Sending Happy Birthday Wishes to My Mom and My Sister Jenny this weekend!

My videos on this camera always turn out a little dark but as you can hear Walter and Rose E are singing "Happy Birthday" and when Walter decided he was done he ran out of the room and Rose E who was sitting in her booster seat said "down down bye bye."

Hope everybody had a good Turkey Day!

Rose E went up in the world as for she decided it was time to graduate out of the highchair and join the other kids for our yummy Thanksgiving meal! After the meal was done all of the kids got into playing Lego's, I took this picture of Rose E joining the crew. Walter has been really into his Duplo blocks lately so I wasn't surprised that he sat there for a long time and worked on his "airplanes".

This picture was taken on Friday, the kids where all dressed-up because they got their picture professionally taken with their cousins (they actually got them all to smile at once). Then afterwards we went to Mc Donalds and when we pulled up Rose E said excitedly "fries."
Friday night we walked to see Santa whom arrived in the firetruck (in the picture Ariel and Walter are waiting to see Santa). Rose E was definitely more into the firetruck than Santa as for she screamed when we walked away from the fire truck to sit on his lap and then screamed when she sat on the big guy's lap. Walter though bravely went up onto his lap and said "I want Geo Trax for Christmas." However, Rose E now does recognize Santa. Tonight I read her Twas the Night Before Christmas and she said "Santa" when she saw a picture of him and when I said what does he say she said "ho ho ho." I asked Walter where Santa lives and he said "somewhere where he makes lists."

Here are some Thanksgiving greetings from the kids:

Walter included the song "Jesus Loves Me"

And Rose E's turned out a little dark but you can still hear her attempt at saying "gobble, gobble" (while she is holding a toy turkey) and her song which is "ABC" (she now says the entire song).

Hope your Thanksgiving is filled with lots of sunshine, love and laughter (p.s this sun was created by Walter and makes me smile when I see it)!

This is what the kids have been up too the past couple of days. I took out this train whistle and now they have been going on lots of train rides around our house. We all have to get in a line hold hands and say "woo woo ding ding" according to Rose E. The picture was taken by Walter. This girl just cracks me up as for everything has to be a certain way. Our kitchen stools have spindles that periodically pop out of place, anyway, yesterday one fell to the ground and she came running to me and said "come on mess, mess" and then she pointed to it and said "uh oh." She is understanding and saying so much! Tonight as I was taking her upstairs to bed she gave hugs and kisses to Jeff and then as we where going upstairs she said "good night" so I called out to Jeff "Rose E says Good night" and then she said "Mama say Daddy Good Night." Sometimes it is cute too to see as they discover new things. The other day we bought filters for our humidifier which we hadn't set-up yet and when she saw the humidifiers in the store she signed is that a fish tank? Yesterday too we where reading a book and she pointed to a xylophone and when I said what it was she signed phone and said hello??? I can't imagine how confusing certain things must be to them.

Oh and other big news here is that we traded in our van for a Suburban. Walter is funny about parting with big items and did not want to say good bye to the van so when Jeff told him the plan he said "I don't want a Suburban that is junk to me." He was in opposition too when we traded the four wheeler in for the Ranger but once he got to ride on it he was happy. Anyway, he is finally getting used the idea of having a different vehicle and is now making Suburban maps.

News and views from this week!

This weekend Walter went to his first friend Birthday party and loved it. His good friend Cyrus whom is a month older is turning four, It's so hard to believe, wow time flies! Anyway, Happy Birthday Cyrus!
We also got together last night with Jeff's family and said good bye to his Grandma for the winter (she is going to be mostly down state Michigan with Jeff's aunt and her family). We hope she has a good winter and will miss her here! She is in the picture with Jeff's Aunt Mary, Jeff's cousin Johny, Walter, Brady, Cale, Rose E and Kirsten.

These kids imaginations have just been soaring this week and it is just amazing to me what makes those wheels roll! Here Walter and Rose E where making "mountains, hills and tunnels" out of the rug and as you can see Walter was in deep thought trying to plan the whole thing out. Rose E still loves digging through my spices and now says "spice," anyway, I had to laugh because they have now turned into a team as for Walter had a spice bottle in each hand the other day and used them as "headlights" as he flew around as an "airplane." Rose E watches his every move and imitates him, it's so cute.

Oh and there's no throwing away any boxes in this household, not in front of Walter at least. Here he was a "fire truck" and Rose E was right along with him saying "whee woo whee woo."

