Tate is two tomorrow!!!!

My baby will turn 2 tomorrow.  Ben, Peyton, and I love our little guy so much.  He is silly and loving all of the time.  He is independent and creative and wants to be just like the big boys in his life.  There are so many little things I love about him.  I love the way his face lights up when he sees me and how he runs as fast as he can to give me a hug. I love the way he turns my face towards him so I can give him a kiss.  I love the way he sticks my hair in his ear when he is tired and wants to snuggle.  I love how he plays with his cows, horses and tractors quietly in his room.  Most of all, I love the joy in his face when he does something correctly...he claps his little hands and waits for all of us to do it with him.  Brothers really are the best of friends and I am so happy I have two little boys....Peyton and Tate have so much fun together.

To celebrate Tate's birthday, Grandma Mary and Joey came for a visit.  We were hoping that Ben and I would be able to go on a date...but it is recruiting season...so that did not happen.  We had a party for Tate and he loved all of his presents.  He got a really cool plasma car from Godparents Pat and Judi.  He got a fishing pole, clothes, and leap frog alphabet game from Grandma.  We saved our presents for him tomorrow...but his biggest present was his new BIG BOY BED!  Tate started sleeping in his new bed about a month ago.  He loves it and has slept the best he ever has.  YAY for this mom!!!  Tate's favorite part was the cupcakes...he does have a sweet tooth!  You should have seen P and T dive into the 2 inches of frosting on the top...priceless. 

Overall, we had a great weekend and the boys enjoyed all of the extra attention.  I enjoyed all of the extra help with my laundry! 

Has it really been six months....

I can't believe the last time I posted it was September!  I think it is clear just how busy we are during the season.  Luckily...all but recruiting is left.  Signing day is coming soon...and I can't wait!  We do get to see Ben a lot more now, but there are several weekends coming up with recruits already scheduled to come.  I hope everyone he is wanting to come will sign themselves up!

The boys are growing like crazy.  Peyton's 4th birthday in January was a great day and Tate will be 2 very soon!  It is hard to believe that we have been in Maryville for 2 years.  It is finally starting to feel like we belong here...which is wonderful.

Having two little guys means lots of fun outside when the weather is nice.  Peyton and Tate LOVE to be out as much as possible.  They got a John Deere Gator from Santa for Christmas and absolutely love riding it on our road in our development.  We have lots of little boys in the neighborhood to play with as well.  It seems like there is always someone outside to play with.  I love seeing Peyton's little friendships develop.  He will have so much fun in preschool. His preschool picnic is this Thursday...so it will be neat for him to be able to check things out.  Since Peyton is going to preschool next year, we thought it would be best for Tate to do something new as well.  Tate will be going to a fabulous new in home daycare.  I have had my name on her waiting list for 2 years...and he is in!  I can't wait for him to have some new opportunities with friends and other toys.  I think he will have a blast....hopefully the transition will go smoothly! 

This weekend, we planted our garden...well...actually Ben planted, while I gave rides on the lawn  mower...haha.  P and T are huge John Deere fans...and since we were working with things from our downstairs garage...they saw the mower.  Peyton was good with planting for about five minutes and then told Ben he wasn't sure he liked that job.  I think the garden will be much more fun when things start sprouting!  Today is very (annoyingly) windy.  We were going to plant our strawberries, but I think it will wait until we won't get dirt blown into our eyes. 

I am going to post some pictures from our most recent photo shoot...and do a much better job of updating this!!!

Busy Boys!

I have to say...being a mom of two BOYS is a lot of hard work. Ben and I have noticed that we rarely get to sit and relax...which of course is good and fun etc...but at times...exhausting! Above is the new picture one of my student's mom took of the boys two weekends ago. She did a really great job and we had a lot of fun taking them with her. I will post more soon!!!

That same weekend, Mary and Mary Rose came down for a shopping extravaganza. :) We went to Zona Rosa to celebrate Mary Rose's birthday a little early. Dillards had 70% off summer shoes. SERIOUSLY! Who can resist that? I couldn't. Mary couldn't... Mary Rose could...she found some fabulous new birthday shoes for full price. She hasn't bought into Mary and I's philosophy of always going with the intention to save more than you spend. We had lunch at Tom Fooleries and coffee at Latteland before heading home. A big thank you to Ben for taking the boys all day so I could have a little retail therapy. It was exactly what I needed and so much fun.

This weekend was much more low key. I have a pretty nasty little cough going on and I couldn't talk at all on Saturday. ROUGH for me...because I love to talk. Tate has it too...we went to the doctor today and luckily we just have a virus...so we will get better. He did have a little infection in the one ear, but because of the tubes, we will be able to treat it with no problems.

In other news, I am no longer blonde...I am a nice little shade of brown. My students were pretty shocked...I was pretty shocked...but I think it looks OK. No one has said it looks terrible, so hopefully they are telling me the truth. I actually feel a little smarter...OK maybe not...but it is a good change!!!

Have a super week!!!

Weekend photos

So, I am not great at uploading photos in the correct order... I also did not get any pictures of Grandma Mary! I am not the best photographer!!!

In the Jungle...

