Seeing double . . .

Tate's best friend, Layton, also got a "bumblebee thing with the power" for Christmas. Need I say more?

Actually, there is one thing more.  Layton calls Tate "Tape". It makes me laugh everytime. So, when I look at this photo, in my head I hear, "I'm gonna shoot you, Tape!"

Dinosaurs Alive!

Today we headed out to our local museum of Natural History and Wildlife Preserve and Sanctuary for their annual exhibit of dinosaurs.  They are life size, animatronic dinosaurs - complete with blinking eyes, moving heads and roars.  It is pretty cool. 

The best part of the trip was the wild life preserve, where it is all located.  The land is beautiful and is really unlike anything else in our area.  It is filled with trees, nature trails, rocks, and hills -- that's right, I said HILLS.  There are actual changes in elevation.  Nothing spectatular, but still, it is a HILL and for those of you who have been to Texas, this truly is a novelty.  We are really lucky to have this so close to us. 

As a huge bonus, the weather was PERFECT.  This is no exageration.  It was 75, blue skies, with a very slight breeze.  I love these days.  We went with our friends, Dawn, Layton and Cason (of course).  There is really very little we do with out them.  The boys are great friends and all get along famously.

We are a spectacle where ever we go, with all these blond haired boys. 

Whew! Since when was Halloween a week long event?

Here it is, 10PM on Halloween night. The costumes have been worn, the candy has been gathered and I am exhausted. We have definitely had a VERY eventful week. It started on Tuesday with a Halloween Carnival at the YMCA. On Wednesday, it was the "Fall Festival" at Tate's pre-school. Then on to Scare on the Square on Friday - a very cool trick-or-treating event put on by our city. It is in the historic district of downtown McKinney. The city blocks off traffic to the historic "square", and the restaurant and show owners line the sidewalks to hand out candy to the kids. We were amazed at how many people showed up (we tried to capture the crowd in the photo below). It was very cool. The grand finale was, of course, tonight. We started this afternoon with pumpkin carving (I know, a little bit late). Then on to dinner with friends, and then out for the gathering of the candy. The kids had a great time. Through all the events, Coy was perfectly happy as long as there was a lollipop in his mouth at all times. And tell me this, have you every seen a cuter Monkey?
For the record, if you ask Tate, he is a "bonehead pirate" and Coy is his "monkey friend". For those of you unfamiliar with this particular "Tater-ism", a bonehead is a skeleton.

Celebrating our Independence in the heart of America

Over the 4th, we packed up the car and traveled out to the Ozark mountains in Arkansas to celebrate Independence day "country style". Our friends have family that live in this area and they were nice enough to invite us along. We had a blast.
We stayed in an out building of a 100 year old farmhouse. Or more specifically, we were bunked out in the 5th wheel trailer parked behind one of the barns. Tate thought his bed, which by day was the dinette, was awesome.
There were 4-wheeler and tractor rides, exploring, and generally just relaxing. At a hour away from the closest town, we had to get creative for ways to keep the kids occupied. But, we had a blast. For those of you who haven't been to Arkansas, it is truly beautiful and I was happy to get to see it for myself.

Staying cool in 101 degrees

The temperature has been 100+ for six days (and counting). We were looking for a way to get out of the house and stay cool. This was the perfect idea. This area is called Addison Circle. It is a park with fountains, sprinklers and wading pools. I am not really sure it was designed for this kind of activity, but it works and the kids love it.

And, since I had 154 pictures from this outing, it was difficult to pick just a few. So, I made a slide show (look to the right). I was able to pick 18 that show how much fun we had.

And the good news is we stayed cool and Coy was the only one who came away with an injury (ouch)! This is what happens when a crawling baby meets wet slippery pavement!

Worth a thousand words . . .

Uuhh, I tried to come up with something clever for this one, but really, it speaks for itself.

Just keep swimming . . .

It seems that every spare moment we have had in the last couple of weeks has been spent in the pool. And, it is not all for fun, it is to LEARN fun. Need an explanation? It all started on Memorial Day weekend. Tate's best friend, Layton, was having a birthday pool party. We made a special trip to Walmart to pick out a swim vest so Tate could "swim" by himself. You see, last summer we failed to make this purchase and by the time we decided to buy the vest, it was too late and there wasn't one to be found. And I was NOT going to make that mistake again. Tate loved swimming last summer. He would jump off the side of the pool, hold his breath and go under. So, it never dawned on us that being out of a pool for 6-8 months would breed an unbelievable fear of swimming.

In these pictures, he looks like he is having a blast, and he was, as long as he was standing on the step, water only to his knees. But a simple suggestion to float around in the pool, he erupts into screaming and crying. So, we have made it our mission to teach Tate to love swimming. Because, really, what kid doesn't like swimming?

The good news is he is now "liking" the whole swim thing. I will not go so far as to say he loves it. But, it no longer takes hours to talk him into water that rises above his knees. He will float and swim by himself, and the look of sheer dread that was once on his face has transformed into "panicked fun". AND, if his friends are doing it, you can even talk him into sliding down the slide into the pool (complete with his head and face going under water). But, jumping from the sides? NOPE, not yet. Baby steps.

Christmas came early!

Before starting this project, we had been thoroughly warned about the level of frustration involved with assembling one of these things. And, how the estimation of time they provide in the instructions is no where near reality (6 to 8 hours for one "handy" person). But, despite all of this we went for it.

The day started out a nice 68 degrees - warm even for Texas. And despite the fact that they got a late start because Brock's truck got towed (and Brock was supposed to pick up the parts - sorry Brock!), it seemed as though it might go together rather smoothly. Then, when they were 3 hours into it and only 8 pieces of lumber had been assembled and the pile of lumber left to assemble was mountainous. And, the 68 degress was making a swift a decline as the forewarned cold front showed up early, I thought we might be in trouble. But, call it dumb luck or maybe a Christmas miracle, but 6 short hours later, the fort was assembled and ready to be the culprit in countless bumps, bruises, broken bones and general mischief!

So, it turns out that it was a little frustrating - mostly, when I popped out to provide a little comic relief, which I soon learned was not appreciated by my husband.

And the time estimation is fairly accurate if you have a crew of 4 very handy men, one of whom has previous experience assembling a similar project. But, the look on Tate's face when he finally realized what was now in his very own back yard makes it worth it. Of course, that is easy for me to say as my only part in the whole scheme was collecting the money and paying for it - oh, and providing lunch.

Thanks to all who helped . . . Grandma Tanya, Grandpa Val, G-Ma Mellie, and G-Pa Scott for funding the project, and to Brock, Niel, Jay and "Daddy" for donating the time and labor. You made a very happy Christmas for one Tater. So happy, even the one of the coldest mornings of the year - only 21 degrees - couldn't keep him indoors.