Interview with my 2-year-old

How did I forget to add this to his 2-year-old post?!?!  I have been taking lots of videos lately... and Carson seems to be the star of the show these days.  I love this little dude from his chubby cheeks to his goofy big teeth to his sweet little snuggles.  It was an early morning with the rest of the house still sleeping, and we were having a cute little conversation, which quickly turned into goofing around :)  But it is a cute glimpse at this time in his little life.

February Fun

What a crazy and warm winter we had this year!  In February, most of the snow was melted (even though we did get some snow after this point).  We took full advantage of these warm days.  It made the winter seem so short!!!

The bats, balls, and tees are among the first items to come out of storage every year!  It seems to be everyone's favorite for now....

Soccer is a close second!!

Even the bikes came out!  Izzy is going to be off those darn training wheels in no time!  Cooper already needs a bigger bike, but he's pretty hesitant to even try riding with no training wheels...

Stopping at the park is a spring and summer mainstay--but another nice day gave us a February chance to play!!

Where's Carson?!?!?

Please note the Mickey PJ pants.  He was in quite a mood on this morning, and I was tired of fighting small battles with him.  He wore these PJ pants all day.  I still feel like I won this one... one less tantrum = happier mom.

These two!!

Izzy loved trying out her jumprope.  She is getting the hang of it pretty quickly!

My little backyard buddies!  This makes me so excited for summer mode!!

Friends!

It is rare that I get together with Angie, Kristine, and Nicole AND our families, but we found a night to make it work!  We all headed up to Kristine and Pete's new house in Hanover, and it was so fun!  Every time we get together, we promise each other we won't wait so long to do it again... but life is just tricky like that...

Hannah - 1st grade
Cooper and Jack - Kindergarten
Izzy and Ty- 4 years old
Alex - 2 years old
Harper - newly 1 year old
Carson, 2 and Ada, 1 year old - both stayed back at the house with the daddies :)

Not too bad for a group shot.  Almost everyone is smiling, I just wish we could see Hannah's face a little better!  It didn't even take that much bribing if I remember right!!

Basketball

Cooper found a love for basketball this winter!  It amazed us to watch 40 Kindergarteners in the gym, but the 'coach' Doug Amundson, a retired PE teacher, had things to organized!  He had them all working and listening, and having fun!

Cooper's now asking for a real basketball hoop at home... 

His highlights included being the second place finisher in the shooting contest, and he also loved scoring a basket in the 3-on-3 game on the last day.

This will be a fun picture to have in about 13 years.  I wonder how many of these kids will decide they love basketball enough to stick with it!?!

And yes, he posed for me!

There are so many days I miss my babies being babies, but watching the kids start trying new things and give effort to work hard at them--and actually be pretty good at them--makes me so proud.  This was Cooper's first exposure to basketball other than PE, and he loved it! 

Big Kid Date Night

Christmas shopping payed big dividends this year... in the form of free Nickelodeon Universe ride wristbands!  Carson got to spend a night with Grandma and soak up some personal attention, and the big kids got to call all the shots with mom and dad at MOA.

It was pretty fun keeping the surprise from them and telling them right after school on our way out of town.  They had a guess that we were going out to eat, but their eyes lit up so brightly when they found out about the rides!

Cooper's first time on the bumper cars was a big dud... and he got teary when he had to get off because he didn't think it was fair.  A little kid didn't know how to use his car and kept Cooper pinned in the corner for almost the whole time.  But, it was after this ride he understood what 'unlimited' means :)  There were barely any lines in the whole park, and he was able to get right back on the next ride to try again.  Those tears were gone quick!

We went to the Rainforest Cafe for supper, complete with a couple thunderstorms and bottled root beer!

Thumbs up for a fun Big-Kid Night!!

Cooper and Jeremy hit up the roller coaster while Izzy and I rode the Ferris Wheel.  Cooper was a big talked until it came time to get on, and then he started getting nervous.  Jeremy wouldn't let him chicken out, and from then on--he was hooked!  I bet he rode that thing six times!  He convinced Izzy she should ride (although it didn't take much convincing for Little Miss Daredevil).  She was about one inch short, but they let her ride.  She loved it as much as he did.  I LOVED their giggles through the whole ride!  

I'll definitely have to keep my eye out for free wristbands in the future.  It was SO worth it!  We all had a blast.  Someday it will be fun to give it a try with Carson, too!!

Ice Skating Rookie!

Cooper and I had a little date at the skating rink for his first time skating.  He had been begging to try it out, and he was so proud and excited when he started getting the hang of it!

We had such a weird and warm winter, that once I finally got my hands on some ice skates, we only had a chance to get to the rink one time... but now he'll be ready for next year OR maybe ready for some ice time sometime this summer if we can find some!!

We had a big talk about how skating takes a lot of practice and I wanted him to know that he might not get the hang of it right away.  Based on his history, I expected him to get discouraged and frustrated.  But he AMAZED me!  He showed me that when he really wants something and he keeps his mind on it--he can DO it!  I am looking forward to using this skating adventure as an example to him in the future about how to work really hard to get what you want :)

Sure, he fell many times, but every single time, he got right back up and tried again!!  We took only one break, and he wanted to get right back out there and keep going.

