Da Bears Party

Yesterday we hosted a Bears party at our house. Sadly the Bears lost...again, but a good time was had by friends...so it was a good day!

The ladies seemed to hang out around the food table. We could say it was so we could keep an eye on both playrooms to watch the 12 toddlers and 3 babies....but I think we all know it was because there was so much delicious food and we couldn't stop snacking! It's funny how versatile cream cheese is in an appetizer or dessert! Oh soooooo yummy! The guys hung out in front of the tv and near the food. Conversation was constantly flowing.

What was also nice is that the kids ranging in ages from 5 months to 6 years all got along! They bounced along from one playroom to the other, stopped to take a nibble of food, played with some play-doh and zoomed cars in Logan's room. Nobody was pushing anybody around or stealing toys or not sharing. It was just really nice. The ladies raised a glass to raising great kids! :)

I had such great intentions of getting more pictures including pictures of all the ladies and all the kiddos...but it just wasn't in the cards. Here are the pictures I did capture:

Logan and Maddie cheering

Carter and Jonathan playing with play-doh

Some of the kids playing in Logan's room

Will and Vann (we were seconds late of the picture of them riding on the dumptruck together)

The boys with Charlie
(This may very well be the first captured picture of both boys 'checking out' the same girl)

My football cookies! They turned out pretty cute!
(I also made football-shaped pb&j sandwiches)

It was a super-fun day....but boy were we exhausted! We put the kids to bed and fell asleep!

Funnies...

After Logan woke up from his nap, we were hanging out on the bed. I scrunched my nose at him like a Bunny. He pointed to me and said 'You're so cute'. Hm...do you think he hears that a million times a day?

Logan's favorite new phrase is 'Whatcha talking about?'

Logan was in the backseat. He took off his shoes and socks, put his feet as close to my head as possible and said "Mommy, smell 'em". He also did this the other night on the couch. I swear John and I don't do this...where oh where did he get it?

Today Carter was flailing a bit and slapped me...hard. He got a time out. Tonight Carter very sweetly gave me a kiss after the cutest pucker ever. John asked for a kiss too (as we do every night). Carter puckered up...John leaned in....and Carter slapped him across the face then laughed. Oh this is not a good trend. He's in bed a bit early tonight.

...Carter is currently having trouble getting to sleep. He came to the door. Logan met him and the door and told him to get back in bed and made him get in his bed. He did...then 2 seconds later he continued screaming. We just thought it was funny that Logan was trying to help.

Ta - Daaaa!!!!

The past few weeks that John comes home, Logan runs to the door, unlocks it and then runs into the hallway so he can see me. He squeals, "Mom, Look! Ta-Daaa!!!!!!! It's Daddy". Please picture it with, him in a Vanna-White-like stance. I finally had the video ready today (granted it was my camera phone so the quality was not so good...especially since John came home late so it was not super-bright), but I captured it!! It was funny though because Logan saw that I had my phone out taking a picture and he didn't think I was paying attention.....so he kept pulling my hand down and saying 'Look, Mom!' I hope to capture a better video off my actual camera tomorrow and I'll try to post it...he cracks us up!

Quarry Quest

We had another busy and fun weekend! We went up to WI to hang out with John's family. We drove up Friday and swung by a different train station to get John after work. We stopped in Kenosha to wish John's cousins son a farewell-good luck in the Navy! It was nice hanging out with some extended family that we don't see too often. We continued our drive up to Milwaukee to hang out with John's brother and his fam. Then we finally arrived at our destination late.

Saturday we went to Quarry Quest! It was everybody's first time going....and boy was it quite a production! "Everybody" includes: John's Mom, our lil fam of 4, Aunt Sandy, Alex, Aunt Brittany and Myella (my almost one year old niece). We parked in one rock quarry and got to ride a school bus (for the first time) into the other rock quarry. Upon entering, the boys each got a bright orange construction vest. Very cool. There was a sea of people! Here we had an impression that it was just a small town production....but no, I swear all the kids from Appleton, Green Bay and Milwaukee were there!

