Busy Boys with Birthdays, Building, Baseball, and Balloons!

This is going to be a SUPER long post!  Once again I am behind and it's not because I had nothing to blog about.  We have been BUSY!

Ready.  Set.  GO!

We had a few quiet nights a couple weeks ago.  It may have been the calm before the storm.  Storm meaning too many things to try to get to!  We had some coughs and fevers for about a day or two.  We took advantage of the couch snuggle time.

I even got Ashton to force a smile.  He wasn't feeling good at all!  We lucked out with only fevers though, as strep and pneumonia went through the daycare.

 There has been a lot of action by our house as they are preparing for the road to go to phase two of the development.  We go try to go back and see all the progress and look at this big trucks up close.  Most all other neighbors have the same idea.  The boys think it's pretty cool to go 4-wheeling with our neighbor Rob!

 This puts it into perspective of where the road is compared to our house.  We are the grey house past our neighbors fence.

 This is just not any dump truck.  It is an articulating dump truck... duh!

 As they clear for the road and some lots, they are logging about 6 acres.  Sad to see the trees go.  Some are close to our back area that we own, but there will be some BEAUTIFUL lots for sale!

 These two might as well live in the dirt.

 Those are some big tire tracks!

 It looks like a tornado went through where they are logging ;(

 These two little dirty boys were sliding down the dirt piles, face first on their bellies.  Can you imagine dirt in every little crack and pocket?  I can.

 When Aiden touched Rob, a cloud of dirt was on his knee...  dirty little boys!

 We lose track of time being outside, with our neighbors, and exploring.

 Heavy equipment and two little boys on their four wheelers.

 Two weekends ago, we had some help to build the boys' sandbox.  The kiddos needed a little snack.

 While Daddy, Grampa, and Uncle Dave did the hard work.

 There's a picture without their bike helmets on.  Looking back at pictures one would think the boys lived in these helmets.  Between biking and 4-wheeling they basically do live in them ;)

 Aiden likes to help and use tools.

 It's a pretty big sandbox, but will be built in stage to accommodate a tree fort and swing set.

 Two weeks ago, the boys had their very first friend birthday party to go to.  We know Jaxon's parents, but the boys also go to school with his younger sister, Tatum.  Jaxon is in the class ahead of the boys at school, but for some reason he LOVES seeing Adam when he takes and picks up the boys.  He wanted him to come to his party and said to bring Ashton and Aiden too.  ;)  It was a Batman theme, so the boys wore their capes Aunt Elly got them for Christmas.  So much fun!

 It was a beautiful day and a great group of kiddos!  The boys thought it was fun seeing some of their friends from school.

 Bouncing in the jump house.  Scary to just have seen on the news, the one that blew away with kids in it!!!  This one was staked down.  ;)

 Batman the Birthday boy... Jaxon turned 4.

 Ashton had fun being Superman AND Spider man.

Aiden liked being Batman.

 Lunch was great and playing was even better!

 Have you ever seen a Superhero swing?

 Batman and his cake.

 Tatum, Jaxon, Huntley, Monte, Ashton and Aiden.

Playing Superhero tag in the yard with their "Swords".

Jaxon had some fun toys to try out!

Suzie had Adam save some boxes and she created Gotham City!

Exhausted and ready for bed, but still wanting to be Spider man and Batman!

After climbing the dirt hills, the boys officially trashed their one and only pair of shoes.  They were not salvageable for school or "good" anymore, so off we went to the cities.  I like the Maplewood Mall for they have a kids footlocker and kids Journeys.  We have been talking a lot lately about being different and how it's okay to want different things.  Of course once it was down for them to make a decision on the shoes they wanted, both picked the same black Nikes.  Ashton's tie because he is in a size 11 (bigfoot) which pushes him to "youth".  Aiden's have Velcro because he is a size 10 and still in "toddler".  The spotted the Carousel and this was a real incentive to be good shoppers!

 I was almost certain Ashton would get scared when it started, but he didn't!  They both though it was pretty fun.  A great reward for two good little shoppers.

With the help of some very nice neighbors, we filled the sandbox this past week.  The boys were excited to get out their "Diggers" that have been in the basement in a box since January.  The Rueber's got them these for their birthday, and the LOVE them.

 With the weather getting warmer and night spent outside, what better than Nana stopping by with a cold treat?

 Last Wednesday was the last day of school picnic.  Don't ask where this last year went.  Next year the boys will do another year at Our Saviors in the 3/4 Room and then they are off to 4K in my school district.  They happened to be in the same class as Ryan, our cousin from my dad's side.  Tiana is older, but they also knew her from school.  It just so happened we also saw these two at my Grandma's 90th Birthday Party in the same week.  

 After the fact, I realized I forgot my camera AND I forgot to get a picture with the boys, me, and my Grandma.  Just a reason to visit again soon ;(

 The picnic was fun.  I snuck out of school on my prep and lunch to join Adam and the boys.  I feel left out as Adam was the flexible one to do both drop off and pick up two days of the week.  There are a lot of families that take their kiddos there that we know!  The boys though it was fun to see their teachers in a different setting.  They don't live in the basement at the school?!?!

