Life with the Mason Boys

1.20.12

2012-01-20T08:50:00.004-06:00

Whatever I said about January being warm and gorgeous...forget it. The cold chill of winter has arrived and we are officially hibernating. Just to run from the house to the garage is painful. Loading the car with groceries after shopping is downright torture. brrrrrr!!

This week was all about getting ready for Brennan's Pinewood Derby. He was so excited to race his car and receive his wolf badge. He has been working hard to finish all his achievements to get the coveted badge. His car did great at the race and he placed 2nd for the second year in a row. There were a few tears threatening to spill over not placing first but it was a great opportunity to teach him about sportsmanship.

Trent helped man the bake sale table.

There were a lot of neat cars this year. The boys definitely stepped up their game from last year.

The Wolf Den

Whispering The Star Spangled Banner...

Brennan's first heat...

Brennan's car is that blue/white blur whizzing by. In the first two rounds I believe he only lost one race.

At the end of round two, Brennan and two other boys had tied for first place and they had to have a race off.

After the 3 cars raced over and over and over again against each other, Brennan came out with 2nd place.

Phone Dump!

1.17.12

2012-01-17T10:10:00.002-06:00

The weather here has been gorgeous lately! I think this is the mildest January we've had since living in Wisconsin. Trent and I have been spending a lot of time outside and I've actually been enjoying it since I'm not freezing!

All dressed up for school...

Brennan played in the Junior Raider game.

We got some snow!

We had a relaxing weekend. Disappointed with the Packers :(

Brennan lost not one, but two teeth at school yesterday.

1.10.12

2012-01-10T17:31:00.002-06:00

We have been such homebodies this past week. I think we left the house three times this weekend(Grammy's house, church, and church)...yes, we usually go to church twice each weekend ;) and spent the rest of the time watching football. Michael has been busy computing away at a new side project so that leaves me and the boys with not too much to do. Brennan worked on getting his car ready for the Pinewood Derby. He has high hopes of winning this year. He came in second place last year and he isn't settling for that this year. Keep your fingers crossed people!!

The weather has been just gorgeous...it is hard to believe that it is January in Wisconsin. Trent had a play date today and the kids played outside for at least an hour(and only stopped because they were due for a nap!).

Brennan and Carter had crazy hair day at school today. As I was working on their hair I realized that it wasn't too far off from a normal hair day. Usually we would go for some color spray to make it "crazy" but it wasn't allowed this year. Trent was the last one to come in the bathroom for the "brush and scrub" this morning and asked for crazy hair too.

Kinda, but not too crazy hair

Trent and his little girlfriend. If he could hug her their entire play date I think he would.

We have to work on his table manners...

1.5.12

2012-01-06T13:06:00.003-06:00

We actually got a little bit of snow at the beginning of the week. It's crazy to believe it's January and we haven't been dumped on yet. The boys were out with Michael first thing in the morning clearing the driveway.

Brennan and Carter went back to school on Tuesday. I was not looking forward to it and they didn't seem to be either. They were in a daze at breakfast and didn't really perk up until the ride to school. The house is a lot quieter with only me and Trent. He had another playdate with his new friend B. He loves her already! It reminds me of Carter's friendship with Kennedy when they were younger and it is just adorable.

Who is this big boy...

2012-01-03T19:24:00.000-06:00

and what did he do with my baby!?!

Goodbye 2011

2012-01-02T18:59:00.002-06:00

Our annual photostory...goodbye 2011!
Don't forget to pause the music on the sidebar.

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T22:14:00.003-06:00

We had a fantastic New Year's Eve! The Heffner's came over and we partied hard...family style! We ate tons and tons of munchies: cheese and sausage, spinach dip, shrimp cocktail, fruits and veggies, cherry cheesecake...and the list goes on and on. The boys had a blast playing with Allayna. They are now dubbed the "touch trio". It is very important to be able to FaceTime someone who is standing three feet away ;)

Everyone made it well past midnight. The kids played board games, football, and video games to pass the time.

This morning I ordered a day filled with family, football, and food...and that is exactly what I got. We spent the entire day in the family room munching, watching football, watching movies, and then munching some more. It was the most relaxing day that we've had in a long time. Trent caught up on the sleep he missed last night and took a 4 hour nap. The weather outside was snowy and windy...a perfect lazy day.

Happy New Year! I am excited to see what's in store for the Mason family in 2012!

Christmas Break

2011-12-31T08:34:00.004-06:00

This week was a little up and down on the fun scale but we made the best of it. 3 out of 5 Masons had the stomach bug earlier in the week and that.was.not.fun. It was a bummer that it happened over break but at least it was after Christmas!

I finally got my Christmas present from Michael! It was out of stock when he went to pick it up so it had to be ordered....Iphone 4...I am in love! The camera is awesome which thrills me to death. I took pics all the time on my Droid but most of the time they were too craptastic to share.

Brennan and Carter had a play date with their BFF, Noah. Trent followed them around and played with him like he was one of the big boys. We went to Burger King for lunch and they got their own table...they thought they were so big. It was cute overhearing their conversation...until it turned into a burping contest.

Santa left us Bucks tickets for Friday night's game against the Wizards. The boys love them some basketball. The Bucks played well and we won 102-81...great game!

You'll have to excuse all my Instagram photos this week...I'm addicted. I'm 'brencartrent' if you want to follow me.

Phone Dump: All my random phone pics

Christmas 2011

2011-12-26T08:04:00.004-06:00

We had a great Christmas filled with fun and family! Christmas Eve was spent running around for a few last minute items, baking Jesus' birthday cake, and trying to keep the boys' excitement under control. We went to church and then met Michael's family for Christmas Eve dinner.

Opening their new jammies

New Thomas jammies are definitely something to smile about!

Happy Birthday Jesus!

Writing letters to Santa...

The boys were right in their beds by 8:00! They were eager to get to sleep because according to the Santa tracker, he was on his way!

Brennan and Carter got up right at 7am and were raring to go! We snuggled up in bed and watched cartoons for a little while hoping Trent would wake up soon. We gave him until 7:20 and then I was sent in to wake him up...

WHOOOOOOHOOOOOO!!

Santa left us Buck's tickets!

The aftermath...

So far, the favorite toys for Brennan are his Ipod Touch and Contra DS game. Carter loves his Ipod Touch and R2D2 Trouble game. Trent had a Thomas Christmas and got tons of Thomas toys...he loves his Thomas ride on and the Thomas flashlight. We spent a lazy day in our jammies playing with new toys and then went to Kim and Jim's for Christmas dinner. The kids were all so quiet sitting around the table with their new electronic gizmos. We got home in plenty of time to watch the Packer game. Even after all of the Christmas excitement and no nap for Trent, the boys all stayed up until 10:30pm to watch the Packers kick some Bear butt!

Long time, no post

2011-12-18T17:53:00.004-06:00

December is flying by and we have been keeping very busy. Christmas shopping is coming to a close and that leaves me with LOTS of wrapping yet to do. Brennan and Carter had their Advent program at school, we made salt dough ornaments, went caroling at a local nursing home, and Trent made a new friend.

All decked out for the Advent program.

I love seeing Carter and Trent in these outfits because Brennan and Carter wore the exact ones 3 Christmases ago...

Saying his line...

Christopher has been continuing on his naughty business. The boys are eager to find him every morning and see what he has been up to.

Our salt dough ornaments

Family Wii Night

Christmas caroling at the nursing home. The boys did a fantastic job!

Trent and his new buddy, Brianna. They play so well together!

Merry Christmas!

Elfy Mischief Days 7&8

2011-12-08T16:40:00.003-06:00

Christopher has been up to no good the past two days. Yesterday we found him chilling out in this chair. That poor bear has been sitting in that chair for 9 years and he's finally been booted out.

