Making cookies for Santa

A long family tradition that Tyler is always happy to help with. He wanted to wear the Rudolph nose, he got in the North Pole.

Really??

Jack decided today, of all days he didn't want me to cut his hair. I've been doing it for 5 years. We found a place open (Borick's) and this is the photo he had me take.

North Pole Express

Dec. 11, we were treated to a train ride with Grandma & Frank. They can't call it the "Polar Express", since Disney has the rights. We enjoyed hot cocoa and playing @ the North Pole(aka Saginaw Fair Ground). Jack waiting in line to talk to Santa, but Tyler already saw him on Dec. 3 at the breakfast with Santa.

First Meet

Dec. 10 was Jack's first swim meet. He swam the 50 meter freestyle and backstroke. He now wants me to sign him up for every meet.

First Snowfall

We didn't even get a inch of snow, but it was starting to feel a lot more like Christmas. The boys, always come out just as we finish unloading the wood to get a ride in the back of the pick up.

Camping 2011

After we got everyone all set in their campers or cabin, we enjoyed hot dogs and good conversation. I think Jack loves having his Great Uncle Don to talk too.

Time to go for a boat ride with everyone.. all the men were under the canopy, while the women enjoyed the sunshine. Jack did some tubing and both boys went swimming!

Jack & Tyler really wanted to play on the beach, but who knew that relaxing and playing in the sand could lead to.....

THIS..Swimmer's itch! All night Jack kept saying he itched, so I sprayed calamine on his bug bites. In the morning he was covered with all these spots. Only a 1/3 of people ave an allergic reaction to the parasite.

 I didn't know if it was Chickenpox or swimmer's itch until Grandma Pat had a look at it. It should be gone in 5-7 days. Happy to report after 4 days of oral Benedryl and soaking in Aveeno baths he is doing much better.

Tyler likes Fish! Aunt JoAnn & Uncle Don treated us to a fish fry. They brought Sheaphead fish that they had caught in Florida and Uncle Don fried it up. Tyler wants to go to Florida, so he can go fishing.

All in all it was a great camping trip. Aunt Pat was able to join us and we had a couple of surprise visitors...Aunt Jane and Sidney. So nice that everyone got to play rook and talk around the campfire.

June 2011

We made our annual roadtrip to WI, so nice that my Dad also came to visit. Tyler and Papi enjoying a hotdog at Austin's baseball game. Boy was it HoT!! We only stayed for a few innings.

Just part of the 40+ people that made up our team "We Walk In Memory" for the Susan Komen Race for the Cure.

Ryan & I took a trip to Bermuda for SF. I may only scrapbook a page, I've had better vacations! The highlight was relaxing on the beach. This is a portion of Horseshoe Bay!

Our Shining Light

Tonight, Jack was 1 of 200 kids in the school district that recieved The Peacemaking Award!!! So proud of him and how nice to be nominated. He even did a little fist pump, before they called his name. It was very sweet, when his first grade teacher congratulated him.
 I thought he was going to pull his tooth out while waiting, since it is really lose. That would have been very entertaining and memorable.

GWL Fun

The boys love to go to Great Wolf Lodge in Traverse City. We had promised Tyler, if he was good at preschool, we would take them. Yes, I do bribe my children.

Tyler all snug in his bed after a crazy afternoon at the water park .

Never again will we pay for a suite with bunk beds. They hardly slept in them. Tyler slept with me on the pull-out sofa sleeper. Usually they fall fast alseep!!

Next time we will go South for Spring Break!!

Two wheel pro

On April 1, no foolin here, Jack mastered riding a two wheel and then had to instruct his younger brother.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRrEleSzdvE
So proud of him!! Guess I don't need to sign him up for lose the training wheels camp this summer.

On three

On March 16, we went to pick Jack up from school. He had bit into an apple at lunch and his tooth was parrallel to his gums. So, I told him to pull it out on the count of three, but he had it out by two. He was so excited and said to Grandma, "now I don't have to go to your tooth shop." It was the first tooth he lost on his own.

Tough Guy

The boys all got boxing gloves for Christmas and a punching bag. Tyler thought he needed his shirt off...

Will finally get a visit from the Tooth Fairy

This morning, Jack had four baby teeth pulled. He is 8 and never lost a tooth. Two adult teeth already erupted through on the bottom, so he had two rows of teeth. We joked that he had shark teeth. He did great and next time, I am taking my video camera for when he is coming out of anesthesia. He is so funny.

 He kept saying:

 This is the Life

 Mother

 Father

Am I bleeding?

Where am I?

Can you take the tape of my chin? (the numbing feeling)

 I am the roadrunner, Beep Beep

It was very entertaining to say the least. He is back to his "normal" and enjoyed a vanilla frosty from Wendy's.

Just your average MI snow fall

Snowmageddon 2011,We survived the whopper of a snow storm last week. The drifting was the worse and the boys were happy to get THREE days off from school.  It took Ryan over a hour and a half to plow our driveway. He even had to get the truck to pull out the tractor:(

I will never understand, why the crazy boys stand there and get covered in snow, when Dad is on the tractor.

Tyler looking a little "Frosty"

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year

Ooops..I forgot to update the blog. I guess I have been busy playing with my presents. Here are just a few photos from the last week.

After Christmas Eve service and going out to dinner (a first for Christmas Eve), the boys got to open one gift. Yep, new matching Christmas pj's. It is getting harder to find the same pattern in their sizes.

This year's must have gift for Jack was The Larry Boy Mobile that converted to a plane. Yeah for ebay!! I found a brand new one in the original box that someone had in storage for 11 years.  He LOVED it!

Tyler wanted the Dress-Up Larry (similar to Mr. Potato Head). It was the most played with toy (again found it on ebay) on Christmas Day.

 Jack also got the plug-n-play Pac-man game and even Dad had to get in a few games.

Once we opened the W-I-I (as Jack liked to call it) and figured out the right way to put the disc in, it has been the thing to do. It is quite the workout and we all have fun as a family.

 On New Year's Eve, we had the Connors over and the big boys got into a boxing match. Jace even showed us how to make the mii's.

New Year's Day and the boys are still blowing their party horns! They seem to like their party hats too.

 May God Bless you in 2011 with good Health & Happiness