The basic concept is that they have all the construction trucks out there and the kids get to take turns riding on them. We knew both boys, especially Logan, would love it. We did the first thing we saw (hind sight....could've kept walking). We waited in line to ride an airlift. After we got in line, we realized just how slow it was moving...but for some reason, didn't get out. So we waited for at least an hour to ride it. We each got harnesses and were clipped in. We went very high and the boys enjoyed it. Was it worth the super long wait??? Probably not. Then we waited about 15 minutes to ride 'help' operate a giant crane. That line was much more reasonable. We walked over and saw a line of digger trucks. We hopped in one of those giant lines. In this ride the kids got to pick up a pile of dirt with a huge digger, move it and drop it. The problem was, each kid got to do this about 5 times!! With 18 kids in front of us, this line was not going anywhere fast. This line was smart though and had large piles of sand in between the lines with buckets and shovels. So while the adults stood in line, the kids could play in the sand. Carter had a blast; Logan wasn't wanting to get dirty. John grabbed us lunch while in line, but we quickly realized there were many, many more activities to do and did not want to spend all day in line. We stepped out of line and moved on. However, Carter then fell asleep in my arms. Oh, did I mention that because we didn't realize how big this thing was...and coupled with the fact that we never bring a stroller with us up to WI....we did not have a stroller? That's right. So we had to carry Carter since he is not a good hand holder. We carried Logan some of the way because it was a lot of standing and walking.

So we shot some rocks via a slingshot into a pond. Logan thought that was pretty cool. Then we checked out a few trucks. Carter was getting some heavy and my niece was done as well. So we left. On our walk out, we stopped at a few more trucks and a toy sale....we got Logan a bulldozer with a drill so he can take it apart and put it back together. He was very excited!

I will post pictures later after I transfer them off the ol camera. We really did have a good time and have several lessons learned for next year. Bring a stroller is numero uno! We also will skip the air lift and crane rides and head straight to all the other activities that we didn't get to touch this time. Days before we go, I will check out their website and pre-plan which activities we want to hit first. Plus the boys will be even older and will have more input...it will be even more fun! We will pray for the same weather....it was upper 60s and sunny. Not too hot, not too cold and not an ounce of rain!

'Tude from a Dude

Today Logan got dressed upstairs, with the exception of his shoes. We went downstairs for breakfast and I said that I was going to start making something delicious. He said he wanted to put his shoes on. So I told him 'sounds good - they are upstairs, go get your shoes'. He said 'okay' and started up the stairs. On the second step, he stopped and turned around and said 'You go do it'. I did a double-take and took a couple steps back into the hallway and said 'Excuse me?'. He repeated himself. Um...no. If you want your shoes you go get them; you do not talk to your mom like that.

Why do I feel this is just the beginning of little bits of attitude. For what it's worth, he did go back up the stairs and get his shoes without a fit...but I mean...really!

Sharing

The boys are pretty good at sharing - even their water cups...which I do on purpose in a pinch....and sometimes not. The deal is the person gets to drink while I say '1, 2, 3' (I say it slowly). Then they have to give it to the other person. They are very good about it. Just now I told them to share a water (it was the only cup we had upstairs and I admit...I was lazy to go get another one). As soon as Logan took the cup, Carter said 'Twoooo....Twoooooo'. Then when Carter gets the cup he says 'Twoooo...' while drinking. Such a cutie! He has such a good memory and is such a smart cookie! He says so many things!

Oh and as soon as I sit down at the kitchen table, regardless of the meal he puts his hands together and says 'Amen'. Even if I get up from the table and sit back down....he says 'Amen'.

Oh this kid....love him!

Fall is Here!!!