This morning was something. The boys found him in the living room...

I sure hope he didn't use a Sharpie!

St. Nick

2011-12-06T16:41:00.002-06:00

St. Nick made a stop at our house last night!! The boys woke up to a few treats tucked in their sneakers. I love, love, love all the magic and smiles that have been happening in the Mason house this month.

Look Mama, another wheelie car!

Naughty Christopher must have stayed up pretty late drinking coke and eating chips!

Trent and I had a play date with Ms. Trista and Miss. B today at The Children's Play Gallery. This was their first play date and they got along pretty well :)

Brennan and Carter hopped off the school bus and got right to work on their new Lego sets.

O Christmas Tree

2011-12-05T10:59:00.003-06:00

Our tree is up and it smells like Christmas in the Mason house. The stockings have been hung, Christmas cards have been ordered, and there is snow falling outside :) The boys just finished decorating the tree and were all ready for the Packer game!

Our stockings hung by the bookcase with care...

Our family ornament

We hung lights in the boys' rooms...

Christopher has been getting into mischief all weekend...

Elfy Mischief- Day 2

2011-12-02T10:43:00.003-06:00

Christopher, our mischievous elf, is going to be a handful this month. The boys woke up this morning staring at each other's noses. Brennan and Carter eventually went to look in the mirror.

While Trent was only concerned with eating his breakfast...

Humdy humdy hum, still haven't found Christopher...

Oh wait, there he is!

Sneaky little elf!

Christmas Crafting

2011-12-01T13:14:00.003-06:00

This week we have been decking the halls and crafting for Christmas! I was on the hunt for Advent calendars for the boys and couldn't find anything that I wanted to buy. There are so many good ideas on Pinterest that I decided to make my own using leftover scrap booking supplies. I think the boys were slightly disappointed that there wasn't chocolate inside, but they will be happy with some of the activities and treats that each day will bring.

Again, on Pinterest, there are so many cute toddler crafts that Trent can do with little assistance. He loves rolling his sleeves up and getting dirty. This morning he made a cute little Christmas tree that sits in slots of a toilet paper roll and then a hand print Christmas tree on canvas.

Proudly displayed on his dresser...

and then...the boys' elf arrived!! I have been patiently(okay, not so patiently) waiting for his arrival. I've seen pictures everywhere of all kinds of mischief these elves get into and I'm sure the boys will have fun with him. I walked into the boys room a little while ago and saw this:

The boys will be in for a surprise after school!

Thanksgiving Break

2011-11-29T17:09:00.003-06:00

We had a fun filled Thanksgiving break. We started off last Saturday with a 14 hour drive to Maryland. The boys are seriously rock stars. I love how we can pack up and go anywhere. Brennan was content with his DS, Carter kept busy playing Angry Birds, and Trent watched our small collection of Barney DVDs over and over again. We left our house at 4am and arrived at Pop's house around 6:30pm. We were tired and glad to be there.

On Sunday we went to Evan's 2nd birthday party. I've been working on invitations, food labels, a birthday banner and game signs for the past few weeks for this party and it was nice seeing it all come together. The boys had so much fun playing with their cousins, Grady and Evan. I took so many pictures...

I think Leah's toes almost touched the ground...

Trent and Nana

Jeremy had twins!

Trent was making his rounds..with Aunt Sandi

The birthday boy!

Ashley did a great job on the cake!

I think the haystack was the favorite game...

All 5 boys!

Sushi and Pizza Night at Ashley's house! Nana and her 5 Great Grandsons...

We had Thanksgiving at my dad's house and Leah and I totally threw down in the kitchen. Our first time making Thanksgiving dinner and we rocked it!

Check out that turkey!

Trent showing Meme how to use the Ipad...

Pop and his boys!

We had a great time visiting with family. We left early at 3:30am for the long trek home. We made good time and made it home by 4pm(thankfully we gained an hour coming home). We wrapped up Thanksgiving break with the Christmas parade. We bundled up in winter jackets and snow pants to brave the cold.

Shark Attack

2011-11-18T16:51:00.003-06:00

Brennan is all into learning about animals. Google images has gotten plenty of action around here lately with searches for dinosaurs, sharks, cow moose, bull deer, platypus, wild dogs, etc. He is eager to share with me..."Mama, guess what...." and then rattles on the random facts he has found.

This month's book report for school was right up his alley. A nonfiction book about an animal. We didn't have to look very hard for a book. Our library bag by the back door was filled with books about nurse sharks, hammerhead sharks, mega mouth sharks, tiger sharks, bull sharks,....you get the picture. Brennan decided on a book about great white sharks.

Brennan had to create a paper bag mask with limited assistance. I did the cutting and Brennan did the spray painting, hot gluing, and painting. I think he wants to wear it to bed tonight. Hopefully it will last until he takes it to school after Thanksgiving break.

Showing me how a shark swims...

Trent and Carter...

Monday Night Football

2011-11-15T09:08:00.005-06:00

Michael and I took Brennan and Carter to their first Packer football game last night. They have been looking forward to it since Michael brought home the tickets over 2 months ago. On the drive there, we made sure to explain how much of a privilege this is to see the Packers play at Lambeau Field. I think they understood when they got numerous compliments from adult fans of how lucky they are to be at a Monday Night Football game and when we saw only 2 or 3 other kids amongst the thousands of fans we saw last night.

Tailgating!

We got in line to enter the stadium about 15 minutes before they started letting people in. We passed through security and turned around and saw all these fans in line behind us.

Back from a little pregame trip to the concession stand.

This was awesome to be apart of...

It's a blurry picture but I love it. After the Packers scored the first touchdown...

Since it was such a blowout, we decided to head out about half way through the 4th quarter to get a head start in the parking lot. The Packers ended up winning 45-7, beating their rival the Minnesota Vikings and remain undefeated with a 9-0 record. We had an amazingly close parking spot and were able to zoom out of Green Bay in record time. Last season Michael and I stayed until the very end of a game(including overtime) and it took us forever just to walk out of the stadium and through the parking lot. We are so glad we avoided that this year! The boys were asleep within minutes...

Veteran's Day

2011-11-14T07:53:00.003-06:00

On Veteran's Day the big boys sported their "Uncle Tj buttons" for their Veteran's Day program at school. They were so proud of their buttons.

Tj is on his way home from Afghanistan right now. We are hoping that it is a quick trip home so we get to see him over Thanksgiving break.

11.7.11

2011-11-07T14:56:00.004-06:00

This weekend was just what we needed after the chaos that was October. We hung around the house, watched movies, Michael finished up yard work, and we just chilled. Looking back at my calendar I don't know how we survived October and the activity after activity that it was. November is looking to be my kind of month.

Brennan and Carter have been wanting another sleepover with their friend Noah. This time it was at his house and the boys very first time away. They were beyond excited and they were just filled to the brim with excitement as I was getting their overnight bags ready.

When they came home all they talked about was going on a hike with their flashlights, watching a Lego movie, and eating the best pizza ever.

Ok, I'm sure by now everyone has heard of Pinterest. It is very addicting and I keep finding crafts and recipes I want to make. I saw this recipe for brownie bites with pumpkin cheesecake mousse just the other day and had to make them. Trent helped me and they turned out soooo good!! I'm hoping the boys don't gobble them down after school and they last until Michael gets home.

Lego Night

2011-11-05T08:15:00.002-05:00

The boys loved Lego Night.

Trick or Treat!

2011-11-01T15:41:00.002-05:00

We had a perfect fall night for Halloween! The boys were beyond excited to get more candy...or as Trent would say "cahndy!" If you read my previous post, we have tons of candy already so we T or T'd for about a half hour and then headed to Kidsfest.

I think Trent wished his legs were just a little bit longer so he could keep up with Brennan and Carter. If they beat him to the door he yelled "MEEEEE!"....they learned to wait for him ;)

When we got to Kidsfest it wasn't crowded at all...perfect!

