Gingerbread Houses

Last week when a huge snowstorm dumped on us, Chad ran to the store and got all of the things to make gingerbread houses.  While we didn't go all out and make our own gingerbread (maybe someday), we did take a step up from last year's canned frosting and made actual icing.  This was a huge improvement and our houses actually stood longer than an hour after we were done.

The anticipation:

Another title for this post could be "The tale of two spouses."  While Chad meticulously carved out each piece of his house and added details like a dog house and Santa: 

I sat back, watched him, and ate a lot of our stash.  Eventually he took pity on me and constructed me this train, since the "train" I made was looking like a sad box.

Of course, things got a little slap happy as the sugar rush kicked in and bed time came closer: 

For days after, Caden has asked me, "Why didn't you decorate and put more details on your train?"  The true answer: a lot of the good stuff was mostly gone by decorating time...

There really is something so magical about a house made of candy, especially when you're 2.  First thing the next morning, he was checking out his creation from the night before. 

Bryce has also become an expert on finding "loose candies" that have to be eaten since they've fallen off.  "It was broken!" he claims every time I catch him with a mouth full of gum drops.

Brothers

I am so in love with these two boys.

Caden has this quote hanging in his room:

 I'd say a BIG brother is especially better than a superhero, especially one 

who takes care of you when you're sick...

Puts your boots on:

Feeds you your dinner so you can also have dessert:

Wipes your nose after you've thrown a fit:

Scratches your back at nap time so you can go to sleep.

While it can sometimes be exhausting to have fights over toys or whose turn it is to say prayers, having 2 boys is so much fun.  It makes me laugh when they put each other in time out or sneak a treat or toy to the one that I put in time out. Telling them to go clean up the toys together is a guaranteed half hour of quiet time for me because a majority of the time, they just play instead of getting anything done. Sometimes they gang up on me like a few weeks ago when I was getting after them for not getting shoes on when I asked.  Bryce said to Caden, "Let's say NO! to mom." (Luckily Caden is the much smarter sibling who did what I asked.)

 Having a sibling teaches both our boys so many lessons Chad and I can't teach them: sharing, taking care of one another, compromise, and, of course, the best wrestling moves.  

Thanksgiving Surprise

When Chad and I went to my 20 week ultra-sound, we asked the technician to just write down the gender and seal it in an envelope.  She claimed she couldn't tell, so the doctor came in to check and said she was "fairly confident" about what it was.  She wrote it down, sealed it up, and we were on our way.

While we didn't find out with the first two what we were having until they were born, I wanted to try finding out this time.  My main motivation was my boys.  I wanted us to be all together as a family and have it be a fun thing to remember finding out together, especially for Caden who was absolutely certain it was a girl this time.  I made a girl blanket at the beginning of my pregnancy and kept telling him, "If you're wrong...your baby brother is going to have to have this flower blanket on his bed!"

I talked with Caden about different things we could do: balloons, a cake, a wrapped present...his complaint with all of those is that someone (the baker, whoever wrapped the present) would find out before him and he wanted to be the first to know.  So we went with it and on Thanksgiving morning, he opened the envelop and read us the results.

We don't know what it is...

Opening the envelop...

GIRL 

"I KNEW IT!!! I KNEW IT!!!"

Caden's attempt at getting a picture of Chad and I.

It was really fun to find out as a family that we're having a baby sister!  We have watched the video of Caden opening it over and over.  After it was all done I accused Chad of peaking and he did the same to me because neither of us were that surprised.  I was so much sicker this time around. Also, as Chad pointed out, when the technician didn't dare tell us, it was a give away since one gender is harder to recognize than the other.  

Though I have to say, the doctor's words of being only "fairly certain" it's a girl still cross my mind...