Build-A-Bear Workshop

I fully admit, it was a moment of weakness.  Vivian's hearing test went well, it was the holidays...

I'd never been in a Build-A-Bear Workshop before.  We don't have one in Bozeman.  The kids and I went in to check it out at Rimrock Mall in Billings while Mr. Yost was feeding Vivian her bottle after our lunch.  We looked around a little and I thought I was going to be super tough.  I had Mommy nerves of steel that would allow me to say "no" to any pleas for building a bear.  

Then we watch other kids getting their chosen animals stuffed.  The nice lady doing the stuffing has them pick out a heart to put into their animal.  She tells them cute things like "rub it on your muscles to make your bunny strong" and "rub it on your belly so he'll feel better after all the doggy treats you'll feed him" and "close your eyes, hug it and make a wish for your new friend." 

I was mush.  

So, back to the front of the store we went to have them pick their animal.  I honestly don't even remember if the kids asked for one.  At that point I couldn't bear (no pun intended) leaving the store without one. 

What is funny is that both kids picked animals that weren't bears.  A dog for Stella and a bunny for Hudson.

 Hudson getting his stuffed.

 The next station after the stuffing is giving them a "bath".  It is a an air sprayer that blows their fur all around while they brush them.

 All stuffed and washed and ready for some clothes.

 Stella picked this outfit first, but later changed to a pink shirt with sequins.  She really wanted the outfits that had full dresses and shoes and purses, etc.  But see, I really WAS tough.  Just one shirt was all each of them got. (The bows were free.)

 Vivian liked Build-A-Bear Workshop too!

 When you check out, you get a "house" for your animal to go home in.  Seriously, the marketing is great.  On the way out the door, Mr. Yost was goading me with things like, "What happened to the Purge Princess?" and "This doesn't seem like something a Minimalist Mama would do" and "Didn't you just make the kids give away like 1,241 stuffed animals?"

Yeah, he was right. But it was worth it.

Barnyard by Stella

My first post is about dogs.  I am 6 years old.  This is me and my new stuffed animal.  I got it at the Build-A-Bear Workshop in Billings.  Her name is Chocolate Chip Cookie Sparkle Shine.  

 Now I am happy, because I got to meet a new person.  She is a female puppy.  She is 3 months old. 

 This is my brother's rabbit, Eaty.  He is very, very cute.

 This is Chocolate Chip Cookie.  It's the same one as at the top.  And what's different is that shes wearing a sparkly, pink shirt. 

 This is me.  I am 6 years old. I am the owner of Chocolate Chip Cookie. 

This is my brother.  He is 3 years old.  He is holding Eaty and he is pretty cute.

We've created a monster

Stella's reading and writing has TAKEN OFF since starting kindergarten a few months ago.  She entertains us daily with little things here and there.  We never know what is going to come out on paper.  I love it that she is fearless in her writing.  She doesn't worry if she is spelling something absolutely correct or how things look.  She just has an idea and runs with it. 

Here are a couple favorites:

 Here's a sign we found taped to the playroom door the other day

Translation: 

Rudolf

A famous

singer

sings

Rudolf

the

Red

nosed reindeer

 This is a table of contents for a binder she's been putting together - 

complete with page numbers

Translation:

Animal facts - page 3

Stella's letters - page 5

Picture Section - page 4

Private - page 6

ABCD page - page 1

Comic page - page 2

This is page 6  "Private"

She told us it is a list of all the bad words she knows.  No translation needed :)

Has your house ever looked like this?

If you ever wondered what a house with three kids really looks like behind closed doors, well, here you go. 

This is why I didn't have a blog post for the past week. 

We had good intentions this weekend of:

getting the Christmas tree - which we did (see it way in the back?)

putting lights up on our house - which we did

starting a new, one-week meal plan from Real Simple magazine - which we did (salmon with gingery green beans and bok choy - yum)

So, on all those counts, the weekend was a success.  The house cleaning?  Not so much.

I'm pretty sure the kids will remember the Christmas tree hunt, the sparkling lights and the yummy dinner.  Let's hope they forget about the sheer chaos that ensued during the process!