January happenings.

Amelia has LOVED making bracelets on her new rainbow loom from Grandma and Grandpa Olsen.

Enjoying some sunshine after some very cold temperatures.

A lazy Saturday morning in the playroom.

Just Oliver being Oliver.

A rare moment of quiet concentration for Oliver.

The boys helping with the laundry (Oliver is inside that basket.)

New Year's hike

Everyone was feeling a little grumpy after our friends left. Our annual New Year's Day hike was the perfect remedy. We found a nice nature trail near our house. I love starting off the year with a hike.

  His late night dancing finally caught up with him.

New Year's Day

My kids typically wake up at the same time every morning, no matter what time they went to bed. Unfortunately this was definitely the case New Year's Day. We were all up late the night before and the kids were up first thing in the morning. After a big breakfast, they headed outside to play and spent all morning in the woods, thanks to warm January weather. I love having a wide open space for the kids to play and imagine (well, not so wide open with all the trees). We were all sad to say goodbye to our friends and are hoping for more visitors soon.

All of the girls set up a hospital in the woods. Elsa was the patient in these photos.

Scooter races in the driveway, trying to delay their departure as much as possible.

Oliver's moves.

The Littles brought their new Wii and the kids had a blast doing the dance games on New Year's Eve. Oliver had never played before but jumped right in and started dancing. In fact, he refused to stop dancing. He was pretty good at following along. At the end of every song he would yell out "I won!!" even though he wasn't even holding a controller. Everyone eventually tired out but he kept going. It was nearly midnight and we finally convinced him to take a break. He passed out on the couch in about 20 seconds. He was up bright and early the next morning, asking for the dance game again.

Oliver's Wii Dance from Sarah Black on Vimeo.

New Year's Eve

We were thrilled to have the Littles stop by for another visit on their return trip and liven up our New Year's Eve. Our kids waited anxiously all day for their arrival and got right down to business playing the second they pulled up. We ate food, played games, did some fireworks, did dance games on the Wii, and counted down the New Year. 

Abi and Amelia trying out the balcony view for fireworks, wearing Harry Potter robes.

Oliver and Calvin weren't too sure about the fireworks so they kept their distance.

They were much more comfortable with the window view.

Our neighbor showed us up with real fireworks. Right over our house. Apparently they put on a pretty great Fourth of July show too.

Elsa fell asleep just before midnight. If we let her sleep, she would be mad she missed it. But if we woke her up, she'd be mad we woke her up. We decided to wake her up and hope for the best. Could have been worse.

Kure Beach

We stopped at the beach next to the aquarium before driving home. It was fun to watch all of the birds diving for their dinner. Despite the colder temperatures, the kids still managed to get wet in the waves.