vandy's day to day...

he is his daddy's little boy...

2012-01-16T17:16:00.002-06:00

today was a holiday, so the boys were out of school....its days like these that i realize the artistic ability of my 6 year old, ian, far surpasses me at age 32. he sat and drew and colored, then cut out all these little ninjas....no help at all. he said he saw a picture of them on the computer, but he wasn't looking at any pictures when he drew them...and now ian and tysen are playing with them like action figures...so precious.

trains and vanderveers

2012-01-01T15:42:00.012-06:00

during our visit over christmas, we decided to ride the train out to dallas and visit the train display at northpark mall. it was a little more taxing than i expected...but it was a fun and new thing to do with part of the family!

everyone's waiting for the train to pull up!

on the train having donuts for breakfast...

haley and logan

christmas with cousins

2012-01-01T15:39:00.004-06:00

9 cousins...they just barely still fit on the couch...

the weather was beautiful outside, so we went to park for awhile...there was a little dock that the kids sat on to feed the ducks. that might become a tradition as long as the weather is nice each year...it was a blast!

christmas

2012-01-01T15:11:00.002-06:00

i was pretty lazy about taking pictures at Christmas...i think i got a few...but this was the one shot with all three of the boys...and other than the new video game logan got...this was everyones favorite thing!! they get their pjs on early now so they can wear their cozy robes...:)

we headed out for dfw before lunch to start the family christmas time! it was our first time to be "out of town"...and we were soooo grateful that the Lord had provided us with a way to buy a minivan before this trip! we traveled comfortably for the first time in awhile. the boys had plenty of stretching room...no argueing ...ah, it was great!

austin for a day...

2012-01-01T15:00:00.002-06:00

funny what you will do to keep busy with 3 kids. 3 weeks off of school and 3 super high energy boys...well, i called up one of my college roommates (who also has 3 boys but lives in san antonio) out of the blue to see if she would meet me in austin for lunch! we laugh about that being crazy, but we had such a great time! we met up at central market where the boys could run and be hyper and active. thank the Lord it was beautiful weather...and they lasted all afternoon! our boys always play great together...sure wish they lived closer!! :)

elijah and logan are only 2 months apart (and when they were born, we actually lived across the street from each other)...and if we lived closer, they would definitely be best friends! they both love sports, and spent 90% of the day playing football together.

here's all 6 boys! ian, tysen, levi, isaac, elijah, and logan...

turkey in disguise

2011-12-06T10:47:00.002-06:00

ian had a class assignment to "disguise" his turkey...i gave him a few examples...but then he came up with batman...and he went to work! this was the finished product!

i love this creativity he has!!

logan is 8!

2011-12-06T10:31:00.006-06:00

well, he's 8...i didn't think it was too different...but i am starting to see previews of the "tween" age that is coming. i'm hearing a lot of "yeah man", and "dude"...and "sweet"...he gets around his friends, and the 'cool' factor kicks in. i'm seeing growth and maturity...and still praying for this little man as he is developing into his own! right now, he loves cheeseburgers with ketchup and mayo only...loves pizza...he's super into sports, and he learns a lot about other teams from his playstation 2 football game. his top 3 football teams are the cowboys, the texans, and the longhorns. he's beginning to shift away from the imagination world of "guys" (which makes me so sad)...and he'd rather watch a good football game than a disney movie. he takes the trash out and empties the dishwasher...tears up his shoes and jeans like a pro...but he still loves a hug from his mom and dad before bedtime. love this kid!

this year, he opted for a football party (since he plays football with the neighborhood boys every day possible). he had about 13 boys (yikes!!) and 2 girls...we got to have cousin audrey for the weekend, so that was special for them to get to spend time together...they sit and laugh and talk, and read together...its a sweet bond. he's not a huge cake fan, so he decided he'd rather have chocolate chip cookie sandwiches (2 cookies with icing between)...that's definitely my kid!

its that time of year...

2011-12-06T10:04:00.010-06:00

well, we're back to that time of year...family pictures. coming from a family of photographers...its impossible to skip this part of the year...its a tradition! mom was in town...and we used a family friend's home to attempt the family shoot!

don't we look happy? doesn't this look easy? don't be fooled. it's still a beating...every time!

i keep thinking it will get easier each year...and it does in some ways, and does NOT in others! now the boys are old enough to understand, and they obey and pose and all that...but now, i'm battling against the "fake" smile!

hmm...i wonder where they get that from?

but despite the struggles (we were also fighting off swarms of mosquitos), we managed to get a few good shots...way to push through it for your mom, boys!

halloweenies!!

2011-11-08T19:16:00.008-06:00

our first stop was a nearby church's fall festival...

...but on halloween, we had a big party called "halloweenies"!! we served hot dogs and had a bounce house and snow cone machine...we passed out flyers on our street to invite all of our neighbors! it was sooo fun! we had about 75-100 people come through....and got the numbers of a few new neighbors! we are hoping to throw block parties regularly, and this was the perfect way to kick it off!!

outside time...

2011-10-28T20:31:00.008-05:00

we are breaking out the long sleeves and loving it! i love this time of year...so cool, but i'm not freezing yet! the boys had "jersey" day at school...so by the time they were home, they were in the football playing mood. logan is usually the one who loves to play football (as you can tell by his football is duct taped to keep it together)...but this time, ian was excited too...andy was home, and we had a fun outside afternoon!!

pumpkin patch

2011-10-22T21:02:00.006-05:00

made a quick visit to the pumpkin patch! it was fun with friends...and the kids actually were pretty entertained for awhile, just looking at all the different pumpkins...

logan,kylie,tysen,ian,taylor

tysen and taylor - our cutie little pumpkins!

logan loved this crazy one!

welcome little vandy....

2011-09-05T20:09:00.009-05:00

graham david vanderveer is our newest little cousin! he's the sweetest little thing!! the whole family went to visit over the weekend...and then tysen and mommy stayed for a whole week to help out! oh, it was sooo fun to snuggle with that little munchkin! and tysen loved playing with max every day!!

tysen asked to hold him every day! he adored little gra!!

logan held him and just talked really sweet and quiet to him...then he kinda chuckled and said, "his hair looks like a highschooler"....LOL!!!

love this bunch of boys!!!

when i told tysen we were going to visit max in denton...he said "can i go to cuin's house?"...he misses his buddy cuin! we got to visit, and they played like old times...

one last hug before heading back home!!

1st and 2nd grade!

2011-09-05T20:07:00.002-05:00

we're in a new town, and the boys have a new school! they loved their first week! we are just under a mile away, so we've enjoyed walking to school each morning! :)

he knows what he wants!

2011-09-05T19:55:00.001-05:00

he asked specifically for his three monkeys....usually i find them on the floor later, but i guess tonight he knew exactly what he wanted!! :)

the fam's in town!!

2011-09-05T19:46:00.008-05:00

i loved having my family in town visiting!!! the mcclures came first...then the spooners...then mom and sam...then the kazees came in as the mcclures headed out...and we got to have a big family lunch together....and of course...mom made us take a family photo!!

whew!

2011-08-22T20:07:00.005-05:00

we've had a lot of visitors come in the past few weeks. we've really enjoyed having friends and family see where we are and get to be a part of our lives here...

joey, kyle and max came...the boys were sooo happy to have max here! and i think he loved getting to see 'the boys' new home! here's ian and max snuggling for a movie...

kelly karr and kelley butler ford are friends from highschool! it was a blast having a girls night out and remembering our dorky highschool days!!

cousins katie and haley got to come spend several days with us too! one night we had dinner with some friends at church, and katie and logan both caught their first fish! we love summer visits!!!

Thursday, August 11, 2011

2011-08-22T19:53:00.002-05:00

it was a sad day on earth to lose this special man. my granddaddy went home to be with Jesus...and there is some major rejoicing there! he was very near and dear to my heart, but he lived a full life...and is much more comfortable in heaven.

love you, granddad...you will always have a piece of my heart!!

back to the city...

