Our Five Ring Circus: Friday Favorites

Friday, December 16, 2016

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday! I can hardly believe it's the last weekend before Christmas!


I wish I had all kinds of exciting things planned for this weekend, but I'm going to be spending it Christmas shopping. And wrapping. And panicking because we have to fit in a million activities into 4 days next week. And kicking myself for not starting sooner. But in all fairness, there is literally NO extra time when you have four kids who are in school and activities.  That's the reason why I don't sleep and why I do all my blogging at 3 AM!

I'm switching things up a bit for my Friday Favorites this week. Instead of mostly sharing products I currently love, I'm going to keep things simple and mostly share the moments that made this week so special!

Friday Favorites


{ONE} 

The joy we feel when the Steelers win a game and Sunday afternoons spent with family!

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{TWO}

Phase Two (AKA Lily and Liam) cuddling and reading books on a sunny afternoon. We're going to miss Lily so much when she stays at school all day next year!

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{THREE}

An early Christmas gift!  Strider Bikes sent Liam a balance bike to review over on Pittsburgh Moms Blog. You can read all about it and why it's such a great gift for kids of ALL abilities HERE. The Strider Balance Bike is an amazing gift. Liam absolutely loves it and I can tell it's going to get a lot of use!

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{FOUR} 

Afternoons spent together as a family. Nothing makes me happier than when all four of my kids are home and getting along well!

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{FIVE} 

The joy over a snowfall! We got a few inches of snow this week and the kids were so excited! Well, 3 of my 4. Liam wasn't allowed to go outside because he had a little cold. I'm sure we'll get more snow this winter that he will be able to enjoy!

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{SIX}

How I do snow and cold weather: In 5 minute intervals with LOTS of layers. As in a pair of tights, a pair of fleece lined leggings, a pair of socks, a pair of boot socks, a tank top, two thermal shirts, a sweater and scarf. It's how I roll! Hidden coat (later found stuffed under Liam's crib) and all my others stored away in the attic above the Christmas present-covered steps meant that I had to get creative!


{SEVEN}

The wish list chalkboard from the Target Dollar Spot that some of my crew stares longingly at each day. The wishes never changed this year! 

I've got two of the four covered, but I don't think I'm going to have much luck finding that second Hatchimal. We got lucky with the first one. My friend's mom had it on layaway since the Spring and my friend's son didn't want it so it was ours. Now we have to decide if the girls will share it (my husband says no) or just Lily gets it (then I'll feel bad for Lexie). Such an important decision to make over an overpriced toy that only hatches once!

Dylan, Lexie and Lily's wish lists are very small this year so finishing up our shopping should be easy!

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{EIGHT} 

Liam's joy over reading gets me every time! He's currently loving his books from Join the Story Box, which is a monthly subscription service for young readers. We opted for the Board Books package this month since he's in toddler tornado mode!

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{NINE} 

Dylan had his choir, orchestra and band concert last night and we are so proud of him! The 6th graders did such an amazing job. 

Chorus is mandatory for the entire grade, but next year it's an elective and Dylan will not be continuing. He said it isn't his thing! He opted to play trumpet in band for the second year and he just started playing violin in orchestra. He told us he's going to continue with band and orchestra next year, but I'm not so sure. He only decided to do it this year because his girlfriend (Yes, he has a girlfriend. OMG.) plays trumpet and violin, too. And, well, if that ends...

Whether or not he decides to continue, this experience was a great one! We're encouraging his musical ability and we love watching how he's able to play more songs on his guitar and on our piano just from being a part of band and orchestra. We're so glad he joined this year!

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That's a wrap for our busy week! I'm heading to bed at 4 AM and feeling incredibly grateful that we can sleep until 9:30 AM thanks to our second 2 hour delay, due to cold weather, in a row! After that, I'm going to spend the weekend spending LOTS of money and preparing myself for all the Christmas events we have planned next week! I hope you all have an amazing weekend!


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13 comments:

  1. Yay for the first snowfall. Cam keeps asking me when it's going to snow here. I keep telling him in Januaray or February. But we will hopefully see snow in Ohio this weekend. :) You will have happy children on Christmas morning!!

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    1. Hopefully you'll get to see some before it melts! XOXO Have a great weekend!

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  2. Liam is such a happy kid! Cute that Dylan has a girlfriend. Gabbie likes a boy and he might like her back, but they are not official or anything! lol. I also find it funny that you layered up to go outside, but you're not wearing a coat! Brr!

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    1. I guess I should have explained the why...haha! Liam hid my coat and his shoes after school. All of my other coats were in a box in the attic and I didn't feel like hiking up the steps over all the Christmas presents in order to grab one. So I just layered for the 5 minutes I spent outside...and found my coat stuffed under his crib later that night!

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  3. Liam is the happiest little guy! I just love how big his smile is.

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  4. So much fun and so busy too! You're response to cold weather sounds exactly like mine. Give me all the layers! I hope you are having a productive weekend!

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  5. So much fun and so busy too! You're response to cold weather sounds exactly like mine. Give me all the layers! I hope you are having a productive weekend!

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  6. Snow!! I have my fingers and toes crossed that when we visit grandparents for Christmas we'll get a little taste of that too. But, we'll be layered and bundled, and most likely freezing half to death.

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  7. Such a cute picture of all four of your kids! And we love the strider balance bikes!

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