Saturday Morning Trains

Saturday morning + pajamas + trains + a super cool dad that can build a super cool track = pure bliss.

Birthday Celebration

We delayed Andrew's birthday because he wasn't feeling well.  We made sure to celebrate when the time finally came!  Here's our handsome boy at lunch eating PBJ and grapes, some of his favorites.  He can be such a ham!

After lunch it was time to open presents!

He was so cute to watch.  At first he was very meticulous about opening the paper, but when he figured out how to get to the presents faster he really sped up the process.  He was very happy with his Jake and the Neverland Pirates jammies.

Andrew also LOVES cars and trains.  He was so excited to get his very own Gordon train from Thomas and Friends.  He loved pushing it around and hearing the sounds it made.

And of course he needed his very own basketball!  He was cute while he was trying to dribble it.

And on to the Elmo cupcakes!

I decided not to make a cake for Andrew, mostly because he isn't a big cake eater and I thought it would be fun to do something new.  I found this idea online and thought it would be perfect for him.  He loves Elmo, Oreos, M&M's, and marshmallows, so why not put them all together into one delicious concoction?

Andrew waiting patiently in his Jake jammies while we sang Happy Birthday.

Enjoying the spoils.

We sure love this little guy.  He has so  much personality and while he is going through the terrible two stage right now we love his growing sense of independence.

Some fun things about Andrew:

-He loves balls and has a very strong kicking leg already. 

-He is a pro at dribbling a ball with his foot.  We have another soccer player on our hands!

-He loves to read books and he loves to sing.  He sings along with me to I Am a Child of God and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  He sings, "Ginkle, ginkle, ittle dar.  How I under are.  Up buv world high.  Lie dimon in kie. Gingle, ginkle, ittle dar.  How I under are."  I tried to record him singing it but of course he won't have anything to do with it while the camera is on.  I even tried to do it secretly at night while putting him to bed but I think he knew something was up.

-Like all of our boys, Andrew can't get enough of cars, planes, trucks, and trains.  

-He is also very aware of anything relating to soccer, Star Wars, or Legos.

Things Andrew is saying:

Jake – Jake the Pirate

Pyat-pirate

Ehmo - Elmo

A guy

Mommy!

Chuck –truck

Choo choo chain

Mee Mow – Mickey Mouse

Milk moy- more milk

Dwink-ice means drink with ice

I-An means Ryan

Maboo –Matthew

Ack- Zach

Ehpain – airplane

Chip – ship

See-yo – cereal

Pees – please

Dank oo – thank you

Bike

Hemet – helmet

Oosh – shoes

Ba ball – basketball

Uch down – touchdown

Hike!

Goal!

Dayid – No David! (from the books)

Appo – apple

Nana – banana

And of course: No, mine, and My Churn!

Andrew's Birthday

Andrew wasn't feeling that great on his actual birthday, but I did manage to snag a couple of pictures of the 2-year-old toward the end of the evening.  Looking dapper in his puppy jammies.

Silly boy.  He likes to pull this "pose" face when we ask him to smile.  He knows exactly what to do when the camera is out and quickly asks to see "Andwoo" on the pictures.  It's amazing how fast they learn!

Books

This is one of my cherished memories - surrounded by little boys, reading together.  My heart just melts.

Dr. Seuss Day

The boys were supposed to dress up for Dr. Seuss' birthday.  Of course I forgot about it until the last minute, so a quick printout of Thing 1 and Thing 2 and they were ready to go.  I think they were more excited to go with their spiky hair than anything.

Knights

My knights in shining armor....

Matthew the Brave

Ryan the Strong

and Zach the Wise

Tonka Trucks!

Boys and their toys!  These Tonka Trucks are one of those things that come and go in popularity with the boys.  Andrew wanted to drive his around and somehow convinced the other three that they should be a part of the action. 

It served for a great photo op too.

Brothers 

Coloring

I had to show that my boys do indeed sit still at times.  :)  They like the standard Star Wars and Spiderman, but their new coloring favorites are Mario Brothers, Tron, and Hot Wheels.

Matthew and Jr. Jazz

We signed Matthew up for basketball this year and he loved it.  That boy loves anything that has to do with sports.  I need to be more aware of when the other sports are starting so we can let him try those out as well.  

He was a great little dribbler and had a good sense of where the ball was going at all times.  He worked hard on both offense and defense.

It looks like we'll be looking to get a basketball hoop soon.

Be My Valentine

Happy Valentine's Day!  I surprised Kevin this morning and heart-attacked the inside of his car.  I was trying to be really sneaky, so I forgot to bring the camera with me to take a picture.  I knew if I went back in and came back out he would suspect something, so it is what it is.  Kevin was sweet and brought me home some beautiful flowers.  And what would Valentine's be without the usual dinner of strawberry pancakes and whipped cream with my four little guys?  I know I look forward to it.

Frozen Yogurt

The boys have been working really hard to keep on top of their jobs.  They finished their chart for the month so we decided to try a special treat.  When we told them we were going to get some frozen yogurt, they were a little skeptical, especially Ryan who hates anything that resembles yogurt.  Once they saw all of the flavors and toppings, however, they were sold.  And once we explained to Ryan that it tastes just like ice cream, he was an instant convert.  They can't wait to go back!

Graham Crackers and Milk

Like mother like son.  I have always been a fan of graham crackers and milk and the boys have been kind enough to follow suit.  This is Andrew enjoying one of our favorite snacks.  Can I say how much I love this little boy?

Just Dance

We decided to rent Just Dance 4 for our Family Home Evening activity tonight and we had a blast!  The boys thought it was great and were fans of "Istanbul" from They Might Be Giants and the wrestling/dance match of "The Final Countdown."  I'm sure we'll be trying this again.

Lego Guys!

Zachary has been carrying around a bucket of Lego guys lately.  He likes to change their helmets and weapons to make new guys and he is a master at conjuring up all sorts of scenarios.  This morning he set them up on the table and was very particular about where each one was placed.  I just had to get a picture.  Look at that grin!

Crazy Hair Day

The boys had crazy hair day at school today.  Matthew opted for the half-spiky/half-tame motif, Ryan just wanted the all-spike, and I don't think I even had to do much to Zachary's hair to make it look crazy.  Andrew didn't want his hair done, but he wanted to be part of the picture.

Playing the Piano

Andrew likes to play the piano with Kevin.  He even gets a little upset if Kevin gets in his way. Silly boy.  I'm glad he likes to be with his daddy.

Ready for School

Andrew wants to be like his older brothers so much.  He decided to put on Ryan's boots, coat and backpack to get ready for school.

Picture Tag

We decided to play Picture Tag today and it was a lot of fun.  The boys were running around downstairs, so I decided to grab my camera to document the process.  They thought ti was funny that I was taking pictures, so they decided to hide.  I started taking pictures of them running from place to place and they loved it.  We'll have to play picture tag again someday.

Zachary under the stairs.

Matthew trying to beat the camera

Ryan trying to be sneaky under the slide

Andrew and His Cars

All my little boys have loved to line up their cars.  I saw Andrew doing it on the stairs and had to get a picture.  Now that I'm looking at it, it looks like he has also organized them by color too.  Why do these little ones have to grow up so fast?