2011-07-19T19:48:00.006-05:00

went back to the city for a few days...the cousins were so excited to see max! got a few pics, but my iphone doesn't shoot great indoors...

best buds....

boys with grammy....

with ana and papaw....

this is our special group we call "the newlys"...all of them are newly married (andy and i just pretend to be :)...the hollomons, the dalys, the deals, us, and the andrews!!! the deals were the last to be married off...(this is their rehearsal dinner!!)

july 4th...a little late...

2011-07-19T19:33:00.007-05:00

managed to get a super cool shot of the boys!!!! a silhouette shot i've been wanting for awhile now....the timing was perfect!!!

our first july 4th in bryan, tx.....where there is usually an amazing fireworks show at a&m...for the first time in like forever...there was a burn ban....so no fireworks. so bummed....but we still made plans! we first went to some friends for swimming and hotdogs...which i sadly didn't get pics of...and then we met some other friends at the george bush library for the laser light show. (really really lame laser show...i mean...LAME...but it was fun being out with friends!)

potty break....

tysen and dean having a snack...

oops....turn back time...

2011-07-19T19:28:00.005-05:00

going thru some pics, and realized i never showed ian's kindergarten graduation pics! i do NOT want to leave out my middle man...so i'm going backwards...he was in the top of his class...and we were all so proud of our 'big E'!!! :):)

his best bud, jack, who we will miss so much! praying for another buddy like this one!!

today....

2011-07-04T14:39:00.006-05:00

today has been one of those days that everyone is happy! its kind of rare that everyone is getting along and playing great...we went as a family this morning to mcdonalds to have breakfast. andy and the boys played "war" while we waited for food...then after they finished they played on the playground.

we got home and andy and ian had some special quiet time together...

...logan and tysen helped me in the kitchen. it was so precious listening to logan teach tysen how to unload the dishes. so proud of that big brother!!

then the boys made up a game together using their little bouncy balls in the living room. so much giggling happened during this time!! i love it when they all play together!

just for fun...

2011-07-04T14:30:00.010-05:00

i promised the boys we'd take some fun pics of them and sports stuff cuz their new room is decorated in sports...so, we had some fun outside the other day!!

pounding and painting

2011-07-04T14:20:00.004-05:00

andy's first sunday at 'faith bible church' was amazing! he led worship for the first time for adults...and did sooo good! he never ceases to make me proud! the very next week he preached and was once again amazing. i feel crazy blessed....
speaking of blessed...on our first sunday at church, they did a "pounding" for us....i had never even heard of it, but essentially everyone in the church just gave us a ton of getting started supplies and gift cards! i was soooo overwhelmed by everyone's generosity. i actually had to re-arrange my kitchen to fit all the new groceries! we felt so appreciated and loved...what a warm welcome in our new church home!

last week jenn martin and her boys came to visit us! she brought all her paint supplies and we got to work painting over the red! i'm not a big 'painter'...but i was also not a fan of the red entry way....so i was thankful for a friend to come and help!! and the boys had a blast with friends here!! it was so much fun!

before:

after....ah....much better!!

what we're up to...

2011-06-21T15:54:00.008-05:00

well, we are getting settled. the endless list of little jobs is coming to an end...and the day to day routine is beginning to take over. i will say that i keep forgetting that i have laundry to do! i only remembered last week when the boys ran out of underwear, and even then the last load sat in the dryer for the rest of the week. i guess its cuz we're so out off schedule...but back to reality, the clothes are dirty again!! :)

we got a pool pass for the public pool here...once andy starts back to work, we will there A LOT! i know its hot everywhere in texas, but we were kind of having a cool spell in dfw when we left, and that's something we for sure left behind! and the no rain thing is really throwing me for a loop! we had been through so many storms and rain lately, and then here....that's the big news is that it had rained 1 day in the past like 8 months!! made me sad, cuz i love rain clouds....

we are starting to have people over, and now that i've been to the grocery store twice...it is starting to feel like home!

last weekend was father's day, and we went to meet up with dad at granddad's house...

fast forward to today....andy got the mower out for the first time in our new home (and in about 4 years since we were in an apartment previously!)...of course, before he could finish it started raining for the 2nd time in 8 months! but he pressed on and finished....

logan's been running a fever for 2 days now....not sure what he's fighting off, but there's been lots of brady bunch dvds being played. i guess that's my next thing 'to do' is find a pediatrician!!

these 2 little guys have been playing a ton together! they are both so imaginative, so they create a story and go with it!!!

we've moved!!

2011-06-13T15:56:00.015-05:00

so here we are in our new home!! we love the town and the house...we're really excited to be getting settled in and starting our new lives here! the decor is still a work in progress, but we're getting some stuff on the walls!

back yard with deck and hot tub!!

logan and ian's "sports" room....

tysen/guest "jungle animals" room...

kitchen...

living room...

ring bearers...

2011-05-26T19:12:00.003-05:00

allison and sean got married last weekend! they have been really close friends in denton, and tysen has had a special relationship with allison. he's always adored her, and i still miss how he called her "ahl-see"....he talked about her wedding for weeks!! He just couldn't wait to be her ring bearer...all the boys did great!

hanging with max at the wedding!

letters

2011-05-26T19:06:00.002-05:00

tysen asked to practice his letters the other day....this little dry erase board has been an incredible $5 investment! all the boys have used it now....and they love to draw with dry erase markers, so this is a great way to have fun and be educational! i'm really wondering if i have a 'lefty' on my hands...he still uses his right hand sometimes, but he seems to use his left a lot. we will see!!!

hanging out...

2011-05-26T19:02:00.006-05:00

this is our little friend madeline bell...she and the boys are good friends, but she and tysen are super close! she has a new little brother, so we picked her up to play the other day...they have so much fun together!

graduation!!!!

2011-05-11T14:42:00.000-05:00

sooooooo proud of andy!! he finished the 4 year, masters in theology....in only 4 years!! what a huge accomplishment...and he managed to complete it with amazing integrity, and incredible balance of school, work, and family!! love you, babe!

Easter

2011-05-11T14:38:00.000-05:00

a few pictures from Easter...

moving...

2011-05-11T14:34:00.000-05:00

everything is official now....

andy graduated from seminary...
he got a job as a student/worship pastor in bryan, tx...
we bought a house...
we close on june 2nd...
and we move on june 7th...

after months of deliberating and interviewing, it's nice to know where we are going. the next few weeks are jammed full, but i sorta like staying busy. i want to just breeze past the part about being sad to move out of the metroplex. we've known for awhile that after seminary we would be going wherever God called us...and i was seriously concerned about where that might be! :) i was actually relieved that it is only 3 hours away from family/friends...it could have been a lot worse! we are really exited...and we're ready to start the next phase of life!

diego party

2011-05-01T09:21:00.006-05:00

for his 3rd bday party, tysen wanted a "diego" party (from the 'diego' tv show)...so we did a sort of diego/jungle safari party....i totally ripped off another party idea from online...but it was a lot of fun! we had binoculars for each friend to decorate, and they used them later in the "animal rescue" (we used tiny little plastic animals and put them in the yard like an easter egg hunt)...and there was jungle puzzles and coloring sheets. my favorite part was the "lion" cupcakes we made. (with the help of one of our youth leaders!) i'm not usually one to decorate the cupcakes much, but these were easy enough and really fit our theme, so we did it! and thankfully...the rain held off, and the weather was perfect outside!!!

finding the plastic animals and bringing them to the "animal rescue center"

the "lion" cupcakes

licking the brownie batter spoon...

2011-04-21T14:16:00.000-05:00

birthday boy privileges...

happy birthday, tysen!