The big boys went to the ferris wheel and Trent and I headed to the games.

Waiting for the 3D show...

and then back to the rides...Carter, Noah & Brennan

I'm not sure what this face was about but it was super cute! All night he kept saying he wanted to ride the cars and he waited in line like a big boy :)

Trent and his buddy Asher...

They spent most of the night like this hugging...not sure if they really missed each other or if they just really liked each others costume??

Happy Halloween!!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T11:35:00.002-05:00

Today is Halloween and it feels like we've been celebrating all month long. We've gone trick or treating several times already and our candy supply is a bit overwhelming. Trent has been known to sneak into the candy bucket to get tootsie rolls and suckers...little stinker!

We went downtown trick or treating with several boys from Brennan's cub scout pack. It was so crowded but we all had fun and the boys enjoyed being together. We went on the spooky walk through Lime Kiln Park afterwards and that was neat. Carter was super nervous but he rode Michael's shoulders and was fine.

I was digging around in one of the cabinets and found Brennan and Carter's old Aquadoodle mat. Trent loves it and Carter even got back into doodling on it.

Watching morning cartoons...

Cartoon Network isn't his thing so he stole Daddy's work Ipad to watch Barney.

Carving pumpkins...

Trent and I worked on these...

Playing Wii...Trent loves racing games.

and my monsters all ready for Halloween this morning...

Fall Fun

2011-10-26T12:44:00.006-05:00

We have been doing so many fun fall activities lately. It was so much for the boys to keep organized that I made a list of all the fun things coming up. This way they know what is coming up and that they better keep their behavior in check so they can do these things.

Trent had a playgroup costume party last week. He was all about the candy!

I went along with Carter on his field trip to the pumpkin farm. We got lucky and had a beautiful day!

We went Trunk or Treating at school...

Ice cube painting at the library...

Halloween Hullabaloo at the Y...

and Michael and I took Brennan out for an afternoon of fun. Carter and Trent stayed with their new favorite babysitter while we took Brennan out for lunch and to a haunted high school. They had a special afternoon when the lights would be on and not as many scares and Brennan was so excited to go. He led the way just about the entire time and absolutely loved it! He insisted he only got scared one time when something jumped out of a trashcan.

Waiting in line and so eager to go!

Mason Family Pics 2011

2011-10-24T10:10:00.004-05:00

We got our annual family pics taken two weekends ago by Gary Hurst Photography and I have been anxiously waiting to see the pics. My excitement built this morning when I look into our church mailbox and see this cd:

I am thrilled with all the pics and now I know who we'll be going to every year for our family pics. Here are some of my favorites, and just a fair warning, there are tons because it was a 2 hour photo shoot.

More Pumpkin Patch Fun...

2011-10-15T09:02:00.002-05:00

Yesterday we went to the pumpkin patch with some of Brennan's cub scout pack. It was windy, muddy, and cold but we had fun.

Watching a video about pumpkins...

Trent picked up the first pumpkin he saw and it was perfect.

Running through the corn maze...

We are getting quite the collection of pumpkins on our front steps and we still have a few more outings to the pumpkin patch to go.

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-10T12:42:00.003-05:00

What a gorgeous weekend!! We went to the pumpkin patch wearing shorts and t-shirts. Usually we have on sweaters and jeans during our hunt for the perfect pumpkins. Trent was so excited to go pick out his "pump'in". We rode the wagon out to the field and Trent was not sure what to do with all the vines and pumpkins to climb over and walk around...totally out of his element.

Brennan and his worm.

Carter shooting the pumpkin gun...

Brennan got to help out the magician. He ended up with a ball going in one of his ears and out the other :)

We had the perfect backyard campfire. Michael cooked dinner over the fire and we finished up with smores for dessert.

Superheroes

2011-10-06T17:45:00.002-05:00

Relaxing Nights

2011-10-06T08:26:00.003-05:00

Fall arrived a few weeks ago and then left. The weather has been sunny and warm this week and it feels like summer is returning. I'm glad I thought to leave a handful of summer outfits in the boys' rooms...just in case.

Nightime is coming earlier and earlier. That means more time inside cuddled up watching movies and reading books. I am so thankful that I have a house full of boys that can read. Trent wants to be read to nearly all day long. By evening, this mama needs a break.

and this boy. He is maturing right before my eyes. Must be something about 2nd grade. He loves talking about animals...especially dinosaurs and saber tooth tigers. He is a hard worker and loves doing his homework and studying...which I am thankful for. 2nd grade is lots of math facts, spelling words, and reading.

He has a little obsession with Harry Potter going on. I love it...Star Wars I didn't get, this I get.

Trent's New Room

2011-09-30T09:21:00.003-05:00

Last month the big project around here was switching over Trent's room to a big boy room. I recruited Leah to help with the painting and we got his room done in no time. I still have a few finishing touches I want to add but for the most part it is done. I'm thinking floor length curtains...maybe in green. Toy storage containers for under his bed. A new lamp(or at least a new shade) for his dresser.

Apple Picking

2011-09-29T13:14:00.002-05:00

Trent and I went apple picking with a playgroup this morning and he had so much fun. It started raining shortly after we got there but we made the best of it. Trent loved collecting the apples in his bag. He wouldn't pull them from the tree but he let me know which ones he wanted.

Now to figure out what to do with all these apples. Brennan went on a field trip to an apple orchard earlier in the week and came home with a bagful. I'm thinking some baked apples or an apple pie would be pretty good! If anyone has a good recipes, let me know :)

2 Year Pics

2011-09-19T13:07:00.003-05:00

Trent and I went out for his 2 year pics this morning. The weather was perfect. It had just stopped raining and the sky was completely overcast. Trent is such a little model and doesn't mind letting me take his picture...if only he would give me a few more smiles instead of being Mr. Serious. There is a definite theme to the pictures...he always has his hands in his pockets...I asked him to do it once and he wanted them there for every picture. The pics certainly aren't perfect but I love them.

2 Year Check Up

2011-09-12T09:30:00.002-05:00

Trent had his two year check up bright and early this morning. He was not thrilled. At.all. He didn't want to take his shoes off, he didn't want to take his clothes off, he didn't want to be measured, and he didn't want to be weighed. He was not a fan of the nurses. He was fine when the doctor came in to look him over. He is measuring right on track and is as healthy as can be. The official two year stats: 35.25" tall(74%) and 24lbs 9oz(11%). Still tall and skinny :) His ear tubes are still in so hopefully we'll have a good winter as far as ear infections are concerned. Trent got his flu shot and his hepititis A vaccine and milked it for all it's worth. The nurses brought him stickers and he settled down. Walking down the hall to leave he saw nurse Kathy and started saying owwww and holding his leg again. He was not going to let her forget!

My 2 year old cutie!

Trent's 2nd Birthday!

2011-09-11T18:55:00.002-05:00

Today is Trent's 2nd birthday and we partied hard! He woke up to presents and donuts and was surprisingly in a good mood. He is usually not a morning person but with all the shouts of "Happy Birthday!" and "Trent, you're two!!"...he was pretty happy.

Trent had an ice cream birthday party with family and friends. Jer-Bear the clown came for games, a magic show and face painting.

Thanks to Trista, we have a lovely shot of me trying to hula hoop. I think I made it around twice.

Luke & Brennan

Trent & Kennedy...T spun around in a circle with the hoop!

Lauryn bowling...

Allayna the great!

Josh & Batman

Carter, Noah & Brennan

Allayna

Kennedy

Kellie

Luke

Time for ice cream sundaes!

Asher

Trent got right down to business with presents, he knew exactly what to do.

Cupcakes...

Happy Birthday Trent!!

