Backbone - its CAMPING time

FIRST camping trip of the year - Easter Weekend! A tad chilly, but perfect for a campfire! I'm not sure if the boys or Keegan and I were more excited.... We can't get enough of the good old outdoors.

We ventured a couple hours away to Strawberry Point - Backbone state Park in IA and we were THE ONLY ONES to be found. Lance had a bit of a cold and the medicine we were able to find in town was not the flavor he preferred so that would be the one memory I will take away from this weekend, no doubt!

 Painting Easter Eggs of course (without the vinegar the colors aren't too bright!) But the Easter Bunny didn't mind, he still found us.

 Caves, woods, hiking........ is this heaven?

 Lance getting into the picture taking too!

 And even a beach to get a little sand action and toes in the water!

where did MARCH go???

Ok, again I admit I am just not on top of these blog posts.... and it saddens me. I look back over the past several years, able to see the boys grow before my eyes, post after post....and as I look at photos and read my own words I smile, remembering those moments..... so I will continue. Time is too precious and goes by too quickly and I know I will forget, some things I will be ok with forgetting ("keep your hands to yourself, that's not nice, please share with your brother, don't bite, please stop, sit down, use your quiet voice, eat your dinner, you get what you get and you don't throw a fit, no you can't have candy for breakfast, are you listening"... and the list goes on and on....)

But then there are the things I really WILL miss:

• Like being the only one that can decipher Chase's language (OLK, for cold, his word for ambulance - I can't spell it, bet he can though!) 
• Lance singing the Fireman Sam song or Let it Go - VERY LOUDLY, his only volume.
• The cuteness of both of the boys attempting to snap and whistle. Seriously, they think they have both down, but the whistle is nothing like a whistle and those little fingers just aren't strong enough to snap - Oh, but I love it! 
• Their dance moves.... I can't repeat them and if I could, nobody would be watching, but them moving like they do can bring a BIG smile to my face. 
• Chase carrying around his baby doll, talking to it in the sweetest, caring voice "you go sleep, OK?" Then singing twinkle twinkle little star - melts the heart OVER & OVER & OVER....
• There have been days I think I might rather head into an office, have that business type responsibility.... but then I remember I would have to actually wake up and get ready REALLY early AND..... I wouldn't get to start my day by reading endless books and watching endless Disney Junior with two precious boys by my side in bed. I'm lucky, I really am!!
• The days will end when the Disney movies just aren't cool anymore... so I must say, I will really miss watching Toy Story, Monsters Inc, CARS, Nemo. Disney movies really are enjoyable to watch as an adult.
• The tiny toddler voice - Chase just started the "why and why not?" questions about EVERYTHING. Is it annoying... yes, sometimes, but damn is it ever adorable, especially the way he says it "Why not, Mom?" (And yes, he's moved to Mom, not Mommy - ***sigh***
• Playing games with Lance. He LOVES, and I mean LOVES his games. We just finished his Who's Behind the Door stretch (like Guess Who) and we probably played it well over 100 times in a month, seriously. And although I sometimes didn't want to play, I am SOOO going to miss him asking me to play a game with him, when he would rather go up to his bedroom and listen to music and not be near me, so I MUST remind myself of that, often! 
• Chase talking in his bed in the morning and after nap time. Roaring like a monster one minute then singing Happy Birthday to you the next. Yes, the toddler voice, again, going to miss it like crazy. Because it's just so sweet and innocent. 

Quite sure I could go on and on about the things I will miss, but honestly, it's making me a little sad..... So, here are the March quick pictures for the monthly calendar.

 Then we headed to the little pond, right near our picture spot and got a couple more fun ones :-) Can't complain - the perfect day for me - a nice sunny day, with my boys, outdoors and getting to take pictures. My heart is so peaceful thinking about this day.

Sweet brother moments.... Chase MUST do everything his big brother does, even if his hands don't reach! This picture capture so many emotions...

 Lance has been very interested in getting behind the camera when I'm taking pictures, so I let him have a stab at it (as nervous as I was to let him handle expensive equipment) He saw just how difficult it is to get a toddler to look at the camera (I can still remember him chanting, "Chase, buddy, look at me - CHASE, you're not looking at the camera!!!" ) Seriously, funny stuff.

 Oh, but I got him to look...... after I handed him a stick, a boy and his stick.

 Lance posing it up!

 Nothing like your toes dangling in the water..... ahhhh.....

 He loves that hoodie :-)

the KEY to my heart

How is it possible for such little people to fill up so much of my heart? They can frustrate me as quickly as a glass of milk spills (which happens daily right now it seems) But then warm my heart immediately with a smile, a word, a question, a dance move, a hug and even a kiss! These growing, busy, loud, energetic, smart, fun, boys so easily forgive and forget any fault of mine and have an abundance of love to give.... and I am the lucky one that gets a large amount of it right now!

