Where oh Where Has My Baby Boy Gone?

My baby is 6-years-old! I can't believe it. He is such a joy to us, and it is unreal to me that he has surpassed a hand full of fingers in age. He's playing video games, riding a bike without training wheels, doing math, climbing across monkey bars with no help, doing flips on a trampoline....But not long ago he was the cute little baby below wondering why in the world people were singing to him and what that flickering thing on his cake was.

Now Carter knows all about birthday cake and can eat it like a pro. He inherited his father's sweet tooth and can stuff a lot of it in that slim little body of his. He can be a messy eater but generally keeps his feet out of his food now, unlike on his first birthday. Who taught that kid table manners anyway?

Carter scored big for his birthday with a spiderman video game, a scooter, a remote control tarantula, a bug vacuum, puzzles, a whoopi cushion....

9 Reasons why I love my neighborhood

These are 9 of the 17 (yes I said 17) boys who live on our cul-de-sac. I think 5 of the 17 are in high school or college and two are babies, so this is the majority of the gang who are always out playing. We LOVE where we live. It is heaven for the Carter and Owen. They are always riding bikes or scooters, or digging in dirt piles with some of the neighbor kids. They are all great kids and the big boys are so nice and patient with the little boys. Plus, getting to know the other moms and dads on the block has been fun. We've only been here for a year, and I know my neighbors much better than I ever knew any of the neighbors in Slater and we lived there for 5 years! I can't think of a better place to be.

The love of the great outdoors vs. the love of modern plumbing

So our 10th anniversary is a little over a year away and we have been planning to take a nice trip to celebrate the occasion. A few years ago, we were able to spend a week on the island of Kauai (Hawaii). It was incredible. The most beautiful place I have been to in my life!! We are both in agreement we want to go back, but Corey's itinerary would include a few days of hiking and camping before staying in a hotel. Yes, camping. Carry your tent and your food on your back and camp somewhere on the rugged Napali Coast which is only accessible by hiking trails. There is this little part of me that says, "try it. It would be an adventure. We could pretend we are on LOST." (hee, hee) And there is this other part of me that really likes a flush toilet and a nice warm shower. Anyway, who knows what we'll end up doing or where we'll end up going, but I thought it'd be fun to try this new polling feature and get some opinions.

Hobo Days

We were at my folks in Britt this weekend for Hobo Days. We spent time with tons of relatives that we don't see very often, ran a 5k run (Corey beat me, I'll get him next year!), took in a parade, played on the inflatables and ate way too much food (but we ran, so I figure we deserved all the food).
Owen is waiting patiently for the parade to begin (Owen and patient in the same sentence...that's an oxymoron). He and Carter got way too much candy! When we got back to Slater, Carter said, "I'm only hungry for candy for supper." Surprise, surprise.
Carter playing on the inflatables.
Lewis wondering what in the world is going on and why he can't play in the big jumping house (maybe next year)!All tired out and literally dripping with sweat, we walked back to Grandma and Grandpa's house while eating funnel cake and cotton candy. Who can go to a carnival and not get some funnel cake and cotton candy?

FOUND: One Opposable Thumb!

After several weeks of gnawing on his fist, Lewis finally realized that his thumb is opposable. He's a happy baby. His big brothers have been at Grandma and Grandpa's for a few days, so he has had some peace and quiet to work at getting that thing in his mouth.

Imagination

Okay, so here's the story. Carter aka Superman, Owen aka Green Gob, and Lewis aka Knight, are in their boat heading toward the volcano. They say they would fly but their arms get so tired. The volcano is full of dragons and Lewis is a dragon slayer. Adventure abounds at our house.

Buddies

Lewis may not know it yet, but this guy is gonna be one of his best buddies. Ethan, my friend Marti's son, is 9 months older than Lewis. Below is a photo of Carter and Ethan's older brother Caleb taken in 2003. Caleb is 10 months younger than Carter, and they have been playing together since they were babies. Couldn't find a picture of Owen and Aiden together. Both of us are living life as the only females in our households. With three sons each our lives are full of dirt, noise, trucks, bugs and general chaos, but we love it (most of the time).