School Days

Well school has started again. I am a little late writing about it. I had some sadness the first couple days with Nathan going. He isn't even in kindergarten yet so I don't know how next year is going to go :)
He is going everyday this year since we are starting our own business. This is very exciting to him, for me not so much . He loves to learn and loves the schedule so he likes it being like "real" school. We also had to switch schools this year because the other one was just to far away to drive every single day. It took over an hour and a half of driving and it just didn't make sense. I loved his old school and teachers so much . Through this whole process I have realized something about myself....... I do not do well with change! ha ha.
Luckily the boys dont take after me or Kyle on this one and have jumped right in to their new school and friends.
Nathans teachers name is Mrs. Westbrook and she is great. There are also two teachers aides that are just as sweet. I really couldn't have asked for anything more. He has come home with tons of great projects they have done and it is only the second week of school. He has already made new friends and has gotten some great notes written home about his great manners and behavior.
Nolan is only going Tuesdays and Thursdays for now. They didn't have an opening in the 5 day a week class for him . I am very thankful because I just don't know if I could have handled that. He had a great first day. When we went back the next week he kept telling me that he wanted to go bye bye and started crying :( I think that one of the other little ones crying upset him . I feel so bad for those teachers because you can see the domino effect once one gets upset.
He has gotten into the grove of things and has no problem going now. He tells me every morning morning when we are walking in " Mommy , I go to playground " . He really loves that playground. His teachers names are Mrs. Norma and Mrs. Cathy. They are very sweet ladies and you can tell Nolan already has them wrapped around his finger. When I got to pick him up every one of the kids are sleeping on their napmats except you know who. He hasn't slept one time and just wanders around playing while the others are sleeping. I think these sweet ladies are going to have to lay down the law with Mr. Nolan. I am curious to see how this will play out :)
All in all it has started out to be a great year and I know these guys are going to learn so much. The only problem is they are growing up to fast.



Yes, Nolan has a black eye for his first day of school. He fell off the potty a few nights ago and bumped his head on the stool and toilet paper holder. Only Nolan.......

Cabo Time

We just got back from a week in Cabo with Mimi and Papa and boy are we tired!
Both boys did great on the plane and couldn't wait to get there. When we finally arrived we realized they had lost Nolan's bag! Oh no. We went ahead and left our info and checked into the hotel. They told us it was probably on the next flight and not to worry.
Well the next flight had come and gone and still no bag. Poor Nolan had to swim in Nathans underwear on our balcony. They wanted to go to the big pool but I couldn't take him in his underwear. That night when daddy and papa got back from golf we headed to the main store in town , Wal Mart to pick up Nolan supplies. First thing on the list was swim shorts so he could play in the water. Well they had swim shorts but not the ones we are used to . They were borderline speedos and ADORABLE! Nolan looked like a Baywatch Beauty in his hot pants.
The next day we headed to the pool and wore ourselves out. The boys had a great time just playing in the water most days.One of Nathan's favorite things about Mexico is the swim up bar in the pool . At random times he will say things like " MOmmy, do you remember that pool with seats in it where you get smoothies ? That is fun." So of course had to stop at the swim up bar and get my little man his fancy smoothie. We went a few times throughout the week and he thought he was so cool sitting at the bar. Him and Daddy would sit there for a bit just hanging out drinking their drinks. It was so cute to see them chatting it up at the bar.
That day when Daddy got in from golf we headed to the beach. The waves on this side of the beach are pretty strong and loud. Both boys didn't like it last year and they didn't like it this time either. Nathan picked up some shells and threw some rocks with Daddy but that was it. Nolan wouldn't even get close to the water. We figured we should just head back to the pool and play some more.
The next day we did our usual swim in the morning and in the afternoon we went to swim with Dolphins. We had done this last year and Nathan had asked again so we signed em up. This one was a different place that was actually in the ocean which I thought was pretty neat. We got there and walked out to the pier where the dolphins are . When we got there both boys were a little scared but Daddy jumped in with Nolan. Nathan stayed on the pier for a bit to make sure it was okay. Once he was comfortable he hoped in and had a blast. Our dolphins name was Shelly and she was really pretty!
Nolan had a great time splashing with the dolphin but after that he wasn't really amused anymore.
Nathans favorite part was throwing a basketball to Shelly and her bringing it back. When we were done playing and petting the dolphin we loaded up and headed out to eat.
We went to this restaurant called the Office. It was the perfect place for us. I wish we would have eaten here earlier in the trip so we could have gone more than once. It was right one the beach. Our table was seriously maybe 10 feet from the water. The weather was beautiful and had such a nice breeze . Vendors would walk up and down the beach which I thought was fun . The boys spotted a man selling batman and spiderman masks! How could you resist such fun treats so we talked daddy into buying them. They put them on and thought they were so cool. I am pretty sure Nathan thinks no one knows it is him when he has it on. After we ate our delicious food Nathan and I headed out to the water. He actually had a great time playing in the water here since the waves were so gentle. Nolan still sat at the table not wanting to get in. Daddy finally got him to run around in the water with him . After about 10 minutes he slipped free and fell face first into the water. Now we had a soaking wet Nolan full of sand! ha hahaa. He didn't care about the fall and I am pretty sure he was happy to take his shirt off. When we got back to the hotel the boys were pooped from such a busy day and passed out right away.
The next day was our last day here. We tried to squeeze in a little more beach and pool time before we had to head to the airport. I thought the boys would have fallen asleep on the plane but they never did but by the time we got home that night it was after nine and their eyes were barely staying open. I think Nolan feel asleep before he even hit the pillow.
We had such a fun time as usual and Nathan has already asked when we can go back to his Mexico house.

