The Kirtley's

family

2011-12-07T12:34:00.000-08:00

So...I've been really bad at updating our blog! I've been given "gentle" reminders to update it!!

I have lots of things I can blog about, it's just a matter of TIME! Which I seem to not have enough of lately!

We have family pictures taken...back in Sept!

They are great! I love them! I love to see how much my little family continues to grow and change each year! The boys are getting so big and are so much fun!

My sweet 4 1/2 year old boy!

My sweet, ornery 2 year old!!

I had to throw this one in b/c it cracked me up! That's what Cole does...crack us up! Such a funny little man!!

Preschool

2011-10-22T10:35:00.000-07:00

Eli started his last year of preschool!

He goes 3 mornings a week and loves it!

I can't believe he will be in Kindergarten next year!

He has a new teacher this year, Ms. Mari! He loves her!

We have had the best teachers at his preschool!

I just look at these pictures and think back to last year when I took him!

He has changed so much in a year!

2

2011-09-06T18:00:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my baby is 2!

However, he definitely acts ALL of 2!

I love that he has so much personaility! He makes us laugh daily!

He LOVES his brother and calls him "Bubba!"

He talks....ALL...THE....TIME!!!

He uses complete sentences and talks just as much as Eli does!

I can't wait to see what God has in store for him this next year!

We love you Cole!!

a little bit of farmer!

2011-06-21T06:54:00.000-07:00

We had Eli's 4 year pictures taken back in April!

It was supposed to be warm, so I had shorts and a polo picked out for him.

Well, in Kansas we never know what we are going to get.

So we had a change in plans last minute, due to weather!

This is probably more Eli...being out on a farm.

(The belt/beltbuckle he has on was Aaron's from when he was little. It has his name engraved on the back. It was sooo cute!)

I love this smile!

Thanks again, Meg for capturing our sweet boy!

cruise

2011-06-11T12:48:00.001-07:00

We spent 5 days on this....Doing a lot of this...
With some awesome friends that were celebrating their 10 yr anniversary!
It was perfect!

We will go again! (for our 10 yr anniversary!)

More to come...

poem

2011-05-26T15:16:00.000-07:00

Every year I send this poem home with my students.
I take a picture with each one of them and put it at the bottom.
This year I struggled getting through it!
I have loved this class and will miss them dearly!

I'm glad I was your teacher
I've come to love you so.
I can't believe the end is here.
I hate to see you go.
Remember all the fun we had
and all the things we did
but most of all remember...
You're a VERY SPECIAL KID!
Love,
Mrs. Kirtley :)

another milestone

2011-05-19T16:08:00.001-07:00

Today was Eli's last day of preschool! (I wish I could say that I've had my last day too!)

They had a little program and celebrated with a circus theme!

It was cute!

I am so glad that he still has another year of preschool!

This Mommy isn't ready to send him off to Kindergarten just yet!

After the program we went to the classroom and had popcorn!

Ms. Karri was Eli's teacher! She was awesome! Eli learned so much from her!

Ms. Renee is the directed and helped out in the classes! She is awesome as well! We were so lucky to have Eli in preschool there!

Eli will go back to preschool there next year, but he will have a different teacher b/c he's going 3 days a week, instead of 2! We will miss Ms. Karri! Thank you for all you did this year!

(I don't know why it's leaving all that space at the top...it did it on my last one too!)

Easter Eggs!

2011-04-25T11:17:00.000-07:00

So we waited til the last minute to dye Easter eggs!

We decided to dye them Saturday afternoon!

Cole had just woken up from his nap, so he's a little out of it!

Eli did GREAT!

glasses

2011-04-22T05:42:00.000-07:00

Cole got glasses a week ago.

Poor boy got my bad eyes!

We noticed a few months ago that he was having a lazy eye.

I mentioned it to our pediatrician and he sent us to a pediatric optometrist.

I was hoping that I wasn't right. That maybe I was just imagining things!

Unfortunetly, I was right! It's very slight and he was impressed that I noticed it already.

But, it's a good thing I did. Hopefully the glasses will correct things and he won't have to have surgery like I did.

He does AWESOME with them! He rarely takes them off. I think it's usually when he has smudges on them.
I could not be more proud of this little guy!
He's far exceeded my expectations with them!
He's been such a trooper!

And, how adorable is he?? Such a sweetie!!

I hope this NEVER happens!!

2011-04-15T18:22:00.001-07:00

Our friend, Derek, works for the Police Dept. He also works for Aaron with the guttering business. The other day he stopped by and this is what happened!

Eli got arrested! (Notice one brother is arrested and the other one is holding a gun?!)

Put in the police car.

Yes...what one brother does, so must the other!

They had fun. We did talk to Eli and tell him that it's fun now to sit in a police car, but how serious it can be when he's older!

When Derek left he turned on the lights and sirens. I'm sure our neighbors were wondering what was going on! That better be the last tme I see both of my sons in the back of a police car!

I am so ready for this...

2011-04-08T19:03:00.000-07:00

SUMMER!!!!!!

I caved!

The ice cream truck stopped right infront of our house today.

Both boys were outside and it was HOT!

So, they got popsicles!

Eli was very neat and clean with his!

Cole...well, you can see how that went!

We then got water guns out and played for a while.

It was a fun afternoon to come home to after work!!

I am so excited for this summer and spending more time with my boys!

Come on summer!!!!!!!!

presents

2011-04-07T19:10:00.000-07:00

Since we had a birthday party with Eli's friends at the fire station, we decided to keep things low key with the Grandparents! Good thing too, since Eli was running a fever.

His favorite things: soccer, Transformers, Power Rangers and Spiderman!

We enrolled Eli in Newton United for instructional soccer. So we got him the things he needed: a water bottle, shin guards, shorts and ball!

Happy Birthday, Eli! We love you!

We felt so bad for you that you had a fever on your birthday (and 3 more days after that!)

birthday boy

2011-04-04T07:08:00.000-07:00

Four years ago Aaron and I were blessed to become parents for the first time!

I can't believe our baby is turning 4 today!

Eli is one of the best blessings we could have ever asked for!

He LOVES to play outside!

He has such an imagination! He can play by himself for hours! I love listening to him play!

He loves his baby brother and usually so good to him!

He has a kind heart and a loving spirit!

He is smart and loves to ask questions to find out more!

He loves to spend time with his grandparents and is completely spoiled by all of them!

He is loved by so many and we are truly grateful for that!

Happy Birthday sweet boy! We love you so much!

Oh...these faces!!

2011-04-03T12:41:00.000-07:00

Ever since Eli turned 3, it is almost impossible to get picture that truly captures his beautiful smile! It almost always looks like this:Every once in a while I can get one that looks like this:

So, what do you think his brother picks up on?

