Sunday, December 28, 2014

Fall Fun and Randomness 2

Theo is now riding his Oset with no training wheels. Cory likes to take them to the park so they can do loops, its less stressful than chasing them :)
Papa J brought over a hunk of dry ice to play with.
Brock discovered my old Ipod (a classic now) and he loves to listen with his head phones. It is so cute to listen to him singing to my old music.
Theo's beloved baby Hughey is creepier than ever.
Snuggling Jake, head stands, and parachute fun.

Fall Fun and Randomness 1

Keva planks provide endless indoor fun at our house!
We spent Fall Break at the beach, Cory and I for a couple days and the boys for a week. It was like 80 degrees there - the boys looked like they had been in Hawaii when they got back :)
Halloween - Theo the spooky, goofy skeleton. Whemple's Pumpkin patch is our favorite! The corn maze was incredible - we didn't come close to finishing it.

Friday, December 26, 2014

Jobs, School and Sports

In August the boys started school. Brock is now in second grade and Theo started Kindergarten. We have awesome teachers this year and both boys are doing great and love school (almost as much as they love breaks:)) We have been so lucky to make great new friends through school and, of course, we enjoy having cousin Carlee there too. Here are some pictures from the first day.

Cory started a new job in August as well! I didn't take pictures of his first day:) This is a huge change for our family! He left his company of 11 years to take a Senior Planner position at the University (yes we work on the same campus!). After a lengthy application period, a four hour interview, and an agonizing decision to leave his other job, he is loving his new work! His new work schedule means no commuting and no traveling. This allows him to pick up the boys from school each day and just be around us more. More vacation and same holidays too - bonus! He enjoys his work and the department he is working in as well. Change is hard, but good!

Brock played on a flag football team this Fall with some of his friends from school. I had to talk him into playing (he is always hesitant and slightly skeptical that child), but it turns out he is a serious baller. Get him on the field and he is a maniac. Aggressive (too aggressive for flag football) and intensely competitive, oh and pretty darn good too. He might have inherited this intensity from his family - just saying. It was a blast to watch him and the other kids learn plays and focus on having fun (though they were all tallying every point - its fun to win too). The coaches were friends of ours and they did a great job with the kids. And the kid who didn't want to play at first, is now bothering me about the next season. He loved it! Here is my handsome football player:



Merry Christmas!

It has been too long, but after a pep talk by my family to keep blogging here we are again! My favorite part of Christmas is getting cards from all of our family and friends. It reminds me that over the years we have assembled a diverse team, though we don't see them often, who support and love each other. We love you all and we wish you a happy holiday season and an epic 2015!

So now for a little bit of catch up on the blog. My computer can only handle a small number of pictures for some reason, but I will do my best to reenact the last several months!

Here is a project we lovingly call the little cabin. This house is next door to our other cabin and when it came on the market we impulsively snatched it up! Why...investment, rental potential, more room to host, retire there :) It is a huge project as you can see from the pictures. What you can't see in the pictures is that this home was sinking into the earth. Cory has jacked it up about 10-12 inches, poured over a hundred bags of concrete under it for footings, replaced huge portions of the house that was rotten, and we have tackled some termite damage as well, oh joy! How do we get ourselves into these messes? Well, for some reason we enjoy it - I love working on projects - it tests your patience and your mind. It is so challenging, but so rewarding at the end. We have definitely had our moments of weakness on this house...'we should just tear it down'. But We know in the end we will have a cute little house in the woods to enjoy and no loan. So we keep plugging away. Here is a little taste of it...

The best part of the cabin is the beauty that runs through our back yard, we are hooked on the view:)

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Happy Birthday Theo


My baby just turned 5 at the end of July! Theo you are the best kid - you are hilarious, smart, sweet and fierce. A little about Theo at 5:

- You continue to crack us up - with your silly faces, funny jokes, and general antics.
- You are easy going (most of the time) - you like Kindergarten but I'm convinced you would be content staying home with mommy or mama for the next 18 years. On your second day at Kindergarten you asked me 'when will I be four again?' I responded that you won't ever be four again and you said, 'Ahhhhhh, being four is so fun'. When I asked why you said, 'Because I don't have to go to school'. Well, buddy you have a ways to go with the school thing :)
- You love riding your bike and dirt bike and you ditched the training wheels a few months ago.
- You love your big brother so much, he is your best buddy (and at moments your worst enemy).
- You have the worst sweet tooth ever! And everyone knows it. You just love sugar in any form. But you eat good healthy foods too :)
- You are athletic and strong like your brother, but you loose the will to live on any uphill. We hope you are never lost in the desert :) You can swim laps with the best of them and you have almost mastered a head stand.
- You are sweet, sweet, sweet (maybe it is all the sugar). I just love your hugs, snuggles, and little voice saying I love you.
- You are fierce and persistent - do not mess with a little brother!

We love you so much Theo! I'm so lucky to be your mom!




Summer of the Cabin


Where did the summer go? The boys had 8 weeks for summer break and I think we spent about half of that time at our cabin. You may have guessed this is our most favorite place to be! We also bought the cabin next door to ours which was in need of a major renovation and made some good progress on that. We crammed in an unbelievable amount of fun this summer and here it is in pictures!
Neighborhood doggie, trixie!
Mama and Theo watching the baby herons!

Yay!  Uncle Arthur came to the cabin!

We lived on bass, trout and crawfish this summer, getting our omega 3!

Coffe break in Chester with Eliza!
Crawfish hunting is serious business!

So is crawfish eating!