Happy Birthday Grampi

We went over to Gram's house Tuesday night to celebrate Grampi's birthday. His birthday was Monday but we celebrated on Tuesday. Gram made dinner for everyone and then we had ice cream cake! We had a lot of fun hanging out and talking since it had been a while since we have been over there with everyone. Grampi got a few dvds and gift cards for his birthday. Without planning it, we all got him a snoopy birthday card. They were actually all different too! Aunt Bethany's was the coolest though because it played music! Happy Birthday Grampi! We love you!

Halloween Party

Tim's work had their annual Halloween party for the kids tonight. We went around 6:00pm and had a pizza dinner. After dinner the kids marched in a costume parade so everyone could see all of the costumes. Joshua was Darth Vader and Dylan was Elmo. Such a pair! I picked Dylan's costume out without asking him and he was very upset with my choice. He wanted to be Darth Vader or a storm trooper. What does he know about Star Wars?! It wasn't until after we ate dinner that he accepted the fact he had to be Elmo. Anyway! After the parade the kids watched a movie and had popcorn. We usually make it through most of the movie but this year they showed Bed knobs and Broomsticks. The kids did not get into that one too much. We ended up leaving before it was over. Friends of ours from Sunday school were there with their kids too so we got to get some pictures of all of the kids dressed up.

So proud of Tim

Tim got very exciting news this past week at work. He has been selected as the new Senior Manager for Human Resources at his company. The official title is longer than that but I am not sure what it is. This is so exciting for Tim since he has been offered the chance to interview for this position a number of times but it would always require an out of state move. When the position became available here we were so excited and anxious about it. It has been a long process and Tim was not handed the job by any means. All the more reason to feel honored and blessed. I am so happy for Tim because it has been so frustrating to him that it would require a huge life change for our family for him to go after this job. We have almost moved a few times for Tim to be able to achieve this in his career. I am so thankful to God for answering all of our prayers that we were not sure were being answered at times. He has shown us more times than we can count that he only wants good things for our family and defiantly blessed Tim for being patient and trusting him. I know my family and Tim's family is SO proud of him! Way To GO!

First Report Card

Joshua brought home his very first report card on Friday. He is doing well in all areas. They grade them on behavior, letters, matching, scissor use, etc. There was a comment that he needed to work on writing his "U". Joshua told me last week that his teacher would say that!

They DO love each other

The boys were watching TV together the other night and I walked in to find Dylan playing with Joshua's hair as he rested on the couch. So sweet!

Thanks for the stay

The condo we stayed in at the beach was great! It was decorated so nice, had granite counter tops, comfortable beds, all the good stuff! There was a journal that previous guests had wrote in about now nice the room was and how much they enjoyed their stay. My mom wrote in the journal the last day. Here is her letter!

"GREAT PLACE! WE HAD A WONDERFUL TIME. THE BEDS WERE SO COMFORTABLE! THE CONDO WAS GORGEOUS!"
THE LINGOS AND THE HORLICKS
10/11/08
GO McCAIN/PALIN!!
WE COULD SEE RUSSIA FROM OUR BALCONY! :)

Build A Bear

The last day we were at the beach we went to The Wharf and walked around. They had a Build A Bear store there so we went in "just to look." Before we knew the kids had talked Tim into building a bear! (I was glad he gave in since it was so cute in there!) Joshua saw a Batman bear he just had to have. The process of building the bear is really cute. They pick out which stuffed animal they want to make, they have a lot of different ones to choose from. The kids then go and "stuff" the bear with stuffing and then choose a heart for the bear. When they get the heart the helper has them do some really cute things with the heart before they sew it into the bear. They rub it on their foreheads to make the bear smart, they kiss the heart and make a wish, etc. After that they go and wash and groom the bear. It was so cute to watch Dylan do all of this. He was really into to it. Joshua was too but was ready to get the Batman costume. The next step is to pick out an outfit for the bear. Joshua already knew what he wanted so he got the costume and took it to the helper and she dressed his bear. Dylan picked out a dinosaur t shirt for his bear. They have everything for the bears from clothes to shoes to accessories. We just stuck with one piece of clothing! I didn't want to have to get another job to pay for the bears! Once the bears are dressed we make a birth certificate for them and then they are done! Joshua named his bear "Bat Bear" and Dylan named his bear "Green". (that is what you get when you have a 2 year old name a bear! The boys stayed entertained with the bears the rest of the day so it was worth the money!