2011-04-21T08:43:00.010-05:00

my baby boy is 3!! he is such a lovable sweetheart...he can make anyone in our family smile! we brought him a honeybun with candles in bed...he LOVES people to sing 'happy birthday' to him! then he got to open his presents before we had to get the older boys off to school.

a few things about you at this age:

--your favorite movie is 'monsters inc'
--you love any kid of drink...you even said you liked coffee when you took a sip (though i'm not sure you really did). you don't get sodas very often but if you get a sip of mom or dads, you always say "hey! i like it!"
--you can walk in my heels better than i can
--you have the sweetest demeanor...everyone just melts at your words
--you still LOVE watermelon
--you are very 'pattern' conscious. you find 3-4 patterns in your surroundings every day. "mommy look its a pattern! sit...stand...sit...stand!" ...."mommy look its a pattern! sandwich...fruit...sandwich...fruit!" its a huge revelation to you every time you think of it!
--you want to touch every pregnant woman's belly...and some who aren't pregnant! (yikes!)
--you sing all the time...making up songs about whatever you happen to be doing at the time
--you can whistle (which is actually quite impressive at your age)
--your favorite tv shows are 'diego' and 'the backyardigans'

there's so much more....but we are soooooooooo proud of you!!!

just some fam time...

2011-04-11T11:17:00.004-05:00

logan was begging for a family wii night...so we had dinner, and made our favorite snack, 'flavors' (chex mix, animal crackers, popcorn, and chocolate chips) ....andy and logan started to face off in wii tennis while ian, tysen and i made the snack! we took a break from wii to eat our 'flavors' and watched america's funniest home videos. i love watching the boys laugh so hard at the videos!

from ian...

2011-04-11T11:12:00.000-05:00

I'm the luckiest mom...

spring break

2011-03-21T16:47:00.010-05:00

spring break came fast. and went fast! everybody in the family got sick at some point during the week. thankfully, there was 1 day (wednesday) that everyone was feeling good all at the same time! so, we headed out to the gainsville zoo. i was a little disappointed as we finished the entire zoo in less than an hour...but there was a fun park across the street where we stayed for awhile and had our picnic lunch. here's a few pictures from our short adventure!

listening to the words...

2011-03-08T17:04:00.003-06:00

music moves me. all kinds of music, and i mean, really moves me. its always been a part of my life. as a kid, i dreamed of being a singer. and still to this day, on the songs i love, there's pretty much a concert going on in my head. its why, when i actually go to a concert, i just sit and watch.

i especially love worship music...it stirs something so deep in my heart that it often brings me to tears. at the very tip top of my favorite singer list (just underneath celine dion) is christy nockels. she's the lead singer for watermark...and i've loved her songs for years.

but today...as i was working out and listening to one of my favorite songs by watermark...it was like i heard the words for the first time again. so moving...so inspiring...such truth....
it got me through the last 10 minutes of working out...just meditating on the words...

"It is time that we give you honor...
this is the day to give you all the praise that you deserve.
A Holy King...of everything...inhabit the praises of your people...
Have we waited far too long now to surrender. Forgive us, oh God, the years we failed to seek your face. Oh, Lord your mercy turns us into grateful people. We can't seem to find the words...so take our lives that they might be enough...
to show you how grateful....
Lord we are grateful...."

"Bless the Lord...oh my soul...and all that is within me, bless his holy name...."

fort time....

2011-03-05T08:40:00.005-06:00

well, andy found a bunch of huge boxes being thrown out, so he grabbed them and has been saving them for a "fort day". i went to canton, and the boys built a fort. i must say it was much more extravagant than i expected...with tunnels and windows, and towers. it was pretty awesome. sadly, we didn't check the weather, and we didn't get to keep it up for today due to the storm coming (as you can see). we did salvage half on our porch, so they can continue the fun...

brothers

2011-02-15T15:49:00.005-06:00

brothers....priceless...

working hard...

2011-02-15T15:46:00.003-06:00

to all the mom's of young children...it does get better!

snow...snow...snow...

2011-02-04T17:11:00.007-06:00

after being out of school for 4 days because of the thick layer of ice...we finally got some perfect snow! it was about 4 inches...and today, i think we got closer to 30 degrees (as opposed to the mid-teens as its been all week). so, the boys wanted to go play...and i don't really understand the whole mustache thing, but they all decided (andy's idea) to draw mustaches on their face whenever they went out to play. i don't know. boys will be boys. :)

boxing ring...

2011-02-02T10:24:00.003-06:00

well, there's a thick layer of ice on the roads, so this is the 2nd day at home with no school! we have desperately needed this break, so we are sooo grateful for the time to get caught up...and just have some family time. today, andy has scheduled in time for wrestling...and now he's come up with the idea to use every mattress in our home to build a boxing ring. needless to say, the boys are having a blast....and i'm sitting in the other room alone. i thought i could sit and read a little, but with all the mattresses being used, i don't have anywhere to sit! :) o well...even though the sheets were just washed, and i had all the beds nicely tucked in...i'll choose to enjoy my creative husband and his crazy ideas! :)

daddy time...

2011-02-02T10:11:00.002-06:00

this is one of the most special times myboys have...Bible story time with their dad! he reads the story to them, answering questions and using all kinds of voices. and then they usually want to "play" it...where they all play different parts and act the story out. usually the boys are all in their underwear, so i thought i would snap a picture since they were all dressed this time!

dental work...

2011-01-14T14:07:00.011-06:00

in june we took tysen to see the dentist. despite my efforts at brushing his teeth, i had noticed a major decline in the health of his teeth. the dentist said its a condition called hypoplasia, which means that during development, his enamel didn't form right...causing him to be highly prone to cavities, etc. at that point, there was a lot of erosion on his teeth and some discoloration,
but no cavities....yet.

when we went back 6 months later, he had 5 cavities, and 1 was already affecting the nerves in the roots of that tooth. because he is so young, it required him to be put to sleep to do the dental work. we showed up to childrens medical in plano at 6am this morning...even with it being so early, he was happy and so excited! (he loves going to the dr...and even the slightest cough or sneeze will bring the question "can we go see da doctor?")

he was especially thrilled to put on this cool shirt!

reading with dad, while we waited to talk with the doctors...

he really loved the "light" on his index finger...he kept asking to make it go all the way up his finger.....they gave him some "silly juice", and he got pretty loopy. he still wasn't excited when andy had to put him in the bed, but left calmly as the nurses were fantastic with him.

it only took about 45 min...he had to get 4 crowns on the molars, and 1 in the front (though they made it look great, and you can't tell!) they called us back as he began to stir. he would drink from a sippy cup before he opened his eyes...it took him awhile longer to open his eyes.

he finally opened his eyes, and immediately sat up and wanted me to hold him...

he cried a lot of the way home...just irrational crying. :) we knew to expect this...but once we got home, he was much better. he requested to watch dora as he laid down.

after about an hour, he asked to go to bed. he took a nap for a few hours, and woke up much happier!! he's holding his new eeyore, and a card he got from his sweet friend, madeline. he said his teeth feel good...but just lots of yogurt and jello for today!

first snow...

2011-01-11T16:42:00.002-06:00

first snow of the year! wasn't a ton...but enough for the boys to have a snowball fight! andy and i especially loved that we could watch from the warm inside! :)

christmas...

2010-12-28T13:43:00.011-06:00

lots of running around this year during the holidays! we started on the 23rd at mom's place with all of the kazee/carey clan...we spent the night, and then had our traditional christmas breakfast and opened presents and stockings...

logan, aubren, reagan, kenzie, milia, ian, tysen, audrey, and zach...

tysen and milia playing with milia's new toys!

karis won the award for best gift for mom. it was a book called "awkward family photos"...and we sat here for quite awhile laughing at that book!

we went home for christmas eve and mom and uncle dan dan spent the night with us too! the boys got to open their gifts on christmas morning at home! an exciting detail that shouldn't be forgotten is that about a week prior, we answered a knock on the door, only to find someone had left us a present....the card wasn't signed....but the gift was a brand new wii!

God truly continues to amaze us with his blessings!!!

andy put together a scavenger hunt with clues to find the wii!!

and of course, we couldn't get the wii to work because there was a short in the tv connections...so, dan and andy took the tv apart, and dan did some magical work, and got everything fixed up!!! :)

christmas night we went to the vanderveers, but i regrettably forgot my camera...we had a great time, and spent the night there...let's just say i shouldn't need to eat for a week!

these are my 2010 boys...

2010-12-28T13:34:00.008-06:00

Here's a few of the family pics we got in this year's session at my brother's place! :)

santa stopped by...