Speaking of imitating, Rose E has now caught on to the puppet thing and is now going around with the puppets and saying "hi" yesterday she came-up to me with the puppet and said her usual "hi" and I said "oh hi zebra what have you been doing today?" She replied "playing" and today she was making it jump while saying "hop hop." This week she has added so many words to her vocabulary list, it's so much fun and exciting to hear them, sometimes I am just floored at what she picks-up. Walter too. He has been into playing "pet doctor" and has put band aids on all of his pet stuffed animals (as well as listened to their heartbeats, given them x rays, shots, etc.) anyway the other day when I was giving Rose E a bath he noticed a spot where she scratched herself a couple of days before hand and he said "mama we should put a band aid on Rose E's scratch then she'll be as good as new." Oh which reminds me Rose E had her 18 month doctor's appointment this week too, which went well but she was just besides herself whenever the nurse or the doctor came near her she just screamed. Then she got a shot and when got to the van and she said sadly "shot." Little smarty pants. It's amazing what she picks up on and remembers, she has this toy phone that sings to her when she talks on it so the other day when she talked to my sister on the phone she said "hello" and then "sing?" (hello where is the music here?). Another cute thing she did was when she got up from her nap I said "where's my kiss?"(asking her to kiss me) and she pointed to my lips.

Walter made this hat at Cyrus's Birthday party and he isn't the only one digging it! She is wearing it like a visor, upside down, side ways and as a necklace. What a goof. Oh and she is now looking in the mirror and saying "me!" As well as drawing pictures of "babies." They both are getting too big too fast!

Happy Birthday Colton!

Wishing my nephew Colton a very Happy Birthday. Hope you dig in and enjoy that cake and have lots of fun with your new toys this weekend.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas (so why isn't it coming yet?)

It is getting to be a winter wonderland here again. Last time I mentioned it in my blog I meant to go back and note that it did start to stick and we had a good amount on the ground but by the time we returned from our trip it had all melted and now it's back. It started on Sunday morning and began to come down like fake looking small pebbles of white, on our way out the door to church Walter said "mama what is happening to our universe?" Then today we ran some errands and it was cold and windy, the wind gushing the snow around and I looked at Walter and he was blowing air out of his mouth and I said "what are you doing?" He said "I'm blowing the wind away." They are both excited about the weather change, Rose E excitedly says "snow" and then "brr" whenever we go outside and Walter is asking "why isn't it Christmas yet?" Oh and speaking of Christmas, every time Rose E sees Christmas ornaments in a store she excitedly exclaims "ball" I can just imagine what is going through her head when she sees a whole tree of balls!

Money doesn't grow on trees (oops I mean chips don't grow on trees).

Today Jeff brought out his trumpet and played some music for the kids so Walter used his horn and said he was playing the "trump"while "reading the music." He also made me smile at lunch time we have been talking a lot about where fruits and vegetables grow so when we had chips with our meal and his got wet on his plate from his carrots he said "when they pulled these chips off of the chip tree they where still wet when they put them into this bag." What a goof! Rose E has been singing "la la la la la Elmo's world and now when she sees a book or something else with Elmo in it is called "Elmo's world" and Elmo is called "Elmo's" and I am now called "Mama's."

Lots of pictures = lots of fun!

This week we spent a couple of days in Green Bay. We got to do some shopping and had a nice visit with Dan, Amy and Ariel. Walter was of course thrilled that we ate at two train depot restaurants, in this picture he and Ariel are looking out the window at a passing by train.
Jeff's mom came with us too. Here is a photo with Rose E with Grandma and Auntie Amy.

Walter was so excited that he finally got to spend his chore money on new Geo Trax. He had fun setting it up with his cousin Ariel too. They are now "best friends" and Walter keeps talking about how much he misses him.

And here they are again with their Minnesota sweatshirts on.

Now some pictures of these goofs on the home front!

I guess a trip to Green Bay wasn't enough as for the kids have been giving Jeff a work-out, oops I mean their new elephant a work out! In the picture Walter was a kid elephant.

Jeff's also created some monsters in the house. The kids got a kick out of these paper bag masks that he made for them

and Rose E now says "roar"!

Don't you just love the three eyed monster too! These kids are always making us smile that is for sure!

Oh and here is little miss shopper with her purse around her neck. In the malls she kept saying "pretty" and "please?" She is holding her new toy a "baby" of course.

Last but not least, Walter refused to let me put the last of our luggage away (well the playpen) along with our vacuum because they where made into "a semi truck hauling Rose E's car to the museum" (I guess it must be considered an antique now).

Oh no not yet!

