Step by Step

What started out in the morning as some fun on Grandma's really neat stairs, turned into a very focused activity with the objective of mastering these stairs! Jared's ability to concentrate in the middle of Wes and Drew playing around him it truly impressive. He is our little 'eye of the storm.' I was able to catch a little video of Jared taking the stairs slow and steady but over and over and over again until he had it with ease!

Andrew had a slight run-in with some jello which resulted in his sweater heading straight to the wash. This is why he is playing as skins. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving day but it was also nice once the boys were in bed. We all need to rest up because tomorrow we are heading to the Lowery Park Zoo!

Take care,

It's Thanksgiving!

We have made it to Grandma's for Thanksgiving. We arrived on Wednesday and on Thanksgiving morning, the boys were up ready to celebrate with family. Our morning started with the traditional Macy's Thanksgiving parade. When the parade started, Andrew had to call a few of his 'peeps' to make sure they were up and watching.

"Hey dude, get up the parade has started."
Most our our Thanksgiving was spent playing on the neat toys Grandma has built between the first floor and the upstairs. The boys are able to move up and down the stairs without any trouble. We continue to put the gate on the fourth stair to keep any potential tumbles to the lower stairs. Grandma's house is so cool...

A couple pics from Thanksgiving morning for which I gave great thanks!! I have been trying to get some pictures of the boys to use in our Christmas cards and nothing was 'just right.' Then, on Thanksgiving morning, I captured these sweet faces:

Jared...

Andrew...

Wes' pic was good but I have better ones to use on the Christmas card..

Once the boys were dressed for the day, Daddy and Veronica took them for a walk around Grandma's neighborhood. Veronica took this picture of them on their walk...

With the boys joining us for the meal, we had to add their very own table! Grandma joined them at their table for dinner and I laughed as I heard the boys banging on the table causing Grandma's plate to bounce around. Everyone found this very funny... but Grandma!

Getting a group shot of the boys continues to prove to be a challenge. Elizabeth helped me out by trying to keep the boys still long enough to snap a shot. Thanks Elizabeth!!

We were a pretty big group at Thanksgiving with a total of eight children. Zack and Ryan, the older boys are missing from this picture but this was six of the eight. It looks like Wes would have preferred to be with the older boys than in this picture. (L-R) - Wes, Veronica, Jared, Rebecca, Elizabeth and Andrew....

Very nice time with family on Thanksgiving. We also celebrated the traditional birthdays for my cousin Susan and me. We both informed everyone that we can skip the Birthday cake in the future for some traditional Thanksgiving desserts like Pumpkin pie!! However, Birthday cake is always nice too.

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving with your family!

Take care,

Our New Hats!

We had a new shipment of clothes arrive today that we purchased off of the BBB Clothing Exchange. Within the box was our new favorite toy! The boys got new winter hats. Wes really enjoyed jumping around with his new hat. Andrew also joined into the fun but Wes really loved his hat and wore it for a while....

It was much more fun in action. At the end, Andrew decides he wants to play with Wes' hat.. NOW...

All of those toys laying around and it's a silly hat that keeps his interest. While they loved them on this night, I bet that when it becomes cold enough that we need to wear them, they will not keep them on for a second. Go figure!

Take care,

Veronica Visits

Veronica arrived this morning!!! We have been looking forward to this visit for a while and we are also looking forward to a great week with her over the Thanksgiving holiday. The last time she was here for a visit, the boys were just babies. Now, it is an entirely different ballgame with three toddlers running around.

Darnell babies #3, #4 and #5....
Veronica and Andrew...

We enjoyed playing outside with 'Sissy'...

The boys love zooming down the slide on her lap...

Just chillin'...

Wow, she can still climb up the rock wall....

Veronica and Wes....

I am not sure who is enjoying this visit more, Veronica, the boys or Daddy!! It is so nice to have Veronica with us for the holidays.

Take care,

New Bath Night Pictures

Bath night is occurs every third night and while it remains an aerobic activity for the bather, it is enjoyable to just sit back and watch the boys play in the water. It has been a while since I posted any pictures from bath time.

Jared...
Andrew...

Wes, blowing kisses to the handsome baby that he sees in the "mirror." At times, he will even lean over and kiss that same baby...

One of our fun bath time activities which was introduced as a ploy to keep them seated is "kick, kick, kick, kick, SPLASH!!" The boys sit and we chant "kick, kick, kick, kick, etc." They kick their legs really fast. This was fun for a while until Jared decided we needed to add an exclamation mark and he takes his hands and hits the water while we loudly exclaim SPLASH! This goes on and on and on!

The boys just have a blast in the tub...

Ooooooohhhh...... Wes is so silly and skinny! Look at those ribs... it's hard to believe he has the largest appetite of the boys. I am not sure where he puts it all....

Daddy is the primary bather in the family. I get the joy of dressing the boys as they are sent out of the bathroom. We use to have toys in the tub with the boys but with two brothers bathing with you, you don't really need toys. They would throw them out of the tub so we removed them. It takes a lot of energy to keep up the with the boys and to give them their baths but it is fun while they are actually in the tub. We try to spend a few minutes during each bath to just sit back and watch them have fun with each other. These group baths won't last forever. But, until that day, we are going to enjoy bath night!!

Take care,

Clothing Optional?!?

