Enjoy the Ride with the Carrithers Family

New Look

2012-01-28T21:50:00.015-06:00

Luke with the Dot paints. Painting is something Luke really loves right now.
Liam working on his snowflake

Aiden is just a mess.

The finished snowflakes

Liam with his puppy hat he made from the craft stuff Calvin sent us.

Daddy and Luke

All five of us (standing, looking, and halfway smiling!)

John and I on an old historic bridge

Stinker

The boys

We are trying out a "new look" for the blog. I did some reading to try to make a few design changes so that we could try to incorporate some recent family pictures we took. I am definitely not a blog designer and now I know why they pay people to do this stuff. As with many projects, it was fairly time consuming. Anyway, about the family pictures....We found a wonderful photographer to take some pictures of all five of us. We have been a little slow in getting family pictures made since Aiden was born, but this actually ended up being relatively easy. Our photographer was very patient, talented, and fun. We basically took pictures of the boys playing outside. It was cool on the day we took the pictures, but not cold so we were able to enjoy the time outside and get some great pictures. I am posting several of our favorites.

We also did a few craft projects recently. We made some snowflakes out of coffee filters and then painted them. We also received some puppy dog craft projects from our cousin Calvin's birthday party and we loved making puppy hats, collars, and eating the "dog food" and "dog vitamins." Thanks Calvin!

I am borrowing this from another blog, but I really liked it and wanted to repost it:

Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize

they were the big things. Robert Brault

Here are a couple funny "little things" from our week:

1. Aiden does this thing now where he will be walking along and stop and say, "I stuck, I stuck." So, we will say, no you are not stuck, let's go and he will start walking and say, "oh, there I go."

2. The boys received the movie, "Cars 2" from Grandma and Grandpa Carrithers for Christmas and they love to watch it when we are driving in the van. Each of them has a different car from the movie (Lightening McQueen for Luke, Francesco the race car for Liam, and Tow Mater for AJ). They always want to bring their cars with them and when a racing scene comes on the movie, they will race their cars as fast as possible in their laps and discuss who is winning while makes all kinds of car noises. It is hilarious to watch.

3. Liam notices everything, seriously he is so observant. I wore a new shirt the other day and he said, "Hey mom, nice blue shirt you are wearing."

January Snow and Saturday Trains

2012-01-22T21:32:00.009-06:00

Liam's snow Angel
Luke's Snow Angel

Dump Trucks hauling snow

This activity lasted almost an HOUR for Luke and Liam! Too bad I didn't have a cup of coffee out there.

Saturday Morning Trains!

Saturday morning trains

Racing the Trains

Checking out the bridge

Cheeeeeeese!

We have had one of the mildest winters on record for Minnesota this year (so far, that is). I keep wondering what the repercussions of such a mild winter will be in the long run. Like more bugs this summer, a longer winter with snow in the spring, etc...? I have no idea because I have never seen a winter in Minnesota where we could actually play outdoors without snow gear in January. But this winter has been relatively mild and it has been nice in my opinion though many of the natives are crying for the lack of snow and "good ice" to play hockey outdoors. We did, however, get some snow over the weekend and the boys love playing in it. They (minus Aiden) love to shovel and could spend hours outside "working" on the driveway. Aiden spends his 10 minutes outside before he is ready to come in, but that is hardly worth the nearly 20 minutes it takes to put on all his snow gear since he is not exactly tolerant of all the clothing.

Another one of our weekly traditions recently has been donuts with Daddy on Saturday mornings. I am usually trying to fit in a longer run either solo or with our running group while John takes the boys out to get donuts. Its a special treat that they really look forward to and I will never complain about a clean kitchen and some time away. We do have days and hours when everyone plays really well together. Luke and Liam do a relatively good job of including Aiden and tolerating his sometimes destructive forms of play as he knocks down their Lego towers or pulls apart the train tracks. The pictures are proof that sometimes it does work for all three to do the same activity at the same time!

In other news, Aiden had his 2 year check up this past week and his is pretty close to the size that Luke was at 2 years of age. He is 34.5 inches and 32.9 lbs. That is about an inch shorter than Luke and 1.3 lbs heavier! We all knew he was a butterball.

Birthday Boys

2012-01-16T20:55:00.006-06:00

Lots and Lots of boys!! Left to right back row: Justin, Jake, Eli, Liam, AJ, William, Caleb, Jack W., Luke, Charlie, and Sean. Front row L to R: Zac and Jack B.

Getting ready for the big party. Aiden is holding up 5 fingers. Everytime you ask Aiden how old he is, his response is very matter of factly-"five."
Watching the safety video with our friend and neighbor, Jack W.

Air Hockey

Aiden went up and down this 30 foot slide multiple times by himself. I just happen to go down once with him and John snapped a picture.

Basketball with Liam and Jack

Trying to climb the big wall

Luke with his flag to pin on the wall

Hungry and thirsty boys

YUMMY cake

Happy Birthday Luke and Liam!

We had a 4th birthday party for Luke and Liam over the weekend at Pump it Up, a party place with large inflatable jumping things. We debated on where to have it this year and finally decided to have the party at the same place we went to last year. It is not a place where we play during the week so it is still new for the boys and they love it. They do excellent parties and are so helpful from the time you walk in until the time you leave (they even carry everything out to the car for you). Since we have January birthdays, I really don't ever see having a party at our house for 15 little boys. It is hard enough to entertain 3 little boys, much less a roomful of boys after they eat cake and ice cream. We had a few friends from school, our twins group, and our neighborhood. In reality, John and I thought the party was easier than taking the boys out to dinner on Saturday night! We were able to stand around and talk with the other parents. We are all "partied out" until the next birthday in our family....not until August!

4 and 2

2012-01-09T20:53:00.009-06:00

Birthday Lunch at McDonald's with our best twin friends, Jack and Charlie
The crazy boys in maroon at Open Gym (and one white shirt that Kirsten babysits)

More climbing at the gymnastics place

Happy 4th Birthday Liam Carey!

Happy 4th Birthday Luke Allen!

Take One: Aiden's first Day of school!! January 3, 2012

Take Two: First Day of School. Everyone is looking, but no one is smiling.

Take Three: Aiden's first Day of School, Luke is getting bored and Aiden is following him.

Take Four: Aiden's first day of school. Luke is no longer interested, but good job Liam and AJ.

Happy 2nd Birthday Aiden John! Not the monkey cupcakes from Aunt Sarah, but it was tasty.

This is the month for birthdays at our house! After all the parties and celebrations at Christmas, we move into birthday party mode. We celebrated Aiden's second birthday last week and we are preparing to celebrate Luke and Liam's 4th birthday this week. Luke and Liam are very excited about their birthday for two reasons: 1) Cake and 2) They will be four and they are now eligible to go on the field trips at school (translation: they get to ride the school bus). Happy 4th Birthday Luke Allen and Liam Carey. We love you and cannot imagine how we spent our free time before you arrived! Happy Birthday wishes to our Cousin Calvin who also turns 4 today. We miss you and wish we could be there to celebrate with you.

Aiden hit a big milestone last week when he started his first day of school. This was a surprise Christmas gift to me from John for Christmas and I could not have been more excited. Don't get me wrong, I have a great time with Aiden when the boys are at school, but honestly...everyone needs a break. Aiden is a handful! He is very mischievous and he has been asking to go to school like his brothers for several months now. He generally has a melt down when we have to drop off the boys at school and Aiden has to go home with me rather than staying to play. On his first day, he was a little timid and cried a little, but by Day 2 he was walking right in and starting to play. I am excited for Aiden to start school because I know he needs the challenges and interaction with other kids his own age. All three boys will now be going to school on two mornings each week for about 3 hours. Hallelujah!

Happy 2nd Birthday Aiden John!

2012-01-02T08:25:00.004-06:00

Aiden is playing a little piano with Liam
The crazy FOUR!

Merry Christmas!

Super Friends! up up and Away!

Happy 2nd Birthday to our little monkey!

Happy 2nd Birthday Aiden! Its so hard to believe you are already TWO, the same age your brothers were when you arrived. You are so smart, funny, mischievous, as well as very persistent at times. We love you very much and we are so thankful to have you in our lives. You and your brothers are the best of friends and so much fun to watch.

Christmas in Arkansas

2011-12-31T22:56:00.001-06:00

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Christmas 2011

2011-12-31T22:43:00.005-06:00

We had a wonderful Christmas with my family in Arkansas and really enjoyed our visit. The hardest part was the 15 hours we spent in the car driving to and from Arkansas, but I think we are finally recovering from that. We loved getting to see family and friends while we were there and stayed very busy. John and I enjoyed several runs together on the hills surrounding my mom's house. I forgot how hilly Arkansas can be and how beautiful it can be as well. We loved having some warmer temperatures to get outside and play and loved spending more time with our cousin, Calvin. Our week was topped off by a birthday celebration for Aiden who will be two on January 2, 2012. He had a Curious George themed party complete with monkey cupcakes made by Aunt Sarah and they were fabulous! I have so many pictures to share from our week that I am posting just a few highlights and perhaps will post more later. We hope you had a wonderful holiday and wish everyone a very Happy 2012!

Christmas Crafts

2011-12-19T16:47:00.006-06:00

Couple of our Christmas craft projects. Note Aiden's gingerbread man in the middle with nothing on it. He glued everything on and then pulled it all off.

Can you tell which one is Aiden's gingerbread house? Far left, front row. He put all the candies on the house and then took them all off and ate them.

hmmmm. Looks good, but let's see how it tastes!

Did you eat any of the red icing?

Aiden and Luke repairing the vent for Daddy

Decorating cookies

Liam is hard at work

We have attempted several Christmas crafts recently and most of them have gone fairly well. I say "most" of them because the wild card is Aiden. This is the first year that Luke and Liam have actually gotten into doing crafts and we have a good time doing them. To name a few of the ones we have tried: several types of christmas ornaments, christmas trees, gingerbread men, cotton ball snowmen, paper snowflakes, etc... Aiden does, however, show an interest in all of the crafts that involve FOOD! Naturally, he has no problem decorating cookies with icing and candy or putting candy on a ginger bread house.

Wishing all of our family and friends a very Merry Christmas!

Preschool Program and Christmas with Friends

2011-12-12T16:49:00.019-06:00

Popcorn and a Movie with our friends!

Left to Right: Aiden, Charlie, Luke, Jack, and Liam

Baby Andy and Kirsten

Opening our presents

Aiden is really not a big fan of Santa Claus yet

Luke and Liam's preschool program

Liam did a great job singing

Liam did a little "cooking" during the program

Luke is holding up the final "A" in SANTA

Luke is behind the "A"

Aiden really wanted to climb up on the stage and pull down the ballons

Our Elf, Cowboy, has been playing a few tricks with the boys and eating some of their cookies! The boys are really enjoying the Elf this year and jump out of bed to find Cowboy each morning.

The boys had their annual Christmas program at school over the weekend and it was really hilarious to watch. There were three kids who dropped out at various times during the program and one child who had to use the potty midway through. Luke and Liam, however, somehow survived the entire program and even managed to sing a few of the songs. I was suprised last year by how little they sang any of the songs, but their teacher assured me that this would come with age. Seems like they are always pretty vocal at home, but maybe not in front of lots of people. The program happened to be in the middle of the afternoon which is a rather tricky time for us since it is close to naps. Luke and Liam can skip their nap and survive reasonably well, but Aiden is a different story. Aiden was in desperate need of his nap by the time the program began so we made a quick exit after treats and a visit with Santa.

We also got together recently to exchange gifts and watch the "Elf on the Shelf" movie with our best twin friends (Jack and Charlie) and their baby brother, Andy. It was a loud, fun, memorable evening with presents, popcorn, and lots of fun. This might be the first year where the boys played independently for a short time and the adults actually held some conversation. We are thankful for all the good friends we have met during our short time in Minnesota.

Let the countdown begin....

2011-12-06T15:26:00.000-06:00

In addition to finding our Cowboy Elf each morning, we take turns moving Santa on our calendar and remind them that there are still a lot of days left until Christmas.

Luke is checking out Santa's beard

Liam trying on the guitar costume that John wore to help with the Magic show

Standing up front with Daddy after the show

Is that really Daddy up there (far left of picture)

Watching the magic show at Daddy's work party

Mmmm. Red punch.

Sled rides!

Down the hill on the side of our house

Sampling the snow

Seems like they enjoy laying in it more than anything else

We even know how to shovel!

Aiden with his George

The boys have officially started their countdown to Christmas. Our infamous Elf on the Shelf, Cowboy, has returned again this year and brings the incentive of toys and treats for young boys who listen to their parents! Actually, I will really miss Cowboy after Christmas.

