Tucker turns two!

Happy Birthday Tucker!

We love you so much Tucker. You are so funny and cute and sweet and special!!



Your favorite thing in the world is your brother and and he loves you more than anything! You love all vehicles, especially trains but you also love to draw and color and play art. You are a dancing machine and a climber - happiest outside playing. You absolutely love, love, love puppies and have named your first fish Nemo. You have so many words in your vocabulary and learn new ones every day...and we have found that you are definitely happy about being able to verbally communicate - even if it takes us a few tries to figure out your new words.

We feel so lucky to have you in our life - you are a constant joy, my sweet baby- I mean big boy!

Trunk or Treat 2011

Our 2011 trunk or treat theme: Garden

Ok, we'll admit, it's a bit of a stretch. We created our family theme based on Owen's huge desire to be Transformers Bumblebee.

lady bug, bug catcher, and our little bumblebees

There were only a handful of decorated trunks this year and most were Halloween theme based- but there was one under the sea trunk that went all out and another that did Charlie Brown pumkin/ghost theme. Cute!

As usual, the kids had a blast. Owen loved the cake walk (new this year) and Tucker couldn't help but walk in a circle turning the #s upside down. Tucker's favorite part of the night was definitely the candy- the kid loves it.

Owen's 4th Birthday

Happy Birthday Owen!

I can't believe it has been four years since I first held my baby boy. I can clearly remember how it felt to hold his little fingers and to kiss his sweet forehead on that first blessed day. Now, he's four and he talks, laughs, makes jokes, plays, loves on his brother, tells stories, sings songs and makes up lyrics, he asks questions, and constantly amazes us daily with what he knows and understands about this world we live in. He falls asleep giving me sweet hugs as he whispers, "I love you mama" and every day he helps to make me feel like the luckiest mom in the world.

We love you Owen!!!!

Owen's 4th Birthday Party

Owen has been asking for a birthday party at his house with a Spiderman theme for months. We settled on a Super Hero party so we could incorporate Spiderman and also have capes! Thanks to a few blogs I found - we were able to come up with a fun game plan - we added to it to make it our own and ended up with a Super Hero Boot Camp celebration.

All of the kids, especially Owen, really enjoyed the party (and so did we!!). Check it out!

Super Hero (Qualification) Challenges

The kids demonstrated that they were

“faster than the speed of light”

more powerful than a locomotive

able to leap a building in a single bound

and fly like superman

Super Hero Obstacle Course Training

Practice time... the kids took turns going through an obstacle course:

jumping over a raging river

crawling like Spiderman under balloons

balancing on a bridge over a river of lava

making it through the Bat cave

jumping through a ring of fire

Cape Ceremony

They earned their capes and promised to always protect protect the innocent and fight the bad guys

Hunting the bad guys

Once it was official, the Super Heros had work to do....

Each kid had to hunt down 3 Ninjas to save the town

And then we received a report from headquarters... the leaders of the Ninjas were in the backyard hiding. Time to hunt down and capture the Villains!

Super Hero Orders? Capture and bring the bad guys to jail

Lock them up with toilet paper

And punish the villains with Silly String!

Play time and food/cake

After the activties were over- the super heros enjoyed play time, pizza, cake, and more time on the zip-line!

Happy Birthday Owen!

Tucker's 18 months!

How can it be that eighteen months have passed since my baby arrived? I feel so very blessed and lucky and happy to be celebrating this fun milestone. Happy 1 1/2 years Tucker! We all love you so much.

Tonight, Tucker decided to change up the plan for his monthly photo.


He had a mission.




He did it. Look at that proud grin...

and utter joy as he points at Daddy!

His big brother is proud, too.
Who knew there was so much fun to be had on a tiny windowsill...

We marvel daily and sometimes hourly at how much Tucker understands and how quickly he is developing. Every day he seems to learn a new word and or sound for a word. He still loves to be outside. He's started to push the balance bike around a bit and really enjoys pushing the 3 wheeler around outside. He still likes to go on the back of it with Owen, but he's a bit too big for it to be a comfortable ride now, so that doesn't usually last long.

Tucker wants to do whatever is big brother is doing and he usually wants whatever toy his big brother has, too. He loves to play with his cars, chase balls around the house and yard, frolic in water, pet puppies, read stories and dance and jump and climb. He ;ikes almost every type of fruit but other food is hit or miss most of the time. He loves to be in his stroller, is very gentle and sweet with animals (stuffed and alive), and is absolutely a cuddlier. He always gives us great big kisses and hugs and loving smiles. During meal time, the boys often sit across from each other and practice nodding and saying yes, no, Owen, laughing, and they copy each other making funny sounds/words. Meals are usually followed by some silly game like chase around the house. We love it!

We love you Tucker!

Stats: 20% in height and weight (31 1/4 inches and 22 lbs 8 oz) and 60% in head circumference (19 inches)

Ring Bearer

Owen was a ring bearer at our friends wedding last weekend. It was such an honor to be a part of Christina and Floyd's lovely ceremony. We had a fantastic time and we are quite sure Owen will remember this special day for years to come.

Owen was a bit uncooperative before the wedding, but I'm happy to report that when it was actually time to gather, he pulled through like a champ. He started out walking next to the sweet and very cute flower girl, Elle, but as they proceeded, Owen quickened his pace a bit. He also had a small fall down a step but he stood up without incident (thank goodness!).

He finished his big duty by handing the pillow to the best man, Floyd's brother.

After the wedding, Owen and Tucker enjoyed playing with Lex and Elle in the meadow. They also played with their toys and their good job presents/bribes - cars and barbies.

Owen doing the robot:
And break dancing (Lex joined right in, to the surprise and delight of his Dad!):

Tucker trekked up and down the very fun steps:


During cocktail hour, the boys started dancing...


Owen was particularly interested in asking Amelie to join in the fun

After the boys finished their delicious dinner, they had time to play in the garden.

And smell the flowers


Once the sun started to set and the reception dancing began, the boys were in heaven. They danced until nearly 10pm - on the stage, the dance floor, and in the middle of many different dance circles. They were party animals!


We were so glad that we were able to join in the festivities. What fun!

Visiting in Carlsbad

During our Easter weekend trip to southern California, we had the chance to meet up with Erin, Lindsey, and baby Ryan for breakfast before heading off to Legoland. As usual, our time together was much to short, but it was lovely to meet and dote on sweet Ryan, catch up with Erin, and watch Lindsey play with Owen, Charles, and Gianni. So fun!



Baby Ryan was sleeping off to the side in his stroller and we didn't get much cooperation from my kiddo for the group photo (as usual), but still, we captured the moment!

P.S. How great does Erin look after only 8 weeks post-partum?