Colorado Christmas (89 photos), by maureen jenkins

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

Colorado Christams

Hey Family and Friends! Merry Christmas.

We missed you all but from all of the conversations it sounds like everyone had great holiday celebrations and we look forward to seeing pics and hearing more. The Flying J Ranch is bustling. Santa was great to all the kiddos and they have been playing since 6am this morning.

Flying J is stocked with people, the Burke Family (4 ppl), GiGi (great grandma), Mamie and Cap'n (my folks), Funcle (my bro) and the Doanes (4.5 ppl) so the food is flying out of the fridge, washer and dryer and dishwasher are running non stop and there is not a lack of attention being given to any of the kids!! Between snow activities, playing with Cousins and getting covered in kisses all day they look forward to nap time.

Rob came in town two days ago and the boys are in Heaven. They are showing off all their new tricks and trying to be sure that dad gets fully caught up on everything they have been learning. We went back out on the tubes the other day and wow!!! is all I can say. The slope they shoot down was a huge ice patch after all the weather we have been having here. I would like to say it was nothing but a great time followed by Cocoa at the end of the day but instead we had a few mishaps. B shot off the tube, landed in a snow bank in tears (had some cocoa and requested another run) and immediately following, Rob bulleted down the slope at a very impressive speed went over the embankment glasses and gloves went flying and Rob did a face plant into a crusted snow bank that left a nice red reminder.

We loose Rob to the warm weather tomorrow evening so we will have a busy day fitting in the last of the activities that we can. A gondola ride is planed for the morning, some lunch at the top of the mountain and lots of snuggles for those little guys.

Christmas came and went! I cant believe it. We all went out to cut down a tree in the national forest, made homemade decorations (popcorn, cranberries etc.) Santa came and filled the stockings, ate the cookies and here we are; surrounded by paper and smiles. The baton was officially passed from Steve to Rob this year. It was the first of what will probably be many Christmases where Rob spent the late hours of Christmas Eve putting together toys (this year a scooter for B and a bike for Caleb) wondering where that "one part" is. All parts were found, toys constructed and boys were thrilled with the gifts. We cant wait for you all to see them in action.

I am also glad to report that Caleb is now saying more than "apple" and "out" and enjoying conversation much more. B has found a best friend in his cousin Grace. Their imaginations are amazing! and they play off of each others stories all the time. It will be a hard departure to say the least.

We are sad to see Rob go but it will only be for a short while and there will be a lot of distractions between now and his next arrival. We have a big group coming round for the New Year as well as family stopping by the Ranch on and off before and after. Then home to AZ in no time.

Love you all!!!

album 12\14\2010 (113 photos), by maureen jenkins

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

Second Road Trip down

Hey everyone.

We are two road trips in this year and we are good! Once again the boys, dogs and 12+ hours in the car. Everyone did great!! Dad came in to Scottsdale to make the drive with me and the boys, he was able to stay and enjoy the warm weather for a few days and then we were off. The kids were great!! Now we are in the mountains adjusting to the cold and loving it!

Scottsdale was about 70 degrees and nice warm break for dad. A few trips to the park, some good wrestling in the living room and we were on the road. We were two hours outside of Steamboat when we got caught in a blizzard and had to head back to the last town for the night. I am THRILLED to report that everyone handled the hotel experience much better than last time. The dogs stayed in their respective beds, the kids each with an adult and no fussing or fevers in the night. We were out early the next morning and have been enjoying the ranch since.

Today the boys went sledding around the property, the dogs ran for hours, Caleb did a face plant in the snow that was the end of his winter wonderland and the beginning of nap time. B on the other hand would have stayed outside until his nose fell off if it were not for the luring of his favorite lunch. Now they are both down for naps and so cute.

Caleb has reverted to using only two words out of what was a 50 word vocabulary and since his two words consist of "apple" and "out"......there is a lot of guessing going on and a lot of frustration going on! He also loves!!!! looking for cows and horses as we drive through the country. Any find is announced with a boisterous "Neigh" or "Moo"

B is holding on to every bit of information he is being taught and never ceases to surprise me with what he remembers. He loves counting and doing puzzles.

So far the only downfall of the trip has been the absents of Rob. We are only a few days in but I can tell ya now this is gonna be tough on all of us! He is at home sick with Strep which makes it ever tougher to not be there. We are counting down the days till he gets here for X-mas! we love you ROB!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Hey everyone hope you all ate great Turkey and enjoyed the company you were with! We had a great day here in Scottsdale but the theme may not have really been Thanksgiving...

We talked all week about being Thankful for things and the boys did a great job of naming things they were Thankful for at the dinner table. Other than that and a little Turkey the theme of the day was Christmas!!! Rob and I both turn into big kids when it comes to decorating (and we are recently very familiar with unpacking boxes so it felt natural). We have the house and halls decked! It looks great and feels like the holidays. With only a week left with the boys and I here in AZ we wanted to be sure that they saw all their decorations and that the house was a festive place for Rob to come home to when we are gone (to help fill the void and keep it festive he took it upon himself to stocked the fridge with Eggnog :) ). The coolest part for all of us is the Christmas Village and the train under the tree! The boys pulled a chair up to the Village and stared FOREVER yesterday! I can just imagine how all the people come to life in their little minds. Braydon has mastered the train remote and has asked multiple times about Santa. We are working on learning the words to some Christmas Carols then we are ready!!!!

That was our Christmas themed Thanksgiving but there was also a lot of family time and fun in the day as well. We got up early, watched the Parade, met a playdate at the park where we fed the ducks TWO loafs of bread. Rob feels I will be putting the family in financial distress if we go through that many loafs on each Park trip......I admit it was a lot and I will tone it down to just the stale old bread next time :). Then it was home for a bite to eat, nap time and then Turkey. Rob was outside on the fryer and I made the sides. It was great! We both had three plates of food and the boys only ate the cooked marshmallows from the top of the yams. The dogs were thrilled with the leftovers and have been stalking the fridge in hopes of another taste of turkey since.

We love you all.

Hello From Scottsdale

Hey guys!

How is everyone? We are doing great, who would have thought that in just two weeks we would feel so settled and welcome here in Scottsdale. The boys did amazing on the move, it was great to have a "time out" from life and get to hang with the Doane crew in Dallas. The drive was long but seemed longest for Rob and I. Dogs and boys were great! I LOVE THE HOUSE! Good pick Rob. We are moved in and life has started!