We had a fun weekend that made it feel a lot like Christmas. We went to a Christmas party at John's work for the children of all employees at his company. It was an amazing party complete with a magic show, storyteller, food, a christmas shop, visit with Santa, crafts, and more! Seriously, we were busy the entire time and I am pretty sure John and I were exhausted at the end after trying to keep up with all three boys. Everyone had a great time and we will definitely do it again next year. On Saturday evening, it snowed a few inches so first thing Sunday morning the boys wanted to play in the snow. We were outside for several hours because the temps were pretty mild for our winters. The boys seem to enjoy the snow even more each year and we finally have all the gear to make going outside a little easier (even if it still takes a half hour to get everyone dressed and out the door). Luke is still a little disappointed that there is not enough snow to build a snowman yet, but I keep reassuring him that there is more to come.

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-29T15:27:00.008-06:00

Playing in the box from the new television

Riding in Santa's sleigh with Comet and Cupid

It was really cold, windy, and rainy!

Hanging some Christmas ornaments

Aiden loved the little snowman ornament

Getting the tree ready. Our tree still remains behind closed doors, but perhaps next year we will move it out of the office.

We had a nice Thanksgiving here in Minnesota. I wouldn't necessarily classify it as "relaxing" because I am not sure it is ever relaxing around here unless the boys are napping or in bed, but we had a good time. John enjoyed a few days off so we tried to get several things accomplished. We made a wonderful Thanksgiving meal with a turkey, dressing, pie, and other traditional items. We also put up the Christmas tree, hung some lights outside, and bought a new television on Black Friday. Yep, we had a small mishap with the flatscreen t.v. in our bonus room about a week or so ago and had to buy a new television. Aiden had a small, plastic, knee hockey stick and he hit the television screen just hard enough to crack something on the screen so that there were lines all over the picture. The picture looked pretty horrible and it was like slow motion for me as I screamed when I saw him raise the stick and swing. Lessons learned: 1) The t.v. is now mounted on the wall several feet above the ground and six little hands (not sure why we didn't do that years ago) and 2) No more plastic hockey sticks in the bonus room. I really do not have many pictures from our t.v. hunting, hanging, and organizing event over Thanksgiving so I will post some random ones from the weekend. We did manage to take a short sleigh ride with Santa and his reindeer on a super cold, rainy and windy Minnesota afternoon.

One more funny thing from Luke that I want to remember in several years so I am writing it down. We have been working on patience with the boys and trying to encourage them not to ask for the same thing multiple times, but rather to ask once and then be patient for the results. We were driving in the car this week and Luke asked me a question. I asked him to repeat it because I could not understand what he said. His response to me: "Sorry Mom, I can only say it one time." And to think he's only 3.5 years old?

The Snow is Coming....

2011-11-21T09:47:00.005-06:00

Luke is hammering in the snow sticks with Daddy

Aiden managed to pull most of the sticks out as soon as we got them in the ground

Liam helping John with his tools

All ready to help...with goggles and tools!

Aiden and Daddy. Liam says John's hat has strings like a car wash!

Luke

Liam on the swing

In anticipation of our first snowfall, the boys helped John put out the "snow sticks." Now that we have survived four Minnesota winters, this is becoming a little more routine. Even the boys know what they are doing when we put out the sticks. They ran to get their toolbox and goggles when John asked for their help. Thankfully, the snow was short-lived and we only got about two inches or so. The boys were actually disappointed when the small hill on the side of our house no longer had enough snow for sledding. Luke was so disappointed, but we assured him there will be more snow soon. Lots more snow! It still takes us about 10 minutes to dress each of the boys in their snow gear and about 5 minutes for one of them to decide they are cold, have to potty, or just plain don't want to be out there for whatever reason. Have a very happy Thanksgiving!

Special Friends

2011-11-16T08:18:00.002-06:00

Meet Georgie and Georgie. These are Aiden's favorites right now and he carries them (both of them) around all the time. They were a gift to Luke and Liam from Uncle Tom and Aunt Charlene, but AJ loves them too!

Meet "Bear and Doggies". These are Luke's special friends. The "Brown Dog" is his favorite that he has had since birth. The "Blue Dog" was a back-up for brown dog, but has become a regular. And, "Bear" was the lovey we put his pacifier inside of when he turned three. Picture is courtesy of Liam.

Meet "Brown Dog". This is Liam's one and only lovey that he is very particular about. Although it looks just like Luke's brown doggie, they can tell them apart somehow. I have no idea how they do it honestly. Picture courtesy of Luke.

Making some soup with Mommy and Daddy. Note our special friends in the kitchen with us.

Aiden and I frequently go to the grocery store when the boys are at preschool. When we walk inside this particular grocery store, he starts asking for the "football guy".

Touching the football guy's foot

We have some special friends that we have had since we were born. We may not always have these special friends, but right now they are pretty important. They eat with us, sleep with us, snuggle with us, and make us feel better when we are sick. They even get to go with us on trips in the car and the airplane. Mom and Dad will not let us take our special friends anywhere else because they are afraid something might happen to them. In fact, Mom has looked for a "back-up" special friend, but nothing is quite the same. We have some good back-ups that will work in a pinch, but they are still not our special friends. When our special friends are dirty, we give them a bath and sometimes they get an obligatory bath when we are at school or gone for the day. Let me introduce you to our special friends, because we never want to forget about them.

We are Thankful For....

2011-11-09T14:00:00.000-06:00

Liam is flipping through a toy catalog picking out some Christmas gift ideas. Not sure about his "smile", kind of odd.

Liam's Thanksgiving "Thankful" Turkey

And Luke's

Crazy Aiden in the grass (so glad we still have grass)

After a fun-filled week with my sister and Calvin, it feels a bit like we are "settling in" this week. Winter feels like it is just around the corner and could hit anytime. It was the first weekend in November last year that we were hit with a blizzard that dropped about a foot of snow. My own person "weather goal" is to try to make it until after Thanksgiving without snow, but I think that has only happened once in the four winters we have endured since we moved here. The time change last weekend is also putting our time outdoors to a minimum so we are looking for some new things to do. This week we did a few art projects, got the snowblower ready for the upcoming winter, and talked about Christmas gifts. The boys made some Thanksgiving turkeys out of pinecones and put what they were thankful for on each feather of the turkey. Luke's list included: Yogurt with sprinkles, pizza, Daddy, Mommy, Calvin, Pinecones, Ms. Beth and School, and Friends. Liam's list included: Friends, Sprinkles with Yogurt, Art Projects, Calvin, School, Pinecones and Feathers, and Family. There were a couple of random ones in there, but overall the project was a success. Yes, we had a pinecone for Aiden but couldn't get him to sit still long enough to really participate. Maybe next year.

Halloween Extravaganza with Calvin and Sarah

2011-11-04T10:17:00.005-05:00

Sampling some candy from our pumpkins

Monkey

This is how we roll

Sarah and Calvin

Here's the gang

Family picture

A few of our neighborhood friends

Luke, Liam, and Calvin

Sarah and Calvin at the Halloween parade with the firetruck

Enjoying some lunch at the Apple Orchard/Pumpkin patch

We had a week full of fun when my sister and our cousin, Calvin, came up to visit. They were here for Halloween and watching all the boys trick or treat was quite a sight. They loved the candy and trick or treating so much that they asked to do it again the next night. They were just a little disappointed when they realized that it only comes around once a year! They are already talking about costumes for next year and Luke has decided he wants to be a "Rainbow Dragon" just like Calvin with a long tail and wings.

The boys played well together this week despite a few (or maybe a lot) of sharing battles. Seems everyone always wants the SAME toy when you are 3.5 years of age and the 1.5 year old knows how to run off with it. We had two minute turns for everyone and managed to find some peaceful moments amid the chaos. I am posting a slideshow from shutterfly that will hopefully work because we have so so many pictures that were all so good. In addition to trick or treating, we went to the gymnastics open gym, the apple orchard/pumpkin patch, played outside, climbed trees (Luke, that is), went swimming, jumped, ran, laughed, and took long naps! Such a fun week!

Sarah and Calvin's visit Oct 2011

2011-11-04T10:16:00.001-05:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

Shutterfly baby photo books are the perfect way to preserve your baby's precious moments.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-26T15:00:00.002-05:00

Notice anything? Other than the beautiful tree, that is.

All dressed and ready for the Halloween party!! Woody, Buzz, and Rex (aka Liam, Luke, and AJ)

Trick or Treat!

Eating the sprinkles off his cookie

Making Halloween Cookies

Holding sweet baby Andy. Andy is the new little brother of our twin friends, Jack and Charlie. This is his "blog debut" since I have failed to take pictures of him prior to this. He's a sweetie and one of our seven boys that we tote around everywhere!

Painting pumpkins

Making Halloween crafts

All the Toy Story Gang (left to right: Charlie, Eli, Aiden, Liam, Luke, and Jack holding Andy)

One more time (minus poor sleeping Andy)

Hockey Game #2 with Jack and his Dad, Kevin

We are ready for Halloween, but will give you a sneak peak at our costumes. Our neighborhood is doing the 8th annual Halloween parade and trick or treating so the boys could not be more excited. Our cousin, Calvin, is also coming for a visit and we have lots of fun things planned. We recently did a trial run with our costumes at a Halloween party with a few friends and had a great time. We painted pumpkins, played outside, made cookies, and went trick or treating.

Luke and Liam are becoming regulars at the Gopher hockey games and were able to attend their second game with John and our neighbor and his son. I am not sure if the boys were more excited about the game or getting to go with Jack and his dad. As you can see in the picture above, Luke made himself comfortable in Kevin's lap.

2nd Annual Trip to Iowa

2011-10-19T17:08:00.008-05:00

John and Grandpa's view at the stadium

Our "view" at Charlene's! Aj is always climbing up something.

You want to take my picture?

Mmm Green Frosting!

Decorating the cupcakes

Baking with Charlene

Aiden found Charlene's toys which included Buzz and Woody

Breakfast at Charlene's

Tatoos for gameday

We made our second trip to Iowa for the big Hawkeye versus Northwestern football game last weekend. John and his dad had a great weather and enjoyed a great game. The Hawkeyes even won this year! While they were away at the game, the boys and I had lots of fun playing with Aunt Charlene and Uncle Tom. It would be very hard to make this trip without Charlene's work. She fed us and organized lots of fun activities to help burn energy and keep us occupied over the weekend. Hotel rooms are really not a lot of fun with three little kids. At one point, Aiden was dialing the front desk on the hotel phone while Luke and Liam were using the internet phone cords as jump ropes! Yes, I am totally serious.

Hockey Game #1

2011-10-13T15:51:00.007-05:00

Liam is showing me how to sit and hold your stick in the penalty box.

Playing hockey on the driveway with one of our favorite neighbors, Jack!

Chalk anyone?

High Fives from the Gopher! Luke and Liam called him a Bear and Liam pointed out that his hands were super soft!

"Bear" tatoos

Waiting for the game to start and not sure what to think

Even though the boys attended their first hockey game last weekend, they have not stopped talking about it so I thought it was worth posting a few more pictures. They loved it! Of course, what's not to love? They got tatoos, little zamboni cars, popcorn, drinks, high fives from the Gopher mascot, and of course the game itself! Since I have never actually been to a hockey game, they are a few steps ahead of me, but it will be a lot of fun to take all three of them to a game in a few years. We really didn't do many hockey games growing up in Arkansas! The boys have not stopped talking about how the big boys sit in the penaty box and even showed me how to hold your stick in the penalty box. It was definitely a night to remember!

The Marathon and No time for recovery....

2011-10-06T15:28:00.010-05:00

Aiden running to pick out his pumpkin

Petting the baby goat

Liam and the puppy, I think.

Checking out the pigs (Left to Right: Charlie, Jack, Luke, AJ, Liam)

Pumpkins!!

Playing in the corn

Trying to get a picture with everyone

First Hockey Game!! Thanks to our Aunt Jennifer and hockey crazy cousins, we had two jerseys to wear to the first game. They are still a little big, but they worked well.

First swimming lesson

The boys had a little too much fun while I was in the shower recently. Granted, I was only gone for 10 minutes, but A LOT can happen. When I walked in the room, Liam looked at me (covered in marker) and said, "AJ did it, Mommy."

The boys were enthralled to watch the new refrigerator being delivered to our house one morning this week.

John and I ran the Twin Cities Marathon on Sunday and greatly appreciated all the well wishes and kind notes from friends and family. It was a beautiful day for a race, albeit a little on the warm side. The morning started out cool and sunny, but quickly warmed up to the mid to upper 70's, which is warm for a marathon. Neither of us had our best races for whatever reason. We ran well, but we both hoped to run a little better. John finished in 3:21 and I finished in 3:37. It was the 7th marathon for both of us and our second this year so we are very happy to be taking a break from running marathons for awhile.

There was not a lot of time for recovery from the race this week as we had lots of fun things to keep us busy. Even though John and I were limping around from the marathon, we survived the Monday after the race and managed to have a lot of fun outdoors with record high temps for October. The boys started their first swim lessons this week and really enjoyed it. Luke and Liam were also able to go to their first real hockey game. Thanks to some tickets from a neighbor, John took Luke and Liam to see the Minnesota Gophers play an exhibition game. Aiden was initially not too thrilled about spending extra time with Mommy and missing out on both the swimming lessons and the hockey game, but he survived and I assured him that his time will come. Lastly, we went to another apple orchard/pumpkin patch this week. This was is really a lot of fun as it includes a farm with goats, cows, pigs, chickens, etc...and they allow the kids to feed the animals and pet them. Despite a very windy day, we had a great time with our twin friends, Jack and Charlie. Happy Fall!!

