"Baby" Dedication

I put "Baby" in quotations for the obvious... M is no longer a baby. However, since we moved while he was so tiny and then it took a while to find a church, we realized that we had better hurry up and have our "baby" dedicated. We kept trying to figure out a time where we could do the dedication when some family would be in town, but unfortunately, it has not worked out. Our church only does it each quarter and since it is so large, you have to sign up a few months ahead of time. One time this summer, my mother in law was in town and they had a dedication, but we had not realized and did not sign up in time... this would have been a perfect chance, but when I called to get the next spot... it was the December dedication. J and I decided to go ahead and do it as he was already 18 months old!

M was dedicated on 12/16/07 and did very well. Daddy had a supply of snacks in his pockets that kept M occupied. He was really busy before the ceremony and was running all through the waiting room and the halls. Of course, all of the other babies were sleeping or laying around! Once we got up on stage though, M was awestruck and was very well behaved! It was a sweet ceremony and although we did not have any extended family there, it was still special. After all, the commitment is between the parents and the Lord anyway, so that's what counts! Our pastor sent us this picture and also a video of the dedication which I am trying to figure out how to put in the blog...

Giving vs. Getting

J and I decided that it was important to teach the boys that Christmas is not just about getting presents, but also about giving presents. We have been talking to N a lot about this, but we also thought of a neat way to have him participate. The firestations here were having a toy drive, so we decided to take the boys on Saturday to the firestation and let them take a toy to donate. In addition, they would also get to see the firestation and the firetruck as an added incentive.
The present that we picked out to donate was a blue bike. N was very excited about going to the firestation and giving the bike... until we actually got there. We met the fireman and although M was all smiles and hopped right into the firetruck, N wanted no part of it. He was very content and happy to look on from the safety of our arms. He was fine with giving the bike, but then decided that he also wanted a bike like that and talked about it for quite a few days. I kept reminding him that we were giving the bike to a child who was less fortunate than him and that Santa was going to bring him something special of his very own. The whole concept confused him a little bit, but I think we finally resolved it. He kept asking me how Santa would get the present from the firemen and I think we finally figured out that the firemen were Santa's helpers and helped collect presents for the children who didn't have mommy's and daddys since Santa was so busy in his workshop... whew!
N then told me: "Mommy, Santa is so bizzy cuz he makin my toys!"
Oh well, hopefully the "giving" concept sunk in somewhere in his little head!

Shy

We definitely have the Christmas fever bug around here! This year has been a lot of fun because it is really the first year that N understands about Christmas. As a mother, I have really been trying to emphasize the true meaning of Christmas this year and not just focus on Santa Claus and presents... This of course does not mean that N isn't excited about presents! He has a hefty list and we are trying to focus on just a few things.

N's list this year is:

Spiderman bike

Spiderman toy

Thomas toys

A cowboy horse

These are the things that he lists off, but of course he has told me about a thousand other things as well!
The funny thing about N is that he has cried... no, bawled the past 2 visits to Santa, so we have been talking to him about the whole experience and going over what he would do and say. Yesterday, I helped host a Santa event at our church and J brought the boys. N was very excited and of course M was all smiles. However, when it came time for N to shine and tell the big man his much rehearsed list, he froze up. He did not cry, he just got shy. When he got down, he ran to his Daddy and told him that he wanted his Daddy to go back and tell Santa his list. Since we were at church, and it was very laid back, N's wonderful Daddy went back and let Santa know what N wanted for Christmas... just in case he did not know already! :-)
It was really cute... N was "berry pwoud of my daddy for tawkin to Santa Cwause dor me!"

Gingerbread Houses

We had a fantastic surprise the other day as we received a huge box in the mail from my Aunt Sissy. She always sends the neatest gifts and this year was no exception. She sent the boys a Train Gingerbread House! Tuesday morning, I told N that when he got home from school, we would put M down for a nap and he and I would decorate the train together. He was so excited and told his teachers all about it! Now, those of you who know me well know that I have a few perfectionist OCD tendencies... so, I had already talked myself into the fact that I would put the train together and do most of the icing, but that I would let my 3 1/2 year old go to town with the decorating. However, I soon found out... N may be a clone of his daddy, but he is my child after all!!!

N was very organized with the decorating. He put all of the same kind of candies in rows. He put all the candy canes in the corners, he even studied the box very intently to see what he thought it should look like... (which is exactly what I would have done!) Now, it's not perfect, but it is pretty organized for a 3 1/2 year old genius!

*Notice the smudge of green icing on his lip!

We taste tested as we decorated!