Yep! This:

Good thing they are so cute!

birthday party!

2011-04-02T19:33:00.000-07:00

This year we decided to have Eli's party with just his friends!

He said; "Only boys can come Mom."

(Except Mom's...we were aloud!)

We had it at one of Eli's favorite places, the fire station!

It was a lot of fun! (Despite the look on Eli's face below!)

Spiderman came to the firestation!

After cupcakes, ice cream and openning presents we toured the station and headed outside to see the ladder truck!

It was so much fun to celebrate Eli's birthday this way!

I'm not sure that he realizes he hasn't actually had his birthday yet!!

little helpers

2011-03-15T18:47:00.000-07:00

We made pizza the other day. I have such good helpers!

They loved it! (And each other!)

18 months

2011-02-21T18:11:00.000-08:00

Wow! I can't believe my baby is already 18 months!

He is so much fun!

He is talking a lot...repeats everything you say!

I can't wait for this summer to spend more time with him!

I love you sweet pea!

You have such a loving spirit and we are truly blessed to have you!

wrestling

2011-02-12T19:32:00.001-08:00

This happens ALL the time in my house!

Aaron was a wrestler...Eli can't wait to be a wrestler.

Cole...he just joins the fun!

It makes for a crazy, loud time in my house, but I love it!

It's kind of nice to be the queen of my house!

snow day

2011-02-03T11:40:00.000-08:00

We had 2 snow days this week.

This NEVER happens!

So, we got to hang out and do whatever we wanted.

Here's a little bit of what we did!

A little bit of reading!

Bubba climbed in too!

A little bit of Spiderman!

A little bit of running around, almost naked!
And a little bit of watching the blizzard outside! Wishing they could play out there! But it was below zero outside!

I loved the time at home with my boys. However, it was starting to get crazy since we couldn't get out at all!! It was a nice break!

love

2011-01-22T10:43:00.000-08:00

These 2 have a love/hate relationship!

Cole LOVES Paco.

Paco LOVES that Cole feeds him!

Cole HATES when Paco follows him around when he has food.

I'm pretty sure that Paco HATES it when Cole is all over him! (But he lets him do it!)

And me...it drives me crazy!!

Typical: Paco following Cole around since he has food!

Cole: teasing and Paco watching his every move!

Yep: Can you tell? Cole has dropped some. Paco's on it though!

And, the rest went to Paco. He always seems to win in these situations!

Oh well! Paco does do a nice job of cleaning up after dinner!

teething

2011-01-16T12:36:00.000-08:00

I had forgotten what the second year of a child's life can be like!
Eli was not pleasant when he was teething...but Cole, whew!

Let's just say he's made Eli look like a walk in the park!

And for those of you who don't even know your children are teething, I don't want to hear from you! :)

This is just a little bit of what I saw most of the day!

Bless his little heart! At one point he had 6 teeth coming in all at once...4 of them being molars. Now all of them have at least come through, so there must be more! Yipee!

Good thing he's so cute and I love him with all my heart, or I might lose my mind!

too early?

2011-01-15T16:00:00.000-08:00

Aaron got Eli a Red Rider BB gun for Christmas.

He'll be 4 in April. I had some hesitations about it!

But, he's been very good at explaining safety to him.

And, it's locked up in our gun safe!

He's only shot it this one time...maybe in a few more years he'll be more interested!

I don't know what was being said, but I love their faces!

Then, Aaron was shooting the BB gun and Eli a water gun!

this little guy...

2010-12-28T11:34:00.000-08:00

This little guy thinks he can sit at the big table instead of his high chair!
Big brother does it, so why can't he??

So this morning he got to...he did pretty well!

He thinks he did a pretty good job too!
Pancakes are easy...the messy stuff he has to sit in his highchair!

trucks, trucks and more trucks!

2010-12-27T06:09:00.000-08:00

Can you tell we're ALL boy around here??

There's no princess/girly things in this household!

It's ALL trucks, trucks and more trucks!

It seemed like every present the boys got had something to do with trucks!

This isn't even half of them...I found a lot more later all around the house!

Even though we got a lot of trucks...I wouldn't have it any other way!

I love my boys to pieces and I LOVE watching play with all the trucks!

They have such an imagination!

merry christmas!

2010-12-26T12:55:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!
No good family pictures today!

Too many toys and distractions for these boys!

Oh well!

gifts

2010-12-22T11:20:00.000-08:00

So I've been busy making these...

They are coasters. We made them last year with our family pictures on them and gave them to our family.

This year I made them with scrapbooking paper and sticker letters.

I gave them to Eli's preschool teachers, my aides, etc.

They were perfect!

I still have more to make and have yet to make any for myself!

cookies

2010-12-16T16:53:00.000-08:00

Last year we started an annual cookie decorating night at our school.
All 3 of us Kindergarten teachers make all the cookies and everyone else brings things to decorate them! It's a fun time for us to get together with our staff and our kids! We take pictures and make a scrapbook of our night. It was fun to see how much they had grown since last year.

Well...we were eating dinner before we went and Eli got sick. So, we didn't get to go. Eli and I were bummed! So we decorated some of the cookies a little later. Eli wasn't up for it too much. He didn't even ask to eat one! We tried to make it fun! Oh well, there's always next year!

gift

2010-12-14T14:06:00.000-08:00

I received one of the best gifts ever this year!
My aide in my classroom made this for me!

Yes...made it!
She hand painted EVERY little piece on here!

I LOVE IT!

She said she thought it was something fun for me and the boys to do!

She was absolutely right!

We've had so much fun.

By the time we are done, we will have the whole nativity scene.

Perfect!

Hello Woody!

2010-12-08T19:11:00.000-08:00

So, I bought these pajamas for Eli.
They are Toy Story; Woody and Buzz Lightyear!

I didn't realize he would want to wear them to play in!

This was the day he decided to be Woody!

I kept hearing, "There's a snake in my boot!"

I love this kid!

preschool

2010-11-23T18:42:00.000-08:00

Eli's preschool put on a Fall program.

They'll have a Christmas one next year!

I took time off work to come and watch it, then I took him to lunch.

Here he is; happy, excited to start the program.

This would be where he started wining, crying for me. Seriously? I have such a Mama's boy on my hands!

He moved his square over by me and then he participated. I had to give my camera to someone across from me so I could get some pictures of him! All I could see was the back of his head!

Cute turkey cookies afterwards!

2 of Eli's friends from preschool; Brody and Jace!
His "Thankful Turkey" says; toys, my mama, my daddy, my baby brother, my friends.

