Minis...

There is just something fun about mini-muffins

Party Hats

Sam went to a birthday party on Sunday and watched a clown perform. I am not kidding when I say EVERY kid cracked up the entire time... the guy really wasn't THAT funny... but the kids sure thought so. They were literally rolling on the floor laughing! It was fun to see them enjoy it so much. Sam got to help him do a trick and came home with this balloon hat. He generally isn't a big hat guy but wore this thing all afternoon and evening.

Thanks Laura!

The boys went to a birthday party yesterday for one of Sam's preschool buddies. My friend Laura always has the cutest and craftiest ideas... and sent all of the kids home with Superman capes (pink for the girls of course).

Sam and Ben have been "flying" all through the house...and both insisted on wearing them at naptime today...

and to preschool this morning... and the grocery store...

I just love this weather!

Ben and I went on a LONG walk today while Sam was at school. What a great day - a teaser as it is supposed to start raining this weekend. We walked around the golf course and saw all kinds of ducks, geese and people out enjoying the sun.

Ben looks like Edward Scissorhands on this photo - he insisted on wearing gloves and they were wayyy to big.

Elton John

I finally got a smile out of this guy today - poor little man has had a nasty bug this week with a high fever and has felt crummy. Hoping he is on the mend!

A boy and his dog...

The boys love both dogs but are always chasing Reilly around. Mac is the sweet, mellow one... Reilly is sweet too but more of a goon.

Big Boy

Ben has decided that it's fun to sit in a regular chair rather than his booster. He can barely see over the table! The poor kid was just getting over a bad cold/ear infection when he woke up this morning with a fever of 102. Doctor thinks it's new virus... which could be since Sam, Brian and I all have colds as well. It's that time of year!

Great day!

Today I got to spend the day on the mountain with my good friend Laura. It was perfect... new snow, no lines and great weather! The boys stayed home with Brian and had a great time. They went to Sam's soccer class, the library, Starbucks, and played around the house. We had a great day skiing/boarding but I sure missed them all!

Tornado

Just a glimpse of the mess my kids can make in about 30 seconds! They usually start in one room and quickly move through the house... dumping out toy buckets, games, puzzles... and playing with some of it along the way. A lot more fun to tear it all apart than to clean it up!

Last few days...

Nothing too exciting going on around here... a few pics of the kiddos... and the beasts.

We had Erv's birthday dinner with the Goldens and cousins Sunday night... Aunt Dee gave all of the little ones Valentine's balloons. When we got home they had a great time running through the house with them.

Ben got a new potty yesterday. He hasn't used it yet but seems to think it's a good place for toys. And he is finally starting to feel better - yahoo!

Ready for Spring...

We have been missing this little guy's smiles. He came down with a bug last week and is still not feeling well. We spent Saturday morning at urgent care...turns out he has an ear infection and a nasty cold/cough/fever... not a lot of fun! Hoping to get some sleep soon.

USA

Somehow Sam managed to figure out this puzzle the other day. Auntie Ellen gave it to him for Christmas but he wasn't that interested in it until this week. He can now put all 50 states on the board and has something to say about each one... this is Oregon where we live, New York where the ball drops, Idaho where Grandma Mary lives, Las Vegas where Grandma Char is, Washington DC where Barack Obama's house is... I've been here to Hawaii, haven't been to Colorado etc... Smarty pants.

Enjoying the sun

We have had spring-like weather this week - I love it!

The kids and I had a great time playing at the park this morning. Sam loves having picnics - so we brought along our lunch and soaked up the sun.

Lots of swinging, sliding and just running around burning off energy.

We will have to do it again very soon. Gotta take advantage of these nice days!

Making music

Last night we met some friends over at Uncle Barry's house. My kids love instruments so were thrilled to play with the guitar, microphone, piano and violin.

Sam had never seen a violin and thought it was pretty cool... no he is not wearing lipstick here. His buddy Katy was passing out pink valentine cookies.

The duo in action - I love that Ben is playing the piano with his elbow!

Sleepy

When Ben gets really tired he starts falling down, tripping over everything etc. Sometimes he will just lay on the floor and keep playing... he hates missing out on the action!

Treats

Sam was so excited to make a cake for Brian today. He loves to help measure, mix and crack the eggs... but the sprinkles were the most fun.

He even decorated and signed his own card and was all smiles when Brian walked through the door. Oh yes, and he declared today that cake is now his favorite food!

Grumpy toddler

Hmmm... looks like someone wasn't quite ready to wake up from his nap!

At last!

Finally... the news we have been waiting for! Brian found out this morning that he received tenure at UP. I was thinking today about how much has gone into this moment... After finishing his masters degree, Brian completed a five year PhD program at ASU and then he accepted a job at University of Portland. Six years of teaching, research, working on various community projects and hours of time given to students have led us to this point in time. I don't think it has really hit him yet... although we are both so happy and very grateful. Thank you to all of our friends and family for your love and support over the last 10+ years. It has been a long road.

Winter continues

We woke up this morning to the biggest snowflakes I have ever seen! It only lasted a few hours but it was beautiful.

We had issues getting my car up the hill on the way to t-ball, but finally made it out of our neighborhood and off to the rec center. Brian had trouble getting to work as Germantown was closed and there were traffic issues all around town. Funny how just an inch or two of snow can slow down our city!

We were spoiled with the amount of snow we had in December... not enough today for sledding or playing outside. But still fun to wake up to the white stuff.

About Sam

This kid LOVES music. He also thinks Barack Obama lives in Seattle. I think we have a slight confusion between Washington State and DC. He has recently declared that when he grows up and gets really tall he is going to drink coffee. Something must have changed because last year he was NOT going to grow up, and wanted to stay little. Just a few random things about Sam...