School Pictures 2011

2011-09-09T11:39:00.002-05:00

Brennan and Carter brought home their school pictures yesterday. I love the way they turned out but I am wondering why Brennan looks like he's about 10 years old??

The official 2nd grade and Kindergarten pics:

and just to see how they've changed, here are their 1st grade and 4K pics from last year.

Labor Day Weekend 2011

2011-09-06T09:50:00.004-05:00

September has arrived, fall is in the air, and I'm eager to bust out fall decorations. The leaves have started falling off our tree in the front yard. They are always the first to fall but it's a sure sign that fall is coming.

We spent the weekend in Green Bay. Green Bay is such a nice little getaway. The boys played in the hotel's water park, we spent a day at Bay Beach, and went to Lambeau field where we got to see some of our favorite Packers.

Ready to swim. All the water park pics turned out horribly since it's so dark in there.

Bay Beach

R

This is a typical Carter face when the camera comes out...

and some of our favorite Packers! Talk about being in the right place at the right time!! The Pack was headed out of the locker room and across the street to practice. Who do we see first!?!...

Yup, that's Aaron Rodgers!
Matt Flynn

Jordy Nelson

Donald Driver

AJ Hawk and Clay Matthews!

It was pretty entertaining watching the players head to their own cars or try to get rides with other players. After John Kuhn tryed to get in another car(they wouldn't let him), he tried getting in this truck and the driver drove around giving him a hard time.

and I'm not sure who this guy is but he hopped right in the back of this truck...

Trent's Crayon Project

2011-09-01T17:40:00.005-05:00
Now that the big boys are in school I've been looking around Pinterest for easy projects to do with Trent. This one was so simple. We had the canvas and we just had to buy a big box of crayons. Trent handed me the crayons and I hot glued them down. After that, he was excited to get his hands on the hairdryer! He plays with it all the time(not plugged in of course), so this was a big deal to play with it while it was turned on.

Trent, smile at Mommy!

Much better!

8.29.11

2011-08-29T13:11:00.006-05:00
Friday evening was spent out on the driveway. I love our driveway. The boys love our driveway. The boys spend more time in the driveway playing then they ever have in the yard.

I am certain Brennan will be taking the rip rider with him to college.

My cute Carter.

One of Trent's many goofy faces.

Rolling through the freshly cut grass...I'm still trying to get the grass stains out of his shorts.

Playing ball acrossed the court...I love our court too.

My handsome hubby...*hi hon!*

Trent played for a little while...

and then got bored with it...

Saturday was Michael's 30th birthday. Brennan and Carter were so excited to give him the gifts they bought him.

I think everyone tried on the clown nose at some point that day.

Trent finally decided to grace us with his presence...that boy can sleep!

And after he wiped the sleep from his eyes he brought out his gifts...

Daddy and his boys!

Papa came over on Saturday to help put new baseboards in Trent's room. Here is a sneak peak at Trent's big boy room....I can't wait to start decorating it...

For Michael's birthday dinner we went to Su Casa and had dinner out on the patio...so much fun! We came home and had birthday brownies...

Auntie Louie

2011-08-26T13:21:00.003-05:00
We just wrapped up a visit with Auntie Louie yesterday and were sad to see her go. We dropped off the big boys at school and then Trent and I took her to the airport to send her back to Pennsylvania...we so wanted to keep her!

Auntie Louie is *super* cool. She light saber fights with the boys and sure can take a beating. She zips around like nobodies business on the rip rider and electric scooter.

We are really really really hoping she chooses UWM for graduate school so we can be with Auntie Louie all.the.time ;)

First day of school 2011

2011-08-24T16:02:00.004-05:00
Today the boys went back to school! Brennan headed to 2nd grade and Carter started Kindergarten. I can't believe I now have two boys in school full time! They were so excited!

All decked out and ready to go!

Yes, the little one thought he was going too...

This year I decided to let the boys ride the bus. It comes ridculously early in the morning so they will only be riding it home. It was WONDERFUL to not have to wake up Trent from his nap to pick up the boys. They were home in no time and said they were the first ones off the bus.

Little Amerricka 2011

2011-08-23T08:02:00.004-05:00
Yesterday we took our annual summer trip to Little Amerricka. I was really looking forward to it this year because Trent would finally be able to get on some of the rides. The weather was perfect and we had a blast!

Trent's first ride!...and he took complete control of the handlebar, sending us up and down, and up and down some more!

It was only a few minutes after we got off this ride that Brennan declared that all of the rides in this area were "for babies!" I knew it wouldn't be too much longer before he gave up on the simple rides that go in circles, but I was hoping for a little longer. Brennan spent most of the day with Leah(aka Auntie Louie) on the "big kid rides" while I hung out in kiddieland with Carter and Trent.

Waiting for the carousel

On the train...

Brennan loved him some bumper cars until the seat belt left a nasty scrape on his neck :(

Ready for the ferris wheel...

8.14.11

2011-08-16T10:28:00.002-05:00
We had yet another weekend of camping this summer. The weather didn't cooperate much though. We headed out on Friday evening and had a few hours of nice weather before the rain came. It rained most of the day on Saturday up until dinner time when it finally decided to stop. Hopefully we can squeeze in one more camping weekend before cold weather arrives!

Our setup:

Metal detecting...

Our camping neighbors...Grammy and Papa!

Brennan, Trent, Kellie & Carter

8.8.11

2011-08-08T06:47:00.003-05:00
Michael had a brillant idea on Friday afternoon. He came home with a load of bricks to build a fire pit in the backyard. Now we can make campfire smores whenever we want to...and the boys are thrilled!

On Sunday we woke up to rain and thunder. We thought our plans to go to the church picnic would be squashed but the sun came out just in time. Brennan got his face painted, Carter came so close at the dunk tank, and Trent rode the train over and over again.

Michael made campfire burgers and dogs for dinner and we wrapped up the evening with smores!

Zoom Zoom

2011-08-05T14:41:00.002-05:00
Brennan got the Razor E100 electric scooter for his 7th birthday and he is in love! He zooms up and around the court, he zooms into the driveway...ZOOM ZOOM! Thankfully, we have not had any crashes...yet! Our garage is now overflowing with bikes, tricycles, scooters, a skateboard, a pedal car, and the beloved Riprider.

7.31.11

2011-07-31T20:13:00.007-05:00
Summer is winding down as August is fast approaching. Brennan and Carter have just over three weeks left until they head back to school and we are going to try and pack it with fun!

This past week we went to the zoo for the first time in a long time. Brennan was eager to see the lions and Carter wanted to ride the train. Trent enjoyed the freedom of hopping in and out of his stroller checking out all the animals.

Kennedy, Brennan, Trent & Carter

Trying to climb the fence...

On Tuesday night Brennan hosted his first sleepover with his best buddy Noah. Brennan was very excited and had been making plans the few days leading up to the big night..."we are going to eat pizza, and have a movie night with chocolate bars and popcorn, we're going to play video games and stay up ALL night!" They ended up doing quite a few of those things. They had pizza for dinner and ate smores and popcorn while they watched Lego Star Wars and hunted for wolves outside with their flashlights and played DS until the wee hours of the morning(2:30am!!). They slept in a tent(in the family room) and got up bright and early at 7am. Brennan declared it "the best sleepover ever!!"

This weekend was all about staying home, relaxing, and yard work! Our yard has been neglected since we've been away the past few weekends and it needed some TLC. Michael handled the yard work, the boys kept cool playing in the sprinkler, and I got a bunch of stuff finished for Trent's birthday party.

I jumped at the chance when Michael offered to take a pic of me and the boys before leaving for church this morning. It's not centered and our feet are cut off but I <3 it!

Carter has a permanent case of the sillies...

