Happy Birthday Caleb!

This past weekend was filled with fun as we celebrated Caleb's 5th Birthday!! It was great to have family and friends join us in our festivities. Paul's parents, Dave and Brenda, along with his sister, Andrea and her boyfriend, Sam flew all the way from California for the big event! We all had a great time and I know that this was a birthday that Caleb will remember for years to come.

Caleb asked to have a Star Wars themed party this year (he's never seen the movie, but somehow still knows all of the characters). So, I decided I would make him an R2D2 cake. I was up WAY too late putting on all of the finishing touches the night before his party. I did manage to get up with him at 7:00 the next morning, just so I could see the look on his face when he saw his cake for the first time...then I went straight back to bed! He was very excited about the finished product which made it worth every minute!
Later that day we went to a place called The Creation Station where Caleb and his friends had lots of fun making different "things"...and of course they all ate lots of cake and ice cream!

Weston was in on all of the fun too! Here he is wearing a hat that Paul's mom, Brenda created. So stylish!

Even though we had a house full of company this weekend (10 guests total!), I wasn't too busy to realize that my precious Caleb is growing up too fast! I can't help but think back to the days when he had his white wispy hair and chubby cheeks, when I would rock him to sleep and sometimes hold him through an entire afternoon nap, just because I didn't want to put him down. When he would talk non-stop about anything and everything, asking me a million questions a day. When he would crawl up onto my lap and lay his head on my shoulder just because he wanted me. In my opinion, saying goodbye to these different phases of life with my kids is one of the hardest parts of being a mom.

Well, God had a special reminder in store for me...

This morning we went to the Doctor for Caleb's five-year check-up and he had to get FOUR shots! He knew this was coming and I could see him getting nervous. The nurse came in and told him to sit very still, she was going to give him two shots in each arm. She assured him that it would be o.k. if he cried, and he would get a lollipop when she was finished. He said "o.k." and she proceeded. He hardly flinched, but I could see his cheeks getting red and I knew he was putting on a brave face. She commented on what a great job he did, gave him his sucker and left the room. I started to tell him that I was so proud of him, but before I could finish my sentence, he burst into tears, crawled up onto my lap and laid his head on my shoulder. He still needs me! Thank-you God. Yep, he's still my baby.

My Precious Buddy, My Sweet Son, I Love Him!

A Sweet Conversation...

Lately, Weston is starting to ask lots of questions about God.

WHO is He?

WHERE is He?
WHAT is He?

This morning while the boys were eating breakfast he asked me where Jesus is? I explained that Jesus is everywhere all at once! But most importantly, He comes into our hearts when we ask Him to. I could see his wheels turning and I left the room to put in a load of laundry. Then I got to hear a very sweet conversation between my two precious boys (between their bites of Honey Nut Cheerios)...

Weston (to Caleb): "Is Jesus in your heart?"


Caleb: "Yes"

Weston: "Jesus is GOD."


Caleb: "Yeah. He is three and one. He's God, the Holy Spirit, and the LORD."

Weston: "Yeah. I like to sing songs to Jesus. I like to sing Him the 'Sunny Days' song."
(The Sesame Street theme song)


Caleb: "Oh... cool."

O.K...so we may need to review the details of the Trinity with Caleb, but it's a start! It definitely made me smile and I was reminded of a great verse that I heard recently:

"I have no greater JOY then this, but to hear of my children walking in TRUTH."
3 John 1:4

Have a great day!

Over The Weekend We...

Took a Saturday morning run/walk to one of our favorite parks!
We pretended that it really felt like Spring outside...it was sunny, but still only 40 degrees. I ran with Weston in the jogger, Caleb rode his bike and much to Paul's dismay, he ended up running most of the way too... just to keep up with Caleb! Unfortunately I forgot to bring my camera, but I did capture Caleb resting in a sunny spot on the playroom floor when we got home.



Baked cupcakes for a friend's baby shower!
I used a buttermilk cupcake and lemon cream cheese recipe from my favorite Gourmet cookbook. This time I tried piping on the frosting instead of spreading it with a knife. The blueberries and rasberries were my attempt at adding some pink and blue (she doesn't know if she's having a boy or a girl). The recipe was a success and I enjoyed spending Sunday afternoon at the shower with my great girlfriends from church!

Earned a special treat!

