Sunday Water Play!

This Sunday for our family day we spent most of the day at home getting some chores done around the house.  The boys and I woke up early and went to church to allow Chris some time to sleep in since he didn't get home from work until almost 3 a.m. this morning. After church we enjoyed the beautiful warm sunny weather outside. We turned the hose on (just for a bit since there is a water ban right now in Texas) had fun in the sprinkler. I even got my bathing suit on and ran through and cooled off. We played with water guns, the water table, and Chris and Liam did their Sunday chore of washing the car.

I love being outdoors and so blessed to live in Texas where most of the days are beautiful like today to enjoy the outdoors.

Liam my big guy he looks so grown up

Handsome!

So happy Liam still likes to play with his water table. Brings back memories when he first played with it back when he was just 2 years old.

Liam and I after our fun in the sprinkler. It was a very sunny day as you can see

Liam LOVES to wash the car. He loves cars anyways so to be up close and wash it is lots of fun for him

"Daddy I got to wash the wheels they get dirty"

"Mommy I wash the handle too okay"

"Lots more soap Daddy have to wash it clean!"

Blake was napping during most of our outdoor fun. But this is him after waking up

Blake getting ready to heat outside after his nap. He ran and got his sandals and sat down on the step. He loves anytime he can 
be outside

DIY Bird Feeders

It was a cold, rainy, wet day here in Texas. We don't get too many days like today so it's nice to get some much needed rain but the boys and I prefer blue skies and sunshine over clouds and rain.  We made the most of the day and had fun inside and made our own bird feeders.  We used toilet paper and paper towel rolls, peanut butter, and some bird seed. The boys loved making the bird feeders and eating the peanut butter and even Blake was able to help.

Liam & Chris Front Page NEWS!

 Chris and Liam were on the front page of the newspaper today! They posed for a photo illustration for a story about Child Abuse Prevention. Liam did a great job and took direction well from the photographer. I was very proud of them both they did a great job! 

I have to admit though when I found out what the story was going to be about it made me sad. Especially looking at this picture which is suppose simulate child abuse with Chris holding a belt. So sad to think that children all over this country are abused every day. April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. It's so important to be aware and to help protect our children and to take action if you witness any kind of child abuse. Children are helpless in most cases and need someone to step up and speak up for them. So glad that Liam was able to help promote awareness and support children who are abused in this country.

Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah!

Tonight was Liam's spring concert at his preschool. The theme was Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah! the kids sang lots of fun and joyful songs to celebrate springtime.  It was for ages 3, 4 and 5.

The first song  Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah! was sung by all the kids. Then the 3 years olds sang then Liam's preschool class sang, then the kindergarteners. Liam did such a great job! He was front row center and sang loud and proud and did all the fun hand movements. I'm always so emotional watching him during these concerts. I'm amazed to see how much he's growing up. It's lots of fun to watch the kids sing. They all did a wonderful job!

The songs Liam's class sang were:

Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah!
You Are My Sunshine

God Is Like

Hear Gods World

Happy All The Time
This Little Light Of Mine

The last song the kids sang together was this This Little Light on Mine. So adorable! After the staff had refreshments for the parents and children and Liam played on the playground with his friends for a bit then we called it a night. 

  

Blake's 18 Month Check Up

Today was Blake's 18 month check up at the doctor. He did excellent! He's a healthy, growing boy. He's been on his inhaler twice a day and it seems to be helping with the congestion and cough that he has. The doctor was so impressed with Blake's speech and vocal ability. His new favorite words today were purple and bicycle he said them in front of the doctor and she couldn't believe it. He had one shot today which of course was not fun but he did much better this time. I'm so blessed to have such a healthy little guy. Can't believe he's 18 months already.

Weight

24 lbs. 13 oz   35%

Length

32.5 in.      56%

Head Circ.

18.5 in.   27%

Blake's Last Music Class

So sad Blake's last music class was today. He's enjoyed it so much and has made so many adorable new friends we are so sorry to see it come to an end. We hope to start up again in fall. Ms. Brooke is such a fun teacher and Blake just adored her. Tuesdays have been busy for the boys. Since January both Liam & Blake have had lots of extra curricular activities on Tuesdays which have kept us very busy.

