Fierce Dinosaurs

So this is a picture of our newest toys. Andy and Colin got these little dinosaurs last week and I took the picture beside a sippy cup so you'll know how small they are. They're made of rubber and filled with something sand-like because they're really squishy. I discovered today that Ryan and Elizabeth are scared of the dinosaurs. Elizabeth was a little afraid, but thought it was kind of funny when I would make the dinosaurs walk towards her. She had that half-giggle, half-scared scream going. Ryan, however, just cried. I thought it was rather funny because he's our fearless climber who's now scared of a 3-inch rubber dinosaur. Our children are not brave. So, being the good mom I am, I placed the dinosaurs on either side of the TV in hopes that it would keep the two little pests from messing with the TV buttons. I can't decide if this is cruel, funny, or effective creative discipline, but so far it's worked! Of course, they've only been there for 30 minutes, so we'll see how the afternoon goes.

Fun on the Slide

Happy late Memorial Day to everyone! I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend and got to enjoy time with your families.

We have a little slide in our backyard. We inherited it with the first house we bought and it moved with us to this house because it's the perfect size for little kids. Ryan and Elizabeth were playing on it this morning and trying to master the ladder. Ryan, our little climber, learned it the first time. Elizabeth, who still cannot climb onto the couch, took half an hour to learn the ladder, but she finally got it. Ryan quickly decided that it was too much trouble to crawl to the top and then try to get his feet out from underneath him, so he just went head first each time. Elizabeth, of course, is not that brave. I thought they were funny. Here's a little video.

Colin's Preschool Graduation

Tonight was Colin's big preschool open house and graduation. The kids put on a little program for the families, we got to visit his classroom and see all his work, and we had cookies and punch for refreshments. It was a great night, but unfortunately we sat too far back to get any good pictures. However, we did get a quick video of the kids performing "YMCA" to show off the motor skills they learned this year. Colin is in a navy shirt and navy plaid shorts on the front row. He's the little blond boy almost in the middle who's several beats behind everyone else. Our camera only takes a few seconds of video, but at least you can get the idea. It's hilariously cute and I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

16 months old

On Friday, May 15th, Elizabeth and Ryan turned 16 months old. And since I'm using this blog to chronicle my children's childhoods, let me tell you a little about our twins and their personalities.

From day one (literally, in the hospital nursery when they were an hour old), you could already spot differences in their personalities. Elizabeth has an opinion on everything and doesn't hesitate to let you know. She is, by far, the loudest person in the house. She has this ear-piercing shriek that she loves to demonstrate. However, after she complains, she's usually happy and hasn't learn how to throw a fit yet. Elizabeth is a bully and has learned how to head-butt her brothers when she doesn't get her way. It's a good thing she looks feminine and dainty because her personality is not. She's smaller than Ryan and can't climb like he can. She loves being silly and giggles at everything, especially when she thinks she's playing a joke on someone. She loves to sit and jump on Andy and Colin and she's totally a daddy's girl.

Ryan is much more laid-back and happy most of the time. However, once he gets upset, he knows how to throw a fit and he can keep it up for a looooong time. He also knows how to climb and spends most of his day climbing up the back of the couch, standing on the cushions, and climbing onto the kitchen bar. I have a fear of him falling on his head onto the tile kitchen floor, so he is the reason the couch cushions are no longer on the couch. He loves trying to keep up with his big brothers and tries to play ball with them. He's very sweet and likes to kiss. He's also earned the nickname "lap dog" because he likes to hang out in my lap and he even pushes the others out when they dare to sit with me too.

Elizabeth and Ryan are very competitive with each other and we can't give one of them something but not the other. However, they laugh at each other too and have learned that they can accomplish more (trouble, that is) when they work together. Their vocabularies are exploding each day and it's fun to watch them develop simultaneously but differently. Elizabeth does everything first (except climbing), but Ryan always does it better, when he finally gets around to it. Elizabeth babbles constantly and more frequently, but Ryan's speech is clearer. She's also the first one to get sick, but he always gets sicker. They've also learned how to hide from me when it's diaper change time. However, their favorite activity is pushing the buttons on the TV when Andy and Colin are watching it.

We were a little apprehensive at the idea of raising twins, but now we realize what a blessing they are. They are truly double the work but double the love also. And on that note, now would be a good time to tell you that Andy has decided he likes having twins so much that he and Colin need 10 babies instead of just 2. Yes, he wants octuplets. His dream will not come true in our house, so if anyone would like to volunteer to fulfill his dream of 8 more babies, he's up for adoption!!! :)

Adventures in Camping

So here's the tale of our ill-fated camping trip this weekend....