So, okay. Officially fall doesn't start for a couple more weeks, but I am so excited about these temps! High 60s, low 70s...it is lovely. Fall is my favorite time of year. I do love all the seasons (yes, even winter), but fall just seems to be my favorite. Leaves changing, jumping in leaves, cool, crisp air, pumpkin patches, apple picking, pumpkin carving, halloween.....all of it! It is so great. So needless to say, as much as I love summer too, I was super excited that the temps required jeans and a long sleeved shirt! Here are the boys on their first fall day!

Sports Man

As I was emailing myself a few pictures to post from the last couple days, I noticed a theme....

Logan was working on an awesome football play.
(Yes, the ball is Packer colors...my niece's boyfriend who is a die-hard Packer fan gave it to him after GB won the superbowl last year....)

Then Logan moved on to practice some baseball. He is a hard hitter....but he often hits the tee...so we need to work on his aim. Judging from the picture, we also need to work on his follow-thru as he is not even looking at the ball. Sure is a cutie though!

Haha - this is at my friends house today. I showed Logan that I could touch the rim...so of course, he wanted to also. He hung on and said 'let go'! He hung there for awhile! (And for the record, I was right underneath him except for the 2 seconds it took for me to take the picture) Such a daredevil. Love him.

Random Cuteness

Every so often I see a cute pair of pj's and get one for each of the boys....these are SUPER CUTE!

Logan said 'Take a picture of me'. Okay. :)

Bathtime pics:

Just being silly!

Carter's Closet Remodel

As mentioned in the Labor Day post, we redid Carter's closet to make better use of the space and to create more storage. Here are some pictures of the before and after and our special little helpers. :)

BEFORE (almost a little embarrassed to show its messiness before, but that is the point, right?)

AFTER

*It is not the same angle, nor time of day, but you get the jist! Now I need to re-organize their rooms and make the best use of the space!

We are going to add a shelf between the clothing racks for more storage bins. Also, in the after picture to the left of the narrow shelving unit, there is about 6 inches of a bar on just the top (to hand long stuff...or like for us....store the crib rails and such). I love it all, but am especially am diggin the narrow shelving unit so I can hold and show the photo albums and use those cool storage bins in awesome colors (thanks Martha Stewart!).

DURING

Logan helped John & I sand

They played in the shelving unit as John was assembling it...

They chased each other with the storage boxes on their heads...

...and they showed us how they can fit on the shelves. Greaaaaatttt......

Labor Day

This past weekend was a good one!

Daddy got home early on Friday (yay) so we got some extra family time in. I picked up some Pizza Hut and we had a nice night in. Saturday morning we headed to Home Depot. It was their monthly Make a Free Project and we were ready! Carter really loves going there as it is a huge place for him to run around. While Logan and Daddy built their Dry Erase Board, I chased Carter around - then we switched. Carter's attention span was good enough for a 1.5 year old...and he did do better with a hammer this time around - I was not nearly as fearful. :) Here are the boys after they were both done building (Daddy drew some football plays on Logan's board - the other customers passing by though it was adorable!):


Logan didn't nap on Saturday and did remarkably well. I was craving Oberweis, so I snuck out while Carter was still napping and Logan and John were watching a movie. It was lovely. It was raining out and I sat there in the parking lot in silence eating my favorite - strawberry sunday with chocolate ice cream, whip cream and pecans!! Later on John installed our kitchen blinds. I had ordered them about 5 months ago when we were thinking of putting our house on the market. When that didn't happen, we didn't feel rushed to fix the blinds. This weekend was it - John randomly went out to the garage and busted the package open. They look fantastic!

Sunday morning, John took Buddy out for a run (this doesn't happen often and Buddy loved doing it). They hung out back by the dog park long enough for me to get worried. John didn't have his phone on him so I couldn't call him or check the gps on his phone to make sure he wasn't hurt or something. He walked in the door with 2 minutes to spare of me loading the boys in the van to check the streets...I think he was gone for about an hour and a half! Glad he and Buddy had fun, but next time...take your phone!