2010-12-28T13:32:00.001-06:00

this is the scene we walked into the other day...ian loudly saying 'ho ho ho'...and then sat down and turned to tysen and said, "and what do you want for christmas?" ...and tysen crawled into his lap as they "played" santa....

before i forget...

2010-12-23T07:41:00.002-06:00

tysen was 'playing' in the living room...he said, "mom! let's pray". i said "sure, go ahead honey".....tysen said, "mom, you have to close your eyes!". i had my hands in something messy that i couldn't immediately put down, so i told him i couldn't stop right this second, but to go ahead and pray. (he was pretending anyway)....so he begins...
"dear Jesus, thank you for dis day....etc etc...and a mommy be disobedient...amen"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

tysen and ian were in the car with me.
ian - "mom, do you know what is under the ground?"

me - "um, dirt?"

ian - "no, like underneath the dirt"

unsure of where he was going with this, i said, "no, what?"

ian (very sure of himself) - "lava. yep, that's where hell is and there is lava everywhere. that's where people go if they don't believe in Jesus. (he then turns to tysen) hey tysen - did you know that if you believe in Jesus, you go up in the sky to heaven? do you believe in Jesus, ty-ty?"

tysen doesn't even look up from the toy thats in his hand and says "n-nope".

ian gasps (obviously appalled) and said, "tysen! but if you don't believe in Jesus, you will have to go to hell!!"

tysen (still unmoved and hasn't even looked up yet) - "ok. i go down into da lava..."

ian leans back in his seat and crosses his arms, giving up - "fine, but i'm gonna be heaven"

tysen snaps his head up with a big smile - "i'm just kidding. i believe in Jesus."

ian was thrilled! he turned to him so happy and said, "you do? then we'll both be in heaven!"

:)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
so, we've never made a big deal about santa...never encouraged or discouraged. but the boys have picked up stuff at school, and they believed in him. andy and i had agreed that it was fine, and we would just always make sure to enforce the real reason for christmas, but to allow them some fun with santa. well, neither of us were prepared for logan's curiosity last night.

as we were headed to bed, logan said, "dad, do you believe in santa?"
but we hadn't discussed yet how we wanted to answer that question.

so, andy sat him down and tried our "line" with him again, "well, santa is something we do that's fun, but christmas is really all about Jesus".....logan looked him right in the eyes and said, "so that's a no?" andy about fell over.

so he continued and said, "no, i don't believe in santa" he continued on to try and explain that we can still have fun with santa, but he's pretend. logan then pressed on and asked who puts presents in their stockings.... so andy told him that mommy and daddy do that. logan looked really conflicted, and that broke my heart. i wanted him to have the freedom to believe until he was ready, and he didn't appear ready as he seemed like he really wanted to believe. (i didn't like having to keep a secret when i was a kid about santa being pretend, and i didn't want that for him)

he went on to bed, and i cried...(andy had thought he would be consoling his kids when they found out about santa....little did he know, he would be consoling his wife)...i was just so sad for logan because he looked so disappointed...and christmas is only 3 days away....
so, andy and i talked some more....we agreed that it was ok for him to be honest with logan, but also allow logan the freedom to 'believe' if he wanted to. (i felt like logan was partially disappointed because he still wanted to believe, but would have been worried about letting his dad down) so, andy went into to logan's room and said, "hey buddy, i want you to know its ok if you want to believe in santa..." i'm pretty sure logan didn't care as much as i did...but it made me feel better that logan knew he had our "approval".

of course he hasn't mentioned it this morning, so i guess we're already over it.

losing his first tooth!

2010-12-07T23:22:00.002-06:00

ian lost his first tooth tonight! i can't believe it! he seems so young, but logan started losing his right after his 5th birthday too...he even let me pull it out! he was so excited...he's been watching logan slip that tooth under his pillow for $1 so many times, and now its his turn!!!

getting bundled up!

2010-12-07T08:04:00.001-06:00

christmas decorations!

2010-11-28T11:09:00.005-06:00

each year is more and more fun! everyone wants to help...and everyone enjoys it! the boys assemble the tree, and the hang ornaments (and i re-arrange the ornaments, since they all end up at the bottom)...and of course, we have our handy "fire" playing on our tv with christmas music playing. its pretty awesome...

happy 7th birthday to logan!

2010-11-28T11:07:00.001-06:00

how is it possible that my little loggie is 7???

cruisin'

2010-11-21T19:28:00.015-06:00

we have recently been the recipient of truly generous friends...God worked in some seriously mysterious ways, enabling andy and i to go on a 4 day cruise (with joey and kyle) and get away for some much needed rest. the trip was made possible by others ...having nothing to do with us, and came at a time that we desperately needed a break. we are so grateful to those who were so generous to us....

our royal caribbean cruise ship...Majesty of the Seas

leaving miami...

first stop was in key west, florida...

we walked over a mile to this point...the southern most point of the continental u.s.a.

only 1 mile away from the edge of the continent...

this was pretty much andy's attitude the whole trip...his motto for the cruise was "eat everything, finish nothing" .... he did his best to fulfill that as he ordered at least 2 (sometimes 3) appetizers, entrees, and desserts....each night. there was never a shortage of food. twice we even ordered room service after a full meal...just because we could!

we both conquered the rock wall...

2nd stop was the bahamas...it was raining when we arrived, so we sat at the very top of the ship and did some reading while we waited for the rain to pass over...

visiting the atlantis hotel...we always feel the need to take pictures by things (such as a dragon) that we think the boys would really like...

we rented scooters to ride around the bahamas. this part of the island was pretty fun. it was right by the atlantis hotel...but the rest of the bahamas was not so safe feeling. and there was lots of traffic, so i was pretty nervous, but it was an adventure!

3rd and final stop was at coco cay island....royal caribbean's own private island. it was by far my favorite day...spent the day laying out, shopped a little, played some beach volleyball, and just walked along the shoreline. it was so relaxing...the perfect day to end on!

girls trip!!!

2010-11-09T08:25:00.005-06:00

the girls went on an impromtu girls trip last week! we realized that this was something we had never done before! crazy! we went to houston so we could visit my granddad, and had tons of fun! we missed stacy...but next time we will plan in advance so everyone can come! :)

we stayed with a friend of mom's, don day...a fantastic host! we woke up to donuts on the counter, and he drove us around that evening to find dinner and get a movie. he has an awesome big screen projector so that was fun...we rented 'killers'. saturday morning he took us to the mexican flea market which is always fun for us bargain hunters...it was so much fun to be away with just the girls!

mom and the sisters

donuts in bed...

visiting our sweet granddaddy...

dinner from jason's deli and movie night!!

costumes

2010-11-02T15:41:00.008-05:00

we usually have several events around halloween, so the boys get to really use all their different costumes. (we hit the 75% sale racks a week after halloween, and save the costumes for Christmas!)....we went to their cousins annual costume party where uncle trey always gets some great pictures!!

halloween

2010-11-02T15:36:00.004-05:00

this year we went to keller to have dinner with the lottons and other vanderveers...

here's the crew...

ninja turtles

tysen was jealous when max got a mustache, so he asked uncle joey to do his mustache too!

reanna, tysen, ian, logan, and max...all ready to hit the streets!

leaders costume party

2010-10-27T20:39:00.003-05:00

tonight was the first of many times the boys get to dress up this halloween season. we had a costume party with all the youth leaders....

the first costumes of choice were batman, buzz lightyear, and spiderman...

and then the pink crayola hitting on the famous tony romo...yes, that is a bone sticking out from his broken clavicle...

and of course the sweet dog that followed andy around all night wanting that bone!

