Merry Cookies!

Ezra and Eli love to cook. In fact, it is one of Ezra's many new words. Here's Ezra cooking at home.

 And baking cookies at a friend's house was the best way to really get our Christmas started! So Merry Cookies, Everyone!

All Aboard!

After our Thanksgiving tour of Northwestern N.C., you'd have thought we would be well over transportation. Not so. Saturday we decided to take Eli and Ezra to the Virginia Transportation Museum. We've been meaning to do it for awhile because trains are very popular in our house and the museum has a lot of them.

So....

 And we'll leave you with one final railroad thought (I don't think it will escape you, but be sure to notice the excitement level here). . .

A Good Visit

We had a good visit with Ellie, Jed and Macon and their respective parents last weekend. The weather was perfect, the park was ideal, and the food tasty and plentiful. Eli and Ezra both had a blast and so did we.

Mulch-flavored Ice Cream Anyone?

 Rock throwing...well it rocks.

 So does fishing (Eli carries his pole in the car - you never know when you'll have a fishing emergency).

 Enjoying a little time-out. Eli's part of this was a punishment and Ezra felt compelled to help him through it. Notice the wet pant legs? Notice nobody's children but ours walked straight into the river? I'm going to just chalk it up to the fact that ours are used to getting in the water because we go to the river so often and hope that it doesn't have any relationship to their common sense. I mean, nobody told them it was November.

The Firefighter and the Bumblebee

That sounds like a good children's book! Happy (belated) Halloween.

A Few Photos of Fall

Making Jack-o-Lanterns

Having Fun with Daddy

If you ever have a hammock on fire, you know who to call...

Visit to the ultimate Pumpkin Patch

Pumpkins for the Punkins

Our neighbor Gary grew some awesome pumpkins in back of the garage just for the boys. They had lots of fun picking them over the weekend. It was such a hual that they had to bust out the double wagon train. Stay tuned for pumpkin carving...

Back Seat Driver

My advice is Do Not Get in the Car if Eli is Driving! Notice the sparks on screen where he's totally in the wall? See how he watches the road? See how his foot is still on the accelerator? I think Ezra is a pretty calm back seat driver considering.

4!

Eli turned 4 today. Wow.

Here are a few photos from his firetruck party Saturday.

We are really lucky to live next door to "Christiansburg Engine #1"!

Four thirsty little firemen

 Eli told Chris it was the best firetruck cake I'd ever made. It was the only one I've ever made and I kinda hope it is that last.

 Eli had some very specific ideas about his party including that exact cake (from a You Tube video he saw) and a " 'yata" it took us a little while to figure out he wanted a pinata and it took awhile longer to find a firetruck one. Then the hanger came off right away. No matter - the boys just took turns whacking the heck out of it.

 Here's our big boy on his new big boy bike.

And the annual THEN and NOW....

3 days

1

2

 

3

 

and 4!

The Good and Bad of Getting Big

Eighteen-month-old Ezra can't quite decide if becoming a big boy is fun or not so great. On the one hand, it is a lot of fun to stomp in the puddles with your big brother.

But.....getting that first haircut was not all it was cracked up to be. The little stool in the barber chair was a complete "no thank you!" Mama's lap was only slightly more acceptable.

 Get me out of this mess!

Back home, freshly coiffed, playing in the garden and sliding down the slide are definitely on the good-to-be-big list.

Busy Summer Days

We try to keep our boys busy. This isn't an altruistic idea of filling their little brains with good things, mind you, but simple self-preservation. Busy boys can get into less trouble. We've been so busy that I haven't managed to get very good photos or have time to post them, so sit back for a proper catch up.

Ezra is growing so fast! He loves people, especially new people, and loves animals of all kinds. He has several words now, although they are still in that come-and-go phase. A few favorites are keys, bye-bye, night-night, cheese, Eli (E-i), and "bites" (not food, but his paci). And speaking of the paci, he loves it. Recently, he's been downright passionate about it. I think this means trouble. A less worrisome love is his "school." Ezra has been going since March and he loves his teachers and the fun things there. He cries if it looks like Chris is leaving the house without him in the mornings. And really, who wouldn't like it there.....

You get to do fun projects....

 Eat yummy food (he always impresses his teachers with how much he can eat!)

 Ooo! Paint!

 Eli's kept himself pretty happy too....He got to ride in Grandpa's '56 Chevy with the big boys. Need I say more?

 We've been to the lake where Eli did his favorite things: play in the water, explore things, and look at boats.

 And Ezra did all of the above, plus his favorite thing: sit and eat (notice the full hands).

 We tried camping on Grandaddy's Mountain - again. And failed royally - again. Well, nobody actually slept in the tent anyway, which Chris says is the definition of camping. We'll call it a lovely extended picnic.

 Men at work...

 

And Men at rest with their funny paper.