The One Where Our Moose Turned Two

Once there was a tiny little Moose, just a baby Moose really. He had three older brothers and they all loved him very much.

But each and every month, the Moose grew a little bigger and stronger and he learned new things.

His Momma and Daddy were proud of their little Moose but a little sad too. Because they knew this was the very last time they'd have a baby Moose in their house.

Time went by, as it does, and before they knew it, their baby Moose was walking and not long after that he was talking.

Every day he would learn something new. (Unfortunately, this little Moose never really learned to sleep alone.)
And then one day they looked up and that little Moose wasn't a baby anymore. He was a toddler.

He was running and jumping and talking in sentences. He was asking to watch Elmo on TV and asking for pizza. He wanted to wear his Goofy shirt and his Batman pajamas. He was a big boy now!

Yes, there once was a baby Moose but he grew into the most adorable big boy Moose you have ever seen.
Happy 2nd birthday Moosey-we love you!

The One With Football, Lots Of Football

Fridays in Ohio means one thing-high school football. And this particular Friday, Fairfield (our local high school) was playing Colerain (our old community's high school), so it was a "can't miss" game for us.

I came away from the game with two thoughts:
1-you should never, ever take a two year old to a high school football game. Just trust me, it's not worth it.
2-I'm not a fan of teenagers. Let me clarify, I am not a fan of rude teenagers, teenagers that wear inappropriate clothing to football games, that use swear words in front of 9 or 6 years olds, or that push each other into women carrying 2 year olds. Chuck thinks overall the crowd was well behaved, maybe he's right and I'm overreacting but I don't think I'll be bringing the little ones back for awhile. We'll stick to Upward games, I think. That being said, Moose LOVED the band and the mascots. He kept yelling, "Hi, Woof-Woof!" at the Colerain Cardinal. Hilarious.

Speaking of Upward, our first games of the season took place this Saturday. Jackson's team, the Mighty Raiders, kicked things off. Jackson played hard and looked pretty tough out there.

He is playing on the same team as his best friend (and look alike) Otto, which he loves.

They had so much fun! Jackson pulled a few flags and had a run or two and they kept it pretty close.

After a quick lunch, it was time for game two, Bryce and Jarron's team, the Rockets.

The twins are playing in the bigger league this year-4th and 5th graders, and it showed. Yikes! Some of those kids were a lot bigger than my guys, so glad they are not playing tackle! The boys played great and both had a bunch of good plays. I love seeing them both out there at the same time. I can only imagine what the other players are thinking. It's really hard to tell them apart with their uniforms and rec specs on.

And a bonus picture for you...this little guy is turning two in just two short days!!! The Moose likes having his picture taken but ONLY on his terms and he was not interested in it on this particular morning. He looks like a celebrity fighting off the paparazzi-poor kid, he does have a camera in his face a lot.

The One With The Best Day Ever

After all the fun the boys had playing tennis on Fountain Square a few weeks ago, we'd been thinking about getting them some rackets and taking them to a court to play. Chuck's good friend Nick (Hi Nick!), happens to be an awesome tennis pro and hooked the boys up with some kid sized rackets (thanks Nick!).
This weekend we took the boys to our high school court and played a little tennis. And it was hilarious. There were tennis balls flying everywhere.
Moosey spent most of the time chasing down balls, and Jackson spent most the time collecting them (he's into "collecting" things these days).

Yup, they are brothers, I know-they don't look a thing alike, but they are indeed brothers!

Bryce and Jarron really had a good time playing against Chuck and after awhile I even hit a few. There were a few photos of that but they weren't very flattering-so I deleted them-sorry Chuck!

Jackson and Moosey were promised a visit to a swingset so we made a quick stop at the park after our "tennis lessons"...which led to boys hanging upside down, as it always does.

I am super proud of this next picture-I am no Bobbi, but I think this particular shot is pretty cool-the ride is spinning but I caught Bryce somewhat in focus! Yay me!!!

As we were walking into McDonalds for dinner, Jackson said, "This was the best day ever, well, except for when I go to Heaven someday, that will probably be the best day ever. But this was a great day. I got to play video games, and find free tennis balls, go to the park, and now McDonalds!"

Oh, to be 6 years old again! :)

The One With A Weeknd of Parks (and Ten on Tuesday)

1. Last Wednesday was our last night of teaching the K-1 grade at church. Instead of our usual lesson, Chuck and Mike set up an obstacle course for the kids. There is nothing funnier than watching 5-7 years olds try to jump rope and do jumping jacks. Hilarious.

Our Wednesday night crew

2. After a morning of running errands, I took all four boys to Fort Liberty park, by MYSELF. I am ridiculously proud of that. It was a little crowded but the twins were great about helping with the two younger boys. I think we all had a good time.

Bryce is incapable of being serious for photos

3. I totally skinned my knee playing frisbee in the backyard with the boys. Proving two things: the boys clearly get their gracefulness from me, and my kids are real gentlemen. As soon as I went down, they were immediately by my side, reaching their hands down to help me up. They didn't laugh at all. (Which, for the record, I totally would have!) Of course, the reason I fell was the giant hole they dug a few years ago, that we've tried to fill in every year without success, but at least they helped me up.

Random picture of Jackson before the skinning of the knee.

4. In the car the other night Jarron was listing the reasons why he loved Kentucky, they were as follows:
-My favorite team plays there.
-Some of their towns look like the Old West.
-They have SWEET hotels. (Loved this one.)
-All the cool people are from there.
-My favorite team plays there.
When I pointed out the he mentioned the favorite team thing twice, he said "I know, it's the most important reason". I think Chuck was pleased to see that the Wildcats brainwashing was a success.

5. There's a little deer park not far from where we live and we went over with some family this weekend. I attempted to get a picture of the boys in front of the deer. This was the result. 4 different shots, each kid looking a different way. If I had Bobbi's mad photoshop skillz, I'd cut and paste some heads to make it work. Sadly, I don't possess that skill, so you get 4 bad shots.

6. Never the less, the boys enjoyed feeding the deer. Moose kept calling them "Woof-Woofs", because in Moose's world, just like all men except Daddy are Papaws, all animals are "Woof-Woofs".

7. Since we were over that way, we headed to Heritage Park. We really enjoyed it-the trails are really nice and the playground is awesome. The boys had a lot of fun playing with their cousins.

8. While there, Loretta and I went for a walk with Moosey. Every so often, we could hear the guns from a nearby gun range. Each time, Moose would stop and say "Uh-oh, I'm dead" and we'd have to assure him that he was not dead.

9. I recently discovered that Keebler manufactures Girl Scout cookies. My all time favorite GS cookie is the Jubilee (I think they are called they are now called Caramel Delights). So imagine my joy when I found these Keebler cookies at Krogers-Coconut Dreams. Mmmmmm...yes, please!

10. I am thisclose to finishing the antique desk I've been working on. Just needs one more coat of stain and drawer pulls and it will be ready to go. I can't tell you how happy I am to see it coming back to life. Pictures to come...