While he was out galavanting with the dog, the boys and I made brownies and got our things together for the day. We went to a Fall Festival and watched the parade - both my nephews were in it this year. Michael was in the junior high marching band with the trombone and TJ was in the high school marching band with the baritone. They both did so well! The boys enjoyed the parade - got some candy, heard the loud trucks, played with the fam.

At the start of the parade.

It was cute - my parents each had a kid and kept checking to see what part of the parade was next!

Love this picture of Carter and Papa (my Dad)

Afterwards we went to my parents house to hang out and eat. The cousins had fun playing and the adults had fun watching them....and of course, talking! One of the jokes of the day was Hearts of Palm. So my Mom had a dip at a restaurant and tried to duplicate it. She was telling me the ingredients and said '...and I had some hearts of palm, so I threw them in there." I said "who on earth just 'has' hearts of palm' on hand?" I proceeded to joke with her. Then my sister walked in. Without me mentioning anything to her, she asked the same exact question! So of course, we made some more jokes with my mom. Then Carter comes in sits down and starts eating a cracker - he picks up the spreader in the 'hearts of palm' dip and starts spreading it on his cracker....several times over! So now we say that his favorite snack is 'Hearts of Palm!'. If you're not laughing, it's probably because it doesn't sound that funny....typing it out it's a 'had to be there' kind of moment. :) Anyway, it was a good time. Here are a few pictures:

This one is of Carter dipping into the 'Hearts of Palm' and putting it on his cracker.

Outside playing in my parents driveway.

Logan kept dragging this gas pump around (it is not on wheels).

Meanwhile, Carter had me chase him to the backyard to show me this angel. He wanted to sit next to it. So sweet.

Logan got Aunt Dawn to swing him around and around - they both were so dizzy they fell over!

Logan took off his over shirt....and sat next to his Daddy....boy were they then dressed alike!

Today, Monday, Labor Day - we remodeled Carter's closet. Saturday we emptied it out and putty'd and sanded it. This morning I painted it, then we all headed over to Home Depot and got the shelving. John assembled it while the boys napped and I cleaned and graded. Then when Carter woke up, John started installing it and anchoring it to the walls. It was a GREAT improvement and I have SO much more storage now! I always complained of the lack of storage and when I looked in their closets I realized that the space was not being properly utilized... So we fixed Carter's closet and Logan's is next. Yay for fun and quick and helpful improvements!

We had such a fun, productive and relaxing weekend!

I love my video monitor...

...and here's why:

So the boys and I ran a bunch of errands this morning. They ended up falling asleep both for 10 minutes, but at different times. Carter fell asleep in the car on our way to Hobby Lobby. Logan fell asleep a half mile from Hobby Lobby - transferred into the back of the cart, sitting up and slept for 10 minutes (not comfy...but it was funny to watch). Carter woke up upon transfer into the front of the cart. Due to their 10 minutes naps, when I put them down at 1, when we got home, they both weren't quite ready. They both putzed around their rooms for a bit. During Carter's putzing, I noticed Carter opening and closing his drawers. Then I watched him keep his shirt drawer open and he proceeded to toss out his shirts (and laugh). After I chuckled at this little stinker on the video monitor, I went in his room told him no (his hands went to cover his face because he knew he did something wrong), cleaned it up and I put him back to bed. If I didn't have the video monitor, I'd be ticked off if I saw a cute little guy wake up from his nap and then find a messy room!

Logan has never once thought of this, but Carter is a bit of a different story. Logan has since covered himself up with his covers and has fallen asleep. Carter has played with a couple toys and read a book and is walking around his room with Tao finding a place to rest (psst....try your comfy bed).

Love these boys!

This past week...

This past week was busy - here are a few things we did:

Logan played with some play-doh...Carter did too, but not as long. Logan had the most fun with the scissors.


Carter found his rainboots in his closet and just had to wear them. This is his 'cheese face', which he ends up tilting his head all the way back.