Caleb counted to 100 on Saturday! Paul mentioned that he should get something special for his accomplishment. Later that night after I had tucked Weston in, I discovered that Paul and Caleb had a secret plan. It was time for Caleb to be getting in bed, but instead I found him putting his coat on over his pajamas with a huge smile on his face. He informed me that he and dad were going to the store so that he could pick out an ice cream treat! I have to wonder if this was really because he counted to 100, or if Paul just wanted ice cream. They came home with chocolate drumsticks...two happy boys.

Ate sticky waffles!
Some of you already know this, but every Saturday morning my wonderful, amazing husband lets me sleep-in! That's right, even though he gets up early and goes to work all week long he still gets up with the boys and makes them yummy waffles or pancakes while I have the joy of laying in bed as long as I want! I love it! And the boys love breakfast with Dad, and Paul loves this tradition that he's started with his boys, and they all love that they get a happy mom when I wake-up rather than a grumpy mom (I'm not a morning person)...it's really a win-win situation for all of us! Here is Weston enjoying the syrupy goodness!

We had a great first weekend of Spring and we hope that you did too!

Brothers!

Last week our neighbor was having her trees pruned, so there was a huge wood chipper truck parked outside of our house. Needless to say, this was quite exciting for Caleb and Weston. They stood on Weston's rocking chair and watched out the window for a good part of the morning. I guess all of this boy time really brought out their brotherly love for each other as you can see!

It is so neat to watch the two of them become closer as Weston gets older. He truly thinks Caleb is the best thing in the world and wants to copy everything that he does. Caleb is a very patient big brother (most of the time) and doesn't seem to mind being followed around and imitated all day long!

Of course they have their moments. We are teaching Weston to "use his words", instead of yelling at the top of his lungs when Caleb makes him mad. I have to try not to laugh when I hear him saying "I DON'T LIKE THAT CALEB!" or "NO THANK-YOU CALEB!" as loud as he can, which is very loud! He is such a feisty little guy. This was hard for me to deal with when he was a baby. I was used to Caleb who is so calm and gentle. I thank God that I've grown to love Weston's often loud and boisterous personality. I can't imagine our family without it! Hmm... I wonder where he gets that attitude from anyway?

"THERE'S NO OTHER LOVE LIKE THE LOVE FOR A BROTHER...

THERE'S NO OTHER LOVE LIKE THE LOVE FROM A BROTHER."

-Astrid Alauda

Here is a little trip down Caleb and Weston's "brotherhood lane"...

Preschool

Today was Caleb's "show 'n share" day at preschool. He was asked to bring something that was white and began with the letter 'R', so he choose his white rocket. Here he is telling his class all about it...




Caleb also got to pick a treat out of the "star box" today for doing all of his homework. He chose some goofy glasses that he's been wearing for most of the day. You will also see that Weston has decided he prefers Caleb's car seat. He always sits in it and I have to hoist him into his real seat. Today Caleb decided he would just sit on Weston's lap!



That's all for today. Here are just a couple of more pictures!

We've Taken The Plunge....

...into the world of blogging! Caleb and Weston are both so busy with new things each day. We thought this would be a good way to keep our family and friends included in our many adventures! Paul is very proud of me for taking on this technical challenge... we'll see how it goes!

Our latest news is that we officially know where Caleb will be going to Kindergarten next fall! We were recently accepted to Northshore Christian Academy. www.northshorechristianacademy.org
The boys and I stopped by there today to drop off some paperwork. Caleb was telling Weston all about how this was his new school and he can't wait to start going! It seems like each time we visit the campus I feel a little bit better about the big day when I will drop him off and say good-bye to an era. Of course I will be bawling as soon as I get in my car, but I can blame that on pregnancy hormones, right?

In other news, Caleb has had about ten Star Wars friends (imaginary) visiting for the past few days. He says they are from the planet Naboo. One morning I came into the kitchen to find all of my bowls lined up on the counter, along with every box of cereal, loaf of bread, etc. He was making them all breakfast! He has quite the imagination. It keeps us laughing, that's for sure!

Weston is becoming very independent. He is starting to play by himself for longer periods of time. I love watching him when he doesn't know I'm there. It is so precious to hear him talking to no one in particular. His main activity today has been stirring Legos in my mixing bowls and then baking them in the "oven". Every few minutes he is asking me to try one of his cookies. YUM!

Well, I hope you've enjoyed our first post! There will be more to come soon.