We Are Young

This is my new favorite song of the moment.  There's something about it that just makes me feel wistful and free and well...young.

 

(which, as I approach my next birthday in January, is something I definitely need to feel a bit more often.)

Enjoy.

We Are Young by Fun.

ps-the music video is odd.  not bad, just...odd.

Merry Christmas to all...

and to all a good night.

ps-pajama pants made using this tutorial and nightgowns/peasant dresses made using this tutorial.

trees and planes and spit-up...oh my!

On Monday evening for Family Home Evening we went to the Crown Center to see their giant Christmas tree, gawk at the gingerbread village, and play on the Christmas playground (a bunch of kid-size wooden vehicles and buildings...on top of concrete.  Here in the midwest we don't care about liability too much).  It's a must-do for us every December and oh-so-much fun (and free!).  Here's the proof:

The 100-ft Mayor's Christmas Tree
(one of the tallest in the nation)

Ezra flying through the air with the greatest of ease.

The resident homeless person

(if that hat looks familiar, it's because it is)

Little Miss Sunshine

(who, incidentally, is wearing a size 12 month hat)

The flight crew

 The faces behind the camera.

In other news...

 As a 4 kid-veteran momma, all of which have had reflux, I think it's fair to say...

I am so. over. spit-up.

That is all :)

But Mom...

...Oakie liked the cupcake!

 

So said Scarlett after generously sharing her black and white graduation cupcake.

This picture doesn't eeeeven begin to do the black bakery frosting mess justice.  I keep on finding little spots of it scattered all over my light carpet.

 

this is Oak's "contrite" face

I'm honestly trying to find the humor in the situation (hence this post)...but I'm just not there yet.

random pictures for your amusement

In case you need a giggle :)

 This picture makes me smile.  Does Oak not look extreeeeemely pleased with himself?

 Lately, Georgia has been stealing our camera and taking gobs and gobs of random blurry pictures.  The subjects usually consist of...

her favorite toys

weird-angle shots of her underpants

and Christmas decor.

The best is when she blames it all on Scarlett, denying any picture-taking involvement what-so-ever, but then shows up with 50 pictures looking just like this one.

pretty sure she's been caught red-nosed.

Just for posterity's sake, here's a few pictures of the girls playing in the first snow of the season.

 

Yes, I am fully aware of how white trash this picture makes my backyard look.

Georgia posing in her coat-less state.  For some reason she always prefers snow-play without one.  *shrug*

 "Rooooar" said the Scarlett Monster

Now I'm off to do more Christmas sewing...

Oakisms

Something tells me it's time for Oak to stop sleeping in the bouncer.

In other news, the little acorn has started cereal.  Lucky for you I caught the first bite on film.

Super-excited pre-first bite...

Open wide!

Less then excited post-first bite...

I can't say I blame him.  Rice cereal isn't all it's cracked up to be.

And now, just because it makes me happy.

enjoy.

random thoughts

Somewhere out in the universe I have an alter-ego.  She has bright red streaks in her hair, a star tattoo, wears thick black liner cat eye style, and has a loft in the city.  If the alter-Whitney had a theme song, this would be it. Whenever I hear it on the radio, I touch that alter-ego for half a heartbeat and for that moment, both she and I are bouncing around our cars in harmony...I in my mini-van and she in a '68 dodge charger.

enjoy.

Flogging Molly-Revolution

On another random note, this particular Whitney, is a horribly mean mommy.  Yes, I took a picture before helping the poor girl out.  I promise we did get it out eventually.

Poor girl is giving smiling her best effort.

The post that launched a thousand pictures

Every early November I seem to have one HA-uge post to catch-up on October festivities.  It's not even so much that I slack through October, it's just that it's such a chock-full month with all of the Halloween goings-on and two birthdays to boot.  So, here's my ginormous October catch-up...