Sweet boy! We are thankful for you too!

cousins

2010-11-22T18:28:00.000-08:00

We don't have a big family.
My boys only have 1 cousin.

So...they LOVE him to pieces!

Kisses and lovin for Josiah!

Love it!

I'm pretty sure he loves them too!

You should have seen his face when they were lovin on him!

messy boy!

2010-11-07T12:18:00.000-08:00

What a messy boy!

But, how you LOVE spaghetti!!

(This was a close as Daddy would get to you!)

Good thing it was bath night!

Halloween

2010-10-31T19:43:00.000-07:00

We had Spiderman and Monkey at our house this year!

First...both Grandparent's houses!
I think we should make this an annual thing! 8 kids...all 4 and under!

Then back to the house for pumpkin bars and hot chocolate! Yummm!
And...a bowl full of candy!

It was fun to get together with our friends and the kids! It's fun to see how much they have changed since last year!

Happy Halloween!

blogging

2010-10-30T13:53:00.001-07:00

As you can see...I haven't been up for much blogging!

Sorry to those of you who keep checking!

Life is busy.

I have lots of pictures, that I will hopefully post soon.

Just not motivated to do it now!

More motivated to spend time with my family!

I know not many people read this or care, but to my family that does...sorry! :)

Have a Happy Halloween!

"O" for Ollie!

2010-10-06T20:11:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is "Show and Tell" day at preschool!

We have searched our house high and low for something that starts with "O."

We've found nothing!

Then we saw a picture of Ollie!

Ollie is one of Eli's friends and his name starts with "O!"

So this is the pictures Eli is taking to school tomorrow!

It's kind of old, but it was the best one I had of them!

Thanks Ollie!!!

sweet

2010-09-30T19:16:00.001-07:00

This is so sweet!
I love that my boys love to read and that Aaron reads with them!

Of course, they are usually books about trucks!

This one makes me smile. I didn't get a great picture, but you can see Cole looking at Aaron smiling!
And...pointing! Cole LOVES books just as much as Eli does!

I guess the teacher in my loves that they love books! They're so fun to read with too!

cake

2010-09-27T19:50:00.000-07:00

Cole was not such a fan of the cake!

We did these same pictures of Eli...he had it ALL over himself!

He LOVED it!

Cole...not so much!

We had to force him into it...then he threw up!

Yeah, it was nice! Meg was gracious enough to not take pictures of that part!

They are 2 very different boys, but we love them both with all our hearts!

We did get a few smiles out of him!

Most were before he forced him touching the cake!

Oh...this face!

2010-09-16T18:07:00.000-07:00

Seriously, Eli??

I didn't realize getting family pictures would be this hard!

Eli has this AWFUL fake smile.

He's trying to be "natural" but it's not working for him!

Finally...that beautiful smile!

We did get some good ones! I guess this is our life...:)

I may buy some of these with the bad faces to show him later in life!

Thanks, Meg for taking these! We love them!

We knew it was going to happen...

2010-09-13T18:56:00.001-07:00

It was only a matter of time before this happened:

Eli loves his John Deere tractor and now, so does Cole!!

You can hear how excited Cole was and I was so proud of Eli for sharing his tractor!

I'm so excited for these two to play together as they grow up!

A big day!!

2010-09-09T16:13:00.001-07:00

It was a big day our house today! Our little man went off to preschool!

He did great!

I think I had a harder time than he did!

Outside the preschool: Apple A Day!

Eli with his awesome teacher, Ms. Karri! (He was too interested in the kid behind us!)
Finding his hook: Apple #6

Such a big boy!

I was so proud of Eli! He did perfect!

Once he hung his backpack, he could go play. That was the end of me! He gave me a kiss and hug and said, "Bye, Mom! See ya later!"

My eyes filled up with tears and I headed out the door.

I was lucky enough to take him today and pick him up! He had a GREAT day! He could tell me a lot of things that happened. Who knows how much really did, but I LOVED it!!

Look Alike??

2010-08-28T19:34:00.000-07:00

You be the judge!
I'm always told how much Eli and Cole look alike.

I don't really see it...You be the judge!

Eli eating his cupcake on his first birthday:

Cole eating his cupcake:

Eli in his birthday shirt:

Cole in his:

Maybe it's just because I'm their Mom and I see them as different individuals...

I see some similarities, but definitely don't think they look identical!

Eli is starting to look more like me...and Cole, well he definitely looks like his Daddy!!

Love them both so much and I'm kind of glad they don't look identical!

I love that they are different with their personalities and looks!

No matter how different or similar they look/are...I LOVE them both with all my heart!

Our Little Monkey!

2010-08-21T18:53:00.000-07:00

That was our theme this year for Cole's birthday party!

Monkey's!

We call him our little monkey a lot, so it seemed fitting!

I went simple...I'm not a creative/crafty person.

I've tried to be...but I'm just not that person and I'm ok with that!

The cupcakes turned out cute...I stole the idea from a friend!

I can't believe you're 1!!!

Happy Birthday Sweet Little Boy!

Happy 1st Birthday Cole!!!

2010-08-21T08:37:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's been a year!
Time has gone so fast!

Cole joined our lives a year ago today at 9:43am!

He is the perfect addition to our family!

Happy 1st Birthday Sweet Baby Cole!!!

1 day old:

1 month

2 months (sorry for the blurry picture!)

3 months
4 months

5 months

6 months

7 months

8 months

9 months

10 months

11 months
Happy 1st Birthday Baby Cole!!!

Things to remember:

You are eating only table foods!

You are only taking 2 bottles still! (I'm not so ready to give those up yet!)

You are WALKING!!! Tying to run! :)

You LOVE your big brother and try to do everything he does!

You smile melts our hearts!

You are ornery! (In a cute way!)

You are a Daddy's boy!

crazy!

2010-08-03T20:18:00.001-07:00

We are crazy! We decided to go to the zoo on one of the hottest days of the week/summer!

But, Aaron's sister and fiance are here visiting and we wanted to go!

So we went.

It was HOT.

Luckily, they have a lot of indoor places with AC that we could take breaks in!

The kids were troopers.

It was fun!

(I don't have the greatest pictures! I need a new camera, but just won't really want to spend the money on one yet!!)

Part of the crew...Aaron was on the phone and I'm not sure where Aunt Gerri was!
Have you ever wondered how a giraffe bends down to get something from the ground?? It really can't!
Look how H.O.T Eli is!! And this was only about 10am!
1 of 3 attempts to get them to take a picture. Cole was just not cooperating!

I will not

2010-07-29T13:59:00.000-07:00

I will not send Eli to school like this!
He may ask me to, but I can't do it!

Yes, I am that Mom!

I will control what he wears, while I can!

This was his way of "hiding" from me!

