My little Zookeeper

Brooks was a Zookeeper for Halloween. His costume came straight from the San Diego Zoo thanks to Steph and Keven. They saw it on their trip and couldn't resist. You can see why. The costume also had a key for the animal cages and some really sweet sunglasses that got broken within 1 minute of Brooks wearing them! Brooks figured out trick-or-treating and did a good job saying "trick-or-treat" and holding up his bucket. The only problem was that Brooks wanted to eat each treat that he got and he didn't understand leaving the treat in his bucket. So there were a few temper tantrums, but what kid wouldn't be sad if his candy was taken away from him?

We went over to our Auntie Lee-Lee's school to trick-or-treat in the different classrooms. It was really fun to see Auntie in her room and we got to meet some of her students as well. Brooks loved that Daddy was with him today (dressed as a train conductor, as you can see) and Mommy was even more pumped to have the help!

(P.S. I am the one who "made" Greg dress up. For those of you who know him, this is NOT in his comfort zone and would not be his first choice. What a great sport!)

Instead of trick-or-treating from house to house tonight, we went to church for the party they host each year. Our church is super generous and do a really good job with the kids. There were games for all ages, a costume contest (Brooks on stage in the picture below), a meal and tons of candy. Brooks got on stage during the contest, looked into the audience (who were clapping for him) and started to smile and clap for himself. It was pretty cute. I don't know if he won the contest, but in my mind he should have!

On the way home tonight we were singing the song "Sugar in the morning, sugar in the evening, sugar in the afternoon..." or something like that! Brooks' blood is mostly sugar right now and I can't wait to see his diapers tomorrow!

So, I am sure that Brooks won't remember any of this. I guess we do it all for the sake of trying to be good parents and feel like he isn't missing out. It was a good day, but we are all ready to wind down and go to bed! Until next year...no more candy! :)

Breakfast and fun with Great-Grandpa!

Greg was hunting this week in South Dakota. It was wonderful to see him last night when he returned. We DO NOT like it when he leaves, but understand he needs to get quality time with his dad. Greg reported that the hunting wasn't his favorite part this year. It was the conversations and time with his dad that made the trip worth it. Anyway, we are so happy he is home and can't stand even one day without him.

While he was gone, we were able to go to breakfast with Great-Grandpa and Opa. It was nice to see Great-Grandpa. He told me during this time together that his plan is to live until he is 100 years old!

After breakfast we went to Home Depot together to pick up some extension cords for his Christmas lights. Great-Grandpa loved pushing Brooks in the big cart. He said it helped him with his balance as well, so it was a winning situation for everyone! It is always special when we get to hang out with Great-Grandpa. We got two comments from strangers who thought it was cool that 4 generations were shopping together at Home Depot! It is pretty neat.

As always, Opa was the highlight of the breakfast. He makes everything into a game and Brooks loves it. Opa is really good at "turning into a kid" just to relate to his grandkids. It was also nice to get a little relief during Greg's time away. An extra set of hands it always appreciated.

The picture below has nothing to do with breakfast with the family, but Brooks' eyes are so blue that I had to post it. We played outside with Kennedy and Maggie and hung out with them even more than usual while Greg was gone. Thank goodness for sisters to help a sister through being a single parent. We are all back home now and life will return to normal this weekend. Yeah!

Our smart little boy.

Brooks is starting to speak very clearly. We are so proud of him. Here he is telling Auntie Bean what each item is in the book. Listen closely so you can hear what he says!

It's been a long time!

It has been a long time since we have posted. Sorry! Things in our family have been very "normal" lately. No big trips, no exciting races and nothing really to report. It has actually been pretty nice to focus on just being a family and having quality time together. We did miss our cousins last week though...they were in California and I think Brooks asked for "Ka-Ka and Jo-Jo" just about every single day. (10 times a day, actually!) We were happy to be reunited with them on Sunday and Kennedy says it best when she says "I had the best day of my life today...I got to be with Buddy!" It was nice for me to have my sister Steph back too. Things just are not the same without her. I did get some much needed bonding time with my little sister, Laura, though. That was really nice and reminded me that she needs to hang out with us more. (It is hard because she works full time...boo!)


Brooks and I went to the park one evening this week while Daddy went on a run. It was cold and crisp. Brooks loved it. He is now able to climb to the top of the big slide (behind him in his picture) all by himself and slide down it. Each time we go to the park, he seems to get more and more independent. It scares me sometimes, because he is such a wild little boy and has absolutely NO fear. I had a great conversation with my friend Karen this morning. She has a couple of boys. She told me "No one will really understand or be able to have complete empathy for you unless they have a boy!" Amen, Karen.

A couple of things about the picture above...1.) Brooks, where is your shirt? 2.) Brooks, what is on your belly? Auntie Bean was babysitting Brooks last week and she was tattooing him and letting him run around without his shirt on. Naughty, Naughty as Brooks would say! :)

She makes it look like they are so innocent. Yeah, right! Brooks loves his Auntie Bean and enjoyed going on lots or errands with her and playing with her for a FULL day!