Pumpkins and Marathons

2011-09-29T15:19:00.010-05:00

Playing in the hay at the pumpkin patch/apple orchard

Aiden on the left and Luke on the right. AJ calls it the "b-bus"

One of the many pictures we tried to take with all the pumpkins

Liam picked a green pumpkin (his favorite color)

Corn Maze

600 lb pumpkin

Jumping on the "jumping pillow"

Cow Train

Let the fun begin!

We made our annual trip to the apple orchard and pumpkin patch recently. I imagine that the boys and I will go back again before the season is over, but this was our big trip with Daddy. We were trying to take advantage of some very nice weather with warmer than average temperatures just in case it snows in October. The boys really loved it this year and were very excited to pick out their own pumpkins, ride on the "cow train", pet a few animals, and play in the hay. We also managed to get a few pictures, although none of them seem to have everyone looking at the camera. I need to invest in a photo editing program or something.

In other news, John and I will be running the Twin Cities Marathon on Sunday. In case anyone is interested in checking out our progress, you can go to the Twin Cities Marathon website and then to spectator information then athlete tracking. You can then use our bib numbers and/or first and last names to track us during the race. John is #8586 and I am #F1270. In years past, it seems I have always decided to participate in a marathon for some specific reason and I had to think about what my reason was for running this one. I love running and love training, but unlike many people, I am not as much into the hype that surrounds racing. I don't need something to train for to get me to run, I do it because I love it (and it relieves a lot of stress). My first three marathons (Chicago, Charlotte, and Philly) centered around qualifying for Boston. I finally ran Boston in 2006 and then we had three boys and my marathon running and training was pretty much nonexistent. Last year, John convinced me to train for the Twin Cities Marathon (7 months after having a baby?!) so that we could perhaps qualify for Boston and run it together. We achieved that goal and ran Boston this past spring. So, why run another one? That is the question I have been asking myself and will probably be asking once again when I wake up on Monday morning. I decided that the reason I will run another one is simple....Because I CAN. Sounds simple, but a lot of people cannot. Our babysitter, who kept the boys while we trained for Boston, is currently battling breast cancer and can't even consider training for a marathon. We are thankful to have this opportunity to try once again to run 26.2 miles because WE CAN!!

Our week

2011-09-22T16:50:00.014-05:00

My most efficient way to push three kids on the swings at the same time-keep them close together.

AJ's new mower

Liam and AJ at the playground before the temperature dropped this week

Riding the pony

This pony is TIRED......

A little Mixing

And a lot of cooking going on in here

It is amazing to me how easy the boys can be entertained. And, it never fails, that they will play so well together right before nap time or bed time. Seriously, I can walk out of the room for an indefinite amount of time and never hear a fight break out. The boys love playing outside and will spend hours searching for "cool rocks" or mowing the yard with their pretend mowers (we recently added a third mower to our collection). They love to help with anything, especially cleaning. I let them clean the table off after breakfast the other day and then "dust" the furniture in the den and they were in heaven. They fight over who gets to "help" vacuum, plug in the vacuum cleaner, and turn it on or off. Who knew?

Here are a couple of random funny things from this week:

1. Luke and Liam have Spanish class at school one morning each week. We were a little late getting to school one day this week so I heard the beginning of Spanish class. The teacher began by asking the children to say "Hello" in Spanish and they all repeated "Hola" several times. So, after school, I asked Luke how to say "Hello" in Spanish and he looked at me and waved. We are in so much trouble because he thinks just like John.

2. We were on our way to a restaurant the other day for dinner and John and I were talking about getting a milkshake and giving some to the boys. When I turned and asked Liam what he would like to drink at dinner, he said he wanted some of that "shake milk."

3. Aiden is crazy about electronics. I have said this many times, but he is. He picked up a piece of bread at dinner the other day that was kind of in the shape of a telephone receiver and he put it up to his ear and said "Hello, its AJ."

2011-09-15T20:43:00.008-05:00

New Football Pajamas for this winter...Picture #1

And again...

Good enough. Super excited about pajamas

Singing "Happy Birthday" at a recent birthday party

AJ diving into his cupcake

Liam at the trampoline park foam pit

AJ checking out the playground tunnel

Riding scooters on a beautiful fall day

Look at this, Mom!

As the daylight hours are getting shorter and the temperatures are dropping, we are starting to get back into some of our fall and winter activities. We are fortunate that Minnesota compensates (or at least tries to compensate) for the long winters with lots of really neat indoor activities for kids. We have a church that opens their nursery to infant and preschool age children and allows us to play there for a few hours each week. We started that this week and Aiden has a lot to learn! He can get away with not sharing very well with his brothers, but not with other kids. He is quite bossy for his age and he has no problem taking toys away from kids that are twice his size and then telling them what he thinks. Needless to say, we have a lot to work on.

We also attended a neighbor's birthday party at an indoor trampoline park in the area. I have never heard of such a place, but it is literally a room full of trampolines and kids are bouncing off the walls. It burns energy so it works well for us.

Lastly, as the temperatures start to drop, we began to break out some of our fall and winter clothing and bought some matching pajamas that the boys were so excited to wear. We probably could have waited a little while on pajamas that warm, but they wanted to wear them so I am sharing a few pictures.

Fall is coming

2011-09-09T15:22:00.007-05:00

Liam playing hockey outside after breakfast one morning

Not as dangerous as it looks, but also not my idea

Opening Daddy's birthday presents

Little Stinker. He frequently sits in the hockey goal while the boys are trying to play

Resting on the "bench"

Luke broke his stick playing hockey on the driveway this week. How is that possible from a 3.5 year old with a plastic ball?

Daddy's ice cream cake!

It feels a bit like summer left us over Labor Day weekend. The days are very gradually getting shorter, the nights and mornings are getting cooler, and the leaves are just starting to change a bit. I remember this process from previous falls in Minnesota and while it is beautiful, it is short-lived. Winter is just around the corner. So, while we can still enjoy the time outside, we try to maximize our outdoor activities as much as possible. We play hard and we sleep hard and if anyone tries to ring the doorbell at 3pm on any given afternoon, they will be in serious trouble (there is a sign on the door for nap time).

We celebrated John's birthday recently and the boys had so much fun giving him presents and eating his cake. I have learned not to tell them what we are giving Daddy as a present because Luke is the first the tell John what it is. I am not sure he even realizes what I mean by keeping it a secret. The boys love cake. Period. They love it and are always asking when it will be their birthday so we can get another cake. For John's birthday, we picked out one of his favorites (an ice cream cake). This was the first time that the boys have ever had an ice cream cake and it was certainly a success!

I am posting a few random pictures from our beautiful week of perfect weather and our time outdoors. Enjoy...winter is not too far away!

The Great Minnesota Get Together

2011-09-02T21:13:00.008-05:00

Luke and Liam learning to milk a cow at the Dairy Barn

Fresh and really YUMMY ice cream at the Dairy Barn

HUGE ice cream cone for Liam

AJ riding the motorcycle and he did not care to get off when the ride was over

Race cars for Luke and Liam

Petting the 2 month old baby goat

Checking out the horses

More horses

O.k., once again, trying to get a picture for the first day of school minus AJ's blanket and paci (he was having a rough morning and wanted them)

He's coming to get them....

Much better, thanks. First Day of Preschool for Luke and Liam 2011

We made our annual trip to the Minnesota State Fair or the "Great Minnesota Get Together" (as they refer to it in MN). I am really not a Fair person and don't particularly enjoy the crowds or all the fried foods. However, I will say that this was definitely our best trip in the three years that we have made a trip to the Fair. Year #1, we took the boys when they were Aiden's age now, I was pregnant with Aiden, and it was brutally HOT for Minnesota. Year #2, we took Luke and Liam at 2.5 years of age and AJ was about 9 months old. This one was probably the most challenging of trips to the fair. This year, however, went pretty smoothly and the boys had a great time. Luke and Liam said that their favorite thing was riding the gondola that went from one end to the other and you could see all the people and rides. They also enjoyed seeing the animals including the horses, goats, cows, chickens, etc...We rode a few rides, sampled some food, and we all came home and took a nice nap before dinner. I might actually look forward to the Fair next year and I know the boys will remember it.

We also had our first day of school this week. The boys have been at Montessori for about 2 years and they go twice a week all year around, but their new school year started this past Thursday and they are excited about a new teacher and new friends. They will remain in the preschool class and continue to grow and learn a lot.

C is for Cookie

2011-08-25T21:40:00.006-05:00

Decorating some cookies with chocolate icing

Serious Decorating going on here

Yummy

Baths tonight for sure

Little more eating....

Trying to clean some dishes in the sink or maybe trying to jump in the sink

Getting ready to mix up another batch of cookies

Sampling the spoon

The boys had a lot of fun recently when we made cookies. It was suprisingly not too messy or maybe I am becoming immune to the kitchen chaos. Its not something I would do very often alone because Aiden gets into everything, but between John and I we can more or less manage everyone and actually make some decent cookies. Aiden enjoyed washing the dishes in the sink while Luke and Liam mixed, poured, and scooped out three different types of cookies. I am pretty sure Luke sampled all of them by sticking his finger or entire hand right in the bowl. Here are a couple pictures from our cookie baking night!

Interviews with Liam and Luke

2011-08-19T16:31:00.004-05:00

Why do they put the pictures on the back of the big boy pants? The boys like to wear them backwards so they can see the pictures!

Luke at his interview

Aiden eating his oatmeal and saying "cheeeeese"

Liam at his interview

The "microphone"

At breakfast this morning, I tried to do an "interview" with Luke and Liam. In order to keep us from all talking at once, we tried to use a "microphone" so that whomever had the microphone could do the talking. We had fun in the process anyway and their answers were somewhat predictable (at least for me), but fun for our friends and family to read. So, here goes....

Name: Liam

How old are you? Three or this many (holding up three fingers)

When is your birthday? Not sure

What is your favorite Color? Green

What is your favorite Food? Peanut Butter and crackers

What is your favorite Toy? Buzz and Woody (from Toy Story)

What is your favorite thing to do? Play with Jack (our neighbor), play with Jack and Charlie (twin friends), Play with Mommy and Daddy

What is your favorite movie? Toy Story when Andy is little (#1)

What is your favorite sport(s)? Baseball, Hockey, Basketball

What is your favorite drink? Daddy Juice (Gatorade)

What is your favorite animal? Frogs and Zebras

What is your favorite book? The Bible story book

What is your name? Luke

How old are you? Three

When is your birthday? Jenny's (I am thinking he means January)

What is your favorite color? Purple

What is your favorite food? Pizza

What is your favorite toy? Daddy and Hockey, and trains and cars

What is your favorite thing to do? Play toys with daddy

What is your favorite movie? Toy Story when Andy is going to college (#3)

What is your favorite sport? Biking

What is your favorite drink? Chocolate Milk and Orange Juice (not together)

What is your favorite animal? Giraffe and Frogs

What is your favorite book? The Bible Story book

One more thing...if you have facebook, please go to my profile page and click "like" on the link to our recent vacation. It is a story entitled "The Crabby Beach" that is posted on my wall. I entered a contest for a free vacation. Unlikely, but worth a try! Thanks for any votes.

A visit with Aiden John (AJ) at 19 months....

2011-08-12T16:50:00.019-05:00

Aiden is actually sitting in timeout for ramming his car into people, but he is still smiling!

Aiden is often awake before Luke and Liam and he loves to sit at the kitchen table and look at books while I am getting things ready for breakfast. He is looking at his favorite book, The Napping House, which was a 1st birthday gift from Aunt Sarah, Uncle Jason, and Cousin Calvin.

Firetruck birthday party!! Luke and Liam attended a birthday party for a neighborhood friend of ours and they got to ride in a real firetruck.

A visit with AJ at 19 months and counting....

Favorite time of Day: Mornings are probably my best time of day. I can be pretty grumpy in the afternoons.

Favorite Snack: Goldfish crackers and Dried Yogurt puffs.

Favorite Toy: Anything electronic....but I don't like the toy ones, only the real thing. I will climb almost anything to get a cell phone, t.v. remote, camera, etc...Mom even found me hanging from her purse in the laundry room when I climbed up the bench and tried to get her cell phone in her purse on the coat rack.

Favorite Book: The Napping House

Favorite Food: Spaghetti and Breadsticks

Favorite Treat: Dum Dum suckers

Favorite People to Play with: Luke, Liam, Daddy, Mommy, and our neighbor Melissa ("Lilla" as AJ says).

Favorite Song: Happy Birthday

Favorite Comfort Item: Swaddle Blanket with his paci attached to it.

