Twix or Trix?

Coy and I have interactions like this one almost daily - he says a word, I say it back to him just as he said it to me, and he corrects me.  My intent of the video was two fold - to capture the way he says "Trix" and also to get this little daily interaction.  Of course, it is the one time that I decide to get it on video that he bursts into tears, making me seem just plain mean.  I blame my father.  He is the one who taught me all my torture techniques.

Hello. My name is Daddy.

I have been trying to come up with something clever to say about this little nugget of Coy's sweetness, but have not found anything worthy.  Maybe a bit of the back story?  It's simple, he found his Dad's hat.  The rest came from him.

Snow Day 2011

Yes, the news reports are right.  Yes, we got snowed on again.  Which brings up the looming question in my mind which is "WHY IS IT SNOWING AGAIN IN TEXAS?!?!" 

 One of the biggest benefits of living here is NOT having snow to deal with.  We've got about 6 inches, enough to have some fun sledding.  I guess as long as it only happens once a year, I can manage.  Now, let's hope that it goes away quickly.

Of course, I DID NOT manage to get a picture of a brilliant "Only in Texas" moment in action, so I will ask you to use your imagination. . . . What does a clever Texan use as a sled on rare snowy day?  You'll never guess, so I'll show you a picture. . . .

That's right.  A broiler pan, or more specifically, the bottom half of the broiler pan.  It actually was not a bad option.   It worked much better than the Rubbermaid tubs that were popular last year

Here's some sledding footage of Tate:

Only in Texas . . . .

Ok. So, it might be argued that this is technically not an "Only in Texas" thing.  But, unless you live in areas prone to hurricanes and tornados, chances are you don't see the kind of rain storms we see here.

We get the CRAZIEST looking storms and really beauitful clouds.  And thunder that rolls on forever.  If you have always lived in an area with mountains, you don't realize that your mountains absorb the sound from thunder.  But, if you live in Texas (and other areas in the midwest) with virtually no changes in elevation, that thunder rolls on FOREVER.  And the lightening?  Wow.

You may have heard of Hermine?  She was classified as a hurricane at some point in the past 2 weeks, then she weakened when she came on shore.  But, weakened is a relative term.  Hermine dropped about 7-8 inches of rain on us in 24 hours. According to the local news, it was the 5th largest amount of rain received in a 24 hour period.

For reference, in this video I am standing under our covered back patio.  The rain gutters on the back of the house re-direct about 80% of the water to the side yard.  The puddles and flooding on the deck is just the water the rain gutter could not handle.  

So, where does all this rain go?  Check out this creek that is within walking distance of our house:

The creek on a typical day
(notice the creek is about 10 feet below the road I am on)

The creek after the rain stopped
(notice the water reaches the road)

This is a different view.
Look closely and you can make out the road that goes under the overpass.

The road is submerged after the rain.

An Interview with Tate and Coy

A month or so ago, I recorded this interview with the boys, mostly in an attempt to capture the way they talk, and what they say about things at this age. As I expected, it takes some unexpected turns, and ultimately makes me smile throughout. I hope you enjoy it, too.

Our weekends have officially changed, for at least the next 15 years

Today was a big day.  Today was Tate's very first soccer game.

Today, our weekends as we have previously known them, have changed for at least the next 15 years.  We are entering a new phase.  The sports phase.  The phase where we run the kids to countless practices and games, supporting them, and devoting our entire weekends to them.   A phase I have watched my sisters endure for what seems like an eternity. A phase I am simultaneously excited and frightened to enter.  Today was a big day.

Here are the video highlights of the big game (Tate is #1).  They don't officially keep score in this league, but our team, the Ninjas, beat the Wolverines at least 7 to 0.  Tate scored two goals.



And for the record, I am not sure who that obnoxious woman is - the one hollering endlessly at Tate. Next week I am going to tell her to keep it down.  Or maybe I should take it easy on her.  Maybe she is entering a new phase . . . .

Tonight's gonna be a good night

We all know Tate can sing, but did you know he can also dance?

Snow Day - Part 2!

In all we ended up getting 9+ inches of snow. According to the news, it was the highest single day of snowfall ever recorded. It was fun while it lasted, but it definitely made me thankful that I don't have to live in it for months on end. Here are some more photos and video as promised.

When you are not the first born . . .

I remember it clearly. It was 3 months after Tate was born. I was in Utah visiting family and showing off our latest addtition. While at my parents house, my mom suggested we pull out some baby pictures of me to see if Tate held any resemblence to his mother (though it was very clear that he looked EXACTLY like his father). She said, "I found a box of photos the other day that had lots of baby photos in it. I know exactly where it is." So, we went the find the box of photos. She pulled out the box, rifled through it for a moment, mumbling under her breath "no, that one is brooke. . . brooke . . . another brooke . . . ". Finally, she pulled one out and said "Look! Here's one of you." I took the photo, flipped it over to see the date 1971 (5 years before my birth), and said "no, mom. This is Brooke, too." We found exactly one photo of me as a baby in that large box of pictures. Now, I don't hold any ill will for my parents on this, but I did make a promise to myself at that time that I would be different. I would have many photos of the younger siblings. This is the digital age and it is much easier now to do this. Not to mention the fact that I have a 4 cameras of varying sizes and uses. . . . and I thought I was doing pretty good, that is until I pulled out all the video footage I have of Tate as a baby (5 full tapes, 30-60 minutes each), compared to Coy (about 20 minutes, mixed in with 40 minutes of Tate). Ugh! Sorry Coy, I promise it is not because we love you any less . . . .That being said, here is some video of Coy and all his tricks at 17 months.