7.26.11

2011-07-26T15:40:00.002-05:00
The dining room is my favorite spot to take indoor pictures of the boys. Trent never seems to mind leaning against the wall and letting me take his picture. It takes a little more coaxing to pull the big boys away from the wii game they are playing, but they eventually wander in.

I love Brennan's 7 year old smile...

I'm a gummy bear...

2011-07-26T07:33:00.005-05:00
The boys love to rock out to Big Time Rush before going to bed. These dance parties have become part of their nightly routine and it's a great way to release any pent up energy before settling down for the night. They have been asking for "the gummy bear song" since hearing it a few weeks ago. So grab a baseball cap, put it on backwards, pause the blog music to your right, and join them in a dance.

Another camping weekend...

2011-07-24T20:15:00.004-05:00
We just got back from a weekend of camping with the Heffner's and it's good to be home. We love camping but after two straight weekends of roughing it, I'm looking forward to sleeping in my bed tonight.

Shortly after we arrived Friday afternoon Brennan started to not feel so hot. He was off and on with energy but by 3:30am he had gotten sick in his tent. It is so not fun to be cleaning up the pukes at that hour...especially when you aren't surrounded by modern conveniences.

Brennan was feeling better overall by Saturday morning but by Saturday evening Trent seemed to be not feeling well. I think we made it to about 12:30am when it was his turn to wake me up with the pukes. Besides Brennan and Trent taking turns being sick, we had a great time camping :)

Our first night...

Trent loved jumping in!

Trent is all about being outside and covered in dirt!

Trista built the kiddos a fort to play in while waiting for a thunderstorm to pass.

again with the dirt/sand!

Water battle!

Bucket head!

We took the train to see the sites around the campground. After eating his popcorn, Trent fell right asleep!

Headed to the lake!

Trent can sleep anywhere!

Carter and his favorite slide at the lake.

Making campfire pizza...

You know you've had a great camping trip when the boys are asleep within minutes of leaving the campground!

A Camping Weekend

2011-07-17T17:03:00.004-05:00
This weekend we went camping with the Klugs, Denors, and Vincents at a campground about 5 minutes away. We had so much fun and it was nice to be close to home. The boys had a blast being with so many friends. Brennan and Carter put a lot of miles on their bikes. There was lots of baseball, light saber fighting, nightly flashlight walks, swimming, and band aids...lots and lots of band aids!!

Trent's looking cool even when he's riding a little pink bike...

Trent and Asher

TJ, Noah, Carter & Brennan

Learning how to build a campfire...

Playing baseball

Brennan, Noah, Trent, Ava & Carter

hmmm...what's in the bucket?

Relaxing week...

2011-07-15T12:28:00.004-05:00
We had a low key, relaxing week. We really needed it after being on the run so much this summer. We had one play date with Trista and Kennedy at the splash pad where we ran into so many teachers and kids from the boys' school and then stayed at home pretty much the rest of the week.

Trent had a bike wash going in the driveway.

We picked out rocks at the lake last weekend so Brennan and Carter could color hot rocks.

We went to the boys end of season baseball party. They had fun swimming even though it felt like a chilly fall night!

and we made light saber dogs for lunch.

Another week of summer...

2011-07-11T08:31:00.002-05:00
that was filled with playdates, baseball, and swimming. Baseball season has come to an end. Brennan and Carter did a great job and really improved over the season. We had a few playdates with friends this week, I celebrated my 29th birthday, and we spent a day at the lake.

Lauryn and Trent...Trent loves his little girlfriend!

Luke, Josh, Brennan & Carter

Go Jays!

Carter catching and Michael umping

Team ice cream party

Our day at Pike Lake

Rocking out to some Big Time Rush...

Singing Happy Birthday to Papa

Yum!

Trent loved being in the tube!

Water battle

One fish two fish

2011-07-08T15:00:00.002-05:00
red fish blue fish

New Wheels!

2011-07-07T17:58:00.004-05:00
The boys are growing like crazy and they have been due for a bike upgrade. After some searching, and waiting, and asking, and driving, and waiting some more...we found the orange bike that Brennan has been wanting and Carter was beyond thrilled to take over ownership of Brennan's 16" bike.

I've got some happy boys tonight!

Hopefully Trent will be ready for a bike next summer!

My very first...

2011-07-07T08:31:00.003-05:00
blog book!! I am so excited to finally have a hard copy of some of my ramblings. I started blogging in 2006 when I was pregnant with Carter and have been addicted ever since. I love looking back over our days and seeing what we were doing and where we were. Reading about my first weeks home with a 21 month old Brennan and newborn Carter takes me back to the chaos of caring for two young boys...and I laugh because now it seems so easy and natural to juggle three young boys.

I'm very excited to get started on my 2007 book!

4th of July Weekend

2011-07-05T08:46:00.004-05:00
We had a fantastic 4th of July weekend...lots of fun and lots of family time!! We started on Friday with a pool playdate. The kids had so much fun and were so tired by the end of the day.

Trent was ready for anything!

Checking out a frog...

On Friday night Carter wanted his curls chopped off...I love his short haircut!
On Saturday we had our first day at the lake. We opened the beach up at 10am and closed it down at 7pm. The boys had so much fun.

At the parade...playing ball in the street!

Waiting for the fireworks to start.

A little wrestling...

and a little sword fighting...

On Monday we spent most of the day at Kinderberg Park. The weather was perfect!

Anytime is a good time to wrestle, right?

Setting off some firecrackers at home...

Trent was hiding behind me while watching...

Happy 4th of July!!

Cars, Baseball, & Strawberries

2011-06-27T08:02:00.003-05:00
This weekend was filled to the brim with fun! We have been waiting for Cars 2 for a very long time and we finally got to see it. Brennan and Carter loved it!...I did too! Brennan has had Cars on the brain since he saw the first movie just over 5 years ago. He has been obsessed with Lightning McQueen ever since...though I'd say his Star Wars obsession beat it this year.

Carter, Brennan, & Allayna...first in line!

On Saturday morning the boys had a baseball game. Michael and I were bench parents and it is a big task to keep 13 kids in line! My FIL took these pics...

Brennan

Carter...looks like the ball just missed him!

We went strawberry picking on Sunday. The boys loved the tractor ride out to the field and I'm sure that was there favorite part. Trent had a big red stain on his butt by the time he was done...good times!

and some water fun in the evening. The boys have been asking for these water guns since playing with them in Florida. They will be a blast to have at the lake this summer!

Time with Trent

2011-06-24T07:54:00.002-05:00
Brennan and Carter have been going to VBS this week, leaving Mommy and Trent with lots of one on one time. It has been odd only having one child to go grocery shopping with, load up in the car, take to the library, etc. We've been having a great time, spending lots of time reading books and playing with puzzles. This is just a taste of what it will be like this fall when B&C are both in school all day.

One of Trent's many faces. This is the "I can't get this puzzle piece to fit!" face.

Giving some attitude!

Much better!

The boys had their VBS worship last night. The songs were super catchy as usual.

Trent let Brennan and Carter have the spotlight for a little while before he deemed it necessary to join them.

and he did his best to keep up with the motions...

6.17.11 Vacation

2011-06-18T06:48:00.003-05:00
Yesterday was Brennan's 7th birthday at the beach! I can't believe he is 7 years old already. He has the funniest personality and makes me laugh every single day. We tried to keep birthday traditions the same even though we are away from home, so Brennan woke up to presents, balloons, and a birthday donut.

I left him a note to wait for me to come get him in the morning.

We let Brennan call the shots and decide whether we spend the day at the pool or beach and he said "the pool!" He and Carter had a blast...lots of friends to play with at the pool yesterday.

It was a long day of swimming and Carter crashed right before we left for dinner.

I was finally quick enough to get a pic of a lizard.

We rode our bikes to Cowgirl Kitchen for Brennan's birthday dinner. The boys played in a little alley next to our table while we waited for our food.

