get really cranky and fussy in the late afternoon/early evening.  Then they get super wound up right before bed, which I've read is actually a sign of overtiredness.  So I'm trying to figure out how I can get them to sleep more.  I can't put them to bed earlier, because they simply won't stay in bed, let alone g...

Olivia loves to dance.  Kayley does too, but not quite as much as Olivia.  So when I found out the community center was offering a short, 4-week (thus not very expensive) Little Princess Ballet class, I thought it would be perfect and the girls would love it.  Today was #3 so next week will be the last class and they will put on a "performace" of Sleeping Beauty.  Olivia cried the first day (because she didn't want me to leave) but she's been fine ever since.  They also do a craft in each class and the teacher reads part of the Sleeping Beauty story.  They made a wand the first day, a crown the next and today they made necklaces.  The girls are really enjoying it. Day 1 Before Class

After the spring we've had (or haven't had--coldest April on record and 3rd coldest May, or something like that) I am soooooooooooooo ready for summer.  Here are some of my plans and goals: Lose at least 7.4 more pounds to get to my wedding weight. Read more.  I'm only on book #3 so far for the whole year.  Pathetic.  Next on my list is  The Carrie Diaries , Summer and the City (both prequels to Sex and the City ) and The Help . Quiet time/Bible reading.  I've been really slacking in that area ever since the girls were born (was never very consistent in the first place) and it shows in my attitude and lack of patience with the girls (they are at that age where they have to do EVERYTHING by themselves and it takes 4 times as long and creates more mess/work and drives me INSANE).  I know that if I were to spend more time in the Word it will have a positive effect on all aspects of my life and definitely make me a better mother and wife. Increa...