Changing the View...

This weekend Nathan showed us yet another new trick. We knew it was coming. We have been watching him try to figure out how to sit himself up but one arm always seemed to get in the way. Well....not anymore! On Saturday we watched him go from him belly, to his side, and then push himself up to the sitting position. He did it again on Sunday, too! Luckily, I was close enough to the camera to take a quick picture of his reaction. It was like he was saying, "Wow, this is a different view and I did it all by myself!" Then to top things off he leaned on one of his toys into a standing postion. Yikes! He is growing up so fast!

Valentine's Photos

Our local Picture People store is closing this weekend. I didn't realize this until I called to make my appointment for the boys. Good timing, huh?! I wanted Nathan to wear the Cupid costume just like Thomas did when he was little. It's amazing how much the boys look alike at this age. After 2 hours and 1 re-do photo shoot, we finally had all the poses I wanted to get. This may be the last year I can convince Thomas to wear a Valentine's Day shirt, so I am taking advantage of the moment.

Friday Fun

I had the option of working on Friday since it was a Teacher Work Day....I decided not to! After Nathan having an ear infection, Thomas with pink eye, and me with Shingles, I decided the three of us deserved a much needed day of fun. Thomas decided that he wanted to go bowling. We went back to our favorite alley, Firkin and Keglers, since they have mini-bowling. Thomas bowled three games and got so excited each time he got a strike or a spare. Nathan and I had fun watching and of course Nathan was all smiles. After bowling, we went to the arcade. Thomas played skee ball a few times and earned some points to redeem at the prize area. He picked out "Billy Bob" teeth. He thinks they are absolutely hysterical. I have to admit they made me laugh out loud, too. In addition to bowling, we went to BJ's to stock up on diapers and other boring items, followed by lunch at Boston Coffee House. Yum!! Even though we went for lunch Thomas ordered pancakes and milk. Typical Thomas! As an added treat, we stopped for ice cream on the way home. It was definitely a fun day off for the three of us!

Big Boy Bed

Our little Nathan is becoming quite the mover around here! He is an official army crawler and scoots all over the house. I already miss the days of leaving him in one spot only to return to him in the same location! We have also noticed that he is days away from learning to sit up on his own. Also, it takes little effort for him to grab our hand and pull himself up to a stand. So, to play it safe rather than sorry, we decided to lower his crib mattress tonight. I have to admit that it made me sad. I just LOVE this baby phase and before I know it we'll be changing it into a toddler bed. So, sleep tight little man in your new "big boy bed."

Happy Half Birthday!

On January 2nd, Thomas turned 4 1/2. He got to have a "party" while at Nana's house after dinner. We had muffins and ice cream. Papa sang only half the words to the birthday song, which Thomas is still singing. He thought that was so funny! It's hard to believe that in 6 months he will be five years old. Why does it still feel like I just brought him home from the hospital yesterday?

Largo Fun

After all the excitement of Christmas, I took the boys to Largo to visit the Scheffer's. I was glad the Emily rode with us since this was the longest trip Nathan had been on. The boys did fantastic in the car. Thank goodness for portable DVD players and video games. We stayed in Largo for only a few days. The highlight of the trip for Thomas was playing ping pong with "Daddy Vroom Vroom". Of course, I enjoyed going to some favorite scrapbook stores with Emily and "Grammy Pammy". Nathan was of course full of smiles the entire time. We had so much fun relaxing and catching up. Thank you Mr. and Mrs. Scheffer (and Emily) for a great get-away!

Christmas Whirlwind!

Our family had such a wonderful Christmas! We made cookies for Santa and Thomas wrote his letter to Santa. I was so proud that he sounded out the words and wrote a few sentences. I took the boys to Christmas Eve Mass. There was a children's choir which I think Thomas really enjoyed. This was the first time that I ventured to church with both kids and they did great. I think Thomas really enjoyed the company of an older lady that sat next to us. I'm sure she didn't get a lot of praying done since Thomas wanted to play twenty questions! Afterwards, we came home and got ready for Santa. We put out reindeer food and set out the cookies. After reading some classic Christmas stories, Thomas was eager to get to sleep so that Santa could come. He slept until about 8am and was so excited and surprised that Santa brought him the Fisher Price dinosaur that he had been wanting. It was so much fun watching Thomas' reaction and seeing Nathan scooting to play with his toys. That morning Ken opened the blinds and to our surprise Santa brought us a playhouse with a working doorbell and fountain. He even brought a mailbox and had time to place a letter inside for Thomas. Thomas was in and out of the house the entire morning playing with some toys inside and out. For lunch, we went to Ken's aunt and uncle's house and we got to visit with all of his family there. Thomas was able to play with his cousins, too. After that we headed down the street to visit Ken's mom and sister. The boys were spoiled yet again and by 7 o'clock, Thomas had reached his limit and the baby was ready for bed. It was a very busy day, but we truly enjoyed all the commotion. We will continue our holiday celebrating on Monday when we celebrate with my side of the family for our traditional homemade spaghetti and meatball dinner and I'm sure...more presents! We hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas! Enjoy the pictures!