We had one last hurrah at the beach...

Don't mess with muscle man...

and then dark clouds came rolling in so we packed it up.

and said goodbye to the beach. It never did rain...

and went back to the condo to have birthday cake. Happy Birthday Brennan!!

6.16.11 Vacation

2011-06-17T06:12:00.004-05:00
The boys and I have eaten breakfast out on the balcony every morning this week. It's so peaceful and quiet listening to the fountain in the pool. Yesterday we had a quick thunderstorm in the morning and sat out there to watch the rain.

We have a beautiful view and I know I'm going to miss it.

While the weather was pretty mild after the storm we went for a bike ride. We stopped at Charlie's donut truck...yum!!

We went to the beach and the waves were the roughest we've seen this week.

Carter and Michael riding the boogie board.

Show me the attitude!

Sweet Brennan

Trent's has a love/hate relationship with sand. Loves to scoop it and throw it but hates when it sticks to his hand.

I don't think B&C would mind living here...

Michael made Brennan a special sign...

We <3 Seacrest Beach!

We went to Sharky's in Panama City Beach for dinner. I don't know what was up with this shark. The sign said it had been caught somewhere back in the 70's....looks plastic to me.

We sat out on the deck and it was paradise. We were right on the beach, the weather was beautiful, great music...that was a moment I wished I could have paused.

We went back to Seacrest, got dessert at Sweet Jeni's, took in a little of the kids' talent show, and then the boys went swimming.

6.15.11 Vacation

2011-06-16T06:48:00.002-05:00
Yesterday we spent the morning in the pool and then the rest of the day at Gulf World Marine Park. Trent has officially reached the terrible two's when it comes to his attitude sometimes. He has the funniest/cutest/sassiest facial expressions to show us that he is not happy.

Here he is in a time out at the pool. He refused to look at me...

And a few minutes later, he's a happy boy once again...

Gulf World Marine Park was so much fun! We saw all different kinds of animal shows: reptiles, exotic birds, sea lion, dolphin, & scuba diving. The birds were so pretty...

This big guy happened to be walking right by as when got there...

The dolphin show...

An up close look at the dolphins. Brennan was trying to hold his hand like a target and get them to do a trick!

Sea lions

Otto the sea lion...he had some dance moves!

Checking out the sharks and sea turtles...

We went to the scuba show and the scuba diver snuck up on Trent. We were all laughing and he had no idea why. He eventually turned around to look and then hauled some butt back to us!

This dolphin came right up to the window and looked at the boys for a good minute! The boys loved it!!

We stopped for dinner at Salty Sue's...

Oh no...raspberries!!

6.14.11 Vacation

2011-06-15T07:53:00.005-05:00
Yesterday was a HOT one! Mid 90's and it felt scorching unless we were in the pool or at the beach. We rode our bikes to Alys Beach playground early morning but didn't stay too long because of the heat. It was such a cute playground and want to go back one evening when the temperature is more comfortable. Trent is MIA from these pictures because he's in the shade with me :)

When we got back we went straight to the pool!

And when the boys got tired of the pool, we went to the beach. Now, super cute story...I was sitting in the water with Brennan and he was really trying to catch a fish with the net(he was disappointed that we had yet to catch one). He started talking about how God doesn't always give us what we ask for but he prays anyway. Brennan told me he was going to pray and ask God to help us catch some fish today and he prayed right there in the water. Well, God listened to Brennan and delivered! We caught 3 fish and two sand crabs. I didn't even recall Brennan's prayer until dinner and reminded him about it. His eyes got big, he was so excited. Such a good lesson for him and the power of prayer!!

Our first sand crab...

One of the fish...

Holding a baby sand crab...

Water fight!

We went for dinner at Bayou Bill's Crab House. Brennan and Carter are sporting their summer tans!

Trent is doing well without taking his afternoon nap. As soon as we started driving to the restaurant he was out...he was so tired!

They had gators outside the restaurant and even a small one for people to touch. All 3 boys took turns giving the gator a hesitant one finger touch.

After dinner we stopped for ice cream and at the splash pad again.

and we made it an early night. We are going to need a few days of down time after this vacation.

This Monopoly game will never be the same after Trent is done with it...

6.13.11 Vacation

2011-06-14T06:27:00.006-05:00
Yesterday morning we went to Panama City Beach to go to Pier Park. The weather was hot but there was a nice breeze as we walked the pier.

The Emerald Coast...the green was beautiful.

Trent insisted on stopping every minute or two to make sure the water was still under the pier...

We went to Ron Jon Surf Shop and got the boys some tshirts...

We spent a little time in the pool before it started thundering and had to leave. Trent has a definite love for sunglasses...

We headed to the beach in the late afternoon...

Brennan and Michael spent a lot of time trying to catch fish and sand crabs.

We went for a bike ride after dinner. The boys weren't crazy at first about having to ride girl bikes but thankfully there was only an intial complaint.

We went for ice cream at The Sugar Shack and soon after I found Trent like this...

This whole area is filled with gorgeous beach houses and condo/apt buildings but I just loved this little street...

We stopped at the small splashpad and let the boys play for a bit.

and back at the condo where Trent makes himself comfortable...

6.12.11 Vacation

2011-06-13T07:04:00.005-05:00
Yesterday was our first full day and we really enjoyed it. We spent time at the beach, pool, napping, bike riding, and exploring.

Brennan is thoroughly enjoying having his own room this week. I was looking for him yesterday morning and here he was...

Carter found some Monopoly money and has been playing with it during our downtime.

Michael and the big boys headed up to the beach in the morning while I stayed at the condo waiting for Trent to wake up. Trent sleeps well anywhere!

Eating his oatmeal...

We finally get to the beach and Trent spends a good 1/2 hour pouting that we aren't at the pool...

Back at the condo for lunch...

I was in the kitchen asking Brennan about something and he wasn't answering me...

and Carter is at the money again...

At the pool in the afternoon.

After dinner we went for a bike ride to find some dessert. Trent had a blast on the back of Michael's bike...he laughed and giggled the whole way.

I brought up the rear...

We ended the day with more swimming.

We have arrived!

2011-06-12T06:23:00.006-05:00
The drive was a success!! I feel so blessed that the boys have adventurous spirits and are lovers of travel. They truly enjoyed themselves and kept themselves occupied watching DVDs, playing their ds's, or reading books. Trent was entertained with a select few DVDs(he is so not a TV watcher!), stickers, markers, and SNACKS!

We left at 7am and made great time. We hit traffic twice the entire drive and that was in Chicago and in southern Alabama where it seemed all the cars were headed to the beach(out of state plates and loaded down in the back!).

We're headed to Florida!

Someone got a little bored putting the markers on paper...

At a rest stop in Kentucky. I had them racing each other down the sidewalk to burn some energy.

A lady with a beautiful southern accent asked if we wanted her to take a family pic...

We stopped for the night shortly after reaching Alabama which was our goal for the day. We(and I mean Michael) drove for 13 hours on day one leaving us with only a few hours to drive the next day. The boys burned some energy in the hotel room by jumping from bed to bed...oops. We got up early Saturday morning and continued the drive. We were cruising right along until the highway was gone and we had to single-lane-country-road-it the rest of the way. It definitely slowed our pace...oh, and the dirt down here is bright orangish red...very cool!

We are finally arriving and the excitement is building...

The villas here are just gorgeous! Our building...we are up on the 4th floor.

While we wait for our meet and greeter we spotted our gulf view. It's a 3 minute walk across the street to get to the beach or there is a golf cart driving through the neighborhood that will take us.

We see the inside of our home for the week and our jaws just drop...this place is gorgeous!!! Our balcony view...once the boys see this they are so done...get them down there ASAP!

I QUICKLY get us unpacked and get our swimsuits on and first we head to the pool.