And, of course....here he is with Tao the elephant (pronounced like 'cow', but with a t)


One of the boys favorite things to do before bedtime is 'Airplane'. (pardon the poor quality pic)


(I cannot get this picture to turn....ah well...)


Logan got this art easel as a Christmas gift, but I was waiting to rotate it in after summer. They have a fun time with it!

Parties, prayers and church

A Party

We had another great family weekend. Saturday afternoon we had another birthday party - a 4 year old princess party. They had a castle bounce house and the boys were excited. They hung out in the bounce house for about 15 minutes, then the moved on to the swingset. :)

Meanwhile, the little girls, giggled and squealed and jumped. There was only one other boy there...who was the same age - but they didn't play together till the end. As John was standing next to the bounce house, the girls delightfully declared John the 'shark' and were giving him orders. I looked at him and asked if he was still looking forward to possibly having a girl someday. He laughed and said that a girl will likely take more energy. :)

They had a pinata....it was Logan's first time when he actually understood what to do. He gave it 3 pretty good cracks. :) It was nice as the pinata was filled with 100 calorie snack packs instead of candy. At least if they eat a bag, it is not a crazy amount. :) We left right around bedtime, so we came home, changed and sent those kids to bed. Logan was being a stinker and wanted to watch football in Daddy's room (hey - pretty sure it is MY room too). The Bears pre-game was on. So John, against my better judgement, finally caved and we decided he could stay for 10 minutes - then off to bed. Naturally when he went to bed...it was tears all over again. The kid was just over-tired. He was weepy and whined himself to sleep. In the meantime, John and I dozed off in bed. I woke up at 11:30 and noticed that Logan's light was on. I went in to shut it off and it stunk....poor kid finally pooped (he was constipated for a couple days). So perhaps his whines were a bit more about his struggles. Poor guy. If he would've just told me, it would've made our night easier. Ah well.

Prayers

So a few weeks ago we said prayers at dinner time. I admit that it is not something John and I do regularly. We both did growing up and still do with our extended families, but living with just the two of us, it was something I guess we just got out of the habit. The boys both do great with putting their hands together, bowing their heads, being quiet while John and I say grace and then they say 'Amen'. So as we are not in the habit...it is so funny...cuz Carter is! Everytime we sit down as a family, Carter puts his hands together and says 'Amen'. No joke - every family meal! He hasn't done it at lunch time with just me and the boys...but every dinner when all 4 of us are together. As soon as he says it, we all put our forks down and say our prayers. Just so cute.

Church

So, along that note - we also don't go to church as often as we should. Part of it is while Logan is pretty well-behaved now, Carter is still in an exploring stage and let's everybody know how mad he is if he is restrained. While we have Tao (elephant) and he helps, sometimes even he can't quiet him down in a tantrum. We end up spending most of the sermon taking turns taking him outside...of which we then don't get much out of church. Coupled with that and the fact that our church is about 20 minutes away with a service at 11....it is tricky. The boys almost always fall asleep on the drive there - then we wake them up, get them back in sorts and sometimes the service is longer than an hour. Then it is lunch time and they fall asleep on the way home.

So I suggested finding a church closer and John is on board. Logan and I tried out our first church today. I am taking Logan to get him in the habit of going in hopes he'll continue to set a good example for Carter. John is staying home with Carter until we find a good church. One of our requirements is having a mother's room. Well this church today didn't have one. When Logan & I sat down in this very small church, I smelled him (more poop from that constipation). I went to change him and the bathroom didn't have a change table - pretty clear sign that it is not a church with many small children - another requirement. Ended up that we were one of 35 folks in attendance that day (small church)...only one other kid younger than 18 was present. It was a contemporary service, which John and I prefer, but it was almost concert-like as it was very loud. Logan thought the drums and guitars were pretty awesome! He did great in the service and many of the older couples around just thought he was the cutest thing! The service started late, had a couple interesting folks and pastor and ran a bit long....So I have another church pegged to try in a couple weeks. I've heard September 18th is National Go Back to Church Day...for everybody to get back in the swing as summers people tend to stray...so we'll aim for then (plus our other 2 Sundays until then are busy...).

