On Saturday, a friend of ours took these adorable pictures of Kiera for us. K was not super cooperative - and very serious, but I think they turned out beautiful.

Reynolds Wrap is offering a mail-in-rebate on their new recycled foil. It's today only, and they only have a limited number. I printed mine at 7:45am, and there still seemed to be a lot left, but if you're interested, you'd better hurry, just to be sure you get one. Who can refuse a freebie?

Last week I let the girls get chocolate suckers from See's (usually a treat reserved for visits from Grandma). Janae did not want to wait, so I bravely let them have the suckers on the ride home. They actually did really well - no sticky spots anywhere, other than K's face. It was one of the quietest rides home ever!

(sorry about pict quality - these are from my phone)

Disclaimer: I'm not the best mom. I'm just gonna get that out of the way right up front.

This week I took the girls to the dentist for the first time. (I know, I know....see above disclaimer) We got new insurance at the beginning of the month, and I decided now was the time. A friend recommended her children's dentist to me, and off we went.

W-O-W.

I wish my dentist office were this cool. The whole office is 'Hawaiian island adventure' themed. I took a few pictures of the lobby/waiting room on my phone....the whole office is like this though - the exam rooms, the bathrooms, everything

No, the fire is not real. It does look pretty convincing in the pict though

They have movies playing on the flat screen tv, a wii, a playstation, and tons of toys.

Kiera on the "rock-rock." This is definitely her fav - she gets mad when other kids get on.


So we had a great first visit on Tues. Beans did especially great. I was worried that she would be worried, but they did a great job of talking her through it and making it fun. (They did a good job with K too, but she was not as cooperative - especially not after they put gloves on.) The bad news was that Janae had a few cavities (again, see previous disclaimer). So they had us come back the next day (Wed) to work on 2 of them. Beans did okay, but started getting a little teary I guess, toward the end of the first cavity being finished. They decided to stop there instead of pushing her further and making her really upset.

So today (Fri) we went back again so that they could finish taking care of the cavities and put sealants on her molars. They gave her some special "juice" to drink that made her seem a little tipsy. She felt so great that she didn't care what they did to her teeth! Apparently she kept asking the hygienist to move so she could see the movie (they have t.v.s in the ceiling). She did get a little nauseous, and she didn't like having a numb face (who does?), but other than that, she did fabulous. I am so proud of her, and glad that she is still talking positively about her dental experience - which is quite extensive now....3 visits in one week!

I told her if we do better at brushing and flossing everyday, that hopefully she won't ever have to have the dentist fix another cavity. That seemed to be a good motivator.



Now, if we could just get her to stop sucking her thumb.........

Here is a random selection of picts from my phone......

This is now a daily (and adorable) routine - Beans helping Kiera take off her shoes and coat when we get home from running errands. I wish it were like this all day.......sigh.

I have been attempting to learn more about the art of couponing. There is soooooo much information out on the web - it can be a little daunting. I have read dozens of stories about women paying only $30 for $150 worth of groceries! I can only hope to be that good one day.....

Anyway - today I had my first small (very small) success.