-This pictures is after a little nibbling by the boys!

Cowboy!

N has embarked on a new adventure lately... that of a cowboy. After Halloween, when it started getting a little cooler, his Daddy took him tot he cowboy store and bought his some new boots since he had outgrown his boots from last year. Ever since that wonderful father/son shopping adventure, N has been really interested in cowboys. (it couldn't possibly be because we see a lot of them out here!)

The week of Thanksgiving, we went down to my Uncle's house with my parents for the holiday. As usual, I took enough clothes for 10 days for our 3 day trip. Well, needless to say, I only needed one outfit... his cowboy outfit... he wore it almost every day we were there! While we were there, I went out and bought him his first holster and six shooter set. N is thrilled with his "cowboy bewelt" and wants to wear it everywhere. Thanks to his cousin, R, we were already well equipped with some good cowboy hand-me-downs. N wants to wear his cowboy pajamas, cowboy shirts (which are t-shirts with something cowboy on them or red button ups... I'm not sure why they must be red, but that's the way it is!) cowboy jeans (which pretty much just means that they must have "yoops" in them for his belt!) and of course his boots. He also has a bandana and hat which he wears quite often. My mom even went and got him an old "Lone Ranger" DVD with a bunch of old black and white episodes and he absolutely loves them!

Last week we went to the grocery store (minus the guns of course!) and we saw 2 men in cowboy hats (which is pretty normal around here.) Both times, he said really loudly, "Mommy, yook at dat man! Him a cowboy jush yike me!" The men loved it of course!

Little Man

I have come to realize lately that M is no longer a baby. Weighing in at around 30 lbs., he is such a little boy! He thinks he is as big as everyone else and is not as timid as N was at this age. He is not interested in age appropriate toys, but only what big boys have. Although he is extremely strong willed, he is still such a happy go lucky little guy and has a really pleasant and happy demeanor. Tuesdays, when N goes to MMO, M and I have a day to ourselves and I have enjoyed it so much. He is such a mimic and has such a mischevious side. He is very giggly and quite a flirt! I have had to tell N that he is no longer his baby brother and N told me confidently the other day, "Mommy, M is a yittle boy now. Yater, he will be a big boy yike me!" I smiled and thought to myself... "Don't remind me!"

They grow up too fast!

Halloween II

M's 1st house!

M's 1st Trick or Treat was a success! He had no fear and walked right up with all the big kids. He loved his candy and wouldn't let go of his suckers!

Fireman N handing out candy at the nursing home... as hot as it was, N would not take off his outfit!

I had some more film developed today and realized that I had more Halloween pictures, so I wanted to share!

Sayings to Remember

N has been talking a lot lately. He has some funny things that he says that I want to remember and share.

He will ask me who gave him something (like a shirt that he hasn't seen before) and I will tell him who gave it to him. His response is, "Oh, dat nice sweet ov him!"

He has started saying, "I have a gweat ideya!)... the funniest thing about this is that he says it while holding one finger up in the air!

He taps his pointer finger on his chin when he is contemplating and says, "Hmmm. tink, tink, tink (think, think, think.)

Perhaps the most amazing thing of all is that the past three nights he has told us that he is ready to go to bed! This is the same child who for the past 3 1/2 years has never been tired in his whole entire life... This may be a phase, but we are enjoying it!

Halloween

We had a great halloween yesterday! N was a fireman and M was a dalmation. They were so cute and had a great time. They both enjoyed trick or treating and fearless M walked up to houses on his own and then took his time selecting candy from the families... it was so funny! Everyone couldn't get over this "little" guy with such a big opinion! N got to wear his costume to school on Tuesday and they had a costume parade. The teachers said that he didn't take off his hat or jacket all day! (He must have been roasting!) Then, yesterday morning, I took the boys with some other girls from my church to a nursing home to pass out candy to the residents. They seemed to enjoy this and while N was a little cautious, M walked up and down the halls and would go right up to the residents and put candy in their laps. Last night, we went over to some friend's and had chili dogs and went around their neighborhood. We had a lot of fun and wore the boys out! N even told me that he was tired and ready to go home... I about fainted! They had a wonderful holiday and N was very upset this morning when he couldn't wear his outfit to school again!

Visiting Daddy at work!

Thomas

The boys with the Lego Thomas

Last weekend we took the boys to see Thomas the Tank Engine at a railroad station about an hour away from us. We had the best time and the boys loved it! N is really into Thomas and had a great time playing with all the trains and seeing the "real" Thomas! They had a lot of activities for the boys and the weather was perfectly fallish.