Izzy the 'Reader'

Happy Father's Day

Our family is so lucky Jeremy is such a great dad, and the kids had a great time preparing some special kings to show him just how much they love him :)

Happy Father's Day to a good husband, an amazing dad, and the person who take such good care of all of us.  We love you!!

Special cards.  Cooper wanted to fingerprint and Izzy wanted to glue tissue paper.

They each told me what to write inside.  I tried to write word-for-word.  I was really proud that Cooper wanted to write DAD on the front, and his name on the inside.  My bad for not giving him very much space :)

Izzy is even working on her letters :)

They were very proud to wake up together and come upstairs at 6:15 AM and bring Jeremy his cards and presents, and give him lots of hugs and kisses of course.  We were hoping they'd snuggle in bed with us for a while, but that lasted for about 2 minutes before they were off to watch cartoons!

We even made a cake for him.  Chocolate!!!  The kids were really into licking the batter and the frosting, surprise, surprise.

Jeremy's first Father's Day as a dad of three!!  Carson and his little lizard tongue were at their finest for this pic!

I also had a great time taking my dad for a cruise in the Chrysler.  I think he had a smile plastered on his face the entire time.

Busy Summer Week!!

What a busy and FUN week we had this week.  With our daycare provider on vacation, we had some fun days planned to shake things up :)

Working in the garden is nearly a daily chore (for Jeremy!!), but he payoff is worth it!

We don't have a pool just yet, but the kids made so with the hoses and water table...  This is a view I could get used to!  Carson and I hanging in the shade while the big kids play!

Izzy doing her 'tricks.'  I think maybe she'll be a yoga instructor when she grows up.

They made this their 'hot tub.'  Goofballs.

This big guy is wanting to sit up all the time.  He loves the view and wants to keep an eye on us.  Oh and he always has a toy in his mouth these days!

Toddler Tuesday at the Mall of America was a blast!!  We told the kids we had a surprise, but didn't tell them where we were going until we were on the road.  They were so excited!!  Here we got a thumbs up before their first ride.  Izzy still really has to concentrate to get her thumb to cooperate.

They went on the log chute with Jeremy, and then wanted to go on again!!  Izzy said she was a 'witto no-bous' (a little nervous), but she didn't want to miss out!!  I even got to ride with them on their third trip down.  My favorite part was when Cooper grabbed my hands and put them around his little waist as we were heading up the hill for the big drop.  Super cute.

He loved the bumper cars he could drive by himself.

Mom, take my picture.  NOT a phrase I have EVER hard from this guy.  

Big brother gave Carson his whole bottle!!  (This was the second time for the bottle from his brother.)

We met our friends, the Greisens, at Sibley Park in Mankato.  We played, visited the animals, and had a picnic.  We had a pretty tired backseat full of kids on the way home!!

The kids LOVED the unique park, themed like a farm

The Greisens brought corn along so we could feed the animals

The goats were the favorites of the kids

Carson had fun hanging out, too!!

A visit to the library was a great time.  Here, Cooper is reading one of his favorites, "Moo!"

Izzy was showing the cow something fun to do at the library so she can color in another circle on her reading/activity chart.  She's starting to get the hang of using the mouse.

Washing the Chrysler in the driveway.  The kids had fun, but the Chrysler didn't quite get the clean it deserves;)

Celebrating Grandma Dawn's birthday with her.

Little Soccer Player

Tonight we had night #2 of Cooper's soccer/t-ball season.  He will be playing soccer for one more week before he switches to t-ball. 

It has been so fun and funny to watch 3- and 4-year-olds learn to play soccer together... It's crazy to realize just how much they have to learn to 'play a team sport' for the first time:

Line up

Wait for your turn to kick when at your station

Stay at your station

Listen to your coach

Take turns being goalie

Not asking 100 times when we can go play at the park

Cheer for each other

Keep your hands off the ball

Get together with the team for a huddle

Stay on the field instead of wandering over to the blanket by mom and little bro and sis

Shake hands with the other team

Seriously, the patience of those coaches is pretty incredible :)

Cooper is having fun, and although he was a little shy to get going tonight, once he started kicking the ball around with his buddy, Alex, he was all smiles!  

I am looking forward to next week!!

Night #1.  Organized Chaos.

Night #2.  Getting there...

Cooper was goalie

So thirsty!

Trying to score

Mom, how much time is left?  He literally just wandered off the field and came over to ask...

Go BLUE!!!

Bunk Beds!!!

Well, it's been about two weeks for the big kids, and they are LOVING their bunk beds!!  My favorite part is listening to their conversations after they are tucked in and lights are out for the night :)

They played the 'Goodnight Game' for an hour on the night the beds were set up.  It consisted of them climbing up and down, tucking each other in, and saying goodnight a hundred times.

First night snuggles selfie in the top bunk.

Excited was an understatement that first night...