It's big, warm, gorgeous, and refreshing!

We spent some time at the pool and then were eager to get a glimpse of the beach. ahhhh...the beach is beautiful and the water is WARM! Not the OC, MD beach I grew up going to...this is WARM people!!

Boogieing Brennan...

We concluded our day with dinner on the balcony...

Big Weekend!

2011-06-06T09:18:00.008-05:00
This weekend was crazy busy but lots of fun! The boys had baseball, we went to a birthday party, a cookout, lots of beautifying, and of course, Trista and Andy's wedding! The boys were excited to get to the church and put on their tuxes.

Practicing their walk. Brennan walked with Allayna and Carter with Kennedy.

Trent keeping busy...

Me and Trista

Looking snazzy and ready to go!

A quick family pic...

All the kids did so well during the wedding. I snuck a few peaks back at them and they were sitting so nicely, with their fingers plugged in their ears(thanks to some sound problems). After the wedding the professional photographers did their thing and I was sure to grab some pics too!

This is when we started noticing that maybe Trent isn't feeling well. He was a unusally crabby in the morning and by this time he's starting to feel a little warm.

As soon as the chucks and sunglasses were on, the "attitude" came out!

There must be something about wearing a tux because the boys loved having their picture taken!

I love K's face here...so much attitude!

After lots of lots of picture taking we were off to the reception. The big boys snuck in a quick nap...

And now they are rejouvenated and ready for round 2! At this point, Trent is definitely sick and on his way home with Michael.

Tapping his glass might have been Brennan's favorite part of the whole day! "What?!? I bang my spoon on my glass and Ms. Trista and Mr. Andy HAVE to kiss!?!"....so much joy for a 6 year old boy!

Congrats to Trista and Andy!!

End of the School Year

2011-06-03T09:28:00.004-05:00
The boys are officially done with school and out for the summer! Brennan is headed to 2nd grade and Carter is headed to Kindergarten! I am so excited to have my boys home for the summer.

Carter's last day of 4K pic

and his first day of 4K pic. He lost so much of his babyface this year.

Carter had an end of year picnic with his classmates. We ate lunch, the kids had a short program, and played the rest of the afternoon.

Carter and his teacher.

Brennan's last day of 1st grade pic

and his first day of 1st grade pic. He looks so grown up now.

Brennan and his teacher.

I made monster chunks for the boys to give to their teachers. I tried to make them look a little like the boys so I added glasses to Carter's and dark hair to Brennan's.

I bagged them up and added a "Thank you for teaching our lil' monster" tag.

and I can't forget Mr. T!

Memorial Day Weekend

2011-05-31T06:01:00.004-05:00
We had a fantastic Memorial Day Weekend. The weather was beautiful overall and we filled our three days off together with tons of time in the sunshine and lots of good food! We had our first annual Mason Lobsterfest, a picnic at the park, went to the parade, and to the movie theater to see Kung Fu Panda 2. I think I smiled the entire weekend. I feel so blessed to have such an amazing husband and 3 wonderful boys.

Lobsterfest!

Michael spent lots of time grilling this weekend.

What a bunch!

Carter loves making this face now.

Trent found a pair of Carter's old snowboots and insisted on wearing them most of the day on Sunday.

At the parade...

Memorial Day was a hot one and the boys spent the afternoon on the slip n slide.

Baby crack...

What happens when you see too much baby crack...

Ending our weekend with some ice cream...

Brennan's Star Wars Party

2011-05-22T19:05:00.004-05:00
Yesterday afternoon we celebrated Brennan's 7th birthday with a Star Wars party. His birthday isn't for a few more weeks but we will be relaxing on the beach on June 17th and the last thing I want to be doing is stressing about party planning.

The weather didn't 100% cooperate so Michael and I transformed our downstairs family room into party central.

I don't think the kids noticed my error..."May the Force be with you"

Light sabers that were anxiously awaiting their owners...

The "younglings" were checked in at the front door where they received their Jedi robe and name tag with tasks to accomplish.

Brennan and Allayna

Jedi training gets underway!

Even the younger kids got in on it!

Popping balloons to try and find the princess!

We enjoyed a feast of Yoda Soda, Pizza the Hutt, Padawan Popcorn, Maja Fruit, and a large amount of sugar!

Destroying the death star...

Darth Vader made an appearance!

and was quickly defeated!

Trent stopped to pose for pictures...

Everyone became official Jedi and received a certificate...

and our group pic

Present time!

Happy Birthday Brennan!

Cub Scouts @ the Brewer game!

2011-05-17T12:19:00.003-05:00
On Saturday afternoon we went to the Brewer game with Brennan's Cub Scout pack. We were supposed to tail gate at the game but since the weather didn't cooperate we tailgated at a scout's house near the stadium.

Getting ready to leave for the game...

It's ALL about the food!...well mostly!!

Had a pretty good view!

Trent the Trooper!...he is so go with the flow.

20 Months

2011-05-11T16:15:00.000-05:00
Trent is 20 months old today!! I can't believe he will be 2 years old in only 4 short months. Trent is such a joy and makes me smile so much. His favorite place to be is outside...he is going to love camping this summer. He is a sneaky little booger though. If I ever leave the pantry door open he is sure to be in the candy bag getting out a sucker.

Trent always seems to be on the move. He has no patience for tv and would rather be playing with toys or helping me with housework. He is a social little guy and loves giving us hugs and kisses.

and he hasn't forgotten where his nose is ;)

Catch Up

2011-05-10T10:01:00.006-05:00
Things have been full speed ahead since we got back from Spring Break! We wasted no time and jumped right back into our busy routine. The boys had their first little league game and Trent spent some time on the potty. The countdown is on for school to be out and for summer vacation to begin! I made a countdown for the boys to keep track of how long until our Florida vacation...we are so excited and ready to relax!

I had a great Mother's Day! We spent the day playing outside enjoying the beautiful weather. Michael and the boys cleaned my truck from top to bottom(which it desperately needed!!) I love my house full of boys so much and am very proud to be their mommy!

So yes, Trent has been doing some potty training this week and I can't say that I am 100% excited about it. I'm just not ready to get back into potty training mode quite yet. He seems to think that he is much older than he is and tries to keep up with what Brennan and Carter are doing. He has shown some interest in the potty before but now he has a handful of successes under his belt. It has fizzled out a little since Trent has been running a low fever the past couple of days so I'm hoping he gives me a few months before PT'ing resumes.

Big Boy Trent sitting on his little potty. He hasn't used this potty yet though, he prefers to stand with his brothers ;)

Brennan and Carter's first little league game. They are on a team with a great group of kids!

The Base Race

Opening Day Ceremonies

Teacher Appreciation Gift

2011-05-04T20:05:00.001-05:00
Another idea I got from Living Locurto! I loved these cupcake sundaes and had to make them. We have been truly blessed with awesome teachers for the boys!!

Spring Break 2011

2011-05-04T12:16:00.005-05:00
The boys and I went to Pennsylvania over their spring break from school and we had such a great time! The weather was nice overall and the boys spent a lot of time outside playing with their cousins.

Ready to board!

Trent is a flying pro, just like his brothers!

Our first night we met my cousin, Ashley and her two boys, Grady and Evan, for dinner. All the boys got along so well(for the most part).

My attempt at a group pic...didn't go so well!

We saw the movie Rio...so cute!!

Went to a small children's muesum in Gettysburg. B&C loved being inside a giant bubble.

Spent some time with Pop...

Ate some yummy steamed crabs!

We ran so much the boys were zonked out!

and had a family cookout...

I wish I could pack all these people up and bring them home with me :)

Learning how to play Washers...

Getting ready for the campfire...

Trent and Nana

Brennan, Carter, & Grady

We had a blast but it's good to be home!