Favorite Movie: Toy Story

Favorite Outside Toy: Cozy Coupe Car

Favorite Words: Mommy, Daddy, LeeLee (Liam), Uke (Luke), Cheese (when smiling for camera), No, Mine, Candy, Juice, Elmo, Movie, Mote (remove), Ipah (Ipod), Blankie, Cow, Truck, Up, Down, Owie (over), Book, etc...Aiden already says a lot of words!

Aiden is a smart little guy and amazes John and I with what he knows for his age. His development is definitely ahead of Luke and Liam at this age. He already knows how to sit in time out and often spends a lot of time there because he can be very persistent. He can be sweet and hug on your neck one minute and then bang you over the head the next minute. He is happy, outgoing, loud, and rarely ever shy around even people he does not know. He has a devilish smile that he flashes when he is doing something he knows he should not be doing.

He loves Luke and Liam and they love him too and watch out for him everywhere we go. Recently, Aiden has been asking to hold Luke's hand as we cross the street to go places. Liam often brings Aiden his paci and blanket when he is upset. We have our rough moments as well, of course. Aiden was pitching a fit about something recently and it bothered Luke and Liam because he was screaming so loud. Luke looked at me and said, "Mommy, maybe we don't really need a baby."

Painting with the Boys

2011-08-06T21:59:00.006-05:00

Painting on the back porch

Aiden was more interested in the bottles of paint than in painting a picture

Aiden and his painted belly

John started his new job this week so we are all beginning a little bit of a new routine. He enjoyed his first week quite a bit and feels like the position will be challenging in many areas. The boys and I enjoyed swimming with our twin friends, playing outdoors, eating popsicles, and trying to fight off all the mosquitoes that have suddenly appeared in Minnesota. We did some painting this week and I was reminded why it is not a good idea to paint with a child the age of Aiden. Aiden had no interest in actually painting anything but his belly. Luke and Liam, on the other hand, really enjoyed the painting and were so excited to do it. I was impressed at how much they were into it.

Funny things from the boys this week....

1. Liam always says, "I can't hear it better" when we are in the car and he wants me to turn up the music or the DVD movie.

2. Aiden has learned to sing Happy Birthday and goes around humming it and trying to sing some of the words.

3. Luke said that he is bigger than Liam because he eats chicken and pretty soon if he keeps eating chicken then he will be able to ride the school bus.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

2011-07-30T21:02:00.008-05:00

Aiden is really growing fast and is such a stinker right now!

Throwing pennies in the fountain

John's good friend from work, Mark, gave him a going away gift for the boys. Lots of pennies for the fountain! We have enjoyed many lunches with Mark and throw pennies in the fountain each time. Thanks Mark!

New Car!

We can all fit in the back seat. I didn't say we had A LOT of extra room, but it works as a secondary car and actually its a little easier to get them in and out quickly than it is with the van.

Packed in the car!

Luke's waffles

I am not sure that I enjoy making waffles too much anymore!

Crammed into the train at the zoo

Cool swing at the park

Historic Bridge Plaque with my maiden name "Morse"

Walking across the historic bridge and very thankful they have that sturdy white fence

Automobiles: If you are interested in buying a new car, but you would like to look without the hassles of a salesperson, you can borrow our kids! Yes, that's right, just let us know the time and place. We have been car shopping this week and it seems that if you take the boys with you, the sales people are guaranteed to leave you alone. Completely alone. We have debated a new car for some time now because our Jeep Liberty is 10 years old and all five of us cannot ride in it together. So, when we need an extra car or when there is inclement weather and a 4 wheel drive vehicle is needed, we have a small problem. We wanted a vehicle that could accomodate three car seats, would have 4 wheel drive, and would be somewhat fuel efficient. A 4-door sedan is fuel efficient, but not good in the snow or big enough for us. Another SUV would be great in the snow and plenty big enough, but it requires lots of gas. We finally found our solution and purchased a Subaru Outback which has a lot of interior space, holds all three carseats, is 4-wheel drive, and is more gas efficient! The boys are really excited about the new car although they were very confused about giving up the old car. Liam even asked how we would get the new car home and wondered if we would carry it on top of the van.

Trains: During our busy week of car shopping, I failed to take many pictures. We visited the Zoo this week and rode the train three times, but we only managed to get one picture of me and the boys on the train.

Planes: John will hopefully be on a few less planes this next year as he has decided to take a new position. No, we are not moving this time. He accepted a position in the cardiology division at Medtronic, which is a Minneapolis based medical device company. He will be working on the leads that are used in pacemakers. Although it was a very difficult decision to leave his current job at Upsher-Smith, we are hoping this will provide more opportunities for him. I am hoping he has a little less travel as well, at least fewer international trips.

Extremely Hot

2011-07-22T21:10:00.010-05:00

Liam and Luke helping Daddy mow the yard

Liam followed John the entire time he mowed the yard. Luke made it most of the time and was pretty hot and tired at the end.

Worms and Dirt (Oreos and Gummy Worms) with our friends. We had 13 kids total.

Aiden's favorite part of the bouncy thing

Jumping!

We visited "Maple Grove Days" in our town and the boys were so excited to sit in a real firetruck, ambulance, street cleaner, and a police car.

Riding in the cars at Maple Grove Days

Riding the horses

Aiden and Luke jumping around

We have had a year of extremes with weather. With an extremely cold winter and virtually no spring (just an extension of winter), we jumped right into summer this week. With temperatures in the high 90's with high humidity, it felt like over 100 degrees outside. Due to the heat, pretty much all of our outdoor activities this week had to involve water. The playground equipment was too hot to slide on and the driveway felt like you could fry an egg on it. I do not want to sound like I am complaining because I am not, but it was quite a surprise to have this kind of heat in Minnesota. It was very nice to swim when it is actually warm outside and we did not have to see if the temperatures would be warm enough for swimming.

We had a really fun play date at our house with some of our twin friends and a few neighborhood friends. We were swimming, jumping, and sliding for nearly 4 hours and the boys were exhausted afterwards. We made "dirt and worms" (thanks for the idea, Grandma Carrithers), threw water ballons, and had lots of fun. Thanks to all our twin friends and neighbors for joining us!

My Brother's Helper

2011-07-15T21:12:00.005-05:00

Aiden and Daddy relaxing

Dancing in the Rain

Liam with his green frog umbrella. He is always reminding us that green is his favorite color.

Aiden

Maybe a little too much brushing for Aiden

Brushing Aiden's hair before school. Aiden was pretty tolerant initially.

Liam pulled a chair over in the sun one morning this week so that he could watch the boy next door mow the yard. Of course, Luke and Aiden had to join him.

Watching the lawnmower

John and Grandpa Carrithers bought us a bird feeder recently. I had my doubts as to whether it would be quiet enough around here for the birds to visit our feeder, but apparently they don't really care. We have some seriously hungry birds in our area! We have filled this thing up about 5 times in two weeks.

Luke is stacking up toys on Aiden's highchair for him to play with

Although we have some not so great moments, for the most part the boys play pretty well together and typically offer to help each other out. Aiden is becoming more and more involved in whatever Luke and Liam are doing and he follows them around all the time. He is pretty tough for his age and gets knocked around a fair amount, but he keeps on going. Luke and Liam are always watching out for him too. Liam is very good about bringing Aiden his pacifier if he is fussing and Luke is quick to talk to Aiden or share his food and toys when Aiden asks for something. I have a few pictures from this week to illustrate some of my points.

Couple More pictures....

2011-07-09T22:38:00.002-05:00

Baseball in backyard with new bats from Grandma and Grandpa

Popsicles at the pool

Yummy!

and a little sticky....

Aiden at 18 months

More with Grandma and Grandpa Carrithers

2011-07-09T22:00:00.009-05:00

This picture of John and Aiden was taken a few weeks ago at the small Hennepin County Fair we went to. It was printed in a small local newspaper.

Aiden is helping John water the plants (and himself). It is finally hot here and very humid.

The boys are helping Daddy repair the drapes that they pulled down. Supposedly, the new anchors will hold up to 238 lbs. The boys love to look out the window when they are supposed to be sleeping.

Reading books before bed with Grandma and Grandpa

More books!

The boys had a wonderful couple of days after the 4th of July with Grandma and Grandpa Carrithers. They returned to school on Thursday and the first thing their teacher asked was what they did over the 4th of July. I was thinking they would say that they went to the baseball game because they have been talking about it, but they said that they read books on the deck with Grandma and Grandpa. Funny since we only did this one night while they were here, but they always seem to remember the little things. Thanks for the visit Grandma and Grandpa!

Aiden turned 18 months old on July 2nd. He is really funny right now and so animated at times. When he goes to the grocery store with me, he says "Hi" (somewhat loudly) to everyone we pass. He is saying all kinds of words and is much farther along in his verbal capabilities than either Luke or Liam at this age. He repeats almost everything and studies his brothers when they are playing. He has a good understanding of words as well and will do things like put on his shoes when we ask him to. He is also quite insistent and makes it very clear when he does not approve of something.

Happy Fourth of July!

2011-07-04T10:01:00.006-05:00

Aiden on the slip and slide with Daddy's help

Making some "dirt and worms" that Grandma brought for us

Yummy!

Luke is so clean...

Liam is showing us his worm

Luke on the slip and slide!

Aiden loved his beach towel almost like his blankie

Taking a bite out of the ball that Grandma and Grandpa brought

Sitting the the shade and watching the boys run around like crazy

Posing with Daddy at the baseball game

Luke and Liam at the Twins game

Ice Cream! Liam likes vanilla with M&M candies and Luke likes chocolate with Oreo cookies. Yes, they are definitely very different!

Go Twins!

Luke and Grandma

Coffee and Juice on the front porch

We are enjoying a beautiful 4th of July weekend in Minnesota with Grandma and Grandpa Carrithers. The boys are having a wonderful time with the extra attention and love having someone else to talk to. We have done lots of outdoor activities including a Twins baseball game, grilling some ribs, bike riding, and swimming. The weather has been ideal to be outside and we are making the most of it. Enjoy the pictures, I think most of them speak for themselves!

Missing Daddy....

2011-06-25T22:24:00.006-05:00

1, 2, 3 JUMP!!! Playing with some twin friends and neighbor friends.

Did somebody say Ice cream?

There are some days that I always seem to be a step or two behind...Liam is getting drinks for everyone, even me!

I forgot to post this one last week, but Liam is showing me the tie that he and Luke made at school for John's father's day gift.

The boys and I had a busy week while John was away on business in Russia. Yes, Russia. The boys have gotten very good at finding where Daddy is on his trips with their placemats that have maps of the world and the United States. They know how to find where we go on vacation, where Grandma and Grandpa live, where our cousins live, etc... They ask daily "how many more minutes" until Daddy returns so we count them down with our calendar. We were missing Daddy this week and will be happy for his return.

Luke and Liam talk from the time they get up until the time the finally fall asleep at night. When we are driving in the car, they always point out any motorcycles (they call them motor-bicycles), trucks, bulldozers, etc...Even Aiden screams when he sees a school bus or fire truck. They are always quick to mention whether or not the person on the motorcycle was wearing a helmet since we require them to wear helmets when they ride their own bicycles. The other day when we saw someone who was not wearing a helmet, Liam said, "Look, that guy is NOT wearing his helmet. That does not make his Mommy happy." Then Luke added, "or his Daddy happy either."

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-19T21:51:00.007-05:00

The boys and I gave John a new waffle maker for Father's Day because this is a Sunday tradition for us to make waffles or pancakes. The waffle maker would have been a surprise until Luke told John that the present he helped me wrap was pancake/waffle mix!

Daddy and his Boys

John holding AJ after the diaper mishap that sent us home pretty quickly. Note the spot on John's shirt....

Liam is laughing because the goat keeps taking his cup as he is feeding him at the fair

Feeding the animals at the fair

This picture is the epitome of Luke with his legs crossed eating an ice cream cone

Aiden loved the animals

Riding a few rides at the fair with our neighbor friend, Jack. This was AJ's first time to do anything like this and he loved it.

Aiden really had NO fear of any of the animals, even the biggest ones!

Playing on a big slide with some of our friends earlier this week.

We had a very nice Father's Day weekend with lots of fun things planned with John. With all of his business trips, time with Daddy is precious and something that the boys enjoy to the fullest. We went to a local fair in Hennepin County that is right down the road from us. It is a very small fair with some some interesting sights, but the boys really enjoyed petting the animals and riding a few of the rides. On Father's Day, we went to a BBQ at a local vineyard that I saw advertised in a magazine. In theory, it seemed like a good idea and I called ahead to make sure it was "kid friendly." Due to some recent rain, some of the activities they were planning to have for the kids were unfortunately cancelled. While the food, music, and tour of the winery was all very good, it ended up being a very short lunch for us. Shortly after the lunch, Aiden had a massive diaper issue. I always bring extra clothing for myself, but not usually extra clothing for John! Anyway, the incident sent us home pretty quickly, but we enjoyed laughing about it and I am pretty sure it will be a memorable Father's Day story for many years to come. Happy Father's Day John! We love you very much. We also want to say Happy Father's Day to our Grandpa Carrithers and Grandpa Morse!