So to go back a few weeks, we took off from SA and headed to Dallas, we had a wonderful few days seeing family and visiting with old friends. Though it seemed like we were there a long time it also felt like we didn't get enough time with anyone :(

We drove out from Dallas and made it to the new house in two days. The boys were great road trip buddies and horrible roommates! I think the evenings in the hotels were what pushed Rob and I over the edge. The boys go to bed at 8 so that meant that Rob, the dogs and I were in bed by 8 and no one seemed to know what to do in a hotel room. The dogs acted like they had never been inside before and the kids seemed to have no idea what a bed was used for. Dogs were a JOKE. Moving all night, jumping up and off the beds, eating soap from the bathtub and more. The boys could not calm down. 8pm came and so did their energy levels. B was in bed with Rob and I was in bed with Cal, by 10pm Caleb was asleep (upside down and on my side). By 12am B was asleep also with me an also on my side. All I know next is that Devo, Caleb, Braydon and I are all sharing half of the queen bed and it is 3am. Devo is so in my face that I don't even have my own air to breath and the poor belly baby is being squashed by his oldest brother. Kids dogs and space all get re-distributed and things are great until about 5am when Rob wakes me telling me that Cal has a fever and is not doing good........

However it happened, we made it to the new house in time for the movers on Monday all sleep deprived and desperate to eat something other than takeout.

We are two weeks in, the house looks like a home, we feel settled and have really been able to get around the community and start planting seeds to make this place grow into a wonderful life over the next few years. B is enrolled at a WONDERFUL school down the street and I felt very lucky to find it (after much searching). He is also going to be staring his first little sports team in January and we are excited for him to meet some friends! Caleb is about a year to young to get enrolled in anything but we met a neighbor just yesterday who is his age and that will hopefully provide many a fun playdate. We have already mastered the Storytime hours at the Library (which is very impressive for a public library) as well as gotten to know all the great parks in the area. Next week, the zoo....

Thanksgiving is around the corner and we will be thinking of all of you! Rob is going to Fry the Turkey so it is going to be great!!! I will be posting more pics on Snapfish soon, till then miss you all and love you tons.

album 11\01\2010 (82 photos), by maureen jenkins

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

Moving Day

Hey fam and friends, hope you guys are great. Today is packing day and tomorrow is moving day at the Doane hs. Things are moving along great and we are almost in Dallas visiting fam so it doesn't get much better than this. We have had a great week, Dad had time off work and came with us to the Kiddie Park (you have all heard stories of this park from the boys). We had a Halloween that topped all Halloween's of the past and there are a ton of picks to prove it! The boys were adorable!! Two football players that ate as much candy as their tummies could hold. All the parents got dressed up as well and we had a special visitor, our own fighter pilot Funcle!! We also had another Baby Dr. Apt and he is growing great!

The kiddie park lived up to its original impression again as one of the best stops for toddlers in SA. Again the park was built in the 20's and has most its original rides still running. Rob was able to come with us this time and the boys loved showing off how they can ride all the rides by themselves.

Halloween was a BLAST, we set up shop in a neighbors driveway with all the neighbor friends. There was a DJ and tons of candy. I took the boys from house to house while my Ref husband stayed behind to judge the dancers that came round. The better the dancing the bigger the candy bar! Good times. The boys were totally into Trick-or-Treating and they looked great.

When we got back to the party they started chowing in to the candy. B and C can not open their own candy yet so I felt I had a fairly good understanding of how much they were eating. Then I hear a neighbor girl announce "if anyone needs more help opening candy I can do it all". I turn around and B is sitting in a pile of litter indicating he has eaten the majority of his candy! I walk over to him and he says "Mom, I am going to get sick". I say "well, B you should really stop eating then". B "But mom, I really don't want to". So he didn't stop and he didn't get sick. Caleb was less interested in the Candy but ate at least 4 Hotdogs from the grill. They were up passed their bedtime they were decorated in various glow sticks, necklaces, blinking safety bracelets etc and ate their weight in unhealthy food. It was a party to top all parties!

Baby boy 3 is doing great and "growing" says the doc. He is more active than I remember either of the other boys being and he proved it on the last ultrasound, he was doing one back flip after another.

Tomorrow the truck comes and takes all our stuff; then we hit the road for Dallas. Look forward to seeing some of you. Love to all.

album 10\23\2010 (53 photos), by maureen jenkins

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

IT'S A BOY!!!

Hey fam

It is a boy! We are thrilled! I have already started everything needed for him to get here. Boston was a bust :( , Devo training is a bust and our first choice Phoenix house is a bust. Other than that our house seems to be progressing in the sale process (that is huge) and dates are set to have us delivered in Phoenix. Finally the Halloween count down is on.

The fam went in last Friday for a sex determination of the baby and as most of you know we are moving closer to having our own Doane Basketball team! The boys are excited and B has been giving me updates everyday on what he is going to teach his new brother; Friday: how to jump, eat candy corn and play with the dogs. Sat: how to keep food away from the dogs, how to crawl out of the crib and how to do his plasma car....to be continued I am sure.

As far as baby planning I know exactly how I want the nursery decorated and I hope GiGi is up to the challenge of sewing the bedding :) (I was gonna call and ask soon). I have my top ten names that is now a top 6 because of Robbie's first round knockouts. We are treackin...

So we didn't get to go to Boston and the whole fam was bummed but the Dr office was less than easy to reschedule with. We will be out there in the Spring for sure! Devo training being a bust is really half and half. We have been doing "training sessions" in the evenings and she is great. She will "Sit", "Stay" and "Come". I can run all around her while she is staying and she doesn't budge till you say "Come", then she runs right to you and waits for the next command. It is really amazing how great she is and how quick she learned! The other half to all of this is that is only seems applicable to the backyard. Once she has jumped the fence it is anything goes. Ugggg!!! Finally, first choice Phoenix house was a great hs in a perfect location and had great schools but seems the owners will not rent to anyone with dogs over 40lbs. Second choice here we come...

Phoenix is happening! Nov 1st movers come to pack us up. Nov 2nd we get loaded in the truck and Nov 8th we are there for delivery!!! YEAH!

The last thing going on is Halloween. The kids have been making really great holiday crafts and they have made so many pumpkin variations that we have the whole Laundry room door dedicated to "the pumpkin Patch art work" It is really cool how into it they are. (Rob when you get home, show no concern that you have old undershirts flying in the front yard breeze :))

What can I tell you about the boys? They are huge and eating like crazy this AM they each ate four pieces of french toast and a bowl of Rice Crispies! Caleb is getting skinny! (not to be confused with Thin). He is also talking a lot more. His words are not easily understood by an outsider but he can express most anything he wants these days. B is mastering all types of new tasks and is expanding his interests all the time. He can ride a bike wonderfully and started cruising on a scooter (these are all neighbors toys, so Rob and I have some xmas shopping to do) he also likes shooting baskets and plays a lot of golf in the backyard!

Enjoy the pics!!

We love you all.