We got rained out - again. Saturday morning, we packed up the car to go camping for the remainder of the weekend. Camping is a whole lot of work and requires so much stuff, but we really do enjoy it. So we loaded all the camping gear, food, sprinkler, swimsuits, scooters for the boys, big wheels for the twins, baseballs, soccer balls, and kickballs. We met a few cousins and friends there. The kids got to walk to the swingset, run in the sprinkler, and play baseball. After lunch, the whole group played kickball. I even managed to start dinner in the crockpot for us. We were having a great time. We also got to hear a talk by the park ranger about different animals found in the park. The kids got to touch different animal furs and see their skulls and learn all about what they eat and what eats them. Unfortunately, it started raining during the mammal talk. And it rained and rained and rained. And once our tent had a moat around it and water leaked into it, we packed it all up and had to return home. The boys were very disappointed, but I simply do not like to sleep in a wet sleeping bag. To add further frustration, I had to throw away my yummy barbeque chicken dinner and eat McDonald's in the car on the way home. The kids were starving and we were too muddy and wet to enter a restaurant, but still, we weren't happy about it. However, Colin had been pretty tired that day and complaining of a headache (we blamed it on exhaustion and heat). I guess God sent us the rain as a small blessing because, when we got home, Colin had 102 fever and was shivering and crying because of a headache. So the rain ultimately was a good thing because who wants to camp with a sick kid, especially when you did not think to bring medicine? He has no other complaints, but his fever returns to 101-102 once the Tylenol and Ibuprofen wear off. We went to a lot of effort to only spend 7 hours at the campsite.

I didn't get any pictures from this trip. But we'll be trying again in the fall and hopefully I will remember to take the camera on that trip.

Busy Busy Busy Weekend!

It's Sunday night and I'm so exhausted I can't make myself get up off the couch and go to bed! Ever have nights like that? We had a busy weekend, fun but not quite what we were hoping for.

After picking up Andy from school on Friday afternoon, we went to our local Strawberry Festival for a few hours. We enjoyed watching the pig races, riding rides, and drinking lots of lemonade because it was so incredibly hot. The rides were a little disappointing because they raised the height requirements from last year. That meant Andy couldn't ride some things he rode last year and Colin couldn't do much but the little kid rides. It was disappointing, especially because Andy's at that age where the little kid rides are "super boring" but he's not tall enough for anything fast. Luckily, there was a small rollercoaster to enjoy.

We were only able to stay there for a few hours because Andy had another baseball game that evening. It was an especially fun game because, instead of first base or right field like he usually plays, he got to play pitcher and third base. He was thrilled and did really well! Only 2 more games until the playoffs.

We also attempted a camping trip, but that's a story for another post.

Those of us who were not sick went to church today because I was working in the 4-yr. old children's church class. Kyle and I worked there for 4 years until we decided to return to a Sunday school class this year. But we occasionally help out when needed. I guess this was another blessing of the rained-out camping trip - being able to serve in church. (Still, I'd have rather been camping!) And finally, we all took a long nap today to recuperate!

Sibling Love

A few pictures for you to enjoy!

Colin's Field Day

Tuesday was my favorite day at Colin's preschool - Field Day! It's absolutely adorable to watch all the 3 and 4-year olds stretching, warming up, and running their races. Colin was so excited about this day and has been "practicing" running fast. He ran as fast as he could and cheered loudly for his team. His teacher told him he was the best cheerer at the school and he was very proud of himself. Everyone received a medal at the end and everyone's medal had "#1" on it. But Colin is convinced that his says #1 because he was the fastest runner and the best cheerer and no one else's medal has #1 on it. Whatever makes him happy! His medal is now proudly displayed in his room, when he's not wearing it around his neck. Click here for pictures. He's in an orange t-shirt and denim shorts, kind of in the middle of the first few pictures.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy (late) Mother's Day to all my mom friends and mom-to-be friends! I hope you had a great day and your families were nice to you.

We had a fun weekend here. Andy played a baseball game Friday night, followed by a snow cone treat. Unfortuntely, his team lost, but he thought he played good, so he wasn't upset. Saturday was filled with errands and then an Astros game later that night. We had a baby-sitter for Elizabeth and Ryan so we could actually enjoy the game. Colin didn't enjoy it so much because it got really long, but I have to admit that I felt the same way! Andy loved it, was completely glued to the action, and kept up a running commentary for me. Apparently, his new missions in life are to play for the Astros and teach me all about baseball. Can't say I'm too excited, but the games are definitely more fun watching them through his eyes. Unfortunately, we didn't make it to the playground at the stadium because it was closed when we tried to go at the end of the 8th inning. Who knew? Maybe next time....

