Visiting Baubie

The boys had great fun packing for our trip to Baubie's house.  It's a 4-hour drive, so the boys have great fun packing up all sorts of activities to do in the car.  They usually bring etch-a-sketches, cars, trucks, coloring books, construction vehicle toys, stuffed animals. and whatever else gets thrown into the back seat.   

Noah was completely worn out from all the excitement of the trip, so he fell asleep before we even pulled out of the driveway.  Here he is with his pizza dinner and crayons on his lap.

Isaac had already had a nap, so he was wide awake and ready to go.  He had my chapstick in his hand, and he had great fun smearing it all over his chin and cheeks.

At Baubie's house, the boys love sleeping in sleeping bags next to each other on the floor.  This picture is from Isaac's nap time, when Noah decided that he would do "hallway duty" and keep Isaac company during his nap.  Needless to say, Isaac didn't nap, but they had fun together and Noah was such a loving brother to take care of Isaac.

One of the boy's favorite parts of Baubie's house is her dance studio, which the boys call the "running room."  They love the full-length mirrors and the space to run.  This trip, they had a blast playing catch with a ball and just going crazy trying to run after the ball.

They were soaking wet with sweat and happily worn out after playing in the "running room."  That's a wonderful thing!

Happy Birthday Baubie!

We went to Atlanta to help celebrate Baubie's birthday.

Happy birthday to you!

Happy birthday to you!

Happy birthday dear Baubie!

Happy birthday to you!

Mitzi posed perfectly for this family picture.  

Happy birthday to Baubie!  We love you!

Isaac and Mommy Time

I wanted to share a few pictures I took of Isaac on Noah's last day of preschool.  During this last school year, Isaac and I had 3 mornings a week to ourselves.  Sometimes we would go to a playground and play all  morning then eat a picnic lunch.  

Other days we would run errands.  Isaac was always a great helper as long as we went to one or two stores.  The third store was always a deal-breaker for him.  

Sometimes we would come home and play and just enjoy some fun time together doing whatever looked interesting around the house.

Whatever we were doing though, Isaac loved having my complete attention, and it was a special time for the two of us to be together.  It was a time for Isaac to just be two years old and not have to get caught up in sibling rivalry for a few hours.

On Noah's last day of preschool, Isaac and I went shopping at a nearly-deserted Harris Teeter.  Isaac loved pushing around the "tiny cart" and we stuffed it full until it was overflowing.  He would slow his cart down whenever we passed someone and look at them in the eye and wait until they complimented him on what a cute shopper he was.  Then he would smile and speed off again.

Then we went to a playground and played on the swing and slide, and ate a picnic lunch.  Isaac is beaming in this photo because the "pickle fairy" left him a huge pickle in his lunch.

Then we were off to preschool to pick up Noah.  After Isaac took a nap, the boys had fun playing Connect Four in the tent in the playroom.

Isaac will start two-year-old preschool in the fall.  He is SO excited that he finally gets his turn to go to school, after spending the first two years of his life dropping off Noah at school.   Between Isaac's preschool schedule and Noah's kindergarten schedule, Isaac and I will still have one day of Mommy and Isaac time every week.  I'm really looking forward to those days and already planning some fun things we can do together.

Daddy's Boys

Matt got some great exercise on Father's Day.

Two boys in a trailer = 75 pounds

Happy Father's Day to a wonderful, loving father!

Happy Birthday Matt!

We had fun getting ready for Matt's birthday.  Matt pumped the boys for information about his presents all week, but they did a good job of keeping the secrets.  

As soon as we were all awake, it was time to open presents.  More specifically, it was time for the boys to open the presents while Matt watched.

We gave Matt some new pictures of the boys to keep on his desk at work.  Whew, that simple gift was a lot of work, but the photos turned out great!

Matt was excited to get new polo shirts, perfect to wear to work in the summer

When Matt came home from work, we had our evening party with carrot cake.  It took a lot of convincing to get the boys agree that they needed to eat their dinner before the cake.

Happy birthday to the love of my life!

Preschool Graduation

The last week of Noah's year at preschool was a non-stop party!

This is Noah's preschool classroom, and all his friends are having a pizza party to celebrate the end of the school year

Isaac joined in the celebration and had a huge ice cream sundae

Isaac had one last chance to play with his favorite toys in Noah's classroom

Brothers?  You decide!

The kids gathered around in the circle time area to watch a photo DVD of their year together.  It was a tearjerker (for me, that is)

Noah decided that he wanted to write a letter to each person in his class.  He worked very hard on this project.  He drew a picture of himself and wrote "NOAH" on 13 cards, then delivered the cards to each child's mailbox on the last day of school.  He said he wanted his friends to remember him and what he looked like.

Here we are, all set for the graduation ceremony.  Noah was tickled that he got to wear a tie!

Here's Mr. Handsome with his new haircut.  I'm pretty sure the shorter hair makes him look 2 years older.

All the graduating students sang songs in the chapel.  Noah is front and center in this picture: the middle of the middle row, wearing his blue shirt and tie

Isaac loved the graduation ceremony and rested patiently on my lap

Here is Noah with his two teachers, Ms. Jean and Ms. Karen.  Noah got his first medal at the graduation ceremony!  

Noah had a great year of preschool, and he loved every minute of it.  

Mommy Clips

Welcome to Mommy Clips!  

I cut Noah's hair until he was about 2 years old, then he started going to Sport Clips with Matt.  At Sport Clips, they use clippers to cut the sides of Noah's hair and use scissors to cut the top.  After analyzing his haircuts, I decided that I just needed to buy a pair of clippers, and I could do the same cut.  Noah was willing to let me cut his hair again, as long as he could watch a movie and get a lollipop afterwards.  Deal!

This is Mommy Clips.  In the playroom, I put a nylon picnic blanket on the floor and Noah sits on a stool and wears a haircutting cape.

My next customer waits while Noah watches his movie

My second customer, Isaac, has never had anyone else cut his hair.  He's been a loyal customer of Mommy Clips for years.  I just use scissors to cut his hair, no clippers for him.

And the result for Noah?  Short!  Too short!  I was using a long guard on the clipper and I ended up clipping more of his hair on top then I intended.  To even everything out, I needed to use the clippers on his whole head.  This is Noah's shortest hair cut ever.  It has grown on me though, and it's a super easy summer cut.  Noah took one glance in the mirror and thought it looked good.

And the result for Isaac?  Perfect!  That big smile is for the lollipop that he's holding in his hand!