Water Table Fun

The boys got a sand & water table to keep them busy this year. But, since sand would most likely just be eaten or thrown, we are keeping it as just a water table for now:). They love to splash each other and enjoy using the garden hose to refill it the most!! Here's some pics of our adventures last week. I still can't figure out why Blogger won't let me move my pics, so they're out of order:(.

2 boys on a chair - we go everywhere together, even when Mommy wishes that we would leave each other alone sometimes!!

Time for a snack after some work on the table. Some for me...................

...................and some for you, brother!!

The water experts!!

" Hummmmm........can I play with this "ball", Mommy?"

Being on opposite sides of the table makes for better splashing of each other:).

"Look, Mom!! I found that ball that Kyle was talking about, too!!"

My sweet Kyle carrying his bucket.

You can never be too close when watching Elmo!!

Our New Favorite Food!!

Yummmmy!!! You can never get too much ketchup:):

Brock - the slightly more controlled one. He may just be a little better at hitting his mouth:).

Kyle needs a bath after a meal of dipping fun!!! You can't say that this boy doesn't get into his food:).

First Taste of Fresh Sweet Corn on the Cob:)

The boys had another rite of passage - trying corn on the cob for the first time. They were a little timid at first, but after watching us demonstrate how to eat it, they dug right in and forged ahead without hesitation!!! They loved it, mess and all. Here are some cute corn pics, and a little video so that you can see and hear their delight:). Enjoy!!

Leman Family Fun

Again, I can't get blogger to let me change the order of my pics!! I think maybe it's mad at me for being gone so long:). Here are some shots of our fun with the Leman family over the last couple of weeks. I didn't get as many pics as I should have, but here's what I got:

Brock's self portrait with Mommy. He loves to push the buttons on the camera (well, actually buttons of any kind:), and it's even better when it's pointed at him and flashes in his face. Maybe we'll have a photographer on our hands.

Cousin Austin, Brock and Kyle swinging on Aunt Amy's deck. Kyle seems to take a more leisurely approach to life, don't you think??

The boys had a great time swimming at the hotel with their cousins. Sorry I didn't get more pics of them in the water, but here they are all snuggled in their stroller for the ride back to the room. Nap time, anyone??

Daddy and the boys at the wedding reception. They were playing pacifier swap:).

Here's a close-up of the game. It's good to have something so simple that can keep them entertained:).

Brock wearing Daddy's jacket. He was freezing in there and this was all we had to keep him warm. What handsome men I have:).

Kyle and Aunt Ruthie - How was that hot dog, little buddy??

Some of the Leman Ladies at the reception - aren't they beauties???

Kyle was mesmerized by Cousin Betsy's beauty!!

Kyle enjoying cookies at Aunt Amy's.

Brock hanging out with Cousin Sally at the Scoop after we were all back in Central IL.

Cousin Aubrey and Kyle - it was fun getting to spend some time with the Arizona clan!!

Brock and Kyle hanging out at Aunt Amy's - I can't believe how big Brock looks in this picture - what a tall boy he's becoming!!

Scenes from a road trip

Okay - so Blogger isn't letting me move the pictures around like I want, so you get to view them in random order:).

Hiding behind my magnet board - aka Mommy's cake pan:).

Brock studying his dinosaurs. I read about this idea in a magazine, and found the dinosaur magnets that didn't have small pieces - perfect!! It definitely kept their attention for a little while.

Brock lounging in his seat. Notice that one leg is hanging off the side - this is a common scene, even on short trips.

Nap time. The boys aren't very good car sleepers, so we cherished the naps they did take, and enjoyed a much needed Elmo reprieve!!

"Okay, Mom. This was fun for a little while, but I could use a break!!"

Playing footsie in the back. Their giggles always gave this game away:).

Brock working his light spinner. These were a good purchase - money well spent!!

Intently watching Elmo!!

"Peek-a-boo!!! I see you behind Mr. Moo!!"

"Here I am, too!! I decided to come out from behind my cake pan!!"

Another nap - wow!! Mom and Dad are lucky!!

Sleepy boy.

"This book isn't only good to read, it's also good to hide behind!!"

Bloging absence - and a few updates:)

Sing to the tune of "Oh where has my little dog gone":
"Oh where, oh where has my blogging time gone? Oh where, oh where can it be?? With two little blond boys and a house full of chores, oh where, oh where can it be??"

Okay. That's another of my sad attempts at song writing/poetry:). But I thought it was fitting that I humor you a bit, given my long blog absence!!

Actually, I know exactly where my blogging time has gone to. They boys have recently "down-sized their napping from two 2 hour naps per day to one 2 to 2 1/2 hr nap. This is a very rough transition - not for the boys, mind you, but for Mommy!! I used to spend one nap getting things done around the house, and one "playing"- blogging, emailing, etc. But now, if I want to get anything else done, the computer sits silent:).

Also, the boys are very demanding about being "ou-side" for most of their waking hours, so all of our play time is spent riding "bikes" on the driveway, and "running away" to Aunt Ruthie's house to play with Addie and eat M&M's. Yes, the boys are very busy these days and know exactly how they want to spend their time:).

They are growing up fast and are talking almost non-stop. The average passerby may not be able to understand them yet, but we can figure out most of it. Some of their most recent words are: "Sure!!", said with great emphasis; "Danger!!", also said with great emphasis - we are trying this instead of "No-no" when it something we want to emphasize that they shouldn't do; "bike ride", as we have recently put seats for the boys on the back of our bikes; "mow", they like to push their little mowers around the yard and mow like Daddy; "chocolate", no explanation needed:); "broom", they like to sweep the garage and driveway with our brooms - this is helpful at times:); "all-right", as they give us and each other high-fives. I know that there are more, but that's all I can think of right now.

Another big event during our blog absence was our road trip to Atlanta, GA for our niece Laura's wedding. The trip went unexpectedly well, and for that we were grateful!! We kept our expectations VERY low as far as how much driving we would be able to do in one stretch, how the boys would fare, and how taxing it would be. They far exceeded our expectations, and we were able to make it all the way to Atlanta on Friday, leaving at 7am (CST), and arriving at 10:30pm (EST). Thank goodness for Elmo videos, dinosaur magnets on cookie sheets, light spinners, and lots of snacks!! The wedding was beautiful, and a good time was had by all!! On Sunday, we moved on to Athens, GA and spent the afternoon and night with one of Rob's sisters who lives there. Because of that, we had an additional hour of travel time on Monday, but we still managed to make it all the way home by 9:30pm. The boys didn't do quite as well on they way home as they did on the way there, but they were still good. I think that they had seen all of the Elmo videos and all of my tricks so many times, that they were not entertaining anymore:). It was neat to see that we can travel with the boys, especially if we have Elmo videos, snacks or "crackers" as Brock calls them, and their "moo-moo" song on their "Go Fish" cd!! I was afraid that they would refuse to get back in their car seats after spending so many hours in them, but the day after we got back, I asked the boys if they wanted to go bye-bye, and they beat me to the van, hopped into their seats and immediately started their banter of "Elmo, cracker, moo-moo!!!" It really was a good experience!!

Pictures to come in the next post:). Thanks for not giving up on us!!