We are up and running again

Hello everyone!

We are back! we had some major camera issues but as you can tell from the adorable pics we are up and running again. Lots has happened since the last blog, the house is under contract and we are out of our "option period" so things are clicking along with the house. We have started packing, the boys got new beds (very exciting) and more.

I LOVE BEING AT HOME! These little guys are so great and we have a blast together everyday. I am learning A TON! We have had a lot of adventures but mostly playdates, park time, outside with neighbors, and a few field trips of our own. The boys have helped me start packing and getting some of the house ready. They also got new Big Boy beds. That is right! Caleb will be going into a bed when we get to Phoenix so that baby 3 will have the crib set up in its room. The new beds are very cool bunk beds. B is dying to sleep on the top and asks about it every night. These guys are getting big!

It has been a great break not having showings every other day. The house is still holding together but I will admit it is much harder to keep it clean with the all day in-house playing than before. I am begging anyone out there to share their fav receipts that consists of 3-6 ingredients and minimum prep time. So feel free to post back or shoot off an email. Also did everyone see those adorable pancake pics on the side of the blog? Thank you Aunt Bobby. The boys love eating these and they come out so cute.

Lucky us! the boys and I are getting to go visit the Burke family in BOSTON! we are so excited. We will have great pics in the next few weeks so stay tuned.

The Dogs are ...the dogs. I have been reading about how to train a CRAZY BOXER online and her classes start at nap time tomorrow. Wish me luck! She is like a 2yr old (as Jess pointed out) they are really hard to enjoy when they have no rules and run wild. So here goes! If i don't succeed she is being put in Boot Camp with Greg this December (thanks dad).

Halloween is coming too. Talk about a great weekend. The boys have a pumpkin painting party on the 30th and then a block party Halloween night! They have both decided to be Football players (and NO we did not push this at all!!!) B thinks he is like the football players he saw at the UT game and wanted to be them and Caleb wants to be like B so there you have it.

We miss you guys all so much and are thrilled we will be able to see most of you shortly!

How many showings does it take?

Hey fam and friends,

How are you all. We are doing great but asking ourselves, "how many showings does it take?" This week we reached our 12th showing (in three weeks) and two of them were second showings. Rob was in Calf all this week so the cleaning seemed very heavy! How many showings does it take? Don't know if I can handle too many more of these! The boys are great helpers with the cleanings and we have really had some great times "getting out of the house" but I am hopeful we are on our final leg.

Boys are great! We went to Caleb's 18month Doctors apt this week and he is a weed! He is in the 100+ percentile for height and in the 84th for weight, he has not gained any weight since his last apt but has managed to put on 2.5inches! He did great with all his shots and this coming Friday is Braydon's big 3yr old apt so keep everyone posted on how he is doing. So far both have been consistently off the charts with the number of words they know, sentence structure and social interactions.

When it comes to the house cleaning I have to give the two little guys props. They are great helpers. B will walk around with Pledge and spray everything that is wood and I come behind and wipe it off. Caleb helps vacum by going around with his little popper thing and vacuming as well. They are excellent at putting their toys away and over all are very helpful!

They are currently both in the bath that is filled to their chins with bubbles, the giggles are non-stop because Devo is in there eating bubbles and licking faces. Good times! Caleb just let out a shriek that could break glass. This is his most recent form of communication and also one that lands him in timeout consistently. (Now this is where I struggle as a mom, do I take his soggy butters out of the bath and into timeout to prove my point or do I just let this one go....?) I have had to start reading my parenting books again with this kid (good advice JJ). He is breaking all the rules and is throwing some really impressive temper tantrums. I feel like I am starting from scratch.

This week I was able to spend a little extra time with the kids and it was great! We went to the botanical gardens, I got started a little early on Halloween and we made pumpkins. Played Playdough and this weekend the boys made a VERY special something for Mrs. Lauren, we will not go into detail because we dont want to spoil the surprise! They are doing great and we cant wait to see you all soon.

Moment of the week: I woke Braydon up from a nap one day this week, he was really groggy and just reached up threw an arm around my neck and asked me to snuggle. :)

album 09\19\2010 (31 photos), by maureen jenkins

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

Howdy

Hey guys, hope you guys are all doing well. Everyone is great here. Lots of showings this week, cute boy stories and more.

The week went pretty quick. The house got another 4 showings which is great but also a TON of work. We got really positive feedback and have our fingers crossed that there will be more to come.

Three nights this week we were unable to find Devo and each time she was fast alseep at the end of Braydons Bed. Each time she seemed to have waited about an hour after they went to bed, pushed the bedroom door open and found her spot. It was really sweet. She loves those boys soo much.

This weekend was filled with exciting things for the boys. We painted pottery Sat morning, B painted a car, Zonie/Rob painted a football and I painted a pumpkin. We had to leave them there for the week to get them glazed, B keeps reminding me that "we need to go back to the pottery store to get out things" I think he liked it!

After pottery B and I had a date day in the city. We had big plans and most got ruined by bad weather but it was just he and I for a few hours, we went to a show and then he got to pick out whatever he wanted from a bakery for a treat. We had a blast, and what a handsome date I had.

That same night Robbie took us to a VERY fancy dinner. They boys both wore button down shirts, nice jeans and brown boots. They were so well behaved everyone was impressed. The waiter commented as well as a few other people. I was very proud.

This AM was another story......from our bedroom we heard screams and what I thought was crying. I rushed upstairs and Caleb has pulled off his diaper and peed (deliberately) on everything. He thought he had invented the best game ever. B thought it was all pretty great as well. He was on his bed jumping up and down laughing hysterically!! So what I thought was crying was shreaks of fun. A bath happened, breakfast and that was wonderfully followed by Devo digging up the flowers again only this time it was in mud (tons of rain) so it was back in the bathroom, the Johnson and Johnson was put up and Lavendar Puppy was brought out.....Awesome guys...awesome....

Lunch just finished (PB & J) and Caleb finished his looking like a war victim. B was in fits of giggles. they got hosed off ( i am over giving baths at this point) and put down for a nap. It is days like this that they are sooo lucky they are cute. :)

We miss you guys!

Mo

Howdy

Hey Guys

How is everyone? The Doane clan is great and growing. We went to a football game this weekend boys had a very successful trip to the library, we survived what felt like a hurricane and the house is listed, showing are happening and Phoenix here we come.

Doane addition 5 (the dogs count) is getting big and doing great. We went in to the doctor this week and baby is thriving! Big as ever, last time we saw it on the screen it was itty bitty and now it has a full profile, you could see the little hands up at its mouth, so cute! We are excited for it to get here only another 6mos!