Good morning, Brooks! Brooks is really into having lots of stuffed animals, blankets, soosies and bow-wow's all at the same time. He likes to say "two" which means he wants more items to carry or snuggle with. Here he is, just waking up and loving that his Daddy let him bring his stuffed animal, bow-wow, and soose up to breakfast. Silly boy.

Such a Bud!

We played outside tonight while Daddy went on a run. We were initially going to go to the park, but I couldn't find the car keys. It isn't my favorite thing to load my Bud into the car only to unload him 5 minutes later! I don't think he knew the difference, but I was trying to be a "good" mom and get him to the park. No such luck. So we played in the yard with his toys and explored our neighbors lot that is empty between our houses. Brooks was running around like a crazy man and when we came in his entire head was sweaty. Maybe it was the down vest and winter hat I had him in. I guess I didn't realize it wasn't that cold outside. Oops!

When we came in, we had a big "play session" as we like to call them at our house. I love the picture below because Brooks is laughing so hard (make this picture bigger if you can, and look at his smile). He is super ticklish on his legs and his smile and giggle just melt our hearts. For some reason he was extra cute tonight. It might be that he took over a THREE hour nap today! Hooray! Brooks' naps have been inconsistent, so we love when he surprises us with a long one.

Brooks cut his hand open on his fish light. He loves his "sip" light and is a little bit obsessed with it. He fell on it the other day and got a big gash on his hand. It seems to be getting better, but is still a little bit infected. Daddy (the Eagle Scout he is) takes really good care of washing it out and bandaging it each day. It is quite the process but Brooks does amazingly well. He likes to "help" his daddy by mimicking everything he does. For example, tonight Brooks put some extra (much needed..hee, hee) ointment on his cut. Thanks, Brooks!

I asked Brooks to show me his "ouchie". Here he is showing me. He is saying "ouuuuuuu" as he shows me. He gets little puppy dog eyes and knows that he has us wrapped around his little finger. He is so cute. Yikes, I never knew I could be so in love!

Goodnight. Brooks went down late tonight, so we need to get ready for the week. We have nothing special planned, just a few trips to the YMCA and lots of family time before Daddy goes hunting.

Up his nose...with a rubber hose?

Brooks has recently started putting everything up his nose. Here are a couple that we were able to capture. It is mostly food, but sometimes toys. We have to be careful that he doesn't end up getting something stuck! What a comedian!

Bunny Cracker.

Kix.

Bunny Cracker. Different day.

The line...

Let me introduce you to "the line". It is the umbrella pole that you can see in the picture below. "The line" is put in place when Greg does not want me to help with something. Tonight, I was banned from the kitchen so he could put all of the groceries away by himself. He wanted no help. As you can see, he wanted me to read my Oxygen magazine, drink my pop and talk on the phone. I was not allowed past "the line". Greg is so fun and so sweet for doing all the duties that typically are done by the woman of the house!

We have been enjoying MOPS every other Thursday. Last Thursday we had to dress up silly and our group decided to decorate these hats from the Dollar Store. Afterwards, Brooks and Kennedy had a blast wearing them. They are such buddies. (Maggie had a hat too, but we couldn't fit her in the picture..Brooks loves Maggie, too!)

Steph and I hosted our 2nd Annual Harvest Party on Saturday. It was a really nice time and the rain held off which was nice. Brooks enjoyed playing with all of his "friends". Here is is playing house with his new friend Landon. It was so funny to be reminded once again how big Brooks is. There were several kids there around his age and Brooks had at least 1o pounds on each of them. No wonder my right bicep is so big! :)

Daddy taught Brooks to say "Pepsi" today and also "pop". I told Greg he was busted. I don't really think it is all that necessary for a 19 month old to say those words. Greg just laughed. It was all in good fun. I am sure I mentioned before, but Brooks continues to get his 2 year molars and I feel so bad for the Bud. He is in so much pain and cries real tears that would melt any mama's heart. Poor baby. I can't stand when he is in pain.

We love Fall and are sad to see the leaves are starting to fall off the trees. Hopefully we can get outside this week to enjoy the last few weeks of fall.

Love to all who read!

Busy weekend!

We went to a wedding on Saturday night for Greg's cousin. It was a very unique wedding that was held outside. The bride and the groom obviously had this wedding exactly how they wanted it. It was very cute. The dinner was Mexican food, the bathrooms were port-a-potty's with extra toilet paper, deodorant and lotion on a cute stand right outside each "bathroom", and the hot chocolate bar was a hit. The kids were very included in the wedding as well. There were toys for them to play with (lots of toys), a craft table to make crafts, and the first three or four dances were kid friendly. I was impressed with all the attention to detail.

Brooks got to see his cousin Dylan, who he rarely gets to see. Dylan is exactly 9 months younger than Brooks (to the day), and it is amazing the weight difference between the two! Dylan is light as a feather and Brooks...well, not so much. We were able to get a picture of the two of them with their Grandpa (Greg's dad). When I asked Greg's dad which kid he'd like to "hand over", he decided he'd give me the "heavy one". Too funny. Brooks is getting so hard to hold.