They slept great, no one fell out of bed, and they woke each other up at the crack of dawn in the morning!!

Carson is 4 Months Old!!

I can't get over how squishy and cute this little stinker is!  And he's now officially 4 months old--smiley, slobbery, and so happy.  Here's a peek at the past month.

Growing!
Carson wears size 3 diapers now, still mostly 6 mo. clothes (although 9 mo. jammies are a must), and no socks stay on his feet.  Good thing it's summer!  His official stats: 17 lbs. 10 oz (88 %ile), 25.5 inches tall (68%ile) and head 44.4 cm (99 %ile).  So we still have a large baby with a lot of brains in his head :)  His cheeks still seem to get the most attention from people who don't see him too often, and his rolls are getting more defined around his wrists and elbows.  He got his shots earlier this week, and he handled them well--just needed more snuggles.  I didn't mind!

I love how he is interacting so much more with his surroundings.  He is very smiley, and almost anyone can get a smile out of him... wide open mouth, squinty eyes, and maybe even a string of slobber.  He loves to sit up in the Bumbo seat, and he actually favors it over the bouncy seat now.  In the bouncer, he tried to sit up, and that kind of freaks me out--I worry he's going to flop out!  In the Bumbo, he loves to chew on toys (the fabric monkey is his absolute favorite!) and watch us.  It's fun to tickle him these days, since he'll chuckle for us now.  His ticklish spots are the middle of his back, his sides, and his feet.  He loves to lay on the play mat with a mirror and toys hanging above his head.  He has rolled from belly to back, but doesn't really like to do it very often.  He does roll from his back to his side, but has not gone all the way over.  He has great 'core' strength and can sit propped up between our legs without falling forward too much.  His head control is awesome, and he is tolerating tummy time more and more, especially if someone is on the floor with him.

We had a challenging month with napping... it seems like the day after I posted his three-month update, he forgot how to sleep any more than 45 minutes at a time.  But I do think we're on the upswing, he's been doing much better :)  His typical day is built around 2-hour sleep/awake increments right now, and he goes about 4 hours between feedings.  Night time sleep is great--he goes down fairly easy most nights by about 8 and sleeps until around 4 or 5 AM.  Some nights I have to Nuk him earlier, and every now and then he'll sleep through the night until 6:30 or 7:00.  I think we're still transitioning, and I'm curious if all-night sleep is going to naturally happen on it's own, or if he'll need some encouragement to drop that early-morning feeding!

He still loves bath time in the sink, but sometimes takes a bath in the bathtub with his brother and sister.  He has a sad and sore rash under his chin from all his drooling.  He has a constant wet shirt :(  He loves facing forward in the stroller, and car rides are almost sure to put him to sleep.  Unless of course, it's after 7:00 at night.  He has a weird and wacky switch in him that makes him FREAK in the car after 7:00.  His little hands are always searching for something to grab onto, and he brings everything to his mouth.  He pulls on my hair all the time, making me so tempted to chop it off.  But for now, a pony tail will do.  Carson likes to be outside, and he just seems to be in awe of everything to see.  We haven't had him in swimming trunks yet to see how he likes to water, but if he's like his siblings, he'll love it.

He's been going to Kris's house for a few hours on Thursday mornings.  He does well and seems very comfortable with Kris.  We're hoping to keep him familiar with her throughout the summer so the transition is easier in late August when I go back to work.

I hope I always remember how squishy he is at this age and how his hands are always grabbing for things when I'm holding or feeding him.  I love watching him fall asleep in my arms, but I know those days are probably fleeting... I love covering him in kisses, and I can't get enough of his sweet smelling breath (weird, I know, but when I close my eyes I can actually smell it!!).

This coming month, we're looking forward to him continuing to 'talk' to us, getting him in the pool or at least splashing in some water, enjoying his smiles and giggles, and watching Cooper and Izzy grow more and more in love with him!!

Carson got his first bottle from his big brother, Cooper this month!

Yes, ladies, his heart belongs to his mommy.  So sorry!!  (But not really!)

He likes tummy time so much more now that he's stronger.  

My big guy.  We still love our snuggles on our days we spend alone :)

Summer's Here!

It's official!  Summer is here!!  I am so looking forward to the warm days, more options for activities away from home, nice evenings, sweaty & active kids, and the incredibly relaxed way of life we get to live for a few months... I love my job, but I love my family more... and that's why summers are just the BEST when you're a teacher!!!

Cooper found a toad.  He named him......... wait for it..... Toadie.

He made sure his little sister knew to be very careful with Toadie.

Oh, that smile says it all.  Somehow, their clothes just had to come off... Why do kids love water and being naked so much?!?

A morning walk was just too much to handle...

Bike rides are fun, but exhausting.  Just ask Cooper.

When her favorite hiding spot is mom's closet, finding the heels was only a matter of time.