Unforgetable Stories (cont.)

2011-06-12T06:39:00.001-05:00

Here is Aiden stretching to go run with Daddy

One more picture that I could not seem to get on my post the first time around.

Unforgetables

2011-06-11T21:40:00.006-05:00

The boys playing together

Liam is supposed to be taking a nap, but he heard us talking outside and is peaking out his window and waving

Liam (doing the same thing that Luke is doing below...see story)

I asked Luke to put on his big boy pants for school and this was the result. I didn't mention taking off his pajamas first, of course. Pretty soon, Liam was doing the same thing and Aiden was putting pants on his head.

There are lots of times that people ask about the different personalities of the boys. One of the purposes of our blog is to document their development since I can't seem to remember all the details of our chaotic lives! So, with that being said, here we go...

Luke is dramatic, animated, silly, and loves to do everything that Daddy does. He constantly asks if he will be able to do something when he is as big as Daddy. One recent evening after we put the boys to bed, they were playing like they normally do in their beds when we heard Luke screaming. John went upstairs to find Luke's stuffed dog on the floor pretty far away from their beds. John asked if Luke threw it on the floor and Luke replied, "No." He then asked Liam if Luke threw it across the room and he also responded, "No." John was of course thinking that Luke was not telling the truth so he asked him once again how the dog got across the room. Apparently, after going in circles with several more questions, we discovered that Luke threw the dog down to Liam (one the bottom bunk) and then Liam threw the dog across the room. The boys answered our questions correctly, but seemed to know just how much information to provide.

Luke is also a big helper and plays very well with his brother Aiden. He is quick to help Aiden or do things that I ask him to do.

Liam is independent, a very hard worker, and a perfectionist. He is very particular about how things are done and notices any type off change that occurs in our routine. Liam plays very well on his own and can easily entertain himself. Liam's preschool teacher sent a report for the school year that graded each of the children on various tasks, one of which was "concentration." The grading scale was: N=Not ready to achieve a task, E=Needs Encouragement and Guidance, P=Positive Progress, S=Satisfactory, and G=Good. Liam earned a "G+" for concentration with a special note from his teacher saying she was impressed with his level of concentration and attention to detail at such a young age. This characteristic of Liam makes it very challenging to do projects with his brother Luke since he is right the opposite!

In a recent conversation with Liam and Luke, we were discussing first, middle, and last names. We explained that Luke's middle name is the same as Daddy's (Luke Allen). Liam's middle name is the same as Grandpa Morse's (Liam Carey) and Aiden's first name is the same as Daddy (Aiden John). We then asked Liam his full name and his response was "Liam Grandpa Carrithers." From there, the conversation went to the boys saying their names were Luke John, Liam Allen, etc...

Aiden is really developing a unique personality of his own. He copies everything he sees his brothers do. When John stretches for a run, Aiden goes and gets his crocs and stretches right beside John to get ready to go with him in the stroller. Aiden has a weird obsession with with electronics and goes crazy over i-pods, i-phones, remote controls, telephones, etc...

On our way to take Luke and Liam to school twice a week, we pass John's office. Luke and Liam always point it out and say, "that's where Daddy works" and we look for his car (even though it is on the other side of the building). On a recent trip in the car to pick up Luke and Liam, Aiden suddenly screamed "Daddy! Daddy!" and pointed at the building where John works. He has definitely been listening!

Summer Fun

2011-06-04T21:39:00.004-05:00

Swimming with Luke

Liam

Aiden and Mommy

Luke

Bouncy House (outside instead of in the basement!!)

Checking out a big frog

On the "beach" with some of our twin friends

Walking/Running to the beach with three sets of twins plus two kids (8 total). The hard part was getting that many kids to leave the beach to go home for naps.

It was a little tough to come back to reality after such a fun vacation at the beach, but we were happy to finally have some nice summer weather this week and we took full advantage of it. We spent many hours swimming in the pool, playing in the yard, and doing other fun stuff outside. It actually got hot and humid this week and was ideal for swimming outside. The boys seem to have an endless amount of energy so we are happy to spend some of it outdoors. I am posting a couple fun pictures from our week.

Photo Book

2011-05-31T16:26:00.001-05:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

Seaside continued....

2011-05-30T21:29:00.006-05:00

Seaside 2011

Liam and Mommy

Grandpa Morse and AJ

Sweet Brothers

Love those plaid outfits! AJ was screaming in the picture before this because I tried to take away his blanket and paci. Needless to say, the picture WITH his blanket and paci turned out a little better.

Relaxing on the beach

The Gang at the beach

O.k., I have had a few complications with posting on my blog recently so rather than rewrite this entire post, I am just going to add a few more pictures from our trip and move on to something else. Again, we had a great time!

Seaside 2011

2011-05-29T21:49:00.007-05:00

We had a wonderful vacation again this year in Seaside, Florida. This is the same area where we went on vacation last year. I have been going to Seaside since I was a child and each trip is memorable and this one was no different. The boys were much easier this year and enjoyed the trip so much. They were a lot more interested in playing on the beach, building sand castles, catching crabs, and swimming in the pool. We were only indoors to sleep and spent many hours playing outdoors. The weather was beautiful and honestly I loved the heat! Yes, I really did and so did the boys. We were concerned that it might be too hot, but it was pleasant with temperatures in the 80's and lows in the 70's with a nice breeze on most days. It was summer weather, which is something we have very few weeks of in Minnesota! Grandma Mimi and Grandpa Morse joined us and were both very helpful with the boys. We have nearly 200 pictures from the trip so I will try my best to share some of our highlights! Enjoy! We can't wait to return to Seaside, I really had a hard time leaving this year.

Little bit of Summer

2011-05-14T16:16:00.005-05:00

Luke is working on airing up the bike tires like Daddy. The boys love riding behind our bikes in the Burley right now.

Not sure why this picture turned out so dark and the quality is not great since it was taken with my phone, but here is how the water table fun started....

And here is how it ended....

Aiden touching Daddy's tulips from Holland

We had about three days of true summer this week with hot and humid weather and it sure was nice. We broke out the water table and that quickly led to three very wet boys. I was outside on my own without John and really did not want to drag three grassy and wet kids into the house so what started as something simple quickly turned into a water party with three naked boys running around the yard! We got several comments from neighbors and hopefully no one was offended, but when the temperature finally reaches 80 degrees it is hard not to celebrate. We are hoping for some more warm weather as we have been rather cool again and rainy the past couple of days.

Aiden is 16 months old now and really changing. He is talking in conversations about who knows what, but he just babbles nonstop. He does clearly say the words: thank-you, water, puppy, ball, and mama. Enjoy a couple random pictures from our week.

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-08T15:46:00.005-05:00

Bike ride with Daddy on Mother's Day

Stopping for a picture after riding around the circle

Aiden at the playground

I had a wonderful weekend and very special Mother's Day even if I do not have a lot of pictures to post from it. John completely surprised me with an overnight trip downtown at a very nice hotel in St. Paul. We had an amazing dinner with conversation and time to eat and left without having to clean up anything off the floor. The next morning was probably the most beautiful day we have had in Minnesota all year. The temperature was warm and the sun was shining and we went for a nice long run on one of my favorite streets with all the trees and flowers blooming in front of some gorgeous old homes. We had breakfast and coffee followed by a matinee and then headed home to the boys. It was quite relaxing and a very nice break from our craziness at home. Thank you to John for planning such a wonderful weekend. As most people know, I really do not like surprises; however, this one turned out to be very special and one that I will not forget. Thank you also to our wonderful babysitter for entertaining (and wearing out) our three boys at home. The chalk covered driveway might never be the same.

Happy Mother's Day to my mom, mother in law, sister, grandmother, aunt, sisters in laws, and of course all of our special twin friends. "That's A LOT of Mommies", as Luke pointed out today when we talked about who would be celebrating Mother's Day. The boys woke up singing "Happy Birthday" in their beds so we knew that they remembered today was a special day, but not exactly sure they understood the difference between my birthday and mother's day.

April Showers bring Snow Flurries?

2011-05-01T21:21:00.007-05:00

Checking out some fish with Daddy

Meeting Sponge Bob Squarepants at Nickelodean Universe

Aiden was a little unsure about Mr. Spongebob initially, but he warmed up to him pretty quickly

Riding the Blues Clues Dog

Petting the StarfishHello!

Checking out some fish with Daddy

Aiden's newest love...trying to "drive" the car

Do I really need to explain? The boys were soaking wet after playing in the wet (and quite cold) grass, but they also needed to use the bathroom. We had them strip down outside since they were so dirty and you can guess what happened next.

So, its May 1st and it still feels like winter to me. John and I have decided that it is not the long winters that are so hard in Minnesota; its the lack of summer. Seriously, we can handle the snow and cold temps from November until March, but after that it is really time for a change. On the bright side, we have had a few warm days here and there and we are very fortunate not to be dealing with the flooding and tornadoes in so many areas south of us; however, this spring has been unusually cold and wet. We are kind of running out of things to do with the boys when we can't get outside. Neither John nor I are big shoppers and going to a mall is a little outside of our comfort zone, but we decided to do something different over the weekend. We took the boys to the Mall of America to visit the new Sea Aquarium. We have only been to the Mall of America a handful of times since we moved here, but the boys loved the aquarium. Our trip included watching the sharks eat, seeing several dozen or so different types of jellyfish and seahorses, and petting starfish. After the aquarium, we had lunch and rode a few rides before heading home for naps.

Boston and Bunnies

2011-04-22T21:15:00.030-05:00

Easter 2011

AJ after just a few small pieces of candy. Unreal mess. Maybe the white shirt wasn't such a good idea afterall

Looking for Eggs! He caught on to the idea quickly.

We basically found one egg, ate all the candy in it, and then gradually moved to the next

Looking for Eggs!

Chasing Bubbles early on Easter Morning

Liam petting the bunnies at the Eggstravaganza

Luke petting the bunnies, we have come a long way in being "gentle"

Putting corn in the eggs

Checking out the big bunny and trying on bunny ears

Visiting with the Easter Bunny

Yeah!!!

Looking for Easter Eggs

Decorating Easter Eggs, this is right before Aiden dumped over a bowl of dye all over himself and his brother!

We have lots to be thankful for and to update on this week (lots of pictures too). First off, the marathon! John and I thoroughly enjoyed the trip to Boston, the time away from our "chaos", and the race itself. We ran the entire race together which was our plan from the beginning. Many people have asked if we train together and the answer is No. We generally never run together because one of us is watching the boys and when we run on Saturdays, we run in separate groups of guys and girls then we get coffee together. This race, however, was our first one to complete together. The course was tough and hilly, but the temperatures were ideal. They felt a little warm to me (50-60 degrees), but that was definitely because we have been training in -20 degrees and that was actually one of my first runs in shorts. The crowd support was awesome and like no other race. I ran Boston in 2006, but it was exciting for John to see the course and run the small New England towns of Hopkinton, Framingham, and Natick. We enjoyed the screaming girls from Wellesley College and the chaos of Boston College, but the the turn onto Boylston Street for the finish was definitely the icing on the cake. We ran a strong and consistently timed race and finished in 3 hours 34 minutes. This was my fastest marathon to date so that was an extra bonus.

Next up for us, Easter. The boys were so excited about the Easter Bunny this year. On Good Friday, we participated in an Easter Eggstravaganza at a local park. Unfortunately, it is still a bit chilly here and the weather was not the greatest so most of the activities had to be held indoors. We met with the Easter bunny himself, dyed eggs, hunted for eggs, petted live bunnies, had our faces painted, and did a few crafts. I was by myself for all of this since John was at work so this ended up being A LOT of work! This was a jam packed place with a lot of stuff to do and it was a bit crazy trying to keep up with everyone. We survived, however, and the boys asked to do it again as we were leaving so apparently they enjoyed it as well.

On Saturday night before bed, we read a book about the real meaning of Easter and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Needless to say, this is not an easy concept to explain to three year olds and we had some pretty unhappy kids when we did not read their favorite books. As we were walking into church on Easter Sunday, Luke and Liam were talking about what John and I would do while we were at church. When we told them that we would talk about the resurrection like we read in our book last night, Liam said that "the resurrection was for Jesus, not for the Easter Bunny" so I guess we made at least a little progress.

Boston Bound

2011-04-17T19:33:00.007-05:00

At the race expo with a couple of our running friends. Crazy busy expo! Our race numbers, Boston jackets, and lunch with my Dad Race numbers

Very tired boys

Movie time (left to right: Liam, Luke, Karsyn, Houston, and Chase above)

Taking a walk to the park with six little kids

Dinner time!