Sunday afternoon

This afternoon John hung out with the guys to do his Fantasy Football Draft - at Hooters....one of his least favorite places (...right....it is one of his faves). The boys took a 3 hour nap, which was super - I went through all their toys downstairs...threw stupid McDonald's plastic toys away, put some 'baby' toys away in the attic and organized the rest. While organizing, I found all these Thomas the trains. Later I found 2 more upstairs....and I know we have at least 2 wooden ones in the wood train bin. I think it is clear that Thomas is the favorite....and that we don't need anymore Thomas'!!



Whew....oh it feels so nice to not have such craziness in the toy dept. going on! I still have a lot of organizing for crafts and such....but this was a great start. When the boys woke up, we went for a walk around the block. I pushed Carter in the buggy and Logan literally ran around the block 3 times. Burn that energy!! Below is a picture of Carter just being adorable.

We had some great family time when John got home shortly after dinner. This picture doesn't capture it best, but Logan was staring at John...then John would make a funny sound or face and Logan would laugh hysterically! Here he was even grabbing his belly while laughing...so cute!



Logan was still a pickle to put to bed - this time his eyes hurt. I wonder if he was feeling a bit of allergies and rubbing his eyes ragged. I got a cool cloth, wiped off his hands, then laid the cloth on his eyes. It seemed to do the trick cuz he fell asleep very shortly after, with the cloth still on his head. :)

Great weekend and great family time! I do LOVE my family and spending time together!!

Random

So Disney is on at our house quite a bit - not that we watch it all day...but we do wake up with it...and depending on the day, it may be on for a small portion. But at night, between several channels, sometimes I just watch Disney - the cute shows. So one of the shows, Good Luck Charlie - the teenage daughter does video diaries for her baby sister giving her advice. There are so many times I think how great of an idea that is! While I do like to take the time to type it out...sometimes I have a story, which I know once I start typing...and all the details I love to share...well it will just take forever. That is kind of why I paused for a bit. I love that we have so many experiences as a family to share, but putting it into words to capture...it's kinda hard sometimes. Anyway, that was all - just wanted to share that if I find a way to do a video blog and post it to share their stories...I just may. Granted, then I'll probably watch it and analyze it and not want to post it or want to redo it cuz I sound like a dork....whereas with typing, I NEVER sound dorky... Right....

On to random moments from today...

As usual I open the garage to start the car and get everybody loaded. While doing so Logan opened the door and Buddy got out. Again. He used to be so good with staying in our yard, but the more we go up to my in-laws house where they have several acres of open land....and connecting driveways - Buddy thinks my neighbors yards and the street are okay to run into. He typically ends up across a somewhat busy street at my neighbors house where his BFF golden, Codi lives. I remember the first time this happened I panicked...grabbed the boys and walked...holding Carter with Logan running by me - chasing this darn dog around 2 blocks...before I was smart enough to grab the stroller. Now when it happens I sigh, get the stroller, some treats and the leash - then we go on our way. Well today as soon as Logan realized what happened, he said 'Mom, Buddy got out and is running away'. Then he proceeded to go into the driveway and yell 'Buddy, do you want a treat?'...then he started clapping his hands and patting his knees. Oh man, I was too busy laughing at him to know where Buddy was. He was just 2 houses down, but close to the street. He kept yelling for him and clapping. Oh so funny...he clearly knows my routine! I grabbed the stroller, the boys and the leash (no treat since clearly saying I had one wasn't working). We walked around the corner ad I waived the leash and he came running thinking we were going for a walk. I did feel badly, but I had other plans and he was walked back to the house. Sorry Buds....

Well there is more I'd like to share - but I need to listen to my eyes that are half open. Goodnight!