Decemferb is Here!

This is what daddies are good for . . . .

Dads are good for lots of things . . . demonstrating the proper mechanics of a golf swing, teaching the differences between a front end loader and a steam roller, building forts and awesome race tracks, fixing things around the house, taking out the trash . . . you get the point. But at our house, I am sure it could be argued that THIS is the best thing about dad.

Warning - not for the weak of heart.

Gratitude daily . . .

Gratitude daily . . . I found a random SD card, stuck it in my computer, and found this . . . an instant smile

Some kids have imaginary friends . . .

Mine has an imaginary computer that makes food. At least, I think that is what it does. Check it out for yourself.

I took this video the first night the "lation computer" made it's appearance. At the time, I had no idea how important this computer would be. It has been a daily fixture in the house ever since. It's location changes frequently, and you have to be very careful that you DON'T SIT ON IT.

Boo! It's October . . . .

The big 1st birthday bash

As we all know, all of the firsts in the first year of a baby's life are anticipated, tracked, asked about by strangers, worried about by the mother, and always celebrated by everyone. And the first birthday is supposed to be the biggest of the celebrations, right? Right. And there are certain things that MUST HAPPEN on this first birthday, right? Right.

The birthday boy will be well behaved, happy, and healthy, right? Wrong.
The birthday boy will smile and laugh as a bunch of people stand around him,
singing a strange song, STARING RIGHT at him. The birthday boy will eat the cake that his mother spent hours decorating just for him and will smear it all over his face and clothes and everyone will laugh and "ahh" at how cute it is, the mother will get all the photos she wants of the birthday boy covered in the cake, and all the time his mother spent decorating said cake will be made worth it, right? Wrong.
And the father of the birthday will not accidentally dump said cake on the floor, right? Wrong.

Despite all the mishaps, the party was a success! We had a great time. The kids had a great time bouncing in the bounce house and getting hosed down by Brandon, uh, I mean playing in the pool.

Coy got a much needed nap and woke up in a much better mood. Though, when we offered him a cupcake, he was only slightly more interested than the first time around. But we did manage to capture a few photos of him with some icing on his face AND tears in his eyes.
So what that it didn't turn out perfectly? At least we have a good story. We will chalk this one up to making memories.

And there was one highlight for Coy, he got a cool new swing out of the whole mess, and he loves it.

Playing in the tub

The other night I put the boys in the tub and walked out of the bathroom for a minute to grab some towels. As I was coming back into the bathroom, I heard hysterical laughing from Coy. When I got into the bathroom, I found Tate playing this creative game of peek-a-boo. By the time I returned with the camera, the laughter was not quite so hysterical, but I managed to catch a bit of the action and thought I would share it. . . . and don't worry, Coy is getting pretty good at his "tuck and roll" move. He can do it now and hardly get his face wet. He may have a future in water sports.

First words

Some might argue that these to do not count as a first words, but I am pretty sure that sometimes when he says this, he is actually referring to me.


And occassionally, when the dogs come near him he says "a dah".

Whatever -- I am counting them as the first words

Hey! There's no circus around here

Tate has a favorite story called "Frank was a Monster Who Wanted to Dance". We have read this story so many times that he knows it, and can recite it, word for word, with or without the book. When he uses the book, he knows exactly which words go with which pages. Subsequently, I know it and can recite it word for word, with or without the book. I decided I wanted to record him reading it so I could forever capture the way he says things like "one-eyed glance" (phoenetically - gla-yance) and "I might be a monster, but man can I da-yance". What I didn't know was that I would also capture the first time he busts out his new phrase. A phrase for which I have no idea where he learned it, and from the best I can decipher, means "Momma, stop helping me with the words"

What do you think it means?

More Coy giggles

There are three things that can found in our house everyday: Tate singing, Coy giggling, and kids screaming. Since the singing has already been widely covered and no one in thier right mind opts to listen to screaming, here is some recent footage of Coy doing what he does best - smiling and giggling. I challenge you to try to keep a straight face while watching this - no smiling or giggling yourself. It is impossible. No one can resist the charm of a laughing baby.

Will he need therapy for this later?

This may only be funny to those who have spent a considerable amount of time around a breast pump . . . . It happened like this: I walked into my bedroom to find him sitting on the bed doing this. I immediately turned around, knowing the video camera was on the kitchen counter. Listen carefully at the end of the video when he does a perfect rendition of the "song of the pump".



"Oooo-waah, oooo-waah" -- makes me giggle everytime I see it.