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?

Soccer

I'm so behind on posts, ah! Oh well. Free- blog writing- computer time- has been and will continue to be limited, because of a temporarily intense work period. But if it wasn't for work, I'm sure I'd find some other excuse to use like the beautiful weather we are currently experiencing. Ha!

I have so many little tidbits to catch up on... Tucker's 15 month appt, Tucker's 1st hair cut photo, Easter, a trip to Legoland, cooking, and probably a zillion other special memories I'd love to capture. Tonight, however, I've decided to write a quick note about soccer.

Last night I played in my first soccer game in over five years. I played indoor with a few of my girlfriends on a very friendly and supportive, low key team. It was great fun, but I am out of shape, very out of shape. Indoor is always intense, but it hit me even harder than I expected.

I think I was only in for about 90 seconds before I had to sub out the first time and in total I probably played less than 8 or 9 minutes of the full 40 minute game. My heart was racing and my legs were burning so badly. I actually fell twice on the field because my legs were so weak and wobbly. I tried to run fast and then faster but I know I was at least 10X slower than I used to be and I'm not really sure if I'll regain my speed. Breathing was nearly impossible and I spent most of the game panting and convincing myself not to vomit.

Silly as it may sound, aside from those nasty side affects, the game was great fun. I slowly but surely started to remember how to play the game and actually made a couple of passes that weren't absolutely embarrassing. The girls were encouraging, so I decided to commit to play on the team for the season. I am hopeful that by the end of the season, I'll be able to play a full five minutes without needing a sub. It probably sounds like a simple and rather weak goal, but after last night, this really feels nearly impossible right now.

P.S. Yes.... I'm very sore today!

Almost weaned, almost sleep trained

A couple weeks ago, I had to travel for work. for the first time since Tucker entered our lives. I was nervous and anxious about it for a long time. I missed my boys terribly, but they all did great and I had nothing to worry about. Tucker pretty much learned how to sleep without me and through the night while I was away. Of course, it was short lived. He's now back to waking a couple of times during the night, but that's okay. We're surviving and getting enough sleep most nights. Owen was great for Kris and it was so fun to be able to talk to him on the phone, even if it was a very short conversation.

I thought the trip would be the way I weaned Tucker, but nope, as soon as I arrived home he made it clear that I was off base. For the most part, I'm just nursing him in the late evenings before bed and in the early morning.

Tucker is 14 months

Happy 14 month birthday Tucker!

Tucker is my
Totally sweet
Unique
Cute
Knowing
Energetic
Really really loveable
little baby boy.

He now has 3 1/2 teeth, long curly hair, little to no separation anxiety at day care, a major love for the outdoors, a clear ability to say Daddy which he seems to say for both mommy and daddy, a growing interest in books, a new bed in the room he now shares with his big brother, a new favorite game where he loves to stack blocks and books, a desire to climb on anything and everything, a serious love for going fast down big slides and jumping on trampolines and in bounce houses and going for rides on tricycles, an ability to understand his parents when they ask him to go get his shoes and his jacket or to run to his mommy or big brother for a big hug, an understanding that when the garage door opens after school he can run very fast to the door with his arms open and greet his Daddy, and luckily for his parents, a personality full of love and happiness and a fondness for cuddle time.

Tucker we love you so much.