4-Wheeling!

Daddy is itching for a new toy! A friend of his is thinking about selling his 4-wheeler so we are currently "testing" it out. We'll see if it works out, but for the time being we did go riding last weekend and I will admit that it was a lot of fun. The boys LOVED it! All four of us rode on it at the same time (Yes, Mom... very slowly and carefully!) As for me, I enjoyed spending a few hours with all of my boys in the woods without any interruption or interference. I think there may be a lot of time in the woods camping, fishing, 4-wheeling, etc... in my future!

Pumpkin Heads

I bought the boys 2 little pumpkins yesterday at the grocery store and you would have thought that I bought them a new toy... They were so excited! They immediately grabbed them and put them on top of their head and started laughing. M was jumping around and N was saying, "Punkin Heyud!" ... I really have no idea why, but I thought it was cute and took it as a chance to catch some pics. I love this time of year!

A Boy and his Dog

M is absolutely nuts about our Golden Retriever, Lucy. She is the first thing he looks for when we get out of the car and the first thing he looks for when he walks into the playroom in the morning with his juice. He is always letting her in when I don't want her in and getting her to sit with him on the couch when I am not looking. They are two peas in a pod! A few weeks ago I accidentally left the gate open one morning and Lucy got out. I told the boys that we needed to go look for Lucy because she was not in the yard. N looked at me and said, "Mommy, I tink she wan away. I guess we haf to get a new dog!" He didn't seem phased at all and went about his morning business. M on the other hand, immediately put on his rain boots and pulled my hand to the front door. The little munchkin walked up and down our cul-de-sac with me calling out, "Yu-Yee!" in his big voice until she came barrelling up to us. He was beside himself with concern and kept holding out his little hands and asking for her.

Needless to say, when I walked in today and saw this, I just had to take a picture:

Yes, he is watching TV and using her as a body pillow. I wish I could have caught a picture of her face. She was just lying there content as can be! What 1.5 year old "puppy" lets a toddler do this?! It really is a special bond between a boy and his dog!

The Zoo

We went to the zoo last week and had a wonderful time. We have a wonderful zoo here and I have to say that this was the first time that I took both of the boys and we ALL enjoyed it! It was so fun to see M exploring and watching all of the animals. M loves animals much more so than N. I am thinking that he may be a veterinarian when he grows up... or a linebacker! N loves the lions and wanted his picture taken with the lions for his room! We had a lot of fun... it was a beautiful day and the weather was perfect. I love this time of year!N was our "tour guide" and held the map as we walked around the zoo... He has started wanting to be the leader lately and to be honest, has become a little bit on the bossy side!

N and Bob-O had fun feeding the birds. M was a little frightened by all the birds flying around his head and preferred to watch it all from my arms!

This is N's picture with the lions... and yes, it is in his room!

They have a petting zoo at the end with goats that the boys always love!

Up, Up, and Away!

Much to N's happiness, his Gracie bought him some new Superman pajamas. The old ones were fitting mid-calf! Also, much to M's happiness, he gets the old ones and does not realize that N got something new and he got hand-me-downs! They are both happy because they both have a pair and can fly all over the house instead of fighting over them!

... Actually, maybe Mommy is the happiest of all!

Ike!

I know some people have been wondering where I have been lately and I have just one word for you... IKE! Hurricane Ike hit South / East Texas pretty hard a few weeks ago and although our area is back to normal, many people have lost everything. We lost power around noon on Saturday and it came back on early Sunday morning which wasn't bad. We had a lot of debris in our yard and a tree down across our fence from a neighbor's yard, but overall very minimal damage. My Uncle and his family are from Orange Texas and evacuated here to stay with us. We had a wonderful time all week and had a lot of fun family time. Thankfully, their home was among very few that was spared, but their town was devastated. Please keep their neighbors and community in your prayers!

Here are some fun pictures from the week of Ike!

Noah's Ark Parade

N had the annual preschool Noah's ark parade at school Thursday and Daddy and I both went to see him. All of the kids dressed up and they went to the office and 2 classrooms to show off their costumes and sing a cute new Noah song. N really wanted to be a lion for the parade, but I convinced him to be a Puppy Dog since we had a hand me down costume from his cousin Davis. They only wore the outfit for about 15 minutes, so I just did not see the sense in buying another costume for it. I thouht the situation was completely settled until Thursday morning on the way to school I heard from the backseat (totally out of the blue), "Mommy, you know dat I WELLY wanted to be a Yion for da Nowah's Ak Pawade, but I guess I will be a Puppy Dog insteyud!" Thankfully, he seemed completely content with his decision and did not bring it up again!

Cold Days

No, we are not experiencing global warming and no, we have not moved. We are experiencing "Cold" Days with good old runny noses, runny eyes, and grumpiness. J had a cold last weekend and now M has it. I am experiencing more proof that M is my strong willed child... I think he is in denial of his sickness! He wants to continue to do all the things that he does, but you can tell that he does not feel well which results in severe grumpiness, tantrums, and a lot of drama. Bless his heart, he would feel so much better if he would just sit on the couch and rest, but I guess a 2 year old does not understand that! On the other hand, he could do what my dad does and put himself into a Nyquil induced coma for a few days and awake feeling brand new...(This is always a joke in our family. When my Dad has a cold, he literally disappears for days at a time!) Isn't it funny how different people deal with the common cold? I like nothing better than to lay in my bed and rest... eat soup, and drink hot tea, and OJ. Basically, I want to be left alone and be checked on once in a blue moon. J, on the other hand, wants to be pampered and taken care of. He wants to be with me and have me take care of him. I guess M must be a little more like his Daddy because he seems to want to be the center of attention!

M's First Day of School

M had his first day of MMO this week. He is going back to the little church school that he and N both attended last year, but this year he will be going 2 mornings a week. It was so much different than N's first day since it is so familiar and also did not feel so permanent! We know most of the people or at least recognize them and most of the little ones were in his class last year. There are 9 kiddos... 2 girls and 7 boys! Poor teacher! M should be right in his element. He was not too happy when I dropped him off, but quickly adjusted and had a good time. This is the first time in 4 years that I have had 2 mornings off and I am not sure what to do with myself! I only have a 2 hour window before I have to pick up N, but it is still nice to have some "Me" Time!

(M was not in the picture taking mood... the dirt on the back of Daddy's truck was much more interesting!)

I put M in the same Jon Jon that N wore his first day of 2 year old MMO.... boy, was it snug! The Jon Jon days are quickly coming to an end with M so I am taking advantage of this fall! M has actually slimmed up quite a bit, he is just shaped so different than N.

He is just our little stocky fellow and I love it!

Hurricanes = Family Time!

We have had some unexpected visitors for the past few days! My Uncle and his family had to evacuate their home due to Hurricane Gustov and they came up here to wait out the storm. We had so much fun and it was really an unexpected treat to have family around! Our kids play so well together and we all get along great. They even kept the boys last night so that we could go out to dinner on a date!

They played outside in the rain and even went swimming in the rain. Abigail and M had a great time riding all over the yard in the truck for hours! We had several Wii tournaments and some wrestling matches as well. We really had a great time and the boys are going to miss their cousins terribly!

Thankfully the storm did not hit their town and actually missed us also. We have had a lot of rain, but none of the winds like they were predicting.