Merry Christmas

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas.  Our family had a fantastic holiday!  We enjoyed lounging at home and watching movies Christmas Eve morning then headed to the bowling alley with some friends in the afternoon.  It was the lowest scoring game we've ever had, but we had 4 kids under the age of 4 and 4 very chatty adults.  Lots of fun!

 The family at the bowling alley.  Sherman had a little spit-up accident in the car, so it was no shirt, no shoes for him!

 After bowling we said goodbye to our friends who were headed to Mass and we went to Spring Creek for some BBQ....yum, yum!  Once Everett realized that the servers brought out unlimited hot roll, he declared that "this is the best restaurant ever!"  So easy to please.

 After dinner we came home and read a brief passage from the New Testament while Everett acted out the Nativity with his "Little People" set.  Then we headed to a friends home to watch Joy to The World outside by the fire-pit.  Great times with friends!

 Santa came at about 10pm CT and left a little mess! 

 Mom and Dad decided to give each other one gift before they went to bed.  Great minds think alike!

 7:15am Everett is up and ready to discover his gifts.  He received many space toys, puzzles, and books.  He also was thrilled to open a Darth Vader mask and two Light Sabers...May The Force Be With You!

Sherman didn't join us until about 9am!  

I love my boys and am so glad I get to spend all week making memories with them and their dad!  Happy Holidays to all!

Sherman and Hats

I love, love, love this cute little face and this little face loves, loves, loves hats!!  I remember trying so hard to get Everett to wear a hat when he was little and he would immediately throw it off.  Sherman is oh so different.  He finds his hat or his dads hat and brings it to me crying until I help him put it on.  It's the simple things in life.  I'll be sad for the day when he puts his own hat on.  I love my little baby!  

A Preschool Christmas Program

Everett's First Preschool Program.  It was so fun to watch him.  It doesn't show it in this video, but once he spotted us he waved the at us during the entire last song.  I waved back the entire time and loved every second of it!  Way to go little buddy!!

Happy Halloween!

We had a great Halloween day today!  It started with Everett's preschool party, then off to the pumpkin patch with grandma and grandpa Butters, and finally time to go door to door and get candy!  Magical, fun moments for these little ones.  Happy Halloween!!

Heading out to go trick or treating

 At Everett's Halloween Party with his buddy Brooks!

Lots of yummy sugar....He ate this cookie in one bite!  Way to go buddy!

 A quick picture with Ms. Cheree after the Halloween Parade.

 Another quick one with Ms. Shelly!

 Sherman behind bars at the pumpkin patch.  What a little cutie pie!

Everett picked out the bumpy gourd, Ryan's is the big one on the left, and mine is the lit plastic one on the right.  Sherman enjoyed playing and chewing on all three pumpkins.  

Everett Plays Baseball

Everett started baseball a few weeks ago.  He's a natural hitter and the cutest little player I've ever seen.  I think Everett's favorite thing about baseball is watching the planes fly above him when he's in the outfield. Love watching this boy grow and learn.

Happy Birthday Ryan

Happy Birthday my love!  So glad you were born and that I get to celebrate every year with you.  We had a fun low-key family dinner and then opened presents.  Ryan opened a lot of fun gifts with the help of the kids and then went out into the backyard to start installing his new outdoor speaker rocks!  Happy Birthday Ryan, I love you!!

 Birthday man and his sons!

 Opening presents with his helpers

 Look at all those gifts.  I'm pretty sure there are more boxes and wrapping then there were presents.  

Ryan's favorite ice-cream and candles!  Make a wish darling, I love you!!

Everett goes to School!

Everett had his first day of preschool last week.  What a big boy!!  The first day he went right in, but when I picked him up the teachers said he was a little sad at school.  Second and third day he was pretty sad when I left, but happy when I picked him up.  We're on the sixth day today and he went right in, put his lunch in his cubby, hung up his bag, sat down and started playing with playdough.  OUTSTANDING!  It's so fun to see him gain confidence away from me and learn that he can conquer the world a little at a time.  I'm so proud of this little boy's courage and willingness to keep trying even when he's nervous.  I love you Everett and am so proud of what a big boy you are becoming!    

