Blue Cougs n Ham

Saturday, April 17, 2010

"The Face"

We call this "the face." I hear it often, "hey mom, Easton is making the face!" Easton does this whenever he is frustrated. In this picture he is wanting me to hand over the food. No matter when he does it, I laugh. I just can't help it.

And this face I love!

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Colorado

For Spring Break we piled in the car and took off to the west. We love the mountains! We love visiting our family! We had lots of chances to visit with the fam and lots of chances to be outside enjoying the beauty. There is something about Colorado that truly draws our family there. We love the hiking trails, the views, and the way it all makes us amazed by God's creations. So here are a few of our fun pics.

Hiking with Grandpa and Dad

Easton and Pikes Peak

We went with Grandma and Grandpa to Garden of the Gods. One of our favorite places to be.

At the zoo - the boys with cousin Hannah.

With our Colorado Cousins.

My brother told us about this great museum just outside of Denver called Wildlife Experience that we loved! It was so well done and lots to learn.

This was an exhibit about butterflies. The boys along with Grandpa were learning what is feels like to creep along as a catepillar would.

One Decade

So as I am far behind on blogging I need to blog about my amazing son who nearly a month ago turned ten. He told us many a time on his big day that he was a decade old (which also made his parents feel a bit older). Mason has a love of learning and reading. He has an amazing talent for the piano. And an even better talent for being a big brother. I love his sense of humor, I am often blown away at his quick wit and use of words. Love you little guy!

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Happy 1st Batman!

So much fun to celebrate this little guy! We feel so blessed to have him as part of our family. He gives lots of loves and smiles. Our family, along with some wonderful friends celebrated with cake and ice cream. Easton loved the cake. And the mess didn't occur until he was convinced with lots of actions and cheering from the crowd (three eager brothers) that it was the thing to do. Even with all the mess...notice the tray at the end has very little left of a very big piece of cake. He loved it to say the least!

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

My Five Year Old

We celebrated Drew's fifth birthday a couple of weeks ago! He had a great weekend both with friends and our family. Drew celebrated with his first friend party.

Drew enjoying the party(giving a big push)!

I had lunch and birthday treats at preschool with Drew.

My five year old.

Drew has always been a go with the flow type. Though lately we are definitely seeing a stubborn streak. Drew and I do a lot of hanging out together and I love it. He is so helpful and he has this sweet smile. He is very watchful of people, he notices the little things. I love how he notices the good in things. We love you Drew!

Thursday, January 21, 2010

11 months!

Today marks 11 months for Easton. I find myself mourning just a bit that my little baby is now all over the place, playing with toys, using his chubby little fingers to pick up anything and everything and insert into his mouth, and being mobile. Part of me clings to the little baby I brought home from the hospital nearly a year ago. That being said, Easton is a sweet little guy who pretty much goes with the flow. He loves his brothers and they adore him. He loves to be held and he refuses to hold his own bottle or cup. It must be fed to him and I have happily obliged this in order to enjoy those moments of holding and cuddling him.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Winter Break

Snow, snow, and more snow, and a blizzard.

Football with half-time entertainment

Hives consisting of lots of benadryl and very swollen ears.

Legos

Iowa's Childrens Museum

Learning to Ice Skate. I got to share something I learned as a kid (thanks Dad for all the shoveling you used to do on the pond so we could skate).

Stories to Share

I wanted a little space to share funny everyday happenings. So this is it ---

Dec. 3, '11 -- John Deere Water Chile had invited the John Deere Financial Chile employees and families to join them for their Holiday celebration. We traveled to the event which was about a 45 minute drive to a place we had never been to before. We took several detours prior to arriving and it was this day that Easton began to say "RECALCULATING". Sounds funny come from him instead of from Hailey, which is the name of the female voice on the GPS.

Nov. 14, '11 -- After arriving in Santiago and a long flight on Sunday, we were trying to get settled in our new home. We went to the grocery store to get the necessities and upon our return Easton declared the following. "I am not getting out of the car. this is not my house."

Sep. 21, '08 -- Then tonight we sat down and Mason announced that Mark needed to be president so that he could get all the candy he wanted for free. Priorities, priorities, priorities.

Aug. 12, '08 -- Yesterday I was doing laundry, seperating the clothes, and as I was checking pockets I pulled out a little stone from Drew's pants. This is one of my favorite things to pull out of my kids pants. I am always amazed and awed by my children. They find happiness in the things that I pass by everyday and fail to notice. The little things in life count and as I pull those rocks out of my kids pockets I am reminded just how much joy there is to find in this life. Thank you to my children and the inspiration they give me!

Jun. 19, '08 -- So I was upstairs and I heard Dallin and Drew go out into the garage. I went out there and they were playing in the car. I told them to get out and come inside. I then proceeded to tell them that the car was not a toy and to not go out there and play. Dallin looks at me and says, " Mom, it's a "TOY"ota Sienna, with a huge emphasis on the toy part. Really, a six year old should not be able to come up with that kind of comeback. I just laughed....

You had to have seen the Disney movie Cars to really appreciate this. So I'm running into the grocery store with the kids and as I am about to go inside Dallin and Drew stop and start pointing to something, while jumping up and down, laughing, and screaming "Fred! Mom it's Fred! Fred!" A couple of seconds later this large Ford Bronco that obviously weathered MANY Iowa winters and salt on the roads drives by. It is rusted all over, the place above the wheels no longer exists due to all the rust eating it away. The men in the Bronco had their windows down and just waved at the boys. I'm not sure they had any idea why my kids were so excited to see their car. I just laughed out loud! (Fred happens to be an extremely rusty car that is one of the main character's fans)