Nolan drinking his morning smoothie on the balcony.

Nathan cracks me up. This pool is the one on the balcony that is maybe 3 feet deep. He insisted on floats and goggles.

Brenham

Last week while playing at Mimi and Papa’s house Papa had a great idea. He wanted to go to the Blue Bell factory with the boys!! Sounded great to me, for some reason we have never been . Can you believe that!? We tried to go one time when my parents were visiting but we had no clue they didn’t do tours all the time. We pretty much went to an empty building.
YEsterday we headed out to Brenham. Papa had his friend give us a special VIP tour. The boys were really interested in watching all the machines and how the ice cream was made. Nolan kept yelling “Ice Cream Truck” at every machine. He then saw a picture of popsicles on the wall and it was over. From that point on all he would yell was Popsicle , Popsicle
Nathan was very serious as usual taking it all in. He had a great time. When Mr. Steve tried to take us behind the scenes Nathan panicked. He doesn't like loud noises and it was pretty loud with all those big machines. Nolan saw Nathan panic so of course he decided he should too. We quickly headed back out to the quiet area we had just left!
After the tour we got to pick out an ice cream treat. Nathan picked a crazy looking concoction called Krazy Kookie Dough. It was all different colors and quite bright. I snuck a taste and have to say it was really good!
Nolan split butter pecan with me and pretty much sampled everyone else's.
When the ice cream was gone Mimi took the boys into the gift shop and bought them all kinds of goodies.
When we left Blue Bell Papa drove us to the Brenham airport to eat. It was so neat! They had an old time diner where the girls wore poodle skirts. The best part of it all were the planes everywhere. As we were leaving one was getting ready to take off. We got to watch it start up the engines, drive down the runway and take off! The boys were so excited to watch it and Nathan said that was the first plane he had ever seen fly like that!
After the airport the boys were pretty pooped. Papa took us through town to show us the old Blue Bell factor where he worked when he first started. WE also drove by a neat fire truck museum that had an old fire truck carriage out front from the late eighteen hundreds.
The boys had a blast and first thing this morning Nathan was up wearing his blue bell had serving up ice cream to everyone. Nolan has been running around telling everyone about ice cream trucks every since.

San Antonio with our Friends.

A couple of weeks ago our friends Claire and Madeleine came into town! They were hanging out in San Antonio with family and invited us to come visit. You know our answer was YES! We loaded up and headed out to San Antonio . The boys did a great job on the way and it seemed like a pretty fast trip ( except for the 45 minute wrong way I went ) .
We meet the girls at Claire’s grand parents house where we swam and meet our other friends Hogan and Henry!
The kids had such a great time. Nathan and Claire always pair up and seem like they haven't missed a beat. After swimming and visiting we headed to the hotel to check in and get settled. The room was very nice and had a living room and bedroom separated by doors. It was perfect for my guys who like to have their own space. I put Nolan’s crib in the living room and locked all the doors. Nathan and I went into the bedroom where he fell asleep pretty quickly. Around midnight I heard the front door trying to be opened . I jumped up and guess what I saw? Nolan had gotten up and decided to leave the room. Thank goodness I know him and made sure the top lock was locked! I had a feeling my little escape artist would try to break free. The next night we switched rooms. Nate and Nolan slept in the bedroom and I did border patrol in the living room.

