Monkey Joe's & Christmas Concerts

Our kids dressed as a rainbow.

Early in the week, we got together with some friends to go to Monkey Joe's.  It is a bouncy house place and only kids 12 and under are allowed to bounce.  Josiah asked for one last round at Monkey Joe's before his big birthday.  We invited some CC friends to join us.  We got there right when they were supposed to open, but the building remained locked and dark.  We hung out in the parking lot and were just about to leave when a car pulled up and dropped off a worker with a key.  We gave them a few minutes before we walked in.  I don't know if he saw us in the parking lot or what, but the manager apologized for being late in opening and said we could jump for free.  That was an unexpected surprise!  I had been curious as to whether or not they kept the bouncy houses blown up 24 hours a day.  They do not.  They had to turn them on when they got there, so we waited a bit for a few to get fully inflated.  The kids ran around and had fun, but I could tell it was not as much fun as when they were younger.  They played hide-and-seek tag until they couldn't run any longer.  When our friends arrived, they played a different game and had a lot of fun with them.  Sadly, we could only play for 2.5 hours because we had to jet home.  We had a new dryer being delivered.  

These same friends came to our house to play on Friday afternoon, too.  They just got a new job out-of-state, so they are going to be moving sometime this spring.  The oldest girl is between Caroline and Henry's ages and she is friends with the both of them.  The youngest girl is three and Caroline likes to follow her around and pretend she's the little sister she never had.  Their brother, in the middle, is the type of kid that is friends with everybody.  

Though the dryer was delivered early in the week, we didn't do the installation until this weekend.  We had our slim friend help us with the disconnect.

Both boys helped Todd take the old dryer to the curb.  Once that dryer was off the dolly, both boys hopped on it.  Henry rode only briefly, before deciding he'd rather push Josiah around.  I am grateful for a new dryer that is quiet.  (The old one was very old and had become incredibly noisy.)  

Josiah wanted to relive the days with "the original three."  He asked to watch a movie with just Todd and I one night.  He made sure the younger two were upstairs for the night and then turned on Harry Potter.  We got very tired halfway through, so we relived the old days for two nights in a row.  

Midweek, Josiah earned his red stripe in jiu-jitsu.  The next step is a new belt, so I'm hoping we can get some classes in this break and get that new belt quicker.  

Josiah watched Space Jam recently and drew Bugs Bunny.

On Saturday, we went to a Lego store called Bricks and Minifigs.  They had a lot of already completed Lego sets for purchase.  They also had four long display cases of minifigures.  Josiah was in heaven.  Many figures were in the $8 range, but we saw a few for $50 and $80.  We told the kids they could have $20 each to spend.  Josiah spent a lot of time deciding before he settled on three minifigures.  He got Max from the Lego Movie, the Tasmanian Devil, and a third.  Caroline didn't want to get anything.  Henry had his heart set on a Lego Tree House that cost $230.  I heard him calculate, 'I need $210 more.'  He tried to sell us on the tree house set because he said it had small rooms and he loves small Lego rooms.  It also comes with green and yellow/orange leaves for the change of seasons.  The only time I wish we were Hollywood rich is when we are looking at Lego kits.  They have some really cool ones, but boy they are expensive. 

 Josiah has regaled us with his concerts again.  We have had a Beatles concert.    

Later in the week, all three kids put together a Christmas concert.  They had a written play list of songs with Henry acting as the DJ.  Caroline was on lights, while Josiah played air guitar and sang vocals Milli Vanilli style.  

Though it doesn't sound like it, we did get school done each day.  They didn't always do it with joy in their hearts, but it did get completed.  ;)  At least on the days when we met friends, there was motivation to complete their work in a timely manner.

This week we have to watch all our Christmas movies before the big day.  The kids are really excited for Christmas, especially the eldest.