"flavors"

2010-10-04T13:37:00.007-05:00

a sunday evening at home....what to do, what to do? we mustered up the strength to stay home (even just going out for icecream can cost our family $12-15)...so we stayed in and decided to make our own treats and play a family game. it was so much fun! we used what ingredients we happen to have on hand, and the boys loved being involved in picking the treats...we dumped everything in a big bowl and mixed it up. i tried to get them to come up with some creative name that would be a vanderveer trademark...so--logan came up with 'flavors'. i worked hard to offer some crazy names, but he was set on flavors, and ian just didn't care....

so 'flavors' it is!

making the popcorn that we added after it cooled off!

this bunch of flavors consisted of marshmellows, animal crackers, chocolate chips, honey chex cereal, and popcorn...(andy wanted to use m&ms, which would have also been really good, but the choc chips we used were milk free...so ian could enjoy the chocolate too!)

"testing" the popcorn before adding it!

the game of choice...Disney Scene it!

Coloring Time...

2010-09-07T19:46:00.008-05:00

these days, we don't get a lot of quiet evenings at home...but tonight was a rare occasion...and we soaked it up! we had a family coloring time! it was really fun, and the boys get into things more if andy and i are involved...i colored a pink pony, ian and logan both colored a page from a Bible story coloring book, tysen colored on his blanket (sigh), and andy drew a picture of Jesus. (i didn't want andy to color...such a waste of his talent to color between lines...so i just gave him a pencil and paper)

(this is what happens when logan is in charge of pictures)

Getting Outside...

2010-09-07T19:41:00.007-05:00

gearing up for fall!!! we took the boys to eureka park to get out in the cooler weather. cooler meaning it wasn't over 100...we were still sweating by the end of it, but it was a lot of fun!

the boys climbing across to save the 'princess'...i got nervous when andy took tysen...

logan was always the first across...

and now i'm really nervous....

2010-09-02T15:30:00.003-05:00

i just thought i would write a minute as i sit here and watch ian and tysen dance their hearts out to the soundtrack to highschool musical 3...ian is totally in character, and i'm not gonna lie, the kid has some moves! of course, he's also in the middle of a basketball game (as in the movie)...but its all very entertaining!

logan is sitting beside me...he stayed home from school today with a fever and sore throat. i've been trying to get him to start reading chapter books for several months, and he kept saying they were too long. today i finally convinced him to give it another try, and just read a little, then break. he read all the way to the dr....while we waited...all the way home...and he's picked it back up, and is laying on the couch reading. oh, how this warms my heart! my little reader!!! actually this is more like his aunt carleigh who was the reader when we were kids, but i'm so excited that he's enjoying it! so many possibilities in books!!!

we attempted potty training with tysen for 2 days. he does ok....if i take him every 45 min...but that is not being potty trained to me! that's too much work for me! he was sooo excited and its just too cute when he puts both arms out (still on the toilet) and yells "hey everybody!! i goed pee-pee in the potty!" ...and its just me that is home....
o well, back to diapers, but we will try again fairly soon!

we have been surviving the new schedule decently. though it takes its toll in ways i hadn't even thought of....andy is gone tues/thurs from 5:30am-7:30pm... and on wed. he goes to work around lunch, and works until 10 because of youth group....i'm coping with it....but laying in bed last night, i started thinking how the boys get way less time with andy than i do! i get to see him at night, but the boys go to bed earlier...and since they are in school all day...there are some weeks they only see him for 30-40 min. over the course of 4 days! andy are looking at our routine to see if there's a way to re-arrange stuff and change that. they have been asking about him a lot...and thankfully, this schedule is only a semester...but my prayers have changed from praying for strength and patience for myself to being for their sweet hearts during this time...

ian is thriving in kindergarten! i'm so thankful he has already made friends! i was worried about him being the youngest by a long way...but he actually has a little friend who is 2 days younger than he is! i was so excited to hear that! logan says he enjoys his new class too! he has several friends from his kinder class that he was glad about. poor tysen is adjusting, but asks constantly "it time to go get my broders?"...he misses them. but we keep max on mondays for this month, and so he has enjoyed having a playmate then.

tysen's most common phrase is "i'na do it myself!"...my most independent little man. the one who is desperate for people to listen to him. when we ask the boys to tell us about their day, with in 10 seconds, tysen is yelling "hey everybody...i gotta a big problem!!"...and he yells that until we ask him about it. its not a problem...its usually just something he sees...i don't know where that line came from, but he uses it a lot for attention! :) its pretty funny.

and now, logan has finished his first chapter book, and has uno all ready to play....some quality time with my boys....

Family Pizza Night

2010-08-30T08:54:00.006-05:00

this was a fun evening we had last Friday night. i bought individual pizza crusts and everyone got to make their own pizza! the boys were very excited and it turned out to be really fun! we had our pizzas on a picnic in the living room while watching the cosby show...

(logan's laughing at the pile of cheese on tysen's pizza...)

ian's "cheese-free" pizza!

logan was apparently really proud of his! :)

5th Birthday!

2010-08-30T08:40:00.010-05:00

the newest kindergartener just turned 5!! he is still overly obsessed with swords and this year asked for a shield too...so he's really excited with his new combo!

we had a knights/prince and princess party...the boys made shields and the girls made necklaces...there was a dragon pinata...and a super creative friend made us a fantastic dragon out of cupcakes!

prince max and prince tysen

king ian working on his shield...

the proudest mom and dad of the sweetest boy...

prince logan with his candy from the dragon pinata...

pool time...

2010-08-16T13:26:00.002-05:00

we've basically lived at the pool this summer....we're lucky to have several options to choose from...and the older 2 can swim...and tysen wears his floaties...and well, mom gets to choose if she wants to get in or not! of course, these days, the heat forces me in...

the boys love to be thrown around in the pool, so i'm always grateful to have andy around...

this is their latest game...tysen loves it! and really hams it up by waving at everyone and saying "ta-da!"...

the baby sister is married...

2010-07-15T13:10:00.003-05:00

you really feel old when the sister who is 8 years younger than you is married. and i think...she is way too young to be married!! then i stop...and realize that i was her age when i got married.

BUT STILL!!

i'm so proud of her...and her new husband, thomas...congratulations to the spooners!!

july 4th

2010-07-07T15:22:00.013-05:00

this year we went to ritchey and kobi's house to celebrate the 4th of july. they live in weatherford, so we got to do our own fireworks. we grilled out, and the food was awesome (thanks ritch), and of course, we all had a great time hanging out. it wasn't as hot as normal, which made it nice when we were outside. the fireworks scared the boys...but it was still fun. by the end of the night, ian was inside the house, and tysen would just cover his ears while in my lap.

max and tysen having twizzlers together. i think tysen had just finished his, but is still chewing.

tysen and katie...he follows her around constantly and asks for hugs from her...:)

his first sparkler....a little nervous, but didn't want to be left out!

tysen hanging out with ana and papaw....

not sure about ian's crazy eyes...but o well...

the first family vacation....

2010-07-05T21:52:00.013-05:00

we did it! our first family vacation!! we've been on trips before with family and friends...but this was our first time to make specific plans to go away with just us...and it was sooo great! we went to sea world in san antonio and really has such a fantastic time, and took a ton of pictures, but here, i will hit the highlights.
we drove to san antonio on tuesday...had lunch with uncle butch and aunt alice on our way through austin...and got settled into our hotel. we went to the riverwalk and enjoyed a nice evening just walking around.

we got some icecream, and ian had a cinnamon pretzel...

on wednesday, we made plans to get to sea world right as they opened. it was overcast and 80% chance of rain...making the weather cooler than normal, and keeping the crowds away! we didn't have to wait long for anything! the boys LOVED seeing shamu....tysen especially became attached. he was initially pretty scared when the show started and the whale came bursting out of the water, but slowly decided "he's a nice whale".

this was actually my favorite part of the trip. feeding the dophins. i'm not really sure why, but i loved how up close and personal it was. the boys were so brave, and all wanted to touch them, which really surprised me. we got some fish for them to feed with, and again, i was surprised that they touched the fish at all! they were so excited with being so close....it was a special time.

