Just Having Fun

Who needs food storage when you can nibble on these thighs?

Future aviator

I'm gonna love golf, like nobody loves golf, come rain or come shine!
We pass the Webb golf course twice a day.
I couldn't resist taking a picture of these devoted golfers!
I guess they didn't want a raincheck.

Got generators?
How about some water?
This was a part of the mayhem I experienced today while out shopping for hurricane supplies.
I was trying to be incognito with the camera because most stores have rules against picture taking (remember Big Lots, Chani?) Like I'm going to try to copy your floor plan or something. Pa-leeze!

Look who loves our new mattress!

Okay, I have to share a quick story. I went to Linens and Things this morning to get a battery operated fan for myself and Robin. Wellllll, when I got to the "fan section" near the candles and frames there were only two fans left. They weren't what I was looking for (these were only the size of a thermos you'd pack in your lunch box- clearly not enough to keep a family of four cool) , but I was discussing this with another lady. We were talking about what we were both looking for when a third lady came-while talking on her cell phone-and just grabbed one right off the shelf. Now there was only one left, so I stood there in shock for a second, then thought, "is this lady going to grab the last one?" My survival instict kicked in and I GRABBED IT! Well, this lady got possessed by hurricane panic demons and ran off screaming "that's all I came here for, blah blah blah." Seriously, I couldn't understand her because she took off and was shaking her head around and going on and on. I followed her-with my fan in the cart of course-and yelled "there's no need to be HOSTILE!" but she didn't listen and proceeded to yell at the manager and anyone else on her warpath. We were all laughing, including the lady who yanked the first fan off the shelf. She turned out to be really sweet, and we searched the store for any misplaced fans. I actually ended up giving her mine, because it really wouldn't do us any good and I needed two, not one. I had the guilt of keeping it or giving it to Robin, so I called her and she didn't really want that one either. If that other lady would have stayed sane for like one minute, maybe she would have left with a fan. My gosh.

So, we have everything we need to be prepared. I went down a list that Ayden came home with and bought it all (including a compass *heh-heh*. The only thing I forgot: soap. Ayden's back up prescriptions are currently being filled and I went to the nearest fire station and packed 12 bags of sand with the help of a sweet African-American man who felt sorry for me and Ian I guess. He told me how he's worried about flooding, and I told him that because he helped me, he would be blessed. Thank goodness for good people. Pass it on folks. Don't get crazy...get helpful.

Adjustment Complete

I thought some of you might like to know what Ayden's been up to,
so here are some pictures I took at his open house. Above: He has to tear paper into strips. The trick is to make a straight line, not just rip the paper. Try it! If you simply tear it, it curves. You have to use both thumbs and index fingers and slowly work your way down the paper. This builds his finger strength for writing later on.

A test of precision.
Ayden has to scoop the rice in the spoon and place it in the other bowl without spilling.
Miss Vickers said that he was sneaky on the first day of school and hurried and picked up the bowl, dumped the rice in the other bowl and yelled "FINISHED!"
She saw the whole thing and it cracked her up.

Cutting paper into small strips.
Ayden was already a pro with the scissors, so I'm sure he loves this one.

Making bubbles with an egg beater.Ayden's favorite: tools! Every nut and bolt has to be matched to the right size.
Miss Vickers says the boys all LOVE this one. There are more, like pinching wooden clothespins and clamping them around the rim of a small basket. Another is using a hole punch-both of these are very hard for small hands and also build writing strength.

The way Montessori style teaching works: The teacher demonstrates how to do the various activities, then the children are given the freedom to choose which things they want to "play" with. They are allowed to play with anything that has been shown to them, but they can't touch the "toys" that haven't been featured. There are no desks assigned-they can sit on the floor if they choose to-and they can talk to eachother while they "play". The teacher just keeps an eye on them to make sure they're using everything correctly. No lecturing! I think this is the perfect atmosphere for Ayden at this age. He's loving it now that he's adjusted to his new schedule. He has only had two rough mornings, which were last week. This week we have been dropping him off at the curb, and he walks to his class by himself. We're so proud of him! He tells us the funniest things when we pick him up. The latest is, "Mommy, it's not a lunch room. It's a cappateria!" Miss Vickers tells me that he made friends with what she calls the Paco Tan Clan. I haven't fully solved this mystery yet, but I saw Paco's parents today. They are Asian, I know that much. This case is still open. Updates will follow. Ian and I have been having a good ol' time at home after we drop off Ayden. It's alot more quiet, but Ian is a little chatterbox. He waddles around the house and talks baby jibberish non-stop. He naps from 11 to 2:30, then we go pick up "brubba" from school. Did you calculate that? I have 3 1/2 hours of alone time!!!!!!!! So far I've been spending that time reading, watching tv, surfing the internet, and occasionally cleaning-this list is in the order of my preference! So, yes, things are going well. It was difficult for all of us to adjust to our new schedule -I was quite emotional myself-but we're getting the hang of it now.

Syncronicity

Seeing double? Yes you are. We waited until today to give each other our anniversary cards because Josh was waiting for my gift to come in the mail (an infinity symbol on a necklace, because it looks like the number eight-the amount of years we've been married). So, we exchanged cards, and WE GOT THE SAME CARD! Now, in this consumer driven nation, you all know how ridiculously massive our card selection is, so we consider this pretty awesome. Talk about synchronicity! Love ya, babe.

The Bash

Some of the kiddos

The proud parents with the birthday boy

Mark and Brooklyn

I made these cakes, thank you very much. Yes I'm bragging.
I'm not bragging about the ghetto fabulous foil display, however.
I had to improvise a little. I got these ideas from here and here

Ayden wanted a "Reptar" cake, so I did a dinosaur theme.
FYI: Reptar is from a Nickelodeon show called Rugrats.
According to Ayden, all dinosaurs are named Reptar. Aunt Robin with Ay

Daddy and E. Notice that both Ayden and Ian had dino shirts.
I know, I'm a nerd.

