Spaghetti Anyone?

      I thought my son was eating his lunch...



Silly me!

                                                     He was decorating again!

I have no idea who did that....

At least he cleans up well!

Boys will be boys

Boys like to play, love open space and need their brothers!

They need someone to throw a ball at with, someone to chase around and then when caught, wrestle to the ground and lovingly exclaim, I WIN!

Brycen has each of his brothers wrapped around his finger

for now anyway!

You don't talk, Perry!

A trip to Target went bad, bad, bad. Well, just bad, bad because technically it was 2 of my boys that made me feel like I was shopping with 20. The penalty is no more video games for the rest of the summer! After a handful of warnings, it came to that - again. Video games are like having Pop tarts in the house. It doesn't matter what organic fruits or nutritional foods I have readily available.  If there is a darn box of Pop tarts (or Tyler’s cookies, since he can’t have them) it's all they can think of! It's addictive and I think that it should be an occasional treat, not a need. It’s a privilege not a necessity and boy do they hear that a lot! So instead of preaching about it, the video gaming systems are going back in our closet and those darn BOGO Pop tarts have got to go too!

So this sparked a conversation on the way home. It started like this, “WHAT can WE do NOW!” My creative Dylan decided that he and Tyler should be Phineas and Ferb for the rest of the summer. For those of you who are not familiar with the current Disney cartoon, they are brothers who are determined to invent, build, perform, travel and so forth, to as many places as they can over summer break. They also have a pet platypus named Perry.

Dylan and Tyler declared that they would be Phineas and Ferb. They let Cayden be Perry. I pulled into the driveway and Phineas and Ferb leaped from the car (I was still parking!) and ran into the garage. They started rummaging through scraps of wood, tools, nails - WHOA! I asked them to go inside and draw what they would like to create and to make sure it had a purpose. Okay, that stall tactic (I had a little guy I had to lay down for a nap and plus I would much prefer Todd to handle this one...) worked.

They barged into the house gathering paper, crayons, a hammer, pliers and crackers. All the necessities I guess. They collaborated on some ideas, worked independently on others. But every time three year old Cayden tried to put in his two sense, they shout at him, "Perry, you don't talk!" My poor little blonde platypus. He didn't mind though, he was happy with an air pump he found as he banged it, repetitively, on one of the babies toys. He kept his lips sealed as he made happy, muffled, platypus sounds.

Todd will be thrilled when he comes home to find out they will be building: a car with a hand on the front of the hood that has fire blast out of the back, a car that is activated by the touch of a button that has a castle built on top of it and a lap top holder. We don’t own a lap top. Must be a hint for the purchase of another electronic…

Where did my baby go?

Last night I went to the store.

ALONE. 

My husband happily takes care of our boys and has only ONE rule.

He gets to do things his way.

No biggie, we are often on the same page.
 I came home at 8:30pm, the boys where bathed and sweetly tucked into their beds.

Doesn't get better than that!

I only have one question for you honey.

Where did my baby go?

An idea of what Brycen looked like before I left.

A much older version of Brycen was found this morning.

                                                           

Bubbles = Smiles

Give my 3 year old a sink full of bubbles and some plastic dishes and I have one happy little guy!

The boys

This summer has been a beautiful blur with the birth of Brycen Lee.
Here are a few recent pics of the boys.










Recently we had an amazing, refreshing evening at the beach with the family (the pics of Cayden and Tyler). The beach day was absolutely relaxing and wonderful but ranks #2. My #1 most favorite recent day... A trip to Target with my mom, two kids and free hands!

March

Spring, are you really right around the corner? Does this mean that the refreshing cold snaps have come to an end? Bummer. I was hoping that the weather would hang out in the low 70's till the beginning of June. A small wish for a busy mama, in her 3rd trimester, who trucks around town with support hose glued to her legs under her jeans.

Rewind slightly to February. Cayden had a fun 2nd birthday!!!! We took him to Busch Gardens and then had cupcakes with our family the following day.





Along with Cayden's 2nd birthday came more insight to just how determined and headstrong he is. It doesn't matter if we are at the home, the doctors, or grocery store - if he has an opinion he will share it with whomever will listen. And boy does he share it! I have told him, "No!" He has protested right back, "NO, YOU NO!" Let's just say I'm "that mom" who gets the, "Just take that kid outta here!" looks:)



We are working on taking the "binky" away and experiencing much success with that...