We went to the UT game this weekend and had a blast. It was hot as Hades but the boys could have cared less. B went into the game with Rob and last the whole time!!! Not only was it late and Rob forgot to feed him but he had to stand the whole time. He loved it, Funcle was with them and B cheered and chanted the whole game. He could not believe that Bevo was a real live thing! It was adorable. Caleb and I stayed out at the Tailgate, he played with all the babies, shared toys and ate all the food at the Tailgate. It was great to see Jons again and the boys loved it!! I do have to say that it was Rob's moment of the week for sure. He loved being in there with his little guy.

There was a Library trip, multiple park trips and tons of other outings this week for the boys. Mrs. Lauren had them everywhere, they loved it!

We had our first showings this week....very exciting.....3 to be exact. I was hoping for more but am def not complaining with 3. No feedback so far on how they went, we are just hoping for more. Phoenix plans are set to go. Rob will be starting mid October, my job will be done here mid October as well so me and the boys will be on our own. Hopefully not for too long without Rob. If all goes according to MY plans we will be packed and out in no time. Things are pretty busy between now and then as well. Rob has been work events every weekend almost, he and I are going to head to Phoenix the weekend of the 24th to look for houses, the following weekend I am in Miami for a girlfriends wedding and we both wrap things up at our respective jobs and Phoenix is on!

As for the boys and the interesting part of this blog. They are doing great. They had a special dinner out with Mrs. Lauren and her family this week while Rob and I got a date night. We are so spoiled by her. Caleb is talking more than ever and has turned into a little love bug this week. He will repeat anything he hears to the best of his ability and will crawl into your lap, lay his head on your shoulder and just give snuggles. These last anywhere from half a second to a full 30seconds. I love these soo much. B is becoming more and more self sufficient. He can put on all his clothes, take them all off, feed dogs, open car doors, do his carseat belt (even the one that non of the grandparents can figure out), he goes potty by himself, scrubs and rinses himself in the bath, helps set the table, etc. It is really impressive stuff. He is always eager to be a helper and try new things. Right now Rob is getting one of Caleb's snuggles and B is building with Legos. The dogs are passed out (probably sick from eating all my flowers again) and we are having a great relaxing Sunday night.

There were so many amazing things that happened this week...where to start?

1. B has been revering to his clothes as "inside in" rather than "inside out"

2. We lost power for 6 hours or so on Tuesday and B went around to all the light switches, tried them all and then announced that all the lights were out of batteries.

3. The best this week was shared by Lauren. B went to the potty by himself and when he came out she asked if he had closed the lid "yep" and did you wipe the seat? "yep, and my leg". Classic!

Big Things with Big Boys

Howdy all...what a packed weekend! The boys didn't stop all weekend, we had birthday parties, pool time fun, lake day with Funcle, and neighbors to play with in between.

Caleb is using a new word a day, it is great to get to hear what he is thinking more and more. He has also learned to nod his head rather than say yes! Adorable, all he does is wait for you to ask him a question so he can nod or shake your way. Then he cracks up at his new communication skills. He has also mastered the art of running (his brothers constant chasing helped develop this skill) and now he is cruising. As I type he has his little popcorn popper toy that he is dragging behind him while doing laps of the kitchen. Braydon is right behind him on his hip pity hop ball and also cracking up.

Braydon has started confusing himself with Caleb in all pictures. Every time there is a pic of Caleb Braydon will say "Look mom that is me!" They are both expert dog handlers as well. Braydon will do a blind catch of Devo anytime the front door opens. Hold her around the neck and say "Stay Devo, Stay Devo you dirty dawg" Caleb knows to put any food that wants to be salvaged into the air so it is not an uncommon sight to see one or two boys with crackers or other snack help up as far in the air as their little arms can reach while walking from the kitchen to the living room. They both are excellent at steadying themselves... when dogs are spotted running their way they either find something to climb on or widen their stance, stick their bottoms out and put their arms in front of them to brace the impact that is coming! All very impressive if you ask me.

We had a blast at Lake Austin this weekend. Jonny and his roommate Russel were nice enough to take us on the boat to the lake. It was the boys first time on the water and they loved it (as you can all see by the pictures). It was a so fun!!! Thank you Jonny and Russ!!!

After the lake we rushed back to a dinner/kid party for one of our friends birthdays, the food was amazing and we had a blast then it was back to the house for what should have been bedtime but turned out to be an hour or two with the neighbor kids. A late 9:30 bedtime later the evening ended and it was lights out for me as well. Next morning started before it felt like I had even rested. Rob was on the golf course by 7 and then the boys and I had a quick trip to the store then babies came over with moms for Mimosas and play time. That went to nap time and then we were loaded up in the car for POOL PARTY! More sun time fun for the Doane's. Caleb is a Mocha baby, clearly taking after his dad, it doesn't seem to matter how much sunscreen we put on him he gets darker and darker. Braydon loves the water and had so much fun floating around with his dad all day. Dont, think the day ended there. We had a big neighborhood party and the kids were adorable, running around in the dark outside with flashlights and glow necklaces! Caleb totally kept up with the big kids too. It was really neat to see. Braydon was a great big brother, he kept turning around to make sure his bro was still in the mix and doing ok! So sweet!

Today seemed to be a bit more low-key. We went to Chuck-e-Cheese for a b-day party!!! The kids played games and each got to use their own coins and do everything!! It was great. Tonight is fam time and lots of cuddles!

We maxed out Labor Day weekend and Loved every minute!! Wish you were all here to share it with us. Miss you guys!!

Check out the link to the snapfish pics below

MOMENT OF THE WEEK: I had a craving for coco-crispies and we all got a bowl one morning. Braydon said "mmmm, mom I really like this black bean cereal"

MOMENT OF THE WEEK: We were on the front part of the boat and the wind was really strong, Caleb loved putting his face in the wind closing his eyes and then would occasionally stick his tongue out to get a taste. We were on the boat for 30min when Caleb's head started swaying, he was fast asleep in his Funcle's arms!! Adorable!!!

album 09\06\2010 (70 photos), by maureen jenkins

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

Hello

Hey guys, sorry we are a day late on getting the blog out.

The Doane clan is great everyone is growing, recovering (Devo) and getting ready for the new fate that awaits us in Phoenix.

They boys are just amazing! It seems like they are on growth steroids or something, every morning when I go in their room I am amazed at what changes seem to have taken place overnight. Caleb is getting skinny!! His face is thinning out so much and his gut (though still there) is really shrinking. Braydon is growing out of shoes like it is going out of style and his 3T clothing is starting to be look "fitted". SOMEBODY STOP THIS!!! I love it and I hate it all at the same time. They are amazing and their little personalities are something else, I love getting to know them as little people but I want babies to snuggle and smooch on!! Anyone out there feel sorry for me?? If not I am doing a good enough job of feeling sorry for myself so no worries.

