I took the kids to a party supply store to pick out valentines goodies for their classmates and teachers.

Maggie and Luke both picked out yo-yos, but wanted me to make them different cards.

Adam picked out little bendable ninja figures.

They all agreed to do foam fingers for their teachers.

Maggie picked out fabric for shirts for her and Annie.

Annie and I met Dave out for lunch and our booth gave her a great view of the kitchen.

I bought plain shirts for the boys and then let them design what they wanted on the front of them. Luke went with Minecraft and Adam wanted something to do with Mickey Mouse.

Maggie helped me make some valentine cookies.

They were peanut butter with chocolate hearts on top.

We ended out evening with some games.

Of course we had to include Valentine’s Day Bingo.

We all agreed that Maggie’s cookies were delicious.

Don’t forget to floss.

The night of the Harry Potter party we took the kids to see the symphony. It was a special show that was all Disney songs. As the instruments played, scenes from the movies were shown on a big screen.

Before the show, they had “petting zoo” where kids were allowed to test out different instruments. Luke was thrilled to try the violin. He’s been saying for a while now that he wants violin lessons someday.

Maggie was super excited when a group of princesses arrived.

It was a fun night for all of us.

Earlier this month we went to a Harry Potter themed birthday party. I made a sweatshirt as part of the birthday boy’s gift. It was very similar to the one I made Adam. Luke was kind enough to test it for size before we took it to the party.

My friend Mary is super creative and throws amazing parties for her kids. The Harry Potter theme music was playing as we walked up to the house and the inside was just awesome.

I won’t share too many pictures, since they’re not mine to share, but her attention to detail is incredible.

Dave, the boys, and I all took an online quiz to see which of the wizarding houses we’d be sorted into. Luke and I are both Hufflepuffs. Hufflepuffs value hard work, patience, loyalty, and fair play.

Dave and Adam are both Ravenclaws. Ravenclaws prize wit, learning, and wisdom.

Each child got a Harry Potter cookie and a wand before leaving the party. The kids asked if they could open their cookies as soon as they got home. Adam also dove right back into the Harry Potter book he was reading. He hasn’t put them down since he started reading them a few months ago. He’s in the middle of the sixth book right now.

Our February got crazy busy for a while. I think that things have calmed down a bit though.

I’ll put a couple of highlights from our month here now and (hopefully) go into more detail on others in their own posts in the next couple of days.

Our van was in the shop for 5 days while they finally fixed an issue we’ve been dealing on and off with since last July. Thankfully, the work was covered by an extended warranty and they let us borrow a vehicle. The loaner was brand new and had so many nice features that my van doesn’t. The downside was it could only fit three kids, so that made it easier to give back.

“Mama, I got myself dressed for church. Plaid and plaid, I match!”

The kids all had their last basketball games of the season this past weekend.

Saying goodbye to those 3 games and 2 practices a week is a big part of our schedule easing up (at least until soccer starts).

Maggie scored her second basket ever at her last game. It was a buzzer beater and such a great end to her season. Dave was one of her coaches and she’s already looking forward to next year. She was probably the smallest and most enthusiastic player on the team.

I wasn’t kidding about Maggie liking Annie to dress like her. They have three or four matching pairs of pajamas.

I think they’re adorable, so I’m all for it.

It’s hard to believe it was so cold last week. It’s currently 61° here.

Maggie was super excited to match Annie today. She loves it when they are “twins.”

The kids were off from school Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of this past week. Wednesday and Thursday were thanks to the polar vortex (it was cooooold) and Friday was due to snow (Dave was actually off because of the weather too).

Last night we got out of the house for Luke’s basketball game. Adam and Luke both had games this morning. Maggie is playing basketball this year too and had a practice this afternoon. She got her pictures back and they turned out pretty cute.

She’s the smallest girl on her team and one of the most enthusiastic. She’s so fun to watch.

Luke made his first confession last night. He and I went out to dinner beforehand. He picked Red Robin because he “really wanted a cheeseburger.”

Since it was a special occasion, I let him get a milkshake as well. He thought that was pretty fantastic.

They had a short mass and then the priests (there were four of them) heard confessions. There were almost 50 kids there, all preparing for their First Communion in May.

Luke was a little nervous about it all, but he did great. Afterwards we lit a candle for Papa.

Luke’s class did a unit on Cinderella. They read different versions of the story and then created their own. Yesterday, they had an open house so the students could share their work with their families.

Luke’s was called “Owen and the Shark.” (Spoiler: Owen doesn’t just lose a shoe – dun dun DUN.)

Annie surprised Luke and wore her Cinderella costume to the open house. She wasn’t big on me taking her picture, but she was all about the cookies.