 Bright t-shirts = easy to spot my kids in a park full of others!  They also like them because construction workers wear bright shirts.

 We were the parents to not bring their baseball stuff ;(

 Aiden can't be pushed high enough, and Ashton is getting a little more comfortable allowing you to push him.  "Just a baby push."

I had to leave early, but I got this text once I was back at work.

 This past Friday we had another Superhero birthday party.  Our friend Preston turned 4!  We went to his house for some Superhero Action.

 They had bunnies!!!  Nope - didn't bring anything home ;)

 They also had baby ducks.

 What could be more fun than a big trampoline.  I envisioned kids flying off and bloody lips from bumping heads, but they all jumped very safely!

 Trucks are always a hit.

 Getting some Batman ink from Reid, Preston's older brother.

  Before bedtimes and tired kids, we attempted a group picture.  It's so much fun watching all of our kids grow together!

 Ashton, Birthday Boy Preston, Aiden and Caz.

Friends.

 As the Littles were outside admiring Preston's toys...

 The Bigs were inside admiring Kevin's toys.

 Preston shared his truck...

 Before the end of the night, they rode around their neighborhood on the golf cart.  

Boys will be boys!

 Reid was great playing with the kids.  Volleyball!

 Scary thought of these three on a golf cart in 10ish years...

 Saturday we were invited out to some friends for a Memorial Day get-together.  How perfect was this?  

If you build it, they will come.

 The boys were in HEAVEN playing baseball with the "big kids."

 Two little blue shirts.  I could watch from far away and actually enjoy some adult conversation! 

 Brigs took care of Ashton and made sure he was included.

 Sedric made sure Aiden was taken care of.  They helped them bat, field, and run the bases.  

 We have not yet stopped hearing about "Sedric and Brigs" playing baseball with them.

Such good kids!

 So cool to have a full size baseball field in the middle of their farm!

 Such great kids, great friends we have, and great memories for the boys!

 Memorial Day we celebrated Nana's birthday with a grill out and a balloon fight.  Multiple balloon fights actually... we filled balloons three different times!  Finn joined us for the fun.

 The three littles going after Adam!

 I'm not sure is Ashton got Mike wet or if he caught it ;)

 While the balloons were being filled again for round two, there was some serious digging going on!

 Quiet, focused, playing together, and not fighting.  This could be a great summer!

 Aunt Elly was in on the second round of the balloon fight.

 Nana doesn't like to be in pictures, so these three little cuties posed for her.

 Finn, Ashton, and Aiden.  

They could be mistaken for triplets in our neighborhood.

Finn even calls Nana - Nana.

 Yum, Ice Cream cake!

 Gearing up for round three... the final round!

 We ended the night with some baseball played with Uncle Nate and Price, some s'mores on the fire, and bedtime.  Whew... exhausted!  Happy birthday Nana... we hope you wanted the excavators the boys picked out for you at Walmart, the balloon fight, and the sticky little kids eating your ice cream cake and making s'mores!  We love you.

In other news, pictures that are not cooperating from my phone...

*What do you do when an excavator gets stuck (just about buried) and you need another excavator to come dig it out?  Free entertainment, sitting in our neighbor's yard.

*What do you get when you have an awesome neighborhood and 3/4 being done with their school year (teachers and professors) and off for the summer?  Thursday night Cul-De-Sac Cocktails.  Don't drive down our road trying to be snoopy on Thursday nights... you will meet most of the neighborhood sitting in the cul-de-sac with lawn chairs having cocktails and watching the kids play!

I think that about sums it up... I'm sure I am missing most that I do not have pictures for.  Looking through pictures on my camera is often how I remember what we have done in the past few days!

8 more days left of school with kiddos in the classroom.  I survived yet another year at the Middle School, this being my first at 7th grade.  Next year I will be at 8th grade... scary.  Then loop back to 6th with a new buch of kiddos.

Thanks for continuing to check in... weekly posts are my goal but sometimes we get too busy creating these memories that I love to write about and share with you all!

Mother's Day 2014

Our two boys are growing up.  Every time they say something that I think I will remember, and if I don't write it down; I lose it.  This week I wrote down three things that I thought were worth remembering.  

The first was while we were driving home from Bonnie's:

Ashton:  "Mom, there a policeman over there, pull over!  I want a ticket.  

Me:  "No Ashy, I don't think we want a ticket.  Tickets are if you are doing something bad."

Ashton:  "Okay, well let's just pull up by him and say hi."

Me:  "No Buddy."

The same night while driving home, it started to pour.  Heavy Rain.  Flood the streets Rain.  The boys were very interested in the rain on my car.  Then Aiden got worried about a person caught in the rain.

Aiden: "Mom, it's raining out! It's raining hard. Look at that guy! He's in the rain and he better get in the house or he will drown."