Caleb's new cute things: He puts his little finger up to his lips and says Shhh!! He also pats on his leg when he calls the dogs. Pat, pat "dawggs, dawwggss" it is so cute. He also has started lashing out at his brother, for the past few months when B will take something from him Caleb has just started screaming but as of this week he throws his arm back and wails on his brother, landing the blow anywhere from top of head to barley making contact on his back. This move is immediately followed by timeout but I can assure you....he doesn't care. Timeout is like (a second home) I mean... a place to sit to watch the action where his brother can not touch him, he kinda loves it there. So this poses the question....."Who is winning this battle?"

Braydon is 90% loving brother 10% devil reincarnate. You can find these two playing together for hours without problems and then out of nowhere we see the 10%. Just yesterday Braydon and Caleb were in the driveway and B had Caleb by the back of the shirt and would not let go. He got Caleb turning while he was holding on, Caleb managed to stay on his feet for longer than B had hoped so he walked up and shoved him. That was bad but the worst was that he pushed him over a scooter and Caleb fell nose first onto the cement. He now has a big cut on his nose and a raspberry on his forehead. Nice work 10%!. The 90% Braydon is an angel and I cant get enough of him. He says please and thank you, throws "mom" onto the end of every statement which is adorable. "I have to go potty, mom" "mom, can you get me some juice mom?" "Can I take my car out of my pocket now mom?" "Awww mom"....ok, it doesn't sound as cute in writing but it melts me.

I would love to report that Baby 3 was measuring in the 200th percentile but unfortunately that is just how my stomach is measuring. The info online is telling me that this week the baby is the size of a fig.....some fig.....from the outside it looks a lot more like a large grapefruit.

I know at the top of every ones list of questions is "How is Devo" Have no fear, she is great and only a scar and a week of peace for Rob and I to prove she ever had a break from driving me nuts.

Phoenix, here we come!! Rob got an amazing offer from the position in Phoenix and we are meeting with Realtors this week to get this house listed and moving. Keep your finger crossed the house goes fast! When the house goes, we go!!!

We miss you all and love you guys!!

August (69 photos), by maureen jenkins

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

Howdy and sorry for the Belated Blog

Hey guys. Sorry I am a few day behind on the blog, this weekend kicked my rear and I was exhausted Sunday night so just never got around to doing it.
We had a great week and an even better weekend. Someone celebrated an early birthday with a party full of friends and water fun, the boys went to the snack farm this week, Devo is more than on the mend, and the fam is preparing for a fun weekend of Grammie and Grampie being in town.
So the boys week was full of playdates and fun. There were two "bests" 1. They got to go to the Snake and Exotic Animal Farm as well as get memberships to our local library. The snake farm was hot but from what I hear well worth it. They got to pet goats, zebras, chase chickens and hold snakes!
The library was next, the boys got their own membership cards and they had their first lessons on public library behavior. I would say they did quite well and I am becoming quite the expert on the dewey decimal system. They were great about staying quite and they found plenty of books they liked, we now have to work on taking one book out at a time and not pulling 5 off the shelve at once and leaving them on the floor (Zonie!). For 20minutes I restocked books and then we got to check out, the boys each took home 3 books. To my shock they were allowed 50 books!! can you believe that? I would never trust myself with more than 10 at a time, who knows where 50 would end up!
The boys and Lauren have already been back for multiple visits. This last visit the checked out a few books on tape and that was a HIT. They have a CD player in their room they can listen to the book and turn the page at the ding (Great call Lauren).
The week flew by and we were at Friday night preparing for the Sat party before we knew it. Now, I know everyone of you is asking "Why did you have the party a month before his birthday?" Good question..... There were two reasons and neither of which ended up being a factor. First we were not sure if Rob would still be in SA in Sept and we didnt want to take our chances. Second was that we had an invite to do a joint party with a neighbor that ended up not panning out at the last minute. Sooo, instead Braydon just thinks he is Three when he really has a month to go :) .
The party was a blast we had about 30 people over, pizza and juice boxes. Our neighbors were generous enough to let us use their inflatable water slide, it was a total hit! We put up another pool in the back with a slide for the kids, everyone had a blast. Bradyon was so distracted by the cake that he could not enjoy the second half of the party until cake was cut and the toys on top were officially his! (I will upload all the photos to Snapfish so yall can check them out shortly.)
Saturday morning before the party and after a rush of yard work we ran down to Lowes where the boys (that is right...both the boys...Caleb is big enough now) got to build their very own bug boxes!! The boxes got put to use as soon as we got home, two lady bugs were caught and lost their lives almost instantly to the violent shaking of little boys.
On another note, Devo is well and back to jumping fences and eating plants. "Welcome back little girl"
As for this coming weekend, the boys are building with excitement. Grammie and Grampie, Charlie and Max are going to be staying with them and they are soo excited! Rob and I will be in California for a friends wedding and are so lucky to get to go. Thanks Doanes!!

Don't have much else to "story tell" on but here are a few updates, Braydon has taught Caleb how to climb on the bed and all other furniture. Caleb is running in a less goofy way with both knees bending now. Braydon has really taken to teaching his brother things like: What it is like to be locked in a dog cage, how it feels to be bonked on the head with a variety of objects, and my favorite lesson came as the moment of the week. How long can a little boy of 16months be stood on without crying....
Moment of the week: Mom and Dad are in the kitchen cleaning up after dinner we cant see Caleb in the family room but Braydon is playing nicely on the far side of the coffee table with is trains, rolling them all around and having a ball. Then we hear a faint...."ughhh,....ughhh,.....ughhh". Rob and look around, it sounds like Caleb but we cant see him. "ughhh" then Robbie standing behind the sink looking at the cute train playing Braydon says "Braydon, are you standing on your brother?" Dead silence "Braydon!, are you standing on your brother?!!" "Yeah, but it is ok, he likes it, Dad." :) Too funny!

We had a great relaxing but productive weekend! The trend of the weekend was diapers/ undies, I don't think those two had real clothes on for more than 2hours this whole weekend. A sign of good times if you ask me. Other than the weekend apparel, Devo got spayed, kids scored at a garage sale and house work got completed, we did have one small adventure......the boys got locked in the house by themselves for about 20min....all is well now :)

Ok, so the week was busy and the boys did some great art with Mrs. Lauren and took lots of field trips to various places. Rob and I worked but it was a great week all together, Rob didn't travel this week so we had 5 straight nights of family dinners and breakfasts.

