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| The two cutest lunch dates! |
Friday, November 21, 2014
Lunch Date!
Cory was putting in some serious bow hunting time a few weekends ago, which left the boys & I with time to fill with fun. Saturday, we hit up the local children’s museum (along with my sister & 2 nephews), strolled the mall (taking back some returns) and had lunch at Panera!
Monday, November 17, 2014
Monday, November 17th – World Prematurity Day
I like to post on this day each year to help raise awareness about premature birth and to give thanks for the two healthy little boys in our lives. Our two little blessings arrived about 5 weeks early but spent no time in the NICU. We were not without some struggles against Jaundice & feeding/weight gain, but those are very minor compared to what some parents & new babies have to struggle through in those first precious days, weeks and months of life.
This year takes on an extra special meaning, with my sister’s twin boys being born more than 6 weeks early & spending a couple weeks in the NICU for breathing/heart rate/feeding issues. They are just shy of 4 months old – doing great & growing big!
Per the March of Dimes: “Each year, 15 million babies are born too soon, and a million of them die.”
Our thoughts & prayers go out to anyone who has walked down this path, no matter the final outcome. Our hearts especially go out to those who are currently on this journey, especially during this holiday season.
The March of Dimes is a great organization trying to fight this battle of premature birth. We support them & their efforts to research and raise awareness of this global problem.
If you would like to support the March of Dimes with a donation: Donate here!
This year takes on an extra special meaning, with my sister’s twin boys being born more than 6 weeks early & spending a couple weeks in the NICU for breathing/heart rate/feeding issues. They are just shy of 4 months old – doing great & growing big!
Per the March of Dimes: “Each year, 15 million babies are born too soon, and a million of them die.”
Our thoughts & prayers go out to anyone who has walked down this path, no matter the final outcome. Our hearts especially go out to those who are currently on this journey, especially during this holiday season.
The March of Dimes is a great organization trying to fight this battle of premature birth. We support them & their efforts to research and raise awareness of this global problem.
If you would like to support the March of Dimes with a donation: Donate here!
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Happy Halloween!
Halloween day was the third time the boys got to wear their costumes this year, but they weren’t any less excited than the first time they put them on!
We made our annual stop at Papa’s work (we trick or treat from office to office). The boys love making this stop each year not because of the trick or treating (although they have fun with that) but for the “snack” they get from the vending machines afterwards when we visit with Papa for a bit in his break room, which they think is just the coolest.
Next stop, we headed to our city’s downtown area to do a little more trick or treating, although it was really crowded & really cold, so we didn’t last long down there.
The final stop was trick or treating in our neighborhood. This was the coldest Halloween we’ve been out with the boys yet, so it took some warm layers underneath the costumes, along with hats & gloves, to keep them warm.
By the end of the night they were all trick-or-treated out!
(We again donated a majority of our candy (as we did last year) to the boys’ pediatric dentist office, which was collecting it to send to the “Operation Gratitude – Halloween Candy Program”. They each got $6 for their candy and will get to spend it on something fun!)
We made our annual stop at Papa’s work (we trick or treat from office to office). The boys love making this stop each year not because of the trick or treating (although they have fun with that) but for the “snack” they get from the vending machines afterwards when we visit with Papa for a bit in his break room, which they think is just the coolest.
Next stop, we headed to our city’s downtown area to do a little more trick or treating, although it was really crowded & really cold, so we didn’t last long down there.
The final stop was trick or treating in our neighborhood. This was the coldest Halloween we’ve been out with the boys yet, so it took some warm layers underneath the costumes, along with hats & gloves, to keep them warm.
By the end of the night they were all trick-or-treated out!
(We again donated a majority of our candy (as we did last year) to the boys’ pediatric dentist office, which was collecting it to send to the “Operation Gratitude – Halloween Candy Program”. They each got $6 for their candy and will get to spend it on something fun!)
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| Spiderman Wyatt |
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| Showing his BIG muscles! |
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| Bumblebee Colton |
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| Showing his BIG muscles! |
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| Ready to trick or treat...again! |
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| Happy Halloween! |
Monday, November 10, 2014
Trunk or Treat #2 & a movie!
After experiencing a very overcrowded trunk or treat event earlier in the week, we hit up another smaller, low-key one later during Halloween week. No lines to get in, another opportunity to wear their costumes…a win-win.
After the trunk or treat event, my sister took my oldest nephew “I” to see the “Book of Life” movie at the local theater that was having a free movie event for all those dressed up in their Halloween gear. The three youngest boys went back with me to our house for popcorn & a movie of our own, “The Pirate Fairy”!
