Cannonball!

Here's more on Jack's new favorite thing to do at the pool. They would do this all day if we let them.

Happy Birthday Mommy!

Happy birthday. We love you very much. We all rely on you so much and are so grateful for you. You are always there to help us out, snuggle with us, break up our fights, play with us, or take us to the pool. You are the best.
We don't always tell you so, but you mean everything to us. We hope you have a good day and that we all have fun together at the beach.
We love you,
Mia, Jack, and Cole

A great day with Cole

I have to blog this day. I may eat my words tomorrow but for now I am going to revel in my hard work as a parent. Cole has been crazy lately, driving me crazy from the moment he gets up. He usually cries and whines until I feed him a massive breakfast. We are talking at least two bowls of cereal equal to my one, milk or juice and a few bites of my breakfast and probably a Go-gurt. The kid loves his breakfast. Mostly because he refuses to eat dinner. After breakfast he was still whining and I thought I was in for a fun day with the little dude. I decided to organize toys, I think the nesting is kicking in, it's about time, and I dumped the bucket of toys out. Why this is magic for my kids I just don't know. They go crazy with the thought of toys they haven't seen in a few weeks. Cole loved it! He played and played so well with Jack, Mia and by himself. We were upstairs and in the basement for a few hours. It was great. Cole ate lunch and went down without a fuss. He slept until almost 4pm. We went to get some school supplies and he always wants to walk. He hates the cart. I told him that he had to stay by Mommy and if he walked off he would have to get in the shopping cart. I had some serious doubts because we were in Toys R Us. He proved me wrong over and over again! It was so great!!! He followed me around the store and never ran off! I had to coax him away from a few things but it was really was impressive. I guess I have followed through enough times he knew I was serious. He was the same great listening child in Target. We came home, had dinner, which he ate, we all colored then up to bed. No fighting me or crying. I just felt so blessed or lucky or fortunate. I guess all three. Thanks for a great day my Bubba! We are making progress. Let's keep it up, okay?

Kamikaze!

Jack is one determined boy. He can't jump off the diving board until he passes the deep water test, which means he has to swim the entire length of the pool in the deep end on his own. Tonight he really wanted to jump off the diving board. So I had him try it when we got there but forgot to tell the lifeguard, so it didn't count. The second time the lifeguard was watching but he inhaled some water half way there and started coughing. A while later he tried it one more time and passed.

Of course that means DIVING BOARD! Jack, Mia, and I spent the rest of the time doing tricks. Mia's favorite is the cannonball. Jack's last jump he told me he was going to do a karate chop. I thought he just meant jumping off and karate chopping the air, but he had a different idea. He jumped off and dove straight off the diving board and karate chopped the water, belly flop and all.

Way to go Jackie boy!

Side note - while we are saying prayers with the kids before bed, Jack is so tired. He hadn't said a word in about 5 minutes. Bailey was standing next to Jack, and right at the end of the prayer Jack says, "nip, nip, nipple" and squeezes one of them. Never a dull moment with that kid.

Cole's 2nd year Dr.s appointment

Cole went into the doctor for his yearly check-up today.
He doesn't even make 25 pounds.
He's in the 10%. He doesn't like to eat very many things.
Thankfully, his height makes up for his lack of weight.
He is in the 75%.

One year older!

Happy Birthday Colin! It's always fun to be the same age as you for 8 days. Too bad next week I will only be 32. How did you get to be older than me? I love you! Hope you had a great day.

Two years old

Well, I have made it to Cole's second birthday. The last six months have proven to be quite challenging for me. I guess I can officially say he has hit the terrible twos. Please, pray for me.

Cole is fearless and the loudest of my three. I didn't know such a loud, ear piercing noise could come out of such a little boy. My little boy who doesn't like to eat any veggies but corn and carrots, if they are dipped in dressing. He is relentless in his ability to make mess after mess. He can be the biggest helper of my three too. If he is in the mood he will pull weeds, push the little wheel barrow, rake and make dirt angels in the loose dirt of the garden. If he drips on the table he will ask for a napkin and wipe it up. He hates band-aids and stickers. He can hold a pencil the correct way. Every word he says has three parts. Dog - Da, da,da, water - Wa, wa, wa. He loves riding on Colin's bike and hates the sound of the vacuum. He loves tractors and has been entertained by the heavy equipment working on our street for the last few months. If he can get his shorts off he does. He will come and find me to show me his shorts around his ankles. He likes to tickle your neck, snuggle before bed and is overly in love with his binkies. He prefers to have two.

Mia is Cole's second biggest fan. She can get him to give her hugs just by faking she is sad. Jackson still doesn't care to be touched by Cole but loves to make him laugh. Unfortunately, it is because he is doing something like making a farting noise. It's always exciting here.

Cole, Mommy and Daddy love you so much. You are an exciting part of our family that we could never do without. Have a Happy Birthday big boy.

And there will be...

...four.
January 28, 2011

Memphis Kiddie Park

Nachoooooooooooo!
The kids said they were yelling as the ferris wheel went around.

The whiplash roller coaster. Mia and Jack were hooked. I kept telling
Colin to hold Cole's head, hold Cole's head!

The Saturday preceding the 4th we wanted to have a day with the kids. Colin had been working nights and we hadn't done anything away from home and all together for some time. It was a hot and humid day but we didn't let that stop us. We spent a few hot hours at the Memphis Kiddie Park while the kiddos rode a little ferris wheel, race cars, a roller coaster that was sure to give you whiplash, merry go round, airplanes and more. The kids really had a great time and it was fun to see them ride the rides. Thankfully I didn't have to go on any. I get dizzy way too easily!

Empty Nest

Well, if I thought my kids grew up fast I was wrong. Before we knew it the Robin had a nest, eggs, naked baby birds and then feathered, flying out of the nest, birds. I was out with the kids right by the tree where the tree that holds the nest and I practically stepped on one of the babies. It hopped around the yard all day while it's mommy brought it bugs and berries. I felt so bad for the poor little thing. I don't think it could fly and I did not want to pick it up in case the mommy would abandon it. The video is of the mom calling the baby. It is sad to listen to. By the end of the day the baby still had not flown away so I was going to get a box for it to spend the night in. By the time I got outside with the box I couldn't find it. The mom wasn't around either. I am guessing the other one or two babies were able to fly away. The cycle of nature can be difficult and cruel but it is what it is.