When the weekend came around we didn't mean for it to be such a lazy diaper wearing thing it just happened. We started each day with Breakfast upstairs and cartoons (always a treat), the two hours the boys were actually dressed was for a quick trip to Lowe's and a garage sale. We got new door knobs (we are down to one key and since the locks are so old the new ones we have had made do not work) and paint. The garage sale was meant to be a "drive by" but when the perfect set of little boy golf clubs was spotted Rob was out of the car and in negotiation mode. We came home with a Dancing Elmo doll and of course the clubs and bag. B's first golf game is on the horizon. By the way, and all joking aside, he is REALLY good, he is a lefty (playing with right handed clubs) but he is REALLY good. After the outing the boys came home for a nap and got back down to their skibbies almost immediately. Rob changed all the door fixtures while I power washed the front and back patio areas as well as the deck.
Sunday was Diaper Dance party, haircuts for both the boys, Pool party with a neighbor at our house and more work for mom and dad.
As for the adventure......Rob was golfing in the morning and I went out to stain the deck while it was still cool, the boys were in the living room finishing their morning cartoons and playing (I was checking on them every 5 minutes or so). .... Well I went to check on them at one point and the door was locked (remember these door knobs and locks are less than 24hrs old so a new toy in the eyes of some). B had come to the door and locked the deadbolt as well as the door knob. I start talking to him through the door and asking him to let me in.. he could get the deadbolt no prob but for some reason he did not understand what I need him to do to the door handle. We are working on this together through the door for about 10 min when I go to check the front door and windows....no luck. I go back to the back door and now the boys are playing Hokie Pokie with Elmo and are choosing not to return to the task at hand....I am outside a nervous wreck and they are having a Hokie Pokie party. My phone is inside with Everything!! of value...BOYS. I run to a neighbors to use a cell phone, no luck reaching Rob. When I get home.. it occurs to me that the front door only had a deadbolt and B seems to have no problem with those...so after 5min of knocking, a few rings of the door bell and a final threat of an early nap Braydon leaves the dance party to come and open the door. First try...no problems and with a look of "can I get back to Elmo now mom" I was in, the neighbors went home and Rob called in a panic from the course to see if he needed to run home.
Nice Sundday.
On a much cheerier note and a string of hope for us. Our neighbor listed her house last Sat and within a week had three offers, 2 cash. Keep your fingers crossed.
Devo is not quite on the fast track to recovery and it is to be given first attention tomorrow AM when the vet opens. She got spayed on Fri morning and came home Fri night she has since stopped eating and is staining our carpets at every opportunity. Their are babygates up in this house in such a way you would think we were babysitting for sextuplets! Lets all wish her and her bowles a QUICK recovery.
New baby is doing great, Rob and I went to the Dr. last Friday and we got to see the new peanut on the screen and see the heart beat. Still no sign of girl or boy but it was really great to see it was doing so well!
Miss you all and cant wait to see everyone.


Moment of the week: Devo laying down acting sooo pitiful that Braydon brought a bowl of rice and eggs to her and hand fed her for about 10minutes.

My Girls

So the last number of blogs have been about the boys, how cute they are and how they are developing. Tonight we will get a glimpse of that but with MY GIRLS in the story too. It is easy to forget that we have two great little girl puppies at home that are just a part of the family makeup as the two trouble makers I just put to bed. The boys and girls have games that go on throughout the day from morning wake up to bedtime bath.
I also do have a couple really cute Boy stories to share with you from this week and then last but not least I am going to try and start a "Moment of the week" the idea will be that the moment is one of those moments that has caught me during the week with a strong emotion, sad, hilarious (this week), crazy or just the boys being boys.

Ok, so the girls... when we go upstairs to get the boys ready in the morning we are always joined by Devo and on the rare occasion that Margie is not searching the downstairs tile for a fallen food kernel she will join us as well. The door opens I start singing and Devo does a crazy rush, she runs in checks each bed for the right occupant and then in a full sprint will circle the center of their bedroom floor two or three times before leaping onto B's bed or darting out the join Marge on the food search. "Good morning boys"...love the girls.

During the day there seams to be a constant dog interest. Caleb feels the only way to get his hands clean is to stick them in Devos face and let her lick them, he has yet to understand why it works only some of the time (like when he has food on them but then not so good when it is dirt).
Braydon finds things to throw for Margie or he will start a game of chase that Margie loves for one lap and Devo sees through for the next 20 or 30 laps. They laugh hysterically the whole time. Caleb has a favorite past time of going outside with the dogs (all by himself) sitting in a patio chair and watching the girls run, fight and chase birds! He will be out there for hours!
Zonie also likes to grab Devo by the collar and drag her around..he doesn't get too far before she pulls away but they are a cute pair.
We have started family walks in the evenings and the boys both take turns walking Devo. Braydon always starts because she has the most energy at the beginning and he knows how to pull on the leash and plant his feet so he doesn't get pulled down. Zonie is also getting quite the knack for it, the only problem is that every once in a while he will just let go of the leash and no one recognizes it until Devo is off on her own somewhere.

"Good night boys"... when the boys are in the bathtub Devo loves to come in. They line their toys up on the side of the tub and she comes by to lick the water off of them and one by one knocks them all back in to the boys. They think this is the greatest!! Braydon will be in fits of giggles from the first one she knocks back and Caleb (loving to do whatever his brother does) will stock the side of the tub for round two of Devo knocking them in.

Margie is my "bench warmer" she never really starts a game and she doesn't really ever see a game through to the end but when she is put in to play she is the best and the kids love the game that much more because she is now participating. When it comes to a dog (Devo is great don't get me wrong) but Margie is irreplaceable!

They are great dogs and though I am often overwhelmed with Devo's PUPPYNESS but we are really lucky that the boys have such good friends.

Now for the boys. Caleb has had a BIG week he has started running! It is adorable. His little knees dont bend at the same pace, actually one leg is running while the other is walking but he is certainly covering more ground and loves to put the new skill into action when he sees you coming at him with a diaper in hand. He has also added a few new words to his vocab..."All done" and "your welcome". My favorite thing to report on him is that he is my laundry helper. He loves to push the buttons I show him after I have loaded the clothes and when the dryer is done he will stand in front of the open dryer with me behind him and take out each article of clothing one by one. He takes it out and holds it over his head until I grab it and then he get another one. It is the perfect height for him and in all reality taking the clothes out of the dryer is half the job...So thanks again Zonie!

Braydon fell back in love with a bunch of old toys this week. There were a handful of wooden trains, cars and other random objects that had totally lost their appeal until he and I glued Googlie eyes on them all. That was our craft project one night and now he has put his other toys aside and is playing with all the new faces. (who knew what eyes and a sharpie smile could do to a castaway). They went to the Children's Museum this week with Lauren and had a blast and I am THRILLED to report that Dino Fish is dead....no one took it too hard.