I declare that I am not yet ready to say good bye to this green stuff! Yesterday we watched out our window as the city crew hung-up Christmas decorations on the poles and my first reaction was no no no it is too early for winter to come and then I thought I suppose next month is Christmas already and of course then it snowed all day today! So far it hasn't stuck but that will come soon enough and then we will be looking at this white stuff for another six months.
This little girl sure does know how to dig in and she not diggin those bibs anymore (she has figured out how to get them all off from Velcro to button to tie). Anyway, her Daddy thought he'd make light of the situation since she was going to be a bathing beauty when lunch was finished and gave her a little heart with my name inside on her arm. I have to laugh too because after so many meals lately I have to change her clothes, anyway within the five minute time frame between when I clear the table and take her upstairs to put clothing on her someone shows up at our door. It has happened twice now in the past couple of weeks people are going to start thinking that I don't dress this kid! Oh and speaking of clothes, today she made me laugh because I wore a plaid shirt that I hadn't worn in a while and she pointed to it and said "that is Daddy's!" Lately too whenever she will see a princess she will say "baby" since they are usually dolls, anyway, now when she sees our wedding picture she points to me in my dress and says "baby" (the even funnier thing about it is it used to be "mama"). I know I keep saying this but every day it is just amazing me at the new words coming out of her mouth, some new ones lately have been "cookie," "balloon" "backwards" "M and M" and "read." She is also now correcting me! I used to add her name into patty cake instead of baby, anyway at playgroup she heard the verse as baby and now when we get to that part she will stop me and say "b!" "baby."

I had to take this picture too of my little love bugs, Walter tried to talk me into letting him sleep with her tonight however, I knew neither one would be getting much sleep so I let them snuggle for a bit. He has been protective of her too lately (well at times). The other day she fell and I think he was more upset then she was. Yesterday he made me laugh because he called out to me "mama you'd better come quick I dead a bug" and then I came running there and it was just a mark in the wood on our hardwood floors. So dramatic!

These are a few of my favorite things

Okay, this picture didn't turn out the best but I had to note that anyone who knows Walter knows that one of his favorite things to do is jump, so as you can imagine he was thrilled when we pumped up his bouncing ball. Man that boy has strong legs! I tried it a few times and was it ever a work out but he hopped around with ease of course!

And speaking of favorite things, trains of course are on the top of his list. Tonight he and Daddy had fun as Daddy made him some stamps made from potatoes. He made a train, semi truck and star. We told Walter that next week we are planning on taking a trip to Green Bay so he added them to his "map so Daddy knows how to get to the hotel."
He doesn't miss a beat! I have been having to read to him what some of these election signs say as we go past them so yesterday just out of the blue during lunch he said "Daddy does two go too far?" Oh and speaking of walking, I had to laugh on our way back from the library the other day we walked past a big dog and he said "mama why our dog not growing any more?" I had to take this picture of Rose E as for she decided to add her own personal touch to her clothing today. She is a sticker queen and takes a considerable amount of consideration in where each one should go.
She has been into singing songs lately too, it is the sweetest thing to hear. Her favorites are the ABC's, Ring around the Rosie, Elmo's world, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Rock a Bye Baby and some of her newest words have been " Eating", "Sing" "uh oh," "splash," and "stuck." She is also taking great pride in her new phrase "that is mine!"

While we are on the topic of MINE, this is her new and favorite toy. I can not believe the amount of time she has spent with this baby. It has snap on clothes and hats and also came with a tiny crib. She will say while playing with them, "baby hat" and "Baby lie down" and "bed." And speaking of bed, it has gone to bed with her for every nap and evening for the past couple of days too. A true little girl indeed.

Happy Birthday Brady!

Last night we celebrated Brady's 1st Birthday, where does the time go? Here he is with his cake.
Here's the Birthday boy while opening presents


and here are Rose E and Brady playing with his new toys. It is cute because they are starting to interact with each other a little more. This morning when Rose E woke-up she said "baby Brady?" Walter loves playing with his cousins too. Yesterday when I told him that we where going to celebrate Brady's Birthday he said "that will be awesome" (those big boy expressions coming out again). Then on the way there he kept saying "are we there yet?" (even though he knows the route to their house).

Trick or Treat!

For Halloween we made the rounds with local family. After we where all done Walter said "mama where did all those people who I love get all of that candy?" This is with their cousins Kirsten, Cale and Brady. As you can see miner Walter was wearing a "munchache (mustache) and beard.
Here we are visiting Grandma at work, Princess Rose Ella would say "trick or treat" in the van but as soon as it was time to say it she was as quiet as could be.

Here they are getting goodies with Papa.

Here they are with Oma and Opa (Great Grandma and Grandpa)

and here they are with Great Grandma.

Afterwards Walter helped hand out candy, we had over a hundred kids this year. Even though it has been four years since I taught, some of my old students still come to our house which is fun. It makes me feel old though as for some of them are getting pretty big now.