Liam and Aiden playing with chalk

Sweet AJ

Thanks to all our friends and family who have sent so many well-wishes. John and I are planning to run the Boston Marathon on Patriots Day, April 18, 2011. To run the marathon together was a goal that John and I have talked about for nearly 10 years. After many long runs in -20 degrees this winter and several marathons to qualify both of us to run Boston in the same year, we are finally here. We have had a great weekend catching up, visiting with my Dad and Jane, and enjoying the peace and quiet. So what are the boys doing? They are having a blast and probably will not want to come home. They are staying with our wonderful babysitter and her family for a few days while we are gone. Ironically, our babysitter also has twin boys that are a little younger than Luke and Liam. She also has an older daughter who has been helpful with Aiden. Although she thinks we are amazing to be running a marathon, I think she is amazing with her ability to handle six children (all 5 years of age and under) with such ease. I am pretty sure that I am better suited to run marathons than handle that many kids at once. I have to add that I am completely and utterly amazed at what our boys are eating and drinking while they are away from home! I feel a bit defeated to find out they will eat vegetables, drink milk and water, and eat fruit or anything else that is put in front of them while we are away! What?! John and I are laughing at the emails we have received from our sitter. The boys are in for some changes when they get home, that is for sure.

Basketball Goal

2011-04-09T20:47:00.006-05:00

He Shoots He Scores!! Check out the basketball on the nice stand in the background. It's just about six inches too high. No more stand, its in the ground and a little lower now.

Thanks Dad!

Shoot!

Swish!

Look Mom, its a worm! Not sure why Dad had to bring them in the house. They only dropped the worms once or twice.

Luke's worm was about twice as long, but not now.

It is finally spring in Minnesota!! It is going to be awhile before we need to mow the grass, but we are finally able to see the grass and the temps are reaching 50 degrees. The boys have been outside a lot this week and loved it. One of their favorite things to do over the winter was to play basketball in the bonus room. So, rather than carry the entire goal up and down the stairs from inside to outside, we decided it was time to invest in a new basketball goal. Unfortunately, I do not think there is much of a market for basketball goals for three year olds because they are all way too high. John quickly had to improvise the goal as we became very frustrated with the height of the goal and clearly our entire basketball career was in jeopardy. haha!

Bunk Beds!!!

2011-04-02T21:43:00.004-05:00

Aiden trying out the new beds Everyone on the top bunk

Yipee! The beds are here!

I know I have mentioned this before, but he is seriously the messiest kid I have ever seen. Spaghetti, bread, and one mini oreo cookie in case you were wondering....

One night last week before the new beds arrived, we went in to check on Luke and Liam and this is what we found.

Sweet Brothers

We are in the process of making the transition from cribs to big boy beds. After 3 years and 4 months in the cribs, I think the boys are ready for the change. They are so excited about the idea of the bunk beds and we have been counting the days for the bed delivery all week. The beds finally arrived today and the boys could not have been any happier. It was like Christmas around here and I am not sure who was the happiest-Luke, Liam, or Aiden. Why Aiden? He loved trying to climb the ladder and playing on the beds with his brothers. We have a few "ground rules" for sleeping in the beds so we are hoping for a smooth transition. We have not finished putting their room back together after the painting and arrival of the beds, but I am posting a few initial pictures of the new beds.

New Room

2011-03-27T21:10:00.007-05:00

Painting with Daddy

Watching and Listening, but VERY excited to paint!

Luke playing hockey in basement after breakfast (yes, he's in his pajamas and hockey gear)

SCORE!

Aiden at his desk

Just when we thought it was spring, we got another big snow storm. I have learned a lot about snow since living in Minnesota. There are a lot of different types of snow and spring snows are definitely my least favorite. Spring snow is messy, slushy, wet, and heavy. It is warmer in the spring so the snow is not light and fluffy like it is in January. The wet and heavy snow makes running outdoors and driving pretty difficult. Due to our cold week, we spent more time working on indoor projects. We played lots of hockey and rode our bikes in the basement and we started painting. We are working on a new room for Luke and Liam as they transition from cribs to "big boy beds." They are more than excited about the idea of beds, but we will see how it goes once the cribs are gone. They are getting bunk beds which are scheduled to arrive any day so we worked on painting their room over the weekend. After moving several many times, John and I have lots of experience with painting rooms; however, this was by far our most challenging paint project. Why? Three reasons...Luke, Liam, and Aiden. We had lots of little helpers who made the project a little more interesting and challenging. Stay tuned for pictures of the new room.

Almost Spring...

2011-03-19T20:55:00.006-05:00

Aiden climbing the steps to the deck

Liam playing baseball with Daddy. Liam says he is "hitting homers"

Luke and Baseball

Aiden pushing the well-used lawn mower. This is one of Luke and Liam's favorite toys and during the winter they called it their "snow blower"

Aiden on his bicycle

Luke and Liam on their bikes

Liam and Aiden

The Maniac

We had our first taste of spring outside today and the boys really had a great time. They have been talking about taking their bikes outside everytime we see the snow melting. It has been a relatively long winter that started early and was quite snowy. John and I had a long run this morning with our running group and then returned home to three kids who were dying to go outside. So, of course, we bundled everyone up and took them out only to take turns basically running behind Luke as he rode his bike! Luke is fast on the bike and he has no fear. Liam, thankfully, likes to take his time, check out the birds, the planes, the rocks, etc...Aiden, on the other hand, is all over the place. I don't remember this stage too fondly with Luke and Liam because it is very hard to keep track of them as this age. He gets into things very quickly and really has no discretion. It could be the trash can one minute and the toilet the next so don't turn your back. Of course, when we go outside, there are all kinds of things to put in your mouth that are not supposed to be in there. There will be lots to keep us busy over the summer, that is for sure. I am posting a few pictures of our wonderful afternoon outside, we are so ready for spring! While we were outside today, Liam even pointed out that he heard "lots of birdies!"

Real Life

2011-03-13T21:01:00.007-05:00

My cleanest eater award goes to...Liam

And the messiest...to Aiden. Yes, for those of you who have eaten with Luke, I think Aiden might be worse.

One of Aiden's favorite "loveys"-his blanket and pacifier. His blanket is actually the swaddle blanket we used for all three boys when they were infants. The nice thing is we have about six of them so there is always a clean one!

Asking (or demanding) the T.V. remote up on the mantel. This quickly led to an all out tantrum since I would not give him the remote.

Aiden running away at bath time, another one of his favorite games to play

We are "stopping" at a stop light and waiting for the traffic while riding our bikes in the basement

Liam painting a fake egg

Luke and his egg

The boys are "helping" with some laundry. Aiden screamed until I put him up on the bench right between his brothers.

I think the most exciting news I have heard recently is that the temperatures in Minnesota might hit 50 degrees this week! We cannot wait for some snow to melt! Every time it gets sunny and a little bit warmer outside (i.e. 30 degrees), the boys get so excited to see the snow melting because they know they can ride their bikes outside pretty soon.

This week was filled with a lot of "real life" stuff for us. We did not have anything major happen this week, just the day to day stuff of keeping up with three kids that are three and under. We had two ear infections, one pink eye, some respiratory issues, and colds so it was not one of our better weeks. Here are a few random pictures from the our "real" week!

I want to ride my bicycle!

2011-03-07T10:18:00.008-06:00

The puppy, the monster, and the tiger

Liam trying out his new bike for first time

Love the new bikes!

Luke is crazy on the bike, I am so nervous about taking him outside! Good thing that John and I are runners.

Aiden's bike

New bikes!!

Only in Minnesota and a few other areas, would you learn to ride your bike in the basement in March. After my last post, we went shopping for bikes for Luke and Liam. They have been riding them all the time in the basement since we purchased them. They cannot wait to get them outside when the snow finally melts. We passed down their old tricycle to Aiden and thankfully it is working well because I am pretty sure it would be miserable if we did not have something for Aiden to ride. We are beginning to think that we need THREE of everything rather than two.

Luke is a maniac on the bike. He rides so fast and we are trying to teach him to watch where he is going because he tends to look around or ride right into the wall while looking at his feet turning the pedals. We had to put arrows on the floor in the basement so that they would both ride in the same direction. Liam, on the other hand, is slightly more cautious and controlled on the bike, but we had to mandate that they stop riding if they are going to try to drink from their water bottles because drinking and riding do not mix at all.

I also have to post a picture of the boys in the triple stroller with all their winter hats and coats. We get comments every time we go somewhere with our dog, monster, and tiger hats but I imagine most of our out of state family and friends have not seen them. I was pretty determined to find something cute considering how much we have to wear these each winter so we even have gloves to match our hats! It makes the cold winter a little better, I guess.

14 Months and Ready for Spring

2011-02-28T15:46:00.003-06:00

Left to Right: Liam, Charlie, Luke, and Jack. This was taken at the Dome where I mentioned in an earlier post that we like the play. Luke and Liam are with our best friends Jack and Charlie watching the driving range on the other side of the soccer field. They cheered for this older man everytime he would hit the ball as if he was a celebrity and he thought it was hilarious!
AJ riding the infamous Mickey Mouse Car (one of Luke and Liam's favorite toys at the same age). In fact, I almost threw this little car out a few times since we had such a hard time sharing it!

I think I have hit my limit in terms of winter weather this week. It seems like the forecast is always for temps in the 20's and the snow seems to be never-ending. Generally, the cold and snow really do not bother me, but I think we are ready to play in the yard again! Luke and Liam are interested in getting bicycles after seeing some other friends ride bikes so we are getting ready to get outside. Aiden is all over the place and becoming more and more active and interested in whatever his brothers are doing. He will be 14 months old on March 2 and is not quite walking all the time yet, but he walks a little and then drops down to crawl. He is quite the picky eater and lets us know when he does not approve of what we serve for dinner. I am posting a few random pictures from the week. Enjoy!

To Infinity and Beyond!

2011-02-21T14:17:00.007-06:00

Yep, that's AJ. At 13 months, he has already learned how to climb up on the shelves!

Aiden enjoying his popcorn and juice just like the big boys

Movie Night!!

To Infinity and Beyond!

Until recently, Luke and Liam really had no interest in watching television whatsoever and that was fine with John and I though it would provide a nice little bit of "down time" occasionally. However, they have started to really show an interest in the movie Toy Story. We started out buying Toy Story 3 and turned it on once and they were done in about 5 minutes or so. We tried it again about a month ago and they loved it. We have now purchased Toy Story 1 and 2 to go along with #3 and all of them are great movies. It probably helped that about half of our friends dressed up as either Buzz Lightyear or Woody for Halloween this year so the boys keep seeing these figures and they recognize them. Luke got a Woody for his birthday and Liam got Buzz so now they fly around holding Buzz and Woody screaming "To Infinity and Beyond!" We have already broken the legs off of Buzz by throwing him off the stairs thinking he was going to fly, I guess?

One night last week we decided to have our first official "movie night" so we made some popcorn and put in Toy Story and the boys loved it! I know that children who are Aiden's age are probably not supposed to eat popcorn, but if anyone has any suggestions as to how to do keep him away from the popcorn that the rest of us are enjoying, then let me know! Aiden sat with his bowl in his lap just like his brothers and ate every piece of his popcorn as if he did this all the time!

Mr. Mischief

2011-02-12T21:03:00.007-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day! We got a Mickey Mouse card from Aunt Barbara and Uncle Ed and made some Mickey "panpakes" too.
Liam waiting for his Mickey "panpake"

Hey Mom, are you watching?
Here I go....

Up, up, and Away!

Luke and Liam at the Dome

Aiden at the Dome

More Walking!

Aiden seems to know he can get away with all kinds of mischief when I am busy. This has been especially true recently when I am helping Luke and Liam with potty training. Aiden loves to turn the t.v. on and off, climb the stairs, play in the toilet water when the bathroom door is left open, try to pull the phone off the coffee table, etc...He always turns and laughs at me while shaking his head as I say "no-no."

Several people have asked what we do all winter in an area that has snow on the ground and is so cold for many months of the year. Well, we try to stay busy as much as we can. It is really impressive how much there is to do in this area. We have several open gyms that we enjoy going to on occasion. We are a little limited with the timing of these due to Aiden's morning nap, but we manage to make at least a few of them. One of them is a huge soccer field with a big dome over it. They put several large blow up jumping things inside along with balls, goals, tunnels, and all kinds of things for the kids to do. It is specifically for preschool age children and is also relatively inexpensive. It is a great way to burn off some energy when you cannot play outside! I am including a few pictures from our week with Aiden climbing the stairs and our visit to the Dome. Enjoy!

Pee...Poop...Laundry...Eat...Sleep..Repeat

2011-02-06T20:29:00.006-06:00

Friends Forever! Our good friends Jack and Charlie were nice enough to play with us last week while we were stranded at home! We were all getting ready for bed in this picture. (Left to Right: Liam, Charlie, Luke, Jack, and Aiden)

All Star AJ

Pee...Poop...Laundry...Eat...Sleep...Repeat. That pretty much sums up last week. Due to a somewhat last minute business trip, we braved the potty training without John last week. We started right before John left for Germany and Belgium and staying on top of things was not an easy task. I quickly discovered that we would not be going anywhere since it was far too difficult to take three small children into a public restroom and expect good results. So, we practiced using the potty and wearing "big boy" pants and in between that we did lots of laundry. After a little over a week, we are getting the hang of this and getting a little better at knowing when we need to potty. They still have to be told to potty most of the time, but it is getting a little better. Going to the public restroom, however, probably won't get easier until Aiden learns not to dig in the toilet or trashcan! We took lots of baths last week as well.

