Week 12

Walker // You love word searches. Anytime there is a word search, you want to do it. You're pretty good at them, too! And of course, we're always there to help you. :)  You also have this wonderful, contagious giggle that only really comes out when you're playing with Daddy and Lainey. I love the sound of it! We hear this laugh when you are truly, genuinely happy. :)

Lainey // Well. You've become our little tooter. I am a little hesitant to write this, as it might be embarrassing to you in the future. But you are such a tooter! They all come out at night because you've had to "hold them in all day." I think you've even called yourself the "Queen of Tooting." But I would never repeat that to you - you are certain to be embarrassed. You've coined the term "soft toot" (instead of a "silent toot") and whenever we hear tooting, we know you're to blame. :) But we know not to blame you if you are in a grumpy mood. That would backfire on us!

***

We are eagerly anticipating more sunny days...we've had a lot of rain here lately. I'm ready to see the sun! Happy Spring, everyone!

Week 11 (A Little Late)

Walker // You like privacy when going to the bathroom. Not from us - your family - but from Reagan. You don't like how she looks at you when you're going to the bathroom. 

Lainey // You are making up games ALL the time. ALL the time. I can't go into detail about it because it would just take too long. You make up games in the bathtub, at restaurants, outside, inside, wherever. Sometimes your games are modifications of another game you know how to play, like Monopoly or Chinese Checkers. Your instructions are detailed and lengthy, and I feel like I have to listen to every single one of them or else you'll call me on it. :) 

The Lease

The five of us (yes, the five of us...Reagan included) went to the lease this past weekend. We had such a good time! 

We left after dinner on Friday night. The kids did great in the car, and we all slept till 10:00 a.m. on Saturday! My morning started with this little guy, however. He was in the coffee reservoir. Alive. Ew.

Lainey and Daddy, out hunting for "treasures"

lotsa good stuff

So this was interesting. We got to observe the ditch being dug for the water pipes! It was actually really cool. These two boys in the picture - Trigg and Tripp - are the landowner's grandsons. They are ALL BOY. More like our girl. Not our boy. :)

Lainey was barefoot in the trench.

And while Lainey was barefoot in the trench, I was brushing the dirt off of Walker's socks and shoes (at his request). We were in the middle of a field. Surrounded by dirt. Let's just say that I didn't have much luck getting him all cleaned off. :)

such a wild dog

a view of the trailer

Reagan didn't like the cows AT ALL. She did a lot of barking.

The cows didn't know what to do with the newly-dug ditch.

Lainey and Isabelle (her doll) by the fire after a long day outside and a good dinner at the pizza place in town. The kids ate candy and Lainey danced around the fire pit. She made her own little dance party. :)

And, I took this just before we left....it was such a beautiful morning!

More Spring Break-ness

Walker, just before swimming lessons. His "brain hurt" and he couldn't "move his hands or his feet or anything." :) He wasn't in the mood to go to swimming. 

Lainey finally had a friend spend the night at our house! (She's been begging for this for a LONG time!) Lainey had spent the night at Morgan's house over Christmas break for her first "official" sleepover so it was Morgan's turn to come to our house! The girls had a wonderful time - and stayed up way too late. 11:30! Highlights were a giant bubble bath, staying up late to watch their dance recital video from last year, sleeping in sleeping bags in the media room, and Walker running around the media room naked. Good times.

The three kids. I'm thankful that Walker loves Morgan as much as Lainey does. He really, truly does. It's sweet. We visited the Perot Museum today....and it was really busy. Even though the kids were tired, they held it together surprisingly well. :) 

fun with the frogs outside the Perot Museum

Digging for bones! I love the Perot. Walker wanted nothing to do with the sand. We had to clean the sand off of his shoes and he definitely wasn't getting in there with bare feet. He used to not be so fearful of getting dirty -- but lately, he really is not a fan of getting his feet/socks/shoes wet, dirty, sandy, grassy, or messy. He may have a touch of OCD. :) 

Rainy Days and Spring Break

Our Spring Break 2015 is off to a rocky start! Lots of rain! Well, I guess that's a good thing. But I'm ready for some sunshine! :) 

The kids made a fort - complete with a laundry basket (so I could do their laundry) and a mailbox (so I could hand-deliver letters to them on a daily basis).  :)

There were lots of baskets and stuffed animals and books involved in the fort-making.

Fun at JumpStreet with some of our favorite people. Nora, Ainsley, Lainey, Kaitlyn. (Walker, Brayden, Gage, Wyatt, and Camryn were there, too.)

Three men in a boat. :) They were watching Buying Alaska. I'm pretty sure Ben is trying to convince Lainey to move there! :)

***

We went to the doctor today for Walker's five-year-old checkup! He did...okay. He "did not cooperate" (the nurse's words) for the eye test, and he got two shots (and after the fact he could "not walk or do anything"). In other news, he's officially big enough to ride in a booster seat! He weighs 39.6 pounds (but over 40 with shoes on...) and he's 43 inches tall. If a child is 40 pounds and 40 inches tall he/she can ride in a booster seat. So. We go with that. But, to his credit, he usually still chooses to sit in his carseat with the five-point harness. :) His blood pressure was 92/58. I'm not sure why I'm including that. :) Happy "official" five years, Walker! :) Love you and your unpredictable, loving, smart, slightly-uncooperative self! :)

Week 10

Walker // You love to wrestle your daddy. You live for candy. You also refer to your "boy part" as your "peanit."

Lainey // You are beginning to wear pants. This is a new thing; you own a couple of pairs of pants, but you haven't worn "real" pants since you were about two years old. You like your dresses and skirts and leggings. However, given the colder temperatures (and SNOW) that we've had lately, you've actually worn your pants! You are sticking with soft pants - a pair of black yoga-ish pants and a pair of gray, thick leggings - but hey. That works. :)

Cousin Love

Lainey and Walker saw their second cousins on Saturday. They were obsessed with Eva, who just turned a year old in February. 

Eva is clearly okay with having her personal space invaded.

sweetness

Walker and Tom carried around these plastic T-Ball bats for hours. They ran circles around us...into the house, then out of the house, then back into the house...over and over again. I think they used them as weapons. Because that's what boys do. :) At one point someone carried around the T-Ball tee and used that as a weapon. 

The kids did a little cleaning. Tom would shake his water bottle to get water on the ground and the kids would use the broom to "clean." Ha! Good luck, kids. That's a driveway. They are generally pretty dirty.

Tom, Walker, Lainey, Lucie 

typical :) 

More Snow

On Wednesday night, we got more snow! :)

Ben took this picture as the snow started coming down, probably around midnight or so. 

So peaceful! And so cold. I love how the snow brightens everything, even at night.

When we woke up on Thursday morning, it was so bright and sunny. This is a view of Lainey's school from our front porch.

our front steps

Walker loved throwing snowballs. He really loved that game until one landed between his neck and his jacket...then he didn't love it as much.

As usual, this one ate some snow. 

throwing a snowball at his mom

Lainey pretending to be Elsa

"Letting it go..."

Yay for snow! In March! :) Texas!