Tate, Joey and I after a long day at the zoo....

Peyton heading to the water...

Our Sandcastle!














Ben and Tate building, while Peyton ventures off to the water...

Ben and Tate at the aquarium

Ben and Peyton with the bears.

Labor Day Weekend Fun

We have had a busy and fun filled weekend! I have been wanting to go to the Omaha Zoo with the kids all summer. Unfortunately, it was way too hot for most of the summer for that idea to even sound fun. BUT, the weather cooled off, and since we had three days this weekend instead of two, I thought it would be a great idea. Ben was a little concerened about missing college football Saturday, but ended up agreeing to go! On the way there, we called Uncle Joey to see if he wanted to join us since he lives in Lincoln...and then called Mary to see if they would like to join us too! Mary Rose had to work and Roger was busy, but Mary was able to meet us. Meeting inside the zoo was a little crazy...but we ended up finding each other and having a great time. Our favorite exhibits were the tiger mom and her new baby, the aquarium with the sharks, and the bears. We were all very exhausted when we got home!!!

Yesterday started off kind of lazy, because we were all so tired from the zoo....I cleaned a lot of the house and started organizing closets. I think I might have a slight problem with organizing things. I start and then can't stop. Yesterday it was the boys' closets. I started taking the too small out and rearranging what was left. Then I started going through the tub in Peyton's room of too small to see if there was anything that Tate could wear this winter. Suddenly I found myself in tears because of some of Peyton's clothes. Peyton has gotten so big in the last 6 months...he is bigger physically and has grown a ton...but also mentally...he understands and talks like a big boy. Seeing his little gray sweatpants that used to be so big on him that he wore all of the time made me sad. I wish I could keep my boys little forever...I am not ready for the world to be mean to them and for them to experience life events that are less than perfect. So, when going through all of the too small clothes and the too big clothes, I made a promise to myself to really enjoy every moment we have with the kids when they are the age they are now. Soon Tate will be growing out of those same gray sweatpants...

SO...to enjoy the boys yesterday, we took them to the Mozingo Lake beach. I am SOOOOO glad I didn't try this adventure alone this summer.... They were both little sand monsters and were covered from head to toe with sand. We played in the water, built a fabulous sand castle and then rolled in the sand and buired Peyton's feet in the sand. It was a really fun afternoon...and also made me so THANKFUL that my own sandbox at home is filled with soybeans instead of sand! I can't imagine having that sand mess at our house!!!

Peyton was invited to his friend Derrick's house to play this morning. Derrick is 4, and they have the BEST time together. We had him over on Thursday night. So, this morning, Ben and I have been doing little odd jobs around the house...It is so much easier with one little boy instead of two! I really can't remember life before Tate...but no wonder I was able to keep everything together and clean so much easier!!! :)

Back to the Routine...

Well...summer is officially over. Last Monday, I started back to work with meetings and other busy teacher "stuff." Our nanny from last year, Natalie, stayed with us all week to watch the kids. Tate is a BIG TIME mommy's guy...so the transition was a little hard for him...but he did better and better each day and by Friday, wasn't really sad at all. Our new nanny Megan came on Saturday so I could teach her how to watch the boys. I am probably kind of over the top with orientation to babysit...but it helps my peace of mind to know the boys are doing the same kinds of things with their girls as they would with me. Megan is an education major and is really nice and fun. She will be great...I have a really good feeling about her!

My class is great...I switched rooms...and I have a nice little group.

So, year two in Maryville...let's pray for a winning year and a lot of learning for my students! :)

30!

This past weekend, I turned the big 3-0. For the record...I do not feel any different. I actually can't believe I am really this old. I truly still feel about 24. :) That is a good thing, I suppose!

I was very well remembered on my day. Ben and the boys got me a treadmill! I have wanted one for a long time because it is so difficult to exercise with two boys and a basketball coach for a husband. Having a treadmill at home means I can run/walk anytime...I am taking full advantage of nap time until I have to go back to work! I love it. Peyton does to....he tells me that he needs to "get in shape" too.

Peyton also picked out a ring for me...he is so sweet. He told Ben he wanted to give me a ring like Dad did...so he found a red one... I love it. :)

My parents decided to come down on the 24th and help me celebrate. They brought Tate's sandbox and a bag of soybeans to use as sand. We have had SO much fun scooping them and teaching Tate how to keep them IN the box and not throw them OUT! We had a great supper together! The next day, my dad and Peyton went to HyVee to pick out a birthday cake and get ice cream. It was very nice. Then Mom and I went to check out the sales at a couple stores and I found some great jeans and a sweater! Thanks Mom and Dad!

After Mom and Dad left, we were invited to go to the lake with our neighbors. We were probably on the lake for 5 hours, and enjoyed tubing, swimming, and hanging out. Peyton LOVES tubing and our friends pulled two tubes...one that had three seats and one normal tube. We had 6 people tubing at once! SO fun! Our neighbor Jackie and I even went out. Of course, we were screaming...."slow down!" as the boys were saying, "go faster!" Tate loves the water and loves the boat ride as well. He gets in complete relax mode and falls asleep so easily!

Overall, it was a super day. 30 is going to be a great year!