Liam starts off the day with preschool from 9 a.m  to 1 p.m. then Blake has music class from 10 a.m to 11 a.m. then Liam goes to his Spanish class from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. We are so blessed to have my friend Ms. Barbara who is a certified Spanish teacher teach Liam Spanish. Since he started in January he can already count to 20, can say colors, family names, name body parts and greetings. So proud of Liam. I knew he would catch on quickly since he has such a great memory. It's been lots of fun!

Liam will be finishing preschool soon for the summer. This summer he will continue with Spanish, have swimming lessons once a week, and go to vacation bible school at church this summer. Blake will take it easy this summer and then in the fall we hope to sign him up for music again and a Stretch N' Grow class at the gym.  Can't wait!

Blake 18 Months Old Today!

I can't believe my silly, crazy, loving, sunshine boy is now 18 months old. It still amazes me how fast time does go by. Everyone warns you about it but I really feel with Blake (baby #2) time really does slip away fast. It seems like it was only yesterday I was breastfeeding and dealing with a colic baby (ugh!) He is definitely  his own independent little man already. He's grown so much in the past few weeks that it's hard to believe he was ever that little, tiny baby who was miserable with colic.

Blake is a ray of sunshine in our life. I know God brought him into our family to make us laugh and bring a smile and joy to our life.  He is such a happy boy always looking for ways to laugh and will laugh at the strangest things you would not even think would be funny but to him it's hilarious and I along with everyone he meets loves that about Blake.

He loves his big brother so much. He cries when Liam gets hurt or is sad. He will cry after I drop Liam off at school. He can't say Liam so he refers to him as "Bro Bro" It's so cute to hear him call for Liam and if you ask where Liam is he will talk and point and run over to him. He thinks Liam is the funniest person around. Blake laughs at Liam when he does things he's not suppose to like run around the house, jumping off the stairs and sofa. Blake will also tease Liam when he's in timeout and tries to entertain him which gets on Mommy's nerves at times.

Blake loves to talk. He will speak to whomever will listen or just to himself. I'm amazed at how expressive he is and he will run up to you and talk and point and grab your hand to show you what he wants to show you. It's so sweet!

He says lots of words now. He can say and point to his body parts; head, nose, mouth, eyes, tummy, ears,  hands, and toes. He just started to learn to say colors; blue, green, purple red, yellow, orange, pink. And he loves to make animal sounds; cow, horse, pink, duck, sheep, dog, cat, lion, and bear.

Here are some of his other favorite words:

Mama
Dadda
Bro Bro
Juice
Cup
Car
Up
Oh Oh
Yes
No
Boo Boo
Dog
Scamper
Cat
Cheese

He can repeat just about any word you say to him back. He does a really good job at listening to sounds and can repeat the sounds back to you.  I'm so proud of him!

Blake loves to play outside and go for walks or rides in his blue car. Loves the playground, swings, slide, climbers, sandbox, water play, coloring, painting and recently has really loved playing with the busy bags. His favorite is a pom pom push game and a pipe cleaner pushing game. He also likes to play with the pasta counting and color sorting game. Anything to scoop and pour and shake he loves it!

He's definitely a climber. I've caught him climbing up the stairs, the couch, and the kitchen table and his play table in the playroom. This takes some getting use to since Liam was never a climber. Blake loves to climb up and down on stairs and sidewalks. It's annoying sometimes because he loves to climb and will try to go where he is not suppose to go. He definitely keeps me on my toes.

He's very determined and will not give up easily. If he drops something and has trouble figuring out something he will stay and work through it until he finishes it and never gets frustrated.

He loves  balls and loves to play ball with Scamper. I counted Blake throwing the ball for Scamper 15 times back and forth one day. So sweet! They are such good buddies. Scamper is so patient and sweet with both the boys. I'm so blessed to have such a sweet and loving dog.
I'm amazed by how strong of an arm Blake has. He can throw a good over hand already. He loves to shoot hoops outside and play tee ball and kick a soccer ball. I think he may be the athlete but we'll have to see. He does love to play and watch sports.

