February Roundup

February was a very cold month spent mostly indoors! It was also our second month in Knoxville, so although we couldn't exactly follow it on snow days, we have developed a good routine and are more familiar with the area we live in. We are enjoying Knoxville, but we are happy to say we are halfway done with our time here!

Michael had started to cook more and more lately and I love it! These skillet potatoes were delicious.

Paul loves to agonize and cuddle with the cats. I'm not sure there's a difference here.

We have made a couple friends here that we see at story time and then go to Chick-fil-a with after. Paul especially likes the ice cream after!

We love to go to open gym at Gym Bugs. Paul climbed to the top of this block!

Another favorite activity is going to The Muse, a small but very nice children's museum. Paul likes to dress up as an astronaut!

I got these 2 lb weights for a workout I was doing. Paul was thrilled, knowing Michael and I each already had heavier sets, he was convinced they were for him. He has used them to "work out" more than I have.

My aunt Joycie sent me a birthday card along with these stickers for Paul. It was not long before they were all over him!

We often go to the office/lounge in our apartment complex. They have a train set and a coffee/tea/hot chocolate machine. We either get hot chocolate or green tea to split. This time the ladies that work there gave Paul a bag of Cheetos. I don't think he's ever really had them before and of course he loved them!

Another Chick-fil-a Wednesday!

"Take my picture!" More fun at The Muse!

Cold week!

Golf course set up by Dad.

Slush before the freeze.

Chicken noodle soup was required. (The yellowy orange stuff is butternut squash.)

Paul eating lunch in the cave in his jammies, which he wore all day, every day.

The first cave (we used books).

So happy to be out in the snow!

Going a little crazy inside all the time!

Had to have a nice dinner at home to help us get through the wintry mess.

Cave version two, with boxes. Phoebe loved the caves.

Starting to melt!

Blowing bubbles at The Muse!

The Muse has this little golf area set up. Paul put this basket in the middle as an obstacle. There is enough space to putt underneath it. Twice while he was playing another kid came and picked it up and put it off the path. Paul was very frustrated each time! "Hey!" he would say before going to move it back. It was pretty cute.

My silly girl Phoebe has always loved hair ties. She will bring them to us to fling for her and she will chase after them and often bring them back to us. If you just dangle it over her she gets really excited. It's so cute!

I made pasta primavera for dinner one night and I was just admiring how many vegetables actually went into it!

All cut up!

Ready to eat!

My aunt Joycie sent us a fun package with chocolate covered pretzel rods, stickers, an agenda and the Milo & Otis movie. Paul was eating one of the pretzels when he got the idea that it should be used as lipstick. He was very proud of his chocolate lipstick. He also watched Milo & Otis every day that week! He loves it! (Just like I did when I was his age.)

Paul had a cleaning with the dentist this month. He has been going every six months for a while now, since we noticed cavities in his front teeth when he was just over a year old. Luckily he has had no other problems but we want to make sure we stay on top of it. He generally does really well at the dentist and even the doctor, so I wasn't too worried about it. Still, he did so great! He listened so well and was extremely cooperative and helpful. The hygienist commented that he was her best patient yet (and the others were older) and the dentist was impressed as well. That week we had been cooped up a lot so I decided we should celebrate with pizza afterward. I had a coupon for a free 11-inch pizza with any toppings, so we splurged and each got one so Paul could just have cheese and I could have all the toppings I wanted. It was so fun and the pizza was so good! The leftovers were great, too!

 A lady working there came over to comment on how cute it was that he had his own pizza. "Usually parents only give them a slice!" It was such a fun treat and thanks to the coupon, it all cost less than $5.50.

We ran a few errands after lunch, including Target. We didn't need much so Paul grabbed a basket for us and insisted on pulling it around the store. He was very good at his job and it made my trip much easier! He just followed me around the whole store. It was great.

 We had to take a quick stop to check out the Target dog!

That Saturday morning we went to Chick-fil-a with the idea that we would be giving Michael time to work on a project. We had a fun breakfast and played for a while. Later that day, Michael and Paul went to see Big Hero 6 at a cheap theater. They had so much fun! And I had nice time relaxing at home. That was our February!