Daddy was blocking the big screen when he tried to get this picture.

This was by far the most energetic Chuckie Cheese and crew I've ever seen;)

Phew! The Week Is Through!

Monday:
We FINALLY got to go see Batman and we loved it!!!
Robin and Brent had the boys and surprised us with an anniversary cake and card.
We got back too early and ruined that surprise! Oops.

Wednesday:
Josh and Brent both had a game that we loudly cheered for (especially Robin). I love watching Josh play softball. It brings me back to our high school days when he played for Hammond High! He usually plays short stop, and I have to brag, it's rare that a ball escapes him! Look closely at his shin. OUCH.

The boys ride around on their bikes, play in the dirt,
and climb the bleachers while we watch the game. Oh, and sweat uncontrollably.

We usually have dinner after the game with Robin, Brent & Kota. This particular evening, Robin chose Fleur de Lis, a hole in the wall pizza joint. Delish!
This was our attempt at a family photo. 'nuff said.

Thursday: Josh, Ian & I enjoyed lunch at CPK of Perkins Rowe. YUM!
We had the Mediterranean salad and BLT pizza on wheat. We highly recommend this place. It's a little pricey for lunch, but would be a great place for dinner.

I'd say we celebrated our anniversary and Ayden's b-day quite well. Don't forget that Ayden had school during all of these festivities. He slept very well at night!
Coming soon, a post on Ayden's party.

What a Big Day!

Eight years ago, these two were sealed for time and all eternity.

Precisely four years later this little cutie joined the party.

Time kept passing and he kept growing.

When he was a little older, he got a baby brother from the hospital.

At three years of age, the firstborn son began contemplating life...

Now, at four years of age,
his curiosity will be nourished as he attends his first year of pre-school.
Go get 'em, Ayden!

So, why is this a big day? Because it is jam packed with our eighth anniversary, Ayden's fourth birthday, AND Ayden's first day of school.
Josh, here's to you. My true soul mate. Thank you for being my best friend. Thank you for giving me that cookie when I was three and you were four. Thank you for giving me your love to the maximum capacity. Thank you for supporting our family by doing something that you love, and not just for the Benjamins. Thank you for our two beautiful boys. As you always say, our genes were made to mix! Thank you for our eight wonderful years of marriage, and the ions of hapiness to come. I love you. Happy anniversary!

Now to my little Ay. I can't believe how fast you are growing. My little baby is a little man now. You have brought so much joy, energy, and deeper love to our family. I'm always amazed at how clever you are. I'm honored to be your mother. I love you to the moon! Happy birthday.

The Big Milestone Finally Complete

At seventeen months of age, our little Ian Charles has joined the walking world. He loves walking and walking all day. He walks until he collapses on the floor, crying for us to pick him up wherever he drops. We weren't ever worried, since his big bro. waited until fifteen months to walk. We have late walkers, but they're early talkers! We think that's a pretty even trade. He follows us all over the house, and sometimes gets frustrated because he'll finally catch up to us, then we're trotting off to the other end of the house. I'm sure he'll speed up soon. He has almost mastered walking with shoes. He's still a little clumsy when he's fully dressed, but he's getting there. He can also do pretty impressive squats! I'll say, "stand up, Ian!" and up he goes as fast as his little chub body will allow. Ayden and Dakota have started making him chase them around. They say he's a baby monster. I'm trying to discourage them from calling him that, because I personally know how it feels to be a picked on younger sibling (lots of love, Chani & Travis:). It's a work in progress.

Blog Buildup

We found an awesome park: newly renovated City Park

I bought Ayden some costumes and let him & Tristan
(oh, excuse me, Buzz & Woody) break them in.

Ian likes to climb into this chair and sit at the big boy table!

Ian sleeping. He starts out the evening snugly tucked in.

This is a fountain at Towne Centre. The ball continuously spins around.
If you look close, you can see that Ian soaked his front half.
This in no way prevented me from checking out the sales at the Gap!

What possessed me to think that we could go to the sandy park in August?
I had to go home and bathe the boys before we finished our day out that afternoon.

Ayden + Masking tape= hours and hours of quiet play.
I don't mind the mess at all!
From left: Bad Man, Buzz, and a train suspended in the air.

We had Graham and Emily over for two days last week, just like the old days (I was their nanny one summer when Ayden was Ian's age).
Graham assisted Ayden with the taping.

Meredith, Andrew and Peyton were here over the weekend.
The boys all had fun with their cousin "baby Peyton".

We had a birthday party for Josh's mom the night this sweet snuggling occurred.

I'm slacking with my posts. We went on a great family adventure to Arkansas last weekend and I haven't caught up since. Here's the latest and greatest hodgepodge of pictures. If you want to see a few pictures of Arkansas, look here ( July 31, 2008 post) and here. I didn't think I had my camera on the trip, but it was in my diaper bag the whole time, which I didn't discover until we got home. Oh well. I got some good video footage.

Preparing for Maw- Maw

My Maw-maw is coming to stay with us starting tomorrow. I fixed up our computer room for her (it's our "dump it in that room and put it up later" room). It's starting to look more cozy. I'm very anxious-nervous and excited at the same time- because she's 90 and a little fragile. Don't read that the wrong way. I mean, I'm nervous about slippery rugs, or toys in her way NOT my children clawing at her or biting her ankles:) Ayden has already proven himself to be sweet with her. I'm sure she'll love watching the boys do their thing around the house. Now I must explain the above picture. As long as I can remember, she has always stood at the front door waving goodbye until we were out of sight. I took this picture the other day to savor that sweet memory. We'll see you soon Ms. Nora!