Music is his favorite. He loved going to his music class, playing instruments and loves to play the key board we have here at home. He still loves Old McDonald, Itsy Bitsy Spider, and If Your Happy & You Know it. He loves Mickey Mouse since Liam watches Mickey all the time now. Blake also likes Sesame Street and Elmo but he doesn't watch TV much. He will watch a few minutes but then he's off playing with toys.

It's been hard the last few month for poor Blake. He has had so much congestion and an horrible cough that we just didn't know what was going on. The doctor thought maybe allergies. He's been on so much medicine, a nebulizer, and now an inhaler trying to figure out what it could be. We are looking into having him take an allergy test to really find out what it could be. It's sad because his nose is always running, coughing. I'm just hoping we find what it is so he will feel 100%. It's been like this since the entire family got sick on Christmas Day. It just seems like Blake never got over the sickness. It just keeps coming back. Trying to stay positive that we'll find some answers soon. He's such a strong boy and stays happy and smiling through it all.

Blake and Liam's favorite song to dance to now is surprisingly the song "Scream & Shout" by Will.i.am Liam can't get enough of that song and Blake loves to dance along bopping up and down and spinning and marching. It's adorable to watch them both dance around together.

Blake is such a blessing and I am enjoying this time with him and watching his eyes light up when he discovers for the very first time. It brings so much joy to my heart and I get to relive my childhood once again. He brings happiness to me during my sad days which lately have been many. I can't imagine life without hearing his laugh and looking at his beautiful blue eyes and bright smile.

Mommy Love You Boo Boo my sweet sunshine boy!

Family Day at Kids Fest

Today we went to church in the morning than we went to Kids Fest. It's a festival designed just for kids. There are lots of booths set up by different sponsors with fun activities designed just for kids. The boys had a blast playing all the games and winning prizes and listening to the music and eating snow cones. Chris' newspaper had a booth also and I volunteered at the booth for our playgroup. It was a very hot Texas day and Blake got his first little bit of sun on his arms. Not a burn but it was more sunny and hot than I had planned. I hate when that happens. Texas weather is so unpredictable.

Liam's Pre-K Picnic!

Today was Liam's school picnic. His entire school met at the park for a school picnic! We surprised Liam with a special treat a sub from subway, cookies, and chocolate milk. Liam enjoyed playing with his friends after the picnic. It was a great day for a picnic. Lots of sunshine and blue skies. Blake enjoyed eating of course. We can not get him away from food. Liam on the other hand eats like a bird and often picks at his food. Amazing how different the boys are. They keep life interesting though!

Library Fun

Mondays are the days we go to the library as a family for story time and to check out new books. Since Chris is off on Mondays he likes to join us. Liam loves to read and usually will find and check out his own books. Lately his favorites are any on race cars and vans. He loves to read Froggy books and Scooby Doo and Dr. Seuss. Blake loves story time and looking at books.  He likes the touch and feel books with flaps and colorful pictures. He will grab a book and run to me and say "Read Read" and try to jump up on my lap. His favorite book right now is Goodnight Moon of course.

Folk Fest

Today for our Sunday family day we went to Folk Fest. It was our first time going and the weather was hot but we had fun. The festival is put on each year to help celebrate the German heritage and to teach about the history of New Braunfels. There were lots of live demonstrations and people dressed up as the early settlers. The boys learned about what A Black Smith was, made a kite, bird feeder, went to a Tea party and dressed up liked the prairie boys did. Liam milked a goat for the first time and learned about how they made milk. They also had fun bowling like the early settlers. There were several fun activities for the  boys to do and lots to learn about. We hope to go back next year and keep the tradition each year. It reminded me of my childhood and all the places my parents took my brother and I to visit in New England to learn about the history and the way people lived. It's so important that the boys learn about their heritage. Both being part German I think it's great to live celebrates its German culture.

These two have the best time together!
Liam & his sweet girlfriend Elliott!

Blake had fun looking at the goats and watching the Black Smith work. He kept saying "Hot Hot" and pointed to the fire.