"Moment of the week" Both boys standing around the coffee table playing when Braydon stops playing....looks at Caleb and says "Zonie are you pooping again?" I couldnt stop laughing!!

Boys Boys and Boys

I love my boys! They are soo much fun. We did a ton of playing this week a ton of art projects and we had lots of "special" stuff. Oh, and the fish-dino thing is still alive.

Lauren and the boys made bug boxes this week, they were adorable. Kleenex boxes they painted, put googly eyes on it, pipe cleaners for legs and antennas. B keeps snacks in his bug box and Zonie is keeping various toys in there. They are soo cute and the boys are soo proud of them.

Jonny was in town on Wed and B and C are still talking about the visit! They played trains for 3hrs. They ate lots of sweeties :) and best of all they made a diorama or as Braydon calls it his Habitat. He was wanting to make a house for his Dinosaurs so Jonny and he tackled it. They took a shoe box, glued blue tissue paper on the back for the sky, a yellow pom-pom for the sun, pipe cleaner trees, clay rocks, on the bottom with a pond. It is nice! Braydon has been playing with it non-stop it is like his doll house for the dinos. I will walk by and he has the dinos in the pond "taking a bath" then I will walk by again and they will all be on top of the box jumping down into the grass. It is great. He will sit for an hour without doing anything but making voices for each of them and playing all sorts of games.

The rest of the week they had play dates, park, clay making, play pools outside, we made a cake. We had a blast. The boys and Dad played trains upstairs after we all made a fort, the dogs came in and acted as two KingKongs with the tracks and bridges.... it kept us busy.

Caleb has a new trend, every time we put his shoes on he take one shoe off and walks around as seen in the pic. Braydon is continuing to say the funniest things ever! Ex. We were driving and Rob said "I like that hood (he was talking about the hood of a diesel truck) and Bryadon says "no, I like Robin Hood better". I love it!!

Hope everyone is doing great out there and miss you all.

*the dino-fish thing is over an inch long and crazy looking

A week with Mom and Dad

Hey Fam and Friends,

Hope yall are doing great! We had a fabulous week!! Robbie and/or I were home with the boys all week and we had a blast! Our little Dinosaurs is still alive so I guess that is something to report on and finally this weekend was busy!

So Rob and I tag teamed the week with the boys and I think we all enjoyed it more than anyone thought. When Dad was home with the boys they did building stuff. Learned to use a bunch of different tools and did real guy things! When I was around we played games, made cookies and read a ton of books. The boys are so great, they are just growing soooo fast. Caleb has added a few new phrases to his vocabulary he now says "all gone", "uh-oh" and "more please". he is also walking backwards now... it is adorable. When the dogs want something in his hands he will just start backing up or sometimes (since it is a newly discovered talent) he will just walk down the hall or around the room backwards. Bryadon is really showing his "big boys style" he is talking soo much more to strangers/ mom and dads friends. He is really confident, he doesn't want to play with baby toys anymore he wants to play with things that he can pretend with (action figures, dinosaurs, farm animals etc). It was sooo cool to have so much one on one time with them. They are both amazing and they are completely their own people!

Our family Dino. I dont know all the details on this but what I can tell you is that Lauren and the kids were learning about Dinos and she found these eggs that are from a species that somehow date back to the Jurassic period. They are a water fishy- thingy and the eggs can stay dormant for YEARS and with the perfect mixture of water, light and food they hatch. Soooooo we have the perfect mixture in a bowl in our kitchen with what is now a .5inch long thing swimming in it. It is really crazy looking, apparently it can live for a few months and will get upwards of 2inches long (there is a blurry pic in Snapfish). The kids love it! It was a great find by Lauren!!

This weekend...housework, yard work, Adam was in town, Lots of dress-up and play with the boys, party in the backyard with tons of friends and lots of Margaritas (thanks to Robs new Margarita Machine, who wants one?..?), Big family news :) , we all went to see Toy Story 3, playdate at McDonalds...does it get much better than this?

We miss you all and one more heads up that we will be celebrating B's birthday early (targeting August 14th as the date) you are all welcome!

July (30 photos), by maureen jenkins

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

Busy Weekend

Hey fam and friends. We had a busy busy weekend. We missed daddy all week but we didnt let that slow us down! The boys and I hit the town running and only came home for naps and recharge.

Saturday morning we got up early ate a great big breakfast and met Megan at the bookstore to play and listen to story time. The stories were all Spot the dog stories. Braydon was the most outspoken kid there! Every time they would get to a part where Spot was hiding the book would ask "Where is spot do you think he is in here (behind some flap on the page)?" Braydon would say "I dont know lets check it out" every time, it was sooo cute. Then the best was that Spot the dog showed up too!! we couldnt believe our luck! we thought we were just getting a story, instead we got three stories read to us and we got to meet SPOT!

After the bookstore we went to lunch and the kids ate everything. we left lunch, had some time to kill so we went and each of the boys got to pick out a toy. They both got little plastic action figures. Braydon got horses and Caleb got dinosaures. We clocked out of the store just in time to make it to another place that was having Dora the Explorer and Alvin and the Chipmunks perform. The boys loved the singing and dancing but Braydon was freaked out by the characters "no mama, I dont want any pictures, they are way toooo big and I am just a little scared" So cute. Caleb didnt mind so he got pics with them all.

We made it back in time for a late nap and then outside to play with our friends and eat some Chx, potatoes and green beans...the boys love green beans :)

Sunday wasn't much slower. We ate breakfast with cartoons on then we loaded up and went to the Grocery store. The boys were big helpers, they loaded to cart, picked out the fruit we needed and unloaded everything from the cart onto the conveyor belt. When we got home we had an early nap and it was back to work. The boys helped me in the yard. I mowed, Braydon sprayed the patio furniture with water and Caleb stood on the picnic table watching everyone.
Cleaned up, played with our new action figures, cooked on their grill in the playroom, read almost every book on the bookshelf and went to bed...now we get to go get Daddy in a few hours! Yeah!
Miss you all

Thank you

Family and Friends, hope you guys had a great Fourth, we look forward to hearing what everyone did and send us pics! We have been doing great we had a big Fourth of July weekend,Rob and I are doing whatever we can to spend time with the kiddos now that we are back in town.

The Fourth was spent at our neighbors pool and it was a blast. The boys did great in the water. They both spent most of the day jumping in from the side into the pool. Braydon and Dad also spent a lot of time shooting each other with water guns. Caleb is officially tan! they have been spending days at the pool and in the sun and he is my little Mocha baby. Braydon has sprouted a few more freckles on his nose and looking older everyday.