The next day our friends came to the hotel to hang out with us. They had a nice little children's pool that they could all run around in . Even the little ones got in on the fun and had a great time. We spent the rest of the day with our friends and then Claire and Madeleine came back to our room to rest with us. Katherine is a real baby whisperer! ha ha ha . She somehow managed to get NOlan and Madeleine to sleep in the same bed. While she was working her magic Nathan and Claire relaxed and watched a movie. Nathan even gave Claire his Holly Shiftwell car. If you know Nathan that is a pretty big deal!
After everyone was well rested we meet back up at this fun restaurant that had a huge play area for the kids. Needless to say after all the running and playing their was no battling at night time.
The last day we decided to meet up at the zoo. The kids were so excited. The moms not so much..... it had to be at least 120 degrees! ha ha ha. The boys had a great time hanging out with their friends and seeing the animals. When it was time to go it was very sad. I always feel so bad at the end of our little trips. Nathan doesn’t really know what is going on until after we leave but poor Claire does. Her little eyes get watery and I about loose it. :( I told Nathan we can go visit her this winter when it snows at her house! He was very excited and told me all the different pieces of clothing he would need for the snow. Nathan has already drawn a picture to mail to Claire of them skiing on a mountain.


Claire made this picture for Nathan that he is holding in his hand. Soooo sweet! When we got home he showed daddy and it straight to his room for safe keeping.

Nay Nay's biggest fan.

After baseball season was over we decided to put Nathan in a few baseball classes to see if he wanted to keep up with it. His coaches name is Shane and Nathan really seems to like him. He has gotten really good at hitting and throwing!
The lesson starts at 6 so daddy rushes to meet us there from work. When he gets there Nolan pulls up a seat right next to him and cheers Nathan on . Every time he hits it Nolan yells " Good Job Nay Nay!" and will clap. It is so cute and sweet how proud he is of Nate. Nolan has picked up a lot about baseball from watching his big brother and always wants to play.

Slip and Slide.

This weekend for Fathers day we all went out to Mimi and Papa's house. The boys got to stay with them all weekend so on the way out daddy and I picked up a slip and slide for the boys to play on. It has been sooo hot out and the boys love to be outside so we figured this was the coolest way for them to be out in the heat. After lunch we set up the fun. Once it was all unfolded and the water was on neither Nate or Nolan really know how to slide. It is hard to tell them to just run and flop on it like superman. Daddy had to help out and pretty much ended up bowling them down the slide. It was so funny and they loved it! Nolan would go so fast and splash into the pool at the end. Nathan's long legs would flap around all over the place while he was sliding to the pool. It was so funny ad they had a blast. At one point everyone decided it just wasn't going fast enough and Mimi went inside and came out with cooking oil! ha ha hah a. (She looked for baby oil but didn't have any, the cooking oil wasn't her first choice.) By the time they were through they looked liked glistening little turkeys.
And yes Nolan is naked. We didn't remember to bring their swim shorts. We said oh they can just go in their undies , well while we were putting sunscreen on Nate, Nolan came running out in his birthday suit ready to go!

Our new friend.

We have a new friend in this house!
Last night Daddy was outside, he came in to tell me to get a cup and come look at this? I walked out and there was the cutest lizard that looked almost see through. He was pretty darn adorable. Kyle decided we needed to catch him so we could show Nathan in the morning when he woke up. We quickly grabbed Nathans bug catcher ( I know a bug and lizard are totally different. he he he. ) and spent the next 15 minutes catching this little guy. We put him some grass and water in the lady bug house but within 10 minutes felt bad and had to make a bigger home for this guy. We got a huge plastic container that some pretzels came in and poked holes in the top. It was midnight by this point and that is all I could come up with . We looked him up online and he is a gecko. It said they make great pets and are easy to care for. hmmmmmmmmm...................

This morning when we woke up I showed Nathan this cool guy. He thought he was very neat and was even worried about him being in the cage. I let him know he was totally fine and daddy planned on getting him a bigger home :)
Nolan then got a look at the "Izzzard". He reallllly likes him . He kept yelling at anyone who would get to close and say " My Izzzard!". If Nolan was a bit more calm I think it would be really fun to let the lizard sleep in his room but we all know that poor lizard would be running wild in that room the first night.
Daddy and Nathan headed to the pet store to get this guy some crickets to eat. We had read when they are little they eat 3-4 a day and he hadnt had antyhing since last night.
Well they came back with a new lizard aquarium, a heat light, some fancy lizard mulch bedding . water dishes and the crickets! This little lizard has a nice set up!
We still have not come up with a name and he is still on the kitchen counter but I think he is going to fit in just fine with this family. :)


He is cute right