Cayden uses his imagination all day long. His first passion was and is StarWars, but lately he has been a kitty cat,crawling on all fours and meowing.

What a fun 2 years it has been. I love his giggle when I tickle him, his little sound effects when he is playing with his toys, I love his determination and I love the happy dance he does when we ask him if he wants to take a shower with his brothers! I love my little brown-eyed blondie!

Thankful

What a month this has been! I have so much to be thankful for that I thought I'd list a few.

I am thankful for my husband's patience, understanding and faith in me. After 10 years I still think he's pretty hot!



I am thankful for Tyler's perseverance and determined mindset. This child is self driven and motivated.



I am thankful for Dylan's playfulness, love, and quick witted comments. He keeps me laughing and never ceases to amaze me at how quietly perceptive he is.



I am thankful for Cayden's laughter, curiosity and patience. This toddler is an amazing sleeper, eater and my buddy during the day when his brothers are at school.



I am thankful for the little one growing inside of me and for second trimesters because my fatigue and slight nausea has subsided.



I am thankful for our WONDERFUL friends, new and old. Thank you for all of the support you give me and our family. I appreciate and love you!

I am thankful for my family. Through special times we share and even after tears, happy or sad, we continue to grow. You ALL have a special place in my heart!

I am thankful for my Decaf Barnies Santa's White Christmas Coffee in the morning in the Daughter mug my mom gave me for my birthday.





I am thankful for the beautiful sunsets from our back porch in the evening.



I am thankful for all of the blessings God has given us!



I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Umm, Umm, gugashla, Mine, No, Da-Da-Dah!

Cayden is our household #1 fan of Star Wars with Dylan coming in at a close 2nd. Cayden does not play with age appropriate toys for that matter. He took it upon himself to skip several phases of his developmental growth and has self proclaimed himself to be around the age of 3, I'd say. Talk about keeping up with his big brothers!

Dylan recently celebrated his 5th birthday. We had family over for an early dinner so they could run for the hills before 10 little boys came over for a backyard camping adventure. Dylan had a great time and was the first child asleep that night in my bed of course! The majority of the boys stayed out in the tents and crashed around 12:30am and were awake by 7:00am. Just in time for a waffle/pancake feast. Todd and all of the fathers who stayed to help out and slept in the tents with the boys get all of the credit! It's hard work drinking beer till four o'clock in the morning around a campfire!





Soccer season started last Saturday. Dylan is in "Little Kickers" which teaches the fundamentals of the game and is an opportunity for him to have his daddy to himself. Tyler plays actual games and has a some of his good friends on his team who he has been playing with for over a year now.



Tyler is in Cub Scout. I've gotta get a picture of him in his little shirt! He LOVES it and it's right up his alley, with Todd as his Den leader. I've got to get a picture of Todd in his shirt too:) Tyler is learning all about the Cub Scout motto, "Always do my best!" This is such a positive experience for him while letting boys be boys!

Quick Summer

Wow!!!!!!!!! Time is flying. I agree Jenn, it's time to blog again. Here goes. Tyler is having sinus surgery, the date is TBA. He lost his second tooth the other day and is excited to start first grade! Dylan is great, the kid has the best summer tan despite my sunscreen efforts. He had mixed feelings about starting school in 3 weeks. The baby is fine, he is saying some words and thinks he is a big kid like his brothers. Is he even a baby anymore? Well, he's my baby, almost 18 months going on four. Todd loves having the summer to fish on Saturday mornings (we elected to take the summer off from sports for Tyler and Dylan, hence freeing up Saturdays) I'm doing well. Some days I want to pull my hair out, some days I feel this peaceful happy vibe and all runs smoothly, most days are a combo of both, pretty much a never ending roller coaster! Never a dull moment, that's for sure. Just ask Aunt Becca and my friend Amy about blueberry blowouts:)

I'll attach some pics that I took the time to take (I haven't been too great at remembering my camera these days).