Aiden started taking a few small steps over the weekend. He is very similar to Liam in his walking. Both Liam and Aiden have taken a little longer to walk even though they have the ability to do it. They both use their push toys to get around and can coast around the room on the furniture without a problem.

Its a Learning Process

2011-01-31T15:21:00.006-06:00

Skating Lessons! Luke is in dark gray/black coat with lime green and Liam is in orange coat
Luke and Liam are the two in the back

More Skating

Coloring with Markers on the Ice

Daddy and the Boys

On Friday, we started potty training Luke and Liam. We have been talking about this for awhile with them and purchased our big boy pants, bought some candy for bribes, watched a couple of Elmo potty movies, and read several books about going to the potty. Both boys were more than ready to do this. In fact, as I read a book about how to potty train them, I realized that we were already on about Day 3 of the training process. We understand the concept of going to the potty and we can do it ourselves, but we are still working on when to go to the potty. If I take them every 45 minutes to the potty, then we don't have any accidents. If we get distracted or try to go places, then we run into some issues because they don't quite know how to tell us that they need to potty.

We are also learning how to skate and finally managed to get a few pictures at our last lesson. The boys have really improved in the last two lessons. They are now standing without assistance on the ice and moving a little. The teachers are very helpful and have lots of fun games that they kids really enjoy on the ice. They color on the ice and throw little balls to get them into the lessons. The hockey helmets, by the way, are courtesy of our cousins Zach and Seth who both play hockey. The boys like putting on the gear more than anything else right now.

Aiden is getting closer and closer to walking. He is still not walking on his own, but he will stand for a second or two and is not sure what to do next. He walks behind all of his push toys and will walk while holding your hand, but has not quite taken a step yet on his own.

Luke, Liam, and Aiden all had their three year and one year check-ups recently and they are doing well. Suprisingly (or maybe not), Aiden has almost caught up to Liam's weight. Aiden weighs 24.8 lbs. (31 inches) and Liam is 27 lbs.(35 inches) while Luke is a hefty 39 lbs.(38 1/4 inches). Aiden is 2 ounces heavier and a half inch taller than Luke was at the same age.

Sunday Morning Panpakes

2011-01-24T10:15:00.009-06:00

Aiden enjoying his Pancakes
Mmmm I love some pancakes!

Luke and Liam making the Panpakes

Taking turns helping Daddy

Our Panpake plates (courtesy of Aunt Sarah)

Do you think he watches his brothers at all?

No, I actually did not mispell "pancakes" in the title above. Luke and Liam always refer to them as "panpakes" and they love to help Daddy make them every Sunday morning. Luke, particularly, loves to "cook" in the kitchen. He is a maniac at times when it comes to mixing, flipping, and tasting the pancakes as he gets a little too excited to help out. Aiden loves to eat the pancakes and it is probably good that he has no desire in making them because I think two three year olds is about all the "help" we can handle in the kitchen.

In other news, the boys started skating lessons about two weeks ago and they are really enjoying it now. In the beginning, I think it was a bit overwhelming for all of us. We walked into the community center to what seemed to be hundreds of 3, 4, and 5 year old kids running around. It actually was pretty organized looking back on it, but we were not prepared for the chaos. Now that we are on our third lesson, the boys are warming up to the idea and working a little harder to skate on their own. They have shown an interest in learning how to skate for about a year now, but you have to be three to start actual lessons. So, we turned three on the 11th and ironically started lessons on the 12th! Parents are allowed on the ice for the first two lessons, but this week will be our first lesson without Dad to help. Mom has been entertaining AJ on the sidelines which I will say is not a fun job with all the gross wet floors and sharp blades running around everywhere! The thought of taking pictures of Luke and Liam has not even crossed my mind until now, but we will try to get a few pictures before the end of our lessons in mid February.

We are Three!

2011-01-17T14:38:00.009-06:00

We are having record snowfall amounts this season. We have already reached the average snow amount (55 inches) for the entire season and it is still January! Snow piled up on the driveway.
Not our mailbox, but I thought it was pretty funny.

Opening gifts at the party

Luke got a Woody doll and Liam got a Buzz doll, we love Toy story right now!

AJ eating cake at the party

This is how it started....

Mmmm Cake

Lunch with pizza and cake

Blowing out the candles

Jump, Jump!

The whole gang, well sort of. Its hard to get a picture with everyone

AJ enjoyed the party

Luke and Liam celebrated their 3rd Birthday on Tuesday. We met John for lunch and then Liam had a doctor's appointment to get his cast removed. His hand is healing well; however, the doctor felt that he may have actually broken three fingers rather than one. He is still wearing a splint periodically for a few more days, but doing well.

On Saturday, the boys had their birthday party. This was our first big party with friends. We had a family party when they turned a year old and celebrated with Calvin while we were in Arkansas over Christmas. Their second birthday party was postponed due to Aiden's birth. We originally planned to celebrate with a small group of close friends on Saturday, Jan. 2nd but Aiden's arrival postponed that a few days. This year we had a party at Pump it Up with some of our neighbors and twin friends. The boys had a great time and seemed to understand more about birthdays this year. They couldn't wait for the cake and the presents!

Another big milestone was giving up our pacifiers this week. We had previously given them up with the exception of night time and naps; however, we have been telling Luke and Liam that when they turned three we would give them up entirely. Luke kept reminding us, "I am not a big boy, I am only two" when we reminded him about the pacifier date. On Wednesday after their 3rd birthday, we gave them up and the boys did relatively well and much better than expected. Luke had a bit of a harder time so I suggested we take them to Build A Bear and we would put his paci inside of a bear. The boys did not like the idea of throwing them away or cutting them off so we thought this would be a good solution. I took all three boys on Friday to Build A Bear so Luke and Liam could pick out a bear and put their pacifiers inside. The funny part of this is that when John got home that evening he was feeling the bear and trying to find the pacifiers. He quickly found Liam's, but neither of us could find Luke's though I assured him that I had watched the boys put them in the bears. On Sunday, we finally found Luke's pacifier and it was not in his bear. Actually, it was in Liam's bear! Both pacifiers somehow ended up in Liam's bear despite our efforts to do this for Luke. Neither of the boys know about it and have not really said anything about the pacifiers so John and I consider ourselves fortunate and as John pointed out, at least we only need to keep up with one bear now because only one of them holds the pacifiers! I am still not sure I see the humor in that considering the effort to get those bears with the boys.

Happy 3rd Birthday Luke and Liam!!

2011-01-10T10:17:00.007-06:00

Brothers

AJ opening his big birthday gift last weekend

Very patient big brothers waiting for AJ to open his gift

Liam (yellow) and Luke (white) in the NICU shortly after their birth

They love their Daddy!

Liam (left) and Luke (right)-3 mo

Luke (l) and Liam (r)-1 mo

Day 1: Luke (left) and Liam (right)

It is about this time three years ago that I went in for a routine OB check-up at 36 weeks and was sent immediately to the hospital because I was already about 5cm or more dilated. The well-seasoned physician on call asked me if I wanted to have a c-section or try to deliver naturally. I told him I wanted to try and deliver naturally despite the fact that Liam was transverse (Luke was head down). He then asked me if I was a morning or night person which seemed like an odd question, but he wanted to know if I wanted to deliver the boys on the 10th or try to get a good night of sleep and start fresh in the morning. I opted to go home (it was early evening by the time we left the hospital) and come back early the next morning. We called in our friends to take the pets, packed our bags, and ordered pizza. I was having some contractions and was mildly uncomfortable, but not too bad. We left the next morning for the hospital after I started going into labor early that morning. The boys were here by noon on January 11, 2008. Oddly enough, their cousin Calvin was born shortly before midnight on January 11th as well.

The past three years have gone so fast. There are days and weeks like feel like an eternity, but when you look back it is so hard to believe the boys are already three. Although our lives are nothing like they were before we had kids, we have a hard time thinking about what we would do without them. We love their different personalities, their laughs, their funny way of saying things, but most of all we are so thankful for the opportunity to be their parents. Happy 3rd Birthdays to Luke Allen and Liam Carey Carrithers as well as to our cousin James Calvin McClure!

Lots to Celebrate!!

2010-12-31T21:16:00.012-06:00

Happy 1st Birthday Aiden John on January 2, 2011
Celebrating all three birthdays!

Yummy Cake!

We have lots to celebrate and honestly we have had so many parties that I cannot keep up with them all. It feels like we have been opening gifts for a few weeks now and honestly we have. We celebrated Christmas in Minnesota on Dec. 19th before leaving for Cincinnati on the 23rd. We told the boys that Santa would bring them a few gifts to open here and a few on our trip. Honestly, they still believe most anything we say so our "story" did not have to be that convincing or planned. We basically took the smaller toys to Cincy and the bigger toys we opened at home. We had a great time visiting Grandma, Grandpa, and all our aunts, uncles, and cousins. The boys had a party almost every night we were there just playing with their cousins. We enjoyed a trip to the Children's Museum, a Train place, lots of ice skating in the backyard, as well as playing with all of our cousins. We also celebrated Aiden's 1st birthday and Luke and Liam's 3rd birthdays with a special cake. Aiden will turn one on January 2 and the boys will turn three on the 11th. So, we opened not only Christmas gifts, but also some birthday gifts. We have lots to entertain us over the winter now and the boys are enjoying all the new toys, games, etc...We had one small accident on our trip. Liam was playing on some stairs and fell somehow on his arm and fractured a finger so we spent Christmas Day dinner in the ER getting x-rays. We were thankful to have so many family members to keep Luke and Aiden, however. We have taken three children to the ER before and it is not much fun. Liam is now in a cast for a few weeks. It is mostly precautionary so that he does not injure his fractured finger any further. He picked a bright green cast and is doing very well with it. Thankfully, there are no limits on his activity with the cast so we can still jump and run and play. We had a wonderful holiday and want to wish everyone a Happy 2011.

Liam with his new tools and goggles from Grandma and Grandpa

Luke and his tools

Lots of presents to open!!

Ho ho ho!!!

Christmas Morning in Cincy with cousins Ella and Caitlin

Checking out the trains at the Children's Museum with Grandpa

Riding the Train

Cousins (and babysitters) Caitlin and Ella

Silly AJ

That's John up there with Liam, not sure who was having more fun

Grandpa and AJ

Ice Skating

Skating in the backyard with Jacob, Caitlin, and Ella

Santa and Cookies

2010-12-20T10:46:00.007-06:00

Our trip to see Santa. Aiden was not too happy about Santa!

Waiting in line before the big Santa visit

Liam sampling cookies

AJ's cookie

Luke and his cookies or Luke and his icing

Aiden made his first trip to see Santa and it was pretty obvious that he did not approve of it. He was terrified of Santa! This kind of surprised me because the boys really did not show any type of reaction to Santa until they were closer to two years of age. As infants, they just sat and stared. Aiden, however, sat and screamed. Poor guy. Even though they look a little stunned in the picture, Luke and Liam were very excited to see Santa and tell him the one thing they really really want for Christmas...a guitar! Yes, both of them want a guitar and I have no idea why. They also want a piggy bank, but that is because of the piggy bank on Toy Story. We also made some Christmas cookies over the weekend and the boys decorated and ate lots of green icing. Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday! We are taking a short "posting break" for the holidays and hope you will stay tuned for more when we return to the blog in 2011!

Snowy Weekends

2010-12-13T14:43:00.008-06:00

Snow drifts from the 20-30 mph gusts of wind
Trying to get some perspective on how deep the snow was. John used the snow blower at least three times.

And more snow...

Santa with Luke and Liam

Santa came in at the end of the program and the kids were all stunned

Liam looks so tired. He is supposed to be rocking this bear. He was practicing all week at home.

Singing the Christmas songs

The BIG Christmas gift for the boys! An inflatable bouncy thing in our basement. This is what three weekends snowed in will convince you to purchase!

They loved it!

Messy 1 and 2

Snowmaggedon, Snownami, Epic snowstorm, 5th largest snowstorm, and finally "the" snowstorm of December 2010. These are all terms that I heard over the weekend to describe our blizzard. We received nearly 20 inches of snow in less than 24 hours if you can imagine! It managed to shut down the airports, cause numerous accidents, and basically paralyze any sort of travel. So, for the third weekend in a row, we found ourselves snowed in and trying to find some way to fill the time with three very energetic boys. Yes, that is correct, we have had snowstorms for the past three weekends with the most recent one being the largest. There are several reasons I can remember that and one of which is because we actually managed to secure a babysitter for THREE Saturdays and everytime she had to cancel because she could not drive here. They are pretty good about plowing the roads, but when you receive that much snow in a short time it does take a little while to get to everyone. We have done art projects, hung the christmas tree, played, shoveled snow, taken sled rides, and most recently we decided to give the boys their big Christmas gift! I told John we had to figure something out because he had yet another trip and I was about as tired of our toys as the boys are. So, what do you buy when you have been snowed in for three weekends in a row? Check out our pictures!