We were lucky enough to have Spencer's mom come and visit in mid-October.  She helped us kick off our 13 Nights of Halloween festivities with a super-fun (and suuuuper-cold) trip to Schaake's pumpkin patch.  It's a fabulous free local pumpkin patch that we go to every year and just adore. (for previous years' How Tall This Fall pictures, go here)

 Ezra (just under 6)

 An uncooperative Georgia (nearly 4.5) and Daddy (29)

 Scarlett (just under 3)

Oak's very first pumpkin patch experience (4.5 months) and Mommy (26)

 Ezra showing us how tricky he is

Grandma Lifferth with the mowglis enjoying the hayride down to pick pumpkins

 Scarlett in the fields

 

Playing in the hay-bale maze

 Our attempt at a hayride self-portrait

A much warmer, cozier, happier post-trip baby

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On the 23rd we celebrated Ezra's 6th Birthday.  It was a day filled with the typical Ezra-esq ups and downs.  Regardless, we're so very, very happy he's part of our family.

(warning: in all of these pictures he's in his post-church comfy clothes.  I promise I don't normally allow my children to wear such horrendously ill-matched clothing.)

 Showin' off the loot

 Ezra with his minions

Opening the much-anticipated Star Wars Legos

(Thanks MiMi and Grandad!)

 Happy Ezra pre-cake ruination

 Unhappy Ezra post-cake ruination

Happy 6th Birthday, Ezra Emil!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On October 28th Miss Scarlett turned the big 0-3!  yay! yay! for an end to the terrible twos!  We're so very grateful for the sunshine she brings into our home.

Happy as a clam

 Showing off her first present of the day, her chihuahua named Ji-la

(it came in the cutest little purple and leopard print purse for easy toting)

Thanks Auntie Stephie and Fam!

 Every girl needs a proper twirly skirt

Thanks Auntie Libby and Fam!

 Let's hope those kisses keep missing

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Scarlett Caroline!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Sunday before Halloween was filled with all sorts of festivities like pumpkin carving and hand-carved jack-o-lantern jello (made by my fabulous husband :).  Spencer had a scout meeting that night, so I was on my own for carving.  4 small beasts + one parent + 3 pumpkins + knives + gobs of seedy stringy goop = an interesting evening.

 How cute is my husband? He seriously decided to do this all on his own. He made orange jello, let it set up, carved it out, squirted hand-mixed dark jello in with a syringe, and set it up again.

ps-if I look tired it's because I had been up well past 1:00am working on costumes and with a night owl of a baby for many a night that week.

Pumpkin carving is obviously another nuddy-pants activity at the Lifferth household.

 Look Ma! No Hands!

Don't let Georgia fool you.  She actually refused to put her hand in the pumpkin lest her fingers get icky.

(can't say I blame her.  I'm the type who wouldn't put my hand in the pumpkin either if given the choice.  Being the mother, however, I don't get a choice.)

A tiny pumpkin for a tiny girl

I should've gotten a final shot, but in the craziness of single parenthood it got missed.  In place of any artistic ability, I just let my kids draw their own scribbles...errr...faces and carved whatever they drew.  It made for some...interesting...jack-o-lanterns.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And now, of course, for the grand finale...HALLOWEEN!!! Man, I love me some Halloween goodness.  Gotta say I was particularly pleased with how this year's costumes came together.

Hansel and Gretel

Spencer and I in front of the "witch's cottage" for trunk-or-treat (get it? the kids picked the candy off of the cottage like in the story).  If you look really close you can see the bread trails leading up to car.  Considering we threw these costumes together in a mere few hours, I think they turned out none too shoddy.

Toothless the Dragon 

from How to Train Your Dragon

 

Wings in...

...and wings out.

(The Engineer was the great creator of the mechanical wings.  Believe it or not, but they actually get bigger then this but Ezra didn't have them fully extended in this picture for some reason.)

 Princess Georgia of Kansas

 Elbow, elbow, wrist, wrist.

Wipe a tear and blow a kiss.

Little Miss Lady Bug

 Now picture this heavy dose of cuteness and throw red sparkly shoes on the bottom.

I know...too adorable for words.

The Green Pig from Angry Birds

 As Oak doesn't naturally have any eyebrows to speak of, I had to draw 'em on.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Phew! Are you as exhausted as I am? unlikely.  Regardless, I'm still super-impressed that you made it this far, so GOLD STAR for you!

Have a fabulous day!