The Beach...part 2

I intended to blog while I was at the beach everyday but we could not get our laptop to work. oh well!
We had a great time! It was a short trip but I think the best time we have had at the beach. The weather was awesome. Usually it is so hot when we are there in the summer that we don't get to enjoy a full day outside. Friday was the "perfect" day. We spent most of the day hanging out at the pool and at the beach. There was a sand bar not far out that we all (including my parents) spent alot of time playing on. We rode the waves and Tim caught a few little critters. We played frisbee with Joshua and built a sand volcano. I didn't want the day to end. That night we went out to eat and to get ice cream. Saturday morning we had to check out of our condo. We got up, packed and cleaned, and left the resort. We went to the Wharf and walked around and looked at the boats and the shops. The kids went to build a bear and both got a new friend. On our way out of Gulf Shores we ate at Lambert's. We always enjoy eating there. It is like eating at Cracker Barrel with a circus going on around you. The waiters throw the rolls to everyone and play practical Jokes on unsuspecting costumers (Grampie got played!). It is alot of fun and alot of food! We had a good trip home. No rain this time and the kids did great the entire trip. It is nice to be home but I would go back in a heartbeat!

Beach!!!

We are sitting here resting on our 2nd day of our fall break beach trip. We got to Gulf Shores yesterday early afternoon and have already had a great time. My parents should be here any minute to spend the rest of the trip with us. We had ALOT of rain on our way down yesterday. Tim gets a lot of credit for driving through all of that. The rain fall was so hard at times we couldn't see 5 feet in front of us. I told him I will no longer say he is a bad driver. (well, we will see anyway!) Once we got here we checked out the condo and went right down to the pools. We are staying somewhere new this time and it is beautiful. The pools are great and the beach is a short walk. It was kind of cool yesterday in the water so we spent most of the time in the hot tubs. After swimming we ordered some food to the room and changed into some comfy clothes and watched tv. We decided to take a quick drive down the strip last night just to check things out. The kids were very tired so we headed back and finished watching a movie with them before they went to bed. Tim and I went to bed soon after that. The plan this morning was to head to the beach and build a sandcastle but it was cloudy and cool so we skipped that and went to a really cool park at Orange beach. We came back to the room for lunch. We laid Dylan down for a nap and Tim and Joshua went to the game room that is down stairs at the condo. Shrimp Fest is this weekend so as soon as my parents get here we are going to head to the beach and check out all of the good food and activities. I am glad to see that the sun is shining now! I can't post pictures until we get home so check back for those later!

We got BOO-ed

Every Halloween our neighborhood plays a game where you Boo your neighbors. At night you sneak over and leave a Halloween treat on their door step and run away so they don't know who "booed" them. Well, last night at about 8:00 we had a "mystery*" guest at our front door who left us a pumpkin full of goodies! It is now is now our turn to pick 2 more neighbors and Boo them. Once you have been booed you leave a ghost on your front door so everyone knows you have been booed. The goal is to try to get the whole neighborhood booed before Halloween!

*so of course I knew our neighbors were going to boo us this week since I overheard a conversation their 6 year had the other day at our house. Since I knew it was coming I went ahead and put in an order for the kind of candy I wanted. Thanks for the M&Ms Mona! he he!

Fall Break

This week the boys are on fall break from school. We try to have something to do everyday to prevent Cabin Fever and keep the kids happy! Monday we met our friends the Williams at the church playground. They were our neighbors when Tim and I were first married. We lived next to each other for about 3 years. Amy and I had our first babies about 6 weeks apart. Of course we have since moved and we each have new additions to our family (she has 1 kid up on me, but I plan to let that be for awhile!:) We try to get together every once in a while so we can stay in touch.

Picnic Day

This past Sunday our Sunday School class had a family picnic. Both of our teachers are in India on a mission trip so we decided to have a picnic instead of class that day. It was a perfect day for lunch outside. We had BBQ and chicken and everyone brought sides to go with it. We spent a few hours eating and watching the kids play on the playground.

This time last year.......

Here are a few pictures from this time last year. I came across these and just could not believe how much the kids have changed in 12 short months! They are growing up so fast!

Play Date

Dylan had a play date yesterday with his friend Zachary. Zachary's parents, Jason and Melanie, are in our Sunday school class. They just got a really cool new playground in their neighborhood so Melanie invited Dylan and I over to play yesterday. The boys fun running around and trying all of the new equipment. When the boys got tired of playing we put them in their strollers and walked around the neighborhood a few times. The weather was so perfect. We finally had to stop because it was putting the boys to sleep. Thanks Zach for inviting us over to play!