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| Bumble Bee (Colton), a knight ("N"), Spiderman (Wyatt) & Dark Spiderman ("I") (a few more layers needed on this night, as it was a bit colder than our trunk or treat earlier in the week!) |
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| Wyatt, "N" & Colton enjoying their popcorn! |
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
Fire Station Open House
Our local fire station holds an open house event every year in the fall. Last year, it was raining and just a few trucks were parked inside for the kids to explore. This year, the weather was sunny & beautiful so they had everything spread out and so much more for the kids to do.
The boys took turns “driving” & exploring the fire truck and ambulance. They got a chance to spray a pretend fire with the fire hose (one of their favorite parts of the day). Wyatt even said “Hi!” and talked to Sparky the fire dog (Colton was not interested). Their other favorite part of the day was “driving” the ambulance because it had a rear-camera that was visible from the driver’s seat so they each wanted Papa, Grandma, Mommy & brother to go in the back and wave to them!
They love it and talk about it year round. I’m so glad we have this local opportunity to get up close & personal with the fire trucks, ambulance & emergency staff!
The boys took turns “driving” & exploring the fire truck and ambulance. They got a chance to spray a pretend fire with the fire hose (one of their favorite parts of the day). Wyatt even said “Hi!” and talked to Sparky the fire dog (Colton was not interested). Their other favorite part of the day was “driving” the ambulance because it had a rear-camera that was visible from the driver’s seat so they each wanted Papa, Grandma, Mommy & brother to go in the back and wave to them!
They love it and talk about it year round. I’m so glad we have this local opportunity to get up close & personal with the fire trucks, ambulance & emergency staff!
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| Fire truck driver Colton! |
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| Fire truck driver Wyatt! |
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| Colton, spraying out the fire! |
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| Wyatt, spraying out the fire! |
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| Exploring the fire truck with Papa. |
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| Playing. |
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| Just as big as the fire truck's tires this year! |
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| Wyatt, meeting Sparky, the fire house dog. |
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| Ambulance driver Colton! |
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| Ambulance driver Wyatt! |
Monday, November 3, 2014
Working with Papa!
After having 3 girls of his own, my dad is in boy heaven now with 4 “big boy” grandsons & the two “baby” grandsons, born in July. These older 4 boys (as I’m sure the younger two will grow into) adore…I mean ADORE their grandpa.
On our day of carving pumpkins, the weather was beautiful and we spent the afternoon outside. The four boys got tractor rides and helped wash grandpa’s “extra” car that he is fixing up. Boys + water + brushes = FUN!
The following day (the boys & I had stayed overnight, as Cory was on a hunting trip in North Dakota at the time) Wyatt & Papa worked hard outside all day – they rakes/cleared leaves, cleaned the mower deck, sharpened the mower blades…Wyatt and Grandma even found a grasshopper, which they put in a jar with grass & some ladybugs (which he & I released the following day). He’s a hard little worker, that one is!
On our day of carving pumpkins, the weather was beautiful and we spent the afternoon outside. The four boys got tractor rides and helped wash grandpa’s “extra” car that he is fixing up. Boys + water + brushes = FUN!
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| Washing! |
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| Working hard! |
The following day (the boys & I had stayed overnight, as Cory was on a hunting trip in North Dakota at the time) Wyatt & Papa worked hard outside all day – they rakes/cleared leaves, cleaned the mower deck, sharpened the mower blades…Wyatt and Grandma even found a grasshopper, which they put in a jar with grass & some ladybugs (which he & I released the following day). He’s a hard little worker, that one is!
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| Wyatt & Papa cleaning the mower deck. |
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| Wyatt with his grasshopper. |
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| Letting him go... |
Friday, October 31, 2014
Our first “trunk or treat”!
I was first introduced to the idea of “trunk or treat” events last fall while reading through numerous blogs. It’s something new to me & had previously not heard of it in our area.
That is, until this year.
After hearing numerous radio ads about a local “trunk or treat” event going on, my sister & I decided to take our boys & check it out…us, along with about 2000+ other people. I later found out that this was the 10th year they held this event, although it’s only gained popularity in the past few years. This year’s attendance was record breaking for them.