It was a little tricky to get pictures because he was on the move!

But these cute videos show his real excitement!!

I can't wait to take him out next winter--and Izzy, too!!

Carson is TWO!

I cannot believe my BABY is two already!

We started off his birthday with some snuggles... he loves to 'cheese' for selfies now!

We made some muffins.  His favorite.

And then we headed to the kids' favorite place... the Zoo!  

Carson was so excited to see the animals.  He loved the sharks and fish!

His birthday supper was spaghetti, of course.  He loved every last morsel.

His goofy teeth are his trademark :)

Carson also gave up his Nuks now that he's a big boy.  He was pretty hesitant, but he did okay.  It took him a couple weeks to get back to a calm and peaceful nighttime routine.  There were a lot of tears those first few nights, but also a lot of extra snuggles :)

Oh my little Stinker Butt.  Where has the time gone?  Time always flies, but I don't understand how you've gone from a baby to a little boy in the blink of an eye.  I love every single little stinkin thing about you.  Although I could do without your stomping and flailing tantrums that this age has brought on, I do love that you are becoming more independent.  You know what you want.  Now, if you could be reasonable and rational about it, we'd all get along so much better.  But a mom can only dream.

You have earned yourself a couple nicknames, including Bulldog (for your huge fat pouty lip), Stinker, Stinker Butt, Stinker Booty, and Bucko.  You are a goofball, and you love to joke around.  You've even been known to go straight from full-out tantrum to laughing from a simple tickle.  You love to run around naked, especially after bath time.  Something about being naked is so funny to you.  Your favorite games involve chasing daddy around the island, playing peek, and running away from anybody who will chase you.

You have a love for learning that is starting to blossom.  Your counting is super cute--you almost always skip the number 2, but you've got the other ones down pat!  Once you get to the teens, I love how you say "fo-teen, eighteen" over and over again.  You know most of your shapes, you are starting to get better with your colors, and you can sing your ABC's with just a little help.  You are just starting to 'read' books on your own by talking about the pictures and memorizing a few of the pages from your favorite books.  You like to finish sentences from familiar books.
 
You are so dang cute.  You are pretty shy in new situations, but once you warm up, you are the life of the party!  Your separation anxiety is lessening as you are getting better at taking Izzy and Cooper's lead.  You have the cutest smile and you give the best hugs and kisses.  Cooper and Izzy love playing with you.  They are teaching you everything they know!

You are a little parrot and your vocabulary is out of this world for being just 2!  You repeat anything and everything, which makes it so much fun for Cooper and Izzy to have you repeat words you shouldn't be saying!!  You are starting to speak in sentences, and it is not hard to understand what you want.  You'd think that would cut down on the tantrums... but not so much.

There are some little quirks about you I want to remember... you LOVE wearing any kind of PJ's with Mickey on them.  So much so that in the morning, I practically have to hide your Mickey things so you don't throw a fit to wear them to daycare.  When you wake up in the morning, we've learned that if you wake up on your own terms, we're all so much better off.  You don't like us waking you up!  You hate, and I mean HATE brushing your teeth.  Knock down, drag out fight.  I have tried to be patient, I've tried to make it a game, I've tried brushing mine at the same time, I've tried being stern, I've tried 'fun' toothbrushes.  I've. Tried. Everything.  You insist on certain hats and mittens, you get moody about what coat you're wearing, and you hate getting your diaper changed.  I hope that doesn't mean you'll be hard to potty train :(

My favorite time is bedtime with you.  I love reading stories with you, singing songs, and giggling with you.  I love that you like to snuggle and rock with me, give me kisses, and say 'Wuv you mommy.'  When I tuck you in, you like to keep your ducky 'safe' in your arms.  I love our special time together.  It's one of the few times that you aren't flexing your independent muscles, and you're just my sweet, sweet little boy.

Carson, I love you to the moon!  You light up our lives, and you bring fun energy to our family.  You're my favorite little two-year-old!

Love, Mom

Goofing Around at Home

Here are a few winter pics I didn't want to forget...

Carson and Izzy are playing together better and better.  They don't just tolerate each other, they actually are beginning to PLAY together.  Here, they're riding their favorite horse.

Pizza Party!  We met up with the Greisen kids and Endres kids for a pizza party before the PTO Winter Dance Party.  10 kids between 1-8... that's a lot of energy, giggles, and pizza :)

Dad's girl!

Birthday Boys!

We had a joint Superhero party for Carson and Cooper.

Carson got a Superman Cake!

Cooper picked to have a Captain America cake.

It was a really fun afternoon--the house is feeling tighter and tighter as more cousins get added to the mix, but it was still a ton of fun.  

Happy birthday, boys!!

I like when we sing two different birthday songs for both the boys.  It's nice, even thought it's a joint party, to give them their special moment in the spotlight :)

Carson didn't realize we were singing to HIM.  This is the cutest little video!!

And Cooper knew exactly what was coming, but clearly loved his moment in the sun!  He was trying so hard not to smile, but he just couldn't hold back the excitement...

We are so thankful our families all still love to come together to celebrate with the kids.  It's so fun to give them a chance to have a special party once a year, when all the attention is on them!