See...he was emabarrassed too!

A big milestone!

2010-07-28T16:45:00.000-07:00

Yep, Cole is walking!

He's been walking a little bit for a while.

But now he's got it down pretty good!

He still likes to crawl, but tries walking first!

He's faster at crawling!

Babies walking are so cute!

(Excuse Eli yelling in the background! He gets so excited for Cole!!)

11 months

2010-07-24T07:39:00.000-07:00

Wow...I can't believe that in less than a month my little baby will be 1!!

His first year has seemed to fly by way faster than Eli's did...not sure why?!

Cole has been the PERFECT addition to our family!

It's working...

2010-07-20T08:13:00.000-07:00

We have been struggling with Eli getting out of bed at night.

Some nights he would get up 3-4 times.

Nothing's wrong, he just wonders into our room and then I have to get up and take him back to bed.

Yes, me. If Aaron tries, he cries and screams.

So, we put a gate up infront of his door!

And, it's been working!

He doesn't wake up and yell from his room, which is what I thought would happen.

The only time he gets up is in the morning.
Yay!!

I told him after a few nights we would take the gate down and see how he does.

We'll try soon!

I don't know...does it seem cruel??!!

splash park

2010-07-18T19:36:00.001-07:00

So we have been meaning to come to the splash park all summer and have never made it! Since it's been 100+ degrees outside, we thought tonight would be a good time!

We tried to go to the Newton one, but it wasn't working!

Imagine that...the first summer it's open and it's not working! Nice!

So, we had some tears and decided we better head to Hesston.

It was fun!

There was only 1 other kid there most of the time...even better!!

I love seeing him so excited!!

Cole did a lot of roaming! He didn't like the water at first, but then he wasn't afraid of crawling right through it!! Yes, I know the onsie hanging out of his suit is a little "ugly", but that's what happens when you let Daddy dress them!!
Yes, Cole is walking some!! He can take up to 10 steps, but them still likes to crawl! Cement is so hard on the knees!

6 years

2010-07-17T07:54:00.001-07:00

6 years ago today, I married my best friend!

We have grown a lot as a couple...you know when you're "young" you think everything will be so easy!!!

I love him more every day.

He is a great Daddy to our boys and a great example of a man following Christ.

I love you, Aaron!

(Wow, look how young we look!! I never thought I would say that!)
What a great day it was!!! So much fun!

The thing I remember most about our wedding: Aaron forgot to throw his gum away and he was chomping on it through out the WHOLE ceremony!!

(He was so nervous!)

Love you Aaron!!!!

i didn't know...

2010-07-12T08:11:00.001-07:00

That this cute little onsie had a tail!!

We went to the Pittsburg Zoo and I always get the boys shirts when we go to other zoos.

Cole got this cute giraffe onsie and I didn't realize it had a tail on the bottom!

So cute!

(I couldn't get a picture of the front b/c he kept crawling towards me!)

swim lessons

2010-07-12T06:37:00.001-07:00

I decided to have Eli start swim lessons this summer.
He is such a little fish and loves to be in the water so I wanted him to start learning what to do!

He did great!

He listen so well to Cathy and by the end of his sessions he was practically doing a back and front float on his own.

(She would hold him with 1 finger b/c the minute she'd take it away he would stop!)

He did so well that I'm going to do 3 more session in a couple weeks just to refresh him!

If you're looking for someone who does private lessons, let me know and I can hook you up!

Cathy did AWESOME!!

(Oh...this was his first day, so he looks a bit timid! But trust me, after the first day or so, he was great!)

beautiful

2010-06-29T18:24:00.000-07:00

These views are beautiful.

It almost makes me forget about my van.

They sure do look better than my van!

The weather was awesome...70's and 40's in the morning.

Perfect.

(Can you tell we're freezing?!!)

It's amazing to look at God's creation.

Breath-taking and beautiful!

a sign that we're done traveling...

2010-06-27T20:08:00.000-07:00

Yes...we are D.O.N.E. traveling. First, my Grandad passes away and then we are in a wreck while in Colorado. We were stopped and a Dodge Ram truck plowed into the back of us. The police said she didn't even hit the breaks and was going around 25-30 mph. Me, along with 2 other ladies were sitting the back seat. We are SO lucky that we walked away with no injuries. God was watching over us and protecting us for sure.

So...we had to leave it in Colorado. It's a mess. We don't know what is going to happen for sure. Probably totaled and we'll have to get a new one.

Nice, huh?!

90

2010-06-23T08:05:00.001-07:00

The reason we went to Pennsylvania was to celebrate this amazing woman, my Great-Grandma! It was her 90th brithday!

Wow...what an accompishment!

She's great! No major health concerns.

Funny, witty and still very with-it!

I hadn't seen her since I was about 8 years old.

She had lived in California until this past year.

It was so good to see her!

I'm going to guess that in 10 years we'll be celebrating her 100th birthday!

This was supposed to be a 5 generation picture. My grandma was at the hospital with my Grandad. (We might photshop her in there!)

4 grandchildren with their grandma (oldest to youngest from L-R)

2 of her 6 great-great grandchildren! (Cole was not really cooperating!)

Even though this trip did not go as planned, I'm so glad we could be there to celebrate the 90 years my Great-Grandma has had!

It was amazing to me how she can remember stories. She had a few of me that she remembered way back when I was only 4 years old!

I love you Grandma and I'm so glad we got to see you again!

10 months

2010-06-22T11:03:00.000-07:00

This sweet little boy is 10 months old. I can't believe that in 2 months we'll be celebtrating his first birthday!

Things to remember:

Cole has 2 teeth...the 2 bottom ones. He's working on the top 2!

He pulls up to everthing and is walking behind anything that will move!

He sleeps through the night...most nights. Except when he's getting those darn teeth!

He naps well!!!

His smile will melt anyones heart!

He's happy most of the time...most day!

We LOVE him so much! He is truly a blessing in our lives!

Grandad

2010-06-21T11:55:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, my Grandad went to Heaven.

And even though I know it is a better place and he's not in pain or suffering anymore, it's so hard.

In fact, it stinks.

I hate death. I know it's selfish, but I do.

The last time that I saw him was 3 years ago when he came to meet Eli!

I was so looking forward to our trip this past week to Pennsylvania so see him and my Grandma again and for them to meet Cole.

Needless to say, he did not get to meet them.

We got there Tuesday and he passed away on Satuday morning.

I did get to see him and tell him that I love him.

He didn't know I was there, or he didn't acknowledge it. (Maybe he could hear me??!!)