Yesterday was Mother's Day and I was happy to celebrate with the family. Andy made me one of those fill-in-the-blank cards at school that went something like this: My mom always says "get off the couch Ryan!", My mom makes the best "macaroni", My mom really loves "Ryan", My mom and I like to "play games", My mom likes to "wear dresses", My mom is beautiful because she "wears dresses". I had no idea I wore dresses so much! He told me he was going to write that I always say "I love you" and that I really love him, but everyone else was writing that and he wanted to be different. And yes, I do always tell Ryan to get off the couch because he climbs up the back of it onto the kitchen bar and I have a fear of him falling into the sink and then onto the tile floor! At Colin's school, he made me a handprint and gave me a little bottle of hand lotion. I thought it was a cute idea.

Our cousins came over for a pizza and swim party and the kids were excited to swim again. Andy is doing pretty good swimming and we're debating no lessons this year, but we told him he had to jump off the diving board and swim to the stairs first. He didn't do it yesterday, but hopefully soon. He did it at the end of the summer last year, so hopefully he'll remember once he gets comfortable in the water again. Colin is a little more comfortable in the water, but can't really swim much, so he'll be in lessons this summer. He thinks he's a great swimmer, but once he jumps off, he forgets to actually move his arms and legs, so he kind of just floats and grins at us. Elizabeth wasn't too happy in the water, but she did look adorable in her little pink bikini. Ryan was very happy to be in the pool and loved floating and kicking. I think he'll be our dangerous one that just jumps in without thinking! But maybe we'll finally have a water lover!

Kyle left again this morning for Cleveland, OH, so we hope the week passes quickly until his return. We're counting down the days until school is over and we no longer are required to wake up so early and stick to a schedule. 17 more days and counting...............

Lots to Celebrate!

The beginning of May is always a big week for us. Kyle and I celebrated our anniversary yesterday and today is Andy's birthday. 8 years of marriage and 6 years of parenthood. Kind of hard to believe, but it really has flown by! We went to dinner for our anniversary and just hung out together at home after the kids were in bed. As long as we turn off the TV and computers, that can sometimes be more fun than going out!

We celebrated Andy's birthday all day long today. We had homemade waffles for breakfast, singing and presents at 7am, lunch with Andy at school, a Sonic slush after school, and the big party tonight. No wonder I'm exhausted! The party was at Chuck E. Cheese, which I was not too excited about at first, but I quickly realized how wonderful it was to have someone else do the cooking and cleaning and party organization. All I had to do was pass out tokens, keep up with my kids, and bring a cake! It was very nice! The cake was funny because Andy couldn't decide between a baseball theme or a dinosaur theme - his 2 current obsessions. So, we had a cake with dinosaurs playing baseball! He was happy. I'm going to attempt to put a link in here to the pictures on Snapfish, but I'm not sure if it'll work. Bear with me. Click here to see the pictures.

Next up is Mother's Day! It's still a few days away, but Happy Mother's Day to all of my wonderful mom and mom-to-be friends!

Our Week

So to please my husband even more, I guess I'll post a real entry about what we've been up to lately. It hasn't been too terribly exciting for all of you to read, but I guess since I'm using this as a journal of our life, then it's important. I guess?! Kyle was back in Cleveland, OH this past week and we missed him a lot. But we managed to keep busy and the week flew by quickly. We had the kitchen repainted to match the dining room and downstairs bathroom and now need to decorate it. We went to lunch with friends and played a lot at home. But the highlight of our week was our trip to Baskin Robbins to enjoy 31 cents a scoop night. We don't get ice cream often, so it was a big treat. There's nothing like a lot of ice cream to put everyone in a good mood! Today, Andy had another baseball game and we were pleased that his team, the Cardinals, tied with the Astros. I also made a trip to a local farmers' market to buy produce. It was fun to show the kids "real" vegetables, like carrots, since they believe most vegetables come pre-washed and pre-cut in little bags at the grocery store!

And finally, we have big news from the dinner table about Colin! Colin's eating is always entertaining (or annoying, depending on your perspective). If you know anything about Colin, you probably know how incredibly picky of an eater he is. For a long time, he would only eat bananas, yogurt, and goldfish. He's slowly but surely branching out, but he has really weird tastes. For instance, he likes to eat baby carrots with Kyle, roasted almonds with me, and loves blackberries. That's great, right? But heaven forbid the child try bread! Well, today we had a major breakthrough! He ate a peanut butter sandwich!!!! He's liked peanut butter for awhile now but would only eat it by itself, like off a spoon. Today we made him try a sandwich and, surprise, he liked it! This is a huge deal for us. Bread offers lots of possibilities.

Finally, here are some recent pics from dinnertime. Yes, Elizabeth is putting cheerios in her eye.

Random Pics

Kyle was complaining that I hadn't updated the blog in several days. So to please him, I'm posting a few recent pictures of the kids. Hope you enjoy them!