Tyler and Dylan at Busch Gardens










This visit to Busch Gardens, Karena and I alone braved 5 children, 2 double strollers, and a gazillion bags - on and off the trolley and through the rain. Actually it's times like that when I know in 10 years we will look back and miss - crazy!
















We had a Fourth of July Party with friends and family:






























During our Fifth of July recovery day, Aunt Karena, still never ceased to amaze me - yeah, she is playing bowling on the Wii and still kicked our butts



We have done two different weeks of VBS at our church in Largo, which was a lot of fun, a lot of work and a lot of gas. We regretfully need to find a church closer to us - it took us so long to find a church that we felt at home at so wish us luck!

BTW, one of our dogs, Kayla, was put under last Wednesday. She had cancer in her mouth and it rapidly spread. Her brother, Keito, is adjusting better than we thought and he is getting a lot of attention and love from us and Dylan especially.

Oh, and for those of you who haven't had the pleasure of witnessing my choker Cayden.... When I finally feel like we are out of the woods from this child choking on random items.... The other day he took apart the computer mouse and was walking around with the ball in his mouth. He sees that I see this weighted ball in his mouth so I choose to take the higher road and ignore his attempt to freak me out. Okay, not satisfied with my reaction, he proceeds to throw his head backwards, again and again, as if forcing it down his throat. SERIOUSLY, DO I HAVE THE ONLY CHILD WHO TORMENTS THEIR MOTHER LIKE THIS!!! I casually get up so he doesn't think that he has gotten a reaction yet, then I quickly grab him by his feet and dangle him upside down. Out falls the ball, with a heavy BLOP, on the floor. Someone please tell me this is all normal.....

And here is an attempt to get a video of the boys when they should have been in bed.

Flashbacks

I just heard the great news that my niece, Payton, is now potty training! That got me looking at pics of Tyler and Dylan when they were at that stage and then I started watching old videos......

Don't worry Todd, yes I'm procrastinating, and yes I'm still gonna clean the closet.

Enjoy!

Tyler and Dylan in their playroom at our old house. Just plain cute.



This is sometime in October, before Halloween of '06. Dylan's trying out the cowboy hat and horsey that my mom had just brought over. His smile still lights up a room!



And the final finale - this is great - I don't even need to explain it, I'll call it the Oh Yeah Dance

Father's Day

We had a busy and fun Father's Day weekend. We miss Todd's father who is in Europe this week! I hope you guys are having a great time!

On Saturday we celebrated Father's day with my dad, Mom-Mom, brothers, Karena, lil' Michael and Mikaela. It is so nice to have Uncle Brian home again! We had fun swimming and had a nice dinner, courtesy of Michael's chicken and hot dogs on the grill and Karena's zucchini,squash & cheese dish - YUM! Karena if you read this I want to copy the pics you took, especially of Dylan and Mikaela - Dylan can't get enough of his baby cousin. He'll say, "Mikaela is a girl, we don't have one of those."

On Sunday, Aunt Becca came over and we went out on the boat. Todd had two days in a row on the water! He caught a bunch of fish on Saturday morning and had fun with the kids on Sunday. It's great what a little R&R&Fishing will do for him! Here are some pics of Sunday on the boat.




Cayden and Aunt Becca when we just arrived to the island or Peninsula - we're not too sure what it was.












We were greeted by this huge cement cross and a rain cloud. For a moment I thought we should head back but the weather cleared up!











































As soon as we arrived to our destination (about a 20 minute boat ride) Tyler was determined to go fishing - he loves it!


















Dylan likes fishing but really enjoyed the luxury of wearing a life jacket in the water.

































Cayden prefers fishing in the bait bucket. Both Dylan and Cayden would put the bait fish in the bucket with their bare hands. Tyler observed from a distance and thought they were both crazy.


























Oh, Cayden will not keep a hat on his head so Aunt Bec took the proper precautions of applying the sunscreen.


















Take note to Cayden's mouth in pictures. Honestly, that child rarely keeps his tongue in his mouth.








Love that little face!























A rare shot of me with C & D, I'm usually the photographer!



Now lay your left ear onto your left shoulder to enjoy this clip.








We made it back to the boat ramp in time for Aunt Becca to rush home to dinner for her dad and brother, but not before the boys relieved themselves.



We are left with happy memories of the day and I came home with a souvenir!