Easter Weekend

2011-04-24T17:47:00.002-05:00
We had a great Easter weekend. I took the boys to the Good Friday family service and they behaved so well! Trent ventured around a little and sat with the other kids up front. Saturday was spent dying Easter eggs, taking Carter to a friend's party at Flabbergast and then to the Easter service at Life Church. That was our first time at Life Church and we loved it! The boys had a great time and it felt like Michael and I were at a concert. So much fun and I'm sure we'll be going back!

Working hard to open his Cadbury egg...

Success!!

Hunting for eggs...

HAPPY EASTER!!

Holy Cuteness!!

2011-04-18T11:47:00.002-05:00
I saw these bag toppers on Living Locurto and thought they would be perfect for the boys to give to their teachers before Easter break. I put them together this morning and they are just too cute!

The back of the topper is white with space for the boys to sign their names.

Brennan and Carter had picture night on Friday and got to wear their baseball uniforms for the first time. They thought they were so cool in their uniforms! I got a quick pic before we headed out in the pouring down rain.

New Faces

2011-04-14T08:51:00.002-05:00
We picked up Carter's new glasses at the beginning of the week and he loves them. Right after we picked them up and started driving home, Carter said "hey, I can see the people over there in that car!" He has to learn to not touch the lenses and keep them up on his nose but so far he is pretty responsible with them. I got a few pics of him wearing them and he was in a super silly mood...

Trent has a new face this week too. When we ask Trent to "make your mad face", this is what we get.

I think it's pretty darn cute!

A Taste of Summer

2011-04-11T10:48:00.005-05:00
This weekend the weather was just gorgeous! Saturday got warmer and sunnier as the day went on and Sunday was hot and sunny all day. We spent Saturday cleaning up the yard, at tball practice, and biked to our neighborhood park. The weekend felt just like Summer and we were all sad for it to end. I took tons and tons of pics so I'll try to limit it to my favorites.

It's not often he gives me a toothy smile!

I'm so glad I caught this face. This is Trent's new mad face. He scrunches up his nose and eventually will get to sticking out his lips.

Even Trent knows how to line up when I ask if I can get a pic of them together.

I can't believe how big and mature Brennan is getting. Time really needs to slow down.

Snack break!

Brennan took this pic :)

Sunday was just beautiful. I took the boys to Sunday school and then we spent pretty much the rest of the day in the yard. The boys rode their bikes and played baseball with Daddy. The Ketelhohn/Heffner's joined us for Sushi Sunday, a hike through Lime Kiln Park, a trip to DQ, and playing at the park.

Taking Trent for a ride.

and then they were hot...

Our feast:

All ready for our hike.

Trent did his best to keep up with the big kids.

We had a great time and the boys were so tired from playing outside all weekend. This weekend really leaves us impatient for Summer to get here.

This and That

2011-04-04T16:52:00.003-05:00
This weekend was full of fun activities for the boys. We started out with a trip to the library so the big boys could go to Storycraft. Usually Trent is pretty good at the library, but with this trip I can see that he is fast approaching the terrible twos...oh my!

We gave Carter Bucks tickets for his birthday and he was so pumped for the game. It was a very intense and I'm happy to say that the Bucks beat the 76ers in overtime! Here are some really bad cellphone pics:

On Sunday we went to see Diary of a Wimpy Kid:Roderick Rules and the boys loved it. The laughed out loud at so many parts...it was so funny.

Despite being a little stinker lately Trent is 100% adorable. After nap time every day he insists on calling Daddy.

and this boy cannot get enough of playing outside. Hopefully the weather will start cooperating a little more!

and it looks like Carter will be needing glasses in the near future. He didn't do so well at his 5 year check up when they checked his vision. I took him to the eye doctor this morning and she confirmed that he needs glasses. She said we can hold off on them until August so he'll have the most up to date perscription for when he starts kindergarten. Mommy is already checking out frames!

5 Year Checkup

2011-04-01T10:32:00.003-05:00
Carter had his 5 year checkup this morning and he was not happy about going. I let him know that he would be getting a few shots and he insisted that I cancel his appointment. He complained the entire way there but he went and he did well. The nurse let him pick out 5 stickers and 3 pencils for being such a rockstar!

Carter is weighing in at 40.5 pounds(49%) and 42.25"(36%).

Carter's 5th Birthday Weekend Part 2

2011-03-28T17:25:00.003-05:00
Sunday was Carter's 5th birthday and he woke up excited that he was now a whole hand! He opened his presents first thing and had his birthday donut for breakfast.

Bucks tickets!!

Carter has been asking for this monster truck play set every time we go to Target...it's finally his!

and he has been waiting for this...Star Wars III for DS!

My dad texted me on Thursday afternoon and said guess who is coming out your way!?! He's a truck driver and his usual loads take him from NY to NC...this was his first load to WI and he was delivering it about 25 minutes away. He was able to spend Carter's entire birthday with us!

Pop has arrived!!

It didn't take Trent long to warm up and become Pop's boy!

Mommy and her birthday boy!

Carter and Daddy

Pop and his boys

We went to Red Robin for Carter's birthday dinner. The waitress brought him out a sundae which he dove right in to!

Singing "Happy Birthday" yet again...

I made Carter these ice cream cone cupcakes to take to school today before he decided he just wanted regular chocolate cupcakes...so I made another batch of cupcakes this morning and now I have an extra 15 ice cream cone cupcakes on my counter :(

Carter had a great birthday weekend and we were thrilled that Pop got to join us. Happy 5th Birthday Carter!!

Carter's 5th Birthday Weekend Part 1

2011-03-28T15:29:00.005-05:00
The Cart-Man is 5 years old!! I can't believe how fast the past 5 years have gone by. Carter is such a sweet and funny boy. He gives the BEST hugs and loves to make us laugh. His favorite way to make us laugh is by doing impersonations of Trent in a little baby voice. His favorite toys are monster trucks and anything Star Wars.

Carter had a Monster Jam themed birthday party at gymnastics on Saturday. He had a blast!

The invite

Waiting for friends to arrive

Luke, Carter, Allayna & Kennedy

Kennedy and Carter

Popcorn break!

Group pic

The party room!

Opening presents

Party favors

Happy Birthday Carter!

Working for a living...

2011-03-20T15:51:00.005-05:00
Just over a week ago I found a new way of keeping the boys motivated to do their chores. MyJobChart is awesome! Brennan and Carter have been eager to get their morning chores finished before school and their evening chores done before bedtime to earn points.

They keep track of what chores they have to do by logging in to their own chore chart.

Once they log in they can see what chores they have to do that day. They earn points by completing their chores. As they complete each chore they check it off and the points get added right to their total.

The points can be redeemed for rewards. MyJobChart is connected directly with Amazon where I can select rewards for them to earn. I can also add custom rewards.

I can post messages right on their pages for them to read each morning. They have been having a lot of fun "emailing" me back!

It's neat to see the boys get excited about doing their chores. They enjoy logging in on their own to check off what chores they have completed and I enjoy not having to constantly remind them of what needs done. They are always comparing how many points each other has earned...a little healthy competition never hurt ;)

Pinewood Derby

2011-03-17T17:07:00.003-05:00
Last night was Brennan's first Pinewood Derby. Michael and Papa helped him carve out his car from a block of wood and then I helped him paint it. His car had been ready for a few weeks and Brennan was excited for derby night. I helped out with the bake sale and made official Pinewood Derby cupcakes.

A few practice runs before registering...

Brennan's car flew down the track and beat all but one other car!

Waiting for his car...

Trent watching the action...

Brennan and his buddy, Noah

These are the faces I got when I asked them to smile so I could see their missing front teeth.

Brennan with his ribbons and awards. He came in 2nd place for the Tiger Cubs and 2nd place for the entire pack. We are soooo proud of him!!