Here is our family at the reception. You can see the kids glasses and slinky in the picture. They also had play-dough for the kids. How fun.

On Sunday, we were getting ready for church. It is amazing how much kids understand. We got Brooks' coat and shoes on him and he says "Jesus". We said "yeah, we are going to "see" Jesus" and he then decides it would be appropriate for him to fold his hands and pray. It is amazing how at such a young age kids pick up on things. Of course we don't think Brooks really gets it, but it is pretty cool that he associates church with folding his hands and praying. A couple of weeks ago after church, we couldn't get Brooks to stop saying "AMEN!". He must have said it 50 times. It is so precious.

On Sunday afternoon, Brooks and I decided to make a surprise visit to the lake. Greg was out mountain biking with his buddies and Brooks was refusing to nap. We showed up at the lake just in time for Brooks to help mow the lawn. At first there were tears, but only for a couple seconds. As you can see, he ended up loving riding on the mower. We took a nice, leisurely walk around the lake and got back just before the rain. The ride home was a little rough because it was past bedtime and we (I) forgot his blanket that he is so attached to. All is well though and the day was relaxing.

Up next is ski season. We don't have anymore events scheduled until the snow falls. Greg will go pheasant hunting and I may sneak away to the lake for a girls weekend, but other than that we will have lots of family time. Yeah!

Driving at 18 Months?

Brooks loved this car that he was driving at Oma and Opa's. He wasn't even timid and I can't believe he figured it out. Boys are so different than girls. That is really an understatement.

Mr. Potato Head? or is that Brooks?

Brooks got a Mr. Potato head this week. He loves it for one reason alone...GLASSES! And the best part is he thinks they fit him! He says "glasses" clear as day and fishes through the container for the green glasses. Once he securely places them on his face (yeah, right) he can proceed with whatever else he was doing. This picture would be so much better if he didn't have that pacifier in his mouth. As you can see, we are giving little effort to get rid of it. He seems more attached now than ever.

Brooks was actually really excited for me to take a picture of him in his glasses. Usually I have to try a lot harder to get him to look at the camera, but not when he has his super cool, Mr. Potato Head glasses on!

Like Daddy like son. Here is Brooks with his new vacuum. He says "vacuum" and also "daddy" when he helps out with the floors. He must see his daddy vacuuming more than his mommy. Hmmmm...No comment.

Loving the GREAT outdoors

Brooks has become such a big boy. He now can officially climb to the top of the slide and go down all by himself. It is so fun to watch how proud he is of himself when he does this. He loves repetition, so you can imagine how many times a he climbs up and slides down in one visit to the park. Brooks is really fast too. I mean really fast. If I turn my head for a split second he is halfway up the slide or all the way across the field. Seriously, this kid has a future in track. (Okay, maybe football. He has his 18 month check-up and he is almost 35 pounds! Are you kidding me?)

Getting ready to go down the slide...

Such a big boy and SO proud of himself!

While Daddy worked today, we took an adventure out to Oma and Opa's house. It was one of the better days we've had in a long time. Brooks does his best when he isn't bored, and there was so much to do at their house. They live on a dead end dirt road and have a huge yard to run in. Brooks played outside for hours and had such rosy cheeks when we came inside. It was so cute. He loved to pick me flowers and run to me with them saying "mama, mama, mama". Then, he'd take them away from me and give them to Oma. Then, he would decide he actually wanted to give them to his Auntie. It was the thought that counted, right Brooks?

We went up the North Shore on Tuesday night to get some smoked fish and have a picnic at a beach. Brooks had one of his worst nights ever. He was just really crabby, crying a lot and didn't seem to have much fun. I was able to capture this cute profile of him mesmerized by the lake. We think he is getting his 2 year molars right now. He has had terrible diaper rash and seems to be drooling a lot more than usual. We will have to blame his "not so Brooks like" attitude on the teeth and no nap. It was still nice to have a change of pace and the company was great. Thanks Auntie Linda for the great idea!

WONDERFUL WEEKEND AWAY

Greg and I went to the lake last weekend alone! Although it is always fun to see Brooks after time away, Greg and I had a blast being together and enjoying things we don't get to do so often anymore. Those things would include: Running on trails together, making dinner together at a slow pace with noBuddy (pun intended) helping us, taking a sauna together, reading for hours on end while eating ice cream, and enjoying a show at a local college in our town. We had so much fun loving each other up, catching up on things and being in love. Thanks to the wonderful family who took wonderful care of Brooks. I did hear that "having three kids is hard" though! :) Thanks to Mom and Dad too, for letting us use the cabin and have it all to ourselves.

This pic was taken on one of our runs. We are such dorks. We ran with the camera to capture some of great memories that we made last weekend.

Oh, soooooo sweet. Have I mentioned that I love my husband lately? He is so wonderful.

Here he is at a beautiful waterfall we found on our run. So romantic.

It was great to see Brooks upon return and he slept for over 3 hours when we put him down for nap. I heard he had a hard time napping during our trip. I think it might have something to do with knowing his cousins were in the same house playing during nap time. He adores his cousins and can't seem to settle down when they are around. It is the best.