I love you, Grandad.
I miss your smile, your laugh, the sound you made when you gave us a kiss when we were little!
You were a man of integrity.
You loved your family and did everything for them.
You mean the world to me and I miss you so much.
I can't wait to see you again.

bath time

2010-05-29T20:09:00.001-07:00

One AWESOME thing, among many others, of have 2 boys is that they can take baths together!!!

I have started having Eli and Cole take baths together, especially the nights Aaron is working. It's a lot faster and they do pretty well!

The other night they were splashing and have so much fun!

By the smiles on those faces, I'm going to say they were having a lot of fun!

He loves these things!!

2010-05-29T19:59:00.001-07:00

I forgot how the littlest things entertain babies!

Yep, Cole loves the air vents in our house! He bangs on them and he can even pull them up (only the ones on the hardwood floor!)

He also loves how the air blows on his face or hands!

So today I got some cute pictures of him playing with them and then standing by it. He was smiles all the way!!!

I believe this was mid-squeal!!

9 months

2010-05-26T13:15:00.000-07:00

We had Cole's 9 month pictures taken today! He is such a ham!!! I love his smile!

Here are some of my favs!

Cole's 9 month visit went well! He weighs 19lbs. 6oz.

You are crawling EVERYWHERE!

You pull up to EVERYTHING!

You like to walk behind things and some people think you'll be walking before summer is over! Maybe since you'll be 1 at the end of summer!

You are such a joy to have in our lives.

You make me smile every day and my love grows for you every day!

Love you Baby Cole!!!

my cowboy

2010-05-15T17:33:00.000-07:00

I love Eli's imagination. He can entertain himself all day long! One of his favorite things is being a cowboy! And cowboys drive tractors, combines and dump trucks! (This is according to Eli!)

So this was my cowboy today!

The high chair was his ladder and he was fixing things!

I love you my little cowboy!!!

you would never know...

2010-05-11T18:36:00.000-07:00

that I feel down a flight of stairs today, with that smile!!

Yep, I just had to see what happens with those stairs.

I'm fine.

Only have this thing on my eye from hitting a basket at the end of the stairs.

Scared Grandma and Aunt Nikki.

I'm afraid that is only the start of things I'll be doing to scare them and my Mommy!

(And yes, Mom called the doctor's office. They said that babies can handle a lot more than we think. Based off of the things Mom told them, they thought I was fine! I even had Daddy nervous!)

My heart melted when I pulled up and saw his face. I didn't know what had happened. Then when I heard, my heart jumped up to my throat. He's at that age...I completely remember it with Eli. I just wanted to put him in a bubble. I hate when they take spills at this awkward stage. I guess that's why they're so limber! But, like I said, he's fine!

Love you Baby Cole!!

Mother's Day

2010-05-09T07:51:00.001-07:00

I am so blessed that God intrusted us with these two precious boys. They are my world and I am so thankful for them each day. There is no greater joy than being a Mommy!

I am also so blessed to have this amazing woman as my Mom.

She is my best friend.

We talk everyday.

She knows everything about me. (Good and bad!)

She is an awesome Grandma!

She has done so much for me.

I love you Mom for everything you are and everything you have done.

Happy Mother's Day!

makes me smile...

2010-05-04T05:10:00.000-07:00

8 months

2010-04-23T19:32:00.001-07:00

Yep...this is how I look about 90% of the time! My nickname: "Smiley"

This child is almost ALWAYS smiling! It melts our hearts! How can you not smile back to that!

You're not crawling just yet! You move ALL over the room, so it's not safe to leave you very many places! You pull up on things, which make Mommy sooo nervous!

Your brother still "woves" you will all his heart, but he's starting to question why you don't want "baby" toys and want his tractors and firetrucks. He'll have to learn quickly that we will share in this house!

Happy 8 months Cole! We love you and that smile so much!

my buddy

2010-04-20T19:04:00.001-07:00

I love him! With Aaron's work schedule, Eli has become my little buddy!

We spend lots of time together and get to talk a lot.

I love it! It's so nice that he is old enough to have conversations with and we have some very interesting conversations!!

I love you Eli!!

can't wait!

2010-04-17T14:54:00.001-07:00

My parents bought this:

We can't wait to spend more time out at the lake and relax! It was so nice last night. Eli loved it and Cole is happy any time he's outside!

spring

2010-04-15T18:58:00.000-07:00

I love it! I love that it is spring time. We have been outside everyday enjoying it. I could do without so much wind, but I'm still loving it! Both boys LOVE being outside. In fact I often have to rag Eli in kicking and screaming (we are working on that though!) I can't wait for the summer to spend it with my 2 boys! They are so much fun!

josiah

2010-04-12T20:14:00.000-07:00

Nikki came over tonight so we could spend time with her and Josiah. Eli and Cole get to see Josiah all day, but I enjoyed the company since Aaron was working! I didn't take any pictures while Cole was awake (mainly b/c we were outside right up to his bedtime!) So here are some pictures of Eli and his cousin Josiah.

Oh...and here are just a few of the adorable things Eli has to say about him!

"He's so cute!" "Awww, I love him so much!" "He's looking at me!" "Awww, I love you baby Josiah!"

LOOK AT THAT PRECIOUS FACE!!!!

Birthday and Easter

2010-04-06T18:43:00.000-07:00

So on Sunday, Eli got to celebrate his 3rd birthday AND Easter! It was a crazy day, but we tried to make it special for Eli. I think we were successful! We got lots of "I love you Mama/Daddy!" I can't believe that Eli is three. He is so special to us and we love him so much. Eli makes us laugh daily! He has become my little "buddy" when Aaron is working. It's nice to have someone in the house to talk to!

So, here's our day!

We got Eli a bike...he does GREAT on it! He did fall already, but it was so windy! He has a pretty nice "ouchy" on his knee!

Since it was Easter, we had an Easter Egg Hunt at Eli's birthday party! I think they had fun!

Then cake...the football didn't turn out exactly how I had planned, but Eli loved it!

Look at this face!!! (I had taken about 4 pictures of him before this one. I'm sure he's thinking, "Come on Aunt Shannon, enough already!!") He'll get used to it!

Eli was so excited that Josiah made it to his party! His first appearance of many.

We had a good day! It was nice to celebrate Eli's life and what he means to us.

Happy Birthday my precious "big" boy!

Mommy and Daddy love you so much.

three

2010-04-05T06:14:00.001-07:00

Eli is 3!! I can't believe it. He seems so big and so NOT a baby anymore! It amazes me to think he started out at only 6lbs. 8oz! When we left the hospital he was down to 5lbs. 13 oz. He has grown into such a healthy boy! We love him so much!

Here are some of my favorites of his 3 year pictures. I will have more of his party later!I LOVE that smile! It melts my heart. Especially when it's followed by, "I love you mama!"