 1st Day of School!

Love this smiling face!!

Sherman Turns 1!

Where has time gone?  Can't believe my baby has been in our lives a whole year.  What a joy this little guy is to have in our lives.  I love his giggles, smiles, and cute little voice saying "hi' to me.  He can say mama and dada, but hi is the word we hear most often.  Sherman is a sweet, tender little spirit.  He loves to try to keep up with his brother and bounce around the house, but he also loves snuggling with his parents (mainly his dad).  We love, love, love when he lays his head on our shoulders and snuggles up for a few minutes.  We also love watching him learn and grow.  He's not walking yet, but he's a track star crawler.   He puts his head down and goes as fast as he can to his destination.  He loves crawling up the stairs and so far we've had no crash landings...phew!


Sherman is starting to voice his opinions more and more.  If he wants something (water, food, or toy) he has a high pitched yell that gets progressively louder until he gets what he wants.  I'm working on teaching him some signs, hopefully the signing or talking will kick in soon.  Sherman is a very good listener for a one year old.  Almost anytime I tell him to "stop" he will.  I try to reserve this for dangerous situations like climbing in the pool or down the stairs so he'll continue to listen.

It seems like Sherman has been teething constantly since he was 4 months old.  He has 4 teeth on top and two on the bottom, but he is always chewing and often you can tell he's in pain.  Hopefully he can get all his teeth soon and be done with teething!

Sherman is a pretty good eater, although he does have a little bit of a sweet tooth.  His favorite foods include:
- ice cream
- jello
- strawberry banana puree
- applesauce
- crackers
- cheese
- broccoli
- and more ice cream

Sherman is a wonderful, sweet little boy and we couldn't be happier to be his parents!  Happy 1st birthday Sherman - We Love You!!

 Hanging with Everett

 A trip to Home Depot

 Snowbird Fun

 Sherman LOVES the water 

Pool Time with Dad

 Sherman's 1st Birthday!!  

 He just woke up from a nap and I threw him straight into party/dinner mode...he's not sure about this!

 Opening presents!

 A little cake!

The Cast is Off - Hurray!!

This brave young man sat perfectly still and had a smile the whole time his cast was being removed.  It took about 10 minutes, but the only thing he ever said was that his arm was hot.  Way to sit still Ev!  I forgot to get an after shot, but I did snap some before and during pics.  I have a feeling this will not be our last cast experience, but one can hope!

 Waiting for the Dr.

 The process begins

 Almost done, just need to cut the sock and Everett will have his arm back.  I thought cutting the sock would be the easiest part, but it seemed to bother Everett the most.  The whole time the Dr. cut the sock off Everett kept saying "owe".  I think the metal rubbing on his already irrated skin didn't feel very good, but it's done now and we've already enjoyed the sandbox and the pool.  Hurray for no cast, modern medicine, and a healed wrist!  The body is truly incredible. 

Tram

Everett fell in love with the tram this year.  He loved riding it, watching it, pretending to drive it, and everything tram.  He was lucky enough to be able to go into the motor room and learn all about how the motor works.  He was surprised that it wasn't very loud in the room.  A big thanks to dad and uncle Roger for arranging a mini tour for this boy.

Since we've been home all make believe games include the tram.  We walked around the block and while playing "I spy" the only two colors he would say were blue and red and the answer was always the tram.  He has drawn pictures of the tram and drives them around the house.  He even uses my i-phone to ring the bell for loading.  I love seeing his mind grow and learning what interests this little guy.  He seems to take after his dad with a love of electronics, gears, and learning how things work.

Snowbird

 Every year Ryan's family gathers for a week at Snowbird and once again we had a great time enjoying swimming, hiking, all day passes, and fantastic conversation.  Big thank you Ryan's parents for putting together such a great vacation for everyone.

One of our favorite activities is walking to the point.  Here's a great shot of our little guy with Grandma.

 Family picture at the top of the point

 Annual Tie-dye shirts.  So much fun!

 Irresistible smile!

 Dad and Everett on Zip line!

 Mom and Everett on zip line!

 More Hiking with Grandma

Slingshot fun with Grandpa!