Thanksgiving

We had Thanksgiving at our home this year with my parents. It is so much fun to watch the boys and Papa play their guitars and drums and just have an enjoyable day together. We had a great meal and great conversation. We went to Mat's family's home for dessert and the boys had fun playing with their cousins. We ended up bringing them home with us so Mat and I could go shopping on Black Friday. We survived the day and my shopping is almost complete. Overall, we had a great Thanksgiving and can't wait for Christmas to come.

Nicholas' Birthday Party

We had Nicholas' birthday party last Saturday at Peter Piper Pizza. He had a blast and was excited that his good friend got to come. It was cute to see them running around together. We had a good turn out and he got lots of awesome presents. He is really into science and drawing so everyone accomodated those requests. Overall it was a great day and my alligator cupcake cake was a big hit. I even got compliments for it from other parties. Here are some pictures from his big day.

My First Cupcake Cake

I let Nicholas pick out a cake and told him that I would try and make it for his birthday party. So, he chose an alligator called Old Swampy for his cupcake cake. It looked very intimidating but after I made it it was actually pretty easy. Nicholas loved it and it was a hit at the party. I even had some people from other parties ask me where I got our cake from. I, of course was proud to tell them that I made it. So, overall it was fun to make the cake and get so many compliments. I even told Austin that I would make him one too. Here are some pictures of my masterpiece.

Happy Birthday Nicholas!!!

Well, I guess the inevitable happens and that means my babies are growing up. Nicholas turned 8 today and I cannot believe how time is flying by. Instead of reminiscing about the past I am going to tell all that I am thankful for in my middle son. Nicholas is a remarkable little boy. He gives the biggest hugs and smiles for us all the time. He loves us and tells us all the time. He is an artist in every aspect. He loves to draw, sketch, read about drawing, and is incredible at it. He brings laughter into our home. He shares what he is thinking about with us. He loves to read and loves Mommy to read to him. He loves to explore and spends hours researching on his favorite subjects. I love everything about him and has brought our family 8 years of pure enjoyment. We love you Nicholas!!! I can't wait to see you grow up even more than you already are and watch every adventure you go on and hope to go on them with you. Keep reaching for your dreams and we you will achieve each and every one.

Preston's Owie

Well, after 6 1/2 years Preston succumbed to needing stitches, well not stitches but dermabond. He was playing around on the couches and decided to jump over and splat. When he fell his face hit a spot on the couch where a nail was sticking out and it got him right in the side of the head. He had a gash that needed dermabond and another spot that didn't need anything but a cleaning. He was a very brave boy but really had me laughing on the way to the dr's office. He kept asking me if his brain was going to fall out. I kept reassuring him that his brain wasn't going to fall out. I also had to keep telling him that the couch was in big trouble for hurting him. He got home and showed everyone his treasures because the dr gave him a syringe to play in the bath with and a couple other trinkets. So overall his first experience of stitches wasn't a bad one. Hopefully he won't have another one any time soon.

The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Mommy!!

Tonight was literacy night at boys' school and they were all doing different themed activities. It was supposed to start in the gym with Preston singing a song and then moving onto Austin reading a poem, and ending in Nicholas' class doing a small reading from Where the Wild Things Are. Well, like I said before it was SUPPOSED to work out like that but of course it didn't. We did watch Preston sing and then quickly ran over to Austin's performance and we got there right when they were DONE. I was so upset and so was Austin because we missed it. As I am quickly apologizing to him we run over to Nicholas' classroom for his reading and as we approach the class I notice everyone leaving. Yes, LEAVING. They ended up doing it a little early so Nicholas missed his reading too. He was so upset he ended up crying and so did I because at that point I felt like the worst Mom in history. He wouldn't forgive me the whole way home and I wouldn't forgive myself because I felt so horribe. What a terrible feeling for a mother. I knew that poor Nicholas worked all week on it and was so excited about it so it made it that much worse. I am still upset about it but Nicholas is over it. I am not. I cannot believe that they would tell us one time and start because some kids got their early. I will not get over this because I know it meant a lot to him. I hope he will decide to perform his part for us because I was really excited to see him do his reading. So I am off to bed to feel bad for myself being the bad Mommy.

Lellow

Yep, my title is correct. I picked the boys up from school today and they were talking about their days. Then, Preston chimed in and was as serious as can be when he asked me "Mom, do you think when I am 16 I will be able to say lellow right?" Well, as you can guess lellow is actually yellow and he has said lellow since I can remember him first learning their colors. I have always thought it was cute so I never thought it was a concern but evidentally it is a problem for him now. Because he was absolutely serious about being able to say yellow the correct way. So I reassured him that by the time he is 16 he will be able to say yellow correctly. So now he is ok with saying yellow, lellow. He has been practicing saying it all day now. It is very cute that he is concerned about saying his colors the right way.

A Celebration!!

On Sunday Nicholas and Preston were baptized. It just happened to also be Mat's birthday which they were very excited about. They were so good during the baptism and Nicholas was very cute standing behind his brother while he was baptized. He was waving to everyone down below in the congregation. Mat was down in the pews with his family and I was up with the boys so I got to see them first hand. Afterwards we went to breakfast for Mat's birthday and the boys baptism. It was a wonderful, blessed day for our family. The boys are very proud of themselves and so are we.

Dinner Conversation

Mat and I always try to engage in conversation with the boys about their days. Usually they are very talkative but tonight I guess Preston was more interested in his roast than talking with us. So, I am going to go over our conversation.

Mommy: So how was your day Preston?

Preston: Good.

Mommy: What did you do today?

Preston: Play.

Mommy: Play what?

Preston: Games.

Mommy: What games?

Preston: Army.

Mommy: What did you do in class?

Preston: Math.

Mommy: What kind of Math?

Preston: Cutting.

Mommy: Cutting what.

Preston: Wild Things.

That's pretty much where we ended our in depth conversation. I guess that is about the best conversation I am going to get with a 6 year old. Usually he just says good but it was hysterical that he kept going with his one word answers. In between the answers he was shoving dinner in his mouth. I guess he was extremely hungry tonight.

Too funny!!

Halloween

Halloween was a great day and night for the boys and even us adults. We went to the Harvest Festival to begin our evening and then ended at a party thrown by Mat's brother. We had a great time and the boys had a ton of fun trick or treating. The neighborhood where they live is wonderful and very kid friendly. It seems like every house is decorated and every one is in the spirit of Halloween. Mat and I stayed behind to have some adult fun. We played a couple horrow flick games and lost both but Mat came out ahead in the costume contest. He went as Justin Timberlake's character on Saturday Night Live that sings with Adam Sandburg. So I guess you could call his costume Dick In A Box if we are being real. :0) We danced, drank, and had a lot of fun. Overall, Halloween was a ton of fun for the whole family. Here are some pictures of the fun and the boys' costumes.

Pumpkin Carving

A little late but better than never I guess. The boys ended up carving their pumpkins with just a little help from good old Mom. I am proud of them. They chose their patterns and had at it. Preston needed me to cut out his pattern but it was his design none the less. Preston called his One Eyed Willy, Nicholas called his Evil, and Austin called his Skull Bones. It was very cute. This was the first year that they really took an interest in carving their own pumpkins. So that was a fun time. Here are some pictures of my awesomely creative boys' pumpkins.