Happy Birthday Eli!

April 4, 2007

We are...

2010-03-30T20:39:00.001-07:00

An Aunt:And an Uncle:

Josiah Camden Battles

8lbs. 14oz. 19 1/4 inches long 7:55pm

We are so excited to have Josiah join our family! He's so precious with his chubby cheeks!! We can't wait to get to know him and for him to meet his cousins! Eli is "patiently" waiting for his turn!

We will ALWAYS be here for you Josiah. Welcome to our family!

5 days

2010-03-30T07:23:00.000-07:00

5 days is all the seperates these 2 in age! They are so fun!

It's fun to get them together and play...and now listen to them talk to each other!

I can't believe they are turning 3 and will be starting preschool next year!

There is still a chance they could end up in the same class...look out to that teacher!!!

They are both sweet boys and we are lucky that Eli has such a good friend, at such an early age!

Happy Birthday Ollie!

Love,

Eli

7 months

2010-03-25T13:23:00.000-07:00

Wow Mr. Cole...I can't believe you are 7 months old!

I feel like I just posted about you being 6 months! You are getting so big!

You went for your 6 month check-up last week, so it was more like a 7 month check up!

You are in the 91 percentile for height. Really?? Where does that height come from?!!

You were only in the 17 percentile for weight.

Tall, skinny boy on our hands!

Things you are doing:

Rolling over...you do it ALL the time, but have a harder time going back over. Especially at night. Which has made for some frustrating nights at our house lately!

You are eating all baby foods. We haven't found 1 you don't like! (Maybe you won't be as picky as your brother!)

Grabbing at EVERYTHING! (Even some of brother's toys, which he has not become very found of!)

Starting some table foods...stars, cheerios, etc.

Sleeping through the night!!

Most of all, you LOVE to interact with your brother! He makes you laugh more than any can. (He has you in tears a few times too, but I'm sure there is more of that to come!)

Happy 7 months Cole!

You are a blessing from God and we love you so much!

Go Cats!

2010-03-25T06:11:00.000-07:00

So proud of the Cats for making it this far! The first time in 22 years that they have made it to the Sweet 16! Even if this is the end of the road for them, I am SO proud of them! EMAW!!!!!

LET'S GO CATS!!!!!!!

(Sorry for the blurry picture. Eli has been playing with my camera!)

sweatshirt

2010-03-17T12:53:00.000-07:00

Never would I think that a "almost" 3 year old would be so obsessed with a sweatshirt! But Eli LOVES this sweatshirt! He got it as a hand-me-down from his friend Zach.

Zach is a 6th grader this year and is so kind to play with Eli. He's a busy kid, but when he does have some free time he will play with Eli. Eli loves him and adores him. I'm fine with that b/c Zach is such a great kid. He is a perfect kid for Eli to admire and look up to. Anyways, this sweatshirt is a Warrior Football sweatshirt and Eli calls it "Zach's football team."

Thanks Zach for being a good friend to Eli.

games

2010-03-09T16:08:00.001-08:00

Eli is at the fun age where you can teach him how to play games and he gets it! I was just saying that for his birthday we should get him some games to play. Today Eli and Cole's Great-Aunt Gerri came to visit. She brought gifts! Eli got this fishing game.

It was PERFECT for him. He loves it and he's actually pretty good at it!

So we had some family time of playing the fishing game.

Look at Cole...he wants to play too!

Eli did let Cole have one of the fishing poles to play with!

I love these two! I can't wait for Cole to get a little bigger so he can actually play games with us. I'm sure I will have my hands full at that point!

baby josiah

2010-03-07T11:59:00.000-08:00

We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of Baby Josiah! Aaron's sister, Nikki, is having a baby that is due to be here on April 1st! We are hoping sooner, but they have a mind of their own! In fact, Eli prayed the other night that Josiah would come that night and he'd be able to play with him the next day! We are praying daily for baby Josiah and his safe arrival!

Nikkis' friend, Emily, hosted a shower for her yesterday. It was very nice and Nikki got a lot of great things!

(A lot more gifts showed up...I just took this picture early!)

Look how huge those cupcakes are! Massive!!

You have a such a beautiful smile, Nikki! You look great!

Yes, games were played! I have to say that I was WAY off. I think my paper went around her almost 2 times. Ooops!

Nikki and her mom...Grandma Gail!!

Nikki, I am so excited for you and for Josiah to get here. You will be great mom and he will be blessed to have you. We pray for you daily...that God will be with you during your delivery and that Josiah will be healthy and perfect in every way! Remember that I am a phone call away when you need help...and you SHOULD ask for help.

We love you and Josiah and can't wait for him to get here!

Cole

2010-02-27T13:29:00.000-08:00

We took Cole to get his 6 month pictures taken today at JcPenny's. It's way cheap and they turn out cute! But how could they not with those blue eyes and great smile. Here are some of my favorites!

This is my new trick! We have several with the tongue out! So cute!

6 months

2010-02-26T04:23:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe our little baby is 6 months old. He just seems so little! I remember with Eli I couldn't wait for him to do all of the "milestones." I just want Cole to stay little! But, he's not. He's growing and doing so much! It's so fun to watch.I love your bright blue eyes! They light up everytime you smile or look at your Mommy, Daddy and big brother, Eli.

So big! You are sitting so well...don't even really need the boppy pillow, but it makes Mommy feel better for you to have it! You still topple over some!

You love to sit and play with your toys. Your brother even brings you some of his tractors to play with. Your favorite thing to do is jump in your jumper! Your legs are always on the go! I can't imagine what that means for us in the near future!

You are sleeping through the night and take great naps! (Very different from your brother!)

You laugh, really belly laugh, at your brother. Your eyes light up and you get the biggest smile when Eli walks or runs into the room. Sometimes you even squeel! I love it!

Cole...we are so blessed to have you in our lives. You and your brother mean the world to us and we love you so much.

Happy 6 months "buster"!!!

I needed this...

2010-02-19T19:16:00.000-08:00

Have you ever gotten "snail mail" or an email that made your day? Today I did...an email from a friend that did just that! She always seems to know when I'm needing an encouraging word! Thanks Kendall! You are an amazing person and God is using you to do amazing things! Thank you for your friendship!

Here is part of the email:
I was thinking about teaching. How God calls us to love the 'broken, hurt, lonely, orphans, children'...Wondering how to do that, I realized that as teachers--that's what we do!!!

I know that working full-time and teaching such broken kids can be so draining and frustrating and overwhelming. But I am praying for you this week. God cares SO MUCH about those little ones you are loving. And you are investing yourself in little ones who can't give anything back to you--but 'great is your reward in heaven'! You're serving the very people God is calling us to love!!! So I hope that this lightens your load a bit--and I'm praying, too, that you have energy and joy in your job. And that you'd continue to find time to love your little guys, too!

