Beach Trip!

      Beach Trip 2015 included great family time, no seaweed and calm waters. Thank you, Lolly for a great time! We had fun swimming and playing in the sand. Brant fished with Warren 2 mornings and one afternoon with little luck, but I think he got his fishing fix...for a few weeks anyway. Jeffrey and I took long, much needed naps each afternoon. Warren, Brant and I took all the kids to the Texas State Aquarium on Saturday, which was hot and crowded!
     Jeffrey liked for me to make "sand castles," (a series of wet clumps of sand,) that he would bulldoze with his toys over and over. He also tried to get to the bigger boys' big sand castles and they had to protect their forts! They were so great with him. He wanted to sit right up next to Jonah a lot and asked where Jonah was a lot. When they would go deep in the water to play, he thought he was just one of them and would head out that way!  He also hung out and played with Hannah and lot in the evening water. It was a good time.
     During the week, Jeffrey began singing "Life is a Highway," (it is in his favorite movie!) It's really the first song he has thought to sing himself and randomly sings. Also, Hannah noticed the reason that he squats down when he says, "ready, set, go!..." He thinks it's Ready, SIT, go, so he sits and then shoots up and takes off running. He loves his Daddy's truck. He lights up when we enter the garage and it is there, gasp, "Daddy's home!" and when seeing it in a parking lot, "That's my Daddy's Truck." We are very proud of and love Daddy so much!!!

 

 Blowing Bo kisses for his birthday wishes

 Hanging with the boys

With Nathan, playing a game with the boys

 

Another New Adventure!

     We're having a baby! We were incredibly surprised to learn on Mother's Day that I am pregnant! What an amazing Mother's Day gift that was! Surprise, Surprise, or "prise, prise" as J says! Jeffrey is going to be wonderful big brother to his little brother...yep, it's a boy! When I first put the due date into the "pregnancy calculator" on my baby website, it said January 8, my birthday. Doctor's due date is January 12. Such a blessing these two are!

     We put this shirt on him and went to my mom's house one Saturday morning. She didn't notice even after picking him up. I said, "Jeffrey wanted to show you his new shirt." Exciting. Then we went to Jen and Mark's house and they didn't notice either. They were wondering why Mom was with us and Jen was concerned. Then, finally they noticed. I loved Lainey's gasp and Bo, "so, wait, Jeffrey has a big brother?" Heehee. That was fun. John and Katie were in town on a Tuesday, so we all met at Mom's for dinner and they took a while to notice too. Katie was the first to see. Then "what what," gasp from John. They are expecting their baby December 4 and it's a boy too!!!

     Brant's parents came to babysit so we could have a date the following Saturday. Gram got him out of his bed after his nap and brought him out where we were visiting, not noticing his shirt for what seemed like 20 minutes. She said, "now what does your shirt say?..." big smile, looked at me and Brant, then turned Jeffrey around to show Grandpa. We wanted to tell Aunt Shari in person, but it would have been too long because we didn't know if we'd see them before the beach at the end of July. I started showing quickly and with pictures on Facebook and time ticking, we were texting and we sent her Jeffrey's sweet "baby in mama's tummy...prise, prise," video. (Surprise, surprise!) Then of course, she called immediately. 

 

 

This Kid!

    
I am absolutely loving each second with this child. He continues to amaze and make us laugh all the time. He can talk in complete sentences, (5 words or so.) He can point to pictures and objects while counting to ten, (one-to-one correspondence!) I was looking for a missing shoe in my closet for about 5 whole minutes. I showed him the shoe on my foot and explained that I needed to find the match and he found it in about 10 seconds. He lost his "Little Mater" toy for about 3 weeks and asked everyone, everywhere we went where Little Mater was, (daily in Colorado, and I had to explain everywhere else we went.) Brant broke down and ordered him a new one. The day it came in the mail, he snuck it in his pocket before coming inside. It fell out while we were eating dinner. Oooooh, what a surprise. The next night, Jeffrey found the original one behind furniture where I know we looked. Ha. Now he has two!
     When I read to him before bed, for the past few weeks, he says, "I want Jesus!" (Love!) I sing Jesus Loves Me and he says, "I want another Jesus." I sing Jesus Loves the Little Children. Then he says either "More Jesus!" or "New Jesus!" and I sing Shout to the Lord, What a Friend We Have In Jesus or any other ones that come to mind. I'll sing my heart out all night long!!!
     Yes, he is two and he can be difficult at times. I am so thankful that we are rarely ever in a hurry and that I can tell myself, "it's ok, we have time, be patient," and really think things through. We sat in the car for ten minutes today because he refused to get in his car seat. He sits in time out a couple of times a week. He is becoming head strong, but I wouldn't want it any other way! This is what is supposed to happen! He is growing up!

 While Little Mater was missing, he used various things, (this is my phone cord,) for a "tow hook"

 About once a week, I allow this to happen in the backyard. DIRTY!!! On this day I looked out while cooking dinner and he had a bloody nose. When I asked him what happened it was no biggie, "Lacey."

 He waited SO patiently on this day for his shaker and was the very last kid to get one. Sweetie.

 Excited, running back to me, ready for the shaker song!

 About one summer afternoon each week looks like this. Quiet and peaceful in the yard!

 Our morning walk usually includes lot of deer and nature-type things. This was a very exciting day-FOUR cement mixers, pouring and busy building a house.

 Jonah and Nathan read SO MANY books to J in the short time we were together last weekend

 Watching the games

Playing with his cousins, (I love this picture!)

Uncle John's 30th birthday!