We waited in line to get into the event for about 45 minutes. When my youngest nephew, my boys & I first got into line (my sister & oldest nephew met us there less than 10 minutes later)…I thought we were crazy to stay. But, we did stay. The weather was beautiful & warm (60 degrees) and the boys behaved far better than I had hoped they would. They were excited to be dressed up & all ready to collect some candy, so heading home at this point would have been a big disappointment.
The event was very well put together and the load of goodies the boys came out with made it much worth the wait! It threw off the rest of our evening though, as we had not expected to spend the entire night there, so as a treat for good behavior we took the boys out for a late supper all together at a quick-service Italian place.
We had a fun night & it gave us another opportunity for the boys to wear their costumes – especially now that tonight’s trick-or-treating forecast is chilly & windy!
Happy Halloween!
That is, until this year.
After hearing numerous radio ads about a local “trunk or treat” event going on, my sister & I decided to take our boys & check it out…us, along with about 2000+ other people. I later found out that this was the 10th year they held this event, although it’s only gained popularity in the past few years. This year’s attendance was record breaking for them.
We waited in line to get into the event for about 45 minutes. When my youngest nephew, my boys & I first got into line (my sister & oldest nephew met us there less than 10 minutes later)…I thought we were crazy to stay. But, we did stay. The weather was beautiful & warm (60 degrees) and the boys behaved far better than I had hoped they would. They were excited to be dressed up & all ready to collect some candy, so heading home at this point would have been a big disappointment.
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| Three amigos...excited, but not yet aware of the wait we have ahead of us! |
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| My two cuties! |
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| Wyatt - Spiderman (don't ask, he put on a sad face & asked me to take his picture) |
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| Colton - BumbleBee the Transformer (what one does, the other follows...) |
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| Part-way through the event...a quick photo-op stop. |
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| All four kiddos! ("I" - Dark Spiderman, Colton, Wyatt, "N" - a Knight) |
The event was very well put together and the load of goodies the boys came out with made it much worth the wait! It threw off the rest of our evening though, as we had not expected to spend the entire night there, so as a treat for good behavior we took the boys out for a late supper all together at a quick-service Italian place.
We had a fun night & it gave us another opportunity for the boys to wear their costumes – especially now that tonight’s trick-or-treating forecast is chilly & windy!
Happy Halloween!
Thursday, October 30, 2014
A Fall first: carving pumpkins!
The boys have been asking to carve or eat the pumpkins since we brought them home in late September. One of Cory’s uncles grows a massive amount of pumpkins every year to sell to a local grocery store. The boys & Cory brought home a couple pumpkins over several visits out to his grandpa’s farm (where the pumpkins were being stored).
The beautiful weather this past weekend made for an ideal day to carve the pumpkins outside.
I started the process by cutting off the top of each pumpkin and giving each boy a spoon to scoop out the insides…although my mom, sister & I ended up doing most of the scooping as it was kind of tough for little hands. I’m also not sure the insides of the pumpkin were what my boys thought were going to be inside! Once the insides were scooped out, each boy was going to draw their own pumpkin face with an erasable marker (we didn’t like the stencils that came with the carving kit). My boys didn’t want to draw their own, so I asked them about what shape they wanted to eyes, if they wanted a nose or not & how many teeth their wanted for their mouth; so each was unique!
The carving part was a bit tough, but the long carving knife that came with the kit worked fairly well. The boys each helped out with carving their own pumpkin & were so proud to do so!
We ended up with 4 super cute, unique pumpkins!
(Although I didn’t get a picture of pumpkin #4, as my nephew “N” was too busy helping Papa & riding with him on the tractor that his pumpkin was mostly completed by Grandma.)
The beautiful weather this past weekend made for an ideal day to carve the pumpkins outside.
I started the process by cutting off the top of each pumpkin and giving each boy a spoon to scoop out the insides…although my mom, sister & I ended up doing most of the scooping as it was kind of tough for little hands. I’m also not sure the insides of the pumpkin were what my boys thought were going to be inside! Once the insides were scooped out, each boy was going to draw their own pumpkin face with an erasable marker (we didn’t like the stencils that came with the carving kit). My boys didn’t want to draw their own, so I asked them about what shape they wanted to eyes, if they wanted a nose or not & how many teeth their wanted for their mouth; so each was unique!
The carving part was a bit tough, but the long carving knife that came with the kit worked fairly well. The boys each helped out with carving their own pumpkin & were so proud to do so!
We ended up with 4 super cute, unique pumpkins!
(Although I didn’t get a picture of pumpkin #4, as my nephew “N” was too busy helping Papa & riding with him on the tractor that his pumpkin was mostly completed by Grandma.)