Love, Kendall

brotherly love

2010-02-15T18:43:00.000-08:00

Eli is the only one that can make Cole really belly laugh!

The kind that makes you laugh along...and the kind that gives him the hiccups b/c he's laughing so hard! I love it!

Here are a couple of videos...of course as soon as I get the video camera out it slows down. But you can get the idea!

happy little boy

2010-02-06T11:31:00.000-08:00

I am so glad this happy little boy is back!!

He is taking 2 hour naps in the morning AND afternoon!

He is sleeping through the night, peacefully!

He is so pleasant to be around!

God has answered our prayers!

play doh

2010-02-06T08:48:00.000-08:00

Since Cole is feeling better these days and napping around 2 hours each time, this little guy and I have a LOT more time to spend together!

So today we got out the play-doh and made a "play-doh family!" It's interested how he thinks. Our family consists of 3 boys and 1 girl. However, to make his family, he wanted 2 boys and 2 girls!

I only got a picture of the 3 family memebers before my camera died! Look at the pink girl's hair. Eli said, "Her hair is like a rockstar!" Not sure where he picks up on these things, but he sure makes me laugh!

I'm so glad things have settled down so I can give this little guy more attention. I love him so much and can't believe he's going to be 3 in a couple of months!

long

2010-02-01T11:56:00.001-08:00

We've had long, long nights at our house.
Or...short nights if you think about how much sleep we are NOT getting.
Poor Cole.
We can't figure it out.
Monday after tube surgery...no sleep.
Up every hour.
ALL week long.
He was back on antibiotics again as of last week b/c Dr. Harris felt that the infection was probably not gone from when he got tubes.
So you would think things should get better, right?
Nope.
Still up...all night long.
Aaron's taking him in to the doctor again right now.
This was the suggestion of the on-call doctor that I was talking to last night at 12:30am...well, not talking to, crying to!
Seriously...something is NOT right.
I know it in my heart.
My baby is hurting, but we can't figure out why.
I'm hoping, praying and waiting for some answers.
I'm stuck at school waiting while Aaron is with Cole.
My mind is not with me today.

***UPDATE: He's fine! Really??? I guess my heart was wrong. His ears are cleared. Doctor thinks he's picked up on bad habits with all of his bad sleeping patterns this past month. So...his suggestion: LET HIM CRY. (He says even if it's for 2 hours.) Oh man...it could be some even longer nights in our house these next days.

please pray

2010-01-29T19:45:00.001-08:00

Please go here and read about Ella.

My friend, Megan, delievered Ella at 26 weeks after having some complications herself. She is so precious and beautiful. I can't wait until she is strong enough so that I can hold her! My heart is heavy for them right now. We've been through a lot this past month with our boys, but God never fails to remind me to trust in him. He has his hands on Ella and her family. He is in control. They can use prayers...so please pray for her.

Ella's beautiful Mommy and such a handsome brother, Carter!
Megan, I wish I could be closer, but you are in my prayers daily. I can't wait until Ella is strong and either I make it to KC or you make it home.

done.

2010-01-25T08:05:00.000-08:00

We are done.

We left our house this morning at 6am.

Checked in at 6:30am.

They took Cole from us at 7:15am and we were meeting with the doctor by 7:30am.

It's amazing how quick the surgery goes!

We were back with Cole by 7:40am.

He was NOT happy.

They said that was normal.

Screaming, not knowing what was going on around him...it was so sad.

Finally got him calmed down with a bottle.

We were heading home by 8am.

SO glad we are done with that.

We felt everyone's prayers. We thank you for those.

Cole thanks you!

Baby hospital gowns...so sad :( He was happy though for not eating since 8:45 last night!

Dr. Harris said things went well. He was surprised how happy Cole was considering all of the fluid and puss he sucked out of his ears. He said they were pretty bad, but he got it all so we should see a competely different baby. Yay!!!

We are so thankful to have Dr. Harris again. He did Eli's tubes and we had such good luck. We pray that Cole's will be just as successful. I'm so glad to have this over. We hope and pray this is the beginning of of the end of ear infections for little Cole! Thanks again for all of the prayers and thoughts. We felt all of them.

this little guy...

2010-01-24T20:00:00.000-08:00

is getting tubes tomorrow!

I pray that things go smoothly and that he will feel relief soon after.

I pray that we will be seeing this beautiful smile more often b/c he just feels so much better!

We love you Cole and are trying to do everything possible to make you feel better.

Ahhhh...

2010-01-23T20:53:00.001-08:00

We've tried!

We've failed!

He does NOT want to!

We've tried bribes...telling him he can't go to pre-school in a diaper...telling him about some of his friends that are potty trained.

He does NOT care!

He TOTALLY could do it.

He's scared.

He says it hurts to poop in the potty. (He does have pooping issues!) But those are under control right now!

Any suggestions?

Wait?

Push it?

Pretty soon he won't be able to fit into the diapers any more!

5 months

2010-01-22T19:53:00.000-08:00

Cole is 5 months old! I can't believe how fast time is going. It makes me so sad! I didn't even post anything about Cole's 4th month. Poor kid had an ear infection the ENTIRE month. So, now he's 5 months and gets tubes in his ears on Monday. Hopefully he'll be on the mend after that!

We love Cole so much. Words can not even begin to describe how much he means to our family. We brightens our day with his big smile and those great blue eyes! He softens my heart when he reaches up with his hands and touches my face and looks me in the eyes.

Eli was monitoring the drool! He doesn't like Cole to be messy! Everytime some would drip down, Eli would wipe his mouth and say, "There you go, that's better!"
He's such a good big brother! Eli LOVES Cole and Cole LOVES ELi!

Things Cole is doing:

Laughing...lots of it! Eli is the best at getting him to laugh. Even when Cole is upset, Eli can get him to laugh!

He likes to play in his exosaucer...which is also a jumper. He thinks it's great!

He likes to sit in his "bumbo" chair!

He is eating cereal and has tried squash and sweet potatoes!

When he's on his tummy, he pulls his legs under him as if he's going to try to go somewhere!

He has rolled over, but doesn't so it frequent! (Eli didn't either, must not really be their thing!!)

He's close to sleeping through the night ( I think he totally would be if he's ears wouldn't be messing with him all the time!)

He falls in the "long and skinny" category at the doctor! This is opposite of Eli. I'm wondering if Eli's going to be our wrestler and Cole a basketball player!