i should note that even with an 80% chance of rain all day, it didn't rain until after we were back at the hotel!!! we left the park about 3pm that day, so that we could get in some late naps before dinner with the morton and perez families --my college roomies!! we had a spectacular dinner that whit made, and stayed late just catching up. the kids did awesome! i love how they can all just pick up wherever and have a good time!
here we are:
tysen, me, ian, levi, rosey, isaac, elijah, logan, micah, whit, and emmie

since we knew we would be out late on wednesday night, we had decided to take it easy on thursday morning, and get some naps in before hitting sea world again. thank goodness, because it rained ALL day...until about 3:30-4....which is when we got there!!! it was perfect! we didn't think we would get to see the waterpark, but the sun actually came out for a little while, and we were able to spend just over an hour at the waterpark. since we were in the water most of the time, i only got one picture:

the boys wanted to see shamu again, so we went to the evening show. we mindlessly sat on the front row of the splash zone so we could see shamu up close. tysen was estatic! now, in our defense, we had already been to a shamu show, and another whale show, and sat close and in the splash zone. we got splashed, but nothing major. well, this was not the case here. in the last 30 seconds of the show, shamu sent about a thousand galloons of water our way, terrorizing tysen, and temporarily putting my phone out. we were not expecting that...and i wish that wasn't the last thing that the boys remembered about shamu, but they have slowly come back around. at first, tysen would describe it, and say "shamu splash me. i cry." but now he chuckles when he says "shamu splash me". and thankfully, we have pictures to remind us of all the fun we had before shamu sent a tidal wave on us.
so--beware....all the shows are different! you may OR may not get drenched by sitting in the splash zone!

we left friday morning. we stopped just outside of austin, and wanted to eat somewhere that we couldn't eat back in denton. we found this little restaurant called "PLANKS" ...it was really cute cuz all the tables had different games and little activities. so it was a fun new atmosphere....and they made pizza from scratch, so they made ian a pizza with no cheese--which was a bigger deal to me than ian--but i thought it was cool!

this was seriously such a great time. we were intitially kinda worried since we had never done a family vacation before, but the boys did great! and we actually felt rested, and everyone had fun....and just the fact that i can say that makes this trip a huge success!!!

2 kids in elementary school

2010-06-03T09:06:00.005-05:00

wow. its a weird thing to have a kid in school, but now, its official. i have 2 kids in elementary school! logan is most excited about first grade because they get their own desk...and ian is just excited in general about kindergarten.

yestarday was logan's kindergarten graduation. of course his dad was yelling like crazy, and he was embarrassed and trying not to smile--he'll have to get used to that.... but i love that we always see the dimples, even when he's managing to hold a straight face, those dimples poke through. here's a few pictures:

he told me later that this buddy, michael, was his best friend in class. he then clarified that God is his 'best best' friend....but michael was his 'best' friend. ha! i love it!

memorial day

2010-05-31T15:33:00.006-05:00

we had a really busy weekend, so today, we opted to have a family day. we have passes to the local waterpark, and that's what today was all about. it was sooo nice! tysen is old enough to play in the kid area without my help....i like to sit in the water close by, but i'm glad to not have to chase him around all the spraying part. :) the boys loved it!! and there's a little lazy river that they both really like...tysen enjoys that with a life jacket on, but is still getting used to wearing one of those. he doesn't want me to touch him, but i have to help him keep his head up...he'll push me away, and say "no mommy. no mommy! let me do it!".....i forgot to get a family picture, but got a few of the boys....

funny quirk

2010-05-31T15:23:00.002-05:00

tysen is talking sooooo much now! he's really a delightful kid [until he screams...his vocal cords can literally pierce your ears all the way to your brain].....well, he's become quite attached to his blankie. i'm glad because i know that sometime in the near future, when i muster up the courage, we will be taking his bedtime passy away. i actually tried to on a whim once, and was not mentally prepared for the raging fit he threw...so he won that little battle. [don't judge me, i know its pathetic, but i'm not kidding when i say that "i" was NOT ready]. i will have to really prepare for that. when that day comes, i want him to have something that he's attached to...to help with that transition. anyway....he's attached to this blankie. but he's sooo funny about it. 90% of the time, he wants his shirt off. he'll come up to me, pulling at the bottom of his shirt, and say, "i take a shirt off mommy? can i, mommy? can i, mommy?" [its really quite sweet] ....but then he will walk back out, with this blanket wrapped around his shoulders. and that's where it stays!! he will color, and play with his toys, and eat...everything is totally normal, but that blanket must be around his shoulders. i don't really know why he started that, but its one of his funny little quirks.

[side note: its also really funny when he's going to sleep, he has to be holding the tag of his blanket...he will run the edge of the blanket all the way around until he finds the tag, then that's what he holds as he goes to sleep...so cute.]

this is pretty common...

2010-05-31T15:19:00.002-05:00

this is a pretty common sight in our house. andy picking up a few tips from joey...and the boys wanting to be a part of that. they are constantly trying to tune their guitars (but they won't hold a tune)...logan has asked for 'a new guitar that sounds better'. :) at least he can hear that its out of tune! (and yes, 95% of the time, the little boys are shirtless)

my little scholar....

2010-05-31T14:55:00.004-05:00

logan has really developed his reading skills, and was showing some interest in reading the bible. one day, andy found him sorta reading his bible, and was pretending to write in it. he'd turn a page, and mark something up...but with a pretend pen, and all. andy asked what he was doing, and he said, "i'm doing my homework".....i guess he's been watching andy (in school at DTS) who has a lot of homework that is bible oriented. :) andy told logan that he could write in his bible "for real" if he wanted. logan's eyes widened and he got really excited. so andy taught him that when you are reading, if you see a word that is repeated...you can circle it...or if you find something that means something special to you, underline it....or if you think the word means something good, mark it....
well, logan is highly organizationally oriented, so this concept thrilled him. and after about an hour, this is what his bible looked like:

he started in the book of acts, cuz that's where they were in sunday school. andy told him that when he wakes up in the morning, he can stay in his bed, and read his bible...and even gave him a flashlight in case it was too dark to read. this only worked for a couple of days, as we noticed the evenings were becoming a struggle, and we could tell he was just exhausted. we had no idea what time he was actually waking up....it could have been like 5am....so we had to make a new rule and take away the flashlight, and said that he could only read if it was light enough in his room. that has worked much better. he has a pen attached to his bible, and still leaves it in his bed...and even works on it during the day some. he's currently in chapter 7.
So, the other funny part is that a few chapters into acts, he asked andy what he was reading...andy told him romans, so he decided to give that a shot.
this is romans:

after the first couple chapters, he decided it was a little confusing and too much, so he told andy he was going back to acts. :):)

these are the days....

2010-05-31T14:52:00.002-05:00

...i'm grateful for my brother....

every other week we take the boys to a friends house while we go on a date, and they are already asleep when we pick them up, so they usually konk out in the car too...but i thought this night was especially sweet....

kindergarten roundup

2010-05-31T14:48:00.002-05:00

Logan was 1 of 4 kids in his class who was chosen to sing in the performance at kindergarten roundup. and since ian is headed for kindergarten next year...we got to be there to see him!! ian is officially registered for school next year! he is thrilled!!

mothers day

2010-05-09T20:24:00.003-05:00

one proud momma...

i am so blessed to have 3 perfect little men in my life....i had a wonderful mothers day...we actually 'celebrated' on saturday night...the boys took me to "fuddruckers"...a family favorite. then when we got home, the boys each presented me with a present they had picked out all by themselves...
logan had picked a yellow journal (actually quite cute)...and as he handed it to me, he said "i thought maybe you could write some of your recipes in this"...yes, i got a little choked up at his thoughtfulness.
ian picked out a little princess coloring page...because being the only girl, of course, i love princesses....he also suggested bringing home some flowers, which are proudly displayed on my table right now.
tysen picked some yellow socks...which he proceeded to wear all night long...:)

this year was super special...i think now that they are older, they seem to understand it a little more, and really get into it....and i love that andy takes them out and lets them pick something all on their own....

thank you, Lord, for my sweet, sweet boys...

chocolate popcorn

2010-05-06T12:25:00.003-05:00

this is chocolate popcorn. how can we increase the amount of calorie and sugar consumption with a bowl of popcorn? just dump a package of melted chocolate chips on top...o my gosh...this is sooo good...but not something i can leave lying around.

i got the idea from my friend, molly. we were talking about teacher gifts and wanting something new to bake for them....she suggested bagging it up cute with a blockbuster giftcard...pretty cute!