And yes, I have another key to my heart, held by Keegan of course! (not sure he's as easily bribed by a lollipop for a photo with a key!) It is so touching to see the reciprocal love between him and the boys. The way they cheer when he walks in the door and the way they pile on him for a good wrestle (because Mom just isn't as good at that) Or even watching him secretly "snooze" while they watch a television show.

Crazy to think where/when our love for each other began near 18 years ago - and how that love has expanded from our hearts to theirs. Really, love is a cool thing. And it feels so wonderful!

When I took these pics (maybe 2 weeks ago) This was where their LOVE was in the toy department. LEGOS for Lance and trains for Chase. And although they do still enjoy playing with these, they have already moved onto to loving all things Monsters University!

And this is REALLY how the attempt for the photo of them with the key went down, in case you ever wonder... First, Lance wants to walk 50 ft further in the deep snow to take the picture in a specific spot (OK, sure if you are into this and will enjoy it better 50 ft over there, lets do it) And then he won't stand still because he has to, ya know.... yep, you guessed it. SO there we are knee deep in snow behind a rock making yellow snow (which he thought was really cool by the way - I can't stop from smiling)

Then all Chase wants to do is pick up snow.... except his hands turn cold pretty quickly and the tears start to flow.

SO we head back to the car, to the original bench and I ask for one more attempt. But then Lance said the sun was making his eyes tired and he needed to close them.....

And looking back, although I didn't end up with what I had in mind, I love what we created. I even got our quick monthly February calendar picture in too! All for the cost of a lollipop :-) And maybe some skittles.

Happy Valentine's Day - may your hearts be filled with LOVE.

COLD, snowy faces

Ever since our Christmas Eve, first, sledding adventure, Lance has been asking to get out again each time it snows - but this darn COLD, below temperature weather here in the Midwest! Although still pretty cold, Dad made the decision this weekend that even if only for a few trips down the hill, we were going to go sledding. SO I took the opportunity for this short quick sledding adventure to bring the real camera with for a few pics, just a few.

Here is BEFORE the first ride down.

 DURING the ride down...... (trust me, Chase is sandwiched in the middle there somewhere!)

and the AFTER (COLD, COLD, snow covered faces causing lots of tears and some crying - by EVERYONE!) LOL. But they still wanted to go down more. Lance's statement I think was " I sure like this scary fun!"

And with that, the camera went away so I could help with wiping faces and soothing tears :-) And so I could get a COLD face too (sorry, no pics of me)

Before we hit the big "hills" I asked one favor of the boys - a picture of course :-) My hope is to get one picture each month in this same location with a sign for the month to create a fun little calendar for next year. And since Lance is really improving on his writing skills, I will ask him to write the month! SO, for January.......

Cheers - ( I guess) to January, but please February no more bitter cold temps.

The teacher in me

Soooooo tired of this icky, gloomy, bitter, depressing, cold weather. I don't like going out and don't like bundling the boys and taking them out so there has probably been an over abundance of TV - everything from Disney Junior, PBS kids, to Monsters Inc, University, Toy Story, Despicable Me, and a few others...... But I think we all might even be bored of those. It was all getting to me and so I took a break the other night after Keegan came home from work and set out on a mission - to find more activities for the boys! (Ok, and to have a relaxing dinner in peace and quiet, alone) And I accomplished both!

A few pictures of some learning and play activities. I loved the Montessori approach that Lance's last school in KS used and he seemed to really take to it, so I'm working around that as much as possible. It's difficult with two different ages, but so far, so good. I guess the teacher in me has come out a little. I really love this stuff.

This one was probably their most favorite - backing soda in the pan, then color vinegar and use droppers. Then watch is FIZ over and over again.

I have so many ideas for these awesome little motor vehicles. Counting, sorting, sensory bin, and on and on.... I just dumped them out this first time and let them go at it. And they were naturally sorting and counting. FUN stuff!

We had yet another "no school" day due to low temps. I let Lance skip his nap and enjoyed my one-on-one time with him. We did a few learning activities...... and played LOTS of games, including "Who's Behind the Door" which is his absolute favorite these days! Pretty sure we have played well over 100 times in the month of January. Sometimes you're not sure your money is well spent on certain toys, etc. But this game has been beyond worth the money spent.

First, I had him put the number cards in order, then had him match the number word to each number. (Some of these are in his "site word" homework too)

 Then I wanted to see how many of his color words he knew - he really focused and sounded a few of them out. I was quite impressed.

We also put down some masking tape roads for all the hot wheel cars, which kept them both busy for a little while. (Note to anyone with hardwood floors - don't use masking tape. Maybe try painters tape) I even put a sample down for a short time to see if I was going to be ok, but it did take the finish off in a few places, oops!

And I had forgotten about this little "activity" box I made out of a diaper box and paper towel rolls last Spring. Found it hidden and was able to get good use out of it too - SCORE! Thanks again to Pinterest for helping with all of these ideas.

Lance is actually wanting to spend time coloring these days which has been nice and allowed me one-on-one time with Chase. He thinks it's fun to look for coloring pages on the internet and catch them hot off the printer :-) One of his creations from this week - Monsters University of course!