We love you, Cole. You complete our family and bring us so much joy!

prayers

2010-01-19T12:09:00.001-08:00

I haven't been blogging lately b/c things around here have been crazy. Cole has had double ear infections for about a month now. Just as he seems to get rid of them, they come back. It hasn't been fun around here. I feel so bad for my little guy.

We have a surgery scheduled for Monday to get tubes. However he couldn't make it 1 week without getting another infection. We were back in the doctor this morning with another infection. This time, Dr. Patron had us do lab work to make sure he's not missing something else. Cole's been so upset. He also wrote a prescription for loratab...for a baby? Yep, it's that bad :(

He had another antibiotic shot, a catheter and 2 tubes of blood drawn. They are checking his hemoglobin to make sure he's antibodies are working since he hasn't been able to fight these infections at all.

So, please pray that his tests come back fine.

Pray that Cole is able to get over this infection and STAY healthy to get his tubes on Monday.

Pray that the pain will go away so he can sleep. (and Mommy too!)

Pray that my happy little boy will come back soon.

wrestling

2010-01-07T19:52:00.000-08:00

It has officially started!

Aaron coaches middle school wrestling and they started practices Tuesday.

He loves it.

I love that he loves it!

Guess who else loves it?

Yep, Eli! How could he not?

Aaron's dad was a wrestler, Aaron was a wrestler and if you look at Eli, he just has that build! Tim got Eli that wrestling singlet for his brithday last year. Now anytime he wrestles around the house, he has to put in on. I have to admit, he looks pretty darn cute with it on!

Now, me? I'm not so much a wrestling fan. I don't dislike it, just not that interested in it. But I have a feeling that a few years down the road I will be a HUGE fan of it...one person in particular!

Christmas

2009-12-29T19:59:00.000-08:00

Well, Christmas was a little different for us this year. Aaron had to work on Christmas day, so we did all of our celebrating before Christmas even arrived. The way Aaron's schedule works, he won't have to work Christmas day for another 4 years. So, Eli will be 6 and Cole will be 4. That's crazy to think about, but glad it's not evey year!

We started with celebrating with just our family. We openned presents on Wednesday afternoon.

Here is a little video of Cole playing with his present! It was so funny! He hit that lever probably 5 or 6 times in a row!

Then we headed to my parent's house. We had a nice supper and then basically we watched Eli open his presents! Lots of good stuff!On Christmas eve, we were supposed to go to my Grandparent's house, but with all the snow we couldn't go. So we stayed at home and played! (Oh and I took Cole to the doctor and found out he had a DOUBLE EAR INFECTION...poor baby!)

Then we headed to the Kirtley's to open presents! Again, Eli got LOTS of presents...I think he's a little spoiled, or really loved!!

It was a great Christmas. We are truly blessed to have such wonderful family! I love spending time with all of them! Hope your Christmas was just as blessed!

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T12:12:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

From our family to yours!

We hope you have a very blessed Christmas celebrating the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Love,

Aaron, Shannon, Eli and Cole

laughing

2009-12-21T19:59:00.000-08:00

Cole has been really finding his voice lately!

I think he's noticing how loud his brother can be, so he's picked up on screaming...not angry, mad, upset screaming.

More like a high pitch shrill that lets you know he's in the room!

I actually really enjoy hearing that noise!

Eli loves it to!

He has become more interested in Cole lately b/c he can make him laugh and smile.

Now, I would NOT encourage this behavior as the boys get older, but for now it was cute!

And, yes, Eli knows that he is in NO way ever to hit Cole.

He's fine with that!

cookie decorating

2009-12-18T03:49:00.000-08:00

We started a new tradition for our South Breeze staff.

Cookie decorating!

There are 3 of us Kindergarten teachers and we provided ALL the cookies for our kiddos. I believe there were enough for each kid to have at least 9 cookies! They didn't take that many, but there were LOTS of cookies!

Look how excited Little Miss Adalyn was to decorate cookies!

Madalyn was just excited to see Austin!

Surprise visit from Santa! Eli said, "Hi Santa! Come on. Come over here!" Guess he's not shy about Santa anymore!

But...Madalyn was definetly NOT sure about Santa. (Little does she know, it was here Daddy!!)

Cole's too little to know the difference, but had a happy time just hanging out!

Then the cookie decorating began:

and eating....

It was so much fun! It will be fun to continue the tradition from year to year and watch our kids grow up having this tradition. I am truly blessed to work with such great people. As teachers we invest SO much time into other peoples kids...its nice to do things for our own kids to show them how much we LOVE them!

future wrestler

2009-12-15T19:57:00.000-08:00

Wrestling runs in the family.

Not my family! Aaron's family!

Aaron's dad was a wrestler.

Aaron was a wrestler...and coaches wrestling for our middle school in Newton.

So, what do you think Eli will be when he gets a little older???

Yep...I'm going to say a wrestler!

He got this singlet from Grandpa Tim for his birthday last year. The last few days he's been having us put him in it and LOVES to wrestle Aaron.

He tells me, "Look out mom. I'm wrestling!"

So look out...he might just want to wrestle you if you let him!

This is what goes on in my house ALL THE TIME!! I can only imagine how much more loud and crazy it will get when Cole is able to participate. For now he hangs out in the bouncy seat and watches! And no, Aaron is not slamming Eli down on the ground. He's actually very careful with him. Aaron did inform me today that Eli has learned a few wrestling moves these last few days since he's been home with him. Oh boy!

I love it though! I wouldn't trade any of it! I love that my house is loud and that Eli is ALL boy! I love that Cole will be able to play with Eli. I LOVE all 3 of my boys!

christmas cookies

2009-12-15T19:46:00.000-08:00

We are starting a new tradition at our school this Christmas season. Our Kindergarten team of teachers decided we would make LOTS of sugar cookies and invite our staff to come with their kids to decorate them! We have a large staff and LOTS of kids! So tonight Eli and I made our cookies. He's such a big helper! I love that he wants to do things like this with me! I can't wait to help him decorate them on Thursday!

project 2: christmas cards

2009-12-12T11:08:00.000-08:00

So my next project was the get my Christmas cards, stuffed and addressed.

I know...it's not a craft. However it is something that I really needed to get done!

So, they're done!

Ready to go out on Monday!

Yeah for being productive!!!

project 1: burp cloths

2009-12-11T22:06:00.000-08:00

This weekend I am at Maple Memories in McPherson.
There are 12 of us lovely women here.

It's fun!

I'm up WAY past my bedtime...but I don't have to get up with a baby tonight!

Project 1: Burp cloths!

Never made them before, but thought I would try it out! So far, somewhat successful! I am definetly NOT a seamstress! Some are for a gift and some are for me!

So, 3 was enough for me tonight! Tomorrow...not sure what project I'll work on! Kind of putting off the scrapbooking!