1 bag of popcorn

1 bag of chocolate chips (i use ghiradelli which are amazing, but they also don't have milk!)

1/4c butter

melt the butter and chocolate chips. stir in the popcorn. drop onto a lightly sprayed wax paper...and let the chocolate harden!

i think next time i will use a lot more popcorn, cuz the best pieces are ones that just have a little chocolate on them. they are pretty heavily coated since this was the first time, but it might work even better to just drizzle the chocolate over the popcorn and stir a little....that way they don't get submerged in the chocolate.

i'm going to also try this with vanilla almond bark...the choc chips are good since they are milk-free for ian, but they don't harden as well as almond bark....make sure you have someone to give this stuff to....its very addicting!

i see it once again...

2010-05-06T12:21:00.002-05:00

people may get tired of this, but i never get tired of seeing the distinct differences between logan and ian. i want them to be different and their own person...but i'm still always very amused....i found these the other day...i literally laughed out loud, and then grabbed my camera.

one is perfectly straight...toothpaste pushed all the way up to the top...(logan's)

one is just squeezed...whatever and whenever...(ian's)

i'm still so curious to see where tysen lands in the midst of all this testosterone....

the baby is 2...

2010-04-21T13:21:00.005-05:00

Happy Birthday, Tysen!
2 years old!!! we took him breakfast in bed with birthday candles and sang happy birthday (as is our tradition)....he was soooo excited...that was fun to see him so happy. he blew out his candles and promptly ate his cereal bar...laying down... :)

we got him a camping chair (each of the boys have their own), and since he loves flip flops sooo much...we found some buzz lightyear ones for him. i'm pretty sure he hasn't taken them off all day! he also got a toy story beach towel, but he thought it was a blanket...he'll get to use that soon! :)

too soon...

2010-04-16T19:42:00.001-05:00

me: "ian, we do not draw on ourselves....only on paper"

ian: "ok, mom"

10 minutes later...

ian: "mom, can i just pretend that its hair all over my stomach?"

not much

2010-04-12T16:43:00.002-05:00

someone is not a big fan of 'time-out'...

my matching boys....

8 years...

2010-04-08T14:24:00.006-05:00

andy and i celebrated our 8 year anniversary on tuesday...and for the first time since we've been married...he made me dinner all by himself!! (he has cooked me breakfast many times, and he cooked a few times while dating, but this was the first solo attempt since we've been married) it was fantastic!!! it was sooo delicious, and we had such a great time just hanging out...after dinner we sat down and relaxed while watching my new favorite obsession "gilmore girls"....thanks for a great evening, babe!

he even made brownie pizza for dessert! he was sad cuz the chocolate and caramel sauces looked awesome, but after being in the fridge all ran together so it didn't look as cool....it did not affect the taste though! so yummy!!

different kids

2010-04-07T08:04:00.002-05:00

its still amazing every day how you can raise kids with the same two parents and the same techniques, and them turn out soooo different. one of my favorite examples was a few years ago...logan and ian used to love to play with money....ya know, just a big pile of pennies and such. they were argueing, so i split them up, and gave them each their own pile of pennies. i watched, very amused, as logan maticulously lined up each penny, and then made more lines and rows perfectly ordered. then right beside him, ian had handlfuls of pennies that he was dropping on his own head...and then he actually laid down in the pennies and moved his arms and legs as if he was making a snow angel in the pennies. so different!!!

i saw another key difference yestarday. when logan started pre-k, he was overly excited about the aspect of doing homework. i would venture to say giddy. he didn't get very much, but every time he had a coloring project or reading assignment...that was the first thing he did when he got home. pull out his project and finish it. he always had such a sense of accomplishment from those simple projects he called 'homework'.
well, ian has started pre-k. and he got homework yestarday. i assumed he would be thrilled, just like logan was with his first assignment. as we got in the car, i was excitedly talking about the 'homework' he had been given and said we could do it when we get home...as he buckled up in the car, he sighed and said, "i don't want to do it right now'....i was a little surprised, but gave him some space. he had, after all, just had a long 3 hours at pre-k! so after we had been home awhile, he was drawing in his notebook, and i reminded him of the coloring project he had from school. once again, sigh, then "i'll do that after i'm finished with this"....such a different response than i expected!
thankfully this morning, he finished one of the projects...making progress! :):)

laugh

2010-04-05T21:23:00.002-05:00

a big step in our world...logan can now take a shower all by himself! its so great...just hang in there all you moms of young kids...your time is coming, and yes...its marvelous!

so tonight, i went to get the shower ready (he doesn't quite know how to get the temperature right yet)...i saw him strip down, but when i turned around to let him in the shower, his underwear was there, but he was gone. i walked out calling his name...and found him standing completely naked in front of the fridge getting a drink of water. i kinda laughed, and said, "logan! what are you doing? in what world is it ok to come out here and get a drink-naked!"....he giggled, shut the fridge door, and headed toward the bathroom..."i don't know. naked world?"

ian's in pre-k!

2010-04-05T17:02:00.003-05:00

so, pretty much since ian was born, i've just had it in my head that i would hold him back a year (in the school sense) because his birthday is so late in august...everyone acts like its just a given to hold your kid back if he's a boy...i hadn't thought too much about it, i just figured we would. well, yestarday, it was brought to my attention that he actually might be ready for kindergarten next year. i'm not gonna lie...the thought threw me into a tizzy, since i hadn't really even considered it. i had also expected my sister-in-law (who will remain nameless), ya know...since she is a former kindergarten teacher...to tell me if he was ready.... so i shockingly turned to kyle (so much for remaining nameless), and said, "do you think ian's ready for kindergarten?" and she sorta shrugged, "yes...he'd be really bored in pre-k".....what??!!?? i was pretty stunned. maybe i rely too much on other's advice, but how am i supposed to know this stuff? i don't want to be that mom who thinks her kid is perfect....so i'd rather an expert tell me its ok go ahead and put him in kindergarten...well, she's learned her lesson, and now knows she doesn't have to be asked to give her advice. :):)
anyway...kyle suggested trying to get him in a pre-k program for these last 2 months of school to help get him used to it...so, i called today, and there was one spot open at an elementary school not too far from us. (i had hoped he could get in at logan's school, but they were full)...we went to fill out the paperwork, and we finished just before class was to start, and they said he could go ahead and start today! he was more than anxious, and seemed thrilled to get to 'go to school' (and said that he hoped there would be cool boys and pretty girls!)... he ran right in his teacher said that he did great! he actually had a lot to say about it when he got home...it was pretty cute to hear him tell me everything he did...
my head was spinning from it all happening so fast...but that's just me...when i decide i'm gonna do something, i want it done immediately....but i was still kinda surprised that he started today!
i think of all of us, tysen was most traumatized...he cried and screamed "no! E!! no!! E!!" while watching his brother walk away into the building...i felt so bad for him! (don't worry, he was calmed pretty quickly with a little music from highschool musical)
what a day!!!

Easter

2010-04-05T16:50:00.009-05:00

its so rare to find even the same style of shirts in tysen's and the older boys sizes, so i was thrilled to find these shirts at children's place! the same shirt, just all different colors...thankfully, i have an Easter tradition of getting them a new shirt for Easter...so i had an excuse to buy them one!

they insist on doing a funny face for every normal picture i take...:)

later, we invited a bunch of family out for a cookout and Easter egg hunt...here's ian showing ana how the chicken "poops" jelly beans!

after the egg hunt...

with granny...

my sweet bunch of boys...

we decided to not have a 'big' party for tysen's bday this year and just celebrate with the family...so here's my ty-man blowing out his 2 candles for his upcoming birthday. and he's been singing happy birthday to himself ever since!

eye doctor

2010-04-05T16:47:00.004-05:00

ian had an eye dr. appointment last week, and thankfully, we are able to start weaning him off his eye patch. it will still take 2 months, but its good to know he'll be done after that! (hopefully)

i had noticed tysen blinking kinda weird, so i wanted to get his eyes checked early, and the dr. said he looked good! he did remarkably well...i think he just liked climbing in and out of the chair.

it was kinda bright, and tysen wouldn't wear the disposable glasses the dr. gave him, so he wanted something a little more fashionable. :)

scavenger hunt

2010-03-30T19:36:00.003-05:00

a few weeks ago, a few of us girls got together and surprised our boys with a scavenger hunt. it was a big surprise to them all...and turned out to be super awesome! we each gave our 'other half' a clue, and they had to work out a crossword puzzle (about us) to figure it out! the clues led eventually led them to us at our favorite burger place in denton...RG Burgers...fun times!!!

the whole group after dinner!!

zoo day!