Rob and I seem to have a never ending list of house projects so that is how the rest of the weekend has been spent. We cleaned the garage (it looks great) and today we are going to be painting the upstairs TV room. Next on the list SCRUB I will be scrubbing this house top to bottom. With Summer in full blast all the neighborhood bugs have sought refuge in our windows, corners and any other cool indoor location they can find.

We also wanted to say thanks to Mamie and GiGi for helping out the whole week we were gone. The kids had a blast and though I am sure yall are exhausted, they are already asking when we are going on our next trip and if you can stay again :) . Thank You guys!!



*I had to put the pic of Caleb on here because this is him at his most happy. He would suck on a pacifier, stay half naked and carry his blanket around all day everyday if we let him. So cute.

Rome (225 photos), by maureen jenkins

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.
Click here to view photos

We are Back in Business!

Hey guys! we are back in business! during our last blog we realized that the device for uploading pictures was broken and we have been out of biz ever since with out blog, but now that we are back in town and thanks to a quick trip to Target by Robbie we are up and running once again. Hope you are all doing great. The Doane clan is thriving here in SA! We have pics of the boys plaing in a few of their new fav garage sale finds and then some of them having treats and fun with Mamie and GiGi last week.

So what can I update you on? Bryadon is in the throws of pretend play! it is really cute, his imagination takes him places that we can only try to keep up with. Right now he is sitting on the floor playing with his barn and barnyard animals speaking both sides of the conversation for all of the animals interactions..."no cow you go in first, (pig) I was already in there and that is not good sharing". ADORABLE! Rob and I love getting to hear the toys play together and see who gets put in time-out and who has to do better finishing their dinner.

Caleb is my little rockstar. He understands everything you tell him and is doing a great job getting around. He no longer has the teeter walk he just walks and had recently started running. He still has no fear is is most often found standing on the little rocking chair backwards and trying to get as much momentum as possible or climbing onto the kitchen chairs table etc.

They are such good friends that they keep each other busy and we get to enjoy watching it all.

On the other side of the fam, Rob and I got in LATE last night from our trip and we had an amazing time. We have chosen no to bore you with all the pics but I will put the link to Snapfish on here so that you can peruse them when you like. The highlights were listening to the Wedding Mass and Homily from Cardinal Shuccca (sp) and of course the Colosseum...not to mention great us time. We went for walks, dinners, drinks, ice cream etc. all by ourselves!
Enjoy the pics and miss you all.

Nicknames

This was a weekend of new nicknames. Braydon is calling Devo "Dev", Robbie is calling Braydon "Cyclopes" and Caleb is still "Zonie Donie Onie"!

Miss you all. Braydon is having so much fun with Devo they chase all over the house together and Braydon can rarely catch his breath! he laughs so hard! he has starting calling her Dev which is so cute. When the front door opens he wraps his arms around her neck and says "no Dev, dont run away, no Dev!" They are gonna be such good friends.

Bryadon also had a run in with a wall this week. Very literally! this is also where the name Cyclopes came from. Soooo.....Braydon likes to run full blast into your legs and give you a hug around the legs. I was standing in front of the corner/seam of two walls looking out the window, he came running at my legs (i didnt see him) and then I took a step forward, he continued full force into the corner with his forehead. Hit the wall and fell flat on his back! now he has a HUGE bump and bruise dead center of his forehead. Poor guy.

The boys started swim lessons this week!! Well really the lessons are Braydon's but Caleb is getting in the water and getting used to floating etc. They are both doing great. Braydon is getting the idea of kicking and moving his arms. He is still a bit hesitant to get his face under water. We are getting there! Caleb seems to be a natural. He loves the water has no problem getting his ears under or hair wet. He floats with ease and doesn't want to get out!

Caleb has taken a few tumbles this week as well. Most due to the adorable relationship between his brother and he. They play so well and then out of no where Caleb gets shoved off a bed or into a wall by his older brother. Bryadon loves trying to help him do things to, unfortunately that usually back fires. Ex 1: help walking, he holds his hand and then gets frustrated that Caleb cant walk as fast as he wants him to so he gets pulling to hard and down Caleb goes. or Ex 2: Braydon wants Caleb to go somewhere with him and Caleb is not listening Braydon gets behind Calebs back, puts his arms under his armpits and tries to pick him up, they generally get a few steps (just long enough for Caleb to let his guard down) and then drop...Braydon cant hold him any longer. Like I have said for the last two weeks to everyone on the phone, if they are not laughing together they are making each other cry.

They have been busy with Mrs. Lauren, making great art and being good boys when they run errands. They were so good last week Mrs. Lauren bought them a movie. Madagascar 2. Braydon calls it the "Move it Move it Movie". You are all invited for a viewing!

Hope I get the videos uploaded for yall. We miss you guys.
Mo

Original Video - More videos at TinyPic

Busy Week

Can you all believe the week is over? This week flew by for us and we are already fast approaching Monday. The boys were busy with field trips, learning and sharing.

The boys field trips made a real impact this week and it is all we can talk about. First the Zoo and then to Bounce world. Braydon had a full agenda at the zoo directing what animals they were going to see first, second and so on.

Caleb has been learning words like crazy, he is repeating everything we say and is really starting to communicate! His walking is very impressive. Walking is now his first choice in getting around and his balance is getting better every day.

Bradyon seems to be more interested in Caleb when he is walking around. He is doing a great job helping Caleb with things. He gives him bites of food, he brings him toys, he holds his hand when Caleb tries walking. All very cute! They are Good Friends.

Just for definition sake Good Friends=helping each other 30% of the time, fighting with each other 50% of the time and living with each other in some semblance of peace 20% of the time.

Miss you guys!

Camping

Hello Family, Happy Mothers day to you all!!

We miss you all. The boys took me camping for Mother's day, WHAT A TREAT!! We had a great time. Lots of excitement, Braydon went fishing with Dad, we went paddle boating, slept in a tent, had a campfire, roasted marshmallows, the whole shabang!

The pictures are great from the trip, hope yall enjoy!

For Mother's Day the boys got me some jamies and a robe! I took the liberty of wearing them all day, playing in the play room with the boys and doing close to nothing, I know yall are jealous.

Braydon went all week and weekend with no accidents. He even did the whole car ride there and back telling us when he needed to go potty! This will be the last potty training blog cause we are no longer in training, we are TRAINED!

Caleb is adorable and was a great sport camping. His favorite thing to do was climb. we get to the campsite, start unloading the car and turn around and he has climbed on top of the fire pit (not lit) and is sitting there watching all the happenings. Too cute.

This is totally off topic and late in coming but I wanted to say thank all of you for Caleb's Birthday gifts. We are coming up on two months without thank you cards from me and I apologize. He loved everything and we are having a blast playing with all the new goodies!