Oh no... the boys are continuing to learn and some of the new skills, applied at the wrong time are not good. When I woke up the boys this morning, this is how I found Andrew....
Look... I can unzip my sleeper.....
In addition to being able to zip and unzip our clothes, the boys are also getting better at helping take their shirts and shorts off and put them on. On this day, Andrew spent most of the day bringing his shorts to Daddy and Jared would not keep on his shirt. I arrived home to find him in a onesie as the only way to keep on his clothing.

Check out Jared's new skill...

I am just waiting for the day when they decide to strut these new skills in public or at some other equally embarrassing moment... like Thanksgiving or Christmas. Oh my...

Take care,

Coloring or Morse Code?

The boys all spent some time coloring today. They are continually improving at actually coloring and less eating of the crayons but, there are still some struggles...

When I arrived home from work, I saw the beautiful art work. Then, I saw some video that Daddy took while they were "coloring." I wish I knew Morse Code because I have a feeling Jared is trying to communicate....

He is one of such few words anyone know what he is saying??? My guess is something like, "Please make Drew and Wes leave me alone, Please stop them from grabbing my food, Please stop them from stealing my toys, Please, Please, Please make them be quiet just for a minute."

I hear you Jared and I will try!

Take care,

Minor Alterations & Outside Fun

A few months ago, Daddy finished construction of our swing set for the boys. It has been standing in the backyard since then. We used the swings for the boys and occasionally would place them on the slide and assist them with sliding. About a week ago, this all changed!

We had seen the boys show a little interest in the stairs but never any real attempts to start climbing. Grandma and Daddy were outside with the boys and they reported that within a second, they saw Wesley's head pop up over the landing at the top of the ladder on the back of the swing set. Per their report, both of their hearts skipped a beat and they immediately helped him down. After much discussion, we agreed that we needed to help teach the boys to safely maneuver up and down if we were going to have this in our backyard.

To assist with spotting, Daddy made some minor alternations for the short term. The swing set had a ladder on the front and a ladder on the back. There are two slides off the front and an open area at the top of the rock wall. This equated to three entrances and three exits on two different sides of the swing set. This presented a significant challenge for one adult to safely monitor the ups and downs of three children on multiple sides of the swing set. So, Daddy removed one of the ladders and covered the opening with additional slats. He also added 2 v 4s across the open area at the top of the rock wall. This left us with one way up and two slides down all in the front of the swing set. This was much more manageable for one adult to make sure the boys down tumble down.
Once the alterations were final, we turned the boys loose and did not discourage efforts to climb up. We had to implement the rule of going up (only) on the ladder and down (only) on the slides. This prevents toddler 1 from hitting reverse while toddler 2 is already on his way up the ladder. We are still working on this one...

The boys were beaming with pride each time they made it to the top of the swing set. "I am the King of the World"...

Andrew looking down on his subjects....

For now, Jared still prefers to hang out mostly on the ground floor collecting leaves and rocks...

They look so tiny up there...

Yes Andrew, this is how you get down....

He is still trying to get the hang of how to scoot up to the slide with both of his feet in front of him. He keeps getting that leg stuck...

And he did it all on his own - WEEEEE.....

In addition to playing on the swing set, the boys still like to be boys and play in the dirt...

Wes carried this piece of wood around for a while on this day. I am not sure if he thought it was a puzzle piece or he was trying to figure out what to build, like Daddy...

Please note the rock in Jared's hand. He was very pleased with this find but shortly after this picture, everything turned ugly....

Things turned ugly when Andrew took the rock and tried to give it to me....

We were having a great day playing outside when we decided to break out the sidewalk chalk. The boys loved marking everything in the backyard...

We are starting to suspect that Andrew will turn out to be a lefty. He favors his left hand with most activities...

Sweet Jared is happy again. He must have the rock back....

We had to continually remind the boys "Don't eat" the chalk! This must be a very hard concept for them to grasp because there were a lot of chalky mouths...

The boys marked everything from the patio to the fence to the swing set. They loved marking their territory. They look so grown up in this picture. They are definitely growing up way too fast...

Later this day, we headed back outside to play some more as it was a beautiful day. This afternoon, the boys were more courageous with playing on the swing set. They were actually all up there at the same time. Yes, Wes and Drew, it is a long way down...

They had a lot of fun running back and forth and discovering the steering wheel and telescope. It is going to be fun to watch them grow up playing with this swing set. They started throwing things off to watch them fall to the ground... boys...

Hey way up there...

The boys are starting to slide down on their own but it still takes them a little bit to gather up the courage to push off. Here is a short video of Andrew taking the big slide. Make sure to watch Jared as he motions as if he is going to push Andrew...

The boys are also starting to kick the balls. Here is a brief video of Wes kicking the soccer ball. Please note how easily distracted he is by the football... it's in their blood!!

Andrew enjoys sliding and jumping off the end of the slide. I love the concentration before he jumps and then when he lands. Once he is firmly on the ground, he is so proud...

This video is several minutes of the boys playing on the swing set. A couple things of not to point out that can be seen in this video... When the boys hear other dogs in the neighborhood bark, they bark back just like Murray. We love to respond "no" to any and all questions, even if the answer is really "yes." And, Jared's favorite game the "Where's Jared" game.. that never gets old..... does it? Lastly, I never realize how silly I sound until I play these videos... ugh! I guess when you are surrounded by three toddlers, you begin to assimilate! Ok one more thing, someone actually does slide in this video... enjoy...

We are continuing to enjoy our backyard more and more as the boys grow. I look forward to next summer when the boys are much more proficient at maneuvering up and down the swing set! It is hard to believe that this time last year, we had padding on our floors because they were learning to crawl and pull up. Wow, what a difference a year makes!

Take care,