The last story is Aiden being very interested in letters and reading.  Anytime he sees the ABC's he asks me what it says.  As we were leaving for pizza on Friday night, Aiden informed me that my car said Culver's.  The blue oval with FORD in it.  He pointed to it and said, "Mom, that says Culver's.  You have a Culver's kind of car."  No, I don't drive a Culver's kind of car, but he was close with the blue oval.  Culver's would be impressed with their logo recognition!

We love our neighborhood.  We are outside all the time and it's not too uncommon to see this on a nightly basis.  This is exactly what we wanted in a neighborhood with a cul-de-sac, but being only the second house built, we didn't know what we would get.  The boys wait for Finn to come outside, or Finn is waiting for us to come outside everyday.  They get excited the minute they see his garage door open.

 Finn has a four wheeler and I have yet to get a picture of all three of them riding.  Finn's is a hit with the boys as it is faster (by 1 mph).  They all do a great job sharing!

 Ashton showing me he is smiling with his cheek...

 If they aren't on the bikes, or four wheelers one of us is getting out exercise pulling the wagon.  This night it was Mike.  ;)  They get silly with each other and it is so fun to see them all become great friends.  If we aren't standing in our drive way, or the Shriner's driveway, we are walking the neighborhood.

 We walked down to the end of the road and met up with Ronnie and Thomas outside too!

 The neighborhood gathering looked like this.  This is a just about nightly occurrence.  People who pull down the road to be curious (we live on a dead end), get to meet the whole neighborhood each night!

 Ronnie has a t-ball set that the boys loved!

 Friday night we went out for pizza and when we got home, Daddy had a surprise waiting for the boys.  We had to hide on the side of the garage for him to get it ready.

 New Bikes!  

Daddy had been busy shopping all week.  Ashton couldn't wait to get to Finn's house to ride his big boy bike and with Door County right around the corner, we knew it was time.

A blue one for Ashton...

 and a green one for Aiden.  

We have been talking a lot lately about having different things.  So far, it all fine as long as they are still blue and green.

 Ashton has spent a lot of time on Finn's, but Aiden hasn't wanted to really try it yet.

 While Ashy loves Finn's four wheeler...

 Finn still likes the fire trucks.  They go so... slow... but he is so cute on it.  "I'm coming to save you"

 Three peas in a pod.  

Snack time.  They basically live with their helmets on.  Sometimes with these three all together, nonstop four wheelers and bikes, that isn't a bad thing!

One night while I was getting some housework done, they went exploring.  They climbed the "Timber Canyon Mountain" (dirt pile).

 Molly, Finn's little sister, also tagged along.  ;)

 Saturday morning, Ashton entertained himself with building a fort while Aiden was still sleeping.  *Aiden is a sleeper-inner (my child) and Ashton is a early bird (Adam's child).

 Saturday afternoon, we packed up the bikes and went to the walking trail.  It was a beautiful day and Aiden was more eager to learn to ride.  It took him a block to get the hang of it, but in no time we were practicing stopping at the signs, looking both ways for cars, and I was jogging along side of them.

 They're off!

 It is going to be a fun summer!

 Today was a very special day.  Today marked the day BOTH boys filled their sticker chart.  I was kind of hoping, yet also dreading one to fill up their chart before the other so they could really feel the grunt of their choices and seeing one go to Walmart to pick something out with out other.  It just so happened, they both had a bad day or two but their stickers evened out in the end.  They were very proud of themselves!

 Off to Walmart we went.  Aiden knew exactly what he was going to pick out.  He has wanted this "huge talking Dinosaur" since before Christmas.  Ashton said he was going to get a skateboard.  We have two neighbor boys that have skateboards and ramps in their driveway.  They are in 3rd and 5th grade, but Ashton thinks he needs a skateboard too.

Aiden held true to his word, and this talking dinosaur scares the crap out of Ashton.  After rolling Finn's four wheeler last night and limping all day today, I encouraged Ashton to not get the skateboard and he settled with a different dinosaur.  "It's okay to be different."  He has wanted this dinosaur since Easter.  They are pretty excited for the next chart, which is already up!

Today was Mother's Day.  I am very blessed to have the family and boys that I have.  We went to Perkin's for breakfast, then headed to Walmart for their reward, and finished the morning at a greenhouse to get my flowers.  An attempt for a picture... looking into the sun.

 We spent the rest of the day planting my flower pots and hanging out.

 Nana and Elly came over for supper and we had a little water balloon fight.  Thanks for the balloons and idea Nana and Elly.  The boys had a blast but insisted on chasing me!  Okay - Nana and Elly got wet too!

 Again, it's going to be a great summer!

 That's it.  A busy yet relaxing weekend.  

HAPPY MOTHER'S Day to all the Mother's I know!  

Being a mother is the most difficult, rewarding, tiring, exciting and important job to me, and I am influenced by my very own amazing Mom (Nana) and Mother-In-Law (Gramma).

Next weekend we have three Birthday Parties in 3 days... ya-whooooo!