2010-03-30T19:31:00.006-05:00

this is a little late, but before spring break was over, we ventured out to the dallas zoo! we met up with cousin aubren and milia and the boys had a blast!

recent happenings....

2010-03-09T12:34:00.003-06:00

"use your words"...this is a phrase that is used constantly in my home, as tysen had tended to yell/whine/cry when he wants something. we have come a long way, and he is talking quite a bit for his age, and i'm so thankful for that. it has really helped our relationship. :) so...now that he is 'using his words' to communicate...we are still working on his volume level...which has been a source of stress in the past. the shrieking can put a strain on anyone...so another thing i say a lot is "use your sweet words"...and he will lower his voice and say it again quieter. its really pretty cute, though i wish we could just skip straight to the sweet words all the time instead of reminding him all the time...but like i said...we've come a long way!
SO...the other night, i said, "tysen, you need to sit down and eat your dinner". he promptly yelled "NO!" in his loudest, most rebellious voice. i immediately knelt in front him and very sternly said, "tysen joel, you do not speak to mommy like that" ....to which he replied in his quietest, high pitch, most sweetest voice, "noooo?"....he probably learned nothing cuz andy and i both started laughing.
oh, well, we try.

the boys love to get tysen talking, and ian will always asks a series of questions. today it was "tysen do you love mommy? do you love daddy? do you love 'e' (ian)? do you love 'low-low' (logan)?" ...i just sat there and smiled as tysen answered 'yeah' to each of them...then ian continued..."tysen, do you love God? do you love Jesus?" .....i just love that this kid includes God and Jesus right along side his family members...

i was folding the laundry and there was a 'little einsteins' shirt in tysen's pile. it had the word 'rocket' on the front... he lit up and said 'lil eseins'...and then...he proceeded to identify all the letters in the word 'rocket'. i was a little stunned, seeing as how i have not taught him any letters yet! he's not even 2! this happened to me the other day at my nieces bday party...he started pointing to letters on the wall banner, and identifying them....i couldn't believe it. so, i took him thru the alphabet, and he recognized 9 letters...i can't take credit...i'm pretty sure its all from his favorite show "super why"....

weird

2010-03-03T19:35:00.002-06:00

i just realized that everyone except myself and tysen are wearing the exact same clothes in my most recent posts...they were like 2 weeks apart...but weird that the boys (andy included) are wearing the same thing! :) [children's museum and family date posts]

children's museum

2010-03-02T19:45:00.011-06:00

last weekend we met up with some friends at the museum of nature and science. they have a great kids area with tons to do...and as you can see...everyone was well entertained!!

keaton and tysen riding the horses...

ian checking out the tarantula...

logan and luke playing in the tunnels...

ian and luke making bubbles...

the almost great shot of the family...(logan looks drugged)

i love this shot...such mutual adoration...

tysen taking care of max!

so it has begun...

2010-03-02T15:32:00.004-06:00

i found this sweet little note in logan's back pack... i held it up and said "what's this?". he looked nonchalantly at me and shrugged, and said, "yeah, emily told me to put that in my bag".

and this was the look i got when i asked him what he thought about emily's note....

family date

2010-02-18T22:29:00.009-06:00

thursday night is typically date night...we rotate with another family and one week they keep our kids, and the next week we keep their kids...in trying to make sure we (and our marriage) don't get lost in our 3 kids and crazy life...thursday night is set aside...and sacred.
tonight though, our fellow date night family had to postpone, and so we decided to do a family date instead.

i realize that 90% of the population would be sickened by our choice of restaurants, but andy and i both grew up eating there, and happen to still like it...and thanks to aunt carleigh, we had coupons for free kids meals (score!)....so off we went to eat dinner at pancho's! the boys love the dessert buffet and sopapillas... hopefully they will continue the pancho's traditions as they get older too...much to the dismay of most of our friends! :):)

you can't tell here, but we are seriously jamming out to the highschool musical 3 soundtrack.

gotta love that smile!

after dinner, we headed over to the mall soft play area for the free fun. the boys always have a great time there....logan is on the brink of being too big ...but he mainly follows tysen around and plays with him, so we're gonna milk it for all its worth!

and then ian wanted to take a picture of us...nice work, E!

I love my family!!

busting out the clippers...

2010-02-18T22:19:00.003-06:00

poor tysen...this is the 3rd time i've cut his hair in 3 weeks. i cut it the first time, then thought it would be cute to go a little shorter and spike the top...so i did that...then this week, just decided the sides weren't short enough, so i got the clippers out to buzz the sides...then decided i didn't want to mess with trying to fade into the top...so i buzzed the whole thing. what a trooper! it added some age to his baby face...he's definitely looking like a little boy! (and acting like one too, in case you haven't noticed how his right arm is decorated by a sharpie) ... later, we were looking at old videos with the boys, and there was one of logan when he was about this age with his hair buzzed, and logan said, "o look, ty-ty...you are singing"....i laughed and said, "nope, that's you, logan!" ....

o well....

2010-02-18T22:15:00.004-06:00

i guess this is what happens when you are a youth pastor...someone thought it would be funny to put a huge snowman in front of our porch...which fell over and made 3 GIANT snowballs...blocking our porch entrance...first time we've used our front door since we moved in a year ago!

bundled up...

2010-02-12T12:34:00.004-06:00

all bundled up enjoying the very rare snow! we broke the record in DFW for snowfall in 1 day --12.5 inches!!!!

snow day!

2010-02-11T12:29:00.004-06:00

as much trouble as it is to get 3 boys ready for the snow...they sure loved it! tysen was a little unsure, and was the first one ready to go inside...he wanted to go watch 'frosty the snowman'...but the older boys had a blast!

granola

2010-02-10T14:41:00.002-06:00

well, i've been experimenting with granola recipes....i'm not sure what i was expecting, but my goal was really to have a healthy snack. i actually thought of it when i got a parfait from mc'ds and the granola was really good mixed in, so i wanted to try making it on my own...and just in time to package up for valentine gifts for teachers! so i started looking at several recipes, and just sorta used what i wanted and created my own 3 recipes...

what i realized was that i wasn't a huge fan of what i guess is normal granola? there doesn't seem to be a lot of taste and i was expecting a sweetness (like the granola cereal i've bought before)...it was good in my berry yogurt this morning, and was super filling, so i liked that aspect. but to just be able to munch on it by itself, i had to have a little sugar in it...so here was the winning recipe for me!! :)

sweeet almond granola:
4 c oats
1 c almonds
7 Tbls brown sugar
2 Tbls cinnamon
1/2 c light pancake syrup
1/2 c apple juice
1 tsp vanilla

mix the dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, then pour the wet on the dry, and mix till its all coated...then put the mixture on a jelly roll pan (sprayed with pam). bake at 250 degrees for one hour...stirring the granola every 15 minutes. when you first take it out of the oven, its not crunchy, but as it cools, it will get its crunch on!! :)

**there are tons of different things you could add to make it your own...i added dates in one of my recipes, and it worked really well (just wasn't sure of the date/cinnamon combo-so i left it out of this one)...you could add all kinds of nuts or dried fruit. but if you add dried fruit, you add it after its done cooking!

this was a winner! i think this is what i was looking for in the idea of granola for a snack for the boys. i wish i didn't need the sugar to make it tasty...but i figure that it still gets good grains and protein in them....