In other news this week, the boys had their first preschool Christmas program. They did really well despite the program being right at naptime. Liam and Aiden both fell asleep in the car on the way to the program. Liam looks exhausted in the pictures. They really did not sing the songs very much (they are some of the youngest in their class), but they did stand up front and do some of the motions. They looked a little stunned to me, but it was fun to watch. The highlight was having Santa come at the end and shake hands with all the kids. Liam looked over at me on the front row and said, "Look Mommy, its Santa Claus!" It was very cute.

Elf on the Shelf

2010-12-06T14:44:00.006-06:00

Meet Mr. Cowboy (Our Elf)
One of Mr. Elf's Hiding places

Day 1...Mr. Elf on the Shelf

The boys are looking for Mr. Elf

I am not sure how many of you have heard of "Elf on the Shelf" book and/or activity. My sister gave us this as a gift for Luke and Liam's first Christmas. At the time, I thought it was such a cute idea, but I honestly could not imagine adding anything else to our already difficult bedtime routine. Until now, that is. We started the Elf thing this year and the boys love it. The basic story line is that there is an Elf that you hide in various places throughout your house and each morning the boys are supposed to go and find the Elf. You have to give the Elf a name and all day long he is watching over the boys and then at night he goes and reports back to Santa on their behavior so that Santa knows whether they have been "naughty or nice." The only rule is that you cannot touch Mr. Elf. He can hide anywhere in the house and you have to find him, but you cannot play with him. Honestly, it is the best incentive/bribery tool that we have found so far! All I have to say is, "Remember boys, Mr. Elf is watching you and he is going to tell Santa..." Perfect! We need one of these all year around. The boys named the Elf "Cowboy." They recently watched a little of the movie Toy Story and I think Buzz calls Woody "Cowboy" a few times and they thought that was really funny. So, Mr. Cowboy is always watching!!

Peek A Boo

2010-12-01T20:45:00.006-06:00

Showing me their big boy pants...No, we are not potty trained yet, just gearing up sometime soon, I think.
Liam wanted me to take his picture so he could see it on the camera.

Peek a Boo!

Under the blanket

Here we are!

I intended to get some pictures of our new play area this week, but it just has not happened. We recently cleaned and reorganized the basement to make room for the "hockey ice" as the boys call it. The boys actually take time outs periodically to drive the Zamboni and clean off the ice. We have a small net and an area for the boys to play hockey, roller skate, play basketball, soccer, ride scooters, etc...in the basement. It has been great to have, especially on the two snow/ice days that we have already had this season. It is a different type of play than what we do in the bonus room and the boys love it. We basically have a good size open area similar to what we had over the summer when we played in the garage and driveway. It hardly compares to being outside, but it is a new area to play and they are able to run around.

In lieu of the basement pictures, I did take some random pictures of the boys playing peek a boo with John. Luke loves to hide under the blanket and have us ask, "Has anyone seen Luke?" Aiden actually crawls over when he sees them get out the blanket to play peek a boo because he enjoys it as well.

Thankgiving 2010

2010-11-25T16:36:00.006-06:00

Luke and Liam hung ornaments on the Christmas tree for the first time this year; however, we still have our tree behind closed doors!
Liam showing me the Santa

Aiden in his green stripes

Our big purchase...SKATES!!

Purple Pj's (this is their favorite color right now)

Aiden's first spaghetti

Unbelievable. Not sure this needs much explaining

We have had a wonderful week of Thanksgiving. John took off this week and we did not travel anywhere so we have enjoyed some time around here to catch up on things, play, and rest. John has done just about everything imaginable with the boys this week including gymnastics open gym, a jumping place, McDonald's, a hockey game, various errands, etc...The boys seemed really tired tonight after a week of fun with Daddy. We made a big purchase this week and got the boys some "hockey skates." They are thrilled about them and cannot wait to go skating. We have been "skating" in the bonus room all week. The earliest they offer lessons here is three years of age so we are giving this some thought for the New Year since they pretty much have to learn how to skate if we live in Minnesota! Luke has already decided that he wants to be a goalie. Liam is actually pretty agile on his roller skates in the basement so it will be fun to see him on the ice.

We have a lot to be thankful for this year and want to wish our friends and family a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Let it Snow...Let it Snow...Let it Snow

2010-11-16T16:48:00.007-06:00

Aiden in the wagon
O.k....let me explain. We were attempting to try on a snow suit that Liam wore. A neighbor handed it down to us and obviously it did not fit Aiden and obviously he loved it!

Enjoying the snow! Much better outfit too.

Luke

Liam with the shovel

Helping Daddy

Liam and John

Luke and Liam with the sleds. We now have one that holds all three!

Let it Snow...It seems like I have said that before? We had our first snow storm over the weekend and it was quite a big one for November. I think I must have misunderstood the weatherman who said we would get "a few inches" because we ended up with at least a foot of snow. We were a little more prepared this year than we have been in years past. We had our snow boots, gloves, hats, coats, pants, etc...and we were ready to go. The boys were so excited about going out in the snow and helping Daddy "mow" (or blow) the snow. There were a few things we have yet to purchase that we are working on like a sled that holds three kids and small shovels for each of the boys. Liam was most interested in shoveling the snow himself while Luke preferred to ride on the sled or eat the snow. Aiden was not too sure about it at first and was really not fond of all the clothing we had to put on, but he adjusted. Gotta start early since it would not be Minnesota without snow.

Three Toddlers and an Infant

2010-11-11T16:30:00.006-06:00

Playing outside (even in the dark!)
Puzzles with Aunt Sarah

The Three Stooges

Playing outside

Calvin Resting after all that work with the mixer truck

Aj in the tunnel

Mimi watching AJ at gymnastics open gym

Luke swinging

Calvin in the foam pit

Making sure we are well-fed

Throwing monkeys off the steps

Hiding in the dryer

Celebrating Mimi and Sarah's birthdays

Waiting patiently for CAKE!!!

Mimi and Sarah's birthday cake

Three Toddlers and an Infant...that is pretty much what our week revolved around. John has been away on business in Australia for the past week and my mom, sister, and nephew came to visit/help out for a few days while he was away. We had a big time with some unseasonably warm weather that allowed us to spend many hours outside. How do you keep three, two year olds and an infant happy? Well, we kept them well-fed, well-rested, and VERY busy! We did gymnastics, sang songs, played outside, played inside, worked puzzles, watched movies (very short ones), celebrated two birthdays, and rejoiced when it was bedtime! Whew....what a week. Thanks Mimi, Calvin, and Aunt Sarah! And John, ummm, no more trips over daylight savings time again until our kids are at least 15 years of age.

Halloween Parade and Party

2010-11-01T14:34:00.004-05:00

Most of our twin friends with the top of Jack's head at the bottom of this picture
AJ the Lion

Luke and Liam as Viking Football players

John's pumpkins

Liam Rocks!

On the firetruck with some of our neighbor friends (Aiden is the Lion in the middle and friend Carter is the lion on the right. You may recognize the lion costumes from Luke and Liam last year!)

All the neighborhood kids!!

Two Vikings and a Lion

Trick or Treat!

We had a great Halloween. Luke and Liam really got into the trick or treating this year. Once they figured out they could go house to house and get candy, they were running door to door. Liam was so excited at the end of the night when he looked in his pumpkin and said, "Look, its half full Mommy and Daddy." Liam was a little partial to the people giving out suckers while Luke really did not seem to care what he got. Aiden went along for the ride in the wagon as he often does. John carved some pumpkins and the boys were very interested at how the pumpkins would light up. Luke and Liam were Minnesota Viking football players. We got several comments (positive and negative) about the Vikings. Honestly, we are not really Viking fans but the boy's favorite color is purple and they wanted purple jerseys so that is how this costume began. Aiden was a lion which was a costume handed down from Luke and Liam last year.

We also had our 7th annual Halloween Parade in the neighborhood where all the kids get dressed up and walk behind the firetruck. The boys love firetrucks so this was really cool. I think now they associate Halloween with firetrucks.

We also had our 3rd annual "Twin Friends" Halloween party. We all dressed up and had a great time eating and playing with all our friends. It is hard to believe we have known each other for three years already. It was a wild party with 6 sets of twins and two infants.

Trip to Iowa

2010-10-25T16:07:00.005-05:00

Two funny pictures of AJ (not from Iowa) but I wanted to post....Who's digging in the drawer?

You can run, but you can't hide!

Luke and Charlene looking at a book

Liam with Savannah doing his favorite flashcards

Meeting with lots of John's extended family members in Iowa

Charlene (left) and Grandma Carrithers enjoying green eggs and ham

AJ on the move

Luke "fixing" the house

Liam with the goggles and jack hammer toy they loved

Over the weekend, we took a short trip to Iowa to visit some of John's family as well as for John and his dad to attend the Hawkeye football game. It is my understanding (since I didn't watch much of the game) that the Hawks played decent but kinda lost the game by a point at the end due to some silly mistakes. Anyway, that was the only disapointing part of the whole weekend. We had a great time visiting with family and are so grateful to Tom and Charlene for having us over to eat and entertain the boys. I am hoping her house has recovered from our quick visit, but she may still be finding things a little misplaced. Charlene made lots of special things for the boys including green eggs and ham for breakfast one morning. I wish I could say they were appreciative of all the work she put into the weekend, but unfortunately I guess they are only 2.5 years old and 10 months so we are probably not the most grateful at times. The boys were so excited about this trip. Luke was packing his suitcase like Daddy does for his trips several days in advance. Liam wanted "to go home" when it was time to go to bed the first night, but he quickly adapted when we reminded him about all the candy from Grandma and Grandpa and the Charlene's toys that were waiting for him over at Charlene's. We had a wonderful time seeing everyone and sincerely appreciate the work that Tom and Charlene put into the weekend to make it so much fun.

Little Things

2010-10-19T16:48:00.006-05:00

Children's Museum with friends Jack and Charlie. Oddly enough, Kirsten (Jack and Charlie's mom) and I bought the exact same shirts at the Gap in the exact same colors. Crazy, considering there were probably 10 different colors to pick from.
Luke on slide at Museum

Checking out the tree trunk

Aiden is ice fishing

Aiden has learned to stand up in his crib, but has not yet figured out how to get back down

There are lots of little things I want to remember about all three boys, but never seem to have the time to write down. Two year olds, particularly, say and do some hilarious things. Here are a few recent ones for us....

Luke and Liam love to point things out when we are driving in the car. If only everyone had the amount of excitement that a two year old has about seeing a truck, a horse, or a duck. They always point out whose side of the car the object is on. Luke loves to say with lots of enthusiasm, "Look Mommy, there is a horse over there on LeeLee's side." Or Liam will say, "Horses on Liam's side standing and eating grass over there." They always say that if the horses are "on Luke's side on the way there" then they will be "on Liam's side on the way back." Pretty clever.

When the boys play hockey outside, they always lay down on the ground and say that they have "fallen down on the ice."

The other night at dinner, John gave Liam a "high five" for eating well and then tried to give him a "fist bump." Liam looked at John and said, "Denied." Sounds like something John would do, wonder where he got it from?

Aiden loves to follow his brothers and always makes noises and squeals at dinner and I am guessing it is to squeeze in a word between his brothers.

We were walking around the circle at our house the other day and I was pulling the wagon with Aiden and pushing the bicycle that Luke was riding. Liam came up to try to help me and when I told him thanks for helping, he looked at me and said "I have my hands full right now."

On the Move

2010-10-11T14:39:00.007-05:00

Aiden trying to climb the stairs after the cat

Liam giving Aiden a little ride

Aiden's newest toy that he loves

Luke Playing in the corn pit

Liam with a baby chick

All three boys checking out the goats

Aiden (mostly trying to eat the corn and dirt)

Aiden holding a baby chick (for long enough to take this picture)

Aiden is most definitely on the move. He went from scooting a little on the floor to crawling on all fours in a week. John and I have both said that he is highly motivated to get things off the floor, perhaps more so than his brothers; however, maybe that is because there is more "stuff" on the floor to pick from. Either way, he is fast and has recently tried to climb the stairs, stand up in his crib, and climb the small plastic slide in the bonus room. I can no longer depend on one of the boys to be stationary and stay in one spot for two seconds!

We made our third trip to an apple/pumpkin orchard over the weekend. We are having an unseasonably warm October and we have really enjoyed being able to do a lot outside. This time last year we already had a small snowfall! We had temps in the 80's over the weekend so we made a trip out to another orchard that has lots and lots of animals to pet, feed, hold, etc...The boys (including Aiden) loved it except maybe the cows. Aiden screamed his head off when the cow mooed at him and apparently terrified him. Even the thought of going near the cows again was enough to put him in tears for awhile. Pretty funny to John and I...