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| Ready! |
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| Cousin "I" scooping. |
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| Colton scooping. |
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| Wyatt scooping. |
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| Cousin "I" - face drawing time! |
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| Colton - face drawing time! |
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| Wyatt - face drawing time! |
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| Colton helping Grandma carve his pumpkin. |
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| Cousin "I" & my sister carving his pumpkin. |
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| Tractor rides for all - Wyatt! |
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| Tractor rides for all - Colton! |
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| Colton's finished pumpkin! |
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| Wyatt's finished pumpkin! |
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
A good day for ice cream!
Last week Friday (& all throughout the weekend) we were blessed with unseasonably warm, beautiful weather. After picking up the boys for daycare (& making a quick stop at the local shoe store to cash in on their annual winter boot sale), we stopped at a local ice cream shop for a treat!
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| Wyatt chose pumpkin! (I honestly thought he had chosen orange sherbet until I actually tasted it!) |
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| Colton chose mint chocolate chip! |
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Cory’s 1st 13.1!
Half Marathon!
After a change in plans, which canceled his North Dakota hunting trip in early October, Cory decided to change up a scheduled 5K run in mid-October & take on the half marathon challenge instead! He had already been mixing in some longer runs in his training, so he was already well on his way to run 13.1 miles.
Race day turned out to be beautiful with cool temps but a bright sun. The half marathoner started first, so the boys & I got to stand by Cory & cheer him on for his race start. He ended up with a great time, very close to his goal – despite having to wait 5+ minutes for a train where the race course crossed some train tracks & a whole group of them running the wrong way on the last 2 miles or so of the course (a poorly marked section of the course so really, we think he ended up running more than the 13.1 miles)! The boys & I were so proud of him & were excited to be at the finish line to cheer him in!
I stuck to the 5K run that day, pushing the boys together (for the first time in a race since last May) in the double stroller. Each race it gets a little harder, as they just keep growing & gaining weight! The hardest part for me on this course was the hills. I was able to run with them up the first one, but after that the hills pulled me down to a walk. I was still very happy with my finish time & to have the two best racing buddies I could ask for…as I know our racing days together with me running & them riding are slowly coming to an end.
After Cory finished his race, we headed back to the car to head home. We parked in a near-by park, right next to a playground & river. The boys immediately noticed the number of ducks in the water & went down near the water with Cory to get a closer look. Before we knew it, the ducks were following them back to the car. These ducks were so tame; I think Cory could have picked one up. Cory had some leftover cereal that he hadn’t eaten before the race, so he & the boys had some “duck food” to share. The ducks were loving it & the boys got such a kick out of it.
After a change in plans, which canceled his North Dakota hunting trip in early October, Cory decided to change up a scheduled 5K run in mid-October & take on the half marathon challenge instead! He had already been mixing in some longer runs in his training, so he was already well on his way to run 13.1 miles.
Race day turned out to be beautiful with cool temps but a bright sun. The half marathoner started first, so the boys & I got to stand by Cory & cheer him on for his race start. He ended up with a great time, very close to his goal – despite having to wait 5+ minutes for a train where the race course crossed some train tracks & a whole group of them running the wrong way on the last 2 miles or so of the course (a poorly marked section of the course so really, we think he ended up running more than the 13.1 miles)! The boys & I were so proud of him & were excited to be at the finish line to cheer him in!
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| Daddy & his boys, pre-race |
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| At the starting line gates...ready to run! |
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| Almost to the finish line! |
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| First post-half marathon pic! |
I stuck to the 5K run that day, pushing the boys together (for the first time in a race since last May) in the double stroller. Each race it gets a little harder, as they just keep growing & gaining weight! The hardest part for me on this course was the hills. I was able to run with them up the first one, but after that the hills pulled me down to a walk. I was still very happy with my finish time & to have the two best racing buddies I could ask for…as I know our racing days together with me running & them riding are slowly coming to an end.
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| Mommy & boys, pre-race |
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| Waiting for our turn to start at the starting line gates! |
After Cory finished his race, we headed back to the car to head home. We parked in a near-by park, right next to a playground & river. The boys immediately noticed the number of ducks in the water & went down near the water with Cory to get a closer look. Before we knew it, the ducks were following them back to the car. These ducks were so tame; I think Cory could have picked one up. Cory had some leftover cereal that he hadn’t eaten before the race, so he & the boys had some “duck food” to share. The ducks were loving it & the boys got such a kick out of it.
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